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"What is he doing?" Kristy asked.

"He's doing a thing..." I said. I took notice, thinking it was weird that Aden was risking his Raticate getting poisoned, but then a realization occurred to me. I watched rather intently at the fight. If anything, if Aden was to go down, at the very least, he was going to go down fighting.

"Hmm...Gengar! Use Dark Pulse!" Morty shouted.

"Gar..." Gengar spoke up, trying to keep up with the rat. That said, it was a bit cumbersome. It wasn't so much as Raticate's speed as it was Eevee's Sand Attack earlier. "Gar!" The Ghost fired off another Dark Pulse towards the Raticate the best it could, only for it to whiz by the Raticate, only barely. The Gengar then got rammed by the Raticate, pushing it back quite a bit.

"One issue early on in Aden's training was that he was one that too easily gave up." I said. "He got easily flustered, too. Heck, I was beginning to wonder if he would have made it past Falkner, to be honest. He was using Calm Mind as a crutch to try to keep himself calm, which did nothing, really. He knew immediately after that I didn't care for such a performance. It would have been one thing if he lost outright, it was another if he wusses out before the last move was called. It's something that I believe weighs heavily on him. It...was a time that he doesn't really want to relive."

The Gengar gets knocked back by the Pursuit once more. "You're going to have to do a lot more than just repeat the same actions against me, Aden!" Morty shouted. "Gengar, use Confuse Ray!"

"Gengar!" A bright flash of light goes to fall upon the rat.

Morty looked on at Aden. He was making good use of the alleged handicap that was allowed to him, but just as Aden suspected, it was him getting into the proverbial fire. That said, Morty knew that this couldn't stay going. At this rate, Gengar was going to get whittled down by the constant rotating attacks of Aden's final two Pokemon. Granted, even then, there wasn't too great of a concern, but why let up now?

As the Gengar gets pelted with the Nidorino's Shock Wave attack, Morty shouted out to his ghost Pokemon. "Mean Look!" He called out.

The Gengar gave its provoking glare towards the Nidorino.

"Gar?"

Morty on the field, Kristy on the stands, and even I was staring in utter shock. Aden actually dared to be brazen enough to risk this? Another Flatter attack, although the ghost already gotten powered up as is from getting baton passed by Driftblim? This was one hell of a gambit that Aden is pulling.

"Has he lost his mind?" Kristy asked.

"Really? The more that I am thinking about it?" I spoke up. "In a situation like his right now, he's got nothing else to lose right now. It's a risk anyone probably would be willing to take."

It would be a mindset that Morty was sharing with me. Granted he still had the cushion of that fresh Pokemon, but it was not something that he wanted to fall on so haphazardly. "Gengar! Can you use Shadow Ball?"

"Gen...gar..." The Gengar was stunned at the whole implication of his eyes. Never got complemented by Mean Look before.

"Gengar!" Morty shouted. Apparently Gengar was a bit too dumbstruck right now...

The damage was starting to add up finally on the Gengar. The tiny nibbles as they were from the Eevee were next to nothing. The Pursuit attacks from a hardy rat and the electrical onslaughts from Nidorino, though, were a different story.

With another electrical onslaught on the way, Morty narrowed his eyes. He started to feel he was about to lose him to the Nidorino. He wanted to try one more thing. "Gengar, try a Destiny Bond!" He shouted. If he couldn't take him down with what assault power he had, he was going to at least take the Nidorino down with it.

"Gen...gar?" The Gengar spoke. When the command finally registered though, he didn't get the chance to get it off. The electricity coursed through the ghost once more. The Gengar slowly hovered down, landed on the ground, and passed out.

I gave a sigh of relief. Gengar was out of the question, finally. That said, it left me to wonder something, now. Gengar is usually his ace Pokemon. He sent it out so early. Even if he had intentions on passing on the Stockpiles from that Driftblim, and for that matter, the specialized enhancements that came off of Nidorino's Flatter, why did he go for it so soon? I couldn't hide the look of suspicion on my face.

"Well, I see you've decided to fight a bit more seriously. I'm starting to see what the other gym leaders were talking about with you." Morty said. "That said, we all agree on one thing: there's only so long that you can skirt that proverbial razor's edge, you know."

"Do I really need to remind him about the team I work with?" I asked.

"He's saying that with that in mind." Kristy said.

"...biased much?" I asked.

Morty recalled the Gengar off the battlefield, then took out the Pokeball. "Driftblim, come back out!"

"Him not going with the fresh one bothers me a little bit." I said.

"I suppose that's the arrogance with youth. Driftblim! Constrict!" He shouted. The Driftblim flew over with its long ribbon-like tendrils, the Driftblim goes to snatch the Nidorino to hold it in place.

The Drifblim winced as the electricty started coursing through it. "Good night, Nidorino." Morty said. "Driftblim! Explosion!"

As the Nidorino was caught up in the tendrils, the balloon started to spark and a great blast rocked the field. That was why. He knew that Driftblim wouldn't have lasted long anyhow. He still had that fresh Pokemon in tow for that matter while Aden had a Raticate that went through the ringer a bit. "Blast it..." I said.

"Thank you, Drifblim. You did great tonight." He said.

"I know what you're thinking." Kristy said to me. "Gengar is his top Pokemon. Why do that? Well, while that's true, I wasn't the only one working on the a-game." she said.

"Huh?"

"You're to thank for that, actually, Blizzard. When you and that gang your with started to demonstrate those things a little while back. Sure, teacher has taken note that it wasn't smooth sailing for Aden. Having to redo battles against Falkner and Whitney in particular. That said, why take the chance? Why just have ONE ace in the hole?"

"Just what are you implying?" I asked.

"Just watch."

"Well, Aden, this is it. I hope you're ready." Morty said. "Go! Spiritomb!"

"What!?" I spoke up. Sure enough, as Morty tossed the final ball out and as it lands, the ball bursts open, revealing a rather massive rock there upon the ground. From it eminated a even larger spectre with a rather menacing laugh. "...when the hell did he get that?"