Chapter 263 - Hello, Rayquaza
"Ugh, let me go!"
Zinnia struggled violently, but the handcuffs were extremely secure—she had no way to break free.
All she could do was watch as Asahi searched her, taking all her Poké Balls, and even removing her Mega Anklet with the embedded Keystone!
Seeing that Asahi and Gary were about to enter Sky Pillar, Zinnia shouted—
"This is the resting place of the Dragon God! Outsiders are forbidden from entering!"
In response, Asahi gave a small nod.
The Eevee in his arms immediately jumped onto Zinnia's head and smacked her lightly.
Zinnia winced in pain.
Asahi scoffed. "Outsider? A prisoner should act like a prisoner."
…
As an ancient structure built by the Draconid People, Sky Pillar was in a severe state of disrepair.
Aside from some weathered murals, most of the flooring and staircases were so unstable that they collapsed with even the lightest step.
"You guys always claim Sky Pillar is your sacred land," Asahi said. "Then why don't you ever maintain it?"
Nearby, Gary had nearly stepped into a crumbling hole—if not for Mewtwo pulling him back with telekinesis, he would have fallen straight through.
"This place is a disaster waiting to happen!" Gary agreed.
Zinnia didn't have a good answer.
She honestly didn't know why her people had never repaired Sky Pillar.
Maybe they just didn't have the funds—the Draconid tribe had never been wealthy.
Of course, she wouldn't admit that. Instead, she stubbornly said—
"The reason we don't repair it… is to keep out intruders like you!"
"I suggest you release me and leave now. If you disturb the Dragon God… you might not make it out alive!"
She tried to look fierce as she spoke.
But instead of being intimidated, Asahi just found it funny.
"So, you're actually looking out for us?" he teased.
"Of course!" Zinnia said firmly. "I admit that I'm no match for you… but there's no way you can defeat Rayquaza!"
She wasn't just trying to scare Asahi—she genuinely believed it.
Yes, Rayquaza had been captured once before by the Hoenn Pokémon Association, but they had relied on underhanded methods.
And Asahi… wasn't carrying any of that tech.
So, he stood no chance against the Dragon God.
"Well then, let's find out!" Asahi said, stepping onto the next staircase.
The higher they climbed, the stronger the Aura of Rayquaza became.
Even Mewtwo noticed it.
"I sense a powerful force above," Mewtwo said, looking toward the ceiling.
Gary, lowering his voice, whispered—
"Mewtwo… can you win?"
Though he tried to keep his voice down, in this empty tower, his words clearly reached Zinnia's ears, making her perk up in interest.
Mewtwo thought for a moment before shaking its head.
"Uncertain…"
Hearing this, Gary felt even more nervous.
Asahi, however, remained calm.
Because he didn't just bring Mewtwo—he had other Pokémon prepared.
Since Mewtwo spoke via telepathy, Zinnia couldn't hear it.
Instead, she could only observe their reactions.
But their opposite expressions—Gary's anxiety and Asahi's composure—left her completely confused.
Can they win or not?! Just tell me already!
…
After stopping occasionally to take pictures of the murals, the group finally reached the highest floor of Sky Pillar.
But—
"Where's the staircase…?"
Looking around, Gary found no way to reach the next level.
He turned to Zinnia, their prisoner—if anyone knew, it would be her.
Zinnia glared. "Forget it! I'm not telling you!"
Capture her, then expect her to guide them? What a joke!
Unfortunately for her, Asahi smirked and said—
"To reach the top, you need to activate a mechanism…"
He pointed at a circular platform on the floor and a chain on the wall.
"One person pulls the chain, while another stands on the platform. Then, a force will pull you up to the top floor."
Zinnia's eyes widened in shock.
"How do you know that?!"
Asahi simply turned to Zinnia with a smile.
"Take a guess."
How did he know? Well, before he was transported to this world, he had read about it in a Pokémon manga.
Although he had forgotten many details of the Hoenn storyline, he clearly remembered anything related to Rayquaza.
