Chapter 100: A Lesson in Combat
Xiu's initial plan – knock Forretress into the air, then have Scyther slam it back down, using gravity to amplify the impact against its tough shell – seemed plausible as a direct slash felt futile, even risky; a powerful smash seemed the only viable option.
He'd hoped the initial upward kick would provide enough altitude for Scyther to deliver a decisive downward blow, but the height achieved wasn't sufficient, or perhaps Scyther, instinctively prioritizing speed over raw power, hadn't put enough force into the follow-up Wing Attack.
'I was greedy,' Xiu silently cursed his own ambition. 'I should have aimed for a simple knockdown.' Even if the damage from this height was minimal, disrupting Forretress's rhythm was key.
But now, watching Forretress tumble seemingly helplessly towards the ground, Xiu realized his revised plan might also be flawed. Just as the spinning armored ball neared the earth, it landed lightly. Too lightly.
'Sure enough, Xiu thought grimly, dealing with levitating or flying opponents… predictable trajectories go out the window.'
Forretress didn't just land; the moment its jagged outer shell touched the grass, it reacted. The shell, which had already begun spinning rapidly during its descent, seemed to grip the ground for a fraction of a second, then propelled itself violently sideways, directly towards Scyther, like a ricocheting bullet.
The maneuver was completely unexpected. Forretress had been falling straight down; there was no logical reason for it to suddenly shoot sideways with such force upon impact. Yet, it happened.
Fortunately, Forretress's ground speed, even boosted by the ricochet, couldn't match Scyther's raw agility who dodged the unexpected sideways charge easily, without needing a command from Xiu.
But the assault wasn't over. The moment Forretress missed, its spinning shell hit the ground again, and again it rebounded, launching itself back towards Scyther from a new angle, this time moving even faster.
Xiu, observing intently now, quickly analyzed the strange movement. 'Forretress used the kinetic energy from its spin, combined with the impact against the ground, to redirect its trajectory and launch itself like a high-speed projectile.' The jagged, uneven surface of its outer shell likely provided the necessary grip and torque. 'Scary.'
As Forretress continued this bizarre ricochet attack, bouncing off the ground repeatedly, gaining speed with each impact, Scyther found itself forced increasingly onto the defensive. Dodging became harder, the unpredictable angles making anticipation difficult.
Seeing Scyther being pressured, Xiu quickly issued a new command. "Scyther, retreat towards the trees! Use the terrain!" Open ground favored Forretress's ricochet tactics. The dense woods would limit its movement, break its momentum.
Scyther understood immediately, attempting to disengage, heading towards the nearby treeline. But Forretress pressed its attack relentlessly, cutting off escape routes, boxing Scyther into a smaller and smaller area.
"Use Slash to leverage yourself!" Xiu commanded urgently, seeing Scyther cornered. "Disrupt its spin!"
Scyther reacted instantly, swinging its scythe low, slicing horizontally through the grass. With a controlled flick of its blade, it sent a large divot of turf flying upwards, directly into Forretress's path just as it rebounded off the ground again.
Forretress plowed through the chunk of earth and grass easily, shattering it. But the impact, however slight, disrupted the precise balance required for its high-speed spin. It wobbled noticeably, its rotation slowing rapidly as it landed heavily, unable to immediately launch another ricochet attack.
In that brief pause, Xiu finally got a clear look at Forretress's defensive posture. The jagged outer shell segments had clamped shut tightly, sealing the gap between them. The four tube-like appendages retracted slightly. Only the large, impassive eyes were visible, peering out. It looked like an impenetrable, armored sphere.
"Oh," Xiu sighed inwardly. He'd hoped Scyther might find an opening while Forretress was recovering its spin, but the creature had instinctively sealed itself up.
But Xiu noticed something else during that brief pause. As Forretress spun down, it seemed momentarily disoriented. When it shattered the turf, it hadn't immediately reacquired Scyther's position. Then, the realization hit him. 'Spinning that fast… it probably loses visual and auditory senses temporarily. Just like the earlier turf 'attack' had coincidentally blocked its line of sight at the moment of impact.'
'So how does it target Scyther while spinning? The answer came quickly. Electromagnetic sense? Magnetic fields?' Many Steel-types possessed such abilities. Forretress must be tracking Scyther's bio-electrical field. The turf, being non-metallic and momentarily obscuring Scyther, had briefly confused its targeting system.
'A potential weakness!' Knowing this offered a way to counter the ricochet attack. But the core problem remained: how to actually damage the heavily armored Pokémon?
Scyther, also noticing Forretress had stopped spinning, remained warily on guard, unsure how to proceed without a command, not wanting to risk another futile attack against the closed shell. The battle reached a temporary stalemate.
"Professor," Xiu finally called out, breaking the silence. "Continuing like this seems pointless. Scyther can't penetrate that shell. It's better to just call it." There was no value in letting Scyther tire itself out attacking an impenetrable defense.
Professor Oak looked from the defensively postured Forretress to the wary Scyther, then back at Xiu, a faint smile playing on his lips. "Giving up so soon?" he asked lightly. "Be careful, Xiu. Forretress hasn't even begun to show its true strength yet."
Xiu wanted to groan. This felt completely pointless. "Then perhaps I could switch Pokémon?" he asked, half-probing, half-complaining. Abra's psychic attacks would ignore the shell entirely. Abra could probably win this easily.
Professor Oak shook his head. "No substitutions." He then added, almost casually, "This particular Forretress… I called it down from the back mountain just for this exercise. It's one of the ones with a gentle temperament, usually clinging onto trees and relying on its shell for protection. Very little actual battle experience." He looked pointedly at Scyther, then back at Xiu. "And yet… your Scyther, even with its speed and skill, struggled significantly against such a passive, inexperienced opponent. Makes one wonder about the effectiveness of your previous training methods, doesn't it?"
Xiu felt a flush of embarrassment but didn't argue. He was a novice trainer, essentially self-taught, relying on fragmented knowledge and improvisation. Oak's criticism, however blunt, was fair. His training had been lacking, focused heavily on Scyther's strengths while neglecting how to overcome difficult matchups or impenetrable defenses.
Seeing Xiu silently accept the critique, Professor Oak continued, his tone shifting, becoming instructive. "This exercise, Xiu," he stated calmly, "isn't just about winning or losing. It's about exposing weaknesses. Yours, and Scyther's. It's about understanding the necessity of combat."
Xiu looked up sharply, meeting Oak's gaze. "Is this… back to that question again?" he murmured, recalling their earlier philosophical clash. He knew that Pokémon battles were the fastest route to growth to power in this world.
But his own experiences, his aversion to unnecessary conflict… he preferred finding non-violent solutions whenever possible. The idea of constantly seeking out fights felt… wrong. Pointless, even. No one truly wins in a fight, echoed a sentiment from his past life. He only resorted to battle when absolutely necessary.
"Growth," Professor Oak stated firmly, perhaps sensing Xiu's internal conflict, "requires facing challenges head-on. You can't protect them from everything, Xiu. You can't solve every problem with clever tricks or strategic retreats." He looked pointedly at Scyther, then back at Xiu. "Do you intend to handle everything yourself? Shield them from every difficulty?" He raised a challenging eyebrow.
"Do you truly possess that ability?"