Larry had a deep impression of that Swampert.
Back during Lucas's 6v6 Elite Four gauntlet, that Swampert had swung those naturally powerful fists of its, using Ice Punch and Waterfall to consecutively defeat four of his Pokémon, only to finally fall beneath his ace, Flamigo.
But then even his ace Flamigo fell helplessly before Luxray.
Now, that thunder beast below was a foe troubleso and disadvantageous in typing for both him and Flamigo. Larry couldn't figure out how Lucas's Swampert was supposed to fight it. Rely on type advantage?
Type immunity always has its limits. It's like a newly born Sandshrew—can it ignore the thunderbolts Zapdos drops from the cloud tops?
Even if the current is grounded and dispersed, the sheer torrent of energy alone would be enough to leave the Sandshrew on the brink of death.
Ground typing indeed gives Swampert a very obvious advantage, but isn't the best choice now to send out Lucas's ace, that Luxray, to face it?
In Larry's mind, Swampert's combat power was still a notch below Luxray's. The only confidence it had to challenge that thunder beast likely ca from its Ground typing.
Ever since Lucas sent out the long-unseen Swampert, Larry had been curious about the armband on its forearm set with a pretty stone. What was it for?
When Lucas shouted "ga Evolution," and Larry watched the light bands streaming from Swampert's armband and Lucas's chest et midair, his expression went blank.
What a dazzling radiance.
Basking in golden currents, Swampert's very life level began to leap to the next stage. An awe-inspiring domineering aura surged up like an undersea volcano.
A mont later, the brilliance faded.
Swampert had fully transford into a sinewy biological war engine, its whole body brimming with explosive strength. A heavy weight pressed on Larry and Flamigo's chests as if a massive boulder sat upon them.
ga Swampert gave a shudder, and in an instant it easily tore free of the terrifying electricity.
Under the Ancient Raikou's startled gaze, the air bladders in ga Swampert's right fist all opened at once, and the high-pressure jets of water they sprayed acted like thrusters, adding power and speed to its heavy punch.
The ground cracked inch by inch under ga Swampert's trendous force. In the next instant, its form turned into overlapping afterimages, blitzing to the Ancient Raikou with eye-defying speed. In the beast's suddenly constricted pupils, a fist as heavy as a thousand-pound boulder ca crashing down!
Liquidation!
Boom—!
Water burst across the Ancient Raikou's hide, and that massive body was smashed into the side wall by ga Swampert. Even the crystals inlaid there shattered into pieces.
The Ancient Raikou rose in pain. The look it cast at ga Swampert was no longer haughty, but tinged with solemnity.
From this mont on, it would no longer underestimate ga Swampert.
All-out—crush them!
"Liquidation seems a bit weak… No, Electric shouldn't resist Water."
Under the protection of Mimikyu, Lucas frowned. Did the Ancient Raikou have a secondary typing that resisted Water?
The Water-type energy in that last hit had basically done nothing. If not for ga Swampert's unparalleled strength, it might not have budged the Ancient Raikou's body at all.
Thunder bood from the mane around the Ancient Raikou's neck, and lightning as swift as arrows streaked toward ga Swampert. The terrifying Electric-type energy within was sothing even ordinary Ground Pokémon couldn't guarantee to shunt 100% into the earth.
Naturally, ga Swampert showed no carelessness. ga Evolution is an all-around enhancent, including its dynamic vision, now corrected enough to track attacks as fast as lightning!
"Use Stomping Tantrum to generate a shockwave and block the thunder mid-flight!"
ga Swampert moved to stomp, but in that very instant, the coursing lightning suddenly gained several tiers of speed. Before it could react, terrifying electricity exploded across its entire body.
Most of the current and energy were grounded away, while a smaller portion rampaged over its skin. The heat from the current collided with the moisture on ga Swampert's surface, sending white mist billowing up.
There was a montary numbness and burning, but for ga Swampert it was nothing much. Under Lucas's command, water once more coiled around its right fist—clearly ready to test again whether the Ancient Raikou truly resisted Water-type moves.