Hearing his response, Zinnia fell into deep thought.
A bold idea surfaced in her mind.
If she remembered correctly, the Draconid clan records mentioned something.
Long ago, a group of their people had left Meteor Falls, departing from Hoenn to settle in another region…
Could Asahi be a descendant of those lost Draconids?
Otherwise, how could he possibly know so much about Sky Pillar's mechanisms?
Yes! That must be it!
With that realization, Zinnia's gaze toward Asahi changed.
She now looked at him with disappointment—as if seeing a fellow tribesman who had abandoned his heritage to join the Pokémon League and was now trying to capture their Dragon God.
Asahi noticed her intense stare and felt confused.
Why is she looking at me like that?
He was utterly baffled.
Did the battle damage her mentally…?
Despite his doubts, Asahi didn't stop.
Whatever was going through Zinnia's mind wasn't important.
Reaching the 50th floor of Sky Pillar and capturing Rayquaza was his top priority.
He gestured to Gary.
"Asahi, do you need me to pull the chain?" Gary asked, relieved—this meant he wouldn't have to face Rayquaza directly.
Asahi rolled his eyes.
"What are you even thinking? The mechanism is only for small children—you wouldn't fit. I was just telling you to step aside so you don't get hit by falling debris when I blast through the ceiling."
"Wait—what?!"
Before Gary could react, Asahi had already called over Mewtwo.
Zinnia scoffed at Asahi's words.
Sky Pillar was built using ancient technology—sure, the interior was crumbling, but the structure itself had stood strong for centuries.
Then, Mewtwo raised its hand.
Its psychic spoon instantly shifted shape—transforming into a massive knife with a sharp, gleaming silver blade.
Mewtwo's eyes glowed blue, and in a blink, the giant psychic blade was flung at the ceiling.
Shing! Shing!
The ancient stone, crafted with forgotten techniques, was sliced apart effortlessly—as if it were nothing more than butter under a hot knife.
And then… the entire ceiling began to collapse.
Boom!
A massive rock smashed into the floor, instantly breaking through it. It continued its descent, tearing through layer upon layer of the dilapidated structure. No one could tell how many floors it had fallen through.
Gary looked down into the hole left by the impact, but its depths were impossible to see.
Mewtwo reverted its dining knife back into a spoon, while Asahi stood at the edge, gazing into the passage Mewtwo had carved open.
The sunlight from the deep blue sky shone down through the opening, illuminating Asahi's figure.
Zinnia stood there, dumbfounded by the scene before her.
"Let's go. Seems like Rayquaza's been disturbed… We've been here long enough, it's time to say hello," Asahi said with a smile.
Then, with a flick of his wrist, he released Gardevoir from its Poké Ball.
Mewtwo took the lead, with Asahi carrying Gary and Gardevoir lifting Zinnia as they soared toward the pinnacle of the Sky Pillar!
---
Sky Pillar – Summit
The fifty-story-tall Sky Pillar pierced into the clouds. At this altitude, the strong winds and thin air made breathing difficult.
Inside the tower, Gary hadn't felt much of a difference. But as soon as he reached the summit, a suffocating sensation overwhelmed him.
He quickly put back on the helmet he had removed earlier for being too heavy. With it on, he felt significantly better.
"If we have to battle in these conditions, the average Pokémon's strength would be cut in half…" Gary muttered, feeling quite uneasy.
He turned to look at Asahi, only to find that Asahi, who had no protective gear at all, remained completely unaffected by the extreme environment.
Even the Eevee in Asahi's arms was only troubled by its fur being ruffled by the wind—it showed no signs of oxygen deprivation.
Gary: "?"
Seeing Asahi in this state, Gary couldn't help but recall the "promises" Asahi had made to him during their special training. Asahi always claimed that if he completed the full training regimen, he'd be able to handle most unforeseen situations in the world.
Could it be… that wasn't just talk? If he trained seriously, could he really become like Asahi?
At that moment, Asahi lifted his head and focused on a specific direction.
Gary followed his gaze and saw a dense cloud of mist surrounding an enormous, indistinct figure.
