(I'm back, AND THIS CHAPTER'S WORTH THE WAIT. Now, let's let the Narrator recap last chapter's events so we can get started.)
In our last chapter, Claire faced Team Rocket, and managed to not only save all the gym's Pokemon, but send Team Rocket blasting off! Soon after, Ash managed to uncover the identity of the mysterious Sniper, and then began a battle against Porygon-Z on the zero-gravity arena, and lost Glalie almost instantly! Can Ash still win this? Let's find out.
(Great work. NOW LET'S GET THIS CHAPTER UNDERWAY!)
The Ultimate Battle
Chapter Five: A Pokemon's Pain
"C'mon, Ash!" May cheered. "You can beat that thing!"
"Not likely." Claire said. "Porygon-Z are often used for space exploration since zero-gravity has no effect on them. In this arena, it's at its strongest."
"We'll see." Ash said in a tone of pure determination as he placed another Pokeball in the harness. The Pokemon was released and the Pokeball was ejected back to Ash. "I choose Donphan!" he said, gesturing toward the Armor Pokemon currently in the arena.
Michael shrugged. "Eh, it's your funeral." He said.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Max yelled.
"You'll see soon enough." Michael replied.
"This round will be Donphan vs. Porygon-Z on the zero-gravity arena." Alex announced as the background of Donphan's picture lit up. "Let the battle begin!"
"Donphan, use Take Down!" Ash shouted.
"Dondon." Donphan replied. It moved its feet, trying to sprint forward, but just kept floating and rotating in place. It looked highly distressed. Michael, Claire, Alex, Raichu, and even Porygon-Z seemed to sweatdrop at the sight of this.
"What's wrong with Donphan?" May asked, concerned.
"Zero-gravity makes things particularly stressful for Ground- and Flying-types." Michael explained. "They can't tell up from down, which leaves them very confused."
"Then try a Hyper Beam, Donphan!" Ash commanded.
"Don." Donphan said with a nod. As its random rotation allowed it to face Porygon-Z momentarily, Donphan opened its mouth and fired a thin, yellow-orange beam.
"Dodge it." Michael said nonchalantly.
"Z." Porygon-Z said, lazily moving upward as Donphan continued to rotate down, the beam moving with it.
"Nice work." Michael said. "Now use Lock-On!"
"Po-ry-gon." The Virtual Pokemon said as it once again located and placed a target on its slowly moving opponent in its mind's eye.
"Now hit it with Solarbeam!" Michael commanded.
"Po-ry-gon-Z." Porygon-Z said, its body staying put as its head rotated to follow Donphan's movements. A ball of green energy began to form over the bump on top of Porygon-Z's head.
"Hold on." Max said. "How can it be using Solarbeam? We're underground!"
"There may not be any sun," Brock explained. "But the bright lights on the ceiling work just as well."
"Exactly." Michael agreed. "All right, Porygon-Z," he said, returning to the battle. "Fire away!"
"Po-ry-gon-Z." it said as it fired a beam from the energy orb directly at Donphan.
"Donphan can't dodge," Ash said. "But it can still defend. Donphan," he called. "Use Defense Curl!"
Donphan nodded and curled up just as the Solarbeam hit. Even in Donphan's defensive state, though, the attack still did massive damage as it sent Donphan back into a wall. Donphan bounced off and collided with another wall, then bounced off and hit another, and another.
"What's going on?" May asked.
"Without gravity, there's nothing to slow Donphan down." Claire explained. "It'll just keep bouncing around and around until an outside force acts upon it strongly enough."
"I've gotta find a way to stop Donphan!" Ash thought as he watched Donphan bounce around. "Wait," he realized. "Maybe I don't!"
"Donphan," he shouted. "Keep going with Rollout!"
"Dondon!" Ash could hear Donphan say as it began to spin faster as it moved, making it look even more like a wheel than before. It ricocheted off the wall and into the next one, then bounced off the next one even faster, and the next one even faster than that. Everyone watched as Donphan continued to bounce and pick up speed.
