As they ventured deeper into the cave, the fluctuations of energy within gradually became more intense.
"Jangmo~!"
A small gray Pokémon suddenly poked its head out from a crack in the rocks and curiously stared at Peter and Whitney.
It was a baby dragon covered in scales of varying sizes. Its limbs were black, and atop its head sat a golden heart-shaped scale. Combined with its large eyes and tiny fangs peeking from the corners of its mouth, it looked unbelievably adorable.
"Jangmo-o, the Scaly Pokémon. They live deep within remote mountains and place immense importance on honor. They are born with the pride of true warriors, Rotom!"
"Wow… it's so cute~" Whitney crouched down and took out an Pokéblock. "Here, this is really tasty."
"Jangmo?"
The little Pokémon tilted its head before finally giving in to the temptation of the delicious cube. It happily trotted forward and began eating.
Whitney immediately took the opportunity to pet it several times.
"Little guy," Peter asked with a smile, "could you take us to the Totem Kommo-o?"
"Jangmo!"
The tiny dragon nodded enthusiastically.
Then it glanced curiously at Peter, seemingly wondering why this human could understand the dragons' language...
But after only a moment's confusion, it quickly dismissed the thought.
After all, it had been fed delicious food, so naturally it should help out in return.
The Jangmo-o called out once before turning around and leading Peter and Whitney deeper into the cave.
The farther they traveled through the winding tunnels, the more Dragon-type Pokémon began appearing around them.
The most numerous were Noibat and their evolved forms, Noivern.
Next came Jangmo-o and Hakamo-o.
Kommo-o themselves were quite rare. Peter only spotted three of them, each clearly above Gym level.
"Jangmo~!"
Eventually, the little Pokémon stopped in front of a massive elevated platform.
Peter and Whitney finally saw the target of this trial.
It was a colossal creature towering over ten meters tall.
It was even larger than any Totem Pokémon Peter had encountered before.
Its body resembled a prehistoric reptilian dinosaur, yet it possessed massive, elongated forelimbs and a dragon tail lined with four-pronged scales. Thick armor-like scales covered its chest, back, and sides, giving it an incredibly imposing appearance.
[Kommo-o Lv64 (Mid Tier Elite Four Level)]
Ability: Soundproof (Immune to sound-based moves.)
Description: The Kommo-o that guards the Dragonium Z. As the earliest Totem Pokémon of the island trials, it possesses an overwhelming Totem aura that boosts all its stats by one stage. During battle, it coordinates with Noivern and Hakamo-o to test challengers together.
————
The moment Kommo-o noticed the Z-Rings on Peter and Whitney's wrists, it raised its head high.
Clink! Clink! Clink!
All the scales across its body rattled loudly before it suddenly roared toward the ceiling.
"KOMMO-OOOOOO!!!"
The entire cave instantly erupted into motion.
A muscular Hakamo-o and an agile Noivern quickly arrived from deeper within the cavern while the weaker Dragon-type Pokémon retreated on their own accord.
The two supporting Pokémon stood behind Kommo-o as they confronted Peter and Whitney from afar.
"Kommo."
Kommo-o nodded slightly, signaling that the battle could begin.
Peter and Whitney exchanged a glance before simultaneously throwing their Poké Balls.
"Go, Arboliva! (Zoroark, I'm counting on you!)"
At the same time, Peter checked the other two Pokémon's information.
[Noivern Lv58 (Gym Advanced)]
Ability: Telepathy (Can communicate mentally with allies and trainers. In multi-battles, it can avoid allied area-of-effect attacks.)
————
[Hakamo-o Lv55 (Gym Mid Tier)]
Ability: Soundproof
————
Peter's brows rose slightly.
Two abilities designed to avoid friendly-fire damage…
Combined with the fact that all the weaker Pokémon had evacuated beforehand…
Their strategy was obvious.
Massive, indiscriminate sound-wave bombardment.
And inside a cave like this, Kommo-o's attacks would only become more terrifying.
"Babe," Peter whispered quickly, "prepare for a physical breakthrough. Defensive support is on me and Arboliva."
"Got it~ Zoroark, use Swords Dance!"
"Arboliva, step forward and use Light Screen!"
