There was a limit to how much they could boost their own stats. It was like pushing Little Sheep beyond its performance limits until its machinery broke down; living, breathing Pokémon were no different.
In the games, stats could be raised by at most six stages. In reality, it depended on the circumstances.
[I know my own condition.]
Chansey did not use Work Up again. Instead, she loosened up her body.
After raising both her Attack and Special Attack, the next step was naturally to deal damage.
Her moves... Brick Break was exhausted, Mega Kick was exhausted... what else did she have?
Shen Qi soon realized.
Double-Edge!
In the games, its power was the same as Mega Kick's: 120. Its accuracy was a full 100.
A move like that had a downside: the user had to take considerable recoil damage.
Especially with Chansey boosted by Work Up, the harder she hit, the worse the recoil would be.
[Shen Qi, help me...]
"But... if I keep using Energy Coordination, the damage you'll take..."
[I'm a doctor. I know my own condition.]
In the pouring rain, Chansey's smile held a complicated mix of emotions.
There was her usual innocent gentleness, an unyielding resolve, and a hint of... pleading.
"We'll try it once. If anything goes wrong, I'll tie you up and carry you away!"
[Okay!]
Energy Coordination!
Shen Qi's somewhat clumsy support effect enveloped Chansey. Muddy water sprayed out beneath her feet as momentum and Normal-type energy propelled her into the wall of accumulated sediment.
Thump-
The entire wall of sediment bulged outward in a crooked curve, but it neither collapsed nor let any water through.
The recoil sent Chansey stumbling back a dozen steps. Her foot slipped, and she nearly fell into the gully.
Fortunately, Shen Qi had been ready and hauled her back.
"Are you all right?"
[I'm okay.]
Psychic-type energy carried pink motes of light as Chansey used the Heal Pulse she had recently learned to repair her injuries.
A large part of a Pokémon's body consisted of energy structures, making them something like an "energy body." Healing moves could quickly close wounds after an injury.
But they were living beings, after all. If their internal organs, bones, or meridians suffered physical damage, healing moves could only serve as preliminary treatment, laying the groundwork for further care.
[I'll keep my injuries within a range I can heal.]
Chansey shook her head and adjusted her stance again.
She had already knocked the sediment layer out of shape. If she could bring down the entire mass of sludge, it would take quite some time for sediment sliding down the slope to fill the gap again. A large volume of standing water would drain out, buying them plenty of time.
Thud-
Chansey slammed into it and bounced back.
Heal Pulse!
Double-Edge!
Heal Pulse!
Double-Edge-
An unbroken rush of cascading water rang out as the sediment layer at one end of the gully collapsed, carrying a large volume of standing water out with it.
A brief cheer rose from the direction of the Berry field. The islanders knew they could not let their guard down while the downpour continued.
"Chansey, that's enough!"
Leaning against Shen Qi's chest, Chansey could no longer lift her hands.
Her proficiency with Double-Edge was only 51% to begin with, so its Skill Pathways allowed only a limited number of uses. On top of that, she had been using it at high intensity under Work Up and Shen Qi's Energy Coordination.
In their current condition, those Skill Pathways could manage only another use or two at most, and would not produce much of an effect.
Besides, both Chansey and Shen Qi had expended too much Mental Power. If they rushed in recklessly and got into danger, the islanders would have to rescue them instead.
"This is enough." Shen Qi held Chansey in his arms. "You've already worked so hard."
[But the rain hasn't stopped.]
"There's nothing we can do..."
Gwaa~
Gwaa-
Seabird cries came from the distance as two Pelipper flew into the area illuminated by the vehicle headlights and work lights.
It was the Pelipper couple who had been staying at his home!
When Shen Qi hurried out, they had realized something was wrong, so they left their child behind and followed him to help.
Chirp-
A pink figure surfaced in the water flowing through the gully.
Luvdisc had come too!
Chapter 42: Daylight
Jili!
Without any prompting from Shen Qi, Chansey immediately began communicating with Luvdisc and the Pelipper.
She had to explain what was happening.
Chansey gestured away while crying, "Jili, Jili." It was remarkable that Pokémon with such different cries could understand one another.
The other three Pokémon already knew about the Berry field. Chansey was asking them to help drain the water.
Luvdisc's blank expression instantly turned serious. With reassuring efficiency, he turned around and used his strongest Water-type move.
Water Gun...
Hiss-
It was the most basic Water-type damaging move, with 40 power and no additional effect.
Fortunately, they did not need to deal damage right now. They just needed to get the water out of the gully.
The Water-type energy accompanying Water Gun drew in the actual flowing water, shooting it out in bursts.
The Pelipper couple followed suit, though their method was more advanced: they used Water Pulse, which had 60 power.
With three Pokémon joining in, along with the intermittently running pump and the islanders' united efforts, they could at least keep pace with the rising water.
But this still would not do. The islanders had been working for so long that their stamina was running low, and the Pokémon's Skill Pathways also had limited uses.
"Chansey, ask whether the Pelipper know Surf."
As one of the well-known utility Pokémon, Pelipper could surf, fly, cut down trees, and even set up rain on the battlefield. Dealing damage directly was not its main selling point.
[No, they don't...]
"That makes sense..."
Pelipper needed a Technical Machine to learn Surf. A wild individual was unlikely to have acquired the move out of nowhere.
It was not just that they lacked moves learned through extra instruction. Wild Pokémon living freely did not receive much training for work or battles, so their movesets were often sparse and haphazard.
This Luvdisc, for example, had no Water-type damaging moves other than Water Gun.
With his tiny frame, Shen Qi did not expect him to break down the accumulated sediment using basic Normal-type attacks like Tackle.
Fortunately, the Pelipper couple's Water Pulse proved effective. Their special attacks, the equivalent of magic attacks, struck together and punched through the piled-up sticky mud.
Unfortunately, Mr. Pelipper's proficiency with Water Pulse was rather low. Once his attack had done its job, its Skill Pathways were exhausted too.
Shen Qi kept thinking through Pelipper's move pool.
This was far too difficult. No matter how experienced a player was, they could not possibly remember every move that every Pokémon could learn naturally.
Why did players bring Pelipper along in the games?
As a utility bird, of course, to carry them while surfing and flying.
Pelipper was also one of the leading rain setters in competitive battles.
Neither of the two Pelipper here had the Drizzle Ability, but Pelipper could learn Rain Dance. At least that could establish rain on the battlefield, boosting Water-type moves and suppressing Fire-type attacks.
There were also disruptive moves like Soak, which turned the target into a pure Water-type.
"Do they know Soak?"
Chansey asked them, but the Pelipper couple said they did not.
Luvdisc, who had not contributed much so far, suddenly stopped spraying Water Gun and leaped out of the water.
He knew Soak.
Shen Qi was not quite sure whether this move that changed the target's type would work, but it was worth having Chansey ask Luvdisc to give it a try.
Water-type energy scooped up a large volume of water, which swept through an arc and drenched the rock Luvdisc had targeted.
"That works!"
The move was like scooping water out with a large sheet of cloth. Whatever its original effect was, it would be a huge help in saving the Berry field.
As Shen Qi recalled, Soak was a Water-type move learned fairly late. Luvdisc did not look particularly high-level, yet he was quite proficient with it.
[He says... he often plays splashing games with his girlfriend.]
They were both Water-types and remained Water-types after Soak. It was just a game of marking each other as their own.
Before you continue