"Perfect!" Brock observed. "Now Donphan's got some control over its movement, and since Rollout gains more and more momentum the longer it's used, Donphan'll just keep getting faster."
"Plus it's going too fast for Lock-On," Max added. "And Conversion 2 is useless against an attack this strong!"
Porygon-Z's head literally swiveled in every possible direction, watching Donphan as it continued to pick up speed. "Z-Z-Z-Z-Z!" it exclaimed, its head and "wings" popping outward in an anime-style expression of shock just before Donphan hit it and uncurled, hitting a wall and stopping its speedy movements with its less streamlined shape.
Porygon-Z, meanwhile, was still floating, all right, but on its back, clearly unconscious.
"Porygon-Z is unable to battle!" Alex declared as the picture of the Virtual Pokemon went dark. "Victory for this round goes to Donphan!"
May, Max, Brock, and Pikachu cheered as Ash and Michael recalled their Pokemon, the background of Donphan's picture going dark as they did.
"Clever move, Ash." Michael laughed. "Using the power of Porygon-Z's attack against it." He sighed. "How often we give our opponents the very tool with which they defeat us. Well," he said, perking up. "Time to set up the next battlefield."
Michael hit several more buttons on his podium. The walls and ceiling slid back into the floor and were replaced by the original arena.
"It's just a regular battlefield?" Ash summarized.
"Kind of a letdown after the last four." Brock commented.
"True," Michael agreed. "That's why I'm setting a special rule."
"Will both trainers please report to me?" Alex requested. Michael and Raichu hopped down instantly, while Ash and Pikachu stared at her for a moment before climbing down.
"So, what's this special rule?" Ash asked.
"Intense." Michael said with a smile, his Raichu nodding in agreement.
"Here," Alex said, handing them each a metal collar with flashing colored lights (red for Michael, blue for Ash). "Put these on."
"Why?" Ash asked, holding it up.
"It's one of my greatest tests." Michael explained. "You see, in this round, the trainer feels all the pain the Pokemon feels."
"What!?" Ash, May, Max, and Brock exclaimed.
"No human could last feeling what a Pokemon does in battle!" Brock argued. "They aren't built for it!"
"You're right, Brock." Michael said. "Humans do have a much lower threshold of pain than Pokemon. Let me clarify: The trainer feels pain proportionate to what their Pokemon feels."
"I still don't get it." Ash said.
"Let me explain." Alex said. "You see, after you put on these collars, every time you select a new Pokemon, one of these will be affixed to it." She explained, pulling out two small computer chips with flashing lights matching the collars.
"What're those?" Ash asked nervously.
"These chips, once attached, cannot be broken or removed by anything other than me or a Pokeball's recall mechanism, and will synchronize with a Pokemon's brain waves." She elaborated. "When the Pokemon feels pain, the chip will transmit a signal to the collar, which will deliver an electric shock with a voltage corresponding to the amount of pain the Pokemon feels."
"In other words," Michael simplified. "When the Pokemon feels pain, you get shocked. The more pain it feels, the higher the voltage."
"That's barbaric!" Brock shouted.
"Is it?" Michael asked. "I think it's the perfect way to show a trainer why they should do all they can to protect their Pokemon in battle. Besides," he added. "It's not like the shocks can cause permanent injury, or, heaven forbid, kill. Not humans or Pokemon, anyway."
"And to even the odds," Alex said. "Michael's voltage will be higher than Ash's, and when a trainer's Pokemon faints, the trainer will be fully healed for the next round. If a trainer simply switches Pokemon, though, they will not be healed."
"Healed by what?" May asked.
"Allow me to answer that." Claire replied as she tossed a Pokeball from her belt, causing yet another new Pokemon to appear. This one looked a lot like Chansey, but bigger and with lots of curls, fringes, and feathers all over its body.
May held up her Pokedex and scanned the new Pokemon. "Blissey," it said. "The Happiness Pokemon. It is said that anyone who eats its egg temporarily becomes kind and polite to everyone."
"A Blissey?" Max repeated, sounding surprised.
"All Joy women start with a fully-trained nurse Chansey." Claire explained. "What they do with it is up to them. Now, Blissey," she instructed. "You know what to do."
