A little while later, Rotom zipped back toward us, buzzing excitedly, with Gligar, Aria, Electabuzz, and Oddyfollowing close behind. Their footsteps and wingbeats stirred the sand as they gathered near.
Trailing behind them were Amaris and Rhea, both carrying bags stuffed with clothes and accessories. Rhea struggled with hers while Amaris let hers drop unceremoniously onto the ground with a loud thud.
"What's happening out here?" Amaris asked, eyeing the assembled Pokémon and the tension in the air.
"Nothing," Khan said casually, waving her off. "We're just planning to have a little fun!"
Without missing a beat, he swung his hand forward and shouted, "Gligar!Electabuzz! Get ready!"
Gligar soared upward, circling above Electabuzz, who cracked his knuckles with a sharp electric snap as arcs of lightning danced between his fists. A low growl rumbled from Electabuzz's throat as he squared his stance in the sand.
"Aria, Oddy get ready as well!" I called, pulling down the zipper of my jacket to loosen up.
Aria teleported forward, the Big Root clutched tightly in her small hands. She floated just above the sand, her eyes sharp and unblinking. Beside her, Oddy took his place, his leafy body bristling slightly in anticipation.
"So, should we start?" I asked, locking my gaze onto Lieutenant Surge.
He bit down on his cigar, a grin pulling at the edges of his tired face. He raised one finger and pointed it straight at us.
"One," he said simply.
I blinked, confused for a second.
"If you two can defeat one of my Pokémon," Surge said, his voice dropping into a more serious tone, "then I'll trust you to go talk to my son."
He leaned forward slightly, the smoke from his cigar curling around his head.
"But if you can't even touch my Pokémon..." he continued, voice sharp now, "then I want you both to train until you can beat my Raichu."
As he spoke, he reached behind his back and unclipped a Pokéball from his belt. With a flick of his wrist, he hurled it into the air. The ball spun once, catching the sunlight, before popping open with a flash.
A Raichu appeared, landing heavily in the sand. It stood proud, its dark orange fur gleaming. Its white belly rose and fell with steady breaths. The brown-tipped ears, curled like twin hooks, twitched as it flicked its tail a long, thin whip like tail ending in a jagged, lightning bolt-shaped tip.
Sparks crackled along its cheeks, where two yellow electric sacs glowed faintly, and its brown-striped back flexed as it shifted its stance.
The Raichu swung its tail lazily through the air, kicking up a small cloud of dust, and locked its bright, intense eyes onto us.
My gaze locked onto Surge's eyes. Even though he wore a grin, I could tell—beneath it, he was worried. Both for his son and the Gym.
I took a deep breath, feeling the salty air burn a little in my lungs.
"We'll do our best, sir!" I shouted, swinging my arm forward to start the battle.
"Aria, use Teleport and Draining Kiss! Oddy, don't get too close—use LeechSeed!" I barked the commands, my voice cutting through the wind.
Khan was right behind me. "Gligar, use Fly and stay up in the sky until I give the signal! Electabuzz, follow the Kirlia. Try to tank any hits meant for her!" he shouted, flashing a grin my way.
Gligar flapped its pink wings hard, lifting itself into the sky in wide circles. Electabuzz, crackling with pent-up energy, charged forward toward Raichu, who stood still, watching us with narrowed eyes.
Aria teleported behind Raichu in a flash of purple light, raising her hands for an attack but Surge's voice cut through the field, sharp and commanding.
"IronTail, on your back."
Raichu didn't even glance behind it. Its long tail gleamed suddenly, coated in hard metal, and whipped around with brutal speed. It slammed into Aria's legs, sending her crashing down onto the sand. She looked up in shock at the orange-furred Pokémon standing over her.
Oddy didn't waste a second. He dashed forward, slower than others but determined, one of the mouths on his leafy head opening wide. A volley of seeds shot out, arcing toward Raichu.
"Electroweb, to your right—then Discharge," Surge commanded smoothly.
Raichu gave a quick nod. Forming a crackling net of electricity at its hands and firing it toward Oddy. The seeds and the web collided midair, bursting apart and raining down harmlessly into the sand.
Khan and I exchanged a worried glance. Raichu was already lifting its tail again, crackling with more electricity gathering at the tip.
"Alex, follow my lead!" Khan called, determination flashing in his eyes.
"Electabuzz, jump at Raichu—BodySlam! Gligar, use Sand Attack—now!" Khan shouted, snapping his fingers.
Electabuzz roared, leaping high into the air, muscles coiled and ready to crash down. Gligar, high above, twisted in flight and flung a cloud of sand downward.
Raichu dodged left but Electabuzz managed to hit it tail at the last moment. Releasing all the electricity it had built up harmlessly into the air. But the cloud of sand caught it across the face, making it stumble, blinking hard.
