Stalemate

After Mega Evolution, Gyarados became even more ferocious, with its type changing from Water and Flying to Water and Dark.

Yuga had previously seen Robert's Mega Gyarados, but back then, Robert's Gyarados was in a rampage. However, even under those circumstances, Robert's Gyarados couldn't match the imposing presence of the Shiny Mega Gyarados before him.

As long as Shiny Pokémon can successfully survive the survival of the fittest in nature, they are generally quite strong.

Yuga's Shiny Roserade hadn't been born in the wild and hadn't experienced such selective pressures, so he didn't have a deep understanding of it in that regard. However, in terms of innate potential, Roserade was indeed quite remarkable.

This Mega Gyarados was no different; its potential was only slightly inferior to what Roserade had when it was first born, making it one of the top-notch Pokémon in the Blue category.

"See this? This is the charm of Mega Evolution," Lysandre said, his words filled with temptation, as if conveying something to Yuga.

"It does look quite remarkable," Yuga replied, feigning a bit of naivety, pretending he wasn't particularly knowledgeable about Mega Evolution.

The Mega-Evolved Gyarados had now reached a level almost on par with Champion level Pokémon. Although it lost the Intimidate ability that boosted its presence, it exuded an even stronger aura of intimidation.

"In that case, let's show Mr. Shimizu what makes it even more remarkable in battle," Lysandre said as he issued an attack command to Mega Gyarados.

Following Lysandre's command, Mega Gyarados unleashed another Iron Tail attack. Its massive tail fin, akin to a folding fan, raised a colossal wave, and a water column with an aura of destruction rushed towards Lapras.

Facing this water column, Lapras opened its mouth and fired a blue-white beam, instantly freezing the water column into ice. However, the impact force of the water column was so strong that even as ice, it continued to speed towards Lapras.

In the face of this situation, Lapras remained unfazed. It used Surf, and with a powerful flick of its broad fins, it created a towering water wall from the pool. The ice column collided with the water wall, experiencing a cushioning effect, and then fell back into the pool as the water wall receded.

The towering water wall blocked Mega Gyarados's line of sight. When it finally settled, Mega Gyarados saw a yellow-green beam rapidly approaching, almost at the speed of lightning.

In this critical moment, Mega Gyarados didn't have time to think. It instinctively used Protect to block the incoming beam.

The yellow-green beam was Lapras's Signal Beam, a move that had gathered all of its power. If Mega Gyarados had been hit by it, it wouldn't have been child's play.

After evolving into the Water and Dark type, Gyarados was now vulnerable to Bug-type moves.

As the Signal Beam, which held Lapras's full power, shattered with a resounding impact, the protective barrier that Mega Gyarados had created using Protect also vanished. However, Mega Gyarados was still feeling a bit rattled; the recent encounter had been extremely close.

Despite its fierce appearance, Mega Gyarados had a calm temperament, having battled alongside Lysandre for a long time. It wasn't easy to rattle its emotions.

Mega Gyarados was competitive by nature, and the slight unease it felt made it harbor some ill feelings towards Lapras. It didn't like being intimidated by Lapras's previous move.

With its composure regained, Mega Gyarados burst through the water surface, its immense jaws wide open as it lunged towards Lapras. Simultaneously, it used the move Crunch, and its massive teeth glistened with an icy gleam, as if it intended to tear Lapras apart.

In response to this situation, Lapras, previously floating in the pool, slapped the water's surface heavily with its four long fins, then quickly retracted them to its sides, surging into the sky.

In this way, Mega Gyarados missed its target as Lapras ascended into the air.

From its elevated position, Lapras looked down at Mega Gyarados as if to say, "Do You Surprise? I can fly!"

Mega Gyarados, still in mid-air and bewildered, hadn't even processed what had just happened when Lapras, from above, unleashed a Dragon Pulse directly at Mega Gyarados's head.

The impact of the Dragon Pulse sent Mega Gyarados sinking into the water, and the pool's waters churned violently, a testament to the intensity of the battle.

After some time had passed, Mega Gyarados slowly resurfaced, swimming to the other side of the pool while panting heavily. Its red eyes were fixed on the airborne Lapras.

Lysandre watched as his Mega Gyarados, despite its Mega Evolution, failed to gain any advantage against Lapras. His brow furrowed in frustration.

The young man's strength before him seemed to exceed his initial estimations by a considerable margin.

And that peculiar Lapras, it was simply too powerful.

In that moment, Lysandre began to doubt whether his decision to invite Yuga here had been the right one.

Lapras, still surrounded by a faint blue mist, slowly descended from the sky back into the pool. Although it could fly, it wasn't as agile in the water.

After assessing Mega Gyarados' condition, Lysandre knew it was time to bring this battle to a close.

"Gyarados, Thrash," he commanded.

The move "Thrash" belonged to a category of moves associated with desperation, similar to the Dragon-type move "Outrage," and it had strong side effects.

While Gyarados could potentially learn the move "Outrage," it was exceptionally difficult to do so, with significant bloodline restrictions. It is often easier for Pokémon with stronger dragon bloodlines to learn it.

Although Pokémon like Arcanine, Kangaskhan, or Krookodile were theoretically can learn it, but even then, it was quite rare. Learning "Outrage" was even more challenging than Gyarados learning it.

Although Gyarados wasn't a Dragon-type, it still had some Dragon-type lineage (there are Dragons in its egg group).

However, although it is not easy for Gyarados to learn Outrage, learning "Thrash" was relatively easy for most Gyarados.

Upon hearing Lysandre's command, Mega Gyarados' eyes gleamed with a fiery intensity, and its facial expression twisted into a fearsome visage. Then, with a swift tail flick, it charged towards Lapras, radiating a menacing aura.

Mega Gyarados, driven by desperation, moved at an incredible speed, and Lapras was sent flying by its impact.

However, Mega Gyarados didn't stop there, as the side effects of "Thrash" began to manifest, causing it to gradually lose its rationality.

Just as Mega Gyarados was about to charge at Lapras again, Yuga shouted, "Lapras, Sheer Cold!"

Mega Gyarados collided with Lapras once more, but this time, Lapras successfully executed "Sheer Cold." In such close quarters, Mega Gyarados had no way to avoid it.

A bone-chilling coldness erupted instantly, and the entire pool was frozen in an instant, including Mega Gyarados still submerged within it.

Lapras, after being sent flying by Mega Gyarados, landed outside the frozen pool, unconscious.

Yuga looked at the frozen Mega Gyarados in the pool and his fainted Lapras, smiling as he said, "It seems to be a draw."

Hearing Yuga's words, Lysandre's brows furrowed tightly, clearly dissatisfied with the outcome. It wasn't what he had expected.

After a moment of contemplation and several changes in expression, Lysandre finally sighed : Perhaps this is for the best.

"Yes, a draw..."