"Blissey." It said with a nod as it ran over next to Alex.
"Now that we've answered that," Michael said. "I have one more rule: If a trainer takes off their collar or passes out, they automatically forfeit."
"That's two rules." Max stated.
"It's a two-parter." Michael sighed, rolling his eyes. "Anyway," he continued, turning to Ash. "Do you understand the conditions?" Ash nodded. "Good. Do you accept?"
Ash paused for a moment. "Yes." He finally said.
"Okay." Michael said. "Also, I'm legally required to ask: Do you have a pacemaker?"
"No." Ash said.
"All right," Alex said. "You may return to your podiums."
Ash and Michael nodded and quickly obeyed, with Pikachu and Raichu following suit.
"Put on your collars." Alex said.
Michael nodded and snapped the collar open, then placed it around his neck and snapped it shut. Ash mimicked this action and yelped in shock when he was done. "Yikes!" he yelled.
"What?" Michael asked urgently. "Is it faulty? Did it shock you?"
"It's...cold!" Ash exclaimed, causing everyone to do an anime fall.
"This might be over quicker than I thought." Claire said, sweatdropping.
"Maybe." Michael said. "Now, one last thing before we start: Raichu, you know what to do."
"Rai." Raichu said, squeezing its cheeks and delivering a quick, weak Thunderbolt to its own trainer.
"What was that for?" Ash exclaimed.
"I always have Raichu do that before I start this kind of match." Michael explained. "It gets my body used to the shocks, so the sheer surprise won't finish me off. You might want to do it yourself."
"Good idea." Ash said. "Pikachu, let me have it!"
"Chu?" Pikachu asked, confused.
"Don't worry," he assured. "I can take it."
Pikachu sighed and squeezed its cheeks, hitting Ash with a more powerful attack than intended.
"Okay," Ash said, twitching slightly. "I'm ready."
"Then it's time to choose our Pokemon." Michael announced. "Easy for me. Pokeball, go!"
Michael tossed another Pokeball into the arena and another Pokemon appeared. This one looked like a tall, blue, muscular alligator (or possibly a crocodile) standing on two legs with a red fringe going down its back. It was baring its teeth (which were enormous, by the way) and it had a highly fierce expression on its face.
"I choose Feraligatr!" he announced.
Ash took out his Pokedex to size up his opponent. "Feraligatr," it said. "The Big Jaw Pokemon. Its sharp teeth are aligned perfectly. Once this Pokemon bites down on its opponent, it is 100 percent impossible to escape against Feraligatr's will."
"This isn't good." Brock said. "Feraligatr is definitely not the kind of Pokemon you wanna face in this kind of match."
"Or anywhere, really." May added, looking a little scared.
"Select your Pokemon, Ash." Michael said.
"Okay," Ash replied, pulling out a Pokeball. "I choose Donphan!"
Ash tossed the Pokeball into the arena and the Armor Pokemon reappeared in a flash of light.
"Donphan?" Max repeated. "Why would Ash choose a Ground-type against a Water-type?"
"I'll bet he's counting on Donphan's tough hide to protect him." Brock told him.
"This round will be Donphan vs. Feraligatr with the condition of shared pain!" Alex announced as Feraligatr's picture appeared and Donphan's picture's background lit up as Blissey grabbed the chips from Alex, ran out, and placed the chips on the Pokemon's foreheads before returning to Claire's side. "Let the battle begin!"
"Donphan," Ash commanded. "Use Rollout!"
"Don, don." Donphan said, curling up and rolling toward Feraligatr.
"Feraligatr, use Dragon Claw!" Michael ordered.
"Ga-tr." Feraligatr growled. Its clawed hand began to glow as it swiped low at Donphan and knocked it into the air, snapping it out of the Rollout cycle.
"Now finish it with Hydro Pump!" Michael yelled.
"Feraligatr." Feraligatr said before opening its mouth and firing a massive stream of water, striking Donphan square in the stomach!
Donphan howled, and Ash did, too, as the collar ran a powerful current through his body. It wasn't the high voltage that hurt, though. He had taken worse from Pikachu. This just felt so…unfamiliar.
