Slowbro's Protect shield stood firm against the gale, absorbing the wind's fury. Just as Silver Wolf had planned, the lull in the storm allowed Gyarados to surge forward, closing the distance until they were practically nose-to-nose with the Psychic tank.
"Counter with Ice Punch!" Fu Xuan commanded. She wasn't backing down from the melee; she was leaning into it.
"Thunderbolt!" Silver Wolf shouted.
Her plan was a high-stakes gamble: dodge the incoming fist at the last possible millisecond and discharge a point-blank electric strike. But the chaos of a real-time brawl is a cruel teacher. Unlike the practiced synergy she had with her Dragonite, Gyarados hesitated. The mental link stuttered. Instead of dodging, Gyarados chose to brace for impact.
Slowbro's frozen fist slammed into Gyarados's neck just as the lightning erupted. The Thunderbolt dealt massive damage, but Slowbro—fresh and sturdy—roared through the pain, forcing the electrical current out of its body through sheer kinetic force.
Before Silver Wolf could adjust, Fu Xuan pressed the opening. "Don't let up! Ice Punch again!"
The follow-up strike caught Gyarados off-balance, sending the massive serpent reeling backward. Silver Wolf bit her lip. I was careless. I assumed the 'trade' would always favor me.
Fu Xuan, sensing the shift, didn't stay in the gutter. She knew Silver Wolf was looking for another high-speed exchange, so she immediately ordered Slowbro to retreat and regain its rhythmic advantage.
"Future Sight!" Fu Xuan added, layering the doom-timer once more.
"Not this time! Hurricane, then get in close!" Silver Wolf wasn't letting the Diviner breathe.
Fu Xuan chose a different answer. Instead of a shield, she used Confusion to levitate Slowbro high into the air, drifting sideways to escape the worst of the wind blades. It was a graceful escape, but it gave Silver Wolf the aerial opening she needed.
"Aqua Tail!" "Ice Punch!"
The two clashed in mid-air. Fu Xuan didn't panic; she began to stall, mirroring the very tactics Silver Wolf had used earlier. She played conservatively, parrying blows and waiting for the "Future" to arrive.
"Ice Fang! Bite down and don't let go! Use Thunderbolt while you have him!"
Gyarados's jaws clamped onto Slowbro's arm. Electricity began to crackle between them. Fu Xuan hurriedly called for a Protect, but the aggressive pressure was breaking her composure. Slowbro was being dragged into a brawl it couldn't win on pure stats.
Just then, the purple orb of Future Sight descended.
"Gyarados! Use him as a shield!"
Gyarados swung the Slowbro—still trapped in its jaws—directly into the path of the falling energy. The Thunderbolt shattered Slowbro's last-second Protect, and the Future Sight detonated against both of them.
When the smoke cleared, the referee's verdict was final: "Slowbro and Gyarados are both incapacitated!"
Silver Wolf felt her momentum building. Even being behind on points didn't matter anymore; she was in the "Zone."
"Go, Flareon!" she called. "Come out, Exeggutor," Fu Xuan countered.
Silver Wolf smirked. A Fire-type against a Grass-type. She had predicted this. But Fu Xuan was prepared for the predictable.
"Exeggutor, Skill Swap!"
In a flash, the abilities were traded. Exeggutor now possessed Flash Fire, rendering it completely immune to Flareon's Fire-type attacks. Even worse, Flareon was now a Fire-type without its immunity, and its Fire moves would only power up the enemy.
"Quick Attack!" Silver Wolf pivoted. If fire was off the table, she'd win with speed and physical force.
"Psyshock!" Fu Xuan countered.
Silver Wolf's alarm bells went off. This isn't her style. Why a direct trade?
"Flareon, stop! Get back!"
It was too late. The high-speed momentum of the Quick Attack carried Flareon directly into the gaze of the Exeggutor. The move wasn't Psyshock—it was Hypnosis.
"Damn it... I got cocky because the trades were working..."
Flareon slammed into Exeggutor, but the Grass-type took the hit and stared deeply into Flareon's eyes. Drowsiness washed over the fire fox; its eyelids drooped, and it collapsed into a deep slumber right at Exeggutor's feet.
"Come back, Flareon!" Silver Wolf reached for the Poké Ball.
"Exeggutor, Block! Cut off the retreat!"
The Grass-type stepped into the path of the recall beam, its psychic presence disrupting the signal. Silver Wolf's idea of a quick swap failed instantly.
"Extrasensory! Triple strike!" Fu Xuan commanded. She avoided Psychic or Psyshock, knowing the sharp pain of a high-tier mental blast might wake the sleeper. Extrasensory, however, was a subtle, rhythmic vibration that hammered the mind without shattering the trance.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The three shots sent the sleeping Flareon tumbling across the grass, stopping right in front of Silver Wolf's feet.
"Wake up, Flareon! Wake up!" Silver Wolf shouted, her voice echoing through the stadium.
In her panic, her mind blurred. She remembered the early days of testing the game—the long hours of training her starter, the frustration of the mechanics, and the genuine joy of seeing the little fox evolve.
"Eevee! Get up!"
She used the original name. The name from their first battle. The data of their shared "Remembrance" surged through the Path-projection. Flareon's ears flicked. It struggled to its feet, shivering from the mental trauma, but its eyes were beginning to clear.
"Eevee... use Protect!"
The Psychic blast from Fu Xuan arrived an instant later.
BOOM!
The stadium was obscured by a massive explosion. But it wasn't the sound of a mental blast hitting a shield. It was the sound of a sudden, violent chemical reaction.
"Wait..." Owlbert shouted, leaning over the edge of the booth. "Did a Psychic attack just... explode?"
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