“I can believe that it's a Dragon Type, but surely a Pokémon can have two Types?” Will said. “It doesn’t only need to be a Dragon or a Ghost. It could easily be both at once!”

  A shared exhale was released throughout the room, and Lance cleared his throat out of embarrassment. Just like that, the tension that had sparked up from Sam’s new species seemed to have broken all at once.

  “You’re being facetious,” Morty drawled in his seat. “Of course it’s both. Lance was just being dramatic, like he usually—”

  He stopped himself when he saw the smile on Will’s masked face. The corners of the man’s mouth had quirked up, and he seemed proud to have garnered that reaction.

  With a snort, Morty recognized the pointlessness of continuing this and brought his focus back to the field. Below, the battle had already started, and the Mr. Mime was pressing its hands against the air, vigorously crafting a full wall of invisible screens.

  Sam’s new Pokémon—Drakloak, the television stated—cried its name and darted to the side. Morty was genuinely surprised at just how fast it could move, and it sent a strange, tannish energy out that seemed to splatter against the Mr. Mime’s unseen defenses.

  Unfortunately for the mime Pokémon, the Drakloak’s energy seemed to creep around the screens like a mass of skittering insects. Though the attack’s momentum was slowed, when it soon reached the Mr. Mime, the move’s effects covered and sank into it, almost appearing as a swarm that crawled all over its body.

  Frankly, Morty had never seen such a disturbing attack.

  “That was a Bug Type move.” The comment came from the group of children—Bugsy, Morty was pretty sure. “It’s a new one. An interesting one. And if I’m right about how it works, it looks like that Mr. Mime can’t switch.”

  Bugsy’s comment was proven correct when Nelson tried to return his Pokémon for a better match-up. However, his Pokéball’s light was broken by the squirming energy that covered the mime on the field.

  Sam went on to order a Shadow Ball from his Pokémon, and Nelson was quick to adapt, calling for a rather ingenious play that made use of angled screens. The Shadow Ball slid against the Mr. Mime’s defenses to be redirected instead of just breaking apart and weakening the screens if they had been used as a flat guard.

  “I taught him that,” Will said proudly.

  The Drakloak’s Bug Type move meant that the Mr. Mime frequently jerked from the energy biting at it. Something about the move’s effects was causing it to take ongoing damage. However, the Psychic Type just doggedly continued to craft its walls.

  The Mr. Mime didn’t need to attack; the Shadow Balls launched at it slid around and were redirected. Soon enough, the Drakloak was forced to avoid its own shots, and the barriers being placed across the field were limiting the total area it could use to dodge.

  “He’s making a maze,” Bugsy said.

  The Mr. Mime looked quite smug.

  From the side of the room, Whitney walked over, munching on a half-eaten scone in her hand. At the same time, Lance moved back to sit in his seat. He seemed unable to look away from the Dragon Type that was so unknown to him.

  When he spoke, everyone went quiet to listen in.

  “That Drakloak. I know where it was acquired. There was a stir in my clan; a group of poachers tried to contact us about illegally captured Dragon Types. Of course, the poachers were arrested before the day was over, but many of the Pokémon they brought here escaped.” Lance shook his head. “Jasmine eventually reported that the problem was solved, but a handful of those Dragon Types joined a few trainers’ teams. I’ve seen a handful of them in competition so far, but never did I think I’d see a Dragon native to somewhere so far away. Tell me, where is it from?”

  “Galar,” Will answered, and his confidence surprised Morty.

  Will then went on to provide background commentary, mostly speaking about Mr. Mime and how great it was at resisting unexpected Types. Mainly, Will had seen his own completely shrug off Dark Type attacks without blinking, and certain researchers were even suspecting that resistance was connected to an ability. Filter, they wanted to call it.

  “But of course, if you look closely, young Samuel is not calling for any Dragon Type moves. When it comes to Mr. Mime’s immunities—”

  A sharp grunt from Lance saw Will go silent. Below, the status of the field changed.

  The Bug Type move from earlier wore off; it wasn’t permanent. The Mr. Mime was huffing and puffing from both exertion and chip damage. Rather than risk leaving it out, its trainer brought up a ball to see it be returned instead.

  A Hypno replaced it.

