Sinnoh. Canalave City. Zero Arcade. Afternoon.
A virtual Pokemon Card Game duel was about to begin against Princess Flurry Heart from Universe 6 and an old foe of Ash and Pikachu known as Zero, who now owns an Arcade.
"To start things off, we both place our active Pokemon upfront as if it were a normal Pokemon Battle." Zero explained. "Then we work things from there. For my starting Pokemon, I'll place down Clauncher." Upon placing a Clauncher card, Clauncher had been virtually summoned.
"Clauncher!"
"Okay." Flurry Heart played her first card. "I'll go with Mimikyu" The first Pokemon she summoned from the card was none other than the Disguise Pokemon, Mimikyu.
Mimikyu!" Mimikyu had 70 points to go off of whilst Clauncher was limited to 60. Just short of Mimikyu's health points via 10 total.
Once the starting Pokemon were placed forward, they drew 7 cards while also keeping them hidden. 60 cards total were made for their decks and thankfully, Flurry Heart being an avid collector led to her having the right amount. They each held a card holding one Pokemon. For Flurry Heart it was Litwick and for Zero it was Luvdisc. They then placed them both in their respective benches right behind their active Pokemon and in front of them.
"Now that they're both our Active Pokemon, I'll have the first turn." Zero would go first, already feeling confident enough in what he had in his hand. "First, I'll give this Water Energy card to my Clauncher, boosting its attack!" He revealed a card of Water-Type energy with the symbol materializing.
"Clauncher...!" The symbol had entered Clauncher, boosting its strength.
"Clauncher can hit harder now. Next, I'll use this. The Hard Charm." He revealed a card that had a special charm on it. This charm had been summoned before being put next to Clauncher. "I'll just give this to Clauncher and call it a turn. But before that, just quickly, Clauncher's ability Bubble will let me flip a coin. And if it lands on heads, your Active Pokemon gets paralyzed."
Zero then flipped the coin, hoping for heads. It spun around in the air before dropping, landing on tails instead. Zero accepted that he couldn't get the paralyze off.
"Phew. Free from that problem. My turn!" Flurry Heart grinned, revealing the Psychic Energy Card with the Psychic-Type Symbol flying over to Mimikyu, boosting its attack. "I'll give my Mimikyu some Psychic energy!"
"Mimi!"
"Then I'll use its special ability, Filch! It lets me draw two cards, see? And here's what I get." She then used her magic to draw 2 cards. A Psychic Card and a card of Stufful. "These'll do just nicely. Then I'll put Gothita right next to my Litwick and that's that. No attacking yet."
"Hm-hm." Zero chuckled. "No attacking yet, eh? Then allow me to get to that point. First, I'll put this Alomomola next to my Luvdisc. Then, I'll use another Water Energy card to evolve my Clauncher into Clawitzer!" He revealed another Water Energy that zoomed over to the Water-Type.
"Wait, evolve?!" Flurry Heart gasped as Clauncher went through a spontaneous evolution, bursting with Infinity Energy before emerging as its final evolution.
"Didn't you know that? You can place two energy cards on a Pokemon that has the potential to evolve. And if when those two energy cards are on, that Pokemon reaches its next evolution. Or, I can combine two Pokemon of the same evolution family and bring out that evolution. Neat, huh? So go, Clawitzer! Attack with Reverse Thrust!"
"Clawitzer!" Along came Clawitzer, lunging itself at Mimikyu.
"Mimi?!"
"Claw!" It had used the force of water to boost its lunging speed before thrusting its massive claw, smashing Mimikyu with it and dealing a sweet 30 points of damage.
"M-Mimikyu!" Mimikyu had been knocked back, rolling on the simulated floor. With those 30 points of damage, its 70 health points dropped to 40.
"Now that Reverse Thrust had been landed, its special effect allows me to switch Clawitzer out with another Pokemon. And I choose my Alomomola!" Out came Alomomola.
"Alomomola!"
"I have to change every time I use that Reverse Thrust, but it's so worth it. I'll end my turn there."
"Okay...My turn." Flurry Heart scrunched her face before drawing a Nest Ball card. "Sweet another Poke Ball card! And this one lets me search my deck for a Basic Pokemon and put it on my bench. And I've got..." The next Pokemon she pulled out was none other than Cosmog. "This thing! Uhh...Cosmog. Whatever that is..."
"Hm? Never seen one before?" Zero asked.
