Cynthia's eyes widened in shock as she saw something happen to Caitlin. She turned to Allen, her voice urgent. "Allen, what just happened?!"
"Psychic!" Allen replied quickly. "Caitlin's a psychic! Her powers have been awakened!"
It was only then that Cynthia understood, and the shock hit her. 'Her friend... is a legendary psychist?! No wonder...'
"Allen, what do we do now?!" she asked, her voice full of concern for Caitlin, her best friend.
"Wait for a moment," Allen shouted, his mind racing. "I need to think."
Hisuian Zoroark was down, leaving him with only Marshtomp to rely on. But he couldn't abandon the unconscious Combee and Vespiquen either. His eyes shifted toward Cynthia, who stood ready with her Gabite.
'This isn't the first time,' he thought grimly.
First and foremost, Allen lifted his hand and, using his Pokétch, made an emergency call. He quickly gave a brief description of the situation before urgently asking for help.
"Cynthia! Take Gothita with you — help her get close to Caitlin! Gothita knows what needs to be done!" Allen shouted.
Cynthia gave a quick nod, wasting no time. She mounted her Gabite, holding the small, anxious Gothita tightly against her chest. Without a word, they raced toward Caitlin, the tension thick in the air.
Luckily, it was only Caitlin's psychic powers manifesting — not a full rampage. Still, approaching her was dangerous. Anyone who got too close had to be extremely careful.
There was some kind of barrier forming around Caitlin, and everyone could clearly see the air around her shimmering—wavy and blurry. That was all Allen needed to confirm it: this was pure Psychic energy.
According to the Pokémon Wiki, Caitlin possessed powerful psychic abilities. In the past, her explosive temper would flare whenever she lost a battle, causing her powers to spiral out of control and wreak havoc.
Looking back, Caitlin's quirks and "annoying" traits as a kid probably stemmed from this issue. The tipping point had been when she saw Cynthia—her best friend—in danger. That was when her dormant psychic abilities had awakened.
Cynthia glanced at Caitlin, worry etched deep on her face, then looked down at Gothita."Gothita... it's all on you now."
"Thita~!" Gothita chirped, patting her tiny chest with determination as her eyes began to glow a deep purple.
Without hesitation, Gothita lifted off the ground, levitating steadily as her psychic aura flared to life.
The closer Gothita got, the stronger the pressure in the air became — it was like walking against a raging storm.
From a distance, Allen could see it clearly. From his angle, the psychic distortions around Caitlin at first flared out wildly. But the moment Gothita began to move closer, everything changed. The wild distortions that once spread aimlessly now started to shift.
Like a whirlpool pulling in the tides, the psychic waves narrowed, converging onto Gothita's small, glowing figure. It was almost as if the barrier were instinctively rejecting anyone who dared to come near.
Allen's mind raced as the realization hit him fast.
"Marshtomp, help me—"
He stopped suddenly as a faint buzzing sound interrupted his thoughts.
BZZZTT~BBZZZTT.
"You're still here?" Allen asked, taken aback, his eyes widening as he noticed Combee buzzing around him.
It was his unexpected savior, the Combee who fought against its own swarm when Allen tried to save Vespiquen.
He glanced back and forth between Marshtomp, the unconscious Combee, and Vespiquen, and then nodded.
This was the wild. No one knew if other Pokémon might take advantage of the situation and attack the vulnerable ones while they were down.
"You want to help?" Allen asked, his voice softening as he looked at the tiny, exhausted Pokémon.
Combee, though barely conscious and struggling to stay afloat, gave a faint but determined buzz. It wobbled unsteadily toward him, as if trying to prove that it still had something to offer, despite its fatigue.
"Understood! Cynthia!" Allen shouted. "Gothita is currently taking the full brunt of Caitlin's psychic. We need to help ease the pressure. You attack from the left, and I'll take the right. But keep your distance from it! Do you understand what I mean?!"
Cynthia's eyes widened as she grasped the meaning behind his words. Without wasting a moment, she nodded. "Gabite!"
"GA~!" Gabite growled in response, ready for the command.
Allen turned toward his Marshtomp. "Muddy, you stay here and protect, okay?" he said firmly, giving the Water-type a reassuring pat on the head.
Then, he turned his gaze to Combee, who hovered nearby, still determined despite its exhaustion. "Do your best, Combee," Allen said, offering a small, encouraging smile.
BZZZTTTT~ Combee buzzed in response.
After they took their positions, Cynthia's voice rang out. "Allen, I'm ready!"
"Let's do it!" Allen shouted back, determination in his eyes. He gave a quick nod to Combee, who was hovering in front of him, ready to do its part.
With a deep breath, Gabite exhaled a powerful gust of wind, sending a forceful blast toward the barrier. Meanwhile, Combee fluttered its wings, generating smaller gusts that stirred the air, perfectly setting the stage for their coordinated attack.
Gothita's eyes glowed purple, but thanks to her earlier efforts, she was already fatigued. Caitlin's overwhelming psychic energy, still fresh and intense, threatened to overwhelm her.
Thankfully, the pressure suddenly eased, allowing Gothita to reach out with her psychic powers—not to fight against Caitlin's energy, but to harmonize with it, like tuning into the same frequency. Little by little, the wild distortions around Caitlin began to calm, the violent ripples in the air smoothing into gentle waves.
Caitlin, still floating slightly above the ground, trembled visibly. Her eyes, once glowing fiercely, began to dim, shutting tightly as fear and confusion twisted her expression. It was the same look she had worn four years ago when she had hidden in the closet.
"Thita..." Gothita whispered softly, her voice echoing through the psychic field.
A gentle pulse of light radiated from her tiny body, wrapping around Caitlin like a warm embrace. Gradually, Caitlin's breathing steadied. The psychic energy that had once threatened to lash out began to retract, as if soothed by Gothita's calming presence.
Finally, with one last flicker of light, the barrier dissolved completely. Caitlin collapsed forward—but before she could hit the ground, Gothita caught her in a soft psychic hold, gently lowering her... only for...
"Thita~!"
Gothita's eyes widened in panic as she realized, 'Wait a minute, we're not the same size!'
Caitlin's massive figure loomed over her like a walking mountain, and Gothita, despite her best efforts, felt like a speck of dust in the shadow of a giant.
"Thita~!!!" Gothita squeaked, her psychic powers pushing Caitlin back with all the strength she had left.
Meanwhile, Allen and Cynthia, witnessing the spectacle, quickly realized something was seriously wrong.
Without missing a beat, they took off running—hoping their legs would magically grow four times longer so they could reach them faster.
However, before they could even reach her, probably because of the intense pressure and overuse of psychic power, a soft, glowing light began to envelop the tiny Pokémon, her energy flickering like a candle about to burn out.
"Thita~!" Gothita whimpered, her body shimmering with light, her form starting to stretch and shift.
Allen and Cynthia stopped dead in their tracks, eyes wide. "Did... did that just happen?!" Allen said, blinking rapidly, not sure if his brain could catch up with what his eyes were seeing.
Gothita's small body exploded in a flash of light, and when it cleared, a more elegant, graceful Pokémon stood in her place—Gothorita.
She stood taller, her psychic powers now even more refined, radiating a calm but intense aura.
"Gothorita~!" she chirped, flicking her new, ridiculously long hair out of her face, clearly a little disoriented but also quite pleased with her new look.