Hunter J's expression grew cold. This was not how she had expected things to go.
Steven, however, understood exactly what was happening. Regigigas's ability was Slow Start. That meant there was a strong chance it had already awakened — it simply hadn't reached full power yet.
Whoosh!
Crimson light began to pour from within the orb.
Hunter J flinched at the sudden change. She sprang back in a clean backflip, putting distance between herself and the orb.
"ROAAR!"
Salamence shook the rubble from its body and immediately shot to Hunter J's side.
Bzzzt—
The entire temple lurched. The rock walls, already riddled with cracks from the earlier battle, began to buckle and lean. Snowpoint Temple was on the verge of collapse.
Within the blazing red light, a colossal figure rose before them.
A massive white torso, with no visible head. A yellow ribbed structure ran from its back to its front, with seven circular holes arranged in the shape of the Big Dipper. Its arms were long, capped at the shoulders and wrists with yellow circular markings, and ended in three broad white fingers. Its legs, by contrast, were short and stocky. Black zigzag patterns ran across its head, waist, back, and limbs, while patches of green growth covered the sides of its head and the tops of its feet. Along either side of its central torso were three pairs of eye-like dots — red, blue, and gray, from top to bottom.
The Giant Pokémon, said to have once dragged entire continents — Regigigas.
It was waking up.
"Bzzzt…"
The uppermost red dot on Regigigas's body began to glow. Its enormous arms rose, and a sphere of golden energy began to gather between its thick fingers.
"Brandon! Everyone, move!" Steven snatched Diancie from the ground, threw his other arm around Cynthia's waist, and leaped onto Metagross's back.
Metagross had already sensed the threat and pulled back to Steven's side without needing to be called. The two of them had that level of understanding between them.
There was no time for anything else. Just getting out was enough.
Garchomp folded its body low and surged into a swift, ground-skimming flight. Brandon didn't even reach for a Poké Ball — he threw the airship into a hard, drifting U-turn and bolted.
BOOM!
Two golden shockwaves erupted from Regigigas's palms and slammed into the surrounding walls. The rock cracked, split, and gave way.
Snowpoint Temple began to come down.
Outside, the Hunter grunts who had been lying flat on the ground — playing dead since the tremors began — all scrambled to their feet the moment the temple started shaking in earnest, fleeing in every direction.
Steven rode Metagross out into the open air and looked back. Golden light bled through a web of fractures spreading across the upper structure of the temple.
Cynthia and Garchomp emerged safely behind him.
A moment later, Brandon's airship came through as well.
Last out were Hunter J and Salamence.
Steven looked at Cynthia beside him and said quietly:
"Cynthia, stay close to Mr. Brandon. Keep Diancie safe."
He set Cynthia and Diancie down on solid ground.
"Metagross."
"Metagross!"
They moved together without another word — Steven on Metagross's back, heading to cut off Hunter J's escape.
BOOM!
A beam of golden light punched through the temple's side wall and streaked directly toward them.
"Stop — now!"
Metagross's front legs slammed down and braced. In the same instant, it fired two Flash Cannons in rapid succession.
The recoil from the blasts brought Metagross to a dead halt. The Flash Cannons themselves weren't particularly powerful at that speed, but they served their purpose. The golden energy wave swept past just in front of them, close enough to feel.
Hunter J stood on Salamence's back. She glanced back at Steven — momentarily blocked — and her expression hardened.
"We're leaving," she said to Salamence.
"Roaar!"
Steven watched her until she disappeared into the distance. He didn't give chase.
He couldn't. Cynthia, Shindai, and Diancie were still here. He wasn't willing to leave them.
"Let's head back, Metagross."
"Metagross!"
BOOM!
The golden light faded.
With a thunderous crash, Snowpoint Temple collapsed inward.
For a moment, silence.
"It seems even Regigigas cannot—" Brandon began.
"No." Steven cut him off as he returned. He looked down at Brandon from Metagross's back. "Mr. Brandon, I've faced Legendary Pokémon of this level before. I know what they're capable of."
"A cave-in like that would be enough to stop almost any other Pokémon."
"For Regigigas, it's nothing."
Brandon held his gaze for a moment, then gave a brief nod. Without hesitation, he threw out three Poké Balls.
Bang — Bang — Bang!
Regice, Regirock, and Registeel appeared in sequence.
Steven blinked. The opponent was the Colossal Pokémon itself, and Brandon was sending in the three Regis?
"Mr. Brandon —"
He was about to say something when the ruined temple began to shake again.
BOOM!
A powerful shockwave tore through the debris, hurling stacked stones in every direction.
Regigigas burst free from the ruins.
But something was different. It stood over ten meters tall now — far larger than the roughly four meters it had appeared before.
The blue dot below its top red marking had begun to glow as well.
"Wasn't Regigigas about four meters tall before?" Cynthia stared, clearly shaken.
It had grown several times over in moments.
"Its power has grown stronger as well," Brandon said in a low voice.
He raised his arm and commanded the three Regis to attack.
"Bzzzt…"
Regigigas lifted both arms and trained them on the group. Golden energy gathered in its palms.
Steven's expression tightened. It hadn't even paused. Hyper Beam — no cooldown. Of course.
"All three — Hyper Beam!" Brandon called out.
Regice, Regirock, and Registeel raised their arms in kind. Three orbs of golden light formed and launched in a single synchronized burst, meeting Regigigas's Hyper Beam head-on.
"Hammer Arm!"
"Brick Break!"
Steven and Cynthia gave their commands at the same moment.
Light flooded over Metagross and Garchomp — and in an instant, both had completed their Mega Evolution.
Steven glanced at the Hyper Beam collision. The three Regis were barely holding. Their combined force was already being pushed back.
"Diancie — now!"
"Mhm!"
Diancie raised both hands. A wave of pink diamonds — Diamond Storm — swirled into the beams, reinforcing them, helping the three Regis hold the line against Regigigas's Hyper Beam.
Mega Metagross and Mega Garchomp split apart, circling wide — one left, one right — and came in from both sides.
"Metagross!"
Mega Metagross drove all four of its arms into Regigigas's flank.
BANG!
The blow landed with a deep, bone-shaking thud. Regigigas lurched, tipping to the right.
"Garchomp!"
Mega Garchomp was already in position. It brought its scythe-like fins down in a sharp Brick Break across Regigigas's leg.
BOOM!
The leg buckled. Regigigas lost its footing and crashed down into the ruins of Snowpoint Temple, sending stone and dust billowing outward.
Maybe they could actually do this.
Steven held that thought cautiously. Regigigas wasn't like Yveltal — it wasn't draining the life from everything around it. The damage each attack was dealing was small, but it was real. Enough sustained pressure might be enough to bring it down, or at least keep it from moving.
"Cynthia! Mr. Brandon — don't let up!"