Ash clung to the podium to avoid falling over until the pain finally stopped and Donphan slumped over, unconscious.
"Donphan is unable to battle!" Alex announced. "Victory for this round goes to Feraligatr!"
"You okay, Ash?" Michael asked, concerned.
"Yeah," Ash said, pulling himself up and recalling Donphan, the chip falling to the floor as Donphan's picture went dark. "I'm okay."
"Then the match will continue!" Alex announced.
"Blissey," Claire said. "Help Ash out."
"Blissey." Blissey said cheerfully, climbing up onto Ash's podium. The egg in its pouch glowed for a minute before Blissey pulled it out, cracked it open and handed it to Ash.
"What's this?" Ash asked, carefully taking the egg.
"Blissey's Softboiled." Claire explained. "Drink it. It'll heal you." Seeing the look on his face, she added "What the Pokedex said only applies to undiluted eggs. This is totally safe."
Ash nodded and took a sip. It tasted delicious, very rich, sweet, and creamy. He drank the whole thing and stood up, fully rejuvenated before Blissey took the shell, magically repaired it, and placed it back in its pouch.
"Ready for the next round, Ash?" Michael asked.
"Ready!" Ash exclaimed, Pikachu cheering him on.
"Then choose your next Pokemon." Michael said.
Ash pulled out a Pokeball and tossed it into the arena. "I choose Sceptile!" he said as Sceptile appeared, leaning on one leg.
"This round will be Sceptile vs. Feraligatr with the condition of shared pain!" Alex declared as Sceptile's picture's background lit up and Blissey climbed down, grabbed the chip, affixed it to Sceptile's head and returned to Claire's side. "Let the battle begin!"
"Feraligatr, use Hydro Pump!" Michael ordered.
Feraligatr nodded and fired a stream of water at Sceptile.
"Sceptile, dodge it!" Ash yelled.
"Sceptile." Sceptile said with a nod, pressing off with one leg and leaping to the side. When it landed, though, a slight shock went through Ash's body.
"What was that?" Ash asked, shaking his head furiously.
"Sceptile's leg was injured in the battle with Sniper, Ash." Brock reminded. "Dodging attacks will only hurt it more."
"Exactly," Claire agreed. "And now its best chance (its speed) is useless."
"Recall Sceptile, Ash." Michael requested. "I don't want to see you get hurt."
Ash ignored him. "Sceptile," he ordered. "Use Bullet Seed!"
"Sceptile." It said, opening its mouth and firing a barrage of seeds at Feraligatr. "Scep, tile-tile-tile!"
"Feraligatr, defend with Dragon Claw!" Michael shouted.
"Gatr." Feraligatr said as it raised the now-glowing claw and batted the seeds away with minimal effort.
"Now use Hydro Pump!" Michael ordered.
"Feraligatr." It said as it fired another blast of water at its opponent.
"Dodge it, Sceptile!" Ash ordered.
Ash felt another shock as Sceptile leapt aside and landed on its bad leg.
"Switch out, Ash!" May implored. "You're going to hurt yourself!"
"No!" Ash shouted. "If Sceptile can take it, so can I!"
"That's the spirit!" Michael cheered. "But the question is: Can Sceptile take it? It'll never get close to Feraligatr on that leg, and its long-range attack is just too weak. What can it do?"
"Use a stronger attack." Ash said with a smirk. "Sceptile, use Solarbeam!"
"Sceptile." Sceptile said as it stood erect. The yellow knobs on its back glowed, harvesting light as a green ball of energy appeared in Sceptile's mouth.
"Solarbeam?" Michael repeated. "That would be powerful enough. Too bad it takes time to charge up. Feraligatr," he ordered. "Hit it with Hydro Pump!"
"Feraligatr." It said, aiming another stream at Sceptile.
"Use your tail to jump!" Ash shouted.
Sceptile nodded and slammed its tail against the ground, pushing it high into the air.
"Follow it, Feraligatr!" Michael commanded.
Feraligatr nodded and turned its head up, the Hydro Pump right on course to hit Sceptile.
