Chapter 100: VS Vileplume! (Part 2)
2024-05-15 Author: Samsung Charmander (Author Name)
The scorching white light faded. Arcanine, having taken a direct hit, slowly slid down the wall, its fur scorched and blackened.
Its eyes were spinning; it was clearly in a state of being Unable to Battle.
The startup animations for Synthesis and Solar Beam are similar, both involving gathering white light on the petals.
This was the secret to Ariana and Vileplume's battle strategy. When she ordered Synthesis, she was actually using Solar Beam.
When a typical opponent heard that command, they would usually charge forward recklessly, trying to interrupt it or take the opportunity to attack.
But if she called out Solar Beam, the opponent, even if they wanted to interrupt, would be wary of facing a powerful Grass-type Ultimate Move should they fail.
Hesitation means a free hit.
Gary's eyes blazed with anger. His glare toward Ariana was filled with hostility.
He, the great Gary, had always been the one to trick others. Today, he was the one who had been tricked.
And by an old woman, no less?
"This is because your skill level is insufficient. An experienced Trainer wouldn't be unable to distinguish between the startup animations of Solar Beam and Synthesis."
Green commented softly from his soul.
One is the strongest offensive Grass-type Move, and the other is purely a healing Move. Even an idiot could tell the difference.
Thinking of this, Green asked:
"How about it? Want to switch out? This woman is not someone you can handle."
He had an agreement with Gary: unless it was a life-or-death crisis, he wouldn't help him battle.
Growing up solely under the protection of an Expert, one's potential would be limited.
"No need! I can still turn this around!"
Gary wiped the profuse sweat from his forehead and decisively rejected his suggestion.
"Are you repenting in your heart? What a cute little boy~"
Seeing Gary's expression shift between light and dark, Ariana gave him no time to think and launched another attack:
"Vileplume, use Sludge Bomb!" she commanded.
"Vulu~!"
Vileplume aimed the center of its petals at the Arcanine lying on the ground like a dead dog and fiercely spat out a purple orb of light. The toxic smell was terrifying; just looking at it from a distance made one's eyes sting.
For Team Rocket, there's no such thing as being Unable to Battle.
If you're down, you're never getting back up!
*Swoosh!*
A red beam of light suddenly shot out, recalling Arcanine. A split second later, the Sludge Bomb burst in that spot, splattering Poison everywhere and making a "Tszzt-tszzt" sound as it corroded the floor.
If not for the special material of the Silph Co. floor tiles, that one blast of Poison would have corroded its way straight through to the underground parking garage.
Gary recalled the Poké Ball with lingering fear, secretly relieved.
If his hand speed hadn't been fast enough, he might have had to make another trip to Lavender Town in a couple of days.
Seeing Gary about to switch Poké Balls, Ariana gave him no time at all and issued another command:
"Get ready, Solar Beam!"
The petals on Vileplume's head began to gather white light. A terrifying Aura was coalescing, and the solar-hot Energy made the Air around it shimmer and tremble.
The situation had now become one where whoever came out next would have to take a fully charged Solar Beam for free.
Even if he sent out a Pokemon with Type Effectiveness to block it, a direct hit from Solar Beam would leave it either dead or crippled.
This was the advantage of having a higher Level.
But if he didn't send out a Pokemon, this Solar Beam would be aimed directly at...
"Hehe."
Ariana chuckled lightly, her gaze locked on Gary, seemingly looking forward to the scene of blasting this handsome little boy to smithereens.
The Solar Beam reached its peak, but the familiar smile returned to Gary's lips as he suddenly threw out his Poké Ball.
*Bang!*
Blue limbs, a brownish-cyan shell-like body, a bald head, and a pair of swirled ears on the side.
Even Ariana couldn't help but be stunned for a second at the sight of this Pokemon.
Wartortle?
She truly had not expected this.
She was so angry she laughed instead, waving her thumb forward. "Fire the Solar Beam!"
If you want to die, then I'll grant your wish!
Seeing Vileplume already half-bent over and aiming at it, the Solar Energy about to overflow, Gary shouted:
"Strike first, use Fake Out!"
*Clap!*
Wartortle's two short palms suddenly clapped together forcefully, and a crisp slapping sound rang out.
The crisp sound carried a strange, bewitching quality, and the move was completed a step ahead.
"!"
Upon hearing the clap, Vileplume couldn't help but shudder, involuntarily straightening its chest and raising its head.