"Nope. I just got this card one day and saw how pretty this Pokemon was. Never actually seen the Pokemon myself. Or a bunch of them."
"Hmph. It's only natural. The people who make the Pokemon Cards also involve Pokemon that are hard to find. But thanks to a few stories from Alola just about 4 years, Cosmog's appearance and information about it had been shared."
"4 years ago....you mean Nebby?" Ash recognized the context behind Zero's words.
"That was the nickname." Zero snapped his fingers. "Looks like Giratina's not the only Legendary Pokemon you've met."
"Hehe. Yeah." Ash chuckled.
"Pikachu."
"Good to know. I'll play it anyway because it looks cute!" Flurry Heart placed the card down. She had then looked at the 7 cards next to her, ready to play one of them. "Now I'll evolve one of my Pokemon! I already had Gothita on my bench, but behind that, I have Gothorita. And just like you said, I can combine two Pokemon of the same evolution line and bring out the next evolution! Gothorita!"
"Gothorita!" Gothirita had fused with its pre-evolution, overtaking it. Once Gothita had been overtaken, it was Gothorita's turn to shine.
"Then I'll give it some Psychic energy too to make it stronger!" A Psychic-Type Symbol entered the Psychic-Type, boosting its attack."And I'm gonna be greedy by using Filch again."
"Again?" Zero squinted his eyes as Mimikyu's ability allowed for 2 more cards to be drawn. He could see that Flurry Heart wanted to have the numerical advantage at all costs.
"Oh yeah! What a helpful ability!" Flurry Heart chuckled as she ended up receiving two more cards at her disposal. "Then, I'll put Stufful up to the bench next! That's it for my turn."
"Getting greedy are, we? And without an attack in sight. First, I'll give Alomomola some Water Energy. Then, I'll use Alomomola's special ability, Super Deep Dive. I'll switch it out with my Clawitzer!"
"Alomo!" Alomomola had then dived into the simulated floor which perfectly replicated water ripples. Just like that, it had swum back to the bench, tagging Clawitzer out who jumped back into the fray.
"Clawitzer!"
"Now I'll finish. All I need is my Clawitzer right now. Let's see what you have."
"Oh, just you wait. I'll be attacking very soon." Flurry Heart was indeed planning her moves carefully, drawing the next card from her deck. "Woah! A great one! I'll use my Bewear!" She revealed a Bewear card. "And just like with Gothorita, I'll put this to my Stufful and evolve it!"
"Bewear!" Bewear and Stufful had become one with Bewear taking over. Once again, She opted to evolve her Pokemon, not yet throwing an attack.
"And since I evolved it and it's out there, it lets me draw 3 more cards with its ability, Rake it in!" Showing her preference for overwhelming numbers, Flurry Heart drew three more cards.
"Yes. She's learning exactly what I taught her." Sombra confidently smirked. "I taught her that overwhelming numbers is the key to victory. And she's proving it right now. Aren't I a great teacher?"
"Uhh..." Flash Sentry had no comment on that.
"Oh!" Flurry Heart gasped after looking at one of the three cards she had pulled. This card had a familiar friend on it and the first one of her friends that she had pulled. Rarity. "Rarity!" She smiled before seeing the sweet trait that this card had to offer. Just what she needed. "Thank you, Rarity. Okay! I'll play Rarity!"
"Hello~!" Rarity appeared, flipping her mane.
"Oh, he was right about it involving our friends!" Ash's eyes flared up. "That's so cool!"
"Pikachu!"
"And with Rarity's only ability, I get to draw 3 more cards! Hah! I'll be drowning in cards soon enough!"
"I'll take some of these thank you." Rarity used her magic to grab three more cards from Flurry Heart's deck. "Here you go, darling. Three more to go. Good luck, Flurry Heart." Once her card had been used up, Rarity had vanished. She was a Trainer Card after all. A one-time use.
"Thanks, Rarity!" Flurry Heart was given the cards. "Don't worry. I'm not gonna attack just yet. With these extra cards, I'll give two more Psychic energies to my Gothortia."
"Gothorita!" Gothorita had powered up once more. But, Flurry Heart was expecting something else to go beyond that. But it did not happen.
"Hm? How come she's not evolving?"
"For a Pokemon such as Gothorita, whose evolution line has three evolutions, you need three Psychic energies as opposed to my Clawitzer who only has two evolution. So, do you have a third?"
