The key wasn't just that Togekiss knew many moves — it was that every move it did know was extremely rare and difficult to counter.
There's no need to even mention Psychic-type moves — those are always troublesome no matter the situation.
And Aura Sphere, as the most direct manifestation of Aura power, wasn't just powerful — it also had a "target-tracking" effect.
From Kane's perspective, what Togekiss had just used should've been something like Swift — a move similar to Aura Sphere in that it never misses.
But unlike Aura Sphere, Swift's energy could still be blocked by obstacles such as the Rock Tomb move Swampert had used earlier.
In theory, that would have greatly reduced the damage Swampert took.
But reality and theory often don't line up.
Rubbing his nose, Kane called out, "Swampert, use Sludge Bomb!"
As a Water and Ground type, Swampert surprisingly had quite a knack for Poison-type moves as well.
Its name itself hinted at this — Swampert could learn Sludge Bomb, Acid Bomb, Sludge Wave, and even Toxic, making it quite versatile.
Silas rubbed his fingers together subconsciously.
Since the Fairy type hadn't yet been officially identified in this timeline, he was probably the only one who knew that Togekiss was actually weak to Poison-type attacks.
In other words, even though Kane didn't realize it, his choice of move was ironically the best one possible against Togekiss.
"Use Psychic — crush it!" Silas commanded.
Since Togekiss's Psychic abilities had already been exposed, there was no need to hide them anymore. Countering a Poison-type move with Psychic energy was the logical choice.
The solid mental shockwave of Psychic collided midair with the dark violet mass of sludge.
A harsh "Ssshh—" sounded as the poisonous slime hit the battlefield, corroding the ground and leaving visible burns — clear proof of how toxic the move was.
Taking advantage of that moment, the blue Swampert opened its mouth wide and took a deep breath.
Its already bulky body swelled even larger, especially its belly.
Silas's expression changed instantly.
"This Swampert's inherited moves are really impressive. Togekiss — use SolarBeam!"
There was a clear urgency in his tone.
Togekiss immediately soared into the sky.
Sunlight shone down upon it, and specks of light began gathering around its body.
A four-times weakness that should be more than enough for a one-hit KO, Silas thought as he watched Togekiss charge up.
He had to go for a knockout.
Although Togekiss wasn't particularly adept at handling Grass-type moves like SolarBeam, Swampert's glaring weakness to Grass-type attacks made up for it.
Even a poorly executed SolarBeam would do far more than any Flying-type move Togekiss could use.
The reason for Silas's impatience was clear — that swelling movement from Swampert earlier had shown it was using Stockpile.
Stockpile by itself wasn't an amazing move.
It took time to charge up, increasing both physical and special defenses not terrible, but not great either.
However, when combined with Swallow and Spit Up, the results could be devastating.
Each use of Stockpile boosted the user's defenses and also stored one "charge" of power, up to three in total.
Of course, the more it stored, the longer it took, and the greater the risk.
It was like forcing yourself to keep eating after you're already full — one wrong move and you'd burst.
When using Swallow, those stored charges could be converted into HP recovery, depending on how many times Stockpile had been used.
Three Stockpiles meant a near-complete HP recovery almost 100%.
When using Spit Up, those stored charges instead turned into raw power, dealing massive damage to the opponent.
After three charges, the attack could deal tremendous damage.
Of course, that only worked in wild battles or with pre-prepared setups.
In regulated matches, two Stockpiles was usually the most anyone could safely pull off a third would take too long, leaving your Pokémon open to multiple attacks.
Swampert normally couldn't learn this trio of moves naturally it had to inherit them through breeding.
That's why Silas had complimented its "impressive inheritance."
And research had shown: usually, a Pokémon that inherited Stockpile would also have both Swallow and Spit Up — they came as a package.
Either all three, or none.
Now Kane had to make a choice.
Swampert had already completed its first Stockpile, but judging by the time Togekiss had spent charging SolarBeam, there probably wasn't enough left for a second.
Should he order Swampert to unleash Spit Up now and deal heavy damage to Togekiss, or gamble on taking the SolarBeam head-on, finish a second Stockpile, and then use Spit Up for a guaranteed knockout?
Kane furrowed his brows — he had to decide quickly.
There was no more time to think.
He looked up at the giant screen showing the number of remaining Pokémon on each side, gritted his teeth, and shouted:
"Swampert, Stockpile again!"
All or nothing, his eyes said.
Given his current situation, gambling everything was the only way to grasp victory.
Swampert, now puffed up with an enormous belly, suddenly looked more serious than usual.
It opened its mouth again, breathing heavily, its entire body glowing faintly as its size increased ever so slightly with each pulse of light.
The stadium fell silent.
Silas glanced up at the clear blue sky.
It had been sunny since morning no clouds, no rain.
And after Golduck's earlier Rain Dance, most of the remaining clouds had already cleared away.
Perfect weather for battle, he thought with a faint smile.
"Togekiss SolarBeam!"
Earlier had been just the charge; this time, it was the release.
A brilliant white beam tinged with green shot down from the sky like a pillar of sunlight.
Swampert's second Stockpile wasn't yet complete.
The purple and green stripes on its back had stretched lighter due to its swelling body.
"Hold on, Swampert!" Kane shouted.
The next moment, the blue Swampert vanished into a blinding flash of light.
The audience collectively held their breath, staring at the close-up on the big screen.