Luckily, the lights were brighter near the ceiling, allowing Sceptile to finish the Solarbeam sooner. "Sceptile." It said, launching the attack, which began to plow through the Hydro Pump.
"Switch to Hydro Cannon!" Michael ordered. "And hurry!"
"Gatr." His Pokemon agreed. The water shooting from its mouth disappeared. In its place, a deep blue ball of energy appeared in Feraligatr's mouth.
"What's that?" May asked, holding up her Pokedex.
"Hydro Cannon," it said. "This move it widely believed to be the most powerful Water-type attack. The Pokemon concentrates its energy into a single attack and fires it at the opponent, leaving its energy drained moments afterward. There have been less than 200 recorded instances of a Pokemon learning this attack."
"Now, fire!" Michael shouted, pointing at Sceptile.
"Feraligatr." The Big Jaw Pokemon replied, firing an indigo beam from the orb directly at Sceptile. The two beams collided in midair, but within a second the Hydro Cannon plowed through the Solarbeam and hit Sceptile square in the face.
Ash screamed in agony as the collar sent him pain the likes of which he'd never felt, and it got even worse when Sceptile hit the floor and passed out. Ash closed his eyes and fell over when the pain finally subsided.
"Sceptile is unable to battle!" Alex announced as Sceptile's picture went dark. "Victory for this round goes to Feraligatr!"
Claire, Blissey, Raichu, and Feraligatr cheered, while everyone else just stared at Ash. He was slumped over, breathing, but not moving.
"He's out, Alex." Michael said, shaking his head.
"Ash is unable to continue." She sighed. "Victory goes to—."
"No!" Ash yelled, Pikachu grabbing him as he struggled to stand up. "I won't give up! I've come this far, and I won't stop now! I'll beat you, Michael, and earn that badge!"
"Now that's more like it!" Michael said. "Okay, Blissey, help him out."
As Ash recalled Sceptile (the chip falling to the floor again), Blissey scrambled up to his podium and presented him with another Softboiled. Ash gulped it down eagerly and stood tall.
"Ready for the next round, Ash?" Michael asked when he was finished.
"Definitely!" Ash said, staring at Michael.
"Then select your Pokemon." He replied.
Ash smirked and tossed another Pokeball into the arena, causing yet another Pokemon to appear. This one was a tall, orange, dragon-like Pokemon that's already appeared in this fic.
"Good thing I still had its Pokeball." Ash thought.
"I choose Charizard!" he announced, Charizard roaring in agreement.
"This round will be Charizard vs. Feraligatr with the condition of shared pain!" Alex declared as Blissey ran down, placed the chip on Charizard's forehead, and rushed back to Claire's side. "Let the battle begin!"
"Feraligatr, start this off with Hydro Pump!" Michael ordered.
"Feraligatr." It replied, shooting a jet of water at Charizard.
"Charizard, fly up and dodge it!" Ash yelled.
Charizard grunted in response, spread out its wings, and lifted itself high into the air, avoiding the attack.
"Follow it, Feraligatr!" Michael shouted.
Feraligatr nodded and turned upward, aiming the Hydro Pump up again.
"Charizard," Ash cried. "Try to cancel it out with Flamethrower!"
Charizard opened its mouth and shot a wave of fire at the oncoming attack. The Hydro Pump collided with it, but didn't slow down. It simply continued through the Flamethrower and struck Charizard in the face, causing Charizard to be blown back through the air as the collar sent another current through Ash's body.
"Charizard, spread out your wings!" Ash yelled, cringing from the pain.
Charizard nodded and opened its wings, creating drag and regaining control of its flight pattern.
"Nice move, Ash!" Brock cheered.
"You can do it!" May said.
"Now," Ash commanded. "Show Feraligatr your Dragon Rage!"
Charizard roared and opened its mouth as an orange ball of energy appeared within it. Finally, when it was the size of a softball, Charizard fired the attack at its opponent.
"Dragon Rage, huh?" Michael repeated. "Interesting, but it won't work. Feraligatr," he shouted. "Counterattack with Dragon Claw!"