"Uhh...No." Flurry Heart's ears dropped. That's all the Psychic energy I have."
"Let me guess...Filch?" Zero guessed what Flurry Heart's next approach was.
"Totally! Give me some more cards, Mimikyu!" As predicted, she wanted more.
"Mimikyu!" And Mimikyu would grant her that.
"This is certainly the slowest match I've gone through." Zero pondered. "But I can predict good things to come from this."
"My turn's done." Once again, since she already used Mimikyu's ability, her turn was over without yet another attack.
"Of course...Even though I taught her to have superior numbers, I did tell her to use them and attack." Sombra groaned, facehoofing himself. "And yet she has yet to do it."
"Ah, she'll attack soon enough," Ash replied, knowing that Flurry Heart would eventually land an attack.
"I suppose I'll do the same thing as well! Reverse Thrust!"
"Witzer!" Clawitzer attacked once more, dashing at Mimikyu. Once again, it was the only Pokemon that landed an attack, striking Mimikyu directly with its claw.
"Kyu!" Mimikyu suffered another 30 points of damage which brought it down to just 10 Health Points. It was in the red now as Clawitzer had been swapped out for Alomomola once more.
"My turn's done. Now, what will you do, my little pony?"
"Okay...maybe I should start doing something or else I'll lose my Mimkyu." Flurry Heart scrunched her face before using her magic to place her next card down. "I'm putting down Salandit next on my bench!"
"Salandit!"
"And after that, I'll combine this Lampent Card with my Litwick!" Yet again, she went for the same tactics, choosing to evolve her Pokemon constantly. Zero had now figured out her approach as Lampent replaced Litwick permanently.
"Lampent!"
"I'll power it up with a Fire-Type energy!" She revealed another one of her 7 seconds, sending it to Lamept for extra power. Now, it was time for her to decide what to do with Mimikyu as Zero smirked, waiting patiently. "Then...I'll..."
"Don't get nervous now." Rarity spoke. Despite being a hologram, she would act the same way the real Rarity would.
"I'll use Filch again. And end my turn." 2 more cards were given as her turn was done.
"I see what you're doing...too bad I'm going to have to eliminate your card drawing chances!" Zero's eyes flared. "First, I'll use this! Double Colourless Energy! I'll attach it to my Alomomola, which provides it with two Normal-Type energies." The card had been revealed, sending dual energies to Alomomola. "But wait, there's more! Since I've given Alomomola another the right amount that it needs, that allows it to use its attack! Say goodbye to your Mimikyu! Surf!"
"Alo!" Alomomola's turn to attack was now. It cried out before summoning a mighty wave of water from behind it. The Caring Pokemon ascended, floating on top of the wave as it had sent it in Mimikyu's direction.
"M-Mimikyu!" Mimikyu could do nothing to stop this. The dial wave had engulfed it, carrying the Disguise Pokemon with its ferocity as Flurry Heart flinched.
"Not my Mimikyu!" She gasped.
"So much for your Filch." Zero smirked. "That's it for my turn. Let's see what else you have, my little pony."
"Uhh..." Flurry Heart drew another card before looking at her deck. "Okay. You wanna get physical then fine. I'll attack you now. I'm putting my Bewear as my active Pokemon now!" She had then summoned Bewear as her newest Active Pokemon since Mimikyu was out of the picture.
"Bewear!" Bewear showed up with a whopping 130 health points.
"And I'll attach this to Bewear! Spongy Gloves!" She revealed her next card as Bewear had received gloves with a spongy texture, raising its attack by 30. Then, I'll finish up giving it Double Colorless Energy!"
"Wear!" Bewear gained two Normal Energies, nearly reaching the capability of using its attack. "And...that's it for my turn."
"You're finally deciding to get physical with me." Zero was pleased. "Unfortunately, you'll have to wait until next turn for that. From my hand, I activate this! Crushing Hammer!" He revealed his next card which had a toy hammer, but its playful appearance was contrasted by what it could do. "Now, we flip a coin. If heads, you discard one energy from your Bewear. If tails...well then nothing."
"Hrrghh...!" Flurry Heart growled as Zero held a coin in his hand. He then flipped the coin as Flurry Heart was praying for heads by putting her hooves together. Once the coined landed on the floor, by peering their heads over, it had been revealed to have landed on tails. "Phew..."
