The Deino loosed a Thunder Wave up into the sky.
Feeling the charge of electricity in the air, the Fearow reacted without thinking, shifting its body and sliding away again, and its diving charge was broken off.
"Rooaar—"
The Deino roared at exactly the right moment, a piercing, powerful dragon's cry that gave the Fearow a shock.
It felt an awe-inspiring Dragon-type presence, and when it looked again the Deino wore another face altogether — to the Fearow it was a face of majesty and power, and a startling amount of dread came with it.
Its nerve took another blow, and its momentum weakened in spite of itself.
Just as I thought, the Deino said inwardly. That move, put together with the presence his own kind carried, really did work.
"Feeearow—"
A few seconds later the Fearow came to itself. It had actually been cowed just then, and shame and anger went through it. To be frightened off by another Pokémon without so much as a fight — how was a Fearow supposed to hold its head up after that?
It had very nearly been bluffed.
A Fearow is no good-tempered creature, naturally; its temper is as violent as it was back when it was a Spearow.
"Even in that state I'm still not fierce enough? It wouldn't scare. Is it that I don't look fierce? Well, fair enough — I am this handsome, after all."
the Deino muttered, and then his eyes turned hard and he broke into a run and threw himself at it.
What sort of opponent was that, that a Deino should be afraid of it?
As he ran, the shape of a dragon appeared faintly over the Deino's body: the Dragon-type move Dragon Rush, which he had grasped on entering the Elite-class.
Using Dragon Rush felt in no way clumsy to the Deino; on the contrary, the move was familiar, as though he had practised it any number of times.
The Deino could not fly yet, but there was no lack of force in the Dragon Rush he put out.
Pushing off a rock, the Deino sprang and met the Fearow head-on as it came in again.
"Rooaar—"
The Deino gave another great shout and let his dragon's authority out, and the Fearow was startled a second time; its momentum wavered, and the Deino seized the moment and burst out with everything he had, Dragon-type power sweeping out, and the pair of them flew together into the woods beside them.
Great leafy trees went down one after another, and the two of them landed in a rolling cloud of dust.
"Rooaar—"
A dragon-shaped mass of energy rose out of the dust and burst with a roar.
"Kraboom, boom—"
Under that force the ground shook, grass and trees flew in all directions, the place where they had landed was swept clear in an instant, and dust drifted out across the whole sky.
A moment later the dust cleared to show the Deino standing there, one foot planted on the Fearow, head high and chest out, more confident in the face than ever.
He had won this fight too.
A mere Fearow was no match at all for a Deino; he could hold it down without effort.
"Combusken—"
The Combusken looked astonished as well. This Deino was too strong by half — a Fearow that fierce had lasted only a few exchanges in his hands.
Vance had a thoughtful look on his face too. He had watched the whole of the Deino's fight, and the way the Deino fought was practised and shrewd, his sense of timing exactly right, his gifts astonishing.
Worthy of the magnificent aptitude of a pseudo-legendary.
The Gyarados and the others had come out of their Poké Balls as well, surprise on their faces.
This new little younger brother really was fierce, to have settled an Elite-class Fearow that quickly.
Even the Slaking could not stop looking sidelong at him; it was hard to think that anything so small could be this strong.
He could not help glancing over his own muscles. Ought he to go back to grinding as well? If things went on like this, the wave behind would break over him and leave him dead on the sand.
"Eh? Is that all? That's a Fearow dealt with?"
The Aerodactyl looked at the Fearow, now unable to fight, with doubt in his eyes.
Could it be that this Fearow was all show? It could not even beat a Deino who had only just been promoted.
"Feeearow—"
While he was thinking so, another Fearow's cry came from the edge of the sky, and a Fearow came flying in full of menace.
"Roar, roar. Let me take this one."
said the Gyarados, but the Aerodactyl talked him out of it.
"Let me. It's been a long while since I had a fight, and up in the sky I have the advantage."
"But that Fearow coming in has some strength to it. By its presence it's somewhere in the late Elite range, and you haven't made Elite yet. I'm afraid you're not enough for it."
"Don't worry. Even the Deino settled one easily — that Fearow is obviously all show, and it's exactly right for me to sharpen myself on. Roar, roar."
With that the Aerodactyl rose and flew off to meet the incoming Fearow head-on.
Hmph. He, the Aerodactyl, had seen the truth of it long ago; nothing escaped his eye. The Fearow flying in might have an alarming presence, but it was certainly no match for him,
and this was just the chance to show what he could do and remind everyone that he existed.
He, the Aerodactyl, had ambition too.
"Boss, can the Aerodactyl beat that Fearow?"
The Gyarados turned his head and looked at Vance.
"He should manage it, but it'll be hard. It won't be as easy as the Deino had it against this one. The Aerodactyl's eye for these things is still a little off, perhaps."
Vance said it slowly, with a glance at the Fearow bearing down on them.
Because he had seen that the Fearow flying in had a full level 49 behind it, and its aptitude was not bad either — Gym-class.
And it had several powerful finishing moves as well, Hyper Beam and Sky Attack among them.
"Bang—"
A figure dropped straight to the ground and threw up a cloud of dust.
"Sorry about that. I took it too lightly just now."
The figure was the Aerodactyl, and under the eyes of the Combusken and the Deino his face was a study in embarrassment. Shot down on the spot — there was no keeping his dignity after that.
Who could understand it? Inwardly the Aerodactyl was swearing. Wasn't the Fearow all show? Hadn't that little younger brother the Deino settled one easily, with the whole thing in hand?
He, the Aerodactyl, had only thought this Fearow was nothing special because the Deino, a new companion, had had it that easy — so there was no reason he should not manage it too.
And now it had gone quite otherwise than he expected; one moment of inattention and he had been knocked out of the air. The Aerodactyl was mortified.
He gave Vance and the rest of the Pokémon an awkward, polite little smile.
"Shall I, er..."
Seeing it, the Gyarados started to say something, but the Aerodactyl cut him off.
"I was careless before. This time I'll give it everything."
The Aerodactyl's expression turned serious, and he called back to Vance.
"Boss, I need your direction."
Well — he had a Trainer now, and taking a Trainer's orders while fighting another Pokémon was a perfectly reasonable thing to do.
Anything wrong with that? Nothing at all.
If you can't win on your own, you call for help.