Bang!
Excadrill burst from the ground, its scarlet steel claws shoveling up a massive heap of hot sand and hurling it into the sky. It kept flinging sand blindly, aiming in Emolga's general direction.
Elesa didn't understand what Gary was trying to do, but now that Excadrill had emerged from the ground, she wasn't about to pass up an opportunity to attack.
"Emolga, Attract!" Elesa ordered.
"Emol—!"
But just as Emolga was about to use the move, it let out a sudden, painful wail.
"What's wrong?!"
Elesa was completely confused, but looking closer, she finally spotted the problem.
Although the hot sand flung by Excadrill hadn't hit Emolga directly, the grains had been caught by the raging Sandstorm and swept high into the air. Emolga was covered in thick fur, and the scalding sand had sifted right through its coat to the skin underneath, naturally burning it.
Gary immediately seized the moment. "Now, Stone Edge!"
"Drill!"
Excadrill conjured a massive cluster of sharp stone blades and launched them straight into the sky.
"Emolga, intercept it with Electro Ball!" Elesa immediately countered.
Emolga endured the burning pain of the sand and desperately condensed an Electro Ball, launching it forward. But before the Electro Ball could fly clear, it collided with the incoming stone blades and exploded. The remaining rock shards rained down on Emolga, knocking it from the sky.
"Earthquake!" Gary commanded.
"Drill!"
Excadrill slammed its steel claws into the ground, sending powerful shockwaves rippling outward. Having just crashed to the ground, Emolga took the full force of the seismic shockwave and fainted on the spot.
"Emolga is unable to battle! Excadrill wins!" the referee announced.
"Is this what you meant by dazzling me, Gym Leader Elesa?" Gary asked with a smirk.
Elesa hadn't expected to be dismantled so completely, two battles in a row. She could see that Excadrill's level wasn't much higher than her own Pokémon's, yet she had been utterly outplayed.
"I'll admit you're incredibly strong, but the match isn't over until the final Pokémon falls," Elesa said.
"Then please send out your last Pokémon, Gym Leader," Gary urged.
Elesa bit her lower lip and threw her final Poké Ball.
"Shine under the spotlight, my little shock queen!"
Go!
[LV29 Tynamo♀ / Elite]
That's it?
Gary was thoroughly disappointed. Even if this Tynamo was slightly larger than average and possessed decent potential, it was still just a Level 29 Tynamo.
"Don't underestimate my Tynamo. It's very strong," Elesa warned.
Gary honestly couldn't see what Tynamo could possibly do at this level. If it had evolved to its final form, Eelektross, it might have posed a threat.
"Then show me what it can do," Gary said.
"Alright! Tynamo, use Tackle!" Elesa ordered.
Whoosh!
Tynamo shot forward with surprising speed.
"Drill!"
Even before Gary could issue a command, Excadrill reacted on its own instincts, swatting Tynamo back with a swift Metal Claw.
"What?! It reacted on its own?!" Elesa was stunned. She hadn't expected Excadrill to easily keep pace with Tynamo's speed.
"Did you forget about the Sandstorm?" Gary reminded her.
Elesa froze, suddenly remembering the terrifying speed Excadrill had displayed earlier.
"The Sand Rush Ability!"
"Exactly. Let's wrap this up — Shadow Claw!" Gary ordered.
Whoosh!
"Quick, get into the air—" Elesa tried to command.
Bang!!
But before she could finish, Tynamo was struck. Excadrill became a red blur, flashing around Tynamo like a streak of fire.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!
A relentless flurry of Shadow Claws completely overwhelmed Tynamo, slamming it to the ground where it lay motionless.
"Tynamo is unable to battle! All of Gym Leader Elesa's Pokémon have been defeated. The victory goes to the challenger, Gary!" the referee announced.
"Drill!"
Excadrill cheered happily. It had always heard its seniors talking about pulling off a 1v3 sweep, and now it had finally achieved a 1v3 sweep of its own.
"Good job. Come back."
Gary recalled Excadrill and looked at the defeated Tynamo curiously.
Tynamo's Base Stat Total was only 275—a exceptionally weak Pokémon—and its base Speed was a mere 60. How had it moved so fast?
Although Tynamo's speed was still no match for Excadrill under Sand Rush, its speed was obviously much higher than that of a normal Tynamo. A base Speed of 60 shouldn't have allowed it to move like that without any stat boosts.
That left only one explanation: its Ability.
Tynamo only had one possible Ability: Levitate. That meant its high speed was a result of having the EX Levitate Ability.
Gary had previously assumed that strengthening the Levitate Ability wouldn't offer much of a practical upgrade. He hadn't expected it to boost speed. This meant his Latios was about to receive a massive power-up.
After the battle ended, Elesa led Gary back to the main lobby to present his reward.
"Gary, you are an incredibly powerful Trainer. This is the Bolt Badge. It's yours."
"Thank you."
Gary accepted the Badge.
[Ding! Mission completed. The rewards have been sent to System Storage.]
With the Badge secured, Gary left the Nimbasa Gym.
Along the way, Gary checked the random held item he had received as a reward this time.
[Premium Metal Coat: A Pokémon holding this item will have its Steel-type moves boosted by 50%. If held by a Pokémon during evolution, its potential will be raised to Champion level (only effective for Pokémon below Champion potential).]
"A Metal Coat...!"
Gary had been lacking one of these back in Kanto, and unfortunately, there hadn't been any Steel-type Gyms there to obtain one. He had obtained one at Jasmine's Gym in the Johto Region, but he had used it to evolve his Crystal Onix into Crystal Steelix. He hadn't expected to randomly get another one now.
Since Gary didn't plan on raising a standard Steelix, this Premium Metal Coat would be perfect for evolving a Scizor later.
Back at the Pokémon Center, Gary contacted Professor Oak's Laboratory, transferred Gengar back, and brought over Latios.
Latios was a Legendary Pokémon, and one of the few in Gary's roster that had already reached Champion level. It was the perfect candidate to test the effects of the EX Levitate Ability.
Once the transfer was complete, Gary returned to his private room to avoid drawing attention before releasing Latios.
"LATI!"
Latios emerged from its Poké Ball and nuzzled affectionately against Gary.