Broken Souls

All Four One: Part Finale

Whatever I can say of Karen's room, Lance's is twice that. His entire room is gold, from wall to wall, with massive pendulum-esque creations turning and swinging every few meters. The giant mechanisms make it look like we're in the midst of a giant machine, or something not quite real. In fact, with the red carpet in the center of the room and the pillars on all sides of the raised battlefield, it looks as if we're about to challenge a king... or a god.

Lance sees me first, his cape fluttering about his feet as he walks towards me. I pass sculptures of several dragon Pokemon, lifelike and furious, and ascend the steady ramp onto the field where our final battle will take place. He meets me in the middle, and with icy tact shakes my hand.

I'm so close that I can see the golden flecks in his eyes.

"Lance." I say, feeling another presence in the arena.

"I know. I know." he repeats, as if he's trying to convince himself. "We have to do this. I won't be going easy on you. For the sake of this world, I'm not allowed to."

"No cheating." I confirm.

He sighs, looking sullen, and then draws back to the other side of the battlefield. He tosses a Poke Ball in his hand. "Ashley Hart. We knew that one day it would come to this. I can not be at your aid today, but nonetheless, I wish you luck." He shakes his head, holding out his Poke Ball. "Merina, show them our power!"

A Gyarados emerges into the stadium, its eyes dark and its composure strong. Unlike Pisces, she doesn't flail or coil herself- instead, she moves in calm undulations, like the sea in the morning. I get the immediate sensation that her coolness hides massive strength, but Pisces, who is exactly as she appears, does not shy from the challenge.

She slithers around my team and up onto the battlefield, and I feel her tense.

Merina strikes. The other Gyarados wraps Pisces in her coils and bites down on her neck, in that tender area close to the fins. I feel ice pierce my own neck and yet Pisces hardly flinches. For all the apparent strength of the move, it's not effective type wise and Pisces tries to struggle out of the other Gyarados's grip, using bursts of water to ease its coils.

They fall into a deadly knot of snake and tooth, with Merina shooting bright Dragon Pulses left and right as she aims for Pisces's head, but though I wait for a counterattack before giving Pisces my own commands, nothing comes.

Energy laces up Pisces's side, a near imperceivable spark of purple, and it suddenly strikes me why she isn't attacking.

I open my Pokedex, incredulous, and confirm the unbelievable: Pisces has used Dragon Dance no less than four times in a row and is still going, losing little health for the endeavor all the while.

I realize with a jolt of fear that it's not a threat to the opposing Gyarados, nor to Lance. Instead, it's an invitation. She's preparing herself so that we can sweep his team together.

Lance, however, has caught on. "Risky strategy, Hart. Had I stricken a single critical by now, you'd be done for, and without your ace in a battle you're already outnumbered in." He grits his teeth. "I should hope you're taking this seriously."

"I was hoping you'd have something more potent to counter my ace with." I say, hailing her back. Pisces draws the knot over with an attempted escape, moving them just close enough that I can spritz her with Hyper Potion before Merina falls on her again with another painful Ice Fang.

Ashley. I don't have forever. Pisces warns me.

So we don't.

Are you ready to see what a true apex predator can do?