"Just one more stage. I hope Garchomp can pull its weight."
Ace thought to himself, then roared, "Larvitar, go on a rampage!"
A blast of air suddenly shot out from behind Larvitar. In the blink of an eye, Larvitar darted out like a cannonball. Before Garchomp could even react, it slammed hard into Garchomp's stomach.
"Dragon Claw!"
At Cynthia's command, Garchomp's claws were enveloped in Dragon-type energy as it reached for its stomach.
"Whoosh!"
A sharp, piercing sound echoed as a stream of air shot out. Larvitar charged upward, its body acting as a battering ram as it rammed into the bottom of Garchomp's jaw.
But this time, Dragon Claw and Larvitar collided. Larvitar was sent flying by the force of the attack.
Its shell cracked, and a burst of air erupted from its body, allowing Larvitar to float in the air. Dark-type energy gathered, and a Dark Pulse quickly shot towards Garchomp.
"Dragon Claw!"
Garchomp quickly charged forward, its Dragon Claw ripping through the air and colliding with the Dark Pulse. In an instant, the Dark Pulse was torn apart, and the recoil from the attack hit Larvitar. Its already cracked shell shattered further, and a few pieces broke away from its body.
"Just a little more. You can do it, Garchomp."
Ace mentally cheered for Garchomp and simultaneously commanded Larvitar, "Keep using Dark Pulse!"
Larvitar used the air currents to float in the air, gathering Dark-type energy once more. In a flash, another Dark Pulse shot towards Garchomp.
Garchomp quickly approached Larvitar, its Dragon Claw tearing through each Dark Pulse. The recoil from each strike transferred bit by bit to Larvitar's body.
"Perfect, it's time."
Ace looked at Larvitar, which had shed most of its shell, and nodded in satisfaction.
"Garchomp, come back!"
Cynthia called Garchomp to a halt. She had sensed that something was wrong.
"Larvitar can use air jets to move quickly," Ace said, looking at Cynthia with a slight smile. "And my Tyranitar will have the Sand Stream ability. So, what do you think will happen when Sand Stream and air jets combine, Cynthia?"
Cynthia frowned, and her bad feeling intensified.
"I'll show you."
Ace snapped his fingers. Larvitar blew off the remaining pieces of its shell. A brilliant evolutionary light suddenly erupted from its soft, newly formed armor!
"Consecutive evolutions?!"
Cynthia was in disbelief. It was hard to imagine Ace doing something like this.
In her experience, Ace always did everything he could to suppress his Pokémon's evolutions so that they could get a massive burst of power when they finally evolved.
But consecutive evolutions?
This didn't match Ace's style at all!
But Ace knew Larvitar's current state. This was something he had decided on from the very beginning. Although they didn't linger in the Pupitar form, evolving into Tyranitar in a short amount of time would allow it to retain some of the characteristics from its Pupitar form.
Compared to Ace's other plans, forgoing the process of accumulating energy was a worthwhile trade!
Moreover, even if consecutive evolutions had some side effects, Ace's perfect-grade body repair could mend any flaws. No matter how he looked at it, this was a profitable deal.
The light faded, and a Tyranitar stood on the sand. Swirling winds enveloped its body, causing a large amount of sand to spin around it, creating a mini sand tornado.
"Now, let's try it!"
Ace raised his hand, and the sand tornado around Tyranitar quickly condensed, then charged towards Garchomp like a furious dragon.
"Block it!"
Cynthia yelled. Garchomp shielded its face with its arms, its hard fins withstanding the sandstorm!
As the sandstorm dissipated, Ace looked at Garchomp, which had taken its arms away, and nodded in satisfaction.
As a Ground/Dragon-type, Garchomp had great resistance to sandstorms. But even so, the attack still caused some significant damage to Garchomp. The experiment proved that Ace's idea was correct!
"Come back, Tyranitar."
Ace recalled Tyranitar. The side effects of the consecutive evolution required Tyranitar to rest and recuperate. Besides, Tyranitar was already at a low health due to Garchomp's previous attacks. Even if the battle continued, it would have lost, so Ace simply recalled it.
"Crobat, I'll leave the rest to you."
Ace threw out a Poké Ball. Crobat flew out, its body covered in a poisonous liquid. It quickly rushed towards Garchomp with a Cross Poison.
"Metal Claw!"
A metallic sheen quickly covered Garchomp's arms. As it swung its claws, Garchomp and Crobat crashed into each other.
Metal Claw blocked the poison from spreading. But as Crobat looked at Garchomp, it suddenly opened its mouth and spat out a venomous substance, which hit Garchomp's head.
"Oh no!"
The poison invaded Garchomp's body, and it let out a pained shriek. The strength in its hands weakened, and Crobat'sCross Poison slammed hard into Garchomp's body, sending it flying.
"Garchomp!"
Cynthia watched Garchomp with concern. But after struggling for a moment, Garchomp finally fell and was unable to battle.
"Come back, Garchomp. I'm counting on you, Roserade!"
Cynthia quickly swapped her Pokémon. She looked at her only remaining Pokémon, Roserade, and then at the almost unscathed Crobat. Cynthia sighed, knowing she had lost.
"Energy Ball!"
Roserade quickly shot two Energy Balls at Crobat. But Crobat wasn't scared of the Grass-type attack. It spread its wings and charged at Roserade with a Brave Bird. The poisonous liquid on its body solidified the moment the Energy Balls hit it.
While blocking the attack, Crobat crashed into Roserade as fast as lightning.
The poisonous liquid gushed out, spreading over Roserade's body.
Roserade looked pained. Even though it was also a Poison-type, Crobat's poison was too much for it to handle.
"Thud."
Roserade fell heavily to the ground. Crobat stopped and landed beside Roserade.
Looking at the defeated Roserade, the referee, who had been struggling to keep up with the pace, finally raised his flag and shouted, "Roserade is unable to battle! Crobat wins! The winner is Ace!"
After the referee announced the final result, Ace and Cynthia recalled their Pokémon and walked to the now sandy battlefield to shake hands.