Fake Out is a move that can be released instantly; there's no way for an opponent to out-speed it.
*Swoosh—BOOM!!*
The Solar Beam on Vileplume's head could no longer be contained. It fired straight up, the beam of sunlight blasting right into the ceiling.
The terrifying Power pierced through, affecting the surrounding sturdy stone walls, and countless bits of rubble came crashing down.
"RUMBLE!!"
The rubble landed right around Vileplume, burying it. Smoke and Dust immediately rose everywhere.
"Haha, nice one, nice one! That's what you get for trying to pull your flashy tricks on me."
Gary couldn't help but laugh out loud, his handsome face once again taking on that punchable expression.
But in the next second, Gary's expression froze, and he couldn't laugh anymore.
From within the pile of rubble where it was buried, a burst of purple liquid suddenly erupted, flowing out like rolling waves—"Gush, gush, gush"—endlessly.
"Vileplume, use Sludge Wave!"
Ariana shouted, her voice laced with anger.
A terrifying wave of Poison surged forward. Riding this purple toxic wave, Vileplume abruptly stood up from the pile of rubble and advanced, riding the wave.
Grass-type Pokemon are just that tanky!
A Rock Slide?
That was just a tickle.
Seeing the toxic wave approach, Gary naturally didn't back down and shouted:
"In that case, Wartortle, we'll use Surf too!!"
"Wartle!!"
A strange blue light coated Wartortle's eyes. Then, a peculiar stream of water burst from the ground beneath its feet, lifting it up with a "Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh."
In the next second, a powerful, giant wave of water also rose and rolled forward!
*BOOM BOOM SPLASH!!*
The purple Poison and blue water crashed into each other without any obstruction. The two Pokemon, riding the waves, stirred up their own Type Energy, continuously strengthening their attacks.
"Wartle!!"
"Vuluu!!"
However, the toxic wave soon gained the upper hand, continuously eroding the water from Surf. White Smoke rose with a "Tszzt-tszzt" sound at the point of contact; even the all-purpose H2O couldn't withstand the Poison's Corrosion.
"Wartle, wartle..."
The Level Disadvantage, coupled with the resilience and bulk of a Grass-type, meant Wartortle was quickly losing ground.
It was sweating profusely on the wave, its expression panicked.
It was truly making this turtle flustered.
The range of the Surf was constantly shrinking, on the verge of being completely overwhelmed by the Sludge Wave.
But Gary suddenly changed his strategy and shouted abruptly:
"Wartortle, jump up!"
"Wartle!"
With its pillar of support back, Wartortle's eyes regained their clarity. It used an upward surge of the wave to leap into the air with its short legs.
Without it providing subsequent Energy, the Surf was completely swallowed by the terrifying Sludge Wave in just a few seconds. For a moment, White Smoke filled the air as the corrosive liquid surged wildly.
"Jump? Hehe."
Ariana laughed out loud at this scene.
"The entire field is now Poison. Your Wartortle can't fly, so it has to land eventually. You're just delaying its demise."
"Get ready to catch it, Vileplume!" Her eyes flashed menacingly.
"Vu!"
Vileplume's cute-looking eyes turned vicious, and the Poison churned.
But Gary revealed an expression that said his plan had succeeded and shouted abruptly:
"Wartortle, use Ice Beam on the Poison!"
The Wartortle in mid-air suddenly lit up with an ice-blue Energy Ball at its mouth, from which a chilling, freezing Electric Snake shot out.
*Screeeech!!*
The ice-blue Electric Snake bypassed the Vileplume at the center of the toxic wave and shot straight into the Poison.
In the next second, the surging toxic wave began to freeze, starting from the point where the Ice Beam hit. The layer of ice spread out crazily in all directions with extreme speed.
"How is this possible!?"
Ariana's eyes widened, and the words slipped out subconsciously.
There's no way a Sludge Wave could be frozen so easily!
"Wait a minute."
She suddenly noticed that the Sludge Wave before her was no longer the deep purple from the beginning, but a light purple, as if it had been...
Diluted with water?
Was it the Surf from just now?
Ariana instantly understood, her expression filled with surprise.
The diluted Sludge Wave was quickly frozen by Wartortle into a single large purple ice block, and the little turtle landed steadily on top of it.
Meanwhile, the Vileplume on the other side, which had still been surfing, suddenly found the wave gone and face-planted onto the ice.
"What kind of Team Rocket are you? Is this all you've got? No way. Oh, it's not your fault. The great me is just too strong."
