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Altaria, the Dragon- and Flying-type Pokémon, still could not escape the restraint of Tyranitar's Rock-type moves.
Unless Winona could initiate Altaria's Mega Evolution, transforming it into Mega Altaria with its type changing to Dragon and Fairy—there seemed little hope. Unfortunately, Winona did not have a Mega Bracelet, and Chris had not located a Mega Evolution stone for Altaria.
"Rock Slide!" Chris commanded. "Just finish it off!"
Tyranitar spread its arms wide, summoning its third Rock Slide. A torrent of massive rocks rained down from above, creating a relentless storm of debris that seemed intent on burying everything on the battlefield. The first two uses of Rock Slide had already formed a waist-high mound of rubble on the arena.
"Altaria, use Hurricane!" Winona ordered.
Altaria flapped its wings, summoning a powerful storm. The swirling winds formed a barrier, deflecting the falling rocks away. The rubble, though sharp and chaotic, was light enough to be swept aside by the force of the hurricane. Protected by the eye of the storm, Altaria emerged unscathed.
It seemed the earlier two defeats had not been entirely in vain. Winona had discovered a way to counter Rock Slide.
But so what?
"Hyper Beam!" Chris shouted, a sly grin on his face.
Altaria may have been shielded by the storm, but that came at a cost. The hurricane's speed was limited, making Altaria's movements predictable. Chris was confident Altaria couldn't outrun the Hyper Beam—or face Tyranitar head-on.
Tyranitar's maw glowed ominously, and an immense beam of destructive energy erupted forth, annihilating everything in its path.
Winona hesitated, torn between two choices: should Altaria stand its ground and face the Hyper Beam head-on, or abandon the hurricane and risk the Rock Slide?
Before she could decide, Tyranitar's Hyper Beam struck with devastating force. The beam tore through Altaria, sending it hurtling through the air. It crashed through the forest surrounding the Fortree City Gym, breaking branches and toppling trees before finally coming to a stop, battered and fainted.
Altaria was down. There was no need to confirm; it was incapacitated.
Against Tyranitar's overwhelming power, resistance was futile.
"Altaria is unable to battle! Tyranitar wins!" the referee declared. "Gym Leader Winona has no remaining Pokémon. The victory goes to Challenger Chris!"
Chris returned to his room as the post-battle results appeared on his handheld screen.
[Battle Results]
Defeated Altaria (Lv. 58): Gained 6,325 EXP. Defeated Winona, Fortree Gym Leader: Earned 30,000 PokéDollars.
Winona's Message:
"I made some mistakes—I underestimated my opponent. I lost this match completely. But as proof of your victory, here is the Fortree Gym's Feather Badge. With it, your Fly move is upgraded to the ultimate form, Secret · Fly."
"I'm also giving you the TM for Aerial Ace and my experience as a Breeder of Flying-type Pokémon. I hope it helps you."
"I look forward to our rematch at the Pokémon Championship. Next time, I won't go down so easily. If you make it to the Championship, perhaps you'll meet him… Good luck!"
After collecting his rewards, Chris reviewed them while stepping outside.
The Feather Badge marked his sixth Badge, granting a 10% boost to Pokémon moves of corresponding types. Combined with his previous five Badges, he now had six Attribute bonuses stacked together.
Chris planned his next steps. Heading to the Johto Region, he intended to challenge a dozen more local Gyms, curious to see if the stat bonuses from additional Badges would continue to stack.
Among the rewards, the TM for Aerial Ace stood out. A Flying-type move, its in-game description resembled other reliable attacks like Feint Attack or Shadow Punch, as it never missed. In practice, however, it was far more versatile. Aerial Ace excelled as a recovery move, allowing a Pokémon to counterattack after a missed strike.
The maneuver involved sudden acrobatics, with the Pokémon flipping mid-air to launch a high-speed attack, ensuring a near-guaranteed hit. Chris recalled that in the anime, this move was once referred to as Rotary Attack—its spinning motion reminiscent of a Pokémon "looking back" to strike again.
As he browsed through his Pokémon lineup, Chris made a surprising discovery: Tyranitar and Lairon could also learn Aerial Ace!
The thought amused him—how could such bulky, grounded Pokémon execute an aerial maneuver? Did this mean they could "fly" in some way? He even joked to himself about testing if Groudon could learn Aerial Ace too.
Though the TM wasn't particularly rare, Chris couldn't resist the curiosity. He decided to teach Aerial Ace to Tyranitar, eager to see how it would pull off the move.
To test its effectiveness, he chose a beach as the training ground and brought along Steelix to act as a target. Steelix's high physical defense put Chris at ease—no matter how strong Tyranitar's attack, Steelix could endure it.
Chris released Steelix at a distance, then sent out Tyranitar, who seemed more interested in playing in the sand.
"Tyranitar, use Dragon Claw on Steelix's tail!" Chris commanded.
With a reluctant growl, Tyranitar lumbered toward Steelix, its heavy steps leaving deep footprints in the beach's soft sand. As it approached, its arms became cloaked in a dark green, draconic aura—the telltale glow of Dragon Claw.
"Steelix, dodge!" Chris countered.
While Steelix's massive body made evading a challenge, dodging an attack aimed specifically at its tail was far easier. It swiftly lifted its tail, narrowly avoiding Tyranitar's glowing claws.
"Now, use Aerial Ace!" Chris called out.
Tyranitar's momentum carried it forward, but it suddenly halted, planting its right foot with a resounding thud that created a small crater in the sand. Both legs tensed, and with a burst of strength, Tyranitar propelled itself forward like a pouncing tiger.
Its claws gleamed with a sharp white light as it slashed through the air in a cross pattern. The speed of the maneuver was startling, and Tyranitar closed the distance in an instant, landing a clean strike on Steelix's raised tail.
The power and precision of Aerial Ace left Chris astonished. It worked!
Tyranitar growled triumphantly, standing tall as Steelix recoiled slightly from the impact, more out of surprise than pain. Chris grinned. "Well, guess even a giant like Tyranitar can be agile when it wants to be."