"Gengar, huh? But Gengar is countered by Umbreon, right?"
"True, but Gengar isn't just Ghost-type."
Up in the stands, the Bird Breeder Trio were back again. They'd just been knocked out of the Indigo Conference and had come to Rota to unwind.
And what do you know—they happened to catch Dylan back at the gym, facing off against Selene.
No way they were missing this!
"That Umbreon has Synchronize as its ability, but Gengar's also Poison-type, so no need to worry about status bouncing back."
The Psychic-type specialist glanced at the cold and aloof Umbreon, clearly annoyed.
He specialized in Psychic-types, and the Pokémon he hated most were ones immune to his specialty.
Dark counters Ghost, true—but Gengar's also Poison-type. Back in the day, Dylan was best known for his infamous trio: Dark, Poison, and Ghost.
Gengar perfectly embodied the nasty mix of Ghost and Poison—tricky and frustrating in every way.
Using Toxic was standard for it. And while Synchronize could pass along status like poison or burns...
Gengar's Poison-type made it immune to poison status from Synchronize.
On the field—
"Gengar, huh?" Dylan chuckled lightly.
"Okay~ Boss, it's time to get serious!"
Selene's pale, delicate face curved into a smile—Gengar was one of her all-time favorites.
"Let's go."
"Gengar!"
Selene raised her right arm, her left pressing on the dazzling gemstone on her bracelet.
"Jie jie~!"
Gengar's sinister grin deepened as the Mega Evolution stone on its wrist began to glow.
Mega Evolution—power beyond normal evolution!
Brilliant light enveloped Gengar, and in moments, the newly transformed Mega Gengar appeared.
Its upper body remained deep purple, now bristling with spikes, while the lower body faded into a reddish-purple. In the center of its forehead glared a gold, coin-like eye, and its blood-red gaze twisted with menace.
"Going straight to Mega Evolution?"
Leaf blinked in surprise at the sight of Mega Gengar.
Rotom Dex floated over to the girls and immediately began scanning.
'Beep~ Mega Gengar, Ghost/Poison-type. Shadow Pokémon.
Ability: Shadow Tag
Moves: Dream Eater, Destiny Bond, Mean Look, Shadow Ball, Toxic, Perish Song, Hypnosis...
Info: It steals life from everything—sometimes even its own trainer becomes a target for its curses. (Mega Evolution)'
Tch—
No surprise, that move set was almost identical to Dylan's shiny Gengar.
"Shadow Tag."
Dylan glanced at Umbreon's shadow—it had already been bathed in an eerie red-purple glow.
Umbreon was now trapped by Mega Gengar's Shadow Tag. Under normal conditions, it couldn't be withdrawn.
Shadow Tag acted like a passive Mean Look, preventing opponents from retreating. Sure, moves like Baton Pass or U-turn could bypass it...
But even with exceptions, Shadow Tag was still a royal pain—because not every Pokémon had an escape move.
Still, that didn't really matter to Dylan. As a Gym Leader, he couldn't switch out Pokémon anyway.
Selene's reason for going Mega was clear: the stat boost for Gengar was massive.
"Hehe~ Gengar, Imprison!"
Selene's smile widened as she issued her next command.
Mega Gengar's evil grin mirrored its trainer's perfectly. A giant "X" shimmered in front of it.
Imprison—a Psychic-type move!
Dylan blinked. This girl...
"Whoa!! That Imprison move!"
Lillie and the others were stunned. That was savage. Mega Gengar could learn a ton of moves.
And now—this Imprison just made it downright vicious.
Imprison: Prevents the opponent from using any move the user knows. Dylan's Smeargle had once used it against Wallace, completely shutting down his Milotic—even Water Gun became unusable, and it nearly drove Wallace over the edge.
But now? That same move was being used against Dylan—by his own student.
And Selene really knew what she was doing!
Intimidate from Incineroar, then Mega Evolve Gengar, Shadow Tag to trap, and now Imprison.
This combo would make anyone's brain melt!
"Thunder Wave!" Dylan ordered without hesitation.
Strike while the Imprison was still charging—this was his best chance.
Umbreon sparked with electric current and fired a Thunder Wave straight at Mega Gengar.
Selene blinked but didn't dodge. Paralysis was annoying, but completing Imprison was more important.
The Imprison took hold, the giant "X" fading into Mega Gengar's body. The Thunder Wave hit right after.
Golden electricity danced over Mega Gengar's body, and it winced in discomfort.
Paralysis took effect.
"Crunch!"
Dylan didn't hesitate. Umbreon lunged at Mega Gengar—its movement wasn't fast, but Umbreon's strength lay in its sharp reflexes, not its speed.
Paralyzed, Mega Gengar could only watch as Umbreon charged in.
Soon, the paralysis passed, and Mega Gengar regained control.
Umbreon bared glowing fangs and bit down on Mega Gengar's arm.
A Dark-type Crunch!
But Mega Gengar melted into shadow and slipped underground.
