Legendaryseeker99 vs Zhorken

Battle Format: 2 vs. 2 double battle
DQ Time: 7 days
Damage Cap: 32%
Banned Moves: OHKOs, Destiny Bond, Perish Song, weather

Arena: Stark Mountain entrance

The area outside the entrance to Stark Mountain, covered in a blanket of ash, which continuously falls heavily from the sky, making it somewhat hard to see. The mouth of the cave is in a sort of pit, surrounded by a steep, rocky hill. On top of the hill is a patch of very hardy grass. There are two lava pits in the lower area, one wide and shallow in front of the entrance, and the other to the left of the entrance, deep, narrow, and spewing a stream of ash.

The falling ash and heat from the volcano work together as a special weather condition. The heat powers up Fire-type moves, weakens Water-type moves, damages Pokémon with Dry Skin, and changes Weather Ball to a Fire move, just like the heat during strong sunlight. However, the sunlight is not strong at all; the ash clouds largely block it out, meaning Solarbeam takes extra time to charge and has halved power, while Morning Sun, Moonlight, and Synthesis heal less, just like during rain, hail, or a sandstorm. Also, the thickly-falling ash works just as well as blowing sand for the purposes of Sand Rush, Sand Force, and Sand Veil, and it reduces accuracy by 10% for all Pokémon except Fire, Rock, Ground, and Steel-types. Air Lock and Cloud Nine suppress the heat and ash like any other weather condition. Furthermore, this weather is very stubborn, and will not change for weather-inducing moves or abilities. (Anything not mentioned works as it does without weather—Castform doesn't change, Thunder's accuracy is 70% [before the drop from the ash], etc.)

The heat of the lava pits is not great enough to damage anyone without touching it, but they still pose some danger. First, if one of the battlers does fall in, they'll sustain 12% Fire-type damage and a severe burn as they bounce right out (like in a platformer!) Second, Earthquake and Magnitude cause small eruptions from the lava pits, identical in effect to a full-power, STAB-boosted Eruption hitting the entire arena. (Both trainers and the ref will be given lava-proof umbrellas, courtesy of Science.) In both these cases, the damage is treated like any regular Fire attack: it's affected by type alignments, triggers abilities, et cetera.

Additional Rules:
No fully-evolved Pokémon, including evolutionary singletons
Each side may send out at most one Fire-type. I have three reasons for this:
Two Fires versus two Fires would drag on;
Two Fires versus one Fire and something else would be pretty imbalanced;
I only have the one Fire-type anyway, so the first scenario is moot and the second could only happen in my disfavour. 8)

Click to expand...

Zhorken's active squad:

Enver the Male Buneary | Ability: Klutz

Keigh the Female Buizel | Ability: Swift Swim

Zal the Female Trapinch | Ability: Arena Trap

Zylinth the Male Shinx | Ability: Intimidate

Vivaldeer the Female Deerling | Ability: Serene Grace

Djalène the Female Vulpix | Ability: Flash Fire
Item: Fire Stone

Valicorth the Male Venipede | Ability: Poison Point
Item: Lucky Egg

Legendaryseeker99's active squad:

Mercury the Male Oshawott | Ability: Torrent

Umbra the Male Litwick | Ability: Flash Fire

Venus the Female Snivy | Ability: Contrary


- Zhorken sends out
- Legendaryseeker99 sends out and attacks
- Zhorken attacks
​

The atmosphere outside Stark mountain is quiet and peaceful, and the haze of ash floating down casts the place in a blanket of gray. The lava pits at the bottom of the hill seethe and bubble away, bathing the place in a vicious warmth.
The silence is suddenly broken as the air ripples and distorts, and three trainers appear in a burst of psychic energy, along with a sleepy looking Abra. No dangerous or tiring treks for them. They all inspect their surroundings carefully while the referee recalls his snoozing Abra, and they all quickly inch away from the boiling lava pits below. However, the fiery battleground is actually pretty tame as far as things in the Asber league go, and it certainly makes a change from rowdy bars.
Each trainer makes their way to opposite ends of the rough patch of grass, nervously clutching their lava proof™ umbrellas as they go. As the referee signals for things to begin, the Pokémon are released in two bright flashes of light from each side of the field.

