It was Peony.
The man from Macro Cosmos… It was actually him that was stopping the ship for inspection.
Shiro found it too extreme, even unrealistic. The cruise ship was enormous. What could he even do to stop it?
A small Bronzong... even if it were Elite-level, or ten levels higher, its psychic power couldn't possibly halt a vessel weighing tens of thousands of tons.
Inside an empty cabin aboard the Royal Unova, Shiro leaned by the window, quietly observing Peony through Unown A's psychic vision.
He wanted to see just how that man planned to stop a ship this big. Surely he wouldn't force his way onboard with Bronzong and search every room one by one?
Even if he tried, it would take forever. By the time he finished, the ship would already be dozens of miles away. And with Unown A's psychic concealment, there was no guarantee Peony could even find him.
As he thought about it, he pulled out the communicator and told Professor Rowan, "Full speed ahead. Don't stop. Go as fast as possible."
The Royal Unova was meant to be an open ploy. If the company couldn't stop the ship, then Shiro would simply leave by sea.
* * *
Ahead of the ship, the sea was calm. Peony and Bronzong floated silently above the bow, gazing down at the vessel below.
After receiving the order, Captain Norton pushed every lever to maximum power. The ship couldn't reach full speed instantly, but its acceleration surged as the engines roared.
The sharp bow cleaved through the waves like an axe, the whistle's booming echo scattering a few startled Pelipper. Peony and Bronzong watched as the ship slowly began to move forward beneath them.
"So, you won't listen, huh..." he muttered, his face blank as another Poké Ball appeared in his hand.
His Bronzong, though Elite-level, couldn't stop a cruise liner on its own. But there was a Pokémon that could.
He tossed the Poké Ball into the sea ahead of the ship. A burst of red light flared, and from it emerged a massive, dark green creature. Its body was covered in rust and deep green patina, with uneven bronze-like markings that gave it a heavy, ancient look.
A huge and imposing Copperajah.
* * *
Inside the cabin, Shiro furrowed his brow. 'What can that do? Even if it looks well-trained and stronger than Elite-level... can it really stop a cruise ship?'
He imagined the Pokémon sinking under the water before even reaching the ship's hull.
* * *
Bang!
As expected, a thunderous crash followed.
Copperajah plunged into the water in front of the ship, its steel-hard body colliding with the bow, producing a deafening boom.
In the bridge, Norton felt an uneasy chill rising in his heart but gritted his teeth and forced the ship forward. He didn't know who that trainer ahead was, or what that Pokémon was doing underwater. His job was simple, to keep moving no matter what.
"Stop the ship!"
Peony's voice rang again, amplified by Bronzong's psychic power and echoing across the vessel.
By now, the passengers aboard the Royal Unova had noticed something was wrong. They rushed out from the lounges onto the deck, looking at the floating figure above.
"Who's that guy? What's he saying?"
"I think he told us to stop the ship?"
"Where even are we now? And what's with this weirdo yelling in the sky?"
"That Bronzong... looks to be at Elite-level."
"So what if he's an Elite-level trainer? It's not like we've never seen one before. This is the Royal Unova, an official League vessel that represents Unova itself!"
The chatter grew louder. Some even shouted at the man floating in the sky, telling him to come down, though whether out of concern or mockery, no one could tell.
Peony ignored them completely. His sharp gaze swept across the crowd once, confirming that Shiro wasn't among them. Then, he raised his right arm, revealing a white band around his wrist.
He growled, "Dynamax! Copperajah!"
This time, his words weren't carried by psychic power. So the people below couldn't hear him clearly and only assumed the man had lost his mind, performing some strange drama in midair.
Norton was the same. Thinking Peony was just a lunatic. He didn't believe anyone could stop a moving cruise liner with just one Pokémon.
In any other region, even a Champion-level trainer might not be able to halt a ship in the open sea. But unfortunately, this was Galar.
A deep rumble shook the sea.
In an instant, blinding red light burst from beneath the ship.
The Royal Unova had just reached the spot above Copperajah's head when the giant Pokémon swelled at an impossible rate, its body engulfed in surging Dynamax energy. In seconds, it stood upright in the sea, towering so high that the water barely reached its eyes.
The ship's bow lifted sharply.
While the crimson glow spread, the passengers standing on the forward deck felt the world around them twist. The red light seared their vision, and before they could react, the entire ship lurched violently.
The deck tilted at least forty-five degrees. People lost their footing, tumbling over each other, grabbing whatever they could as they slid downward in chaos.
In the bridge, Norton hadn't even seen what caused the light before he was thrown backward, slamming into the wall with a painful thud.
"What... what is that..." he whispered as he stared at the screens showing the feed from the ship's external cameras, eyes wide in disbelief.
"A Pokémon?"
He couldn't believe it.
A Pokémon big enough to stand in the ocean, and lift the Royal Unova by itself?
It felt like a dream.
Nothing about today felt real. The sudden orders from his superiors, the strange Professor Rowan, the eerie silence of Hulbury... and now this creature, so massive it defied logic.
'Could that be... a Legendary Pokémon?'
Norton slumped against the wall, stunned, unable to think.
The entire Royal Unova was now wrapped in red light, the surrounding sea swallowed by an artificial Dynamax Den.
At the center of that den was the Dynamaxed Copperajah, the core of the storm, radiating power and energy beyond comprehension.
The sky had vanished. Under the dark red glow, even the sea reflected the same color.
* * *
Back at Hulbury, Shiro stood before the railing behind the gym, staring at the crimson dome in the distance, his heart still pounding.
The moment the red light appeared, he'd used Unown A's power to teleport back.
'Dynamax... again.'
Macro Cosmos had lost their mind. Not only had they sent Peony himself, they had even used Dynamax to forcibly stop a cruise ship.
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