Chapter 31: Amber vs Articuno (II)

Don't forget to drop some power stones!

*****

Flap. Flap. Thud.

A majestic creature spanning several feet high, and a long wingspan that seemed to be purely made of ice crystals slowly descended after coming out of the large, red glow of the open Pokeball. Its body was mostly sky-blue in color, and a frigid air escaped from its mouth. Three, large protruding ice crystals stuck out of its forehead, making the creature even more domineering. This Pokemon was Articuno, one of the three legendary birds one could find in the Kanto Region!

And rumor even had it that they can also be found in the Galar Region!

There was one thing to point out. Unless a Pokemon was truly mythical like Mew was, one could encounter multiple of the same legendary Pokemon here in this Pokemon World. It wasn't limited to just encountering one. And even then, Ricky wondered if that really was the case for Pokemon like Mew. Was that really the only Mew out there?

Still, once Articuno descended from the sky above, its aura alone caused nearby Pokemon like Rattata and Pidgey to flee, obviously scared. Violet wasn't worried about other Pokemon's reaction. This Articuno has been her partner for years. She was used to this by now. And on the contrary, after Articuno let out a loud screech, it turned its head, and nuzzled its feathers against Violet.

"Heh heh, it's been a while, hasn't it, Krystal?", Violet asked the large bird before her with a laugh. It simply nodded its head, and then shifted its eyes outward, landing on Ricky. Violet could see growing curiosity in her Articuno's eyes.

"You'll be battling Ricky and Amber today, Krystal. I expect you to give it your all. Do not hold back.", Violet said with a determined look.

"Schreee!", Articuno exclaimed again, beating its wings. A large gust of wind blasted right at Ricky, just by the residual effect of Articuno's large wings. It was as if he was suddenly skiing down a mountain slope. It only lasted for a moment, but Ricky just stood there, and took it on.

'Legendary Pokemon really are a league above the rest. I've encountered Krystal a few times now as Mom would take it out on occasion. I've even seen some battle videos of her using Krystal, but never in live action. I can just feel my blood pumping in excitement...', Ricky thought to himself.

He saw no reason to not wait around, seeing as Professor Oak declared the battle to begin. Just like how Krystal did it, Ricky tossed his Pokeball upward. It revealed a much smaller red glow compared to Articuno, but the figure that appeared was still pretty big.

Amber hopped out, landing gracefully in front of Ricky. Confusion appeared in her eyes, not expecting to see Articuno in front of her.

"Nine?", Amber questioned, glancing her eyes at Ricky. Ricky smiled at her.

"This will be your first Pokemon Battle, Amber. Sorry to suddenly drag you into this, but I want to see mom's strength myself. You'll be up to the task, right?", Ricky asked.

"Ninetales!", Amber exclaimed with in fervor. The moment she appeared, a couple sparkles emanated from her body, as she was a shiny Alolan Ninetales. But just seeing Ninetales alone caused his friends to become surprised.

"So that wasn't just for show, eh? You really did evolve that Vulpix of yours, Ricky.", Gary mused.

"So cool. It's Ninetales now!", Ash happily exclaimed.

"And that's not the best part.", Ricky replied back with a playful smile. There was a reason why Professor Oak had everyone wear those jackets. Ricky just pointed up into the sky. It was clear as day with its bright blue sky and the sun peering down with its warm rays, but the coldness started to sweep through the air. Gray clouds suddenly formed where the sun used to be. Clouds kept forming and forming, causing the temperature to visibly drop.

The technical term was called a hailstorm. In reality, it was a large snowstorm. It wasn't just hail. Heavy crystals of snow started pouring down one after another. Ricky did recall that the latest region of Paldea did introduce another new weather type, which was called Snowscape. Hail was deadlier of the two, and actually causes damage per turn if one isn't an Ice-type. Snowscape, on the other hand, is much softer. It creates a picturesque view, painting the land in snow.

Regardless, Ash could now see his own breath. It wasn't a cool sixty degrees anymore. It felt a much colder forty degrees, and was continuing to drop!

"Your Amber really has a hidden ability, it seems. You know this is a double-edged sword, right?", Violet asked Ricky.

"Yeah. You're using an ice-type, just like I am. You'll get the full effects of the weather currently being cast.", Ricky explained. But he was ready for this. Even if he knew he would likely use, he still wanted to challenge a legendary Pokemon!

"So this was within your expectations then. With that being the first case, I'll let you make the first move.", Violet said with a smirk.

Hearing that, Ricky smiled playfully back at her.