  The moment the new Psychic Type appeared, Sam pointed forward, and his Drakloak shot toward the Pokémon. The Hypno readied a swinging pendulum like a weapon, except—

  “Ha!” Bugsy’s laugh pierced through the silence of the room. “That’s U-Turn!”

  The Drakloak was faster, and it slammed into the Psychic Type’s chest. The super effective damage saw the Hypno recoil back, and the Drakloak was safely recalled to Sam.

  According to the League’s current rules, U-Turn meant Drakloak could be returned without using one of Sam’s limited switches.

  “Now then. What will you send out next...?” Lance mumbled.

  Sam was quick to change his Pokémon; he likely didn’t want to give up his momentum. Thankfully, Morty found himself breathing out in relief when it was only a Gengar that appeared.

  This match-up would be simple.

  The two Pokémon on the field had similar goals: to inflict the other with a status. Hypno excelled when using moves like Hypnosis, and Sam had trained his Gengar to have a similar strength.

  However, that same plan would never work for him; a Hypno was innately unable to sleep.

  But instead of the exchange of status moves that Morty expected, Nelson looked as though he wanted to take advantage of his Mr. Mime’s lingering screens before they faded away over time. His Hypno immediately went on the offensive, attempting to unleash a Psybeam from its pendulum, but Sam's Gengar hopped back with mist pouring out of its mouth.

  “Haze,” Agatha unexpectedly named.

  Gengar faded into that choking fog, but its Psychic Type opponent tracked it easily enough. Although it could not be seen, it could be sensed, but the Hypno didn’t even need to do that much given how easily it could follow the visible disturbances in the mist.

  “Useless. Pathetic. To think a trick as simple as that would work,” Agatha muttered.

  “I don't blame him for trying. Sometimes the simple tricks are the ones that matter.”

  Morty checked on Agatha only to see her glaring at him with a single eye.

  “You foolish boy. I am not speaking of Samuel. I’m criticizing his opponent for falling for such an inane trap.”

  Gengar used that very moment to strike, revealing the disturbances in the fog to have been nothing more than careful manipulations of physical shadows. He burst out of the mist behind the Hypno, and his tongue swiped across its back to send it into a full-body shudder.

  “Aaaand... it's paralyzed,” one of the kids said.

  Morty saw two of the children pass money between them.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  Nelson grabbed a Pokéball, but he didn’t bother to return his Hypno when he saw Sam’s Gengar trap it with a Mean Look. Instead, now that Gengar was close instead at a range, he called for a Psychic to have his Hypno grab it.

  And Gengar was grabbed.

  Though this move dealt super effective damage, Gengar had intentionally allowed himself to be telekinetically grappled here. He maintained a smile—a tense smile due to the pain—and his own eyes flashed.

  The Hypno dropped its move, pulling back from whatever it saw in the illusions of Confuse Ray.

  From there, Gengar had free range to do whatever he wanted, and as his Shadow Ball knocked out the Psychic Type, Morty heard Agatha mutter something quietly under her breath.

  “...A paraswag strategy. Of course.”

  While it was obvious what that meant, Morty couldn’t say he had heard that term used before.

  The Hypno’s faint meant it was the first knock-out of the match, and the audience’s cheers could be heard in this sealed room, even as muffled as they were.

  Nelson went on to replace his unconscious Hypno with a Kadabra, and he was also quick to have it use Teleport to flash away. Gengar tried to rush it, but its Teleport saw it change positions in a blink.

  Here, speed would be less important. Due to the Kadabra’s instant mobility, a Pokémon’s ranged capabilities would be what sealed the match.

  “I’ll say,” Will quipped. “I don’t know who to root for!”

  Sam finally withdrew his Gengar, using his first “official” switch of the battle. With the Ghost Type’s disappearance, Morty inched forward on his seat to try to see exactly what Sam was thinking of doing next.

  (He wanted to be the first to recognize the Pokémon Sam sent out next.)

  Typhlosion, right? It’s finally time?

  That was not the case.

  Morty could not even begin to explain why Sam made this decision, but the Ghost Type trainer below sent out his close-ranged Primeape instead.

  And the arena went silent.

  The Pokémon’s presence alone seemed to push back the Gengar’s fading Haze.

  Nelson went stock-still when he laid his eyes on it.

  There was something seriously wrong with Sam’s Primeape.

  “Hold on,” Whitney said, her mouth full. “That's not—”

  “That's not a Primeape,” Agatha said, finishing the statement for her.

