Hard Enough - Chapter 238 - Titanfall

With Titan creating a sandstorm among the broken ice it could have been easy to miss the pokeball as it disgorged Kaede’s next pokemon.

Thankfully I was used to fighting with Titan when he conjured up a Sandstorm. 

I saw the trajectory and through the bond had Titan control the Sandstorm to allow us a clear line of sight on what emerged. 

I was surprised when yet another almost humanoid form appeared. 

Unlike with Gardevoir however, this pokemon was hunched and twitched when it moved. Large jewel-like eyes glinted as they locked onto Titan. 

“Sableye!” cackled the revealed pokemon.

This was an interesting choice as it was one of the pokemon that Kaede had only captured at the start of this year’s ace circuit, my research into her team revealed that it was mostly used to negate pokemon’s skills with a clever Disable. It also had the ability to stay in fights longer than it should with Recover and Detect. 

I narrowed my eyes even as I lost sight of the ghost-dark type pokemon. With the Sandstorm kicking up it would be mildly affected but it would also be able to fade in and out of combat as needed.  

It could angle for hit and run at its choice. 

It made for another annoying pick but I had to give Kaede her due. She’d held it back until she could use it best. 

I drew in a breath and exhaled slowly, pushing my energy into the bond and broadening my senses. 

Through Titan I could feel the coarse sand lashing at scales I didn’t possess.

I could feel the ground crack and break with each shift of weight. I could smell the acrid smells of battle on the wind along with the crisp icey freshness that Walrein had unleashed. 

As the trainer, all I could provide was my own point of view watching Titan’s back, which gave him another angle to look into the sandstorm. 

It proved to be the edge we needed as a shadow that didn’t belong raced through the sandstorm and tried to stab into Titan’s back.

Titan whirled about, not needing a command from me as he stepped towards the shadow and erupted with Dark Pulse. 

Sableye, hidden as a shadow raced headfirst into the attack and pushed through only to be pushed out of the shadow.

That didn’t stop it from sprinting forward and clawing Titan with its arms as it tried to race past. Titan swept around again and tried to lash it on the way through out of instinct but I knew it was a move that was doomed to failure due to Sableye’s ghost typing. 

Sure enough, the attack that wasn’t empowered cut through Sableye and I gained an appreciation of what it felt like to sweep ‘my tail’ through a ghost pokemon. It reminded me of inching into an ice bath only to stumble so that you slipped in backside first only to catch yourself. 

My ‘tail’ felt cold and pins and needles shot up it. 

I had Titan swing it around a little to return feeling to it while reminding him he needed to make sure that the attack wasn’t ‘normal’ but rather typed. 

Sableye wasn’t a pokemon that we’d be able to bully with Titan’s greater size and strength. 

Sableye stepped into Titan’s field of view and made a show of licking its claws as though it was ‘sampling his blood’ I snorted, knowing that Titan hadn’t even been scratched from that attack.

As a ghost-type move Shadow Sneak would have only been half as effective as it would be against another pokemon normally. 

Titan growled causing a rumble to echo around us.

Sableye grinned as it backed up only to then appear in two other locations one after the other quickly. 

When it vanished again it released a cackle that rose around us from the Sandstorm. 

Sableye, as a malicious spirit wasn’t above taunting and creating a horroesque theme with how it haunted the howling winds. 

Perhaps against another pokemon this might have been impressive. Heck, some of my pokemon would have been freaked out by it. Bertha would have demanded I use Seismic Twist straight away to ‘purge the ghost’. 

Against Titan though?

Tyranitar didn’t get scared. 

They were apex predators that stalked pitch-black caves and mountains. They stalked pokemon known for being wild and dangerous such as Ursaring, Onix, and I had no doubt that on the odd occasion, even a Sableye or two featured in their diets. 

So a Sableye trying to taunt Titan was laughable. 

While Sableye did this I had Titan boosting his speed and attack with a set move that we’d been working on for a while now. 

Dragon Dance was a good move to have in Titan’s back pocket and while it had taken a bit to learn it I was more than happy with the results. 

When Sabelye tried to slip in again Titan whirled about even faster than before and tried to Crunch down on the shadow. Sableye sadly dodged at the last moment. 

It slunk out of the shadow and gave Titan a worried look before throwing its head back and cackling again. 

I had no doubt that it was going to fade back and try and use Recover once more but I decided I’d gotten enough out of the delay with Kaede. 

