"You think you can just leave?"
Mewtwo, use Ally Switch on Kimbo. His Demonic Qi is nearly spent, otherwise he wouldn't be in such a hurry to bolt, Feng Che communicated telepathically.
High in the sky, Kimbo was desperately urging his Honchkrow forward. He wiped cold sweat from his brow, his breath coming in ragged gasps. "Too close... that was too close. One more minute and I would have been the one dead."
"I need to find a place to hide. Once my Qi recovers, I'll use the connection to report this to High Priest Shaka. That brat is a monster; I really kicked a steel plate this time..."
Suddenly, Kimbo felt a violent tugging sensation from within his very soul. Before he could process the blue psychic light enveloping his body, his eyes widened in sheer terror.
"No—!"
With a sharp whoosh, Kimbo vanished from the Honchkrow's back. The bird Pokémon squawked in confusion, continuing to fly at high speed into the distance, carrying only empty air.
"Hello again, Kimbo. Why the rush?" Feng Che said, a pleasant smile playing on his lips.
Kimbo collapsed onto the grass, cold sweat drenching his back. "I was miles away... how did you drag me back with telekinesis? Are you a Master-class Psychic?" His voice shook with a rhythmic tremor. "Damn it... if my Qi wasn't empty, I could have used Teleport myself..."
He looked like a fish on a cutting board, gasping and helpless.
"I'll be taking those memories now," Feng Che said coldly. He didn't waste time with banter, thrusting his psychic consciousness into Kimbo's mind to seize the cult's secrets.
But the moment his mental probe touched Kimbo's subconscious, a violent eruption of black flames exploded within the youth's head. Feng Che recoiled, instantly severing the psychic link.
"Save me! Help—!" Kimbo shrieked, thrashing on the ground as the black fire consumed him from the inside out. The flames grew with unnatural speed, and within seconds, his screams fell silent.
A moment later, only a pile of gray ash remained.
The Jingten Cult placed a 'Self-Destruct' seal on their minds, Feng Che realized. The moment someone tries to pry into their memories, the Hellfire triggers. Efficient, and brutal.
Nearby, the Obstagoon regained consciousness. It looked at the pile of ash that used to be its master, then at Feng Che. It let out a low, mournful rumble. Good thing I didn't take much Qi... or I'd be dead too. That coward tried to sacrifice me to save himself.
The Grimmsnarl likewise dropped to its knees, shivering as it watched its trainer turn to dust.
"Fine. You two stay with me for now." Feng Che recalled the two survivors into Poké Balls. He then turned his gaze toward the shadows of the forest.
"You can come out now. I've known you were there for a while," he said casually. He was actually bluffing, testing to see if any more assassins were lurking.
Deep in the brush, Maki froze. How? I was perfectly hidden. Is his perception really that high?
Just as she was about to step out and reveal herself, a cold, rasping laugh echoed from the shadow of a massive tree. A man in a dark jacket with a gaunt, sinister face stepped into the light.
"To think you could sense me," the man, An, said. He looked at Feng Che with pure, unadulterated contempt. "Gym Leader Feng Che... someone wants you erased from the Island of Flight. Just be a good boy and die."
"That look in your eyes is really annoying," Feng Che muttered, a spark of genuine anger flickering in his chest. "You all come here thinking you're the hunters, but you always end up as the prey. I'm a Gym Leader—not some stray dog you can put down whenever you feel like it."
An's face twisted. "A 'Gym-level' brat with a big mouth. Fine. Let me show you what real power looks like. Go, Grapploct!"
The blue, muscular octopus Pokémon appeared, its yellow suckers pulsing. One of its eight tentacles was wrapped around its waist like a martial arts belt. It exhaled a heavy, martial pressure that bore down on Alolan Ninetales and Sirfetch'd.
An sneered. "Grapploct is a master of submission. Your little pets won't even be able to twitch."
Feng Che's lips curled into a cold smirk. "Submission? Interesting. But who told you... I don't have Heaven-Tier (Elite Four level) Pokémon?"
"Come out, Gengar!"
Feng Che's shadow suddenly stretched and warped. Two crimson eyes snapped open within the darkness on the ground. With a haunting cackle, a Gengar surged out of the shadow, erupting with an aura so suffocating it dwarfed the Grapploct's pressure instantly.
"What?! Who the hell gathered this intel?!" An stammered, his bravado vanishing. "You've been hiding an Elite-level peak Pokémon? Did Agatha lend this to you? No... even her Gengar isn't this oppressive!"
He quickly regained his composure. "Grapploct, don't be intimidated! Use Odor Sleuth! I specifically had Marshal Bruno teach you that move just in case we ran into Ghosts. Today, it pays off!"
"Is that so?" Feng Che's smile turned playful. "Gengar, Shadow Claw."
Gengar's arms elongated, wreathed in crackling black electricity. It plunged its hands directly into the ground.
"Hahaha! You missed!" An jeered.
But his laughter died in his throat. Dozens of shadowy claws erupted directly out of Grapploct's own shadow, wrapping around the octopus and pinning its tentacles to the earth. Grapploct stiffened, completely immobilized.
"Damn it! Go, Crabominable!" An frantically threw his second ball.
The massive, white-furred crab appeared, its fist-like claws pulsing with purple energy and chilling frost.
"Crabominable, use Ice Beam on the Gengar! Break Grapploct free!"