He visibly choked; the whole lecture on "the art of battling" he'd prepared got stuck in his throat.
He stared blankly at Jason, as if digesting what that meant.
A few seconds later, Brassius's gaze changed. The earlier disappointment slid away, replaced by a sharpened competitive edge.
"'Hit hard'—as in the aesthetics of violence?" he repeated, the corner of his mouth lifting. "Well said. Then let me see with my own eyes what quality your 'violence' really is!"
With a snap of his wrist, he pulled a Poké Ball from his belt.
A flash of red—an elegant Pokémon stepped onto the field.
Lilligant. A bright red blossom crowned her head; green leaf "skirts" swayed gently with every move.
"Go, Lilligant! Show him the splendor of Grass types!" Brassius called.
He led at once, voice brimming with an artist's passion: "Lilligant, your most graceful form—Quiver Dance!"
At the command, Lilligant began to spin. Light as a feather, her leaf-skirts flared, tiny motes of color blooming around her. With every rotation, her aura swelled.
A powerful setup that boosts Sp. Atk, Sp. Def, and Speed—Brassius's plan was obvious: buff, then strike, and win in the most dazzling way.
He didn't even wait for her to cash in the boost before shouting the next order: "Petal Dance!"
In an instant, the blossom atop her head fully unfurled. A storm of pink petals gushed out, whirling at high speed, each edge keen as a blade. Petals merged into a massive pink tornado that swept toward Gast at center stage.
The entire arena was engulfed—nowhere to run.
"Oof. Flashy," Jason observed, tone flat, face unworried.
In the eye of the storm, Gast's grin only widened; there was even a hint of scorn in her eyes. She neither braced nor backed away. At the instant the petal maelstrom would have swallowed her, her body went translucent. Razor petals tore through her—but did no harm. A beat later she re-solidified in another pocket within the cyclone.
Petal Dance raged on; the Gengar flickered in and out of the danger zone like a phantom walking on knife edges—appearing and vanishing right between the cuts. Sometimes a petal grazed her cheek, sometimes a wind blade skimmed her back—but not once did anything truly touch her.
More than evasion, it was taunting—showing absolute poise in the riskiest way.
Brassius stared, dumbfounded. The proud, gorgeous assault looked like a tiresome sideshow to the opponent.
Petal Dance is a sustained move; when it ends, the user often falls into confusion from the strain.
At last, the flurry ebbed. Lilligant stood wavering, eyes unfocused, body swaying out of her control.
Now.
"Gast—Sludge Bomb."
Jason's timing was surgical. The teasing look vanished; Gast's eyes went razor-sharp. A deep violet sphere of toxic energy formed between her jaws and shot straight at the reeling Lilligant.
Too fast. Lilligant couldn't react before the bomb hit square on. Purple toxin burst and drenched her. A cry—and she toppled, out cold.
Brassius's face hardened. He recalled Lilligant without a word and drew his second ball.
"I underestimated you," he said lowly. "But the real match starts now."
Another flash—this time, a regal silhouette: long purple hair, crown-like headpiece, long, powerful legs.
Tsareena.
She gave the Gengar an appraising stare; Gast met it head-on, smile edged with challenge. Two queens facing off—unseen pressure collided, the air seemingly warmer.
No flourishes this time.
"Tsareena—Trop Kick!"
She moved at once, raising a long, toned leg as searing energy wrapped it. The kick snapped out clean and deadly, a blast of wind driving it straight at Gast's face—a strike that could snap a tree.
Gast didn't even bother to dodge. At the last instant, her body ghosted—wholly transparent. The burning kick passed through nothing and smashed empty air. Overcommitted, Tsareena froze for a heartbeat.
Gast re-formed in that heartbeat—close enough to fog a mirror. Between her claws, a massive Shadow Ball roared to life, deep purple energy screaming danger.
Point-blank, Shadow Ball.
