Pokémon Court

Chapter 905: Dissipating Totem Aura

"The thing I was most worried about has finally come."

There was only one word that could sum up Terrance’s feelings right now.

Heart attack.

The totem aura originally could only be maintained for about a year, but after being refined by him and a group of international researchers, Pokémon could sustain their Totem state for a longer period.

However, the time limit still exists. The totem aura will eventually disappear.

The "Magtonium" that Terrance had previously bickered about with the three Team Rocket members was born precisely because of this concern.

What Terrance didn’t expect was that this extremely unfavorable situation would arrive at such a critical moment. Isn’t this just screwing him over?!

Who are his upcoming opponents?

Mr. Norman, known as the wall of Hoenn, and the strongest Trainer group in Hoenn, the Elite Four.

After that, once Beautifly, Arcanine, Gallade, Mismagius, Castform, and the others completely lose their totem aura, a decline in strength will be inevitable.

The fact that Terrance was able to step into the top-tier level in his teens was inseparable from the power boost brought by the totem aura back then.

It can be said that the totem aura allowed his Pokémon to experience a higher level in advance, enabling them to explore and eventually cross into the top-tier level.

Especially Beautifly—after losing the totem aura, the Source of Stamina technique will no longer be usable. Even though its vitality has greatly increased now, it still won’t be able to withstand the consumption of a technique as intense as Wind Domain.

"At present, the boost that the totem aura provides to Pokémon like Gallade is already very small, but that’s only in comparison to the increase they had when they first obtained the totem aura..."

Terrance fell into deep contemplation. Back when they had just acquired the totem aura, the increase it gave Arcanine was about thirty to forty percent. Now, as Arcanine’s strength has grown, it’s less than ten percent. Aside from Beautifly, the same applies to the other Pokémon.

However, if that less-than-ten-percent overall strength suddenly drops, it will inevitably have a much greater impact on the condition of Terrance’s Pokémon.

And if every Pokémon takes a hit, when combined, it becomes a massive blow. How could Terrance not feel distressed?

Because of this sudden development, Terrance didn’t even stay in the Super-ancient Pyramid until the eve of the battle. He slipped away early.

...

Fallarbor Gym research lab.

The only thing that could still bring a smile to Terrance’s face right now was that Altaria hadn’t been affected by the totem aura.

With Xerneas’s help, it had long since fused the power of the totem aura with its own Pixilate power after Mega Evolution, completely transforming it into a new ability—Fairy Aura.

The strongest combat power remaining unaffected was a blessing in disguise.

"Sure enough, what goes around comes around..." Terrance rubbed his forehead. The totem aura had once brought him countless conveniences and honors, but now it had become the root of his headache. It was only natural for him to feel helpless.

The totem aura on these Pokémon continued to dissipate. As time passed, it had already become negligible.

Terrance also contacted Mr. Looker. His Croagunk’s totem aura had dissipated as well, putting him in the same situation as Terrance.

"Unfortunately, there isn’t enough time. Otherwise, with the help of the Pokémon Contest faction and the International Police, getting one or two Sparkling Stones wouldn’t be a problem. It’s just that both the process of obtaining them and the process of imbuing them are too cumbersome." Master Victor had also learned of this situation from Terrance and came to Fallarbor Town.

"Forget it, there’s nothing we can do. The totem aura was external power to begin with. Losing it means returning to the Pokémon’s true strength. Facing Mr. Norman like this isn’t a bad outcome. Anyway, I’ve already qualified for the Elite Four matches, so no matter the result, this battle won’t affect things too much."

Since there was no other choice, Terrance accepted it and quickly adjusted his mindset. "Let’s just leave it at that. I heard from Mr. Looker that Sparkling Stones are becoming harder and harder to obtain. It seems the Island Kahunas have been warned by the Alola guardian deities not to let Sparkling Stones flow out anymore."

"I see... as long as you can come to terms with it." Master Victor nodded.

"But..." Terrance still couldn’t fully let go and said with a troubled expression, "Arcanine, Gallade, Mismagius, and Castform can all stop relying on the totem aura, but the problem with the two Beautifly is much bigger. Source of Stamina, butterfly swarm form—if they lose the totem aura, it’s not just a slight drop in strength."

Master Victor also fell into thought. This was indeed a very serious issue.

Beautifly’s Wind Domain and Source of Stamina were the fundamental techniques that allowed it to defeat the main Pokemon of Top Trainers. Losing either one would have a huge impact on its combat power.

And the reason the Little Beautifly could serve as the core of the butterfly swarm form in the first place was because, as a Totem Pokémon, it had the ability to command others of its kind.

"You don’t need to worry about the butterfly swarm form. The batch of Pokémon forming the swarm has almost all been tamed by Fallarbor Gym already. Whether it has the totem aura or not isn’t that important anymore. Unless this batch grows old and dies, but that’s something for years down the line."

"As for Beautifly, if it’s only about providing it with a totem aura, then maybe the problem isn’t completely unsolvable. But that’s not a long-term solution. The best method is to find an energy core that can replace the totem aura to sustain Source of Stamina," Master Victor said.

"I’ve thought about that too. For the short term, that’s all we can do." Terrance nodded. With the totem aura dissipating, Beautifly would likely miss the upcoming battles.

As sunlight streamed through the window, Terrance took a deep breath.

At this point, if the totem aura disappears, then so be it—there’s no helping it. It had already helped him reach this stage. If he continued to rely on it excessively, even he would look down on himself.

...

At the same time, in Petalburg City, Petalburg Gym.

Mr. Norman was sitting in the rear garden, giving massages to his Pokémon as usual. One, two, three—there were no fewer than three Slaking gathered around him at the moment.

"Dad, you’re going to battle Brother Terrance in a few days, right? Why are you still giving Pokémon massages? You should hurry up and do special training!"

May and Max had already come to Norman several times, especially Max. Seeing what Norman was doing, he immediately complained.

"Don’t worry, your dad won’t lose." Norman smiled at the two of them. "Speaking of which, May, it’s almost time for you to receive your Starter Pokémon and set out on your journey. Is it really okay for you to be this idle?"

"I... I’ve watched a lot of Pokémon Contest videos..." May avoided his gaze, looking a bit guilty...

"Anyway, don’t worry about sister. Dad, you absolutely can’t lose this time!" Max clenched his fists and said excitedly. Even though he knew Terrance, he still didn’t want his father to lose the match.

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