Through the bond, I gave Titan the next order and instead of slowly shifting and sliding his feet to a tempo only he knew, he raised his foot and then stomped down hard. 

A shockwave rocked the field as Earthquake took effect.   

A cry of pain occurred and then Sableye raised out only to point and flash a red light at Titan to Disable the Earthquake. 

Interesting, so Kaede didn’t want me getting that move off again did she?

“Advance,” I said and Titan happily started to stalk forward, his eyes flicking left and right as we prepared for Sableye’s next attack. 

As Titan moved I had him start to systematically perform Dark Pulse. I wasn’t expecting him to hit Sableye, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t start ‘tainting the field’.

After all, Gardevoir was something I was going to have to deal with in the future. 

Kaede wasn’t willing to leave it at just that however, as when the second Dark Pulse erupted out of Titan a small green light began to flicker off to the side. 

It was enough for me to fire off a warning for Titan to duck low. 

He dropped into the ground in time for an Energy Ball to sail over his head. It was a good move to have in her Sableye’s pocket. 

But it wasn’t enough. Sableeye continued to try and fire shot after shot at Titan only for him to evade the grass-type move again and again no matter what angle Sableye unleashed the attack from.  

Kaede must have gotten frustrated as Sableye once more emerged from the whipping sands at what should be a blind spot for Titan.

It twitched in agitation as the Sandstorm grated on it only for it to growl in annoyance as its eyes began to glow red. 

When they flashed I felt a shell of some energy form around Titan. 

For a moment I was caught by surprise by this new sensation. Was this a debuff? Titan didn’t feel weaker or slower. Nor was he poisoned. 

Through Titan’s eyes, I felt his focus lock onto the glowing red eyes. 

Ah, this was Mean Look. 

Which meant that the ‘bubble’ of energy around him was meant to stop a pokeball from withdrawing him.

I quickly tested Titan’s energy pathways, hoping that the Disable had unravelled itself, only to find that he still couldn’t use Earthquake. So instead I had him unleash a Stone Edge. 

Sableye wove itself around the attack and grinned, pleased at being the one to come out of the exchange ahead. 

Then the winds picked up around it once more and it bared its teeth in pain. 

“—” shouted Kaede as she used one of the last withdrawals she had. I flexed my neck and ordered for Titan to use the gap in pokemon transfers that Kaede had given me to set the field with some Stealth Rocks. 

They’d be nicely hidden within the Sandstorm.

With that done I considered the state of the battle. 

So, she had Titan locked into the fight with whoever she desired now eh? 

Not a bad move, but one that I was confident in. titan, out of all my pokemon had the best chance of success against most of Kaede’s pokemon. 

Who would it be emerging? Blissey? Whiscash? Heck, Gardevoir could be a threat in the right circumstances.

I had to admit that I was surprised when the screen to the side flashed with Furret of all pokemon returning to the field. 

Ah, she must have something up her sleeve. My mind raced through what moves he had only to grimace. 

He had a lot to pick from. 

A drop of rain let me know what Kaede had decided to do. 

The Sandstorm that had claimed the field for the last few minutes found itself dying away as rain fell, soddening the sand and making it fall away to reveal Titan glowering across a wet field at a dancing, hopping and singing little Furret.

“Fu Fu Fu Ret Ret Ret!” said the Furret.

I had Titan dig his claws into the ground and hurl another Stone Edge at the little pokemon in response. 

Just as Sableye had, Furret dodged.

The difference was that he did it with style. Instead of leaping to the side Furret leapt high and twirled through the air to kick off the boulder as it soared past him.   

As he came down he once more came down in his signature heroic pose. 

I’d been expecting this though having watched previous matches. 

With it confirmed that he did dodge in such as showy manner I had Titan hold off on throwing the last part of Stone Edge until Furret had committed to his landing. 

Right as he did this, Titan flicked his tail and sent a final, small by our standards boulder into Furret.

The heroic landing turned into a sprawl as Furret was hurled to the side, rolling through the mud only to pop up with a shake of his head. 

Heh, couldn’t dodge that, could you? I thought to myself and Titan. Titan had a similarly pleased feeling coursing through him as we both watched Furret twitch and roll in the mud. 

Furret glared at Titan as he kipped up onto his feet, his tiny arms raised in a combat stance that might work on a smaller pokemon but I knew Furret would have to rely on aura if he wanted to have any shot at tossing Titan around. 

“Fur! Ret!” barked the little pokemon.

