As Growlithe's final Ember struck Phantump, Kay felt a sudden shift in the atmosphere. A strange sensation crept over him, making his skin crawl. Something was wrong.
The corridor ahead of him began to ripple and twist unnaturally, like waves distorting a reflection on water.
The walls stretched and bent in chaotic motions, making it impossible to focus. Kay stood frozen, his mind struggling to process what was happening.
The sight reminded him of something from his past life; those unsettling, distorted hallucinations he had seen when he took drugs. The similarity was so strong that it made his stomach tighten.
He quickly considered the possibilities. Was this an after-effect of the curse Gengar had placed on him? Or was it something else entirely?
Kay assessed his condition. He did feel weaker than before, but not to the point of experiencing full-blown illusions. That meant there had to be another reason for what he was seeing.
Then, as suddenly as it had started, the fluctuations stopped. The corridor returned to its original state, looking just as it had before.
Kay blinked, trying to steady himself. Everything seemed normal again, but a nagging feeling told him something was different.
He scanned his surroundings, and that's when he noticed something odd. Phantump's lifeless body remained on the ground, but the Misdreavus that Eevee had defeated earlier were gone.
A realization struck him.
Kay crouched down and ran his fingers lightly across the dusty floor. That's when he saw some faint but distinct footprints left by someone who had passed through before him.
His eyes widened after he understood what was happening.
He had been inside an illusion.
That explained everything. It was why he hadn't encountered any other players, no matter how far he searched. The illusion had created a version of the labyrinth where he was alone.
But now that Phantump was dead, its illusion had been broken. He was finally in the real corridor. That also meant other players were here, and he could now run into them at any time.
However, something still didn't add up. If Phantump had full control over its illusion, why hadn't it escaped? It could have easily fled away inside the illusion.
Kay frowned, thinking it over. There was only one possible explanation, and that Gengar must have set rules that all the Pokémons in this place had to follow.
Shaking off his thoughts, Kay refocused on the bigger issue. The curse was still on him, and time was running out. He had to move.
He took a deep breath and sprinted forward, following the footprints in the dust. His steps were quick but controlled. He needed to approach other players silently, so they wouldn't detect his presence.
Growlithe was in no condition to continue battling, so Kay returned it to its Pokéball. That left only Eevee at his side. If he ran into another player, Eevee would have to handle the fight.
After a short run, he spotted a player ahead.
The person was walking deeper into the corridor, but something was off about him. His back was hunched over, his arms hanging limply toward the floor. His movements were slow and stiff, almost as if he were a puppet being controlled by invisible strings.
Then, Kay heard him shouting.
"Voltorb! Thunder Shock!" The player's voice was tense, desperate. "Voltorb! Now use Tackle!"
Kay's gaze shifted to the Pokémon beside him; a Voltorb. It was rolling forward and attacking the empty air. There was no enemy in front of them.
Kay instantly understood what was happening.
The player was trapped in an illusion, just like Kay had been earlier.
A slight blush rose to Kay's cheeks. If this was how he had looked when he was stuck in the illusion, it was beyond embarrassing. He could only hope that no one had seen him acting the same way.
Then, he spotted the true source of the problem. Floating silently beside the player was another Phantump. That ghost Pokémon was the one responsible for the other player's stat.
Kay knew he had to act fast. If the illusion was still active, that meant Phantump was still alive and controlling it.
He couldn't attack the other player in this state as he didn't know if for Gengar that counted as a win in a battle.
"Eevee! Quick Attack, then Bite," Kay instructed in a low voice, careful not to attract the Phantump's attention.
He quickly followed up with more commands. "Just after the first hit, don't stop. Use Double Team, then keep attacking with Bite until it faints."
Eevee's ears twitched in understanding. Kay gave a slight pat on its back, signaling it to move. Without hesitation, Eevee dashed forward, its small paws barely making a sound against the dusty floor.
Phantump lost in maintaining its illusion over the other player, didn't notice Eevee's silent approach until it was too late. By the time it turned around, Eevee was already inches away.
Without slowing down, Eevee leaped onto Phantump. Its sharp teeth glowed with a faint dark aura as it sank them into Phantump's head.
A sharp, ghostly wail echoed through the corridor. The attack had landed as a critical hit! Being a Ghost-type Pokémon, Phantump was weak to Dark-type moves like Bite.
The sheer force of the attack sent Phantump staggering backward, its form flickering as if it might vanish at any moment.
But Eevee wasn't finished.
As soon as it landed back on the ground, Eevee immediately used Double Team. Its body shimmered, and in an instant, several identical copies appeared around it, forming a small group of illusionary Eevees.
Phantump, still reeling from the attack, looked around in confusion. It couldn't tell which Eevee was real.
Its body trembled as it tried to react, but before it could make a move, another Bite came from behind.
Eevee's sharp fangs clamped down once more, this time striking the back of Phantump's head.
The ghost Pokémon let out a final, pained cry before its body collapsed to the ground, motionless.
Kay watched carefully, expecting the illusion to fade. But the dark corridor remained unchanged. The other player was still acting strangely, trapped in the Phantump's illusion.
That meant only one thing. The Phantump was still alive.
Kay didn't hesitate. "Eevee! Finish it with another Bite!"
Eevee, now more confident and aggressive, lunged forward without waiting. This time, its attack was faster and more precise, its fangs sinking deep into Phantump's head.
A faint wisp of energy escaped from Phantump's body, and then, in an instant, the ghost Pokémon stopped moving completely.
As Phantump's life faded away, the illusion finally shattered, and the player under Phantump's spell suddenly stopped, looking around in confusion as if waking from a deep sleep.
Kay took a look at the player who had just woken up from Phantump's illusion, but before talking with him, something else caught his attention.
During the battle, he had noticed that Eevee's Bite had been faster and more powerful than before.
Curious, Kay pulled out his Pokedex to check Eevee's stats.
Eevee
Potential: Orange
Stage: Superior Steel
Move set:
Tackle (Proficient)
Helping Hand (Elite)
Wish (Expert)
Bite (Elite)
Sand Attack (Proficient)
Dig (Expert)
Quick Attack (Expert)
Double Team (Expert)
Swift (Proficient)
Toxic (Proficient)
Kay's eyes focused on one detail; Bite had reached Elite level.
He smirked.
'So, battling against all those Ghost-types was beneficial after all... even if it was just an illusion.'
See you in the next chapter...
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