Good times (for Ethan and the Sentret family) were short-lived. That night, after Ethan cooked dinner for the Sentret, he packed up to leave.
Tomorrow was July 1st—exam day. No way he could miss it.
Truth be told, Ethan hated parting with Furret's troupe. He was more than a little jealous of the Sentret's Iron Tail. If they'd had a few more days together, he was sure he could've found a way to help Houndour learn it. Smacking down rock-types and those pesky pink fairies with Iron Tail? Yes please.
"Okay, we've gotta go," Ethan said, patting Furret's head. "Live well out here, and be careful."
"Wei-li…"Furret nuzzled his palm reluctantly. Human food was too tasty—way better than nutrient fruit. Ethan's (admittedly mid) cooking had completely won over its stomach.
"Wei-li… wei-li…"The five Sentret were just as reluctant to part with Houndour. They popped up on their tails to loom over him, five sets of stubby paws rubbing his head like a lucky statue.
"Wei-li… wei-li… (There goes our cute Big Black. Who are we going to spar with now?)"
Houndour bared his fangs and whipped his head, trying to shake off the busy paws.
"Lubi… lubi… LUBI! (Stinky rabbits—don't touch me! Next time this Lord Dog is roasting you!)"
"Hey, be nice to your teachers, Houndour," Ethan said. "Say goodbye—we're heading home."
"Lubi… (A bunch of fat rabbits. Not worthy to be my teachers.)"
Smack.Smack.Smack.Smack.Smack.
Five metal-sheen Iron Tails tapped Houndour across the muzzle. The cheeks Ethan had just soothed with ointment puffed up again at once.
…
Ethan hiked back over North Mountain through the night and reached the village close to midnight. As he reached for the door, his hand missed the handle; he would've face-planted if Houndour hadn't snagged his pant leg and yanked him upright.
The ground heaved. It felt like the crust itself shifted as a terrifying power surged up from the earth's core.
A roar rolled over from the direction of North Mountain. Blinding light bloomed in the sky. Silhouetted inside it, Ethan could just make out a white-bearded old man sitting cross-legged in midair—and behind him, five unknown objects blazing with purple light.
An earthquake? And… a super-powered Alakazam?
He'd barely left and the mountain was already in all-out war. No wonder that Level-20 Fearow, Furret, and that river Poliwhirl had all abandoned the deep woods.
Even from here the aftermath rattled the village. How strong were the sides clashing up there?
Golden thunderbolts ripped down from the clouds. Scarlet pillars of fire speared up from the forest like volcanic vents, scouring life to ash.
A pitch-black streak smashed into the Alakazam in midair and knocked it out of the sky.
A Dark-type had entered the fight.
The flaming combatant, wherever it belonged, didn't care about the forest—fire blasted everywhere, a spreading sea of flame turning half the sky red.
"Rooooar!"
A dragon's cry split the air. The clear night vanished beneath boiling black clouds, and within seconds a downpour hammered the earth.
Rain Dance—a dragon's treasure move—flipped the weather for kilometers, trying to drown the wildfire.
The door banged open. Ethan's dad appeared, face tight with worry.
"Lubi…"
Seeing Ethan and Houndour, he finally exhaled. "Good you're back. That fight over the ridge is terrifying. Your mom and I were afraid you were caught in it."
"I'm fine. I got back before it started," Ethan said, shrugging. "Stayed outside to watch a bit."
"You still want to watch?" his dad asked, hand out in the cold rain.
"A little. You don't see battles like this every day. Go sleep, I'll be careful. Promise I won't sneak off."
Dad just reminded him not to catch a chill and went back in.
With the storm and darkness, the battlefield vanished behind a wall of rain. Only snakes of lightning showed, lashing the hills. Under a storm like this, electric attacks rarely miss—Ethan shivered. How many of those combatants were being charred right now?
A few blazing fireballs clawed at the clouds, trying to force a Sunny Day, but whoever was casting it wasn't strong enough to break the rain.
By a flash of lightning, Ethan saw seven or eight massive boulders plummet from the sky and crater the ground.
Continental Crush? No—unlikely. Z-Moves are heavily regulated by the Alola Alliance, Z-Crystals and bands tightly controlled. In China they're rare, and trainers avoid them due to the risk of exhaustion. Mega Evolution is far more common.
So this was probably just a monstrously trained Rock Slide/Stone Edge. And who could do that? In Zhaoyang City, the world-class Rock Gym could.
Alliance officials vs. an unknown faction… fighting over Volcarona and a Solgaleo Z-Crystal?
Ethan narrowed his eyes. Seemed very likely. Lincoln had been wary of Psychics, and there'd just been an Alakazam overhead.
The battle raged for more than two hours, then cut off abruptly at its peak.