“Tar!” said Titan back. I got the feeling he was admonishing the little pokemon for being sloppy and trying to showboat. 

Furret bristled, the fur around his body puffing up as water twitched off his form. 

Titan chuckled and shook his head dismissively. Interestingly enough, with how I was bonded right now to Titan. I got the impression that Furret had said it wasn’t just showboating but that Titan didn’t believe him.

Huh, that wasn't just an impression though… that was something more, and understanding of what was being said? 

I hadn’t noticed that I could interpret what pokemon said through my bond with Titan. 

That was new and rather intriguing. 

Titan widened his stance slightly and rolled his shoulder before flexing his body and relaxing it. This caused a burst of water from his body in a rather interesting threat display that wasn’t just a threat display. I knew it to be Dragon Dance, albeit done in a very different style than most were used to when they thought of ‘dancing’. 

Furret, rather than being warned off, seemed intrigued and thoughtful. He bowed his head before dropping to the ground with all four limbs, showing that he was getting serious. 

“Close with Double Team!” Kaede ordered and once more Furret began to close with a Tyranitar. 

It struck me as an odd gambit to continually close with a pokemon known for being a physical powerhouse but then again Kaede had also demonstrated she had no issues with switching out her pokemon to change the tempo and give herself a better chance. 

Instead of simply letting Furret charge in I decided to shake things up with a Dig. 

Titan dove into the ground and Furret skidded to a stop as he lost sight of his target. 

“Like we practised!” Kaede shouted. 

Furret, rather than getting out of there or trying to alter his position, folded himself and tucked his chin to his chest. He should have looked absurd with how muddy he was and his tiny form. 

Instead, he conveyed an air of anticipation. 

Not for the first time, I understood how appropriate Furret playing the role of a Samurai actually was. 

Here he knelt, waiting for what was to come. He apparently had a move ready to play, but firs, he would have to handle Titan’s move. 

I conveyed all of this to Titan and a feeling of determination swelled through the bond.

I eyed Samurai Furret… I mean, Furret, damn I was getting caught up in the hype this little pokemon had. Still, I watched him, knowing there had to be more to this move than just appearing to contemplate the world. Was this Focus Energy? Agility? Defense Curl?

I doubted it was Amnesia, as that move I usually associated with an expression of cluelessness emerging on a pokemon’s face as they forgot certain events leading up to the usage of the move. 

I toyed with the idea of it being Rest before discarding it. Surely Kaede couldn’t teach her pokemon two tricks with Baton Pass and an awake Rest. 

That… would be very clever, and entirely too likely. 

The only reason I didn’t think that was the case was a gut feeling telling me something else was at play here. 

As I observed Furret, Kaede stared at me. 

She must have been watching for some sign that I might give away Titan’s position but I made myself as stern as a mountain, giving nothing away as I stonewalled her. 

I felt through the bond as Titan raced up, angling in from the side at Furret. I locked eyes with Kaede, still giving away nothing. 

I got to watch as Kaede’s eyes widened right as Titan erupted from the side. 

Furret twisted about, standing and moving to face Titan head on but it did little to alleviate the power of the attack. 

Titan slammed into the little pokemon only for Furret to cling to him.

Titan, rather than rising fully instead cut a gouge through the ground dragging Furret along.

The little pokemon clung on desperately but rocks and mud slapped into him, making him even more miserable. 

“Hang in there!!” screamed Kaede “Furret! Don’t give in!” urging her little pokemon on. 

Furret must have heard her call as he tightened his hold on Titan’s spike. 

Titan came to the end of the field and rose to glower at the small pokemon that clung like he was trying to wrestle Titan down via his spike. 

It wouldn’t work, but despite that, I still felt a frisson of worry. 

Kaede wasn’t a rookie and every move she made had a reason. Titan took that to heart and moved to slam Furret into the ground only for the little pokemon to unclench and Kaede’s plan to be revealed. 

A shockwave of force erupted from Furret and sent both Titan and Furret soaring away from each other as Kaede flipped the script on her usual tactics of making Furret evade damage. 

This time she’d deliberately sought to let him get tossed around. 

Which made the move Reversal all the stronger for when she unleashed it. 

Titan was hurled back, carving another gouge into the ground before he slammed into a barrier at the edge of the stadium. 

Dirt and mud fly up to obscure him. 

