"Rayquaza! What the heck are you doing?!"
Seeing the crimson Rayquaza get downed in a single clash of Dragon Ascent, Dylan's face went completely stiff.
That dragon was straight-up throwing the match, wasn't it?
Sure, Dylan hadn't expected his own Rayquaza to match the power of its mother, the Shiny one on the opposing side. That dragon had clearly reached an incredibly high level, and Dylan hadn't trained his own Rayquaza much beyond level 90.
But even so! Just one hit? Seriously?
"You throwing hands or throwing tantrums!?"
He snapped through their psychic link, gritting his teeth.
"Ow ow ow…"
Rayquaza barely stabilized itself in mid-air, groaning internally.
"Seriously, it's not my fault, Dylan! I just can't bring myself to fight her. It's mom, man…"
But just as it was whining, a heavy, glowing green tail came swinging down.
Draco Meteor Slash! It was Shiny Rayquaza's version—raw destructive power infused in every scale.
"Dragon Pulse!"
Dylan gave the command instantly—there was no time to dodge.
Rayquaza fired a quick pulse of draconic energy to intercept.
BOOM!
The attacks collided. But even as Dragon Pulse exploded, Shiny Rayquaza's tail tore right through and slammed Rayquaza away with a thunderous crack.
"Rrraahh!!"
Crimson Rayquaza let out a pained roar as it was sent flying.
Shiny Rayquaza coiled mid-air, eyes flashing green again—Dragon Ascent coming right up.
"Max Cannon!"
Dylan narrowed his eyes.
From above, Eternamax Eternatus's claws surged with red light as twin energy beams shot down toward Shiny Rayquaza.
But—again—two golden rings silently appeared below the blasts.
Swoosh. Both beams were swallowed without a trace.
Eternatus's massive eye flickered red, glaring coldly at the grinning Hoopa.
This damned imp had eaten two of its attacks now!
"Mewtwo!"
Dylan called. Shiny Mewtwo flashed into its Mega Y form and vanished in a blink.
Just as Shiny Rayquaza streaked toward Rayquaza again, Mega Mewtwo Y appeared above them, forming a protective psychic barrier.
BOOM!
The impact rang out. The psychic shield rippled violently. Mewtwo poured in more energy, gritting its teeth.
"Can you hold it?!"
Rayquaza steadied itself and called out.
"Help. Me. NOW!!"
Mewtwo's growled reply left no room for debate.
Rayquaza's eyes hardened. Right.
It was time.
No more running.
"Rrraaah!!"
Rayquaza soared upward, scales glowing bright green—Dragon Ascent!
"I'm done being the cowardly son! Even if you're my mom… I'll fight at full strength!"
But of course, even with its mind influenced, Shiny Rayquaza's combat instinct hadn't dulled one bit.
As her child charged forward, she cancelled her Dragon Ascent mid-flight and smoothly pivoted, dodging the attack with ease.
"…Still as sharp as ever. That's my mom," Rayquaza muttered with begrudging pride.
"…" Mega Mewtwo Y, deadpan.
It didn't feel good about this 2v1. Especially when its teammate was such a mess.
No wonder Terapagos and the others said Rayquaza got dunked on by Primal Groudon and Kyogre before.
Shiny Rayquaza circled the two of them like a predator stalking prey—her glowing red eyes locked on Rayquaza alone.
That look?
That was not a mother's gaze.
That was a hunter.
Rayquaza's scales tingled.
"Wait wait… Dylan said she's being controlled, right? Then why does it feel like she's just out to get me specifically?"
Back on Dylan's side, Hoopa peeked from his arms and shivered.
"This shiny Rayquaza is crazy strong…"
Even at full power, Hoopa wasn't sure it could beat her.
"Of course. She's the strongest of all Rayquaza," Dylan replied flatly.
He wasn't surprised. Even in the Hoopa movie, Shiny Rayquaza had danced around six legendary Pokémon. That was no joke.
Dylan quickly glanced over the rest of the battlefield.
Stellar Terapagos was steadily overpowering Primal Kyogre. Dusk Mane and Dawn Wings Necrozma were suppressing Dialga and Palkia.
No surprise there—his side held the upper hand in raw strength.
Black Kyurem was going all out against Complete Zygarde, using its Ice-type advantage relentlessly.
Zygarde might've had immense stamina, but its 4x Ice weakness was crippling.
Black Kyurem's style was all-in. Even if it meant trading hits, it didn't care.
