The trap had been set, indeed; while Shalin was on patrol, the stinging tentacles of a Tentacruel flew toward her from beneath the sea. It all happened faster than she could react. Thankfully, the constricting water-type had missed the most powerful natural weapons her Yanmega mount had: his wings.

Bracing herself as the constricting appendages tried to drag them both underwater, the desperate, adrenaline-filled Yanmega buzzed his wings at full speed and power. The vibration made every hair on Shalin's body stand on end, the wake from the SUPERSONIC burst perhaps pushing enough water aside to expose the Tentacruel's body to the bright sun above the surface. At the first moment the Tentacruel recoiled, the Yanmega would attempt to flit free, getting out of range of the foe's tentacles.

Shalin wasn't sure which was more terrifying: being stung by the giant Tentacruel that Flit was desperately trying to escape, or being rocked by the strongest vibration her insectile mount had to offer. Even her Sygna Suit didn't fully dull the tingling sensation that would have easily knocked her unconscious otherwise. The power behind its throbbing body was immense - enough to clearly anger the Tentacruel.

Not expecting to be thrown, the immense thrust behind the Yanmega's wings sent the duo careening through the air and out of control. They swirled through the sky like an out-of-control carnival ride. Shalin would have enjoyed it if she wasn't locked in the middle of combat. She wondered if flicking them about like this was something her giant Venusaur could do.

Far away from the Tentacruel by the time they could right themselves, there was plenty of time to prepare for the vibration-fueled AIR SLASH to come. Flit's rider was far too disoriented to shoot her bow.

The Tentacruel's anger came with the adrenaline rush to resist both the shockwave and the strong wind gusts that battered the sea Kelpie's Pokémon swam in. At the mention of drowning, Shalin pulled up on Flit's reins, the dragonfly soaring above the sea a second time. She was too late; the poison-type's SLUDGE WAVE towered around them. There was nowhere to run or hide. By the time she could withdraw Flit and hurl Piccolo's Poké Ball into the air, she had already splashed into the polluted waves.

Though she was able to tread water for the time being, the venom from the Tentacruel's savage attack seeped into Shalin's pores, the struggle to keep her head above. The Noivern attempted to blow her Crobat foe back with a fierce TAILWIND long enough to skim the water's surface and hook Shalin with one of her talons.

Piccolo's scales would have easily repelled the water if it were just sea water. The sludge-filled waves were a totally different story; not only did its venom seep beneath Piccolo's scales, but the sludge itself weighed the Noivern's wings down. Unlike her Sygna Pokémon, the vermin-like dragon was not used to carrying Shalin on her wing. It was apparent she needed to use two Pokémon at once: one for mobility, and one to do the bulk of the fighting.

With Piccolo too encumbered to keep flying, Shalin withdrew her mount pitched two more partners from her belt to the space beneath her. Landing between the wings of her buzzing Beedrill, she watched her Sygna Pokémon, Sandy, dart in front of her and speed toward the Tentacruel. The Flygon looked ready to tear up the water-type's insides with her DRAGON CLAW. Though Shalin was not in her Sygna Suit, the special Pokémon may prove to be plenty powerful to keep Kelpie on her toes!

Were it not for Mael's desperate grappling, Shalin would have rendered her suit inert to Mega Evolve her Beedrill. Such a move would have left her Flygon in great peril; Sandy needed their shared energy to resist the Tentacruel trying to pull her under. She needed more power, and Shalin knew of only one way to send Sandy that power.

Tapping into her SYNC STONE, the JOLLY Shalin briefly landed Queen Zing on a rocky islet to ride out the HURRICANE. Once it had passed, the Ranger and her allies needed to make their move before Titania could do that again. Both her and her Flygon glowed a bright green as she swung both her legs to the same side of her insectile mount, sliding onto one of her wings. She let out a joyous squeal as it began to flutter and buzz beneath her, the girl a green blur.

The wings of both her Pokémon echoed with shrill noises from the frequencies they reached, Mael having to withstand a second round of throbbing if it wanted to drag the Flygon under. While the Beedrill's DRAGON HAMMER was not directly empowered by the suit itself, if the bug-type's thrusting stings were to connect with the Vivillon, the Ranger's presence on the wing would greatly amplify the vibration's power.

The Tentacruel's screech and Flygon's vibration clashed in a sonic explosion that diaplsced water in a sphere all around them, Queen Zing having to climb higher to avoid the wave's wake. This time, though, the water-type was able to hold on despite the shrieking wings threatening to reduce its watery body to mush. The displaced wayer came crashing upon them both, submerging the Flygon. Desperate, the Flygon stopped sending energy to Shalin and put all its effort into buzzing beneath the waves. Not designed for displacing water, the dragon could not move them nearly as fast. Still, they were so fast on the surface that they could still hum beneath the waves, her intent to create a whirlpool strong enough to shove the water around them aside and take a breath.

The moment the INFINITY ENERGY stream ceased, Shalin was catapulted into the air, her suit no longer able to keep her from falling off the Beedrill's wing. While it kept her out of harm's way, the Beedrill she rode could not swerve out of the way of the DRAINING KISS. Already severely weakened, the insect collapsed onto the rocky islet.

Just before reaching peak altitude, Shalin sent out Corona, her Charizard, to catch her. Lacking feeling in her limbs from her suit becoming inert, it felt surprisingly refreshing to fly on a Pokémon whose body wasn't constantly vibrating. Overwhelmed by the Tentacruel's hold on her Sygna Pokémon by virtue of being able to feel Sandy's pain, her number one goal now was to get her Flygon back into her Poké Ball and abort. Provided her Pokémon could push enough water out of the way to expose both of them, Shalin would swoop in low enough to withdraw both her Pokémon.

The scientist's parting blow sent Sandy flying into Corona, their clumsy flight proving to be a liability as the two collided in midair. While the Tentacruel seemed to be staying its hand, they were not out of danger yet. In an act of desperation to save her trainer, the Flygon swooped underneath Shalin to try to get as close as possible to the shore. Corona roared, her tail touching the sea before achieving stable flight and snatching Shalin, who was relieved to not have to tread water any more.

Once again, the Captain had barely walked away with her life, and the lives of her Pokémon. Little did she know that this would be the last time the Charizard would save her, courtesy of Troy MacQueen ...