The situation might have been far worse than he had imagined...
As Qingyu's avatar on the screen began to speak, and the Key Stone corresponding to Gengar glittered with light, Leon could only smile bitterly.
He had no choice now. All he could do was fight for his life.
It seemed Qingyu had been laying the groundwork for this situation from the very beginning, only now finally baring his fangs.
The Hypnosis specifically aimed at Rillaboom had forced Leon to switch it in, giving Espathra an opportunity to use Baton Pass.
The incredible speed boost passed on through Speed Boost had taken Gengar's already excellent speed to another level. Once Trick Room was reversed and canceled out, Leon had no way to stop Gengar anymore.
Moreover, after Mega Evolution, Gengar's Ability would become Shadow Tag, instantly trapping the shadows of every Pokémon on Leon's side and preventing him from freely switching them out.
But Gengar's Shadow Tag was a little different from that of the other two Pokémon with the same Ability.
Because there was a slight delay between entering the field and Mega Evolving, Leon could still recall Mr. Rime during that window and send in Charizard to trade blows with Gengar.
In that case...
Leon stopped hesitating and immediately issued his commands:
"Come back, Mr. Rime."
"Torkoal... use Overheat on Gengar!"
Without Trick Room, Torkoal was almost certain to move last, so the opponent's attacks would drain a substantial amount of its HP first.
That naturally ruled out Eruption, whose damage depended on its remaining HP. Although Heat Wave was an AoE move, having Sableye share the damage was clearly less useful than focusing everything on knocking Gengar out first.
Overheat's drawback would be difficult to bear as well, but its damage under harsh sunlight would be