Mercury the Oshawott and Umbra the Litwick appear in front of Legendaryseeker, while Djalène the shiny Vulpix and Valicorth the Venipede appear in front of Zhorken. The two fire types immediately take well to the surroundings, but Valicorth and Mercury look much more uncertain. Val utters a startled squeak as he sees the fire down below and immediately scampers behind Djalène, who tries to calm him with a few reassuring words.
Mercury winces and tries to shield his eyes from the falling ash with his stubby arms, squinting over at his foes with a critical eye. The Litwick next to him cheerfully gives off a few sparks of flame as his yellow eyes light up, trying to encourage the grim looking Oshawott.

Zhorken (OO)
[Valicorth] (M) <Poison point>
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Status: Nervously hiding behind his partner.

Zhorken (OO)
[Djalène] (F) <Flash fire>
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Status: Calm and collected.

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Umbra] (M) <Flash fire>
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Status: Excited and ready to go.

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Mercury] (M) <Torrent>
Health: 100%
Energy: 100%
Status: Looking a bit hesitant.

Round one

Djalène is the first to move, and the speedy fire type quickly zooms in on Umbra. The Litwick is slowly making his way to the wonderfully inviting lava, but he’s caught off guard when his opponent suddenly begins turning up the heat in a very different way. Djalène wags her shining tails at the little ghost, and flicks her head, showing off her sparkling coat as she tries to catch his attention.
Her display is all too effective: Umbra blinks rapidly in surprise at the weird start to the battle, then finds himself staring at the wonderful sleekness of the Vulpix's golden fur. He always did secretly admire shiny Pokémon, and meeting one in person really is a treat!
Mercury spares a glance over at his partner and frowns; what on earth is he playing at? He’s going all googly eyed over that egotistic Vulpix when he’s supposed to be in a battle! Grumbling to himself, Mercury turns away from Umbra to focus on his own endeavors, hoping to lead him by example.
He eyes up the frightened little bug with a devious grin; time to show his team mate how it’s done. He dashes up to Valicorth with a (somewhat) intimidating battle cry, preparing to leap up into the air. The frightened Valicorth quickly snaps to attention, and begins generating a potent mix of toxins to deliver to the unsuspecting Oshawott. As Mercury leaps up and prepares to deliver the strike, Valicorth spits out the purple blob of poison, which splashes onto Mercury’s chest with a nasty hiss. Mercury lets out a disgusted cry, but he continues his attack without faltering, and delivers a slashing blow to Valicorth from above.
Mercury immediately begins to frantically wipe at his chest when he lands, and manages to dislodge the worst of the muck, but the rest of it has already seeped into his skin. He groans as he’s suddenly overcome by a horribly queasy feeling, and doubles over. It’s only going to get worse from here, and the Oshawott spares a moment to glare daggers at Valicorth, who is worriedly inspecting the slash mark on his armour.
Meanwhile, Umbra suddenly remembers that he was supposed to be doing something… what was it? Oh yeah! Jump into that lovely lava. He was so busy admiring the wonderfully shiny colour of Djalène’s glorious coat, that it almost completely slipped his mind. With one last admiring glance at her, he makes his slow but steady way to the lower area, his sights set on the widest lava pit.
Djalène pads along after him, much to his delight, and the Vulpix tries to hide her irritation at the candle Pokémon's lack of speed.
The heat from the lava grows even more intense as Umbra finally moves up beside the edge, but neither fire type appears to be bothered by the lake of fire. In fact, Djalène openly basks in its warmth, closing her eyes contently as the heat washes over her. Umbra takes the sun worship one step further; he casually slides into the lava, and floats placidly in its fiery depths. Soon enough, the blue flame atop his head suddenly explodes into a raging fireball, and the Litwick’s body begins to drip ethereal wax as his inner flame begins to burn even brighter.