"Hm. Looks like your Bewear earns that chance to attack again." Zero placed the coin back.
"Yeah, if I can get some Normal Energy. I only gave it two but I don't have anymore." Flurry Heart gulped, looking at her cards. She only had Fire Energy at her disposal. Two of them. "This card game's harder than it looks. Should've played it alongside looking and collecting all these cards."
"Come on, princess!" Flash Sentry cheered her on. "Your Pokemon still has the greater health, doesn't it?"
"Not for long," Zero said with a malicious tone that would fit perfectly with his old self. "From my hand! I summon you to support!" Zero had then shown a card that had a familiar face to it. Another one of Ash's friends was on Zero's side. Princess Luna.
Luna had emerged with a flash of magic, standing behind Alomomola as Flurry Heart was caught off guard. She thought it was only her side that received her friends. "Great Aunt Luna?! But how?!"
"I should've mentioned that it counts for me as well. This simulation always gives new cards to trainers. No matter who they are. So, some of your friends could be on my side."
"Don't take this personally, Flurry Heart." Luna shook her head.
"And with Princess Luna being summoned, her ability activates! During my turn, my Pokemon's attacks do 40 more damage to your Active Pokemon!" Luna had used her magic, showering Alomomola with a dark blue light, increasing its attack power. After that, Luna was gone after her one-time use.
"I bid you farewell."
"40 more?!" Flurry Heart was blown back by that number increase.
"That's right. Add that up to Alomomola's Surf and you have yourself attack power! Enough to weaken your Bewear! Now, go! Surf!"
"Momola!" Along came Alomomola with another Surf that was stronger than the last. Bewear looked up at the massive wave as it had crashed into it. A colossal amount of damage had been done to it, bringing it down to 10 health points. All of that health dropped rapidly.
"B-Bewear!"
"But wait! There's more! I draw another Trainer Support card!" The next card he revealed was of Rainbow Dash. "Rainbow Dash!"
"Haha!" Rainbow Dash emerged, floating in the air. "Hey there!"
"With her, I can shuffle my hand into my deck and draw 5 more cards!"
"5 more cards?!" Flurry Heart pulled her mane as Rainbow Dash zoomed over to Zero's deck. The pegasi grabbed onto some of the cards, zooming back to Zero and showing him what she had pulled.
"Here's what you got. Buh-bye now!" Rainbow Dash had then left, vanishing out of thin air.
"Hm. Excellent." Zero liked what he was seeing. "I should warn you. If you run out of cards in your deck and can't draw on your next turn, you lose. So play wisely, princess. My turn's over.
"Mmmrrgh..." Flurry Heart was starting to sweat bullets. She then looked at her deck, realizing that using Mimikyu's ability and Rarity's ability resulted in her card count decreasing. The young alicorn gasped, noticing that she was down to just 44 cards in her deck. Getting greedy was costing her. "Not good. I need to do something fast..."
She held her breath in, hoping that she could turn this around. She drew her next card, wondering what it could be. Lo and behold, her next card ended up being her auntie. Twilight. "Aunt Twilight!" She exclaimed. "Alright. I'll play you, auntie!" Twilight had been summoned into the simulation, appearing in all of her alicorn glory.
"You look nervous, Flurry Heart." Twilight turned around. "But don't you worry, okay? Try and pull through."
"Thanks, auntie. And with her ability, I can draw 7 more cards!"
"7 more? Now you'll just be down to 37." Zero said, warning Flurry Heart of her drawing overuse.
"But it'll be worth it!" Flurry Heart said otherwise. She took the risk as the next cards that she pulled were ones that she showed great confidence in. Twilight could see the confidence before then fading away after her one-time use. "Okay...I'll use this! Fluttershy!"
"Oh. Hi." Fluttershy just now realized that she had been summoned.
"And I'll add Pinkie Pie to her as well!" Flurry Heart wasn't done with the summoning as right next to Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie had appeared.
"Hey, Fluttershy!" Pinkie Pie bounced into the simulation once she arrived, gawking at the area.
"And with both of them, Bewear gains back 60 health points!"
"60? But that would mean Bewear's back to full health!" Zero did the math as Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie went over to the Strong Arm Pokemon.
"There, there. You'll feel a lot better." Fluttershy patted in on the back, bringing over some bandages that had been summoned.