Seeing this, the ancient power of the flea in Gary's bloodline erupted once more, and he began to taunt wildly:
"Hey, tell that Giovanni of yours to wash his ass and get ready! I, Gary of Pallet Town, will sooner or later come and screw him in the ass!"
Ariana: "..."
The line was a bit strange.
However, her expression calmed down instead, as if she were looking at a flea.
"It's about time, isn't it...?"
She suddenly said something inexplicable.
"What's wrong? Were you so dazzled by my skill that your brain turned to water?"
Gary was baffled but impressed. He then pointed abruptly and shouted:
"Wartortle, finish it! Use Ice Beam!"
"Wartle!!"
Wartortle opened its mouth, about to aim an Ice Beam "toxic dragon drill" at the rear of the Vileplume still struggling on the ice.
"War...tle..."
Suddenly, Wartortle's movements froze. It felt as if it could no longer control its body.
Its wide-open mouth was frozen in mid-air, unable to close.
Truly making this turtle's head stiff.
"Hey, Wartortle, what are you do—"
Gary, at the side, was just about to complain when his own mouth suddenly froze in mid-air. His muscles were stiff and he couldn't move; only his eyeballs could still turn.
What's happening to me?
Ariana smiled faintly and, as villains are prone to do, began to monologue:
"Hehe... I forgot to tell you. My Vileplume's Ability is Effect Spore."
Unbeknownst to them, the entire floor had become filled with a hazy white powder. It was inconspicuous, but its presence could be felt.
The longer the battle dragged on, the more Vileplume's spores would spread, for the purpose of paralyzing the enemy's muscles.
And she had always carried a special inhibitor that blocked her own respiratory system from absorbing the spores.
By using its high Health Points (HP) to remain undefeated, it would finally rely on the spores to paralyze the opposing Pokemon, along with its Trainer.
With this move alone, she could even take down some of the cutesy Elite Four members by surprise.
"Well then, I suppose the battle is over."
Ariana looked at the man and turtle duo, whose hateful glares looked as if they wanted to strip her naked. She smiled faintly, struck an elegant pose, and then, with a casual air, her eyes flashed menacingly.
"Vileplume, finish them."
Vileplume once again began to gather a terrifying Sludge Bomb...
"Pidgeooo!!!"
Just as Ariana thought it was all over, the loud, rousing cry of an eagle suddenly rang out.
She subconsciously turned to look, only to find that a two-meter-tall brown giant eagle had appeared behind Gary at some unknown point. It had brilliant and cool-looking feathers, wide-spread wings, and a sharp gaze that seemed capable of piercing through anything.
That cry alone was enough intimidation to make Vileplume freeze, interrupting its Sludge Bomb.
"Pidgeot?! Since when!?"
She blurted out in surprise.
"Pidgeo!!"
The Pidgeot, which had appeared like a divine weapon, made no superfluous movements. Its wings lit up with a strange light, and it flapped them once towards Gary from a distance.
"Ding~"
The next second, a melodious chime rang out.
Upon hearing the sound, both Gary and Wartortle shuddered. A strange white light enveloped their bodies, and they instantly regained their mobility.
"What the hell!?"
Ariana rubbed her temples, her knees feeling a little weak.
If she hadn't seen wrong just now, did a Pidgeot just use Heal Bell?
Immediately after, Pidgeot's wings once again lit up with a white, purifying light. With a powerful flap, all the spores in the building vanished into thin air, and the PM2.5 level was once again acceptable.
"Is that f*cking Defog?!"
Ariana was already feeling dizzy and had started cursing.
Whose bird is this? What kind of bullshit moveset is that?
Do you even understand Pokemon?!
But when she looked up again at the Trainer in front of the Pidgeot, she saw that his aura had changed completely. The flighty, punchable temperament from before had vanished entirely.
He had now become incredibly calm and reserved.
Although it was just a ten-year-old's body, with no change in appearance, he now exuded the powerful intimidation of a battle-hardened veteran, as if some Primordial Beast had been unleashed.
A terrifying, demonic Dark Aura seemed to be visible to the naked eye...
"Now, it's my turn to face you."
Green rubbed his Tool Pidgeot's head. The next second, the gazes of both man and eagle focused on their target.
Ariana: "!"
Her legs began to tremble inexplicably, and she had some trouble keeping them closed... —
(This is a big chapter of almost 4k characters, so no second update today.)
(It's going premium this Friday, don't forget!)
(end of chapter)
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