Though Daisy had saved the mother and child, debris from falling buildings rained down everywhere as the two Pokémon's battle spread wide. Countless people were trapped with no escape route.
She had no choice but to continuously use her Psychic Powers to protect the endangered pedestrians.
Hatterene, unable to use its abilities, could only run frantically while carrying the Espurr siblings. Though Daisy had told it to find Cole, it had no idea where he was.
As rocks, asphalt, and flames poured from above, the two Espurr used their Psychic Powers to shield Hatterene.
But the little cats were newborn Pokémon infants. Despite their naturally high Psychic Power, their energy was limited, and exhaustion soon showed on their faces.
Meanwhile, Ramos received news of Pokémon causing havoc in downtown Coumarine. Without hesitation, he gathered his Pokémon and mounted his Tropius.
Recognizing the urgency, Tropius soared toward the city center at full speed.
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
At the same time, Margaret and Brady stood atop the highest tower of HorrorLand castle, watching the two rampaging Pokémon with sinister interest.
"Well done." Margaret praised Brady. She drew a deep, twisted breath and said, her expression intoxicated, "I can smell the scent of fear. Little Snow will love this."
She glanced at her shadow, where a Froslass slowly emerged.
"Fros~"
The Froslass nodded, staring greedily into the distance where an intoxicating aroma — to Pokémon, at least — had begun to emanate.
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
Meanwhile, Cole rushed to the scene just in time to see a broken rock hurtling toward the Espurr siblings.
Hatterene had been successfully fleeing with them until it panicked and tripped over a roadside streetlight, sending the Espurr siblings tumbling from its arms.
A burning-hot rock flew toward Hatterene. The Espurr siblings used their last bit of strength to break it apart, but immediately another rock came flying at them.
"Brionne!" Cole shouted.
"Brio!"
Brionne shot a water stream from its mouth, destroying the rock before it could hit the Espurr siblings.
But before Cole and Hatterene could feel relieved, a building suddenly crashed down with a deafening roar, burying the Espurr siblings under countless pieces of rubble.
Steelix had used Earthquake to attack Coalossal, and the violent tremors had caused the already unstable hotel behind the Espurr siblings to collapse directly on top of them.
The Earthquake's destruction wasn't limited to just that hotel — countless buildings throughout the city center crumbled, causing innumerable casualties.
"Hatte? HATTE!!!"
Hatterene stared in disbelief at the scene before it, then scrambled to the ruins and began desperately digging with its braids, searching for the Espurr siblings.
But the collapsed building's ruins were overwhelming, and it had no idea where to begin its search.
"Hatterene!"
Cole ran to its side with Brionne, wanting to help search for the two cats, but they too were at a loss for where to start.
Suddenly, Cole noticed something was wrong — the ground rubble had begun to shake violently, some pieces even crumbling to powder.
He instinctively looked at Hatterene and saw its eyes had turned completely red, while the very space around it began to distort.
As a Psychic himself, Cole immediately sensed Hatterene emanating powerful and terrifying Psychic Energy — the distortion in space itself was proof enough.
"AHHHHH!!!!"
A memory flashed through Hatterene's mind, contorting its face with anguish.
With a "BOOM", the hotel ruins before them exploded, vanishing in an instant — Hatterene's powers had cleared the space completely.
Cole hadn't imagined such tremendous power lay dormant within it.
But now Hatterene had lost all reason, overwhelmed by grief, fear, and rage. It turned toward the battling Coalossal and Steelix, its eyes blazing with cold fury.
Only one thought remained in its mind: to destroy the two who had harmed the Espurr siblings.
To Cole's astonishment, Hatterene rose into the air and flew directly at the battling Pokémon.
Most Psychic Pokémon couldn't achieve flight without exceptional mental strength — just as Daisy once couldn't. Yet here was Hatterene, its powers freshly awakened by shock, already soaring — truly remarkable.
"Hatterene!" Cole called out, but his cry went unheeded.
"Meow~"
"Meow~"
Just after Hatterene departed, two feline cries sounded from behind. Cole spun around to find, to his amazement, the Espurr siblings.
Cole exclaimed happily, "Thank goodness you're both alright!"
"Meow~"
"Meow Meow~"
The Espurr siblings nodded in unison.
As it happened, when the hotel collapsed, a metal bowl-shaped decoration from the roof had sheltered them. They'd been safe all along, merely trapped beneath the debris.
When Hatterene's furious blast destroyed the ruins, the force had blown the Espurr siblings and their protective metal bowl clear of the debris — but miraculously, they remained unharmed.
"That's wonderful! Hatterene will be overjoyed to know you're alive." Cole said after hearing their explanation.
Meanwhile, Hatterene had soared between Coalossal and Steelix, hovering above them. The two massive Pokémon continued their battle, oblivious to the tiny newcomer.
Though rage had consumed its reason, Hatterene's demeanor remained eerily calm, its face betraying no emotion — only cold determination.
Suddenly, a purple-black light flashed in its eyes as it entered a meditative state.
With Coalossal and Steelix ignoring its presence, Hatterene seized the opportunity to gather power. Its special attack strength grew steadily until it reached devastating levels.
Once powered up, it gazed skyward. Two vortexes materialized, hanging ominously above the heads of Coalossal and Steelix, who remained fixated on their fight below.
BOOM! BOOM!