"Yeah! Especially if you eat up!" And to speed things up, Pinkie Pie shoved some food inside of Bewear's mouth. Preferably some cupcakes. Bewear's health shot right back up to 130 Health points. It was as if nothing happened to it.
"Bewear!"
"That should do it." Fluttershy was glad to see Bewear feeling better as she faded away. "Take care of yourself."
"Buh-bye! Peace!" Pinkie Pie bid her farewell too as they were both gone.
"Thanks, you two! But I'm not done! I play this! Celestia's Blessing! Help me out, great auntie!" Flurry Heart revealed her next card which was of Princess Celestia. Celestia emerged with a golden ray beaming down on her. The Ruler of Equestria stood gracefully with her horn already glowing.
"With my great auntie's ability, she blesses Bewear with 40 extra points for its attack. And it's going for the only attack it has! Dangerous Blow! Go, great auntie!"
"With pleasure." Celestia's eyes flared a shining white colour before then unleashing her golden magic onto Bewear. Bewear's strength was already boosted thanks to the Spongy Gloves, but now, they had been increased even more.
"Bewear!"
"Many thanks, great auntie!" Flurry Heart thanked the hologram of Celestia. Princess Celestia nodded her head before then vanishing. "Dangerous Blow has a whopping 60 base strength! And with Spongy Gloves plus Celestia's Blessing, it goes up to..."
"130!" Ash and the others put those numbers together immediately.
"Pikachu?!"
"That's right! But I can't pull it off unless I have three Normal Energies. I only have two energies. Luckily...I have another friend to help me out in this!" Flurry Heart continued, postponing Bewear's attack. "I'll play this! Help me out, Applejack!" Now, it was Applejack's turn to appear.
"Right here where ya need me. How ya'll doing?" Applejack tipped her hat off to Zero and his Pokemon.
"And with her special ability, she allows me to draw some energy cards! Mainly, Normal Energy! Go, AJ!"
"On it!" Applejack saluted before heading over to Flurry Heart's deck. "This won't be like finding a needle in a haystack! It'll be easy as..." She shuffled through all of the cards before finding the one she needed. A singular Normal Energy card. "Pie! Here ya go, sugarcube!" She then threw the card to Bewear, adding the final energy needed for Bewear's attack.
"Bewear!"
"My job here's done. Make sure you hit 'em hard." Applejack was out of here after playing her part.
"We will, Applejack. Right now thanks to you. Since all three energies are on Bewear, you know what that means? It's time! Bewear! Dangerous Blow!"
"Be...Wear!" Bewear stomped its foot before engulfing its paws in a raging orange energy. The Strong Arm Pokemon lunged at great speeds, striking Alomomola directly at full force.
"M-Mola!" Alomomola cried out as it was blown back by the shockwave. Whilst flying through the simulation, the card had been destroyed as it certainly was not strong enough to withstand it due to its 100 health points. Out went Alomomola, disappearing from the simulation.
"That's my turn. How's that for attacking?" Flurry Heart grinned.
"Looks like someone's finally getting into the thick of things. Learning as you go. A real prodigy. That's what I like to see."
"Thank you, Zero." Flurry Heart blushed from that compliment.
"That's our princess! A true prodigy even from a different universe!" Taking in pride in the pony representing the Crystal Empire, Flash Sentry felt like weeping.
"Except..." His eyes flashed yellow in a split second. "I have yet to showcase my strongest Pokemon. Allow me to do so! Now that you've destroyed my Alomomola, instead of Clawitzer, I will summon this! A Tag Team Duo! Garchomp and Giratina!" He played his strongest card. A Tag Team card consisting of two powerful dragons.
"Garchomp!" Garchomp roared upon being summoned whilst Girtaina's roar was far greater. They stood side by side with Flurry Heart's jaw being dropped.
"T-T-T-T-Two Pokemon?! And it's these two?!" She almost fell over. "How?!"
"There can be only one Active Pokemon in the field. But thanks to these Tag Team cards, it ends up being one card with two Pokemon. And this one is my personal favourite. I made it myself! Garchomp and Giratina!"
"Talk about overkill..." said Ash, stunned by this dynamic duo.
"Pikachu..."
"How is she meant to beat those two?!"
"Despite being Dragon-Types, they need these three energies for their attacks to occur." Zero then revealed three cards of different energies that were not Dragon Energy. "One Psychic. One Fighting. And one Normal. You can thank Giratina and its resistances for this odd combo. Now, let's see how your Bewear's strength stacks up to my duo!"
