There were multiple reasons why Axel wanted Venusaur to join the fight. First of all, Blastoise was already injured and could not give its all in the battle. Krookodile had to be called back because it was seriously injured, and despite Venusaur being only a tier-2 king-rank Pokemon, it was one of the few cross-rank Pokemon in Axel's team.
Cross-rank was a term that Axel made up himself. It meant that the Pokemon could fight against higher-ranked Pokemon, and Venusaur had that capability. It had numerous healing moves, and its control over the battlefield was outstanding.
Axel wanted to catch Brambleghast and negotiate with it so that Brambleghast could teach the life sucking move to Venusaur but he knew that it might not be possible.
Killing Pokemon was hard in the tide battle, especially when fighting against strong Pokemon. But catching and taming them was a completely different story. First, since it was a mighty Pokemon, it was hard to catch it, even with a master ball. In the real world, the Master Ball didn't have a 100% catch rate. They would have to fully deplete its health and make it weak, which was very hard without killing it.
So, if there comes a time where they would have to kill Brambleghast, he would let Venusaur have the last hit, so that 'Move capture' could be activated and Venusaur could learn that move.
When Mia's Infernape and Axel's Venusaur joined the battle, the battle changed completely. Venusaur was healing Blastoise, and Brambleghast could no longer control the battlefield because of Venusaur.
Venusaur had used 'Deep Forest emergence', and it was able to counter Brambleghast's reach. Meanwhile, Infernape was able to activate Blaze and fight against it.
Infernape was a tier-3 king rank Pokemon, and it was a powerful physical fighter. The battle turned in their favor. With some powerful 'Flame charge', 'Fire punch', and kicks from it, Brambleghast lost its edge.
Venusaur was trying its best to capture this Pokemon as it was suggested by Axel, but as the battle was coming to its end, Brambleghast decided to give it all.
The vines and branches that were fighting against Venusaur began to gain the upper hand. Suddenly, the power of those branches increased manyfold. Brambleghast itself started to grow in size, and it tried to bind the rest of them.
But it was not successful. The shape of Brambleghast started to change. An armor was being erected, and that armor covered its whole body. But it didn't look like armor at all.
"What is it?", asked Mia.
"I have no idea. It looks like an egg."
All the moments from Brambleghast had ceased. It was now only covered in that armor/egg-type thing.
Krishna finally realized what it truly was. "No, it is a seed. EVERYONE GET OUT OF THERE. THAT THING WILL EXPLODE!!!"
Krishna shouted hysterically and started to run back. Seeing Krishna's panicked face, Alon and Mia took it seriously. They also began to run back.
Venusaur was far from Axel, so Axel could not call it back. It was a grass-type Pokemon too. So, it could sense that the thing is very close to an explosion and they cannot run from it.
It used 'Grassy Terrain', 'Deep forest emergence', 'Frenzy Plant', 'Growth', and 'Wood clone' to create a massive wooden dome that covered all of them inside.
BOOOOMMM
A massive explosion occurred.
The explosion was so massive that all the Pokemon and trainers fighting in the tide battle turned their heads to look at it. This was a tier-3 king-rank Pokemon charging itself and exploding. The impact was something to be remembered.
Ding!
Venuasur has learned a new move. Please name the move.
Axel was nervous about Vensuaur, but looking at the system notification, he could tell that it was going to be okay.
When the smoke, dust, and debris settled and the air cleared, everyone could see that the massive wooden dome had been cracked and broken in multiple places. The good thing was that everyone was okay. The bad thing was that Venusaur was seriously injured.
This made Axel worry a lot. This was the first time it had been injured in this manner. Everyone hurriedly started to check and treat Venusaur. It received first aid and was then sent to the hospital immediately.
Axel could not move from his position because he had to deal with these two Pokemon.
"FUCK!!! I will complete this and then I will end this tide.", shouted Axel in frustration. He was really angry right now. He hated it when he couldn't dictate his own fate.
###
Aegislash was having a hard time against Charizard and Shedinja. Both of them were extremely powerful, and Aegislash was weak against both of them. Yet, somehow, it was defending and dodging the attacks, and it only had minor injuries as if it were waiting for something. It seemed to be stalling for time.
"Charles, I feel that we should finish this battle as soon as possible. Let's get serious.", said Shedinja.
This was the first time Shedinja had teamed up with Charizard to face a powerful opponent. So, their coordination was lacking, but since their individual powers were so high, it didn't matter.
At that moment, Aegislash went back when Ceruledge also came near Aegislash. Within a moment, both of them were together. Suddenly, Aegislash turned into Shield form and got attached to the right hand of Ceruledge.
The right hand, which was also a sword of Ceruledge, glowed with Aegislash, and now it looked like both of them were a single Pokemon.
"What is happening?", asked Axel.
He had never seen two different Pokemon combine to form a single Pokemon. Ceruledge now looked like a gladiator with a sword in one hand and a Shield in the other. The right blade of Ceruledge had disappeared and was replaced by the whole body of Aegislash. Axel could notice that Aegislash had become smaller than before, but it adjusted perfectly with Ceruledge.
