Chapter 274: If I Tell You to Hand It Over, You Hand It Over!
The rumbling sounds were endless.
Looking at the shattered ground below, Gary broke into a cold sweat.
If Mewtwo hadn't lifted him in time, he would have been lying there waiting for an ambulance… or maybe not even that.
Quickly releasing Pidgeot, he mounted it to hover in the air, his tense gaze shifting between Mewtwo and Groudon.
But Mewtwo had no time to spare for Gary. After saving him, it focused all its attention on Groudon.
Its eyes glowed blue as it used Psychic to hurl boulders at Groudon like a torrential downpour.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Groudon swung its arm, smashing the rocks effortlessly with Hammer Arm. The sound of shattering stone echoed throughout the battlefield.
Not far away, Mary and Todd, who had just evacuated, exchanged glances and swallowed nervously.
So strong!
No wonder he remained so composed before Groudon—he truly had the power of a champion!
They made up their minds. If they survived this, they would write a feature piece introducing this powerful trainer to the world!
---
Setting aside Gary's strength for the moment…
Seafloor Cavern
Shortly after entering the passage, Asahi and Sabrina encountered multiple Team Magma members patrolling for Team Aqua intruders.
Anyone chosen by Maxie to be here was a fanatic among fanatics, so Asahi didn't bother wasting words. He knocked them all out instantly.
After clearing the path, they reached the cavern's depths, where a searing landscape unfolded before them.
The magma pool sat at the center of the cavern, its surroundings lined with glowing red patterns on the walls.
[So this is where Groudon lives?]
Sabrina looked around, feeling a bit underwhelmed. She had imagined that a super-ancient Pokémon like Groudon would have a grander residence. At the very least, it shouldn't be any less impressive than the Sky Pillar in the photos Gary had taken…
Hearing this, Asahi chuckled.
[These two have been fighting nonstop since ancient Hoenn—nobody could stand them. You can't expect the ancient civilization to be masochists, right? Their homes were constantly wrecked by Groudon and Kyogre. Who would build houses for them?]
Sabrina: "..."
That... actually made a lot of sense.
In the few seconds that Asahi and Sabrina were mentally conversing, the Team Magma trainers in the cavern finally noticed their presence.
Panicked, they immediately threw out all their Pokémon in an attempt to eliminate the intruders.
Their intentions were good, but...
"Psybeam!"
With a wave of its hand, Gardevoir's Psybeam enveloped the battlefield.
The Pokémon caught in the attack—mostly Fire-types like Magcargo and Torkoal—fell into confusion and started fighting among themselves, completely throwing the Team Magma trainers into chaos.
Maxie, who had been concentrating on controlling Groudon and Kyogre using the Red and Blue Orbs, was abruptly interrupted. Breaking out of his trance, he gasped for breath, cold sweat forming on his forehead as he turned toward Asahi.
"You... You are..."
Before he could finish, a flash of white light appeared.
In the next second, a massive Camerupt emerged, its volcanic humps erupting with magma. A layer of molten rock formed an armor-like shell around its body as it charged toward Asahi like a walking lava tank.
"..." Asahi, who had been waiting to hear what Maxie had to say, was speechless.
Who taught you this dishonorable fighting style?
And at least finish your sentence—what were you trying to say?!
But since the other side had already attacked, Asahi didn't hesitate.
"Gardevoir!" he called out.
In an instant, a transparent barrier appeared before him.
Boom!
Camerupt crashed into it, its molten armor splattering magma everywhere, but all of it slid off the Reflect barrier and dripped harmlessly to the ground.
Camerupt staggered back, dizzy from the impact.
Seeing this, Maxie wasted no time throwing out the rest of his Poké Balls.
Torkoal, Houndoom, and… a Swellow?
As Torkoal exhaled thick white smoke and Houndoom growled menacingly, Asahi couldn't help but be puzzled by Swellow's presence in a Fire-type lineup.
But he didn't care about Maxie's reinforcements.
"Is this all you've got?"
It wasn't that Asahi underestimated him.
For Maxie to escape from Steven's grasp, he had to have some skill. But right now, he looked exhausted, likely drained from trying to control the two Orbs. In this state, he could barely command his Pokémon properly.
Without a competent trainer, the Pokémon that had already been beaten down by Steven were nothing more than paper tigers.
Glancing at the Red and Blue Orbs in Maxie's hands, Asahi decided to speed things up.
"Gardevoir, Mega Evolve!"
A radiant glow enveloped Gardevoir. When it faded, she emerged in her Mega form, her elegant black gown flowing as she raised an arm.
Torkoal and Houndoom's Flamethrowers, along with Swellow's Air Slash, were all effortlessly deflected by Psychic energy.
With another wave of her hand, Gardevoir hurled the enemy Pokémon into the pile of confused Pokémon still caught in Psybeam's chaos. Knocked unconscious by Psychic, they were helpless as they got trampled in the ensuing mess.
In the blink of an eye, Maxie's entire team was eliminated.
"Terrifying..." Asahi smirked, looking at the grim-faced Maxie.
Even with no Pokémon left, Maxie still clung tightly to the Red and Blue Orbs, unwilling to let go.
"Give up… that's not a power you can control," Asahi said.
Trying to manipulate both Groudon and Kyogre at once? Even if Maxie didn't get drained dry, he would lose his mind.
With Archie nowhere around to share the burden, he was on the fast track to a mental breakdown.
In other words, Asahi was actually doing him a favor here.
But Maxie clearly didn't appreciate the kindness.
"This world—"
Wham!
Before he could finish, Asahi knocked him out cold.
Looking at Maxie, unconscious yet still gripping the Orbs, Asahi clicked his tongue.
"If I tell you to hand it over, just hand it over—what's with all the nonsense?"
Then he turned toward the cavern entrance.
There stood Archie, who had rushed over to check the situation, looking utterly dumbfounded.
His face was full of question marks.