And the muddled mind of Zygarde—warped by Hoopa's influence and fused with its berserk counterpart—was going all in too.
Still, Dylan doubted Kyurem could finish it quickly. Zygarde's endurance was no joke.
Calyrex, though… yeah, he was struggling.
Chased through the skies by Giratina, the black king was definitely on the defensive.
But Dylan wasn't too concerned. Calyrex could hold out long enough for backup to arrive.
Then—
Swish. Swish.
Two golden rings appeared behind Reshiram.
"Reshiram!"
Dylan immediately felt a chill and shouted.
Reshiram didn't look back. It flared its wings and bolted forward.
Zzzzhhhmm—
Twin red beams fired from the rings.
Max Cannon! From Eternatus!
Reshiram barely dodged, the beams scorching the air behind it.
"Damn it! Those rings again!"
It turned to glare. Yeah—those were the beams Eternatus had fired earlier.
Hoopa had stored them in his rings, like some magical slingshot.
And the worst part?
He could launch them back whenever he wanted.
That was what made Hoopa's portals so busted. They could absorb energy attacks and later redirect them from anywhere.
Left ring in, right ring out—like some interdimensional trap card.
Coupled with Hoopa's natural legendary-tier power, it made him a monster even in group fights.
The more enemies? The more angles his portals could be used from.
"Not fair…" Hoopa muttered sheepishly from Dylan's arms.
"Disappear!"
Hoopa snarled. Three dismembered arms spun through the air—three portals formed, surrounding Reshiram.
"Protect!"
Dylan commanded instantly.
"Eternatus—Max Wyrmstorm!"
Reshiram threw up a protective barrier.
From one ring—another Max Cannon burst out.
From the other two—massive black fists punched through, wrapped in dark energy.
Hyperspace Fury!
BOOM!
All three attacks slammed Reshiram's barrier. Thunderous shockwaves rippled through the sky.
Up above, Eternatus's massive claw glowed green.
Max Wyrmstorm! It dropped the attack like a comet—
But another portal expanded, swallowing the move whole.
"Dylan! Don't use energy attacks! He'll just absorb them!"
Hoopa yelled urgently. Its portals were spatial-based—unless an attack could tear through space itself, they could always absorb it.
"…Got it."
Dylan nodded. The point of that last attack had just been a test anyway.
Apparently, even area attacks could be completely swallowed if the portal was wide enough.
"Reshiram."
The barrier shattered, and Reshiram blasted upward, dodging out of the trap.
"So intense… Dylan…"
Far away, Lillie watched, biting her lip.
She hadn't expected things to go this far. The battlefield was all legends. And not a single weak one in sight.
"Relax," Blue said, eyes sparkling. "Dylan hasn't even pulled out Dialga yet."
True enough.
She had full confidence in him.
Lillie nodded slowly. She knew Dylan had more up his sleeve—but seeing Reshiram surrounded like that still made her worry.
"Dylan's amazing…" Irene whispered, hands clasped.
In just one year… he'd grown this strong.
"…Hmm?"
Then she tilted her head slightly, glancing toward a nearby dune.
Sitting quietly there was a massive red-and-black bird, wings folded like it was watching an opera.
Yveltal.
It had no intention of leaving.
Why would it?
This was the greatest show on earth!
Gone was its usual violent aura—instead, it calmly preened its feathers, fluffed from its earlier brawl with Zygarde.
But its glowing red eyes never left the sky.
It had planned to fly away. All this chaos? Not its problem.
Sure, it was the Avatar of Destruction, but it wasn't stupid.
Too many legendaries. Too much carnage.
Why get involved?
Watching from the sidelines?
Way more fun.
Honestly, Yveltal was kind of glad the humans woke it up.
Where else would it get front-row seats to a spectacle like this?
Still…
It clicked its beak.
That Shiny Rayquaza? Don't mess with her.
That red Rayquaza? Trash. Couldn't even win a 2v1. And… huh? Was it losing its red scales?
Giratina? Yikes. Best not to piss it off.
Those two Necrozma forms? Never seen them before—but if they're beating Dialga and Palkia?
Don't. Fight. Them.
And as for that guy…
Yveltal narrowed its eyes at Complete Zygarde, currently covered in frost as it brawled with Black Kyurem.
"…Pathetic."
It had always hated Zygarde anyway—destruction vs. order and all that.
"C'mon, Kyurem. Freeze that mud snake solid."