Djalène looks at Umbra’s display with interest, then quickly takes the opportunity to praise the triumphant looking Litwick and compliment his beautiful fiery demeanour. Umbra blinks in surprise at the sudden slew of compliments, and smiles bashfully as Djalène flutters her eyes at him and wags her tails again. Not only is she pretty, but she’s really nice too! Grinning widely, he breathes out a small fireball, and molds it into a rather crude heart shape, then proudly displays it to his new love. Djalène struggles to suppress her laughter at his hap-hazard work, and nods her head approvingly. Hey, as long as he isn't roasting her all too flammable friend.
Mercury’s jaw nearly hits the floor as he sees Umbra fall even harder for Djalène’s silly antics. This is ridiculous! He’s sorely tempted to march on down there and try and slap some sense into him, but he supposes he’s just going to have to make do with pushing around his friend’s new found love interest instead. With a fiercely determined expression (although with his clownish face it’s still a little hard to take him seriously), Mercury digs his stubby paws into the ashy earth and begins to rapidly churn up dirt. Soon enough, he’s made a sizeable enough tunnel to take shelter in, and it brings a welcome relief from the thick cloud of ash falling down. He huddles down in his tunnel and taps his chin as he tries to think of the safest way to get to that deceptive Vulpix.
Valicorth is also relieved to see that Mercury won’t be bothering him again for now, and he cautiously scurries over to his partner. He falters a bit as he comes even closer to the lava, hating the intense heat that’s washing over him. He braves onward nevertheless, lowering his head down as he struggles onward. The heat only gets worse as he reaches the edge of the pit, and the little bug has to stop and take a few moments to catch his breath as he tries to get used to the unwelcome warmth. Looking into the fiery depths is terrifying, so he tries to hone in on his current target instead.... who is also on fire. Oh Arceus, so much fire...
Gulping nervously, the Venipede begins generating the familiar mix of toxins, then spits out the sludgy mess at Umbra and hopes for the best. By some miracle the glob of poison hits its mark; Umbra is snapped out of his day-dreaming as it hits him square in the face and immediately begins to sink into his ghostly form.
The nasty sizzling hiss the acidic mess makes is barely audible over the lava, but its effects are just as potent. The Litwick’s dreamy expression turns to one of pain and disgust as he feels the nasty stuff rapidly working its way through his system. Djalène tries to keep up the ruse by giving a shocked gasp, and leans over the edge with a look of feigned concern.

In his underground tunnel, Mercury listens carefully for any movement above, then cautiously begins to plot his digging path. He’s going to have to be extremely careful if he wasn’t to avoid getting roasted in lava, so he continues to listen for movement as he begins to churn up dirt again. Time to put an end to Umbra’s silly infatuation… or maybe just cause him to get mad. He winces; hopefully not the second one.
Sooty earth continues to fly as the Oshawott digs away, moving with impressive speed for someone with such stubby arms. Soon enough, Djalène gives a small yip of surprise as the earth under her paws begins to shift and crumble. She quickly backs away, just as Mercury bursts from the ground, scattering dirt everywhere and scaring the living daylights out of her. He delivers a vicious blow as he raises up, knocking the startled Vulpix off her feet and coating her with a layer of grime. Umbra gives a horrified gasp as he sees Mercury bowling Djalène over, and he immediately begins to give his partner a stern telling off. Mercury grits his teeth and holds his head in his paws as Umbra continues his tirade about his friend's terrible lack of manners. Look at the mess he made out of her beautiful shiny coat!
As their opponents bicker, Valicorth hesitantly approaches the lava, and scuttles around in a panic as the fiery warmth engulfs him. The Litwick is vulnerable at the moment, as his attention is currently elsewhere, however, he's also immersed in the lava, which puts him quite out of the bug's range.
As the dismayed Valicorth looks helplessly on at the Litwick, Djalène raises up again with an irritated glance at Mercury. She's not pleased to see the layer of dirt over the dazzling sheen of her fur, and she gives herself a good shake before she sets about her commands. There doesn't seem to be much point though; the Oshawott doesn't appear to haven't bothered with the dancing part of his commands and instead focused on the covering her with dirt part.
She gives it a go anyway, and her eyes glow with an eerie pink light as she taps into her psychic abilities. Mercury gives a small shiver as Djalène deploys the psychic link with his mind, scanning through the thoughts and analyzing his current state. He gives a small sigh of relief as she abruptly breaks the link with a disappointed growl, wondering where that horrible feeling came from.
He doesn't dwell on it for long however, as his supposed team mate is still acting up, and the Oshawott is worried about how he's going to snap him out of this foolishness.

