Colossal Pidgey Attack (Easy)

"This isn't my first rodeo here," Josh reassured Alicia as a boss theme blared around them, this one different from the last time he came to the Arena solo. This theme was a lot more percussive and less orchestral than the last, on brand with how much swifter their foe was. "So how these work is they prioritize being able to strike as many weaknesses as possible first, ties being broken by whoever pulls the most aggro. I'm not using all my electric Pokémon at once for that reason."

Alicia just need to watch type matchups and ensure the correct Pokémon were getting hit. Anything to take heat off the damage dealers. The Pidgey would not give Josh that luxury, landing on the cliff's edge and kicking SAND-ATTACK from above all over the newly-evolved horse. Snorting, the larger of Josh's two Pokémon built up a sphere of electricity above his mane, Slider whipping up a TAILWIND to get out of the way. The oversized bird was enough of a headache on his own; they didn't need any friendly fire on top of that.

The enormous bird had whipped up a proper sandstorm with its wings, its serrated edges tearing into Raiden's skin with ease. Raiden looked far worse for wear than Tikani did, his horn covered in blasted sand and generating electricity at reduced capacity. While the electric-type was strong, he didn't have the lasting power Granmarg did... and Granmarg's strong attacks wouldn't at all helpful against an aerial foe. Especially on a narrow battlefield like this where he had little room to maneuver.

With how swift the Pidgey was, both of Josh's Pokémon were forced to engage it with weaker but less unwieldy moves. Unable to Discharge another huge burst of electricity, Raiden was reduced to a SHOCK WAVE, Slider soaring as high as the environment would let him to avoid friendly fire. Once the electric blast had cleared, he would dive at the giant Pidgey in a lightning-fast AERIAL ACE that Josh briefly daydreamed of being able to ride during.

Combat Log> Pidgey readies Sand-Attack.

The swirling sands continued to rage, blinding Raiden and making it difficult for Slider to fly. The wind the giant bird's wings produced deflected away almost all the spores, a single one landing on the creature's back and inflicting... a single point of damage. Josh would have said something, but he knew Alicia's team was not well-matched. Keeping his mouth shut, he stayed focused on the battle.

Combat Log> Raiden readies Thunder Wave.

Josh considered bringing out Ulysses, but he simply wouldn't have enough time to get the Zebstrika patched up. All he could do was watch the horse drop not to being sandblasted, but to the strain of his own THUNDER WAVE.

Combat Log> Raiden has fallen.
Combat Log> Slider readies Wing Attack.

The action halted as a pop-up obscured Josh's sight of the boss, Slider in a freeze frame depicting him courageously ramming toward the Pidgey with wings outstretched, ready to clobber it in the face and beak area.

Information> Please select a new party leader.

Rather than designate Slider as the party leader, Josh sent out his Charmander, Ares. He knew what was coming from their battle with Ulysses. If they didn't take this thing down quickly, it would unleash a desperation move that might wipe them all out in one turn. Right after the attacks passed one another, all parties in the battle taking big hits, the Pidgey let out a low-pitched shriek.

Combat Log> Pidgey readies Enrage.

An icon "Phys Charge Time 0" briefly appeared in front of the boss before fading. "Alicia! We have to end this quickly!" Josh urged.

Combat Log> Pidgey readies Sand-Attack.

Even as Ares brandished his tail, sand continued to pelt and scratch at his skin from all directions, the Pokémon letting out a painful wail from the hit. His tail flame started to die down, as well. Shaking his head, the Charmander shouted, "Take this, you meanie!!"

Combat Log> Ares readies Flamethrower.

Turning downwind to face the cliff wall, the fire-type deeply inhaled before expelling a strenuous-looking cone of FLAMETHROWER not from his tail, but from his mouth. In a sweeping pattern, the creature lured the Pidgey toward Slider in wait, the Rufflet charging in with a diving PECK. The crisscrossing attacks aimed to cook the weakened normal-type, the rider putting all the damage he had into the current turn and the next turn. A desperation move was coming, and they had to finish it off before the Pidgey used it.

Combat Log> Pidgey readies Supersonic Skystrike.
Combat Log> Slider readies Aerial Ace.

"We didn't get to it in time! Here it comes - brace yourselves!" Josh warned Alicia as he saw the two messages pop up at the top of his UI. Normally, a move as strong as Supersonic Skystrike was balanced by having a long charge time. Instead, a long cutscene played, the giant Pidgey building up tremendous speed and soaring sky-high. Seconds later after locking onto a swooping path, the behemoth of a bird entered a steep dive resembling that of a peregrine falcon - the fastest animal in the real world. Pulling up with incredible strength that should have flattened it from the g-forces, a corona of dust appeared around it as it raked with its talons across everyone present. If the heroes were standing after that, then they might not be standing after the deafening sonic boom that made them Deafened, unable to hear one another.

Both of Josh's Pokémon were flattened against the cliff face, Ares too dizzy to even move. The chubby Rufflet was the first to recover, taking back to the air with a loud squawk. He charged toward the Pidgey with an AERIAL ACE: a less powerful version of what his foe had just unleashed upon them.

SMAAAASSHH!!

The screen flashed a brilliant white for a brief moment, the CRITICAL HIT reducing the boss to its last few hit points. A tick of Tikani's poison got the rest of the job done, their environment turning to slow motion as the Pidgey dissolved away.

CONGRATULATIONS!

Information> You may claim 10 ARENA POINTS or add the defeated PIDGEY to your party.
Decision>    Arena Points   ► Pidgey
Information> Please name your captured PIDGEY.

There was only one name suitable for the small bird Pokémon: the wind god Josh had named the Pokémon of the same species during his very first playthrough of the original, eight-bit Pokémon games. The Pokémon was a male, too, which was even more worthy of such a name.

Decision> Is Pazuzu okay?    ► Yes     No

Josh immediately pulled up his menu to check what level he would need to be to saddle up Pazuzu once it was fully evolved. He noticed it was level 7 - one level away from where he was at. "Wait, Pidgeotto evolve this early?" Josh asked Alicia, perhaps a bit insensitive that the first words out of his mouth weren't "Are you and Tikani okay?" Even so, the racing-obsessed player continued to delve into info screen after info screen about his new capture. "Oh, it's a Pidgeotto. Wait, a saddle for a Pidgeotto? Aren't they too small to carry a rider in flight?"