Meyer's composure never wavered. He watched Jacob without expression, voice unhurried, as though none of this troubled him in the slightest. There was something unsettling about a man that controlled — rational to the point of feeling less than human.
"All I need," he said, with the easy tone of someone making a reasonable request, "is for you to handle certain matters that would be inconvenient for me to deal with directly. And in exchange, you share what you know about Gigantamax." He let a brief pause pass before continuing. "Agree to that, and I'll give you every resource I can to establish you as the most powerful underground figure in Steel Mist City — or further, if that's what you want. And this—" he held out his hand, a Pokémon Egg resting in his palm, "—is yours. A Duraludon Egg, Champion level. Consider it a show of good faith."
Jacob stared at the egg. His pulse jumped despite himself.
But the unease that came with it was stronger.
Meyer's calm was the most frightening thing about him. Here was a man whose son had been kidnapped and used as leverage against him — and he was standing here, completely composed, extending an offer of partnership to the person responsible. No anger. No hesitation. Just calculation.
Jacob found himself wondering, quietly, whether Meyer would have handed Andrew over if the math had called for it.
Men like that — men who had stripped away everything impulsive and messy in themselves — were the most dangerous kind. They always found the cleanest solution, no matter what it cost.
Andrew, standing just beside his father, had gone very still. He stared at Meyer with an expression caught somewhere between disbelief and hurt.
"Father... you can't be serious."
Meyer turned to look at him. His voice stayed gentle, almost courteous — but the words that followed were merciless.
"Look at yourself, Andrew. You're angry. That's all you have right now — anger. And what has it done for you?" He didn't raise his voice. He didn't need to. "I've told you many times: anger after a defeat is the most useless thing a person can feel. If you can't manage your own emotions, you have no business calling yourself a Steel-type Trainer. You're not ready."
The silence that followed sat heavily.
Jacob recovered first. "I apologise for what you had to see, Giovanni," Meyer said, shifting his gaze back. "You're a sharp person. I trust you'll make a sensible choice."
Jacob looked at that calm, smiling face, and felt the pressure of it settle over him like a weight. "I'm grateful for the offer, Champion Meyer," he said carefully. "The Duraludon Egg is tempting, I won't pretend otherwise. But Andrew doesn't seem to want me anywhere near you."
"Andrew," Meyer said simply, "doesn't get to make that call. He won't influence my decision."
Jacob almost laughed. He'd spent years being the one doing the threatening, the enticing, the carefully laid pressure — and here was someone doing it right back at him, with better manners and twice the composure.
But working under someone else had never been part of his plan. It never would be.
He ran a quick count. Four Champion-level Pokémon. Two at King. This was going to be a hard fight.
"I'm sorry," Jacob said, with a steady smile. His right hand closed around a Poké Ball. "I'll have to decline."
Meyer received the refusal without a flicker of irritation. His smile remained. "It seems you're confident in your strength, Giovanni. Then allow me to see it for myself."
His voice dropped.
"Metagross — Flash Cannon, straight up!" "Gliscor — Rain Dance!" "Klefki — Light Screen, then Reflect!" "Duraludon — Thunder!" "Ferrothorn — Stealth Rock!" "Gholdengo — Nasty Plot!"
The commands came in rapid succession. Metagross launched a Flash Cannon skyward, and the beam of light ripped through the night like a flare — sharp and blinding, visible from far across the water.
On the surrounding islands, two figures spotted it immediately.
"It's started," one of them said. "Move!"
Gliscor moved to set up Rain Dance — a deliberate choice. Meyer ran an almost entirely Steel-type team, and Steel-types carry a dangerous weakness to Fire. Rain Dance suppresses Fire-type moves while boosting Water-types, neutralising one of the team's biggest vulnerabilities. It also synergised cleanly with Duraludon's Thunder — in rain, Thunder never misses. Ferrothorn, meanwhile, set Stealth Rock to chip away at anything switching in, while Gholdengo held back, using Nasty Plot to sharpen its Special Attack before committing to an attack.
Every piece placed deliberately. Meyer didn't rush.
But Jacob had already given his own order.
"Lapras — G-Max Resonance!"
The sea erupted.
Gigantamax Lapras burst upward through the surface, its colossal frame rising from the dark water. It stretched its long neck skyward and released a torrent of Ice-type energy — and from above, enormous hailstones began to crash down, battering the battlefield. At the same moment, a shimmering Aurora Veil rippled into place around it, wrapping Jacob's side in layered protection.
The Ice-type energy flooded the atmosphere. Gliscor's Rain Dance never completed its shift to rainfall — the cold overwhelmed it, and the weather snapped hard into a Hailstorm instead.
"Metagross — Power-Up Punch!" Jacob called, releasing his own Metagross simultaneously.
Meyer's eyes narrowed slightly. He hadn't seen Jacob use a Metagross before. Champion level — formidable, but not enough to turn the tide on its own.
"Move!" Jacob called to the two women beside him.
Whitney was already ahead of him. Her Greninja had appeared the moment the battle broke — fluid and precise, every movement deliberate. Jacob caught himself thinking, not for the first time, that it was a genuinely impressive Pokémon. A Champion-level Greninja with Battle Bond could take on two or three opponents without faltering. He shelved the thought immediately — now was not the time.
Alongside Greninja, Whitney sent out a second Pokémon.
A Champion-level Garchomp.
Jacob felt a wave of relief.
Good. That changes things.
Sylvia's options were more limited — her strongest usable Pokémon was a King Rotom. She directed it toward Klefki, keeping it occupied and away from the rest of the field.
High above, hidden in the clouds, Nina had been watching.
The Flash Cannon had told her everything she needed to know.
"It's started. Corviknight — take us down." Her voice was calm and certain.
"Understood."
Corviknight folded its wings and began to descend.