Facing an unknown typing and unknown species is troubleso precisely because you can't apply the type-effectiveness chart to land super-effective blows.
Just then, the interior of Observation Station 4 seed to notice the commotion from outside. A lab-coated researcher, looking nervous, opened the gate, leaned half his body out, and shouted through a gaphone: "The two Professors said it's called Raging Bolt—an Electric/Dragon-type Pokémon!!"
"Weak to Ground, Ice, Fairy, and Dragon!!!"
With that, the researcher shrank back inside again. He knew that, beyond passing on the ssage, staying out there would only be a liability.
Lucas's ears pricked. An Electric/Dragon Pokémon called Raging Bolt… Got it!
With intel in hand, there was no need to hold back anymore!
"Ice Punch!"
ga Swampert leapt high. The water swirling around its fists was instantly frozen solid by Ice-type energy.
Raging Bolt also knew its omnipotent lightning wasn't very effective on this opponent, and imdiately switched tactics. Massive Dragon energy gathered before it, forming into a dragon that reared back and roared, lunging to bite the airborne ga Swampert.
In midair, ga Swampert fired its body's air bladders for water-jet micromaneuvers, and in the instant before Dragon Pulse could bite down, it adjusted its course and narrowly avoided the attack.
Next, ga Swampert's left fist crashed down. The dragon ford of Dragon Pulse was instantly frozen by frigid Ice energy, lost propulsion, and fell powerlessly.
As the ice sculpture of the dragon shattered into fragnts, ga Swampert swung its bulging right arm and, riding its montum, slamd straight toward Raging Bolt!
Raging Bolt had no intention of retreating either. Its body seed to turn into a massive Dragon Hamr, cleaving the air with overwhelming force as it charged straight at ga Swampert!
Thoom—!
A violent collision rippled out—
This was a brutal contest of raw power against raw power. Unlike its relatively low Attack stat in the gas, the strength contained in Raging Bolt's huge body was by no ans sothing ordinary Pokémon could match.
Fortunately, ga Swampert was just a little different.
The sound of ice spreading stood out sharply. Raging Bolt, bearing ga Swampert's terrifying might head-on, flashed a hint of astonishnt in its draconic eyes.
Why was the energy coating its body being so easily perated by the opponent's chilling power?
Hailing from ancient tis, Raging Bolt had no concept of type matchups.
In an instant, frost spread over Raging Bolt's whole body, freezing it into a huge ice sculpture five or six ters tall.
"Is it… over?"
From above, where he was ready to assist at any mont, Larry murmured under his breath.
For his Flamigo, this so-called Raging Bolt was a natural nesis—outclassed in strength, and even if it tried to rely on speed, that terrifying, lightning-quick power would catch up. There was simply no way to fight it.
Good thing Lucas and that inexplicably further-evolving Swampert were here. Otherwise, dealing with Raging Bolt would have exacted a heavy price.
Crack—
While Larry sighed in relief, the ice sculpture began to tremble violently, countless fractures spreading as golden light seeped out from within!
Raging Bolt was breaking free!
"As expected, it's not that easy to finish it… The vitality of these Paradox species is nearly comparable to that of legendary Pokémon."
Lucas sighed, took a brown, diamond-shaped crystal, slotted it into his Z-Ring, and began preparing a Z-Move.
If they kept fighting, ga Swampert could still take down Raging Bolt, but it would definitely cost a lot of ti, and haste could easily cause collateral damage to Observation Station 4.
Better to end this quickly.
"Swampert, Earthquake to pin it—keep the range tight so we don't hit the station!"
The mont Lucas spoke, Raging Bolt burst out of the ice, its surging, raging electricity sweeping indiscriminately in all directions—Observation Station 4 included.
Larry hurriedly commanded his six Pokémon to block the wrathful Discharge with everything they had.
At the sa ti, ga Swampert slamd both arms into the ground. A violent tremor erupted from beneath it, ocher shockwaves spreading outward, carefully controlled to concentrate around Raging Bolt.