"Gar!" The energies had been added onto the two of them, granting them access to their unified attack that would soon be hurled at Bewear at any moment. Flurry Heart witnessed a massive number of 160 points for their signature attack and health points of 270. Enough to take out Bewear in one strike and endure multiple hits.
"That's it. I end my turn." Surprisingly, Zero ended it there. But he certainly terrified Flurry Heart.
"Ending it there? Okay. That gives me a chance to do something! I'm going to make sure that their health comes crashing down! I just need something..." She drew another card before looking at her deck. "This could work! I play the Vitality Band, attaching it to Bewear!" A white band had emerged, wrapping around Bewear's head. Its attack had been boosted by 10 points, reaching 140 now.
"Is that it?" Zero asked.
"So far! And now, I'll lower that health! Dangerous Blow!"
"Bewear!" Bewear approached the two dragons, aiming to weaken them. It wouldn't take them out, but it would certainly knock their health down. "Be!" Bewear had delivered a double strike. First, it had crashed its fist onto Garchomp's body before then launching it into Giratina.
"Gar!" Garchomp cried out as the intense force of the knockback had even damaged and knocked Giratina down when Garchomp crashed into it. That was the end of Flurry Heart's turn as Garchomp and Giratina were down to 130 health points. A consistent number in this duel.
"You fool...YOU FOOL!" Zero cackled. "You've triggered my trap! If attacked, Garchomp and Giratina's attacks go up by 80 points!"
"80 points?!" Flurry Heart gasped.
"A colossal 240!" Zero raised his finger, revealing another card. But before that...I play this! Max Potion! With this, I can fully heal my Garchomp and Giratina as if they never took damage! Bringing you right back to the start."
"Garchomp!" Garchomp and Giratina felt rejuvenated, getting right back up. Not only did their attack increase but they were back up to speed with health.
"Now, then. It's getting late and I have some closing up to do soon. So...this'll speed things up! I play this card and its ability! The Spread of Discord! This card forces you to take out 7 cards each!"
"Hello there!" Along came Discord as even he had been involved. Once he showed up, he forced Flurry Heart's deck to pull out 7 cards, limiting her numbers and edging her closer to defeat. "That should do it. Bye now!" Discord faded away as he was by far the quickest. Now Flurry Heart was down to 27.
"Don't worry. I'll get rid of some of them if you don't mind. With this card! Grand Hammer! Some of these cards are made by me and perfect for certain opponents. Unfortunately for you, you're one of them as this card has the opposite effect to Discord. 7 cards at your disposal will be obliterated!"
"Huh?!" Flurry Heart watched as a hammer had been summoned. A colossal one too. It slammed onto the simulated floor, obliterating seven of her cards with ease. "M-My cards...!"
"Don't forget! There are still these two! Let's drop that card count to 19! Garchomp! Giratina! Calamitous Slash!"
"Gar!" Garchomp and Giratina attacked next. Both dashed at Bewear at Mach speed, making a black and red trail of energy from their hyper-fast movements. Garchomp slashed past Bewear while Giratina had used parts of its Origine Forme to summon its claws, striking Bewear.
"B-Bewear!" That was it for Bewear. Destroyed.
"That's it for my turn. Now bring it."
"Oh, I'll bring it alright!" Flurry Heart was now getting even more serious. "I'll keep weakening that duo down no matter what. First I'll add two Fire Energies to Salandit, evolving it into Salazzle!"
"Sala...!" Salandit had Fire Energies fly over, possessing its body. Emerging from the pillar of fire was Salazzle. "Salazzle!"
"I'll make her my active Pokemon now! And guess what...here comes her ability! Hot Poison! With it, I can leave your Garchomp and Giratina burned and poisoned at the same time! So, go for it, Salazzle!"
"Salazzle!" Salazzle got on all fours, opening her mouth to shoot out a blast of poison. This poison had an aura of fire around it before then expanding to be wide enough to encompass the two Dragons. Garchomp and Giratina felt a searing virulent sting as they had two status ailments now.
"Now, you'll feel 20 points of damage each turn! But I'm not done yet! I play Struggle Gloves!" Flurry Heart summoned some boxing gloves with stars on them as Salazzle's hands had received them. "If this card is attached to a Pokemon that has a weakness to the opposing Pokemon's type, its attacks do 30 more damage. And that Garchomp of yours is the biggest weakness Salazzle could ever have!"
