Ho-Oh only feels its heart go icy cold.
Ash comes before it, and Ho-Oh is still happy.
But Ash came with Damian, so Ho-Oh isn't very happy.
Who is this human anyway?
First time meeting, he stole its Suicune and demanded three assists.
Second time meeting, pulled it to fight Shiny Rayquaza.
Third time meeting, pulled it to fight Dragon Kyurem.
And now, for the fourth time, They forcibly took away its Marshadow, and now they're going to take away another member of its Legendary beasts.
But to maintain its image in front of Ash and the others, Ho-Oh swallows the curse words that almost came out.
The only relief is that this girl's heart is clean as well, so perhaps this can be seen as finding an excellent trainer for its squad member.
Ho-Oh gazes at the Dawn with a delighted face, thinking quietly.
After all, it has no other choice. This is the price to keep Ash's pure heart intact.
Having thought it through, Ho-Oh smiles at Dawn, nodding, and gestures for Dawn to choose between Raikou and Entei for a challenge.
Dawn's happy yet conflicted gaze shifts between Raikou and Entei.
Choosing one between Raikou and Entei is really a difficult decision for Dawn.
In terms of attributes, neither Electric nor Fire type are on Dawn's main roster.
As for appearance, how to say it?
Purely in looks, Dawn prefers Suicune among the Legendary Beasts, but Suicune has already been caught by Mr. Damian.
Moreover, Suicune's typing overlaps with her Empoleon, which isn't ideal.
"Mr. Damian, do you have any recommendations?" Dawn whispers to Damian.
"Raikou is better at Special Attack; Entei is better at physical Attack, closer to a dual-dagger."
Damian replies to Dawn. If it were him, there'd be no hesitation.
"But there's an important point: Entei can learn Sacred Fire, a Fire-type move that only Ho-Oh can know. And as one of the Legendary Beasts, Entei learned this from Ho-Oh too. You get my meaning?"
Sacred Fire! Ho-Oh's signature move, later learned by Entei as well.
Without question, Ho-Oh taught it to Entei.
Though among the Legendary Beasts, Suicune is the most popular and loved by Ho-Oh, the Fire-type Entei also gets along well with Ho-Oh, so Entei has the right to use Sacred Fire from Ho-Oh as well.
"I understand." Dawn's big eyes light up with resolve.
"I choose to challenge Entei!"
Dawn's crisp voice carries determination.
Hearing Dawn's choice, Raikou looks at Entei with sympathy and steps back two steps.
Entei, with a heroic air, steps forward to face Dawn.
"Even though you have the right to challenge, you still must go through the battle catch step. Can Dawn beat Entei?"
Misty envies Dawn for having the chance to catch a Legendary Beast, but also questions it.
After all, Entei is a legendary one.
Ash pulls out his Pokédex and points it at Entei.
Beep~ Entei, Fire-type, Volcano Pokémon; its roar can trigger volcanic eruptions, supposedly because it can't fully restrain its surging power and runs around.
The mechanical Pokédex narration makes Ash marvel at Entei's power.
Roars can cause volcanoes to erupt—quite amazing.
"Don't underestimate Dawn; she's probably the seventh top-tier Admin in our organization."
Caitlin wears a delicate smile, eyes gleaming as she watches Dawn from behind.
She's fond of Dawn, after all. Dawn and Caitlin both hail from the Sinnoh Region and come from big families of young ladies.
Dawn has received top-tier education, is poised and courteous, so Caitlin endorses her.
If not for the requirement that a top-tier Admin must command a Champion-tier main roster Pokémon, Dawn could be a top-tier Admin already.
"Seventh top-tier Admin?" Brock sounds puzzled; he's heard of executives in Team Rocket, but top-tier Admins?
This might be something to learn about when they return.
After all, he's a temporary member of Team Rocket now.
"Let's use this to gauge Dawn's level; she should be strong," Ash adds, curious.
Paul's strength is already formidable; though he won't admit it, in a fight right now he isn't Dawn's equal.
So is Dawn stronger than Paul?