I turned my head from Titan’s form to that of Furret who was clutching his ribs and kneeling. The little pokemon’s body was twitching with pain but despite that, he stared at his opponent with a look of triumph. 

“Titan is—” 

“Still in the fight,” I said firmly, cutting off the referee as he tried to call the exchange in favour of Furret and Kaede. 

The referee blinked in surprise and a gasp went through the crowd but I kept my eyes on Kaede.

Through the bond, I felt Titan stir before rolling painfully onto his feet. 

Like a mountain building itself up I felt him slowly rise. 

Through my peripheral vision, I got to watch the mass that was Titan come back onto his feet before turning and marching stoically back to the field. 

Mud and dirt sloughed off his form and I thought for a second perhaps Bertha might have snuck herself in. 

Titan held back a chuckle as I shared the impression with him. Instead of laughing though he marched back onto the field. 

During the entire walk, he kept his gaze on Furret while I kept mine on Kaede. 

She looked ashen-faced and was staring in shock. 

“That was a super effective move,” she said with disbelief. 

I nodded. “Yeah, but like I said before my pokemon can take a hit. Titan? He can take a lot,” I said ignoring the tremors and empty feeling that gnawed at the bond I had with Titan.

I instead adopted a cocky grin. “He can also dish it out,” I said. 

Titan raised a foot, and I knew that Disable had worn off. 

Kaede’s eyes widened in fear and she screamed, “Baton Pass!” to her starter to get him out of danger.

He vanished in a burst of light as Kaede raised another pokeball. 

I huffed in annoyance. She was determined to keep us from getting off a knockout, wasn’t she?

Where Furret had been standing Whiscash appeared only to bounce as Titan’s Earthquake threw the ground-water type into the air. 

“Cash?” said the pokemon in surprise. 

Whiscash hit the ground where it shook itself off only to then squawk in surprise as the Stealth Rock I’d gotten off earlier slammed into it.

“Whish!” it said in surprise. 

Kaede stiffened and her eyes darted around. Heh, I got that past you, didn’t I? Had she thought I was just trying to wear her Sableye down which was going to be a slog with it knowing Recover.

Titan glowered at the Whiscash and I started toying with moves for what I could do against this pokemon. Kaede was set on making this an uphill battle for me. Titan was doing great having outfought both Sableye and Furret, but I could tell those battles were taking their toll on him.

Three of Kaede’s pokemon had to be weakened now, but despite that the scoreboard showed me as still being at a disadvantage. I didn’t feel in control of this fight, however. 

If anything I felt like Kaede and I were grappling for the upper hand with Kaede disengaging whenever I started to exert dominance before switching up her tactics. 

“Clear the field with Surf!” Kaede barked. 

I pursed my lips, I’d been hoping she’d ignore it with it having not done much against Whiscash. Instead of trying to knock Titan out she went for clearing the field. That… was rather telling. 

She wanted to keep playing her game of pokemon keep away with switch outs didn’t she?

The Surf formed up quickly thanks to the water and rain on the field and a truly monstrous wave built up. It sort of reminded me of the times Brawly had faced off against me.

I didn’t even have to tell Titan to Dig underneath the attack to evade he simple dove and re-emerged on the other side. For half a second we both lost sight of Whishcash and as Titan went under the ground.

When Titan reemerged he turned quickly and found Whishcahs throwing itself off the wave like it was about to perform the mother of all bellyflops. 

“It’s on its last legs Whiscash! Use Earthquake!” Kaede said even as her Surf ended.

I thought for a moment I detected a hint of desperation but that might have bene wishful thinking on my part. 

Sadly, she wasn’t wrong about Titan however. 

I grimaced and decided that if Titan was going to go down, he’d do it swinging. 

Through Titan’s eyes, I judged the fall of the Whishcash and ran some mental math. It could work.

“Go,” I said aloud while mentally giving Titan my blessing to loosen himself like a rock from a catapult. 

Titan hurled himself forward. 

This wasn’t like his usual slow and graceful build-ups of power, this was a final last-ditch attempt to take down his foe. 

The mud squelched underfoot. 

The slippery surface threatened to send Titan tumbling but we’d trained too much in situations just like this and worse for his footwork to fail him now.

Titan closed on Whishcash and was only a few paces away when Whishcash hit the ground. 

Kaede flinched in surprise and I grinned as Titan took the Earthquake head on but threw himself into a final Giga Impact. 

