So that was her plan all along.
During the long bout of cat-and-mouse, she'd found the tiniest opening and quietly slipped in a Hypnosis. Thanks to Ursaring's Guts ability—and the fact it had been running red-hot the whole time—it hadn't fallen asleep right away. But the seed was planted.
That "mistake" of taking a heavy blow just now made its taut nerves relax for a heartbeat—and the suppressed drowsiness surged up.
Now.
The Dream Eater orb struck the leaping Ursaring dead on.
Super effective—figuratively and literally. Against a target already half-asleep, the move landed massive damage. The giant bear's body jolted; the fury in its eyes drained into fog. With a last unwilling roar, it couldn't withstand the triple hit of burn, Hypnosis, and Dream Eater; the hulking frame crashed backward and lay still, out of the fight.
As it fell, a stream of life energy flowed back into Gast, fully restoring the stamina she'd lost eating that Hammer Arm.
One versus four.
Gast had actually pulled off the feat.
Silence blanketed the arena again—then, somewhere, someone started clapping. Thunder rolled through the gym.
Gast drifted down, hovering in the center, chest out, soaking in the crowd's awed stares—her vanity thoroughly satisfied.
Katy stared at the fallen Ursaring, then finally let out a long breath. She recalled her Pokémon; there was no trace of dejection on her face—only genuine admiration.
"What an incredible Gengar," she said from the heart. "Tactics, cunning, raw power—top tier. No wonder a Trainer like you chose her as a partner!"
Gast snickered, spinning in midair with pride—then her gaze slid to the Poké Ball in Katy's hand.
At some point a fifth ball had appeared there. Gast could clearly feel it: whatever slept inside was even stronger than the Ursaring.
Her fighting spirit flared anew. "Heh-heh-heh! Again! This lady isn't done having fun!"
She turned to Katy, issuing the challenge. Katy couldn't understand the words, but she felt that iron will loud and clear—and the Gym Leader's own fire caught.
"Good! If you want more, I'll go the distance!" Her aura spiked; four straight losses didn't faze her. "Now let my ace, Lokix, play with you properly!"
She raised her last Poké Ball, ready to throw—Gast set herself for the final, strongest foe.
Just as the tension peaked, a calm voice cut through.
"Gast, return."
Jason.
Gast froze mid-motion, stared back in disbelief, and chattered a string of protesting "ya-ya"s—basically, "Why?"
Jason ignored her. The entire crowd, Katy included, blinked in confusion.
Why switch out now—especially pulling a Gengar who was fresh, flying, and had just 1v4'd? No one could make sense of it.
He didn't argue with Gast. He looked at Katy—but really at the ball in her hand.
"You've done great, Gast," he said evenly. "But I want to take the last one myself."
Katy's face said it all: what? The stands erupted.
"Huh? The Ditto's going in itself?"
"Isn't he here as a Trainer? How can he fight?"
"A Trainer personally battling a Pokémon? That's unheard of!"
Jason shut it all out. He wasn't about to explain that he had one reason: personally defeat Katy's ace Lokix to progress his Pokédex—unlocking the ability to transform into Lokix once complete.
He stepped forward into the center of the field—Gast's spot. The buzz swelled; a Trainer entering the field in an official match? Never in League history… but this "Trainer" was a Ditto. Him fighting himself almost made sense.
Katy was just as baffled. She looked from the small Ditto at center to the sulking, not-at-all-satisfied Gengar behind him—and couldn't fathom it. Why bench the proven ace?
She knew something of Jason's power; her Pokémon were no match for him. Even so, a Gym Leader had her pride and her job. However strange the request, she had to honor the challenger. And that faint pressure radiating off Jason told her he was dangerous.
She holstered the doubts, tightened her grip on the ball, and narrowed her eyes. "Alright! See my trump card—go, Lokix!"
The ball arced; white light burst—and a Pokémon in glossy black chitin, a masked-rider silhouette, hit the field. Blood-red compound eyes, long, powerful legs, razor-edged tibial blades glinting coldly.
Lokix threw up its forelegs and shrieked; a wave of killing intent rippled outward, raising goosebumps in the crowd.