End of round one

Zhorken (OO)
[Valicorth] (M) <Poison point>
Health: 93%
Energy: 89%
Status: Horribly uncomfortable in the heat, and still sticking close to Djalène.
Moves used this round: Toxic (Mercury) ~ Toxic (Umbra) ~ Struggle bug (Failed)

Zhorken (OO)
[Djalène] (F) <Flash fire>
Health: 90%
Energy: 89%
Status: Still shaking dirt off her coat and looking a bit irritable.
Moves used this round: Captivate (Umbra) ~ Attract (Umbra) ~ Psych up

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Umbra] (M) <Flash fire>
Health: 99%
Energy: 98%
Status: Furious at his partner for daring to harm his new love interest. Currently in the widest lava pit. Flash fire activated | - 2 special attack | Attracted to Djalène (Severe), Severely poisoned (2% next round)
Moves used this round: Jump into lava ~ [Attracted] ~ [Attracted]

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Mercury] (M) <Torrent>
Health: 99%
Energy: 80%
Status: Frustrated with Umbra's naivety. Severely poisoned (2% next round)
Moves used this round: Aerial ace (Valicorth) ~ Dig ~ Dig (Attack Djalène)

Arena notes

The Pokémon started off at the top of the hill in the patch of grass. Umbra is currently in the wide pit in front of the entrance, while the other three are near the edge of the pit.

Battle notes

- Derp, sorry for the delay, hopefully there's not too many errors.
- Valicorth and Djalène used very minor energy to follow Umbra down to the pit.
- Valicorth was unable to reach Umbra in the lava, so struggle bug failed. He didn't waste any energy on it though.
- I apply the full energy cost for dig when it's used for attacking, otherwise it costs half the full amount.
- Psych up didn't actually copy anything, so Djalène only used half the regular amount of energy on it.
- Zhorken attacks first.​

Zhorken (OO)
[Valicorth] (M) <Poison point>
Health: 93%
Energy: 89%
Status: Horribly uncomfortable in the heat, and still sticking close to Djalène.

Zhorken (OO)
[Djalène] (F) <Flash fire>
Health: 90%
Energy: 89%
Status: Still shaking dirt off her coat and looking a bit irritable.

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Umbra] (M) <Flash fire>
Health: 99%
Energy: 98%
Status: Furious at his partner for daring to harm his new love interest. Currently in the widest lava pit. Flash fire activated | - 2 special attack | Attracted to Djalène (Severe), Severely poisoned (2% next round)

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Mercury] (M) <Torrent>
Health: 99%
Energy: 80%
Status: Frustrated with Umbra's naivety. Severely poisoned (2% next round)

Round two

Growling a little, Djalène closes her eyes and focuses, then mutters an arcane chant under her breath. A red glow surrounds her form, which gradually extends to the unknowing Litwick and Oshawott. Djalène nods and falls quiet, and the red glow disappears, its job done and her opponents none the wiser.
Somewhat reluctantly, Valicorth scurries out from behind his partner, and winces as the full blast of the heat washes over him. He takes a moment to brace himself, and quickly tries to figure out the best way to knock his foe in without getting himself roasted in the process. After a moment, he gives a small nod and scurries away from the edge of the lava while Mercury warily watches. Valicorth backs away a little further, and his small form begins to blaze with a glow of pure white energy.
As Mercury sees Valicorth preparing to strike, the water type also readies himself for the incoming blow. When Valicorth recklessly hurls himself forward, Mercury spits out a forceful jet of water, which surrounds him in a spray of foam and propels him forward as well. Both Pokémon go flying past each other, and land forcefully on the sooty earth. Valicorth struggles to regain his balance, and gives a squeak of alarm as he finds himself dangerously close to the lava. He quickly scurries back a few steps while Mercury glares at him and dusts himself off.
Meanwhile, Umbra has been paying little attention to the flurry of action taking place between Valicorth and Mercury, as the Litwick is back to admiring Djalène. He’s actually secretly glad that Mercury is a little distracted at the moment, at least he isn’t hurting poor Djalène again. However, his trainer’s words are definitely worrying him. That bug has been getting far too close to Djalène for his liking, and he doesn’t like the thought of that gross thing wriggling anywhere near her. A good roasting sounds like a good way to get him to back off.
Streams of fire erupt from Umbra’s body, and the ghostly blue flame on his head explodes into a raging fireball. He gives a determined battle cry, then blasts out of the lava in a blazing jet of fire and collides into Valicorth before the bug can react. The startled Valicorth gives a screech of pain as Umbra’s blazing form engulfs him in its unbearable heat and scorches his skin.
Umbra takes a moment to back off and survey the results of his attack, and is pleasantly surprised by the added mobility he’s gained from the burst of fire. His elation is short-lived though, as Djalène doesn’t appear to be very pleased with his little fireworks show. To his dismay, Djalène hurries over to the stupid insect and tries to calm him down as she inspects the damage. She even glares over at Umbra before turning back to Val.

