"Rillaboom! Use Wood Hammer!"
Gareth shouted as he swung his arm, signaling his Pokémon to keep attacking.
Although he felt an odd heat building around him, he didn't think much of it. Golem looked like it was on its last legs, and with two Elite-level trainers from the company nearby, what could possibly go wrong?
Even if something happened...
As that thought passed through his mind, Rillaboom charged straight at Golem, their collision causing another violent tremor across the ground.
More of Golem's rocky armor broke off. The surrounding air grew hotter, and even Rillaboom seemed uncomfortable from the rising temperature.
"Geeeengar!"
A voice echoed from above and by the time Gareth reacted, the Ghost-type wrapped itself around him.
"Gengar? What the—" He didn't even finish his sentence before being lifted off the ground, hurriedly pulling out a Poké Ball to recall Rillaboom from afar.
Only then, looking down from midair, did he see what was really happening.
Because Golem had always been covered under layers of stone plating and had barely moved this whole time, the usual signs of Explosion, like its glowing red body and the end of energy buildup, had been well hidden.
"Explosion?" Gareth muttered as Golem's body in the center of the battlefield erupted in a flash of red and orange light.
BOOOOM!
A monstrous blast of heat and force tore through the crimson-colored Dynamax Den, shaking the entire northern Wild Area. Mountains trembled, and the earth cracked under the impact.
* * *
Meanwhile, Corviknight, flying faster than any other Pokémon, was the first to escape the den.
Shiro could feel the shockwave slam against his back. His cloak whipped tightly around him, and sensing the pressure, the bird accelerated, beating its wings harder.
The red beam atop the Dynamax Den gradually faded as the roar of the explosion echoed for nearly three full minutes before finally dying down.
By now, Corviknight was flying above the eastern mountains of Lake of Outrage. From this height, Shiro looked back to see the center of the Stony Wilderness. What used to be cliffs and a sunken basin had turned into a massive, cratered pit.
Even though he'd escaped in time, his heart was still pounding.
"Shit..."
That Golem. It had enough energy left for an Explosion and still stayed curled up like it couldn't move. It must have planned it all along, pretending to be weak while recovering and charging up the move.
"A!" Shiro called urgently. "What's the situation with Granny Shae and Grandpa Edgar? Can you sense them?"
As soon as he spoke, Unown A floated above his head and released a pulse of psychic power across the surrounding area.
Shiro still didn't know exactly what level Unown A really was, but its psychic abilities were the strongest he'd ever seen: able to scan the whole of Stony Wilderness in a matter of seconds.
That's how he'd captured so many hunters before Macro Cosmos's units even showed up.
After a short while of silence, Unown A tilted its body and pointed with its sharp head.
'They're over there!'
Then it vanished from sight.
Shiro turned toward the northern grasslands of the Stony Wilderness and quickly ordered Corviknight in that direction.
He had a decent relationship with Shae and Edgar. If they died out here for nothing… No, they wouldn't have. The moment he shouted, those two old folks reacted instantly. Their Pokémon's speed was just a little slower than Corviknight's.
But that B5 squad leader Gareth... his odds didn't look good.
"Coorv!"
Corviknight soared at full speed, following Unown A's guidance toward the grassy area in the north, getting closer to Hammerlocke by the second.
About two minutes later, Shiro spotted the frost-covered Vanilluxe floating just ahead of the city. It hovered over the grass, carrying Shae and Edgar. Behind them trailed a Gengar, its aura weak and its body visibly shrunk.
Clutched in its claws was Gareth. The man's body was scorched and bloodied, his clothes burned away by the heat and energy of the explosion.
When Golem unleashed its move, both of them had still been inside the den, taking the full brunt of the blast. If Gengar hadn't turned into shadow mist and wrapped itself around him, Gareth would've been nothing but ashes.
"Granny Shae!" Shiro called out loudly as Corviknight swooped down for a landing.
Hearing his voice, Vanilluxe stopped and gently lowered the two older trainers onto the grass. Both of them looked in bad shape.
Even though most of Explosion's damage had been absorbed by the Dynamax Den itself, the shockwave had still hit hard. These two weren't young anymore, and their bodies couldn't take what someone Shiro's age could.
What felt like a minor shock to him had almost taken their lives.
"Shiro... hurry, now..." Shae weakly raised her metal cane and pointed to Gengar and the wounded Gareth. "Give them something for emergency treatment first... then take him to the Pokémon Center in Hammerlocke."
She finished speaking, then dry-heaved and spat out blood into her palm. Her body shook as she coughed repeatedly.
"If Gareth stays like this, he won't last more than a few minutes..." Edgar muttered in a low voice. He seemed in slightly better condition, though his clothes and hair were a mess.
Shiro quickly took off his backpack and dumped out all his medicine. There were all-purpose sprays usable on both humans and Pokémon, and a few specialty meds for bones and severe physical trauma.
He handed two bottles to the elders, then opened the all-purpose medicine and poured it all over Gengar and Gareth.
"Ugh..."
The cold sting of the liquid brushing torn flesh made the man groan, but he was barely conscious now. His mind drifted on the edge of life and death.
Shiro moved fast. Even Haunter popped out to help. After draining every drop of medicine, he leapt back onto Corviknight's back.
"Wait!" Edgar suddenly shouted and tossed over a black tactical belt.
Shiro caught it. There were five Poké Balls attached.
"Those are Gareth's. Keep them safe for him." The old man waved his arm. "Now go!"
Corviknight flapped hard and lifted into the air, grabbing the still-wrapped Gareth as it shot toward Hammerlocke.
The moment Shiro was gone, Shae pulled out her communicator and sent an alert to the B5 unit stationed near the Stony Wilderness. Then she called the company's headquarters.
Seconds later, the line connected.
"Get word to Rose. Something's wrong. Those people have started to move!" Her voice was cold and urgent.
Oleana on the other end responded just as fast.
"Details. What happened, where, and who."
"Golem used Explosion. Gareth's critically injured. Shiro is bringing him into Hammerlocke now..."
* * *
"Understood." Oleana grabbed the proper file, stepped into the elevator, and called Rose's private number. The call connected immediately.
"Chairman Rose, there's a situation in the Stony Wilderness..."
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