Whiscash’s eyes bulged with shock as my pokemon slammed into him at full force. Whishcash took the hit only to wail in shock as Titan kept going. Titan didn’t let himself fall and instead powered on each step that cost him but he was determined to exact his toll. 

Whiscash was carried clean out of the arena before being slammed into the barrier wall where it pulsed yellow. 

Then both pokemon let out a loud groan of pain.

Everyone held their breath waiting for either pokemon to move. 

Titan leaned into the wall and exhaled slowly. 

I pulsed pride through our bond and he let himself relax enough to slip into unconsciousness. 

Whiscash groaned in pain and slumped to the side bonelessly, the power of the attack proving too much for him. 

“Whiscash and Titan are both unable to battle! The score is now two to one!” announced the referee. 

I raised Titan’s greatball and returned him. The feeling of pride lingered with the bond before a small feeling of fatigue rose within me. Huh, I could feel it, the way a knocked out pokemon impacted my reserves… Interesting.

I let go of the bond with a final feeling of comfort. 

I then looked up at Kaede. “So, you got my starter,” I said, tasting the words. I didn’t like them but I knew Titan had exacted a bloody toll for going down.

Kaede nodded slowly. “I… wasn’t expecting him to take that much to put down,” she said. “He is strong.” 

She then flicked her eyes up and down my form. “And you are a strong trainer Brock.” She sighed. “I’m sorry if what comes next seems… unsavoury to you.”

I narrowed my eyes. Was that a confession that she’d sent those rogues against my family? Was she about to order another hit? If so she was about to become priority one on my shit list.

“Is that so?” I said carefully. 

Kaede nodded, raising up her next pokeball. Thanks to the blocker on it I couldn’t recognise which pokemon she was selecting next. 

I played out her options. Furret had to be on his last legs, as was Sableye. Blissey was hurt. So she only had Gardevoir or Walrein. She also only had one more Return available to her. 

Water continued to trickle down with a light rain. 

Hmmm, I still had a good option with Sanchez and if I could another Stealth Rock would disrupt her switch-out strategy entirely. 

The question therefor became if she was betting I would lean into that?

She no longer had Whiscash to save her thanks to Titan’s last-ditch effort. 

I palmed his pokeball and wondered if I wasn’t falling into another trap. 

No, I couldn’t second-guess myself. I formed my resolve and threw Sanchez out at the same time as Kaede sent her ball forth.

Sanchez appeared across from Walrein. 

A final shower of rain fell about the field as Kaede and I locked eyes. 

In that moment an understanding occurred between us.

We both knew what the other was going to try and do. 

There was no question in my mind that Kaede was going to roll the dice with her move. 

I had a more guaranteed option. 

“Sheer Cold!” shouted Kaede. 

“Thunder!” I roared in response.

Sanchez grinned and sparked up before unleashing a powerful bolt of lightning up into the sky.  

Across from him, Walrein once more set about turning the field into a frozen wasteland. 

I caught sight of a large portion of the crowd shifting to huddle together as that move started. Huh, so they hadn’t been left out of the temperature drop then? Interesting. 

I pushed that observation to the side as I braced myself for what was to come. Both pokemon’s attacks fired off with Sanchez being the slower of the two. 

He got his lightning up into the sky before everything went white and I felt the shock of the temperature drop hit once more. 

I gasped in shock as my body bucked off the feeling of being suddenly frozen a second time. It was worse than time due to being splashed by the Surf from earlier. 

Shit, my clothes were absolutely frozen stiff. I felt them crackle and snap as I moved slightly. 

I could shuck them off but this wasn't going to be like against Brawly. I couldn’t take my eyes off the fight for comfort.

Damn, that was going to make this match uncomfortable.

My body protested the cold even more than last time and I felt my body spasm as I retook control. 

A tremor that I’d only powered through last time returned with a vengeance. My teeth clattered and I had to work at twitching my eyes about the field as I leaned into my rock energy to try and ignore the cold. 

Thank Arcues rock type was strong against ice. 

On the field, once again my pokemon was frozen stiff. 

I flicked my eyes about only to smirk as I spotted an extremely fried Walrein tottering from side to side. This time the exchange had proven too much though and it collapsed on its side with a pained groan. 

Kaede twitched, having taken a moment more to recover from the cold before she swept her gaze over the field. She must have been damp from her earlier moves as well. 

Heh, if she wanted to play those games she needed to learn to handle a freezer or two in future. Especially if she wanted to use them against Bruce like I suspected she was angling for.