With a final word of encouragement, Djalène is forced to leave her singed and distressed partner as she goes to deal with the jealous Litwick. Umbra is still furious that Valicorth has managed to steal Djalène’s attention away from him; he’s not even a fire type! He’s just a stupid flammable bug. Nothing attractive about him whatsoever.
He’s distracted from his furious thoughts as his new found love interest begins to approach him, and to his delight, she looks nice and happy again. Maybe her fussing over Valicorth was just a misunderstanding? And maybe he just misinterpreted that look she gave him?
The Vulpix seems to confirm his thoughts as she gives him a look that makes his ghostly heart melt, then begins wagging her tails and showing off her luxurious golden coat again.
Mercury gives a frustrated groan as he sees his team-mate fall for the Vulpix’s charms again, and he marches towards her determinedly as he prepares to take her down a notch. However, his progress is abruptly intercepted by Valicorth, who viciously barrels into him. Mercury utters a muffled cry of pain as he is sent flying, and Valicorth also gives a pained squeak from the impact of his own attack. The bug has to scramble around frantically as he tries not to be sent flying along with his foe, and he ends up tumbling roughly across the ashen ground.
Mercury fares worse off however; the Oshawott is sent flying towards the lava from the impact, and teeters on the edge before falling in with a horrified screech. He’s left flailing wildly as the boiling liquid scalds his skin, cursing the bug for all he’s worth. He isn’t left in the red-hot agony for long though, as he’s suddenly flung out of the pit by some unown force and roughly lands on the sooty ground. He gives a strangled cry of pain as the impact further irritates his burnt skin, and he’s left writhing and flailing about as he tries to regain his bearings. Even Valicorth can’t help but feel a little sorry for his foe; the thought of falling into that lava is beyond horrible to him. That powered up flame charge from Umbra was bad enough, and his scorched hide is still stinging badly from it.
Mercury eventually manages to pick himself up again, moving slowly and gingerly so as not to aggravate his newly burned skin. He’s in an extremely foul mood by this point, and hurling some insults at that irritating Vulpix sounds like a good way to vent his frustration. He immediately begins to insult Djalène, mocking her cowardly tactics and her garish coat, then sticks his tongue out at her.
Djalène’s ears perk up in alarm as she hears Mercury’s nasty tirade, and she can quickly feel her temper rising. Eventually, she can’t take anymore of Mercury’s rudeness; she gives a furious snarl at the Oshawott and slowly advances towards him. Her sudden turn towards viciousness causes Mercury to falter a little, and he abruptly shuts up as he sees her bare her sharp fangs. Well, he’s got her attention at least… Hopefully she isn’t going to fry him to a crisp. He’s had quite enough of fire.