"Alex, now!" Khan shouted.
"Aria, Double Team and follow up with Hex! Oddy, Leech Seed again go!" I yelled back, throwing a quick thumbs-up at him.
Aria's figure blurred and split into multiple copies, each one shimmering slightly in the sunlight. Then they crouched low, purple energy gathering in their palms for the Hex. Oddy, pushing forward with a determined grunt, unleashed another spread of seeds, aiming for Raichu while it was still reeling.
Surge threw us a sharp smile before raising his hand.
"Raichu, Quick Attack—dodge them!" he barked.
Raichu let out a fierce cry, blinking away the last of the sand from its eyes. It dropped low onto all fours, muscles coiling as it exploded forward, faster with every stride.
We could only watch as it weaved through the Hexes and Leech Seeds with effortless, dancing steps—barely a blur against the sun-bleached sand.
With a sharp pivot, Raichu slammed into Oddy, sending him flying backward with a heavy thud.
"Now towards Electabuzz use Iron Tail!" Surge roared, his voice cutting like a blade through the wind.
Without losing momentum, Raichu spun toward Electabuzz, its tail hardening to gleaming steel mid-charge. A smug grin crossed its face as it closed the distance.
"Oddy, stand up and get ready to fire another LeechSeed!" I shouted, heart hammering.
"Aria, Teleport next to Electabuzz and use Double Team again! Protect it!" I added quickly.
The real Aria and her shimmering copies nodded once in perfect unison, vanishing in a flicker of white light before reappearing around Electabuzz, forming a living wall of protectors.
"Raichu, break through!" Surge commanded, his voice booming over the roar of the waves behind us.
Raichu leapt high, spinning midair, its iron covered tailslicing through the Aria clones like they were smoke. One by one, the illusions burst apart with brief flashes of light.
"Focus Punch," Khan murmured under his breath, a confident smile tugging at his lips.
Through the settling smoke, Electabuzz surged forward, its fist glowing with raw power and slammed it straight into Raichu's chest before it could recover from its spin.
I didn't waste a second,shouting.
"Oddy, now! Leech Seed!" I yelled, throwing a hand forward. "Rest of the Arias—Hex! Hit it while it's down!"
Oddy, still a little unsteady, roared back with determination. One of the mouths on his leafy head opened wide, firing a fresh burst of seeds that latched onto Raichu before it could even touch the ground again. Small vines erupted around its body, clinging tight.
Raichu staggered as it landed, struggling against the fast-growing tendrils—and right in front of it, the army of Arias stood waiting. Their hands moved in a synchronized dance, carving eerie ghostly runes in the air. Shadows swirled and lashed toward Raichu in waves.
"Raichu, QuickAttack—dodge!" Surge shouted, his coat finally slipping from his shoulders and falling into the sand behind him.
Raichu gleamed white for a moment before springing backward, using its tail like a coiled spring to launch itself away. It dodged the Hexs one after another, nimble and fluid, until the Arias paused, their ghostly runes flickering out.
Panting lightly, Raichu glanced around, the vines of the Leech Seed slowly tightening around its body, sapping its strength little by little.
"You kids are really good!" Surge called out, throwing his head back with a booming laugh. Raichu joined him, resting its hands on its hips and chuckling along, almost mockingly.
Khan and I dropped onto the grass nearby, wiping the sweat from our faces. My athlete clung to my back from the heat of the battle, and Khan, grinning, tugged the band from his hair, letting his blond ponytail fall loose across his shoulders.
"Thank you so much, Mr. Surge," Khan said, brushing his hair back casually.
A little ways behind us, Rhea had plopped down onto the warm sand, squinting at the battlefield.
"Why are they so stressed? I mean... that Raichu hasn't even landed a goodclean hit yet, and it's already on a timer," she said, resting her arms on her knees.
Amaris dropped beside her with a soft *thud*, tossing her bag into the sand.
"Yeah, sure, it's on a timer," Amaris said, pointing at the smug Raichu. "But there's still a huge difference between Raichu and the others."
"And that difference is the experiencepoints," she added, her voice firm.
Rhea raised a eyebrow as she asked. "Experience points?"
Emily plopped down between them, brushing her bangs out of her eyes as she spoke.
"Basically... Raichu's got way morelevels than any of the Pokémon on the field has."
[Then how are Mr. Khan and Alex Carter going to defeat Mr. Surge?!] Rotom buzzed loudly, practically pressing itself into the middle of their circle. Its screen flashed anxiously.
Emily tried to swat at it half-heartedly.
"Shh! And... I think they only have one real chance," she said, voice low. "They have to stall it out. Let Leech Seed do the work. If they try to fight it head-on. I think they don't really have a chance."
