Winona’s identity as a Gym Trainer was indeed legitimate. At least, they have professional referees in the Gym.
Under the referee’s command, Terrance and Winona both released their Pokémon.
The rules were set for a 2-on-2 battle, following the traditional battle rules.
“I am Winona, the Leader of the Fortree Gym. I have become one with bird Pokémon and have soared the skies…However grueling the battle, we will triumph with grace…Witness the elegant choreography of my bird Pokémon and me!”
On the battlefield, Winona’s side was Swablu, its petite body flying in the air, overlooking Terrance’s Growlithe on the ground.
As the battle commenced, Growlithe eagerly dashed across the field.
“This round…I’ll take it,” Winona said.
Clearly, Swablu’s advantage in aerial combat was undeniable!
“Growlithe, don’t rush. Try Flamethrower first,” commanded Terrance.
A pillar of fire shot into the air. Winona shook her head. As expected, Terrance was a rookie Trainer. A Flamethrower of this power was too weak for Growlithe.
The move was loose, the flames were not cohesive, and the release speed was too slow. As the flames rose higher, their temperature steadily decreased.
“Swablu won’t be daunted by this move! Evade with the rhythm of the wind!” Winona instructed.
Swablu circled around the pillar of Flamethrower like a cotton ball being gently blown by the wind, effortlessly dodging the flames.
Simultaneously, while spinning around the pillar of flames, Swablu approached Growlithe, its beak shimmering with dazzling light.
“Swablu, use Peck!”
Peck, or Fury Attack, Swablu’s Peck attack was mastered to perfection, a level of skill even Terrance hadn’t seen his Swablu achieve back then.
With white light at its beak, Swablu became a sharp spear, charging straight at Growlithe with Fury Attack.
“Growlithe, Agility.”
Without panic, Terrance swiftly commanded and at the sound, Growlithe instantly transformed into a blur, easily evading Fury Attack.
“How could…” Winona gaped at Growlithe. It could even dodge at that distance?
“Such a quick reaction,” Winona couldn’t help but admire. “Fly back into the sky.”
Growlithe’s coordination was impressive. As long as it wasn’t an extremely tricky angle or an attack impossible to dodge, Growlithe could handle most attacks.
What followed was a continuous exchange between Swablu and Growlithe.
Both Swablu and Growlithe displayed remarkable coordination. Terrance observed that the opponent also placed great emphasis on elegance and magnificence during battle. Additionally, her choice of words was meticulous. However, there were intermittent pauses in her speech, possibly deliberating over which words to use, leading to slower command execution.
In the sky, Swablu began to bombard Growlithe with Dragon Pulse. Terrance was surprised that Swablu could learn Dragon Pulse. It seemed that although Swablu hadn’t evolved, its talent was unexpectedly high. Without an outstanding Dragon Type bloodline, if his Swablu had wanted to learn Dragon Pulse, it wouldn’t be a simple task.
However, Winona had misjudged one thing. She believed that Growlithe’s Flamethrower posed no threat to Swablu, so as long as Swablu stayed in the air, it would be safe… By continuously blocking Growlithe’s moving range with Dragon Pulse and various moves, Winona planned to corner Growlithe and then defeat it in one fell swoop.
Feeling the time was right, Terrance said, “Flame Wheel!”
Growlithe had stretched and warmed up. Looking at Growlithe, who under Agility was itching to give it a go, Terrance looked up at the sky…
Swablu was still flying, while Growlithe below began to emit a faint heat as it ran, a red light enveloping its body, then—
With a buzz, accompanied by a burst of flame, flames engulfed Growlithe’s entire body!
“Hmm?” Winona looked at Growlithe, her expression puzzled, not understanding Growlithe’s intent.
“Are they trying to attack Swablu from that position?!” After making her guess, Winona couldn’t believe it herself. One on the ground, one in the air, with nothing around to climb… Except for Pokémon with exceptionally good jump power, it was impossible for an attack to reach such a height.
However, Growlithe’s actions completely startled Winona… She had never seen a Pokémon with such strong explosive power…
Swablu, who was still focused on the ground, suddenly saw a flash of fire erupt from below. Before Swablu could react, Growlithe was already rushing towards it from the ground like a rocket. With a loud bang, Swablu was hit even higher, letting out a miserable cry as it lost its ability to fly, propelled by the force of impact to even greater heights in the sky…
As for Growlithe, it let out a roar as well; its body was like a spring that had exhausted all its strength in that explosive strike, leaving its legs aching. Having reached such a height, Growlithe naturally couldn’t maintain balance and could only let its body plummet back down.
Bang…
The moment Growlithe landed on the ground, Terrance felt the pain after hearing the sound. He couldn’t help but feel a pang in his heart. Then, Swablu also fell down. Compared to Growlithe, Swablu was in worse condition, being the primary target of the impact, and it’s petite body made it more vulnerable to injury…
“Swablu… unable to battle…”
The referee announced the result, stunned. The change was too sudden, the shift in fighting style too abrupt. Watching Growlithe, twitching as it stood up, the referee’s eyes widened in incomprehension.
“I…” Winona’s mouth opened slightly, looking at Growlithe in astonishment. She knew she had been careless…Growlithe’s Flamethrower was not at all a move aimed at Flying-type Pokémon…The explosive power of that Flame Wheel was too terrifying, catching both her and Swablu completely off guard.
“If it was her teacher’s Altaria…any Pokémon on the ground would have no chance of escaping its control,” Winona thought to herself. But in this battle, she lost. Underestimating Growlithe was one factor, but more crucially…Swablu wasn’t her ace at the moment!
“My next partner is… Swellow!” Taking a deep breath, Winona solemnly looked at Terrance. He didn’t seem as easy to deal with as a rookie Trainer. If she had been fully focused on the battle just now, she might have been able to help Swablu evade the Flame Wheel.
In the end, it was her own command error that she missed the opportunity.
“Come back, Growlithe. Next up, Mismagius, take the field.”
Looking at Growlithe’s equally battered body, Terrance shook his head…It looked too injured, so he couldn’t leave the next battle to Growlithe.
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