PokeStones of the Dead – Chapter Eleven

Lance's Gyarados landed in a heap at the side of the arena, before picking itself back up again slowly. The impact had clearly hurt it, and Temperance could almost taste victory – his Gyarados had proven his strength in a 1v1 battle, with no outside interference. Surely, they would become the Champion of Kanto soon. And as Lillette's Lapras shot a Thunderbolt at the weakened Gyarados, Temperance could almost visualise it critically hitting Lance's Pokemon. One down!

Or so he thought until Aerodactyl flew in front of the Thunderbolt, taking the blow for its partner. Aerodactyl was not a Ground Pokemon, it was in fact weak to the attack – but it was more suited to take the attack than Gyarados, as it was uninjured, and Gyarados' typing offered it totally no resistance against lightning. Why did Lance sacrifice so much HP from his Aerodactyl instead of letting Gyarados faint, and releasing Dragonite instead? As Lance's Gyarados recovered, and dived into the comparatively safer water, Aerodactyl flew back to the height of the ceiling, circling the arena. Lapras had returned to the water by now, and had to watch for attacks from both above and below.

Just as Temperance was about to order his Gyarados to enter the water to cover Lapras, Lance's Gyarados emerged from the water and used his own Taunt attack, causing Temperance's Gyarados to hover towards it in an attack. Temperance ordered a Wrap. His Gyarados is weaker than mine, I won it in a straight fight earlier, and now he's FORCING a repeat of that earlier situation?

Gyarados stopped hovering, and dropped its tail for the start of its Wrap attack – one that would surely end Gyarados' role in the battle. Before the blow could fall, however, the tables turned. Two multi-coloured beams hit Temperance's Gyarados squarely in the head, one from his opposite number, and one from Aerodactyl above. The two Hyper Beams hit Temperance's Gyarados in perfect tandem, and if that was not bad enough, the usual recharge time seemed to be much less than it should be. After Temperance's Gyarados hit the ground, knocked out, and Lapras shot a fatal Thunderbolt at the frozen, recharging Gyarados, Aerodactyl finished recharging and continued circling the arena. Two knocked out Gyarados were recalled.

He'll obviously use his signature Pokemon Dragonite, so who should I use? Shall I keep the dragon battle going and use Flygon? Houndoom can't stand up to a Dragonite, I think… and I would really fancy something aerial against Lance's two aerial Pokemon. Being bombarded from the air is not very high on my priority list. Flygon, I guess.

Temperance proved to be right, as Lance indeed released Dragonite as Temperance released Flygon. Taking to the skies immediately, the release of the two dragons signified the resuming of the match. Lillette, knowing that the aerial battle would be tough against two of Lance's Pokemon, started spamming Ice Beams and Thunderbolts from the ground, not with much precision or accuracy, but rather with the intention to create enough chaos to stop the two Pokemon from coordinating a team attack on Flygon.

This did not stump Aerodactyl, however, as the prehistoric Pokemon used its speed and agility to nimbly dodge all the bolts. Its path was directly towards Flygon, wings spread in a Wing Attack. Temperance watched its approach with horror – he had seen the power of its Wing Attack on Lapras.

"Flygon, dodge, Dragon Claw!"

Flygon simply stopped flapping its wings, and dropped downwards, before retaliating with a Dragon Claw. Unfortunately, Aerodactyl again used its demigod-like speed and avoided the worst of the riposte, taking only minor damage. What was worse came after that. Preoccupied with Aerodactyl, neither Temperance nor Lillette noticed Dragonite tightening its focus, paving the way for Flygon, still following Aerodactyl's flight, to be hit squarely on the jaw by Dragonite. The power of Focus Punch, in addition to the naturally insanely high attack power of Lance's Pokemon, almost caused Flygon to black out instantly.

Lillette, in desperation, asked Lapras for a Surf attack, the waves once again carrying her up to the top of the arena. However, this mode of attack had previously caused near concussion from Aerodactyl's Rock Head. However, simply releasing a Thunderbolt or Ice Beam on the Surf would be a total waste of energy – the beam could be dodged easily. Decisions…

"Lapras, Thunderbolt!"

Lapras aimed her Thunderbolt not at Lance's Pokemon, but at the water, electrifying it. Aerodactyl, weak to both water and electric attacks, would certainly get knocked out if the attack hit. Lapras then jumped off the Surf, and spread the water out with a Psychic attack. The main power of this Surf would come from the electricity, not the force of the waves.

The electrified Surf arced across the arena, covering too much area to be simply dodged by Lance's Pokemon. Flygon, recovering, flew above Dragonite and used a Rock Slide attack, causing a second wave of projectiles from another direction. There was no way even the last member of the Elite Four could engineer a total escape from these two attacks, but the way he dealt with it was brilliant.

First, Dragonite put all its power into a single Ice Beam attack that spread throughout the Surf and froze the water solid. Electricity still crackling momentarily around the ice before discharging around the arena, harmless, Dragonite prevented Aerodactyl from taking the attack that would surely have rendered it unconscious. Then, Aerodactyl took the Rock Slide for its partner. Oh, not again…

Although Aerodactyl was now very close to fainting, it had done its job in protecting Dragonite – undoubtedly the trump card – and besides, all of Lance's Pokemon had a desperation attack in Hyper Beam. This was what it proceeded to do. Target: Flygon. The battle, which had a rosy outlook just moments before, had turned grave and was rapidly spiralling towards total disaster.