The moment they completed their setup, Kommo-o unleashed another deafening roar.
The scales all over its body vibrated violently as visible blue sound waves rippled through the air.
Clanging Scales!
Dragon-type Special Attack, power 110. Kommo-o's signature move. It scrapes its scales together to create overwhelming noise. After use, its Defense drops by one stage.
At the same time, Noivern opened its mouth wide.
A terrifying soundwave burst from its throat.
"NOIVERRRRRN!!!"
Boomburst!
A Normal-type Special Attack with 140 power capable of striking the entire battlefield.
Peter and Whitney both felt the vibrations spread throughout their bodies, their expressions growing increasingly serious.
Around Zoroark, sword-shaped shadows spun rapidly as it attempted to isolate the incoming soundwaves—but failed.
"Zoro…"
It panted lightly. Durability was never its specialty.
Fortunately, Boomburst itself had no effect on it.
Plop.
A seed dropped onto the ground as lush green grass spread beneath its feet. Gentle green light restored part of its stamina.
"Arbo~"
Arboliva moved in front of Zoroark while chewing on its Leftovers. At the same time, the range of Light Screen expanded under its control.
Its naturally incredible defenses meant the earlier attacks hadn't done much damage.
"KOMMOOO!!!"
Hakamo-o suddenly roared as well.
A weakening aura immediately enveloped Peter's Pokémon.
Noble Roar!
A fierce roar that intimidated opponents and lowered both their Attack and Special Attack by one stage.
Peter frowned deeply.
As expected of the original trial grounds.
These three Pokémon weren't simply fighting together—
They were perfectly coordinated.
"NOIVERRRRN!!!"
"SHRRRRRING—!!!"
Before Peter and Whitney could recover, another round of Boomburst and Clanging Scales came crashing toward them.
"Arboliva, move up and use Psych Up on Kommo-o!"
"Zoroark, eliminate Hakamo-o first! Use Phantom Force!"
"Arbo!"
Energy surged around Arboliva as every stat except Defense rose by one stage. With Light Screen weakening the incoming attacks, it easily endured the second wave of sound-based assaults.
At the same time, Zoroark vanished from sight.
In the next instant, it appeared behind Hakamo-o just as the dragon was preparing to unleash another Noble Roar.
Its sharp fox claws struck directly at Hakamo-o's neck!
"KOMMO—!"
Hakamo-o cried out in pain before instantly collapsing unconscious.
A deliberate sneak attack from an Elite-level Zoroark naturally wouldn't hold back.
Seeing its ally ambushed, Kommo-o flew into a rage.
It immediately formed massive Dragon Claws and slammed downward while Noivern followed up with a powerful Air Slash from above.
"Zoroark, Protect!"
"Arboliva, support with Pollen Puff!"
Pollen Puff: A Bug-type Special Attack with 90 power. When used on allies, it restores half their maximum HP.
BOOM!
Protect's barrier shook violently under the impact of Dragon Claw.
At the same time, the enormous blue-white blade of wind had already arrived.
Zoroark instantly canceled Protect and attempted to retreat.
But Kommo-o had no intention of letting it escape so easily.
A barrage of scales suddenly shot out from its armor.
Scale Shot!
"Zoroark!"
Caught completely off guard, Zoroark was blasted backward and crashed heavily onto the ground.
Thankfully, it had received healing from Pollen Puff midway through the exchange. Struggling painfully, it managed to rise again instead of fainting.
"Arboliva, use Dazzling Gleam for cover!" Peter shouted before turning toward Whitney.
The Miltank girl nodded heavily as dark light erupted from her Z-Ring.
"Zoroark! Z-Move… Never-Ending Nightmare!!!"
As she spoke, Whitney made an adorable ghostly face while performing the Z-Move dance.
"ZOROOOOOOARK!!!"
For a brief instant, Kommo-o and Noivern saw a flash of pink light—
Then the surrounding world transformed into endless darkness.
Ghostly hands emerged from the ground and wrapped tightly around both Dragon-types.
The next moment—
BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!
A violent explosion of dark energy erupted upward like a massive fountain, blasting toward the ceiling.
Deep purple darkness instantly consumed the entire cavern.
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T/N:
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