"Aahh!"
In a sudden jolt, Electivire snapped its eyes open and hurled a thunderous punch at Alakazam, launching it backward. Afterward, it clutched its head in pain and shook violently, twice.
Its eyes burning with rage locked onto Alakazam, who was now hovering midair, regaining composure while using Recover to restore its stamina.
In the nightmare it just escaped, it saw itself during its pre-evolved stages: as an Elekid, being toyed with telekinetically by an Abra before being thrown down and used as a psychic pillow; as an Electabuzz, crushed and cushioned by a Kadabra; and now, as an Electivire, subdued beneath an Alakazam as if it were nothing but bedding.
Maybe a Snorlax could tolerate such treatment—but for Electivire, this was an unbearable humiliation.
It was that shame which had jolted it awake and now, it was charging at Alakazam with another Plasma Fist.
"Bend the spoons."
But this time, Alakazam didn't dodge with just Teleport. Instead, it actively countered. With a wave of its hand, the spoons floating beside it flew toward Electivire. All of them twisted and bent simultaneously in midair, grabbing Electivire's full attention.
In an instant, Electivire's mind was thrown into chaos. The sheer number of mental stimulant overwhelmed its senses, its focus scattered.
"It can do that?"
Paul was witnessing this for the first time and he was genuinely surprised.
Still, he didn't panic. He remained composed, speaking more like a calm observer than a battling Trainer.
"Deploy the Thunder Cage across the field. Close it in gradually."
Electivire, having used Motivated Charge, had significantly raised its own power just moments earlier. Now, that power was peaking.
"Vireeeeee~!"
Enduring the lingering mental confusion, Electivire powered up again. Countless arcs of electricity surged outward from its body. Thunderbolts snaked like living lightning serpents, sprawling outward until they blanketed the entire battlefield.
All except for the space where Alakazam floated.
Thanks to its Motor Drive, Electivire darted through the thunderstorm freely, unimpeded. In a flash, it closed the distance and swung a heavy punch straight toward Alakazam.
But Sabrina merely smiled and said softly:
"Trace."
A flash of white light shimmered over Mega Alakazam. For the first time in the match, it activated its ability copying Electivire's Motor Drive.
In the modern competitive world, abilities aren't just passive traits, they can be explored, trained, and strategically deployed. Sabrina's Mega Alakazam had mastered the art of adaptive combat, capable of mimicking its opponent's ability whenever needed.
Of course, even if it hadn't copied it just now, Alakazam could've just used Skill Swap to steal it, or used Role Play to replicate it anyway.
So, in that instant, even though Electivire's punch landed with force, the electricity that came with it was completely absorbed by Alakazam—just as it had absorbed the thunder from the Thunder Cage that now surrounded them.
The physical impact still hurt, but it was well within tolerable limits.
Before Electivire could switch moves to counterattack, a sudden wave of psychic energy struck it from above, slamming it to the ground.
It was none other than Future Sight, a delayed attack that Alakazam had set up earlier.
The blow landed cleanly. Electivire collapsed with a thud, its stamina hanging by a thread.
"Bend the spoon."
But neither Alakazam nor Sabrina made a move to press the attack. Instead, while maintaining psychic pressure on Electivire, Alakazam levitated its signature spoons, bending them as they danced around the fallen opponent.
In the games, this move is Kinesis, which lowers the opponent's accuracy. But in this more grounded version of reality unconstrained by numerical stats, the technique directly interferes with the opponent's focus and mental clarity.
As of this moment, Electivire was seeing stars. Its vision swam and its mind blurred. It couldn't lock onto anything. Even Sabrina standing perfectly still, seemed to sway and shimmer like a mirage.
The humiliation of being toyed with, instead of being finished off, ignited a deep fury in Electivire.
It could sense Alakazam floating just behind it, psychic force pouring down like gravity—crushing and inescapable. But no matter how hard it tried, Electivire couldn't break free. Its fists clenched so tightly that the strain nearly cracked its fangs.
From deep within, it called on every last shred of strength. The power of the Zap Plate surged into it, amplifying its energy.
"Haaah!!"
And then, in a moment of sheer willpower—something snapped. Like shattering invisible chains, Electivire broke free of the psychic hold and whipped its twin tails around at Alakazam.
The sudden burst of resistance caught Alakazam completely off guard. It was grabbed midair and slammed into the floor.
In a flash, Electivire pounced, bringing down a relentless barrage of Ice Punch hammering Alakazam with blow after icy blow.
At that moment, Electivire had ascended. Its strength was unmistakably on the level of an Elite Four-tier Pokémon—Champion-class power.
