John turned his attention back to Owl. In less than a minute, three of Owl's Pokémon were already down, Feraligatr, Pidgeot, and Weavile.
"Not bad," John muttered. "Pretty solid lineup."
Then, louder: "Blaziken, Flame Charge! Target the trainer!"
Without hesitation, Owl spun on his heel and bolted up the stairs, flinging two Pokeballs behind him as a distraction. With twin bursts of light, a Houndoom and a Manectric materialized in Blaziken's path.
"Blaziken, take them out!" John barked. "Gardevoir, Confusion! Grab that runner!"
With a flick of her wrist, Gardevoir appeared from her Pokeball. Her eyes gleamed as she raised one hand toward the fleeing Owl. Instantly, Owl was lifted off his feet, stuck mid-air, frozen in a desperate running pose.
"Boss, hang on!" shouted a voice from above.
A Honchkrow swooped down from the second floor, letting out a snarling caw. It wasn't trying to harm Owl, instead, the Snarl attack dispelled Gardevoir's psychic grip.
With a groan, Owl collapsed to the stairs. A hand reached down to grab him.
Meanwhile, Honchkrow launched itself at John in a reckless charge.
"Annoying," John muttered.
In a place like the Asuka base, special equipment jammed teleportation. Just like at Riverstone University, no one could warp in or out. It was a smart setup—no Psychic-type getaway tricks. Still, that meant Owl couldn't escape...but John couldn't give chase either.
"Go, Tyranitar. Rock Slide!"
John hurled another Pokeball, and with a guttural roar, Tyranitar erupted into view. Its bellow shook the floor. The ceiling of the first floor, the floor of the level above, shattered instantly.
Chunks of concrete and tile crashed down, burying Honchkrow in a rockslide mid-pounce. Owl and his would-be rescuer were also caught in the collapse, tumbling back to the ground floor amid broken merchandise and debris.
On the staircase to the third floor, three middle-aged men froze in horror at the destruction, then scrambled upward.
John tossed another Pokeball. With a sharp screech, Garchomp took to the air and streaked up the stairs with Dragon Rush, chasing the trio down.
Gardevoir calmly waved her hand again, psychic energy clearing rubble from the collapsed floor. Dust settled. Owl and the other man sat, coughing, bloodied, but still breathing.
John pointed. "Tyranitar, Hyper Beam! Finish him!"
Tyranitar's jaws opened. A sphere of blinding white energy began to form.
"Wait! I surrender!" Owl shouted, raising his arms despite the pain racking his body. "I give up!"
Good choice. Getting caught was better than being vaporized.
Outside the Asuka Team's base...
After hearing Hugh's recap of the border skirmish, Bill's jaw dropped so far she could've caught a passing Pidgey in it.
"No wonder he's a Gym Leader" he said, shaking her head in awe. "That's insane. I thought it was one of our agents who took down Eagle. But it was John? Alone?"
"Wiped out the whole Asuka raider squad by himself," Hugh said, nodding. "Guy's a beast."
"Honestly, makes sense why he's got such a cult following now." Hugh already sounded like a full-blown fanboy.
Mira scribbled something on her notepad. "Legend." Then she added under it: "Certified." And underlined it. Twice.
Suddenly, a Salamence dove from the stormy skies, rain trailing off its wings. Its rider dismounted with the kind of smoothness only experience could buy.
It was Commander Carter.
"How's the situation? Owl still inside?" he demanded.
"Sir! The target is still in the building," Bill reported quickly. If Owl made a run for it now, things could get messy. Better to let someone like Carter handle it.
"Good." Carter turned and sprinted toward the building.
He barely made it five steps when an earth-shaking roar echoed from inside.
"Tyranitar?" Carter paused. "Someone went in already?"
"It's John!" Hugh shouted.
Just as the words left his mouth, a searing beam of white-hot energy pierced through the wall of the base and soared into the sky.
"Hyper Beam," Carter muttered. "Things must be heating up in there."
On the rooftop of the fifth floor, three Asuka executives were already mounting Flying-types, trying to flee through the storm.
They didn't make it far.
A blast of lightning, Thunder, crackled through the sky, striking the rooftop like divine judgment. All three executives were downed before they could leave the perimeter, courtesy of agents lying in wait.
Back inside, John stepped out through the shattered remains of the base's front entrance. Behind him walked Gardevoir and Blaziken, calm as ever.
"The base has been neutralized," John reported crisply. "Owl resisted arrest and has been eliminated. The rest of the Asuka Team members are injured but alive. Someone get them rounded up."
Garchomp landed beside him with a low growl. The trio of fleeing executives? Yeah, they had chosen to risk it with Flying-types. But trying to outpace a Garchomp was never a winning strategy. The fact that they tried said all you needed to know about their odds: zero.
John returned Garchomp to its Pokeball.
"Commander Carter, perfect timing. You're up. I'm heading to the next city for backup."
He walked past Carter with a nod and waved at Bill and Mira.
"You got it, boss!" Hugh called back, while Mira jogged over to hand him a note.
John read it, then shot her a flat look. "Seriously? 'Certified Legend'? What am I, a rapper?"
Mira just smiled and turned away, whistling innocently.
The trio released their Flying Pokémon and took to the skies, disappearing into the clouds.
Carter stood still, watching John fade into the storm.