The giant bird circled the forest several times before finally descending toward the stone pillar platform at the center of Phoenix Forest.
Even from a distance, the sight was impossible to ignore.
Despite the darkness of the night, the creature illuminated the entire forest with its presence alone. Every beat of its wings scattered radiant colors through the sky, casting shifting shades of crimson, gold, green, and white across the rainforest below. The phenomenon was so overwhelming that even the wild Pokémon throughout the forest had stopped what they were doing entirely.
Silas stared upward as he ran.
A Pokémon that massive and powerful could only be legendary, and there were only a handful that matched the silhouette currently soaring overhead. Even before Hermes confirmed it, Silas already had a few guesses.
The typeless energy saturating Phoenix Forest had begun reacting violently to the bird's presence.
The air itself felt heavier. Every instinct in his body told him that something monumental was happening. Silas accelerated toward the platform.
The deeper he moved into the forest, the more Pokémon emerged around him. Eeveelutions of every kind rushed through the rainforest in the same direction, their movements urgent but not chaotic. There was no panic among them, only anticipation.
Even the aggressive Leafeon appeared.
Its powerful presence immediately stood out among the crowd, yet despite its strength, it made no attempt to take control of the gathering. That alone spoke volumes.
Whatever had arrived was beyond hierarchy. Silas focused on the bird again and activated Hermes' scan.
Ho-oh — Level 97
Ability: Pressure
Potential: Divine
Moves: Rank SS Sacred Fire, Rank SS Life Dew, Rank SS Recover, Rank SS Calm Mind, Rank SS Hurricane, Rank SS Sky Attack, Rank SS Fire Blast, Rank S Weather Ball, Rank S Whirlwind, Rank S Sunny Day, Rank S Safeguard, Rank S Air Slash
Silas felt his heartbeat slow slightly as he processed the information. This was Ho-oh, the legendary phoenix. Its majestic power was unquestionable.
More importantly, this wasn't some descendant or lesser variant. This was the original Ho-oh itself—the Divine source that stood at the peak of its lineage. Every legendary Pokémon species had an origin point, a true Divine original that existed above all others of its kind. These Divine Pokémon would occasionally reproduce with champion-class Pokémon possessing compatible bloodlines, creating lesser descendants over countless generations.
But this…
This was the source.
Ho-oh continued circling above the platform without acknowledging anything around it.
Each beat of its wings sent waves through the atmosphere, causing the typeless energy throughout Phoenix Forest to shift and gather visibly beneath it. Even the trees responded, their branches trembling despite the absence of wind.
Silas noticed something else as well.
The closer Ho-oh moved to the center of the forest, the more unstable the surrounding energy became. Tiny streams of typeless energy drifted through the air like glowing particles, pulled toward the legendary Pokémon without resistance. Even his own body reacted slightly, the energy inside him responding instinctively to Ho-oh's presence.
The gathered Pokémon reacted differently depending on their strength.
Some of the weaker Eevee instinctively lowered themselves to the ground the moment Ho-oh passed overhead, unable to endure the pressure directly. Several younger Jolteon backed away entirely whenever the legendary bird descended lower, their fur standing on end from the overwhelming aura filling the clearing.
The stronger Pokémon remained standing, especially the dominant Leafeon. They never moved.
Neither did the older Umbreon gathered near the outer edge of the platform. Their glowing rings reflected the light of Ho-oh's flames while they watched silently, as though witnessing something sacred.
Then Ho-oh ignited.
Extreme flames erupted from its body instantly, engulfing the legendary bird in a blaze so intense that its physical form vanished completely beneath the fire. The sudden burst of light flooded the forest, forcing Silas to shield his eyes as the entire area became brighter than daylight.
It felt as though the sun itself had descended into the forest. The heat was overwhelming.
Yet strangely, the flames carried no hostility toward the gathered Pokémon. Instead, the fire radiated a heavy warmth that pressed into everything nearby without causing destruction.
It didn't stop. The burning form only grew brighter. The phenomenon continued for an entire hour.
Throughout the spectacle, the gathered Pokémon remained completely silent, their attention fixed entirely on the blazing figure suspended above the platform.
Silas slowly realized that every Pokémon present already understood what this was. This was not an unexpected miracle.
This was tradition.
A ritual repeated across generations.
Even the stone platform itself reflected that reality. As Silas drew closer, he could see ancient scorch marks carved deep into the surrounding pillars, marks left behind by previous festivals. Despite the incredible heat generated by Ho-oh's flames, the platform endured without damage, as though it had been specifically created to survive this ceremony.
During the shock and awe of the event, two figures emerged quietly beneath the waters of the lake far behind the gathering.
Two ninjas.
They entered through the underwater rift entrance Silas and Madam had previously used, arriving unnoticed due to the absence of the Vaporeon tribes, all of whom had gathered on land to witness Ho-oh's appearance.
"We will observe for now."
Both Venomoth released waves of psychic energy that wrapped around their trainers, forming a concealed barrier around them. The older ninja then removed a black crystal and pressed it into the psychic veil.
The crystal dissolved instantly. The concealment barrier intensified. Even then, the two ninjas remained cautious.
Neither of them dared approach the central platform directly. They understood exactly what kind of existence Ho-oh represented. If their concealment failed for even a moment while the legendary Pokémon was focused on the festival, they would likely die before escaping the forest.
Meanwhile, above the platform, Ho-oh's burning form continued changing.
The flames grew brighter and brighter until the entire inferno condensed into a colossal column of fire that shot directly into the sky. The pillar towered over Phoenix Forest like a divine beacon, illuminating the surrounding mountains far beyond the forest itself.
Then something emerged from within the flames. A massive orb of fire separated from the pillar and slowly descended toward the platform below.
The heat surged again.
The burning sphere shifted and twisted as shapes gradually formed within it. Then, in an instant, the fire hardened into solid stone.
Three giant statues appeared.
Entei.
Suicune.
Raikou.
The legendary beasts stood motionless atop the platform, their forms carved from stone yet radiating an overwhelming pressure that made them feel disturbingly alive. Flames still flickered faintly across the cracks of their bodies before slowly fading away.
When Silas finally reached the platform itself, he was met with an awe-inspiring sight.
Several hundred Pokémon had gathered around the massive stone pillars surrounding the arena, all of them staring toward the statues with unwavering focus. Even the usually energetic Jolteon and Flareon remained still.
No one spoke. No one moved.
The statues stood motionless beneath the lingering glow of Ho-oh's flames, waiting for something Silas did not yet understand.
Then finally, one of the Flareon stepped forward. The Pokémon broke away from the crowd and leapt onto the platform without hesitation. The moment its paws touched the stone surface, the Entei statue reacted.
The stone cracked apart instantly.
Flames exploded outward as the statue came alive, its entire body igniting as it transitioned from motionless construct into living force. The pressure released by the awakened Entei swept across the platform, forcing weaker Pokémon near the front of the crowd to retreat instinctively.
Silas didn't look away. The ritual had begun.