Charizard landed in front of the group with a heavy impact.
BOOOOM!
Dust and broken leaves scattered across the ground.
When Jian saw Aaron holding Aotum by the collar like a sack of trash, his mouth twitched.
"You really are something..."
He quickly straightened and saluted.
"Thanks for the hard work, Aaron."
Nearby, Talon also gave Aaron a brief salute before lowering his hand.
Aaron's honorary rank made the gesture technically appropriate, but Talon's expression remained calm, almost too calm.
Jian seemed to notice the slight tension and quickly stepped in.
"Aaron, this is Lieutenant General Talon, commander of Grit City's First Ranger Corps."
Aaron narrowed his eyes slightly, glanced at Talon, and gave a brief nod.
Then he tossed Aotum directly to Jian.
"I caught him for you. He should still have the experimental data on him."
Delight flashed across Jian's face.
"Good. That's exactly what we need."
He accepted Aotum from Aaron and said seriously,
"On behalf of the Grit City Pokémon Police, thank you."
The moment Talon heard the words "experimental data," something shifted in his eyes.
He spoke before Jian could give another order.
"Leave him to me."
Jian turned to him.
Talon continued calmly, "He's the second heir of Corestone Group. If they have people nearby, they may try to recover him. My team is better equipped to keep him secured."
His reasoning sounded solid.
For a moment, Jian had no real way to argue.
Aotum was part of one of Ransei's top conglomerates. It would not be strange if Corestone had already sent people to retrieve him.
After a brief pause, Jian nodded.
"Then I'll leave him to you."
"No trouble," Talon said with a faint smile. "We're all doing this for Hualis."
Two soldiers immediately stepped forward and took the unconscious Aotum away.
Then Talon turned back to Aaron.
"I don't see Aotum's Poké Balls. What happened to his Pokémon?"
There was something sharp beneath his calm tone.
Aaron noticed it.
"They're dead."
Talon's pupils tightened slightly.
"Where are the bodies?"
Aaron frowned.
"Why?"
"Are they useful for something?"
Talon's expression shifted for only a second before he smiled.
"You're overthinking it. If those Pokémon were part of Corestone's experiments, their bodies may still contain evidence. Aotum might even have hidden data on them."
He paused.
"People like him are always prepared."
Aaron looked at him for a moment, then pointed in one direction.
"About five kilometers that way. Collect them yourselves."
A gleam flashed through Talon's eyes.
"Understood."
He turned to Jian.
"The immediate danger seems to be over. To be safe, I'll move my people out first and secure the bodies."
Jian nodded.
"I'll handle the scene here."
Talon glanced at Aaron one last time before boarding one of the aircraft. A few moments later, the military convoy lifted off and flew toward the remains of Aotum's modified Pokémon.
Soon, only Aaron and Jian were left near the ruined facility.
Aaron watched the aircraft disappear, his brow faintly furrowed.
He could not shake the feeling that Talon held some kind of hostility toward him.
But they had never met before.
Maybe he was imagining it.
Aaron let the thought go for now and turned to Jian.
"I should get going too. I'll leave the rest to you."
Jian gave a tired smile.
"The rest? I barely did anything. I showed up, looked dramatic, and watched your Pokémon handle everything."
Then his expression turned serious.
He bowed his head slightly.
"Still... Aaron, on behalf of everyone in Tidefall, thank you."
"If you hadn't stopped that Pokémon army, the town would've been destroyed. No one knows how many people would have died."
His voice grew heavier.
"Truly. Thank you."
Aaron waved it off.
"Don't make me sound that noble."
"This started because I entered Corestone in the first place."
Jian shook his head.
"We were going to move against Corestone sooner or later. We just didn't know what they were hiding."
He glanced toward the blood-soaked forest.
"If we had gone in without you, we probably would've been wiped out."
Aaron paused.
That... actually made sense.
He smiled helplessly.
"Then let's call it a good deed."
He jumped onto Charizard's back and waved.
"I'm leaving the cleanup to you."
"GRAAAH!"
Charizard beat its wings and rose into the air.
From deeper in the forest, Mega Gyarados lifted itself on flame clouds, its massive dragon-shaped body cutting through the fading light.
Mega Beedrill followed like a black streak.
Greninja, Sceptile, and Infernape moved swiftly across the treetops, while Snorlax bounded through the forest below, its heavy body springing forward with surprising speed.
One by one, Aaron's Pokémon followed him beneath the setting sun.
Their silhouettes disappeared into the crimson sky.
Behind them, Tidefall was left with smoke, rain, blood, and a story no one there would ever forget.
In the days that followed, people would speak of the night Corestone burned, when a berserk Pokémon army marched toward town and a dragon descended from the storm.
It called down rain.
It summoned lightning.
And it stopped the disaster before Tidefall could be erased from the map.
Later, the town even built a statue of Mega Gyarados with four limbs, standing proudly beneath carved storm clouds.
To the people of Tidefall, it was no longer just a Pokémon.
It was the dragon that had saved their town.
...