Gast didn't hesitate for a second—she spun around and bolted, wringing every drop out of Gastly's speed advantage!
Behind her, the enraged Bronzor streaked after her like a bronze flash, relentless!
One chase, one flight—they reached the passage where Jason had set his trap!
The instant Bronzor entered the corridor, it clipped the Stealth Rock!
Crack!
Jagged stones pierced its bronze shell with a dull thud.
The damage was basically negligible—barely a scratch.
But Bronzor still paused.
Why is there Stealth Rock here?
"Heh. You don't actually think such a rinky-dink little trap can hurt me, do you?"
Hovering in the narrow chute of scrap metal, Bronzor stared at the bouncing Gastly ahead with naked contempt.
"Sounds like I didn't hit you hard enough last time."
The naked taunt shattered Gast's earlier pride at having baited it. Her translucent body shook with anger; even her "keh-keh-keh" laugh went shrill.
"You domineering tin plate! You're too domineering!" she squeaked, pointing at Bronzor. "This is my turf! You stole it, and even when I just pass by you beat me for no reason! Today I'm fighting you!"
Bronzor only replied, unhurried:
"You're too noisy."
"Go take a nap."
"Preferably, never wake up."
Before the words finished, its eyes flared with energy—
Hypnosis!
A wave of drowsy psychic force rolled over Gast!
"Keh?"
Caught off guard, Gast felt a tide of sleepiness flood her head; her body swayed, eyelids heavy.
From the shadows, Jason nearly spat blood.
"You've got to be kidding me… textbook case of 'bad but loves to troll'!"
He ranted internally. "Pull faces, tilt the mental game—sure, you're great at that. But in a real fight your combat sense is atrocious! Your whole move pool and you don't use any of it? Trading insults accomplishes what, exactly?!"
He knew if he didn't act now, Bronzor might actually put her under for good. He barked:
"Gast! Taunt—now!"
Half-dazed, she reacted reflexively to the command like a bucket of ice water.
"Keh!"
She jolted, forced the sleepiness back, and fired a black pulse of energy at the still-casting Bronzor—
Taunt!
Bringing backup hadn't occurred to Bronzor; it hadn't expected a counter and wasn't guarding. The dark wave struck true. Hypnosis snapped off, and under Taunt's effect it couldn't use status moves for a while—only attacks.
"Who's there!"
Snarling as its setup was ruined, Bronzor's icy gaze stabbed straight into Jason's hiding place.
No more hiding.
He flashed—Sunkern to Fletchling.
Buff moves have timers; to preserve them he'd waited for Gast to lure Bronzor here, then used Growth as Sunkern. He'd wanted more stacks, but Gast forced his hand.
He snapped his wings; flames roared over him as he streaked forward in a red blur!
Flame Charge!
Attacking, he didn't forget to direct Gast:
"Don't freeze! Lick!"
"Keh—on it!"
She lunged, tongue lashing with chill ghostly aura toward the mirror's face.
Bringing its featureless calm to a sneer, Bronzor chose to swat the disgusting licker first, not even glancing at Jason.
Vmmm! — Confusion!
A spike of psychic force blasted Gast mid-lunge, flinging her like a shell into the corridor wall!
At the same time, Jason slammed into an unseen barrier—a wall of force that locked him in place mid-charge. He tried to burn through, but the psychic pressure was far stronger than he'd expected—no forward progress at all.
"Damn it—this Telekinesis is that strong?!" In the split second he yelled again: "Gast! Now—Payback!"
Dizzied from the impact, she gritted through the pain; a vicious glint flashed in her eyes. Black, spiteful energy burst from her as she surged again—
Payback doubles in power right after you've been hit.
The instant Bronzor split its focus to deal with Gast's strike, Jason's eyes flashed; he hooked hard, knifing through the psychic wall at a wicked angle—
And together with Gast's Payback, his flaming body crashed into Bronzor!
BOOM!
Both hits landed squarely at the same time. Bronzor groaned; cracks spidered across its bronze shell.
Jason didn't stick around. He rolled away in a tight loop and flicked Ember, spitting a few searing tongues of fire onto Bronzor before opening distance.
"Jason! You're amazing!"
Gast, seeing the damaged, reeling Bronzor, bobbed to his side, eyes sparkling with unhidden worship. When he'd promised revenge earlier, she'd still been nervous—he'd looked like a floppy jelly, hardly convincing. She'd worried Bronzor would flatten him into a purple rug with a single thought.
She hadn't expected him to be this strong—and to coach her mid-fight.
Sold.
Cackling, she drifted toward the fallen Bronzor for a little payback of her own.
But just as she closed in—
"Keh!"
A terrified shriek—and she whipped around, bolting behind Jason faster than she'd run before.
He could feel her trembling hard.
"What is it?"
Before he could process it, a crushing aura detonated from Bronzor—
Vmmm—vmmm—vmmm!
The toppled Bronzor wobbled… and rose into the air again.
A blinding white light burst from within it, flooding the narrow passage like daylight.
Jason hadn't imagined this, not now—
It was evolving!