Djalène is more than happy to pounce on Mercury and give the insolent Oshawott a further roasting, but her last command unfortunately doesn’t include that. It’s a command to attack at least, and she’s more than eager to do that, even if it’s not the target she’s hoping for. Her fur bristles as she bares her fangs, and she turns towards menacingly towards Umbra.
In her blind rage, she forgets the ruse she’s supposed to be keeping up, and Umbra gives her a puzzled look as he sees her sudden change in demeanour. He looks around nervously as the Vulpix abruptly vanishes into thin air, and gives a cry of pain as she reappears behind him to deliver a forceful tackle. Her attack is laced with an inky black aura of dark energy, and it burns painfully into Umbra’s ethereal form, much to Djalène’s satisfaction. Umbra winces and looks back at her with wide eyes. Hey, that hurt...
The grim looking Mercury perks up a little as he sees Umbra’s face, and hopes that’s a sign that he’s going to see sense soon. He then turns towards the bug that’s been causing him so much trouble and prepares to give him a good slicing. However, Valicorth reacts quicker, and the tiny bug spews out a seething torrent of corrosive purple venom. Mercury howls in pain as he's doused in the foul stuff, and it immediately reacts to the poison already in his system, making him feel weak and shaky. He gives a growl of disgust as he wipes off the last of the burning venom, then angrily turns to face Valicorth again. He's so intent of slicing the bug that he manages to ignore the stinging pain from his burn as he raises his arms, and he instead concentrates on generating a blade of wind. The air in front of him begins to ripple and distort, and a sickle shaped current of air begins to form, which Mercury swiftly flings at Valicorth. The Venipede gives a screech of pain as the wind blade deftly hacks into his hide with a cutting blow, leaving him reeling.
Umbra is still focused on Djalène, and he frantically turns to her in an effort to get back in her good books again. Unfortunately, every time he tries to work his charms, he finds himself at a complete loss for words. He stares at the raging Vulpix blankly, and flails about in frustration, wondering where on earth this mental blockade came from.

End of round two

Zhorken (OO)
[Valicorth] (M) <Poison point>
Health: 71%
Energy: 63%
Status: Scorched and cut up, and looking a little freaked out.
Moves used this round: Double edge (Missed) ~ Double edge (at mercury) ~ Venoshock (At mercury)

Zhorken (OO)
[Djalène] (F) <Flash fire>
Health: 90%
Energy: 78%
Status: Still seething at Mercury. Moves imprisoned: Captivate, attract and psych up. | Taunted (to last two more actions)
Moves used this round: Imprison ~ Captivate (umbra) ~ Faint attack (Umbra)

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Umbra] (M) <Flash fire>
Health: 88%
Energy: 94%
Status: Feeling hurt and puzzled. + 1 speed, Flash fire activated | - 4 special attack | Attracted to Djalène (Severe), Severely poisoned (3% next round)
Moves used this round: Flame charge (Valicorth) ~ [Attracted] ~ Attract (Failed)

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Mercury] (M) <Torrent>
Health: 67% (capped)
Energy: 67%
Status: Badly scorched all over and in a lot of pain. Severely poisoned (3% next round), Burned (3% per round)
Moves used this round: Aqua jet ~ Taunt (at Djalène) ~ Air slash (at Valicorth)

Arena notes

All Pokémon are near the widest lava pit in front of the entrance. Umbra is no longer in the lava.

Battle notes

- Grass knot would be too intricate an attack to be combined with something as speedy as aqua jet.
- Mercury managed to avoid Valicorth's first double edge, but didn't manage to push the bug in.
- Just for reference, I add 10 points to the Pokémon's base speed for each boost. (Umbra is still the slowest)
- Umbra's attract failed due to imprison.
- Legendaryseeker99 attacks first.
​

Zhorken (OO)
[Valicorth] (M) <Poison point>
Health: 71%
Energy: 63%
Status: Scorched and cut up, and looking a little freaked out.

Zhorken (OO)
[Djalène] (F) <Flash fire>
Health: 90%
Energy: 78%
Status: Still seething at Mercury. Moves imprisoned: Captivate, attract and psych up. | Taunted (to last two more actions)

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Umbra] (M) <Flash fire>
Health: 88%
Energy: 94%
Status: Feeling hurt and puzzled. + 1 speed, Flash fire activated | - 4 special attack | Attracted to Djalène (Severe), Severely poisoned (3% next round)

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Mercury] (M) <Torrent>
Health: 67% (capped)
Energy: 67%
Status: Badly scorched all over and in a lot of pain. Severely poisoned (3% next round), Burned (3% per round)

Round three

Djalène is still raring to get some revenge on that mouthy Oshawott, so she’s definitely going to relish the opportunity she’s just been given. She closes her eyes and begins to concentrate, and an eerie aura of ghostly energy shimmers around her body. She then begins to whisper an arcane chant under her breath, and the aura begins to spread outwards like a heavy mist.