  With half the arena stunned by the greyish Pokémon below, and the other half seemingly cheering their heads off, Morty checked on Agatha again; her reactions had been curious.

  Never once before had he seen her surprised. She would be consternated, yes, and she was usually either annoyed or disappointed otherwise. But here, she was unable to bring her gaze away from the field, and she seemed to actually be at a loss for words at the Pokémon that had appeared.

  Using her cane, she slowly walked forward, moving down the short staircase through the seats to stand at the window. Her eyes were wholly stuck on that grey Pokémon, and though worn habit alone saw her try to passively hide it, Morty could see that her expression was filled with genuine shock.

  Such a wild sight helped Morty wipe his own gobsmacked expression off his face. He couldn’t stop his nervous laugh.

  He wasn’t sure what was going on.

  The match hadn’t resumed, and everyone else was too busy staring. Morty was forced to be the one to grab the television remote from a nearby table and unmute the Conference broadcast.

  “...name of the species,” the referee’s voice said from the television as the man finished speaking his orders.

  “Annihilape,” Sam answered. “He’s an evolution of Primeape. I’d say more, but... It’s better if I show him off in battle, right?”

  Sam smiled.

  Across from him, Nelson looked pale. There was something about the wisps that drifted off the Annihilape’s head that made it appear as though it possessed an ascended level of power.

  His eyes kept flicking around, and he seemed to be at a complete loss for what to do against such an unknown foe.

  With just this one species’s appearance, he’d been thrown completely off-foot for this match.

  But he was still an experienced trainer, and he was quick to decide to go with a safer option.

  “R-return, Kadabra!”

  “Tch. Coward. Not good in unexpected situations. Make sure to mark that down.”

  Will silently nodded to Agatha and wrote what she commanded.

  “Alakazam!” Nelson said, his confidence returning as his strongest Pokémon was sent onto the field.

  But Sam just laughed.

  “Really? Why would you do that? Now your best Pokémon is going to faint!”

  “You don’t even know what we can do,” Nelson said through gritted teeth. “The match is resumed, right?”

  The referee nodded.

  “Then use Psychic, Alakazam!”

  His Alakazam pointed a spoon at Annihilape, and Sam’s response was simple.

  “Shadow Punch.”

  An arm was thrown forward.

  Credit to Nelson, his Alakazam was strong. Even at such an immense distance, Annihilape was grabbed in a blue light and squeezed. The pained grunts that left the Pokémon demonstrated that it was still a Fighting Type. It was just a Fighting Type that had managed to become a Ghost Type as well.

  But even through the pain of the move, Sam’s Annihilape was able to throw out its attack. It seemed that though an Annihilape was a physical fighter, this one move solved what would have been a Primeape’s issues with range.

  Classically, Shadow Punch was only ever used by Pokémon whose hands could leave the sides of their bodies, with Haunter and Dusclops being the prime examples. However, at high levels of play, Pokémon stopped requiring a physical medium to use their attacks. Rather than launching an unattached fist, the Annihilape’s Shadow Punch sent out a copy. The projectile, wreathed in shadow, flew through the air and tracked the Alakazam.

  The Alakazam tried to avoid that incoming Shadow Punch with a Teleport, being forced to drop its Psychic to relocate. Morty noticed a subtle twitch in the Primeape’s arm, and the Shadow Punch curved to shoot off and change directions to chase the Alakazam down.

  Shadow Punch was known for its accuracy, as the move rarely failed to hit. The Alakazam did its best to avoid the Ghost Type’s attack, but Annihilape was relentless, and his attack chased it perfectly.

  Eventually, the Shadow Punch slammed into the Alakazam’s arm, pushing up its shoulder and crushing the side of its chest. Ghost Type energy pierced right into the Psychic Type. Though Shadow Punch was not the strongest move, it was a move that had been sent out with all of Annihilape’s strength, and Alakazam were not known for taking physical hits.

  Truthfully, Annihilape was seriously hurt after that single Psychic, but he was both healthy and strong enough to last until he had won with just this single punch.

  “So a close-ranged Fighting Type stands victorious over a long-ranged Psychic Type,” Morty mused.

  Or, he thought to himself, I should say a Ghost Type stands victorious.

  Nearby, Will cleared his throat.

  “Should we start resolving the bets now, or....”