Bug/Dark dual typing. This was Katy's hidden ace—meant to counter Gengar. The moment Jason called the swap, he'd read her hand. Bug/Dark barely fears Ghost; if Gast stayed, the match could swing. So he stepped in—both to protect Gast's hard-won streak and for his own Pokédex bar.
The audience gossiped louder.
"That Lokix looks tough. How's a Ditto going to handle it?"
"What'll he morph into?"
"Hard to say. My bet? Lokix gets wrecked."
"Seriously?"
"Dead serious. I've never missed an Iono stream. Jason is cracked."
Under every eye, Jason's body began to change. A lick of cool, ghost-blue flame bloomed on the purple gel—then raced across him. In the flicker, his tiny frame shifted—black-violet armor formed over torso and limbs, blue light glowing from the seams. His hands became twin blades, both wreathed in fire.
In a second or two, the harmless Ditto was gone. In his place: Ceruledge.
The stands erupted—louder than ever.
"Ceruledge! It's that Ceruledge!"
"The one from Iono-sama's stream!"
"Seeing it live—ten thousand times cooler!"
Plenty of them had become fans after watching him as Ceruledge in Iono's stream, carving through foes with gorgeous, terrifying swordplay. Now their idol stood before them, replaying the classic scene.
Ceruledge—Jason—raised his head. The helmet shadowed his face; only those twin blue flames for eyes were clear. The aura rolling off him was darker and deeper than Lokix's: the absolute confidence of a dominant force.
He didn't wait for Katy to call a move. He would open the fight.
Knees flexed—then he vanished. A blue-violet fire-line scratched across the floor—too fast to follow—straight at Lokix.
Lokix's combat instincts spiked. The onrushing blaze mirrored in its red eyes; its shell trembled at the sensed danger. It shrieked, gathering everything into its horn.
"Abyssal Lunge!"
Fastest gap-closer, hardest single-point hit. Against Jason, it looked slow. At the instant of collision, Ceruledge slipped sideways at an impossible angle—the thrust sailed past.
They weren't even in the same weight class for speed or power.
As they brushed shoulders, his flaming blade flicked up.
"Bitter Blade," he said, voice calm as glass.
A slash of flame steeped in lingering grudge carved a perfect arc and landed with uncanny precision on Lokix's exposed back. No thunderous boom, no sky-ripping roar—just fire tracing across black shell and winking out.
Lokix's forward rush locked up mid-stride. It didn't even have time to scream. The force knifed through its body; it pitched forward and slammed into the ground—instantly out.
One-shot. A complete, absolute one-shot.
From first step to last, it took less than three seconds. Jason lowered his blades; the ghost-blue fire dwindled. He dropped the morph and was a small Ditto again—as if the arena-shaking specter had been a dream.
Dead quiet. Everyone was speechless at the sheer domination.
Katy stared at the fallen Lokix, then at the Ditto who'd already reverted, and finally snapped out of it. She walked forward, silently recalled her ace, and lifted her face—no gloom, only genuine shock and respect.
"I… lost," she said honestly. "I never imagined you were this strong."
She stepped up, pulled a beautifully crafted badge from her pocket, and placed it solemnly in his hand. "Proof of your strength. Please take it."
Jason reshaped a little hand and accepted the badge. At that moment, Katy's eyes regained the warmth and enthusiasm of a pastry chef. A bright smile bloomed as she offered a heartfelt invite.
"Jason-san… to celebrate that spectacular battle—and to show my respect—please let me treat you and your partners to my newest 'Champion's Commemorative' line of desserts!"
Jason smiled. He'd achieved both goals for this trip and was in fine spirits. "Gladly. I've been wanting to try your specialties."
He accepted, then turned and waved to the still-pouting Gengar. "Gast, don't be mad—time for something tasty!"
At "something tasty," Gast's ears perked. Whatever little sulk she'd had about not finishing the match vanished in a flash. "Heh! Hee-hee! Coming!"
She laughed, zipped to his side, and nuzzled him with her head. For her, battle mattered—but eating cake with Jason was clearly the greater joy.
~~~
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