"Tch." Zero scoffed as he knew this to be true.
"And Salazzle's Flamethrower goes from 90 to 120! Not enough to match up with what Bewear had...but thanks to Burn and Poison, that's going to break past it! Go! Flamethrower!"
"Salazzle!" Salazzle held its breath in, unleashing a burst of fire that moved at raging speeds. The flames consumed them as a ferocious explosion of fire had occurred. The two Dragons cried out before taking 120 points of damage. Not enough to do the job.
However, the second Flurry Heart's turn finished, the two status effects kicked in. Burn and Poison. 20 total damage points and the Duo Dragons ended up bringing them to 130. Yet again, the most common number here.
"Still not enough! And if you're forgetting, when they are attacked, Calamitous Slash gets boosted. And since Burn and Poison kicked in, you've helped them both reach an all-time high."
"Burn and Poison counts?!" Flurry Heart pulled back.
"Got that right. 480! First, I'll play this card!" He revealed his next card which ended up being Starlight. Starlight emerged as the next of her many friends. "Thanks to her, I can force you to draw 5 more cards!"
"Sorry, princess." Starlight apologized, using her magic to grab 5 cards out of Flurry Heart's deck, bringing her numbers down greatly. Now she was down to 9.
"You think I'm done? There's this one too." Zero finished it up by playing a card with Spike's face on it, summoning him into the simulation.
"Spike, not you too..."
"It is what it is." Spike shrugged. "Plus, I get to stand next to these super-powerful dragons! How neat is that?!"
"And with this friend of yours, his ability cheers on any Dragon Pokemon, restoring their health by 40 points and increasing their attack by 10." Spike indeed cheered Garchomp and Giratina on, looking up to the two dragons before vanishing. The Duo Dragons had 490 attack power along with some recovered health that went up to 140.
"Say goodbye to Salazzle! Attack!"
"Gar!" Garchomp rushed in, harnessing Ground Infinity Energy to its claws. Salazzle braced for impact before being slashed by Garchomp while Giratina disappeared into the shadows. Once it emerged out of the shadows, it struck its claw on Salazzle's back, dealing the finishing blow.
"S-Salazzle!" That was it for Salazzle and the Duo Dragons were burned and poisoned once more even with Salazzle's defeat, taking 20 points of damage and going down to 120. But their attack went up to 650 at this point.
"I end my turn. Now...what's next?"
"Umm..."She looked at the bench and the remaining cards that she had. With Salazzle destroyed, she was down to just 8 cards now. Flurry Heart took a deep breath, observing what she had left. Only one Pokemon left to be her Active Pokemon and that was Lampent. "All I have is Lampent now. Hmm...Yeah. I think I've reached my limit here."
"Now isn't the time to give up. Even if you're at a disadvantage, you must play until the very end." Zero said, choosing to give her a pep talk despite how he was controlling the battle. "Play your final Pokemon and do your best."
"Okay!" Flurry Heart almost teared up, only to hold them back as her fire had been reignited. And speaking of fire, up came Lampent. "Let's go! I'll evolve Lampent with this! A Rare Candy! And here comes Chandelure!"
"Chandelure!" Chandelure had arrived, having 140 health points to spare. Not enough to take a hit from those two powerhouses, but Flurry Heart was going to try. This was her last Pokemon. And if it falls, the game is over.
"All the cards I've drawn have been tools or trainer cards. I should've organized my deck to make it more balanced...too late for that." Flurry Heart lowered her head. "But next time, I won't make that same mistake. But for now, I'll use what I have! Starting with this! I give Chandelure one Fire and Normal Energy, giving it access to its attack! But hold on!"
"Hmm..." Zero narrowed his eyes.
"I first activate Chandelure's ability! Cursed Shimmer! As long as this Pokemon's in the Active Spot, you can't play any tool cards for good!"
"Huh?!" Zero gasped, noticing that all of his tool cards had been engulfed in a spectral aura.
"As for me, I'm gonna use all of them! Protection Cube is up next! It prevents all damage done to the Pokemon this card is attached to by the attack it uses!" Down to 3 cards, she was going all out.
"No damage?!" Zero pulled back. He looked at this deck, noticing that one of his cards could remove tools. Tool Retriever. But Cursed Shimmer had locked it off.