"Haha! That might've been the wrong move to decide on. Amber, use Aurora Veil.", Ricky said, announcing his first move.

"Nine!", Amber exclaimed, letting loose her ice energy inside her body. Her tails flared up, and multi-colored phantom prisms began to manifest in front of Amber, one after another. It happened in quick succession. More of these panel-like blocks appeared until Amber generated around four to five of them.

This move behaved very similarly to Reflect and Light Screen. Except it targeted both of Amber's defenses temporarily. All incoming damage would be reduced by half!

The downside? It can only be used in a frigid hailstorm like the one falling down before everyone. Amber had her hidden ability, Snow Warning, instead of her usual one. Snow Warning whipped up a hailstorm once a battle began. It had nice synergy with Aurora Veil. Ricky often saw trainers kick the battle off with this move, so he did the same.

Violet's eyes remained unchanged. No, perhaps they were colder than before? She calmly stood in place as a rainbow-colored barrier surrounded Amber.

"That's quite the defense you put up. Yet you must always be ready to react on a moment's notice. Many moves counter one another. Aurora Veil is no different. Krystal, use Defog.", Violet declared with a cold look in her eyes.

"Schree!", Articuno loudly chirped. A gentle aura wrapped around its body, turning into flying energy. A soothing blast of wind started to get knocked up from Krystal's giant wings. This wind blast steadily grew stronger and stronger. Krystal directed it right at Amber. It didn't cause any damage, but Ricky saw the invisible barriers suddenly materialize before him. Craaack!

Those nearby flinched, covering their ears. The constant stream of wind blasted against Amber directly. Thanks to the icy shards of the ongoing hailstorm, it reacted very similarly to using Blizzard. This barely caused any residual damage. But that wasn't the main factor in using Defog here. Over the generations Defog received several improvements. At first, it could only remove the simplest of barriers, that being Reflect and Light Screen. But over time, the move improved.

That meant Amber's Aurora Veil was in danger!

Ricky saw cracks appear over the rainbow barriers covering Amber. First it was one crack. Then two. Then several. After several cracks tore through the Aurora Veil, it completely shattered, exposing Amber! She no longer had her increased defenses!

And it didn't just end there. A debuff glow appeared over Amber, showing a decrease in her evasiveness. Normally this didn't do a whole lot. But Violet smirked seeing Aurora Veil now shattered.

"And you must be ready for a follow-up attack. Pokemon Battles don't play nice. Trainers won't wait around, waiting for you to move next. If they see an opportunity, they will take it.", Violet said. There was a reason why she smirked after using Defog. Once the steady wind ceased, Violet issued another move. "Krystal, use Hurricane!", Violet yelled.

"Schreee!", Articuno excitedly chirped. Unlike Defog, Hurricane was a much more powerful move. It was one of the strongest Flying-type moves out there! Dense and thick white energy began to glow around Articuno's wings. Ricky knew what Defog did there to his Amber, and why Violet was following up with a strong Hurricane move.

"Then I won't play nice either. Amber use Blizzard.", Ricky declared.

"Nine!", Amber quickly responded. Icy-blue energy began to swirl around Amber's entire body, suddenly going on the offense. It didn't take long for a howling blizzard to whip up behind Amber, causing the drop in the air to get even colder. Ash could even see his own breath now.

"It's already getting intense, huh?", Ash uttered.

"Yeah. This might be Ricky's first battle, but Amber is already strong to begin with, especially if Amber can use Blizzard already.", Gary nodded. Large balls of snow began to condense behind Amber, launching themselves forward. In response, Articuno fiercely flapped its wings, taking to the skies. Its flying energy condensed further, shooting out before Articuno. It didn't take long for the Blizzard's wind to grow fiercer and fiercer, only to turn into a big Hurricane. The two moves started to merge and clash together. BANG!

Flying energy and Ice energy clashed, creating a deafening explosion around them. Ash was the closest to the battle, and was met with some misfortune. With the fierce winds blasting the snow, flinging it around, Ash was pelted. In particular, his head. It was so sudden, but part of him suddenly became a snowman. Only his eyes poke out while the rest of it was covered in snow!

Seeing this, Green giggled.

"Pffft. Ricky sure got you good, Ash.", Green replied with a playful smile.

"Quick thinking with the jackets, Professor Oak.", Serena said.

"That was a fierce blast of wind and snow just now. Are you all doing okay?", Professor Oak asked everyone. Aside from Ash, everyone felt as if they were skiing for a good moment, but they were fine. Ash shook the snowball-head away, popping his head out again.