The appearance of Moltres caught even Luxray and Dragonite off guard; Dragonite's stride faltered, hesitantly looking back at Lucas.
Moltres has taken my spot. Should I still keep going?
Lucas was silent for a moment, locking eyes with Moltres' battle-ready gaze. A guess formed in his heart.
Is Moltres volunteering to fight? Lucas could feel a strong sense of determination radiating from the legendary bird.
As if sensing Lucas's thoughts, Moltres, still facing away, gave a slight nod.
At that moment, Reggie's slightly shaken voice called out, "Lucas, is that—"
Feeling the intense fighting spirit from Moltres, Lucas answered before thinking, "Yeah, that's Moltres, and it wants to fight. Reggie, would you like to battle it?"
"Yes! Please, let me battle Moltres! I'm begging you!"
Normally calm, wise, and gentle in Paul's eyes, Reggie now showed a side of himself Paul had never seen before.
It was anticipation, longing—the desire to climb higher.
Dragonite was now forgotten. All Reggie wanted was a match against this living legend.
Reggie felt that any other trainer would make the same choice here.
Hearing Reggie's words, Bibarel turned back in shock.
You want me to fight that thing?
That Moltres was radiating such intense heat that just looking at it made Bibarel feel like he'd explode. The oppressive aura from this superior being left Bibarel almost numb.
At least Dragonite seemed dopey and harmless, and he'd even trained up some Ice-type moves—fighting Dragonite sounded better than going up against Moltres.
With both sides in agreement, the battle began. Paul acted as referee, eyes locked on Reggie and Bibarel, hoping they could somehow defeat the legendary Moltres.
"Use Aqua Jet!" Reggie called out steadily. He wanted to test Moltres's strength first.
As a water-dwelling Pokémon, Bibarel had a natural affinity for Water-type moves. Surrounded by surging water, it charged straight at Moltres with unstoppable force.
Lucas's approach to commanding Moltres was a bit different. He planned to make full use of Moltres's immense stamina and energy reserves.
"Sunny Day!"
Both sides gave their commands at the same moment. Now, it was a matter of whose move would land first.
"SKREEEE!"
Moltres screeched skyward, and the already-clear sky blazed even brighter with intense sunlight. At that moment, Bibarel reached Moltres and crashed right into it.
"Not good!"
A chill ran through Reggie. This could be bad.
Under harsh sunlight, Water-type moves became sluggish and much weaker. Moltres had gotten the first move!
Szzzz—
Steam billowed where they collided. Bibarel's strike, which should have been super effective, was weakened by both the sunlight and Moltres's body heat—more than half its power was lost, leaving only a decent physical hit.
But Moltres didn't even flinch.
Lucas's voice rang out. He felt a strange mix of emotions—he'd never imagined there'd be a day when he'd be commanding Moltres in a trainer battle. "Heat Wave!"
Unlike Dragonite's gentle, hair-drying heat, Moltres's Heat Wave exploded with intensity and the scent of smoke. With a flap of its wings, a searing blast sent Bibarel flying, its body instantly covered in burn marks.
Bibarel didn't even have time to counterattack before it crashed to the ground, knocked out.
One hit. Instant KO!
Reggie and Paul were stunned. They never expected there to be such a massive power gap.
Lucas just raised an eyebrow—he wasn't surprised by this outcome.
Moltres had been living the good life on the farm, eating and drinking to the point of putting on a bit of weight. Recently, it had weather wars with Politoed and sparring matches with Swampert. It was far stronger than when Luxray and the others first brought it in.
Bibarel really wasn't a threat to Moltres.
"Return, Bibarel. You did well."
Reggie recalled Bibarel, his voice tinged with guilt. If he'd started with a ranged move, maybe Bibarel could've avoided the Heat Wave?
He pulled out his second Poké Ball and tossed it. With a flash of red light, a yellow Pokémon appeared.
"This is my partner from Johto—let's go, Ampharos!"
Reggie looked at Lucas and Moltres, determination burning in his eyes. This time, he decided to go all out from the start, using Ampharos's powerful ranged attacks.
"Thunder!"
A massive surge of electricity gathered between Ampharos's black-and-yellow horns, crackling before hurling a huge bolt of lightning at Moltres with a deafening roar.
This time, Moltres moved. Spreading its wings, it dodged Thunder with effortless aerial grace.
"We're not done—keep using Thunder! Force it on the run!"
Reggie's eyes lit up. As he saw it, Moltres dodging meant it didn't dare take Thunder head-on like it did with Aqua Jet.
Legends weren't invincible; he still had a chance!
Thunder after thunder split the sky, roaring endlessly.
Though Moltres was dodging with elegant maneuvers, it didn't think much of Ampharos's Thunder.
Forget matching Luxray—even Dragonite's wild Thunderstorm, the one that once defeated Moltres, was far more impressive than this.
With a sudden stop in midair, Moltres dove straight at Ampharos.
Lucas gave the next command: "Brave Bird!"
Blue flames gathered into the image of a divine bird. Moltres swooped low at Ampharos, who, too focused on controlling Thunder, couldn't react in time. Ampharos was sent flying, knocked out instantly.
Another one-hit KO!
Paul gripped his trembling right arm with his left, silently telling himself his brother still had a chance. Turtwig glanced at him in concern, then took a few steps back—the presence of Moltres was too overwhelming.
Reggie silently recalled Ampharos. He felt as if Lucas could read his mind; in just two commands, Lucas had completely neutralized his strategy. Was Lucas really just an ordinary farmer?
"Go, Golem!"
Reggie now sent out his Kanto partner, Golem.
But with Moltres's overwhelming type advantage, Golem was baked red-hot by a single Flamethrower—its rocky body radiating such heat that the air shimmered.