Rhea leaned her forehead against her knees, watching the battlefield with narrowed eyes. "So was that the reason Alex made Gloom use only Leech Seed from the very start?" she asked, piecing it together.
"Looks like it..." Emily murmured. "And they're not slowing down either." She said with a smile.
Ahead of them, Khan shot his arm forward. "Gligar, PoisonSting from the air! Electabuzz, start focusing on a another Focus Punch!"
Gligar soared higher, its wings buzzing frantically as it rained down a steady barrage of Poison Stings. Little purple darts zipped through the air toward Raichu.
"Raichu, use your Iron Tail as a shield! Block these!" Surge commanded sharply.
Without hesitation, Raichu's tail shimmered silver again, whipping in a wide arc. It parried the Poison Stings one after another, the heavy tail slicing through the air with pinpoint precision, each block sending tiny sparks around the field.
I saw my chance.
"Oddy, dash ahead! Use Giga Drain!" I shouted, clenching my fists.
While Raichu's focus stayed locked on Gligar's attacks, Oddy darted forward,he gathered energy at his center, then hurled thick, energy strings straight at Raichu.
Surge's sharp voice cut through the chaos. "Raichu, jump back and Spin then tail to the right! Negative 70°."
Almost casually, Raichu twisted midair, landing on a single foot and spinning with sudden speed. Its Iron Tail, still glowing metallic, sliced the air toward Oddy with brutal force—aimed right at the Little Oddy.
"Electabuzz, Focus Punch the tail!" Khan roared, throwing his hand forward with a sharp motion.
I swung my arm up beside him, my voice cracking with urgency. "Oddy, don't stop! Keep using Giga Drain!"
Electabuzz burst forward, energy gathering in a deep blue glow around its fists. With a grunt, it slammed its FocusPunch straight into Raichu's incoming IronTail, knocking the metallic strike downward and slamming it to the ground. Oddy didn't falter—he pressed on, vines of green energy stretching out and wrapping around Raichu. The moment the GigaDrain connected, Oddy's scratches and bruises began to heal, boosted even further by the healing from his Leech Seed and Leftovers.
Still, Raichu didn't move from the center of the field. It stood there, breathing slow and steady, eyes locked on to us.
"Raichu, let's get serious!" Surge said, pulling the cigar from his mouth and crushing it in his hand. He lifted a fist to the sky, his voice booming. "Use QuickAttack—and jump HIGH!"
Khan and I locked eyes for a split second before focusing. "Electabuzz, Protect!" Khan barked. "Gligar, PoisonSting!"
"Aria, Hex! Oddy, use GigaDrain once more!" I shouted right after him, my voice almost blending into his.
Raichu's body gleamed white as it dropped low to the ground and launched forward on all fours, each step faster and faster until it blurred. Electabuzz braced himself, a shimmering shield of hexagons forming in front of his crossed arms. Raichu sprinted right toward him, a blur of speed, as Gligar rained PoisonStings down in a storm, creating a shimmering trail in the air behind Raichu. Aria fired ghostly runes that twisted and cracked through the air, while Oddy's Giga Drain lashed forward, but Raichu danced through it all, too fast for attacks to catch him. It moved like a ghost, impossible to predict
Then, with a powerful thrust off the Protect barrier, Raichu launched itself high into the sky, bursting upward like a rocket. For a heartbeat, it seemed to hang there—its tail catching the sunlight, gleaming silver and gold.
"NOW—DISCHARGE WEB!!" Surge's voice cracked like thunder.
Raichu gathered the electricity in its body, its fur sparking and crackling, and then with a mighty swing of its tail, it hurled a massive net of pure electric energy into the air. The web grew rapidly, stretching outward until it covered the whole battlefield, glowing a blinding yellow, like a second sun hanging low over the sand.
"NOWRELEASE IT!!" Surge roared as the Pokémon on the field looked up, stunned for a breath. The giant electric web trembled in the air—and then detonated.
The explosion wasn't a simple burst. The web snapped downward all at once, releasing dozens of crackling strands that lashed out like whips. Thin arcs of electricity split the sky, striking the ground and kicking up plumes of sand. The shockwave hit us a second later, sharp and biting, and the sound was like a hundred thunderclaps at once.
Ariacried out as the electric threads slammed into her, and she dropped to one knee before fading into unconsciousness. Oddy was hit seconds later, thrown backward with a pained grunt as his vines withered. Electabuzz tried to brace against the storm, but the sheer force overwhelmed his Protect, and with a final growl of resistance, he collapsed to the sand, sparks flickering from his body.
Above, Gligar barely managed to stay out of reach, wings flapping madly to avoid the final whips of electricity as the web faded into static and smoke.
I shielded my eyes against the brightness, my heart pounding against my ribs. When the dust finally began to settle, only Gligar remained flying above the field.