  “Quiet,” Agatha snapped. “There's still one more.”

  After the Alakazam, Nelson quickly sent out his Mr. Mime from before, trying to get it to reset its barriers. Unfortunately for him, that just opened it up to the Annihilape charging forward unopposed, and a Brick Break shattered through them.

  A retaliatory Shadow Ball clipped the Annihilape’s side, but the evolved Pokémon was unrelenting. Another Shadow Punch, this one not needing to leave its arm, smashed into the Mr. Mime’s face to finally take it out.

  But was that really a Shadow Punch?

  The attack had lacked the usual flickering shadows.

  Nelson only had one more Pokémon, and while Sam’s team had taken damage, none had fainted. It hadn’t been a perfect match for him so far, but Sam was undoubtedly demonstrating his team’s confidence and strength.

  As Nelson brought up his final Pokéball, the audience screamed uproariously, and the Kadabra made its final appearance.

  “Kadabra,” Nelson said. “It’s all on you, but I know you can do it. Most of his Pokémon are injured, and you've had time to analyze your opponent. You know what we're up against, so let’s pull off a win!”

  The Kadabra tugged at its mustache. Its look was serious, and its gaze was firmly locked onto Annihilape.

  Though it was not an Alakazam, this Kadabra was still a part of an eight-badge team. Annihilape had already demonstrated his strengths, and this Psychic Type was smart enough to have a counter in mind for Annihilape’s game plan.

  But then, Sam started to speak.

  Even through the television, it was hard to hear him over the crowd.

  “Well. This has been an interesting battle, but I’ve only shown off three of my Pokémon, and you’ve been able to use all four,” he said.

  Nelson paled.

  “W-what?”

  He knew what was coming.

  “To make things even, how about I send out my last Pokémon? For fairness's sake?”

  “No, no. It's alright. You should just—”

  “Return, Annihilape.”

  Sam smiled as he grabbed a certain, worn Pokéball. The cheers that came from the audience were nearly deafening.

  This wasn't a fight seen world round. The Johto Conference had been going on all day, and many people had tuned out. Others weren't bothering to watch until the end, when the real battles would start, and even more than them were just not interested at all.

  But right now, more and more people were turning on the television, urged by family and friends to see this ongoing match. E-mails were exchanged. Phone calls were made. Forum posts were posted. People were telling others about a new evolution and a bunch of fancy moves being displayed.

  Yet, for the thousands of strangers watching this match, there were others, too, who were paying attention to the screen. They weren’t necessarily anyone that special, but they were people who personally knew the trainer and Pokémon in this fight.

  And there were a surprising number of them, too.

  In a lone, northern cabin, a man surrounded by baskets of dried mushrooms sat next to his Parasect and cheered at his television.

  Another man next to a proud, old Fire Type could barely cover his ears in time before dozens of primates yelled.

  Off in a prison, a certain person hidden by a disguise shook hands with a man in a uniform, and when walking away, he sent the sight being displayed on the television an unhappy scowl.

  In three different Gyms, three different Leaders reacted in three different ways. A heavyset man led the cheers of a bunch of brawlers. A Steel Type specialist nodded slightly as if she knew something like this had been coming all along. A solitary man, alone in his office, listened to the radio’s descriptions and allowed himself the faintest of smiles.

  At home, two Ghost Types cheered, much to the fright of the guest next to them.

  In Olivine, an aunt smiled as she placed a plate of cookies in front of her.

  Someone in the main lobby of the arena itself stared at a massive, hanging monitor and clenched his fist in challenge.

  And there was one more, far away in his cozy little ranch-side home, who sat in a small living room while surrounded by Pokémon and his years of research. He stared at his television, smiling to himself, and he whispered a short phrase.

  “He looks so much like you.”

  Finally, in front of them all, Sam tossed up a Pokéball, and a Pokémon appeared that he had known for basically all of his life.

  “Typhlosion!” he named.

  She was not a normal Typhlosion.

  And the audience screamed even louder for it.

  “Finish it!” Sam shouted.

  His Pokémon attacked.

  Dancing shadows, streaming darkness, and countless wisps poured out from behind the strange Typhlosion’s back. Questions were exchanged throughout Johto as a veritable parade—an infernal one—rushed her current foe.