The intense shaking and terrifying shockwaves twisted Raging Bolt's face in pain. Fresh out of the ice, the chill within its body hadn't yet faded, and it couldn't free itself from the Earthquake right away, forced to tank the move on sheer stamina alone.
Seizing the mont before the quake's aftershocks died down, with Raging Bolt bound in place and unable to dodge, Lucas and ga Swampert completed all preparations for the Z-Move.
"Tectonic Rage."
Dazzling light burst from the Z-Ring, and most of Lucas's stamina poured into ga Swampert. Under ga Swampert's control, a massive fissure ripped open in the bedrock, swallowing the horrified Raging Bolt.
ga Swampert's figure vanished as well, reappearing an instant later before the plumting Raging Bolt in that seemingly bottomless abyss. Cloaked in dense Ground-type power, as if bearing the will of the earth, ga Swampert crashed into Raging Bolt!
A surging torrent of energy roared skyward. The entire cavern let out a tortured, wavering hum. Wild Pokémon living nearby bolted blindly for the exits, fearful the cave would collapse and bury them alive.
Fortunately, the lower-layer caverns of Area Zero were sturdy enough. After the battered Raging Bolt was spat out by the jaws of the earth and fell to the ground, the tremors subsided, ga Swampert reappeared, and the yawning rift slowly knit shut, leaving no sign it had ever opened.
Raging Bolt vs. ga Swampert—once they had intel, the battle ended in an overwhelming victory for ga Swampert and Lucas!
A rapidly spinning Ultra Ball slipped from Lucas's hand, struck the fallen Raging Bolt squarely, and turned it into a beam of red light that was drawn into the ball.
Off to the side, Larry, who had struggled just to withstand Raging Bolt's enraged thunder, curled his lips into a faint smile and sighed with feeling: "Only a few months apart, and he's grown even stronger."
"For soone ordinary like , you're blindingly brilliant… But I think I understand a little now."
"I understand why Chairman Geeta had use Flying types as an Elite Four. So sights can't be noticed if you only walk along flat roads… For soone ordinary like , I occasionally need to look up at talents like you who can ride the clouds."
The two were respectfully invited into Observation Station 4 by the young male researcher who had just stuck his head out with the loudhailer.
The researcher kept sneaking glances at Lucas from ti to ti, as if looking at a rare specin.
According to the researcher, the situation inside Station 4 was pretty bad. Because of Raging Bolt, most electrically powered equipnt had basically been rendered useless. That was also why they couldn't contact the outside world for help.
From the researcher's account, the two also learned the specifics of the station's loss of contact.
The two Professors, who should have established their lab at the very bottom, had sohow ended up near Observation Station 3. On their way back, they had the bad luck to encounter Raging Bolt from the distant river region.
The big brute made a huge ss, destroyed the temporarily unstaffed Station 3, and forced the two Professors to move down to take shelter in Station 4.
Who knew Raging Bolt would pursue them relentlessly, chasing them from the mid-layer down to the lower layer, and then—for so reason—rather than destroy Station 4, it chose to prowl in the area, keeping them trapped for days.
"I don't really know the details, since I'm just an intern logistics researcher stationed at Observation Station 4. I never imagined we'd be stuck by Raging Bolt for so long…"
Scratching his head under their questioning, the researcher looked a bit embarrassed.
They ca to a door that stood half-open. Through the narrow gap, they could see a man and a woman lying quietly on small beds inside.
They were Sada and Turo.
Bandages wrapped their bodies. They were unconscious, faces a bit pale. Spots of blood had seeped through the white bandages. They didn't look good—possibly feverish.
Lucas and Larry frowned and looked at the young male researcher, who had introduced himself as Moru, their eyes asking the obvious question.
What happened to the two Professors?
Moru's expression turned heavy. He lowered his voice: "Because of Raging Bolt, our equipnt is basically unusable. That includes dical devices."
"I could only bandage them temporarily and apply so dicine."
"To be honest, if you hadn't co, I was thinking that for the Professors' sake, I'd have to go out and try my luck anyway."
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