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Nova commanded Nidoking to seize Onix by the tail, holding on tight as the Rock Snake Pokémon drilled upward through the earth with everything it had. The group climbed steadily through the winding tunnel until, at last, they burst free from the ground — just moments before Flygon completely lost control.
By then, Onix was in a full panic. There was nothing left of its usual dignity as a powerful, territory-holding Pokémon. The instant it surfaced, it bolted — not toward Nova, not toward any of the others, but straight into the open expanse of the Black Rock Desert. Even though Nova still held the Poké Ball that bound it, Onix gave no sign of slowing down. It plunged deep into the sands without so much as a backward glance.
Not that anyone could blame it. What kind of terrifying battle had it just been dragged into? The poor thing had been frightened out of its wits.
Nova watched it go in silence. A small part of him felt sorry to see it leave like that.
He had genuinely meant to keep his word. Once the battle was over, he had planned to release Onix back to its own territory, just as they had agreed. But it had made that choice for itself.
So be it. Nova switched Onix's Poké Ball to release mode, formally ending its captured status. He hoped it would find a stretch of desert to call its own and make a fresh start.
A violent tremor rolled up from deep underground.
When enemies cross paths, neither one backs down. Flygon had already found Taylor's Pokémon — and the fight had begun.
The ground above started to buckle and cave in at several points, pulling the loose sand downward into swirling vortices. Nova moved quickly, stepping from one stable patch of earth to the next, staying ahead of the sinkholes with help from Corvisquire's careful lifting and Nidoking's firm grip steadying his footing.
Dozens of meters below the surface, the chaos continued. Collapses and explosions came in rapid succession, one after another.
Flygon was a wild Pokémon — she had no Trainer to guide her, no voice to pull her back from the edge. Years of being given harmful substances had damaged her mind deeply, leaving her with no awareness of consequences, no concern for what her moves might destroy around her. She did not aim. She did not hold back.
Taylor's lab was located underground. A wild, undirected Earthquake in that enclosed space did not simply damage the facility — it reduced it to rubble, sending tens of thousands of cubic meters of yellow sand crashing down on everything below. Walls cracked. Supports gave way. The ceiling came apart in chunks.
Flygon herself was a Ground-type Pokémon. But even she could not break free if that much sand buried her completely. It would hold her down, at least for a time.
Taylor had sensed the danger the moment Flygon's eyes landed on him. He turned and ran, Arbok close at his heels, racing toward the surface.
The exit, which had never seemed far before, now felt like it was on the other side of the world.
Arbok and Obstagoon had taken the full force of Flygon's Earthquake. Both were badly hurt. Arbok, Taylor's most trusted Pokémon, had suffered worst of all — Ground-type moves hit it twice as hard due to its Poison typing, and after only one exchange, its strength was nearly spent.
Taylor had no desire to stand and fight. Like a Rattata fleeing from a flame, he scrambled through the twisting corridors of his secret base, looking desperately for a way out.
Then he found one.
Heart hammering, Taylor stumbled into the innermost control room — and spotted the tunnel that Onix had dug for Nova. It was still there. It led straight to the surface.
The only problem was the path to reach it. To enter the tunnel, he would have to pass close to the section of the lab where Flygon was still raging.
Taylor saw Flygon charging toward him, her eyes blazing red. He did not stop to weigh his options. He dove into the tunnel, pulling his remaining Pokémon in behind him.
But Flygon had spent her early life as a Trapinch, burrowing through hard earth to survive. Digging came as naturally to her as breathing. The move Dig was second nature.
Taylor glanced back and saw that she was still gaining on them. With a furious shout, he turned on Golbat — the one Pokémon in his group that had always been too lazy to pull its weight.
"You! Fall back and stop Flygon!"
Golbat let out a startled cry. Me?!
"That's an order. You're covering the rear!"
Golbat looked at Flygon bearing down on them — at her size, her speed, the way her claws tore through the tunnel walls — and its patience snapped completely.
Not a chance.
Taylor had never treated his Pokémon with any real care. He pushed them hard, ignored their limits, and now he was pointing at one of them and telling it to go die so he could escape. Golbat had endured a lot over the years, but this was the last straw.
Fury overtook it. In a single, reckless moment, Golbat turned around — and sank its fangs into Taylor's leg, using Leech Life.
Taylor let out a sharp cry of pain.
Arbok spun around immediately. Seeing Golbat attack its Trainer, it struck back with Ice Fang, biting down hard on one of Golbat's wings.
For Golbat, an Ice-type move was devastating. The cold seared through its wing like a blade, and within seconds, the membrane had frozen stiff and completely useless. Golbat dropped, its legs too underdeveloped to carry it, unable to fly and unable to run. It could not even outpace a Caterpie at walking speed.
In its final moment, it used the one move still available to it — Supersonic — aimed squarely at the Arbok that had done this to it.
Then Flygon's bulk crushed it into the tunnel floor, and the collapsing sand closed over it.
But Golbat's last move landed. The Supersonic wave hit Arbok directly, and the snake Pokémon lurched into a confused state, twisting and thrashing against its own will. Just as the tunnel opening came into sight — just as Taylor could see the pale light of the surface — Arbok writhed sideways and blocked his path completely.
Behind them, the cave-in caught up to Flygon. A section of the collapsing ceiling struck her tail. She barely flinched. Whatever pain she felt, it was nothing compared to the anger driving her forward. She stretched forward with everything she had and bit down — her jaws closing around Taylor's legs.
The sound that followed was not easy to forget.
Taylor screamed. The pain hit like a thunderbolt, tearing through his already fraying focus. Half of Flygon's body was already buried in sand, but she refused to let go. She dug in harder, as though she intended to pull him down with her.
Arbok shook off its confusion. It coiled its tail around Taylor and pulled, throwing the last of its strength into hauling its Trainer toward the exit.
Taylor became the rope in that contest — Arbok pulling one way, Flygon pulling the other. But a human body is not built for that kind of force. His legs, already badly torn by Flygon's bite, could not hold. There was a terrible sound. Taylor's scream reached a pitch that no voice should ever make.
Then the sand buried Flygon completely.
Arbok staggered forward, dragging what was left of Taylor toward the exit.
Half was still something. He was still alive.
With the last of its strength, Arbok pulled Taylor through the tunnel and emerged into the harsh midday light of the Black Rock Desert.
But no relief waited for it on the surface.
Obstagoon had not been caught up in the fight between Golbat and Arbok. Taking advantage of the chaos, it had been the first to reach the exit — only to find Nidoking standing there, waiting.
Nidoking looked down at it with calm, unhurried satisfaction. "You kept getting in my way down there. Now it's my turn."
By the time Arbok finally dragged Taylor into the open air, Obstagoon was already on the ground, battered and still.
And in the direction of the sun, a flash of brilliant blue light cut through the desert haze.