"Dazzling Gleam!"
"Crunch!"
Moments later, crimson eyes glowed beneath Umbreon's shadow. A sinister laugh echoed, followed by a burst of pink light.
Fairy-type: Dazzling Gleam!
But Umbreon reacted quickly—spinning around and lunging to bite Mega Gengar mid-attack.
The paralysis had slowed Gengar too much.
Chomp!
Umbreon's Crunch landed squarely on Mega Gengar's arm, and it grunted in pain as the Dazzling Gleam blasted Umbreon in return.
The impact was huge—Umbreon skidded backward on all fours, digging into the ground to stop.
Its blood-red eyes locked coldly onto Mega Gengar.
"Strong Special Attack," Dylan narrowed his eyes.
Umbreon had high Special Defense—and Calm Mind had already raised it by one stage.
But a non-STAB Dazzling Gleam had knocked it back hard.
Sure, Fairy-types countered Dark, but clearly, Mega Gengar's Special Attack was monstrous.
"Impressive defense on that Umbreon. If I remember right, it knows Baton Pass. I'll need to use Taunt to keep it on the field."
Selene kept her sweet smile, but she was deep in thought.
If Umbreon used Baton Pass, it could escape Shadow Tag.
She couldn't just Taunt blindly—Boss would have Umbreon use Baton Pass instantly if he saw that.
No—she had to bait him. Lure him into staying, then Taunt and either go full offense or wear it down with Curse.
Mega Gengar had Pain Split, after all—no worries about HP.
With her strategy decided, Selene's smile grew even more radiant and innocent.
"We've got to take out this Mega Gengar, or we'll be stuck without half our moves."
Dylan considered his options. It was tricky.
That Imprison move was seriously annoying.
"Umbreon, Baton Pass."
Dylan gave the order immediately.
"Nasty Plot!" Selene blinked, then caught on.
If you're switching, I'm powering up!
Mega Gengar's eyes gleamed black as dark energy surged around its body—Nasty Plot, sharply raising Special Attack!
Umbreon turned into white light and returned to its Poké Ball. Dylan tossed out another.
"Weavile! You're up!"
A flash of light, and the sinister-looking Weavile landed, flashing sharp claws that gleamed like ice.
An Ice/Dark-type—Weavile.
"Switched to Weavile... looks like it's time for an all-out assault."
The older sister crossed her arms, analyzing. Umbreon wasn't a main attacker—it relied on strong defenses and counterplay.
But with half its moves Imprisoned, Umbreon couldn't do much now.
"Yeah, and Mega Gengar's still paralyzed. Weavile is a logical pick. The only concern is Gengar's special attack."
"And it just used Nasty Plot," the Psychic-type trainer muttered.
Mega Gengar's Special Attack was already terrifying after Mega Evolution—now it was two stages higher.
"Weavile, huh."
Selene studied it—clearly one of Boss's newer aces.
Still, Weavile had a four-times weakness to Fighting.
"Weavile, Ice Shard!"
Dylan called the command without delay.
Weavile's claws gathered chunks of ice, launching them at high speed while it charged behind.
Ice-type priority move: Ice Shard!
"Thunderbolt!"
The Ice Shard flew fast. Electric sparks danced over Mega Gengar's body—Thunderbolt, an Electric-type attack.
But right then, Mega Gengar froze.
Paralysis!
Selene frowned slightly.
Ice Shard pelted Mega Gengar—it winced but took the hit without too much trouble. Its Mega form had decent defenses.
But Weavile was already there.
Pursuit!
Weavile slashed at Mega Gengar with claws shimmering with dark energy. Gengar cried out in pain.
Dark-type: Pursuit! Its power doubled when the target was switching or had just been hit!
This one hit hard.
"Thunderbolt!" Selene wasn't flustered.
Electricity burst from Mega Gengar in retaliation—bright yellow lightning lit the battlefield.
But Weavile slid back smoothly, nimble and quick, dodging the attack with ease.
"Sucker Punch!"
Having avoided Thunderbolt, Weavile stepped in close again.
Mega Gengar backed away—it was too late to shadow out.
Weavile was just too fast. The gap couldn't be widened.
"Paralysis is doing its work." Everyone could see it.
The Thunder Wave was paying off—without it, Gengar would never be slower than Weavile.
Weavile accelerated again, its dark form dashing to Mega Gengar's side. Its claws, glowing purple-black, tore across Gengar's body.
Dark-type: Sucker Punch!
Mega Gengar howled in pain—its condition was getting worse.
Something was off. Was it setting up Destiny Bond? Pain Split?
Dylan narrowed his eyes. Gengar wouldn't fall behind this badly unless it had a reason.
"Pain Split!"
Right then, Selene called out.
Mega Gengar glowed white—the same light burst from Weavile.
Normal-type: Pain Split!
Just as Dylan suspected. Dylan couldn't help but click his tongue.
This girl...
Always picking the crooked paths.
(End of Chapter)