"That's…"
"That's Rayquaza! The Dragon God!" Asahi and Zinnia spoke simultaneously.
She felt a bit ashamed.
As the successor of the Draconid people, following in the footsteps of her predecessor Aster, this was actually her first time seeing Rayquaza up close.
Even when she had helped free Rayquaza from the Pokémon League's grasp, she had only caught a glimpse of it from afar before it disappeared.
Now, being this close to the Dragon God, Zinnia was overwhelmed with excitement.
She wanted to rush forward immediately, to prove herself to the Dragon God, to gain its recognition, and one day, together with it, save Hoenn from the impending meteor crisis.
But just as she was about to make a move, the shackles on her wrists and Gardevoir's psychic grip pulled her back to reality.
"Let me go! Or else the Dragon God will punish you!" Zinnia protested, twisting her body.
"The 'Dragon God' doesn't seem to care about you at all," Asahi teased, glancing at Rayquaza.
Zinnia shouted and struggled for a while, but Rayquaza remained fast asleep.
Although Mewtwo's earlier attack had made a lot of noise and seemed to have disturbed it, Rayquaza clearly didn't consider it significant enough to warrant waking up.
The ozone surrounding Rayquaza formed a dense protective layer, creating an impenetrable defense.
"Asahi, what's the plan?" Gary cautiously took out his phone to take pictures while asking.
It was obvious that he was nervous.
But even so, he didn't forget about the mission his grandfather, Professor Oak, had entrusted to him—or, more importantly, the opportunity to brag to Ash…
Yes, Asahi was pretty sure that for Gary, the latter was the bigger motivation, with completing his grandfather's task being a secondary goal.
As for Gary's question, Asahi snapped his fingers.
"Simple—wake it up!"
"Wake it up? How?" Gary asked, puzzled.
Mewtwo had already caused a huge commotion, yet Rayquaza still hadn't woken up. What was Asahi planning to do?
"Eevee, Swift!"
At Asahi's command, Eevee unleashed a flurry of glowing star-shaped energy projectiles, shooting them directly at Rayquaza's ozone shield.
Gary was utterly shocked!
"This is what you call a polite greeting!?"
Attacking a sleeping Pokémon to wake it up—how was that polite!?
Before Gary could finish speaking, Eevee's Swift attack struck the ozone barrier.
Some of the energy stars exploded on impact, breaking through the shield with ease, allowing the remaining projectiles to pass through and strike Rayquaza's emerald-green body.
It was as if a switch had been flipped.
The ozone rapidly condensed around Rayquaza's body, and as the mist swirled, parts of Rayquaza's massive frame, adorned with golden ring patterns, were revealed.
Then, Rayquaza's tightly shut eyes snapped open!
Its piercing yellow gaze locked onto them. Of the three present, Gary was the best at reading emotions, and he could clearly sense the fury in Rayquaza's eyes.
"ROOOAARRR!"
Rayquaza's deafening roar made its anger unmistakable.
"Asahi, are you sure this is okay?" Gary had to shout to make himself heard over the roar.
Asahi gestured to Gardevoir, pulling Gary into their telepathic communication.
[Gardevoir Supreme: Of course, I'm fine. Do I look scared?]
[Gary: …]
Receiving Asahi's message, Gary was speechless. Of all times, Asahi was still cracking jokes!
At that moment, Rayquaza finished absorbing the ozone it had released during its slumber.
Its massive body coiled atop the platform, its head with its distinctive V-shaped horns lowered slightly, looking down at them.
The sheer size of its form exuded an overwhelming pressure.
It was even more intense than what Lugia had made Gary feel before.
But Asahi knew this was just an illusion. Rayquaza didn't actually have the Intimidate ability—this was purely a psychological effect caused by its overwhelming presence.
Activating his Aura powers, Asahi felt the Mewtwo cells embedded in his hand heat up slightly, helping him shake off the pressure effortlessly. He then smiled and greeted Rayquaza.
"Hello, Rayquaza!"
---