  The Kadabra tried its best to defend itself, of course. It teleported away, and then it attempted a Disable to no avail. It tried and failed to use Psychic to push back the flood. It conjured barriers in a useless attempt to block the incoming move. It tried to blast them with a Psybeam, intending to disrupt at least some of those wisps.

  Nothing worked.

  Typhlosion had simply conjured too many too quickly for it to do anything to block this damage. Eventually, the Kadabra hunkered down with a Protect, and its entire being became consumed by the ghostly light.

  The move lasted for far too long for a mere Protect to defend it.

  Eventually, when all of the wisps had passed by and began to fade away, the Kadabra became visible for the final time in this tournament. The Pokémon was no longer standing, and its eyes lacked any focus. It laid on the floor, utterly unconscious, and Sam’s second round match concluded.

  In so many ways, this was his victory.

  Nelson was a planner like Sam. He had counters prepared for every member of Sam’s team. Or, at least, what he thought was Sam’s team.

  The reason Sam has been doing so well is because while his team is at eight stars, he’s actually at a high mid-eight stars. His last two opponents were at seven stars, and Nelson was only at the verge of eight.

  Once Sam doesn’t have that power difference in his favor, his matches will become much more difficult.

  Sam’s Team:

  Badges Earned: 8 (Mineral, Fog, Plain, Hive, Zephyr, Rising, Glacier, Storm)

  Approximate Team Strength: 8 Stars

  (Fire / Ghost Type, Female, Timid Nature +Spe/-Atk)

  Abilities: Blaze

  Held Item: Charcoal

  Moves: Tackle, Leer, Smokescreen, Ember, Flame Wheel, Curse, Will-O-Wisp, Incinerate, Detect, Quick Attack, Swift, Flame Charge, Flamethrower, Double Team, Infernal Parade, Confuse Ray, Hex, Shadow Ball, Night Shade, Shadow Claw, Agility, Blast Burn

  (Fighting / Ghost Type, Male, Impish Nature +Def/-SpA)

  Abilities: Vital Spirit

  Moves: Scratch, Leer, Low Kick, Karate Chop, Fury Swipes, Assurance, Ice Punch, Fire Punch, Cross Chop, Curse, Brick Break, Rock Smash, Rock Slide, Bulk Up, Rage, Rage Fist, Close Combat, Shadow Punch

  (Ghost / Poison Type, Male, Naive Nature +Spe/-SpD)

  Abilities: n/a

  Moves: Hypnosis, Lick, Confuse Ray, Spite, Mean Look, Hex, Shadow Punch, Night Shade, Acid Spray, Ominous Wind, Shadow Ball, Dream Eater, Nightmare, Curse, Haze

  Mismagius (Ghost Type, Female, Hasty Nature +Spe/-Def)

  Pokéball: Friend Ball

  Abilities: Levitate

  Moves: Growl, Psywave, Astonish, Confusion, Confuse Ray, Mean Look, Night Shade, Shadow Sneak, Shadow Ball, Nasty Plot, Psybeam, Will-O-Wisp, Psychic, Hex, Power Gem, Pain Split

  Trevenant (Ghost / Grass Type, Male, Quiet Nature +SpA/-Spe)

  Pokéball: Moon Ball

  Abilities: Harvest, Frisk (Developing)

  Held Item: Sitrus Berry

  Moves: Horn Leech, Tackle, Confuse Ray, Astonish, Growth, Ingrain, Leech Seed, Forest’s Curse, Shadow Claw, Phantom Force, Protect

  Drakloak (Dragon / Ghost Type, Female, Serious Nature, +-n/a)

  Pokéball: n/a

  Abilities: Infiltrator (Developing)

  Moves: Astonish, Infestation, Quick Attack, Bite, Lock-On, Agility, Double Hit, U-Turn, Phantom Force, Take Down, Dragon Pulse, Shadow Ball

  Dreepy (Dragon / Ghost Type, Male, Rash Nature, +SpA/-SpD) [Partnered with Drakloak]

  Pokéball: n/a

  Abilities: Clear Body (Developing)

  Moves: Astonish, Infestation, Quick Attack, Bite

  Auxiliary Pokémon: A gathering of , a handful of

  At Home (non-battlers): ,

  At Carl’s Ranch: (more than twenty), (Annihilape’s brother)

  Pokémon (and people) included in this chapter:

  Kadabra /

  Agatha

  huge thank you to everyone reading! Your support keeps this story going.