Togekiss hovered midair, unable to move after the recoil from SolarBeam.
Its shadow perfectly covered the spot where Swampert had been standing.
As the light faded, Silas clicked his tongue softly.
"Swampert, use Spit Up!" Kane immediately yelled the command when he saw that Swampert was still standing upright.
But Swampert didn't move.
"Uhh—"
A puff of white smoke escaped its mouth, and then, without another sound, its massive body toppled forward, hitting the ground with a heavy thud.
Kane froze, his face stiffening.
Silas breathed out in relief. For a moment he had really thought Swampert hadn't lost the ability to battle — with Togekiss's current condition it couldn't have dodged a Spit Up; a Spit Up charged twice would have easily knocked it out.
That Swampert had been standing purely on willpower.
Silas thought for a moment and then corrected himself: that wasn't quite right. Amnesia and the defense boosts gained during Stockpile had also played a large role — otherwise no amount of willpower could have kept Swampert upright.
"Swampert is unable to battle. Togekiss wins," the referee said, raising the flag in a numb motion.
So far he had only raised Kane's red flag once; his right arm was starting to feel sore.
"Silas takes another victory — Togekiss has defeated its second opponent! Kane is in dire straits!!" the commentator's voice echoed across the arena.
Kane took several deep breaths to calm himself. Seeing that Silas was unwilling to change Pokémon, he threw his fifth Poké Ball: "Feraligatr, I'm counting on you."
A fearsome Feraligatr appeared on the field.
As befits an ace, its presence carried a wholly different pressure.
Silas stretched his shoulders and looked over at the field. "An ace truly shows — the atmosphere is totally different."
Feraligatr lazily swayed its head side to side. It seemed slow, but that was only a disguise — when hunting, its explosive speed was unmatched.
"Feraligatr, Hydro Pump!" Kane immediately opened with a high-power Water-type attack.
"Graaagh!" Feraligatr roared, opened its huge jaws, and a torrent of water shot straight at the Togekiss floating in midair.
"Dodge it!" Silas cried, surprised at how aggressively Kane had started with his ace. He hurriedly issued a command.
Togekiss's little face tensed; it wouldn't let its Trainer down. Its triangular wings flapped rapidly and the water jet narrowly missed as it rushed overhead.
"Feraligatr, Ice Fang!" Kane eyes flashed with a different light.
Feraligatr was his first Pokémon; the personality fit was perfect. Kane commanding style was always fierce; Pokémon like Nidoking or Swampert weren't for hit-and-run tactics. He had been forced to adapt earlier because Silas's Serperior and Togekiss outperformed expectation.
Now, with his ace on the field, he'd returned to his usual style.
"Steel Wing." Silas's expression didn't change.
Although the sudden ferocity surprised him, the situation between them was different enough that there was no panic. Even an Elite-rank Togekiss couldn't easily beat a Quasi-Elite Feraligatr from a purely frontal approach. Togekiss's job now was to wear down Feraligatr's stamina.
Feraligatr instantly shifted from standing to a low, stalking posture — its hunting stance, the posture that best unleashed its speed. It pushed off the ground with all four claws, lunged, and its sharp icy fangs gleamed as it bit deep into Togekiss's body.
Togekiss cried out and counterattacked: its wings flashed silver as it struck with Steel Wing.
"Clang!" The metallic collision rang out.
Feraligatr flipped backward and landed on the ground in a composed manner. If one looked closely, the rectangular armored scales on its forearms had blocked much of the blow. Togekiss retreated, panting heavily — its stamina had been seriously taxed. That Ice Fang had been brutal: the bite mark was deep and rimmed with a thin layer of frost.
"Frozen status, huh…" Silas's face grew serious. That thin layer of ice would hamper Togekiss's movement but there was no time for remedies; Feraligatr was already closing in again.
Under Kane orders, Feraligatr rushed forward on all fours, its tail wrapped in a ring of water.
Smack!
In an instant it struck Togekiss's body with its water-coated tail.
"Togekiss!" Togekiss cried and collapsed, fainting.
Feraligatr rose again to its full height, glaring disdainfully at Silas before slowly returning to Kane side.
Silas narrowed his eyes.
At last the referee raised the red flag.
As the referee announced the result, the Poké Ball light under Silas's portrait dimmed.
Kane, of course, did not switch — he was counting on Feraligatr to turn the match around.
"Your turn, Blaziken." Silas didn't hesitate and threw out his ace.
If you bring your strongest Pokémon, I'll bring mine too. Type disadvantage be damned — if your Pokémon is strong enough, type matchups don't always decide the outcome. Some trainers always lose to bad matchups; others are masters at overcoming them.
"Blaziken, use Agility!" Right away Silas focused on boosting Blaziken's speed.
He'd heard Feraligatr could be incredibly fast when hunting — now he wanted to see whose speed was greater.
A dangerous glint flashed in Silas's eyes. He had to admit — Feraligatr's earlier showing had fired him up. He wasn't one to back down.
Originally he'd planned to send out Pidgeot and play the ranged game, but now he'd chosen a head-to-head ace clash.
"Blaze!" Blaziken cried calmly. It had seen Feraligatr's performance from inside its Poké Ball and understood why it had been sent out instead of Pidgeot. Its Trainer wanted a decisive crushing victory not merely a win.
Blaziken's red feathers gleamed. "Whoosh" in the next instant its figure vanished from everyone's sight.
.....
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