From the vortexes, two massive rings of white light burst forth, striking Coalossal and Steelix directly on their heads.
✲ Future Sight ✲
This devastating Psychic-type move demanded immense mental power to execute.
The impact sent Coalossal and Steelix crashing down, their heads reeling from the blast. As they struggled to rise, Hatterene's eyes began glowing purple once more.
✲ Psychic ✲
A purple circle of light exploded outward from Hatterene, enveloping both Pokémon. Before they could regain their footing, the circle's binding force slammed them back to the ground.
Steelix and Coalossal thrashed desperately against their invisible bonds, but to no avail. Their armored bodies scraped against the ground, filling the air with piercing screeches.
Just as Hatterene was about to strike again, dizziness overcame it. In the next moment, it lost consciousness and plummeted from the sky.
Cole, who had been watching intently, started running toward them. Before Hatterene could hit the ground, a Tropius swooped in and caught it.
It was Ramos who had arrived.
Seeing the old man, Cole felt a wave of relief.
Ramos took out two Poké Balls, and with a flash of red light, a Jumpluff and a Whimsicott materialized above Coalossal and Steelix.
"Jumpluff, Sleep Powder." Ramos commanded.
"Jump~"
Jumpluff nodded and swiftly circled around Coalossal and Steelix, spreading brown powder over them.
The two Pokémon were still dazed from Hatterene's attack, having barely gotten to their feet.
However, Ramos's expression fell — the Sleep Powder had no effect on the two who had lost their sense of self. Their eyes remained red, their energy undiminished.
He sighed and said, "Looks like we'll need to use force to resolve this. Jumpluff, Whimsicott, Leech Seed!"
At his command, Jumpluff and Whimsicott began cheerfully circling Coalossal and Steelix.
Coalossal reached for Jumpluff, but it gracefully dodged using Whimsicott's Tailwind.
Steelix lunged with its massive jaws to bite Whimsicott, but instead of dodging, Whimsicott stuffed cotton spores into its mouth, completely blocking its jaws.
As Jumpluff and Whimsicott scattered more green seeds around Coalossal and Steelix, Ramos called out, "Alright, we can begin!"
The two Grass-type Pokémon nodded, their bodies beginning to emit a verdant glow. As the light appeared, the scattered seeds seemed to receive a signal and began rapidly taking root and sprouting.
Soon, countless grayish-brown vines shot up like claws toward Coalossal and Steelix. Though many vines were burned by Coalossal and snapped by Steelix, they kept coming relentlessly.
Finally, the two rampaging Pokémon were completely bound. Whenever they struggled, the vines would drain their energy, growing even more lush in the process.
Though Steelix and Coalossal had been subdued, the chaos they had created continued. Countless people were injured or killed, and a mass of negative emotions — fear, panic, sorrow — gathered together.
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A Froslass hiding in the darkness was blissfully feeding on this energy. As it absorbed more and more negative emotions, its aura grew steadily stronger.
These vermin in the darkness, causing so many to lose their homes and lives for their own selfish ends!
Margaret and Brady had been secretly observing the battle. Seeing Coalossal and Steelix subdued by Ramos, she spoke regretfully.
"I didn't expect old Ramos to still be so powerful. What a shame about those two Pokémon — they only caused trouble for such a short time."
Brady said, "Achieving this much was already quite difficult. Though this Gym Leader usually keeps a low profile, his strength shouldn't be underestimated. We should lay low for a while now."
Margaret glanced at him, "Did I need you to tell me that?"
Brady silently retreated behind her, not daring to say more.
Then Margaret asked, "Where did that Hatterene come from that suppressed Coalossal and Steelix? It was quite strong!"
Brady shook his head, "I don't know. Should I investigate?"
Margaret nodded, "Hmm... go look into it, and if..."
Though she didn't finish her sentence, Brady understood — if that person wasn't deeply involved with the League, they could try to recruit them into the organization.
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Shortly after Ramos subdued the two Pokémon, the police and fire department arrived and immediately began rescue operations.
Coalossal's rampage had ignited multiple fires throughout the city center. The understaffed fire department struggled to handle all the necessary rescues.
Water-type trainers quickly organized themselves to join the rescue efforts, with Cole and his Brionne among them.
Brionne's energy proved invaluable, as the Rain Dance move it had been practicing with Vaporeon finally found its purpose.
Throughout the rescue operation, Brionne performed brilliantly, using Rain Dance to halt the fires' spread and buy crucial time for the fire department.
Brionne's exceptional performance earned Cole recognition from other trainers and praise from the fire chief.
Yet Cole remained distracted, worried about Hatterene's condition — something had seemed terribly wrong with it earlier.
Alongside Brionne's achievements, Daisy made significant contributions to the rescue operation.
She had already helped many citizens survive the initial crisis with her powerful Psychic abilities. Afterward, she continued rescuing injured people from the ruins.
Her healing abilities proved vital — her timely Heal Pulse stabilized critically injured people and Pokémon who might not have survived until help arrived.
When rescue workers struggled to reach citizens trapped under debris, Daisy's Psychic powers provided an invaluable solution.
Throughout the disaster, Daisy became like a guardian angel.
The arriving Nurse Joy praised her efforts highly.
Nurse Joy's delayed arrival was unavoidable — the Pokémon Center had sustained damage, and she'd needed time to gather sufficient medical supplies and equipment.
✲✲✲
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