Mercury jumps in surprise as the ethereal cloud twists and weaves its way over to him, then suddenly engulfs him in a freezing shroud. He shrieks and flails wildly as the mist sinks into his skin, dousing him in freezing cold agony and causing his burns to sting even worse than before. When the ghostly hex shimmers and fades away, Mercury is left shivering violently and looking more than a little freaked out.

Umbra still looks somewhat distracted, so Valicorth is quick to take the opportunity to scuttle up behind him, generating the familiar mix of toxins as he goes. He then spits out the purple jet of venom at Umbra, catching him completely by surprise. The acidic sludge hisses as it sinks into Umbra’s spectral form, and he’s left doubled up in agony as it reacts with the toxins already circulating in his system. He flails about wildly as he tries to shake the stuff off, but it does little to quell the horrible, stinging pain.

As a successful Valicorth backs away again, Mercury glares over him, still trying to suppress his fit of shivering. He takes a deep breath, then tries to channel all his anger and pain into one powerful attack. With an angry growl, he abruptly charges towards Val and pounces at the startled bug.
Valicorth reels back in shock as Mercury begins to viciously pummel him, taking out all his rage from his current predicament. He punches with his stubby arms, kicks out with his equally stubby legs, and even throws in a few headbutts for good measure. He winces as his burnt skin is aggravated with each violent strike, but it’s more than worth the effort. Valicorth is knocked senseless by the relentless blows, and with one final full body tackle, Mercury manages to send the bug flying towards the lava.

Valicorth gives a horrified squeak as he lands in the boiling liquid, and he's left flailing desperately as it greedily eats through his armour. He's quickly flung out however, and lands harshly on the ground, whimpering pitifully. His body is covered with burns and scorch marks, and the bright green portion of his armour has been singed black.

Mercury kneels over as he tries to catch his breath and calm himself down. Revenge is sweet, but horribly tiring. Still, at least he managed to give Val a taste of his own medicine.

Umbra’s body appears even more melty after the venoshock, giving him a somewhat sickly look. He winces as he tries to stop himself swaying on the spot, and the burning fireball atop his head flares even brighter as blazing streamers of fire begin to shroud his small form. The sound of roaring flames causes the scorched and miserable Venipede to jump up in alarm, and he gives a horrified squeak when he sees the fiery ghost charging towards him.

Umbra barrels into him, further burning the bug and sending him flying towards the lava again. Val doesn't have the strength to cry out as he finds himself immersed in fiery pain again, and gracelessly thrown out again. He's left lying in a twitching, smoldering heap, and gives a small, feeble groan.

Djalène snarls angrily at each of her opponents, and spares a concerned glance at Valicorth. Her rage at Mercury is dying down, but she’s still in a foul mood, especially after seeing what that stupid Oshawott did to her team-mate. She begins to softly growl the familiar chant, and soon enough, her body is cloaked in another aura of ghostly energy. Mercury groans as he sees the mist descending on him again, and he can’t help but cower down as he’s engulfed in the suffocating black shroud again. It sinks into his skin, biting painfully at his tender burns and coating him in icy pain.

Valicorth tries to block out the chaos happening around him, and he flops out on the ashy ground, making himself as comfortable as he can. His wounds are stinging horribly, and he's in so much pain he can barely form a coherent thought, but a good rest definitely sounds like a good idea…
A soft, blue aura begins to form as he dozes off, and it slowly washes over him, bathing his badly burnt body in its soothing glow. The cuts and burns along his armour slowly begin to heal, and the blackened scorch marks fade away to nothing. Soon, Valicorth looks fighting fit and healthy again, but remains sleeping soundly.