Axel immediately looked at the status page of this new creature.
Pokemon's name: Ceruledge & Aegislash (Combine)
Pokemon Nickname: None
Pokemon Rank: King rank (Tier 3)
Pokemon Typing: Fire/Ghost (Steel/Ghost on the right side)
Ability: Flash Fire (mastered), Stance change (mastered)
Hidden ability: Weak armor (mastered)
Potential: NA
Health: 27000/35000Attack: SS
Agility: SSDefense: SS
Sp. Atk: A+ Sp. Def: SS
Note: A temporary combination of two Pokemon where both Pokémon function as one unit. It can remain in this form for 20 minutes.
Axel was flabbergasted. He took a sigh of relief that it had not ranked up to pseudo-champion rank Pokemon, but that was the only good news. Its ability 'Flash fire', which was '100%' before, was now 'mastered'. Its maximum health rapidly increased to 35000. That was the highest health he had ever seen in a Pokemon. All of its stats were SS rank except for special attack.
The system was merciful for telling him that this form would only last for 20 minutes, but 20 minutes was a long time in a battle. This combination form also knew that it would have to finish the battle as soon as possible.
Axel had to change the battle strategy.
"Charizard, you can help others. Marcus, Meg, and Magnus will deal with this abomination. Marcus, you will lead the team. Meg and Magnus will support it and defend it as much as possible.", said Axel.
Since Ceruledge had the ability 'Flash Fire', Charizard could not participate in this battle. It was better for it to help in other fields.
Axel could see that the new form of Ceruledge and Aegislash was bored, as if it was waiting for them to get ready.
'Why was it so confident? It was dealing with three pseudo-champion rank Pokemon. It would surely lose this battle. Something is not right.', thought Axel.
###
As Axel and his team were struggling with Ceruledge and Aegislash, Steven was having one of the worst days of his life.
"Father, do I have to do it?, asked Steven to Joseph.
"Yes, I am afraid so. I felt that you would be happy with this decision since you want to prove yourself against Axel. Participating in the tide battle is the way to go. And, you also heard what Oak and the league said.
This era will be the era of the tide battle. Don't you want to jump in early to have a sound footing?", said Joseph.
Steven didn't know how to feel about this new development. He was not sure what to do with his life. Of course, he was training himself and his Pokemon, but that was it. Lance had become the principal of a school. Cynthia was going on adventures to search for ancient Pokemon, and Axel had created a mercenary team.
Only he and Wallace had no vision for their lives. So, he didn't know if he wanted to do this, but he certainly didn't like being forced to do something.
"Father, don't you think that I should get to decide what I do?", asked Steven.
He never really talked back to his father, and frankly, there was no need to do so. But this was his life.
Joseph gave a big sigh. He also didn't want to do this, but if he wanted his family to survive, then they would have to. The king's condition was severe, and he had to make that decision immediately.
"I know how you feel, but if we want to survive the future, we will have to do this. The support of the king is not something small."
Steven understood where his father was coming from, but his mother was having none of it.
"HOW CAN YOU SELL YOUR SON LIKE THAT? ARE YOU EVEN HUMAN?"
Veins were clearly visible, and they looked like they could pop any moment on her face.
"Mira, it is not what you think. Please try to understand."
"What should I understand. You are risking the life of your son just so that you can get more money? We have all the money that we need. We don't need any money now…."
As his mother and father fought, Steven decided to take a long walk to clear his thoughts.
The sun was just perfect for taking a walk. His house was as big as a small village. There were multiple commercial buildings, training grounds, and research facilities.
Steven was walking in the garden, minding his own business, thinking about his future, when he heard a voice calling him from behind.
"Hey, Steven."
Steven turned around to see Wallace waving his hand and coming towards him.
"Wallace, why are you here?"
"Oh, I just came to give a package to your dad. So, what are you thinking? You look quite serious."
Wallace was one of the few friends whom he trusted. They had known each other since childhood.
Steven told him all about the deal and how he was now supposed to fight in tide battles.
"So, what do you think? Do you want to do it?", asked Wallace, giving him a popsicle.
"I don't know, man. It's exciting to go to war, but I know it won't be a walk in the park. We had gone to a tide battle before, but at that time, we were just soldiers going there for some experience. However, I may now have to lead a team.
It all seems risky and dangerous."
"Steven, you have talked to Axel, and you have seen the news. You know that our life will not be easy in the future. It won't be like you'll only be challenging gyms and become a champion, then sit in that chair.
At some point, we might have to fight these wild Pokemon. So, why not start with leading a tide battle? Also, your team is mostly steel-type Pokemon, which is perfect for tide battle."
"So, you suggest that I join the tide battle?"
"Yes, that is what I am saying. Also, count me in, too."
---
A/N: There are more than 60+ advanced chapters in pa-treon along with two new side stories of the novel. If you are interested in reading more and getting ahead in the story, subscribe to my pa-treon channel.
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