Tsareena's pupils pinpricked. She tried to spring back—too late. The explosion shook the gym; black shockwaves swallowed her, flinging her skyward before she crashed to the tiles. When the smoke cleared, the regal aura was gone—she was out.
Hovering above, Gast made it clear who ruled this stage.
Brassius's jaw was tight now—he hadn't expected his second anchor to fall so easily. He drew a breath and sent his third.
"Go—Breloom!"
Grass/Fighting, compact and wiry, fists clenched in a fighter's guard. With Technician boosting its lighter moves, it could hit far above its weight.
The plan was precise—and targeted. "Breloom—Spore!"
Its signature sleep move. Put Gengar down and the rest is easy.
Breloom moved fast; at the order, its cap shook, releasing a drift of sleep spores—
Gast was faster. "Night Shade," Jason said.
Red light flashed in her eyes; intangible power condensed into a visible ripple that rolled forward, raising a fierce gust. The spores barely left the cap before the wave blew them clean away.
Plan A failed; Breloom juked to circle and try again—
Every step was read. "Will-O-Wisp," Jason said as it cut sideways.
Gast grinned; three ghost-blue flames winked into existence in a triangle—exactly where Breloom had to pass.
A pre-set trap. At speed, Breloom couldn't brake—straight into the wisps. Blue flame raced across its body and then winked out, leaving scorched marks—and an attack stat gutted by the burn.
No speed edge, no sleep plan, and now neutered attacks—Breloom was a training dummy.
"Hex," Jason finished.
A baleful purple aura surged off Gast and lanced into the burned Breloom. Hex doubles in power on statused foes; the shot hit like a truck. Breloom dropped without a twitch.
Three straight, not a scratch.
Brassius's expression had gone beyond grim. He sent his fourth—Arboliva, a green, olive-tree-like Pokémon with a very special ability: Seed Sower. When hit, it spreads Grassy Terrain—healing grounded Pokémon each turn and boosting Grass moves. A fortress to change the field, stall, and hunt for a comeback.
"Arboliva—Energy Ball!" His voice was hoarse.
Green light gathered between its hands—but Gast's Shadow Ball was already in the air. The spheres met midflight; Shadow Ball punched through and slammed Arboliva. It staggered—Seed Sower triggered. Green energy rippled out, tender shoots seeming to push up through the tiles. Grassy Terrain flooded the arena, trickling HP back into Arboliva and reigniting Brassius's hope—
Gast gave it no chance.
As the grass spread, she flung her arms wide; a tidal wave of venomous power surged from her.
"Sludge Wave."
A purple flood rolled out from her in all directions. It nearly drowned the field. The newborn greens wilted under the toxic surge, smothered in an instant. Arboliva at the center didn't even scream before it disappeared beneath the wave. When the sludge receded, corrosive stains marred the tiles; Arboliva lay still. Out.
Four in a row. From start to finish, Gast hadn't taken a single hit.
Brassius stared at the grinning Gengar and fell into a long silence. The artful tactics, the gorgeous moves, the clever sequences—against this brute-force opponent, they were powerless. This wasn't about strategy anymore—it was a sheer, unbridgeable gap in strength.
So this was the "hit hard" the Ditto meant?
…Interesting.
Bitterness spread in his chest—then, seconds later, burned away into something hotter: an artist's last streak of obsession and pride.
He inhaled, exhaled; when he lifted his head, his eyes were keen again. The dejection was gone.
"Brilliant—truly brilliant," Brassius said, quiet but firm. "Your power exceeded my imagination. But the battle isn't over. Looks like I have to bring out my finest work."
He drew his last ball and hurled it hard.
"Go—my ace!"
Red light flashed, and a Pokémon appeared before Gast.
Brown body, branch-like arms, and a pair of rather vacant eyes.
Sudowoodo.
Gast tilted her round body, blinking in confusion—Grass gym, and the ace is Rock-type?
Some new performance art?
Or had the leader, rattled by the drubbing, started playing cards at random?
~~~
Patreon(.)com/Bleam
— Currently You can Read 50 Chapters Ahead of Others!