Even if its mental focus remained fractured, it didn't matter now. It had locked onto its prey feelings, instincts, and fury—enough to guide its strikes. Accuracy was irrelevant.
Several punches later, a stroke of chilling fortune struck. One of the punches triggered Ice Punch's secondary effect: a layer of frost crept over Alakazam's body.
Frozen solid!
"That's enough!"
The freezing air seeped into Sabrina's body, she could feel Alakazam's pain as her own. With a sharp cry, her immense psychic power—vast as a surging sea erupted in a dazzling explosion of mental force. Alakazam's frozen form glowed with an intense blue light.
CRACK!
Before Electivire could react, the ice around Alakazam shattered violently. A pulse of psychic energy burst out, slamming Electivire into the far wall.
Already near collapse, Electivire couldn't withstand the impact. It was instantly knocked out.
Without a word, Paul withdrew Electivire. Then, without hesitation, he grabbed his final Poké Ball and threw it forward, issuing his command:
"Hisuian Samurott, prepare for battle!"
"X-Scissor!"
"Chaah~!"
With a cold cry, a streak of black and blue light burst forth from the Poké Ball. In a flash, Samurott—its blades trailing currents of water lunged straight at Alakazam, who had only just shattered the ice to defeat Electivire. Twin forearm blades gleamed with radiant light, slashing down in a crisscross arc onto Alakazam's body.
Whether it was due to the mental and physical exhaustion from the previous battle or the lingering stiffness from being frozen, Alakazam couldn't even react before the X-Scissor landed cleanly.
It's super effective!
A critical hit!
Time seemed to freeze. Alakazam, already worn down from taking Electivire's attacks, had little stamina left. With Samurott's X-Scissor landing a decisive blow, there was no need for a follow-up, the Psychic-type fell from the air and crashed to the ground.
As the radiant light faded, Mega Alakazam reverted to its original form, having lost the ability to continue battling.
"Chaah~"
Samurott stood with its arm blades extended, gazing coldly at the fallen Alakazam. Its eyes glinted with a razor-sharp edge, and the aura it exuded surged to an unprecedented peak.
But this wasn't the end.
With both blades at the ready, Samurott's sword aura and battle presence climbed at a terrifying pace. Even Paul, watching from outside the battlefield, could clearly feel the sheer sharpness radiating from Samurott's body.
Invisible slashes of blade energy sliced through the air around it—the very atmosphere seemed to tear apart, and it felt as if taking a single step too close would leave one cleaved in two.
Among all Pokémon, Samurott was the one born most purely for combat, for blades and for battle.
While other Pokémon trained in battle, Samurott battled in training.
While others rested, it sought out new techniques and ways to improve.
While others slept peacefully in their Poké Balls, Samurott meditated on swordsmanship and blade mastery.
Since joining the team, the only Pokémon that ever disrupted Samurott's relentless training was Ninetales—and even then, only in the beginning.
Over time, Ninetales became Samurott's grindstone—sharpening both its body and spirit to a new level of mortality.
And now, in this moment—every bottleneck, every shackle, every limit on Samurott's power was utterly shattered beneath its overwhelming blade intent.
And not just limits, even Samurott's power ceiling had been cut through!
Elite-Class Peak? No!
Having broken through its barriers, Samurott had stepped directly into the Champion-Class tier!
Is the gap between Elite-Class and Champion-Class big?
Huge.
But this gap isn't just about raw strength. It's about the fundamental layer a Pokémon exists on.
If a Pokémon brute-forces its way into Champion-Class through sheer power alone, it may break through, but it would only be a barely-qualified Champion-Class Pokémon.
Only when a Pokémon fully integrates its abilities and finds its own path can it truly step into the domain of a powerful Champion-Class combatant.
Torterra and Electivire may have broken through their limits under intense mental pressure and provocation, but that doesn't mean they were inherently weaker than Samurott who advanced directly.
Rather, the difference lay in the chaotic and fragmented nature of their abilities, which made it harder for them to consolidate and elevate their strength. Combined with various unstable factors, that was the real reason they hadn't reached a higher level sooner.
Now that they've finally ascended to the level of an Elite-class Pokémon, it will only take a short period of stabilization for them to harmonize their capabilities and grow even stronger.
Yet this exact situation highlights the unique status of the team's junior ace, Samurott—the kind who remains silent for a long time, only to astonish everyone with a single breakthrough!
(End of Chapter)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you want to access the advance 80 chapters, please visit: patreon.com / PMadz_23