Chapter 551: Reading the Battlefield
The Stitched Shadow Army knew they only had one chance to strike!
Times had changed. Now, a joint force from all the major alliances was stationed at the edge of the desert to maintain order.
Even their partner, Sinnoh, had to play by the rules and send trainers in to compete fairly.
An operation like this, no matter how covert or well-hidden, was destined to face reckoning and retaliation afterwards. There would be no second chance.
So, they abandoned all pretense of secrecy and decided to stake everything on one throw!
They had mobilized almost every single member still hidden in the desert for this battle!
With one camp flattened by Pokémon and the other two bombed by the Kubfu Alliance, these eight or nine vehicles and thirty-plus trainers were all the Stitched Shadow Army could muster in the desert!
They were determined to win! They had to capture Arthur!
"Go! Release all Pokémon! Kill the driver, capture the boy alive! Kill any other Pokémon!"
Even with the camera still rolling, they no longer cared, openly shouting orders for murder and kidnapping!
One chance!
They were willing to risk it all!
Facing the enemy's naked, undisguised killing intent, Forrest could only smile bitterly and apologize to Arthur.
"It seems you were right. I didn't expect such a group of maniacs to be hiding in the desert."
But at first, Forrest wasn't too panicked.
"Are your elders nearby? Are they still not making a move? The fish has taken the bait."
He thought Arthur was using himself as bait.
Until Arthur twitched his mouth and glanced at him indifferently.
"Forget it. Right now, it's just the two of us."
In that instant, Forrest's expression froze.
"Are you joking?"
"No, I'm serious."
"..."
At this moment, Forrest's perpetually squinted eyes opened to their limit, a rare sight.
Even in this critical, volatile situation, Arthur couldn't help but think: So your eyes CAN open wide?
"Then we..."
Forrest wanted to ask what to do, but Arthur answered with action.
"Lina, come down and carry me! Old Flame, Mega Evolve, Outrage! Take out those Talonflame fast!"
Since there were no reinforcements, they had to carve a bloody path themselves!
He decisively began issuing combat commands.
As his voice fell, Arthur started running and jumped!
Coordinating with Lina's dive, he agilely flipped onto the dragon's back.
"Reflect!"
As they ascended, he ordered Lina to use Reflect, blocking the bullets sweeping from below, while simultaneously recalling Greninja. All movements were smooth and clean.
By the time the wind pressure passed and Forrest lowered his hands, Arthur had already taken to the sky on his dragon!
Forrest was speechless with shock.
Are you not afraid at all? he wanted to ask Arthur.
The same question arose in the hearts of every viewer watching the live broadcast.
The camera was shaking violently, as the Sigilyph carrying it was terrified, screeching at high decibels while fleeing desperately in the air, inadvertently giving the audience an immersive battlefield experience.
The shaking camera, the screeching birds, the roars near and far, and the continuous gunfire and explosions!
Even through the screen, viewers felt their hearts race and swallowed nervously, finding it hard to imagine that the protagonist in the center of this real-life chaos could remain as calm as a secluded pool.
After ascending, Arthur's first targets were the Talonflame chasing the Sigilyph!
Outnumbered, it was best to seize air superiority first!
But obviously, the enemy had thought of this too.
Just as Old Flame, enraged by Outrage, tore apart two Talonflame, a large amount of sand below gathered, rose, and solidified into humanoid and fortress-like forms—
Ground/Ghost types: Golurk and Palossand!
They must have been ambushing nearby. Thanks to their Ghost typing, they looked like ordinary piles of sand before solidifying.
Now, these ghosts revealed themselves and immediately cast a move towards the sky—
Gravity!
The Gravity cast by a dozen Golurk and Palossand covered an area far larger than a stadium, leaving Old Flame and Lina nowhere to hide.
Their frantically flapping wings could no longer maintain altitude.
The gravitational parameters in the area were altered by psychic power, multiplying the gravity and grounding all flying targets.
All aerial targets fell towards the earth.
Not just Old Flame and Lina, but also the newly appeared Specter and Mismagius, and even the Stitched Shadow Army's remaining Talonflame.
From the approaching vehicles in the distance, Dayna was personally supervising the battle, her orders firm and iron-blooded—
"Ignore friendly fire! Capturing that boy quickly is the top priority!"
So they attacked ruthlessly, disregarding their own!
"Greninja, Little Lapras, land and use Water Pulse first!"
Even while falling, Arthur predicted that the enemy would have more "surprises" waiting below, so he chose to strike first without hesitation!
Pokémon hiding underground for an ambush were likely Ground or Rock types.
Both were weak to Water!
So he ordered Water Pulse directly!
Surging water swept across the ground first, sending up large amounts of gravel mixed with the torrent, spraying several meters high.
"Squeak!!"
"Koo!"
As the pulse swept through, it indeed elicited various screams.
The sand below was indeed hiding dragons and crouching tigers, full of "surprises"!
Excadrill, Diggersby, and Sandslash—all using Dig to lie in ambush, waiting for Arthur to be caught by Gravity and fall from the sky.
It was a well-planned ambush, a surefire kill zone prepared by the Stitched Shadow Army with numerous Pokémon cooperating. Unfortunately, in the few seconds of the fall, Arthur read their intent and countered preemptively.
Before the enemy's follow-up could trigger, another figure joined the fray.
"Absol, jump into the group of Golurk and use Dark Pulse!"
Forrest's ace, the disaster Pokémon Absol, whom Arthur had faced before, officially joined the battle!
Forrest had figured it out: As a former military instructor who served in the army, I can't be worse than an eighteen-year-old competitive boy, can I?!
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