After landing, Asher recalled Charizard back into its Poké Ball. The Charizard was merely a rental Pokémon and couldn't be relied upon in actual combat. Asher then took out two more Poké Balls and released his other Pokémon: Magcargo and Gastrodon.
Magcargo's back was covered with a shell of molten lava. Having lived in volcanic craters for tens of thousands of years, its body had transformed into living magma. Legends said its body temperature reached about 10,000 degrees, causing steam to rise and thick fog to form whenever raindrops touched its surface.
Its shell had formed from cooled, solidified magma. The shell would crumble if touched, but would regenerate to its original size once Magcargo returned to lava. Its body constantly undulated with heat, and high-temperature flames circulating within would occasionally erupt through cracks in its solidified shell.
In competitive battling circles, Magcargo performed poorly. Its fatal weaknesses—being quadruple weak to both Water and Ground-type moves—combined with its low Special Defense, resulted in extremely rare usage. Typically, a single Water-type move would defeat it instantly.
However, Magcargo's performance in real battles far exceeded its competitive reputation, especially for Aleksan, the Fire King of the Northwest Region, whose ace Pokémon was a Magcargo. During the Ranking Tournament to determine the Four Heavenly Kings, despite being three Pokémon behind, Aleksan's Magcargo accomplished the incredible feat of defeating four opponent Pokémon single-handedly. His performance dramatically increased the value of Pokémon like Magcargo.
Rumor had it that Aleksan's Magcargo had reached Champion-level qualification, with a surface temperature so terrifyingly high it resembled a mobile active volcano. Ordinary Poké Balls couldn't contain it—only special Poké Balls were capable of housing such power.
Any Pokémon reaching Champion level underwent a fundamental transformation in ability.
Of course, Asher's Magcargo wasn't nearly as powerful. It was just one of his many Pokémon, with limited potential and strength only at Gym Leader level. While not outstanding among Fire-types, it was particularly well-suited for countering Braviary and Staraptor.
Her other Pokémon, Gastrodon, was specifically chosen for the Gym Leader Ranking competition. This Gastrodon was also one of Asher's main battlers.
Since participating in the Fire Gym Leader Ranking Battle required trainers to bring at least three Fire-type Pokémon, most opponents likewise used Fire-types. This strategic environment made the Water/Ground-type Gastrodon an excellent counter to Fire Pokémon, though its quadruple weakness to Grass made it vulnerable to Fire-types that knew Solar Beam—a notable disadvantage.
However, Gastrodon possessed the extremely rare and excellent ability Storm Drain. This ability attracted Water-type moves to itself, nullifying damage while boosting its Special Attack. This allowed Gastrodon to not only counter opponent's Fire-types but also negate enemy Water-type attacks, making it an exceptionally versatile Pokémon.
Almost simultaneously as Asher summoned his Pokémon, a Braviary and Corviknight arrived and landed before them. Two masked individuals dismounted from the Flying-types.
"Return, Braviary."
"Return, Staraptor."
The pair recalled their Flying Pokémon, each taking out another Poké Ball and throwing them forward.
A Gym Leader level Excadrill appeared.
Alongside it, a Gym Leader level Hippowdon.
As soon as Hippowdon materialized, it released a tremendous roar, instantly summoning a sandstorm. Clearly, this Hippowdon possessed the Sand Stream ability.
The moment these Gym Leader level specialists appeared, Jacob knew victory was impossible. This battle was hopeless—they needed to find a way to survive.
Asher alone would struggle against this Gym Leader level Hippowdon with its Ground typing, let alone facing an additional Gym Leader level Excadrill with Sand Rush, which doubled its speed in sandstorms. When these two Pokémon worked together, even ordinary King-level Pokémon might not stand a chance against them.
"Asher and Jacob, surrender now and you'll suffer less," said the taller masked man wearing a Houndoom mask. His voice was firm with the distinctive deep tone of a mature man.
"Who are you? What do you want from me?" Asher remained calm, staring coldly at the pair while questioning them.
"You'll find out when you come with us," replied the second man wearing a Primeape mask. He was quite thin despite standing over 6'2", and his voice had a strangely feminine quality despite its maturity. He appeared slightly older than his Houndoom-masked companion.
"Don't waste time talking—just act. Excadrill, use Drill Run!" The Primeape-masked man commanded first. The sandy Excadrill moved with astonishing speed in the sandstorm. Only a dark blur could be vaguely seen through the swirling sand as it spun its body at high velocity, aiming directly for Magcargo.
[Drill Run]: A Ground-type attack where the user rotates like a drill to strike the opponent. High critical-hit ratio!
If Magcargo, with its quadruple Ground weakness, took a direct hit from Excadrill, it would suffer severe damage despite its hardened shell.
"Gastrodon, use Rain Dance!"
[Rain Dance]: A Water-type move that changes the weather to rain.
"Magcargo, use Yawn on Excadrill!"
[Yawn]: A Normal-type status move that causes the target to fall asleep on the next turn.
Asher calmly directed his Pokémon. First, he commanded Gastrodon to use Rain Dance to change the weather, breaking the sandstorm and neutralizing Excadrill's Sand Rush ability.
Then he ordered Magcargo to use Yawn. Energy emanated from Magcargo's body, forming a white cloud that rapidly flew toward Excadrill!
But in the sandstorm, Excadrill moved so quickly it easily avoided the white cloud.
In games, Yawn was guaranteed to hit unless the opponent was using Fly or Dig, but reality worked differently. There were no guaranteed hits in real battles—all moves only connected if they actually struck the target.
"Hippowdon, use Take Down!" the Houndoom-masked man shouted.
Hippowdon shifted its massive body and charged toward Gastrodon with shocking momentum and power, as if intending to crush it completely!
"BOOM!"
Suddenly, a dazzling sphere of energy flew from the distance and struck Excadrill with perfect accuracy, sending it flying backward. It rolled several times before stopping, its body showing a visible dent—testament to the attack's power.
"That was Aura Sphere."
Jacob looked toward the source of the energy ball and saw a Lucario leaping from the forest, landing protectively in front of Gastrodon and facing Hippowdon.
[Lucario] Gender: Male Type: Fighting/Steel Qualification: Champion level Battle Strength: Champion level Ability: Justified Moves: Copycat, Feint, Helping Hand, Rock Smash, Aura Sphere, Vacuum Wave, Foresight, Recover, Metal Sound, Quick Guard, Bone Rush, Swords Dance, Heal Pulse, Meteor Mash, Dragon Pulse, Extreme Speed, Close Combat, Crunch, High Jump Kick, Cross Chop, Bullet Punch, Seismic Toss, Tackle, Agility, Submission, Endure, Counter, Stomp, Metal Claw, Rock Tomb, Low Kick, Brick Break, Thunder Punch, Ice Punch, Drain Punch, Earthquake, Stone Edge
A sense of security—an overwhelming sense of security.
To be honest, when this Lucario positioned itself protectively before Jacob, he felt immense relief. Gym Leader level Sand Stream duo? It didn't matter anymore—whether Lucario defeated them or not, the situation had completely changed.