Mercury gives an angry snarl as he sees Valicorth healing himself. That bug has been nothing but irritating, and now he’s even erasing all of his efforts! He also can’t help but feel bitter that Val hardly had to endure the pain of his burns for long at all…
Mercury scowls and clenches his fist, then stamps his foot on the ground, trying to keep himself motivated. He can’t let this setback discourage him. A fiery aura of fighting energy flares up around him, and he gives a few fist pumps as he snarls angrily. It would make for quite an intimidating sight if it wasn't for his clownish face, but it certainly does the job of motivating him.

Umbra jumps a little at Mercury's yelling, then hastily tears his gaze away from Djalène again. He found his attention drifting back to her again, but there was just so much chaos going on that.... Oh right, battle. He closes his eyes, and the raging flame on his head begins to flare up even more fiercely, then sputters forth a cluster of ghostly blue fireballs.
The fiery lights dance erratically in front of Valicorth’s face, leaving behind ghostly streams of blue light in their wake. However, the sleeping bug remains comfortably curled up and oblivious to the waking world, much to Umbra’s disappointment. He waves his stubby arms about desperately, urging the lights to move in more dizzying patterns, but all to no avail. When Umbra finally sinks down in defeat, the lights abruptly blink out, and Valicorth remains sleeping deeply.

Mercury is more than happy to start pummelling Valicorth again, and the pumped up Oshawott gives a snarl as he limps closer to his slumbering foe. He holds out his arms and deftly manipulates the air currents to create a shimmering blade of wind. He then sends the blade slicing into Val’s armoured hide, causing him to give a sleepy grunt of pain.

Umbra is still left looking a little crestfallen from his previous failure, so he looks hopefully over at Djalène to cheer himself up. She doesn’t look quite as angry as before – her fur isn’t all bristly and she hasn’t got that snarly expression. She also appears to be looking at him expectedly for some reason. He really wishes he could do something flashy and fiery for her, but his current orders don’t include anything like that. At least he hasn’t been ordered to taunt her…
Looking a little nervous, Umbra slides closer to Valicorth, than begins hurling out insults. C'mon man! You just got tossed into lava... Twice! Are you seriously just gonna sit there and sleep instead of doing something about it?

When he runs out of material, he glances uncertainly at Val, and is once again left disappointed as he sees the Venipede is still sleeping soundly, oblivious to Umbra's sick burns.
Looking glum, Umbra turns away from the unresponsive bug to admire Djalène again, and is excited to see she still appears to be paying attention to him.
In truth, the Vulpix is resisting the urge to roll her eyes at the Litwick's awful material, but she thinks she's got the gist of the move at least.

End of round three

Zhorken (OO)
[Valicorth] (M) <Poison point>
Health: 91%
Energy: 33%
Status: Zzzzzz.... Asleep (To last for one more action)
Moves used this round: Venoshock (Umbra) ~ Rest ~ Chill

Zhorken (OO)
[Djalène] (F) <Flash fire>
Health: 90%
Energy: 60%
Status: Feeling calmer and more in control. Mimicked move: Taunt | Moves imprisoned: Captivate, attract and psych up. To last for one more round.
Moves used this round: Hex (Mercury) x2 ~ Mimic (taunt)

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Umbra] (M) <Flash fire>
Health: 70%
Energy: 80%
Status: Looking at Djalène hopefully. + 2 speed, Flash fire activated | - 4 special attack | Attracted to Djalène (Severe), Severely poisoned (4% next round)
Moves used this round: Flame charge (Valicorth) ~ Confuse ray (Valicorth) ~ Taunt (Valicorth)

Legendaryseeker99 (OO)
[Mercury] (M) <Torrent>
Health: 40%
Energy: 48%
Status: Feeling pumped up, but in dire shape. Affected by focus energy | Severely poisoned (4% next round), Burned (3% per round)
Moves used this round: Facade (Valicorth) ~ Focus energy ~ Air slash (Valicorth)

Arena notes

All Pokémon are near the widest lava pit in front of the entrance.

Battle notes

- Kinda late, sorry. Had to rewrite things 'cause I mixed up the targets.
- Yes, you can chill while asleep. Rest restored 61% health at the cost of 30% energy.
- A rest induced sleep is very deep, so I don't think a Pokémon would be able to hear any taunting. Confuse ray also failed since Val couldn't see it.
- Zhorken attacks first.​