Having lost three Pokémon in a row, Lucas frowned slightly.
He didn't remember Reggie all that well, only that in the future, Reggie would challenge the Battle Frontier and lose to Brandon, prompting Paul to become more extreme in his training.
He hadn't understood why Reggie lost to Brandon, but now he had an inkling.
Reggie's style was too safe. He relied only on the most reliable approaches, hoping to win simply by avoiding mistakes—he had no distinguishing features at all.
He fought just like any average trainer.
Reggie's fourth Pokémon was Swalot, caught in Hoenn. He hoped to gain the upper hand with poison, but was dismayed to find that the toxins simply burned up in the waves of heat surrounding Moltres, leaving only a foul stench in the air.
Swalot, defeated!
By the time he sent out his fifth Pokémon, Reggie's face was visibly grim. His fifth was Staraptor—one of his strongest, second only to Drapion.
Staraptor made a good start, using its honed flying skills to dodge and even outmaneuver Moltres, who once flew mostly by instinct.
But after battling Swampert, Moltres had improved its flying technique. While not quite on Dragonite's level, it quickly adapted to Staraptor's maneuvers. Moltres's Flare Blitz easily caught up, engulfing Staraptor in flames as it fell.
Reggie mechanically recalled Staraptor, then sent out Drapion. This battle felt even more crushing than their last one on the training beach.
Back then, Dragonite had won through sheer power, and Reggie's commands had at least neutralized some threats, leaving him with the illusion that they could face off again.
But under Lucas's command, Moltres was an insurmountable wall, impossible to breach, decimating his team.
This realization stung, because Reggie now understood: Lucas's skill as a trainer utterly outclassed his own.
He'd never felt this powerless, not even facing the league champion.
Just then, a ray of light broke through Reggie's silent world.
Paul's eyes were red. He'd never been so emotional before, but now he just wanted to shout: "Big brother! Drapion! Don't give up!"
"Paul…"
Reggie was stunned, but his turmoil began to settle.
Lucas glanced at the brothers, finding their scene a bit odd. Are Reggie and Drapion about to shout about friendship or bonds and come at me like I'm the final boss?
But miracles don't happen just because you want them to. Although Reggie coolly commanded Drapion in a meticulous counterattack, it was meaningless before Moltres's overwhelming power.
Reggie and Drapion gave it their all, trying to land a Cross Poison as Moltres exposed its back, but at that instant, flames erupted from Moltres's body.
Overheat—its ultimate move.
It was like a volcanic eruption, painting half the sky red. Even Moltres couldn't avoid the cost of this devastating attack, which burned through its energy reserves for a single, overwhelming blow.
Drapion was instantly engulfed by the golden-red fire, unable to withstand it.
Even Dragonite, watching in the back, was a bit startled. Moltres's growth was beyond its imagination—was this the innate power of a legendary Pokémon?
The flames gradually faded under the downpour summoned by Dragonite. Reggie declined the umbrella Lucas offered, standing in the rain, soaked and bedraggled.
Concerned, Paul tried to cover Reggie with his umbrella, but he was too short to reach, sweating with worry in the downpour.
Lucas had already called Comfey to heal Reggie's six fainted Pokémon. He didn't try to console Reggie—there was no need.
After all, Reggie had managed to change, even if only a little, in the last round. That change might just set his future on a new, unknown path.
Battered by the rain, Reggie didn't feel defeated. On the contrary, he was more clear-headed than ever.
Because he realized he'd found a missing piece—he was evolving in this storm.
"Hahahaha, hahahahaha!"
Suddenly, Reggie burst out laughing.
Paul was startled by the laughter, a rebellious suspicion flashing through his mind.
Did my brother lose so badly that he's gone insane?
Laughing, Reggie took the umbrella from Paul and walked over to Lucas. Watching his Pokémon being treated by the adorable Comfey, his laughter faded as he thanked Lucas, "Thank you for healing them."
Lucas nodded casually. "No trouble. Have you figured things out?"
Reggie replied, "Kind of, but I still need to work on it."
Paul, catching up, looked blankly at the two of them. What are they talking about?
Reggie ruffled Paul's hair, his damp hand making Paul's bangs droop, earning him an annoyed glare.
Reggie smiled again, then turned to Lucas, his gaze now full of respect: "Lucas, what do you think I was lacking before?"
Lucas thought for a moment. "You were just too…ordinary. Playing it safe might work for even matches, but against stronger opponents, it just leaves you helpless."
"I actually liked your approach with Drapion—aggressive yet calm, carefully looking for openings. Very good."
"Haha, I knew it," Reggie grinned. His guess was right—Lucas had intentionally given him opportunities, even though Moltres could have swept his team instantly. "You're just like a teacher. Thank you for your guidance."
Lucas shot him a strange look. "I am a teacher, actually. Still teaching at Naranja Academy these days."
Before the dumbfounded brothers could reply, Lucas walked over to Moltres as the rainclouds faded.
With approving looks from Luxray and Dragonite, Lucas pulled out an unused Poké Ball and smiled, "I've already had you battle under my command. So, what do you say—want to officially join the team?"
Moltres, cleaning its battle-dusted feathers, froze at the proposal. It hadn't expected Lucas to ask first.
But after eating that cake, it had already made up its mind, hadn't it?
In Moltres's heart, the scales tipped decisively: bonds over freedom.
Once, every volcano in the world had been its home. Its spirit was as solitary and fiery as a volcano.
But now, thanks to a twist of fate, it had found a true home.
There was good food, a beloved adopted child, and a group of kind humans and Pokémon partners.
Moltres didn't hesitate. With reverence, it lowered its flame-crowned head, touching it to the red-and-white Poké Ball.
This time, it thought, it had made the right choice.