"Ash, when Dawn and Paul first joined the organization, Paul was decisively defeated by Dawn in their battle."
Damian's lips curl; he hints to Ash.
Hearing that, Ash and the three others are surprised—Paul defeated by Dawn?
"Wow! Is Dawn really that strong?" Ash is shocked yet excited.
As the strongest rookie trainer in the Sinnoh Region, Dawn's strength is undeniable.
Damian looks at Dawn with pride.
Such strength makes Misty and Dawn amazed.
Dawn: "Garchomp! Please come!"
Dawn steadies herself and decisively releases Entei's challenge.
Roar—!
A deep, dominating presence erupts as a strong, feral Garchomp lands before Dawn.
"That's so cool!" Ash's eyes light up.
"That's Garchomp, a rare Pokémon in the Sinnoh Region; supposedly Cynthia's ace is Garchomp," Brock details from memory.
"Using Dragon/Ground type Garchomp to battle Entei is a very sensible choice."
Brock adds further analysis: dragons resist fire, ground beats fire.
"Garchomp!"
But Dawn isn't done; she raises her right arm high, wearing a crystal bracelet with a beautiful gemstone hanging from it.
"What's this?" Brock's eyes widen.
With Garchomp's dominating roar, a Key Stone shines, and the Mega Stone on Garchomp resonates; the Mega Evolution light blazes.
When the light fades, a megad form of Garchomp appears, with two intimidating scythes of red, facing Entei in a roar.
Meg evolution!
"Garchomp evolved again?!" Misty is stunned.
Ash tilts his head, puzzled, recalling something.
"Meg Evolution is a power-Up that very few Trainers mastered; Kalos once mentioned it, but it's still rare."
"This is my first time witnessing Mega Evolution."
Brock is amazed.
"Amazing!"
Ash is fired up.
"In the organization app, you can redeem Mega Stone merit, Ash. If you're interested, after you gain merit you can redeem for a Mega Stone, or have Professor Oak prepare one for you."
Damian tells Ash with a smile.
"Really? Great! I'll work hard to earn merit!"
As for asking Professor Oak for one?
Honestly, if Ash is willing to speak up, Professor Oak would probably help, since Ash is a rookie who came from his hands; Professor Oak is known for being supportive of juniors.
But while Ash is big-hearted, he also wants to keep his pride.
He wouldn't just ask a senior for something he can earn himself.
Next, Dawn and Entei's capture battle begins in earnest.
As Ho-Oh's Legendary beasts, Entei's strength is undeniably strong, reaching Champion-tier.
That's already impressive; most wild Legendary Pokémon are at Elite Four level.
Bird trio, Legendary giants, Lake guardians, etc., are all Elite Four level.
Of course, Elite Four level wild Pokémon are strong in their own right and vary.
Meg Garchomp, Dawn's ace, brings Champion-tier power; Mega Evolution boosts it further, especially in offense.
Entei opens with an astonishing flamethrower, but Meg Garchomp responds with Dragon Rush, breaking through the fire.
After that clash, Entei realizes direct confrontation isn't optimal against this opponent.
Entei uses its mobility to fight; Meg Garchomp's speed is clearly inferior to Entei's, especially since Entei has mastered Extreme Speed.
But with Dawn's exceptional leadership, they narrow the gap.
In the end, with a careful strategy and a final Earthquake, Entei falls.
Dawn decisively throws an Ultra Ball; it captures Entei with a few quick shakes and a stop.
"I caught Entei!"
Dawn is ecstatic, holding Entei's ball and bouncing with joy.
My goodness—that's her first Legendary Pokémon catch!
"That's incredible!"
Misty is stunned, looking at Dawn's pure appearance and the fierce Meg Garchomp.
Is this Sinnoh Region's strongest rookie Trainer? This is unbelievable!
Even Ash would probably lose to Dawn right now; only Hope for Ash's growth remains.
"She's extremely talented—" Brock nods, feeling the sheer talent.
The gap between people can be greater than between people and dogs.
I wonder if Kanto has a rookie who can compare with such a fierce girl?
~~
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