As the attack neared, Feraligatr's claw began to glow again. Just as the energy ball was about to collide, Feraligatr raised its claw and batted it aside like a kitten with a ball of twine, though considerably less playfully.
"Now, Feraligatr," Michael commanded. "Go on the offensive with Hydro Pump!"
"Gatr." Feraligatr said confidently, firing another stream.
"If Charizard gets close enough, it can beat Feraligatr." Ash realized. "But that Hydro Pump is too dangerous to get near, and Flamethrower isn't strong enough to get through it! Guess I've got only one chance!"
"Charizard, counter with Overheat!" Ash commanded.
Charizard grunted in response. As the Hydro Pump neared, Charizard opened its mouth and released another wave of fire, this one bigger and more wide-spread than the Flamethrower, which collided with the Hydro Pump and easily overpowered it and continued onward toward Feraligatr to deliver serious damage!
Feraligatr roared and Michael cringed as a powerful shock went through his body.
"Nice move, Ash!" Michael said, shaking it off. "But it won't work again!"
"It doesn't have to!" Ash countered. "Now's your chance, Charizard!" Ash yelled. "Fly in and grab Feraligatr!"
Charizard grunted and swooped down toward Feraligatr with its arms out.
"Feraligatr, Hydro Pump, now!" Michael ordered.
"Feraligatr!" Feraligatr roared, sounding very angry as it shot another Hydro Pump when Charizard was about six feet away, sending the Flame Pokemon careening backwards through the air as another current coursed through Ash's body.
"It didn't work!" Max exclaimed, stating the obvious.
"Charizard'll never win if it can't get close to Feraligatr!" Brock said.
"That's Mikey's whole plan." Claire said with a smirk. "When in this type of battle, he protects his Pokemon as fully as possible. Feeling the Pokemon's pain is pretty good incentive to avoid unnecessary damage."
"Exactly," Michael agreed as Charizard spread its wings and came to a halt. "And now, Feraligatr," he ordered. "Another Hydro Pump!"
"Gatr." It said with a very toothy grin before shooting another Hydro Pump at Charizard.
"Charizard, Overheat!" Ash yelled.
"Will that work?" May asked turning to Brock. "Overheat does get weaker every time it's used, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, it does." Brock replied. "But even the second time it's used it's still more powerful than Flamethrower. It probably won't do damage, but it might still protect Charizard."
Ash nodded in agreement with this statement as Charizard produced another wave of fire, considerably smaller than the last one just before the attack hit. For a second they pushed against each other, but eventually the Hydro Pump won out and hit Charizard in the face.
The collar delivered another painful shock as Charizard swerved upside-down and began hurtling toward the floor. Just as Charizard attempted to stop, though, Ash yelled "No, don't stop! Speed up!"
Charizard nodded and folded up its wings, speeding headfirst toward the floor.
"Speeding up the fall?" Michael analyzed. "He's up to something. Well, it won't work!"
"Feraligatr," he shouted. "Finish it with Hydro Pump!"
"Feraligatr!" the Big Jaw Pokemon shouted, firing yet another jet of water. It didn't hit, though. Charizard was moving so fast that the attack missed by a mile!
"Follow it!" Michael ordered.
Feraligatr obeyed and turned its head toward Charizard. The attack followed it, but was always a couple of feet behind.
"Turn and head for Feraligatr!" Ash instructed as Charizard neared the ground.
Charizard grunted, spread its wings and arced off, continuing by flying belly-up toward Feraligatr less than six inches above the floor, the Hydro Pump just a foot behind it.
"Grab it and take it up!" Ash yelled.
Charizard nodded. As it came to Feraligatr, Charizard reached out and grabbed it around the knees and tail and lifted it off the floor before shooting upward, carrying Feraligatr upside-down the whole way.
"Charizard finally got in close!" May cheered.
"Now's your chance to finish it, Ash!" Brock coached.
"You heard 'em, Charizard!" Ash said with a grin. "Give Feraligatr your Seismic Toss!"
Charizard smiled and began to fly up and down in a curved, circular pattern, getting faster and faster with each rotation.
