Neither Meowth, nor Zorua, nor Cherilynn and Seastyl from Pallet Town had ever seen the human named Luke in his most terrifying form.
This human, Luke, could summon flames out of thin air like a fire mage and transform into blazing fire like a charcoal spirit. But there was one thing that set him apart, something no other fire-type human could do.
No human could survive in a sea of flames. But Luke could. In fact, only when engulfed in fire did he reach his true strength.
With his eyes closed, Luke did not notice a Pokémon silently watching him. But, just as the Pokémon that had faced him head-on had anticipated, thanks to Team Rocket's attack, Luke now held a trump card strong enough to take on the entire Second Squad.
Under Zorua's watchful gaze, Luke lifted his arm.
A gentle breeze stirred. It was so faint that not a single Pokémon noticed it.
The wind continued to dance, gaining strength, slipping past Pokémon bodies, and flying toward its intended destination.
"Hmm?"
Gengar paused, sensing the change in the airflow. Was it his imagination, or was the wind converging toward a single point?
"Captain!"
Before Gengar could figure out why a sudden breeze had swept through Eterna City, Zorua ignored Meowth's attempt to stop her and darted in front of him.
"What is it, Zorua?"
Seeing Zorua blocking his path, Gengar didn't even have time to smile before the anxious Zorua blurted out a warning.
"Captain! There's no time to explain! Run now!"
"...?"
Before Gengar could process her words, several brilliant lights caught his attention. All the Pokémon present looked up at the glowing sources, and when they realized what they were, every thought froze.
Flames… flying through the air?
If it had been a single fireball, Gengar could have explained it as the skill of an extraordinarily powerful fire-type Pokémon. But these flames were coming from all directions. Gengar could not find any reasonable explanation.
"Captain!!"
Zorua's urgent calls snapped Gengar out of his daze. He looked at the other squad members, who seemed to know something, and the carefree air he had earlier vanished. Even his words sped up.
"I don't care what you know! Just tell me what to do!"
"Order all Hypnos in the squad to use Teleport!"
Zorua's eyes were filled with worry as she watched the massive fireball rapidly swelling over Luke. She had prepared the teleport spoons in advance, but if only Zorua's small team survived from the Second Squad, they would have no way out. This was why Zorua had not run with Meowth and instead sought out Gengar.
"Did everyone hear me? If you don't want to die, get over here! Everyone who can use Teleport, use it now!"
After hearing Zorua's command, Gengar ignored the enemies and urged all squad members capable of Teleport to act at full strength.
"Not if I can help it! Huh?!"
Just as Gengar was gathering his squad, Team Rocket's Whiskers was about to rush forward to interfere, but a psychic force lifted him into the air.
Struggling, Whiskers looked at Cherilynn, who was holding him back, unable to understand why she would stop him.
"There's no time…"
Cherilynn shook her head. As a user of Teleport herself, she knew exactly how fast it could be executed. If Whiskers charged at Team Rocket blindly, he would not only fail to stop the teleport, he would expose himself to attacks from both Luke and the rest of Team Rocket.
In the few seconds Cherilynn held him back, the Hypnos squad at the center and a few Exeggcute completed their teleport preparation, and the entire Team Rocket disappeared without a trace.
Luke, holding the city's flames above him, finally allowed himself a breath. Unlike the great fire in Pallet Town, the fire in Eterna City had appeared too suddenly to reach the same intensity. Even if Luke gathered every flame in the city, it could not match the destructive power of Pallet Town.
If Team Rocket had chosen to fight to the death, Luke could have taken them on. But if they fled, he would not pursue.
Unlike Teleport, which requires preparation, Luke would not be immobilized while gathering the city's flames. He was standing still, creating a massive fireball not to attack, but to visually intimidate Team Rocket into retreating.
As for Gengar's earlier promise to let them leave how trustworthy was that really? Who could guarantee that some reckless Team Rocket member wouldn't attempt a sneak attack while Luke was leaving?
Whether in the real world or from the trials Luke had faced after crossing over, one truth had been seared into his mind: enemies only negotiate when power is in your hands.
Fortunately, Team Rocket chose to retreat, leaving Luke and Cherilynn completely safe.
In a story, this would be the end of the chapter. But this was real life, and Luke, with a massive fireball hovering above the city, faced a problem: what to do with it?
Unlike Pallet Town, which had been reduced to ashes, most buildings in Eterna City remained intact despite the attack. If Luke threw the fireball carelessly, he feared the authorities might lock him up, leaving him sitting in a cell, banging on iron bars and crying.
Luke doubted whether this world even had police. If it did, where were they while Team Rocket attacked Pallet Town and Eterna City? Were all the Pokémon officers just off duty, asleep on the job?
Or maybe this strange world was like a superhero universe, where police Pokémon beat ordinary citizens but vanished in times of disaster.
Boom.
As Luke considered how to handle the fireball, a strange roar echoed from the sky. Hidden behind the flames, he could not see the source until it landed before him.
"Brave human, thank you for all you have done for this city."
A Mudman Guardian descended, its mechanical voice resonating as it nodded toward Luke.
"Mudman… Chief?"
Whiskers, a resident of Eterna City, could not help but call its name. But as soon as the words left his mouth, anger surged.
"Mudman Chief! Do you know what Team Rocket has done?! They attacked the Human Center, kidnapped humans bonded to Pokémon, and destroyed our homes! If it weren't for this human, all of Eterna City would be burning right now!"
As the city's guardian, the Mudman had failed to appear in the city's moment of crisis, forcing a human to risk his life to protect it. Thinking that he, a target of Team Rocket, had been powerless and almost put Cherilynn and Luke in danger, Whiskers felt as if a boulder were pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe.
Staring at the Mudman who had only appeared after the battle, Whiskers roared at the chief who had been absent from the start.
"Aren't you the strongest chief of the Human Verification Office?! Aren't you the strongest Pokémon under the League?! What exactly have you… been protecting?!"
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