Her breath escaped her in a large exhale as she took notice of her pokemon before turning her eyes towards my pokemon.

A quick glance to the side showed that the referee out of everyone had gotten out the best of all of use with his Flareon now curled around him.

“Walrein is unable to b-battle!” said the Ref as he exhaled a huge gout of steam with each word due to the temperature difference of his lungs compared to the air around him.

I spotted a few people in the crowd following the ref’s example and deploying a fire type which led to clusters of the crowd forming up in patches.

A crack of ice had everyone’s eyes snapping back to the field.

Sanchez broke his way out of the ice and his arms wrapped around himself before he tucked up into a tight ball where he began to roll forwards and backwards to warm up. 

“Of course, your Golem endured the attack as well,” she said with a groan. 

I smirked, knowing this was due to his natural ability along with being strong enough. I watched as Kaede returned her downed pokemon with the referee announcing the match was now two to two. 

Having endured her pokemon’s Sheer Cold twice I now had a very good idea of how strong her pokemon was. It had to be at least Sanchez’s level, but I doubted it matched up against some of my stronger pokemon like Empress, Bertha, Shrek, or Titan. 

Sadly I wasn’t as confident in Empress. Not due to Sheer Cold being effective against her, but rather that Kaede would have been able to sap Empress and with Titan down I would need her as my fallback option. 

I also wanted her in case I had to deal with Gardevoir. 

I didn’t get any more time to linger on the state of play as Kaede sent her next pokemon to reveal her starter once again. 

I grimaced knowing what was about to happen with my drastically weakened pokemon still on the field. 

I shot my hand out and decided to roll the dice myself. 

“Explosion!” I shouted

Sanchez grinned and stopped rolling to get warm and instead began to glow. 

I shot Kaede a smirk as her expression went white. “Protect!” she called to her little pokemon.

I knew she’d do that, she had no other option in the face of my potentially wiping out her starter. 

With the last of his energy, Sanchez erupted sending rock and electrical jolts out in a powerful blast. 

Furret knelt on the ground a protective barrier forming around him just in time to absorb the explosion. 

I knew I wouldn’t get him, but it wasn’t about that. 

It was about forcing Furret to use his Protect now and make it have less chance of working in future. 

Kaede knew that and as the dust settled I could see her gnawing at her lip. 

I was slowly clawing my way back into this fight and her pokemon were fading. We both knew it. 

“The score is three to two!” announced the ref. Kaede and I shared a glance. We both knew it was much closer than that. She was ahead on the scoreboard but I was moments from wrestling control of this match. 

I returned Sanchez and gave his pokeball a smile. “Great work as always buddy,” I said before depositing him on my pokebelt. 

I noted that I didn’t feel his unconscious energy and wondered at that for a moment, only to feel a another spike of fatigue take its toll on me. Hmmmm.

I cracked my neck from side to side, and rolled my shoulders enjoying the way my jumper snapped and cracked as ice that had formed around me broke off in patches. Heh, I felt like I’d gone for a jog around Mahogany town only to encounter Trixie for a light warm up.

I grasped at Don’s pokeball only to miss it entirely. 

I glanced down and found my arm trembling. 

Damn, the cold was getting to me despite my aura letting me ignore it. I was stiffening up. I shot the ref an envious look. Damn but I wish I had Spyro with me to cuddle right now, that or a Magcargo.

I took a moment to take a deep breath and settle myself. I clenched my fist a few times, holding and releasing it over and over until I heard the referee warn me of the ten-second countdown. 

I looked up only to find him looking as snug as a Metapod with Flareon wrapped around him.

Across from me, Kaede hugged herself. On the field, Furret had fluffed himself up as much as he could to endure the cold. 

Huh, I hadn’t meant to use Kaede’s environmental change against her but it sort of worked out for me. 

I grabbed Don’s pokeball, feeling firmer in my decision before hurling out my fossil pokemon. 

Don appeared with a screech, revealing my final choice for the team I had assembled. 

Furret broke into red particles as Baton Pass was once more. 

I whistled and signalled Don to start dancing to empower himself. 

He wiggled and flapped a little but kept his eyes locked on the pokeball in Kaede’s hand as it revealed the next pokemon to be Blissey. 

I clicked my tongue. 

So, she was going to use her tank against my flyer?

Alright then, game on. 

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A.N. Thanks go to my Patreons for your continued support!

Thanks also go to Twmmy for proofreading this chapter.