"It is time. Start the invasion."

Flygon was down for the count, the Hyper Beam totally crushing its resistance. Trying in vain to continue flapping its wings, Flygon's strength eventually failed, and crashed to the ground immobile. Lapras duly finished off the offending Aerodactyl, but the resulting 1v1 – Dragonite v Lapras – did not look good at all. Lapras was weary from the length of the battle, and had taken some nasty hits from Aerodactyl during its early stages. Dragonite, on the other hand, had near-legendary status as a Pokemon, was practically unhurt despite Flygon's and Lapras' exertions, and had access to near-ridiculous moves that ranged from Focus Punch to Fire Blast. With both strong physical and special attacks in its arsenal, Lapras' movepool, while also wide, could not hope to compete. Temperance, both of his Pokemon down, could now only watch as a helpless spectator as Lillette single-handedly faced the awe-inspiring Dragonite.

And Dragonite put on a show worthy of its status as Lance's best Pokemon. Weaving through the beams and bolts, putting up a Reflect to absorb a Psychic attack, before retaliating with a massive Thunder attack that shocked Lapras out of the water, Temperance realised the power of the Elite Four, and knew that it was over. To come so close, with one member – no, one Pokemon – left standing in their way, and they had failed – Dragonite now targeted Lapras, out of the water, cover blown, an easy target for any of its attacks, and the red shimmering ball of energy became bigger and bigger in Dragonite's mouth, and soon the Dragonbreath would fire and knock Lapras out, and they would be turned away to the cold world, where the smell of death would reek for evermore after the Dead had conquered. And then the arena shook, not from the battle, but by the entire Indigo Plateau shaking upon an external attack. And right on cue, Agatha rushed in, her speed surprising for one of her age.

"Lance, the Dead have attacked. Again. They are right outside, with even greater numbers than before. They control the land and air passages."

Dragonite stopped its attack halfway, and Lance emerged from the shadow of the battle box, drawing back his cloak, and asked for more information.

"The hole at Victory Road, despite our efforts to seal it, has been broken through once again. It would appear from their numbers that the Dead at the previously conquered cities must have been divided, with at least a third attacking here in full force. A third more, from what we can observe via scouts, remains at Celadon and Fuchsia, and the final third… have gone to Seafoam."

Temperance started, eyes wide and staring. Clearly, he had not expected this turn of events. The road to Seafoam, cast aside as impassable due to the presence of the third legendary bird Articuno, was now being attacked in full force. But surely, Articuno could emulate Zapdos and Moltres, and send the Dead back to the afterlife with its legendary powers?

"Articuno has indeed been drawn out, and was demolishing the armies of Dead with moderate effort. But… there has been an unexpected event. Zapdos and Moltres appeared, and starting clearing the waves of Dead easily, but then the latter two legendary birds froze, before attacking Articuno instead of the Dead. Articuno is now simply fleeing from the combined attacks of the two Pokemon, while the Dead, their job as presumed decoys done, are retreating back to Fuchsia with only a few Dead surrounding the island arc to prevent intruders."

Temperance and Lillette now understood the full impact of their failure, and how deeply it would weigh. The evil that was controlling the Dead… had enough power to control not one but two legendary birds in his unknown quest. Now, they were leading Articuno in a deadly hunt across the ocean. Articuno would, eventually, fall, and then there would be nothing left to stop the necromancer and his minions to do… whatever they wanted to do. What was surprising was Lance suddenly looking at them with a keen expression, his face not showing any other emotion despite the arena crumbling around him. He said only a few words.

"These things… are they what you are fighting in your quest to defeat me in battle?"

Temperance could only nod in return. Lance, seeing it, hardened his face with a new resolve, and motioned towards the door at the other end of the arena. With a snap of his fingers, the door opened, revealing a dark passageway that had never been seen before by any other than the Elite Four. "Proceed."

Agatha looked horrified at Lance's action, and Temperance, despite his shock, deduced that this was one of the only times she had ever been at a loss for words in her entire life. "Lance… we are bound by law to not admit these who have not defeated us in our entirety. If you allow them through, your place as Elite Four Leader will be forfeit –"

Lance cut her off with a raise of his palm, signalling for silence. "Then it is forfeit. Let them go." He motioned towards the duo, then the door, again. "Proceed. We will hold the Dead off for you to conduct your research in the private chambers over there."

And so saying, he walked off with Dragonite, already inserting his Poke Balls into the healing machine which restored their condition. Agatha, motionless for a few seconds more, finally released Gengar and Banette and ran out of the arena to fight off the Dead who were ravaging the outer rooms of Indigo Plateau. But Temperance and Lillette did not see this. They were already rushing through the door at the far end, ignoring the dark, heading for the rooms of the Champion – and the key that would unlock the safety of Kanto from the Dead.