"Now toss it!" Ash ordered.
"Crunch, Feraligatr!" Michael screamed.
Just as Charizard threw Feraligatr down with all its strength, Feraligatr bit down on the middle of Charizard's tail, dragging Charizard down with it and causing both Pokemon to crash to the ground with excessive force and a layer of dust to cover the arena.
Both trainers howled in agony as the collars dealt them a level of pain beyond description.
"Who won?" Max asked.
"We'll see in a minute." Claire told him.
Sure enough, the dust quickly disappeared, and, to everyone's surprise, both Pokemon were still standing, or struggling to do so at least. The shock of the impact had caused Feraligatr to release Charizard's tail, and now the two Pokemon were sprawled out on opposite sides of the arena, staring each other down. Even more surprising, both Pokemon were surrounded by a glowing aura. Charizard's was bright red, while Feraligatr's was a cool blue.
"What's happening to Charizard and Feraligatr?" May asked.
"Blaze and Torrent." Brock replied.
"Blaze and Torrent?" May echoed.
"Some Fire-type Pokemon activate the Blaze ability when pushed to their limits in battle." Alex elaborated. "It gives them one last energy boost and increases the power of their Fire-type attacks. The same goes with Water-types and Torrent."
"Right," Michael said, still twitching from the pain. "And now that our Pokemon are too exhausted to move, the power of those special attacks will decide everything. And since Feraligatr's already proven that its special attacks are stronger than Charizard's, and Charizard's already used Overheat twice, it looks like this round is mi—what, what is it?" he asked, finally noticing Raichu poking him and pointing at Charizard.
Charizard was opening its mouth wide. Inside there was a ball of energy forming. It wasn't orange, like Dragon Rage, but the purest shade of crimson.
"What's that?" Max asked, staring at Charizard.
"I don't know!" Brock replied. "I've never seen anything quite like it!"
"Charizard learned Blast Burn!" Claire exclaimed.
"Blast Burn?" Ash repeated, holding up his Pokedex.
"Blast Burn," it said. "This move is widely believed to be the most powerful Fire-type attack. The Pokemon concentrates its energy into a single attack and fires it at the opponent, leaving its energy drained moments afterward. There have been less than 200 recorded instances of a Pokemon learning this attack."
"Amazing, Ash." Michael smirked, despite the pain. "No amount of experience is enough to learn Blast Burn. It can only be learned when a Pokemon knows it and its trainer are of one mind. You're truly a great trainer, Ash."
"Thanks," Ash responded. "But this battle's still on, and I plan to win!"
"Then I have a suggestion." Michael said. "Both of our Pokemon are down to the last of their energy. Why not use their most powerful attacks and see who comes out on top?"
"Sounds good to me!" Ash told him, Charizard and Feraligatr nodding in agreement as they stared each other down.
"All right then." Michael said. "Ready, Feraligatr?"
"Feraligatr!" Feraligatr roared.
"Ready, Charizard?" Ash asked.
Charizard grunted and nodded.
"Hydro Cannon!"
"Blast Burn!"
Charizard and Feraligatr opened their mouths. A blue ball of energy formed in Feraligatr's mouth, while a red one grew in Charizard's. When the ball was big enough, Feraligatr fired a blue beam directly at Charizard. At exactly the same time, Charizard shot a red beam at Feraligatr. Both trainers were shocked by their collars (possibly from old injuries, possibly from new ones) as the attacks collided and another layer of dust erupted over the field.
Everyone held their breath and waited for the outcome as the dust faded…
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The penultimate round is about to end! Who will come out on top? And even then, can Ash go all the way? Which Pokemon will he use? Which Pokemon will Michael use? When will I stop asking questions? Find out in the final (hey, I just answered that last question) chapter of The Ultimate Battle
(And once again I'VE PROVEN I'M A MASTER OF CLIFFHANGERS. So, who do you think will win this round, Charizard or Feraligatr? WELL, WHATEVER YOU THINK, BE SURE TO TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK IN LONG, NON-FLAMEY REVIEWS. 'Til next time!)