The rain tapered. The crescent moon squeezed from the clouds. The fires died. The mountain went silent and clean again—like nothing had happened.
If Ethan hadn't seen it, he wouldn't have believed a war had just rolled over those hills. Of course, if he went up there now, the lightning-blasted, rock-plowed, fire-scorched, mud-raked terrain would tell the truth: high-tier Pokémon are walking natural disasters.
It was late, but neither Ethan nor Houndour could sleep after that. Ethan lay under a blanket, staring at the ceiling. Houndour sprawled across his gaming chair, watching the stars fade.
"Houndour," Ethan murmured, "you think we'll be that strong someday?"
"Lubi… lubi…" The answer was iron.
We will. Our team won't lose to anyone—just give us time.
…
Morning. Ethan blinked—and froze. Why was Lana in his house? Eating breakfast like she lived there?
"Morning, Brother Sheng. Morning, Houndour!" Lana beamed.
"Morning," Ethan said."Lubi… (Morning, fox.)" Houndour yawned.
"Xiao Lan's testing with you today," Ethan's mom said, setting bowls down. "She hadn't eaten, so sit, eat, then catch the bus. Don't be late."
After breakfast, Ethan and Lana boarded for the city. On the ride, Ethan eyed the Poké Balls peeking from Lana's bag.
"So, what's your starter? Think it can clear the second stage?"
Lana fished out a ball and waggled it with a grin. "Want to guess, Brother Sheng?"
Ethan spread his hands. "Hundreds of species. We'll be here all day. If you don't want to say, fine."
"Hehe." Lana's smile turned sly. "After the exam, battle me. I'm going for the bonus test's starter reward. My partner's strong—and we've been together over half a year. Underestimate us and you'll pay."
Ethan's brows rose. "You sure? Word is the bonus match pits you against a type-advantaged Pokémon around Level 10."
"Level 10?" Lana frowned; that was news to her. She'd thought it was just a type disadvantage, not an extra level edge.
"And you? Can you beat that?" she shot back.
"Not today," Ethan said. "But in twenty days—yeah." He tipped his head back and shut his eyes.
Lana rolled her own. Boring. Handsome guy right here and he chooses sleep.
…
They reached the hall at 8:30. Check-in, separate rooms, test at 9:00. For Ethan, the written wasn't hard. Ninety minutes later he turned it in early.
Outside, city TV was already interviewing the first kid out.
"Glad that wasn't me," Ethan muttered, skirting the cameras to their meeting spot.
From behind, he could hear the reporter's mic and a very confident, very early finisher holding court.
As expected of the top city school—dragons under every rock.
"Fatty Li, why are you even here? You failed too many classes—you're repeating. The homeroom teacher told your parents. Why'd you sign up for the trainer exam without permission?""And yeah, he said it in class too. Did you just wake up and miss it?"
The little fatty squinted indignantly. "I'm repeating? First I'm hearing about it! Why didn't my parents tell me? You're not lying, right?""It's true. You're the first repeater in school history. Everyone knows. How do you not know?"
Ethan could only sigh.
Twenty-plus minutes later, Lana jogged over. "How'd it go?"
"No problem," Ethan said. "On to stage two. You?"
"Same. Let's grab a spar before heading home."
Ethan nodded and raised a hand to flag a taxi for the city arena—the fairest place to fight.
A long black luxury car slid to the curb first. The window hummed down and Lincoln leaned out. "You still haven't registered that information, have you?"
Ethan froze. Had Lincoln really been keeping tabs this whole time?
"Not yet," he said. "Just got to the city for the exam. Was about to grab a cab to file it."
Lana stared. Smooth liar.
"No need," Lincoln said. "Ride with me. We'll go to the Rock Gym, get you registered, and I'll hand over what I promised."
Ethan's heart skipped. He hadn't expected Lincoln to be this prompt with the promised goods.
"Is there a free arena at the Rock Gym?" Ethan asked. "I want to spar my friend."
Lincoln glanced at Lana and nodded. "Plenty of space. Come."
Inside, the limo had face-to-face sofas. Besides Lincoln and the driver, there were two others:
A boy Ethan's age—features 80% Lincoln, but much fairer, hair tied in an artsy ponytail, cool and aloof where Lincoln was easygoing.
And an old man with silver-white hair and a physique like coiled steel. Ethan doubted four or five strong adults could handle him.
As Ethan and Lana sat, the Poké Balls at their bags twitched; their switches flashed red. Both partners had warned them—the old man's aura felt lethal.
"Hm? Two youngsters with Dark-type partners," the old man said, amused. "Rare. Since fate puts us in the same car—and your types match this old man—call me Uncle Yan."
Ethan and Lana traded a look. How had he known they were both carrying Dark-types?