"Oh, but here's where Chandelure shines some more with its attack! Max Poltergeist! It forces you to reveal your hand. And it does 70 damage for each trainer card that you have with you. Let's see, shall we? Max Poltergeist!"
"Chandelure!" Chandelure's eyes flared as it summoned an array of objects shrouded by ghostly aura while also affecting Zero's cards. His cards had been revealed as he had more Trainer Cards to spare. Each of them were of Flurry Heart's friends as well as other individuals.
"How many is that?! I spy 5! So...that makes this attack 350! Let's go Chandelure!"
"Chandelure!" Chandelure then launched the cursed objects at Garchomp and Giratina, using the power of the Pokemon Trainers.
"G-GAR!" Enough to overpower the Duo Dragons. They had nothing to retaliate for this as a spectral dome-shaped explosion had occurred. Just like that, Zero's most powerful card was gone. The Dragons had been slain by this haunted chandelier.
"Impossible! My Garchomp and Giratina!"
"What can I say? Ghost-Types seem to be my speciality. First my own Giratina and now this Chandelure. My turn's done and this has yet to finish, right? You told me to play my final Pokemon and do my very best. Well, this is my final Pokemon and my very best. How do you like it?"
"Alright, Flurry Heart!" Ash pumped his fist into the air with Pikachu and Flash Sentry hugging each other.
"Pikachu!"
"It indeed is an absolute game-changer." Zero smiled, drawing his next card. "You took out my strongest Pokemon. And your Chandelure is powered up by trainer cards. And as for me...I don't have a Pokemon that can potentially stand up to yours. And my cards are locked up by that Cursed Shimmer. Well done for making this comeback."
"Wait...what does that mean?" Flurry Heart asked. "Does this mean, I win?"
"Let me see..." Zero pondered. "Not at all. I still have cards to spare. And as for you...despite how powerful your Chandelure is, unfortunately, time isn't your friend here."
"Huh?" Just as Flurry Heart tilted her head, a loud beep had been heard, startling her. It was the timer. Time was up for this battle. "Has it really been 30 minutes?!"
"You pondered a lot." Zero shrugged. "It happens. With time running out, I still had these cards to spare." He showed off his Clawitzer, Luvdiscc and various other Pokemon cards that he had yet to play this entire time. "But to be honest, your Chandelure could've taken most of them out. Maybe."
"Aww..." Flurry Heart had lost as the simulation ended as Zero walked over.
"However...You played a fine game, my little pony. You have potential as a Pokemon Card Trainer. As I said before. A True Prodigy."
"Thanks again, Zero." The young alicorn squeed as her friends cheered for her. "That was so much fun! Just as fun as collecting them!"
"Mmm. That's why it's my favourite game." Zero nodded in agreement. "And I think I just found myself a new fun opponent t go up against."
"Really? Great! Because I've always wanted someone to try these cards on with! I got that chance finally!" She happily flapped her wings.
"That was some battle! Pokemon Card Battles are so cool!" Ash exclaimed as he and the others walked over.
"You played well, young one." Sombra even complimented her. "Adding all of those numbers was a clever call. I just wish you had attacked more often."
"My bad." She giggled. "Well...I guess we should be off now since it's getting late. The next destination is over the horizon. Far past Sinnoh."
"Far past Sinnoh?!" Flash Sentry gasped. "Uh, apologies, princess. But your parents stated that you must stay within the Sinnoh Region and go on a journey there for just one day only. Tomorrow will be the finale of this journey."
"Aww..." Flurry Heart pouted.
"Well, we won't be far apart." Zero shook his head. "Now that the game is done, I suppose I can talk to you about far more important things. I was able to pull your friends as cards because I already know what's happening with this world collision."
"You do?" said Ash.
"Yes. Rift Energy and everything. And I believe, I've cracked the code on this cosmic energy."
"You have?!" All of them gasped as it was implied that Zero had perfected Rift Energy whilst no one else has. Not even Cold Colt who was training with it.
"Come with me. I've got something to show you." Zero brought them along as their time in this arcade wasn't done quite yet. Zero ended up becoming an unlikely friend. But then again, such is the nature of those who go on adventures with Ash.
The card game was enjoyable for them all. Flurry Heart found something new to do with these cards that she's collected over the months and especially a new goal of sorting out the best deck that she could make as well as rematching Zero some time. But for now, it was off to another room as the journey continues.
Chapter 766 End.