From the bushes, a giant flame in the shape of a man shot at the group. At the same time, a giant orb of electricity came from the other side.
Silas was powerless to stop either blast.
The flame shaped like a man screamed through the air, and the orb of electricity followed from the opposite angle, fast enough to make Silas' instincts feel useless.
Madam didn't flinch.
Arcanine leapt in front to defend. The fire attack struck first—only for Arcanine to absorb the flames using its Flash Fire ability.
The electric orb hit next.
Nidoqueen intercepted it with just her body taking the brunt of it like a shield. The electricity burst into lines of crackling energy all over Nidoqueen but nothing happened. Ground types were immune to electric attacks.
Silas swallowed. His pulse was loud in his ears, but he forced his face to stay still.
Then the bushes moved again.
Three men stepped out from cover in a staggered line. Their faces weren't masked and they had the eyes of a predator. The kind of look Silas had started seeing more often lately
One of them—tall, with scar tissue along his knuckles—smiled like this was routine. "Didn't think you'd make it this far with something that expensive."
Madam's gaze didn't even sharpen. It stayed flat. "So you followed us from the Underground, you've already made your last mistake."
The third man laughed under his breath. "We're not here for the kid. Or the dog." His eyes slid to Nidoqueen and its new battle item. "We're here for the vest."
So that was it.
The Assault Vest.
Silas felt a cold irritation bloom in him. Not fear—annoyance. The thought that they'd stalked them, calculated the route, waited for the right stretch of road…all over gear.
The scar-knuckled man clicked his tongue. "Hand it over. Nobody has to get hurt."
Madam tilted her head, like she was considering his offer the way someone considers a bad joke.
"You were destined to get hurt the moment you decided to follow me." That was the last warning.
Poké Balls snapped open in quick succession. The ambush wasn't subtle anymore, overwhelming numbers was the go to tactic for groups like this. .
Arbok hit the ground first, long body coiling with a hiss that vibrated through the grass. Raticate followed, with its giant sharp teeth bared. Fearow shrieked as it launched into the air, its drill like beak ready to skewer a new victim. Machamp appeared last—four arms flexing, stance wide, eyes locked on Silas like he'd already decided where the body would fall.
And they had more—one man released a Golbat that flapped low and wide, and another tossed out a Weezing that began to leak pale, dirty gas into the air as if it couldn't help itself.
All of these pokemon exuded a deadly hostile pressure
Silas' heart tightened. He'd experienced life and death battles but was not used to it at all. The pressure was suffocating.
A Machamp being among the enemy pokemon didn't help. Its malice reminded him of the demon Machamp that cut down all those people and Tangrowth.
Madam noticed immediately that Silas was freaking out. Her voice was like a beacon in the storm in his current state.. "Stay behind Arcanine."
Silas didn't argue. He stepped back instinctively, Monferno and Elekid tense at his sides, their eyes filled with concern for their trainer.
The scar-knuckled man grinned wider. "Machamp. Bullet Punch."
Machamp moved like a cannon fired at close range—one fist blurring into metal-tinted speed, not aimed at a Pokémon.
He vanished and appeared behind Silas with Bullet Punch aimed at his head.
Silas felt the air collapse in front of him. For an instant, his body forgot how to move.
Then Arcanine leapt in front of Silas at incredible speed.
The Bullet Punch slammed into Arcanine's shoulder with a sound like a hammer striking iron. At the same time Arcanine unleashed Flamethrower at close range, knocking Machamp off its feet. The force from the punch skidded Arcanine back half a step, claws carving grooves into the dirt, but it barely reacted.
It simply lifted its head and stared at Machamp. The stare wasn't noble, it was predatory.
"Jolteon, use Charge Beam."
A yellow blur snapped into existence beside her like lightning that had decided to become an animal. Its fur bristled, and the air around it prickled immediately, as if the whole road had become a charged wire.
A narrow lance of electricity punched forward and struck Fearow mid-flight. The bird shrieked, wings locking for an instant as its body spasmed. It crashed hard, skidding through the grass, feathers smoking.
Charge Beam again.
This one hit Weezing, and the gas Pokémon's leaking haze snapped into ugly sparks, the cloud briefly lighting up like a storm trapped at ground level. Weezing wobbled, its body trembling under the force.
Silas could feel the tempo shift. Jolteon wasn't throwing random attacks. It was stacking boosts, Charge Beam had a 70% chance of raising the special attack stat.
He had begun to calm down, especially after scanning the enemy pokemon. The real threats were the level 65 Arbok and level 62 Machamp.
The men realized Madam's strategy but it might have been too late.
"Fearow—get back up!" one of them barked, voice strained. "Arbok, wrap up Arcanine then use Poison Fang!"
Arbok surged forward, body whipping like a living rope toward Arcanine.
At the same time, Golbat dove low, fangs bared, aiming for Jolteon's flank, while Machamp lunged again, trying to gang up on Jolteon with sheer brutality.
Madam didn't raise her voice.
"Nidoqueen."
Nidoqueen stepped forward with terrifying steadiness, with its claws gleaming. It didn't need to. It moved like something that had fought battles where hesitation meant death.
Nidoqueen's claw flashed.
Fury Cutter. A clean, slicing arc that tore across Arbok's body and forced it to recoil with a violent hiss. It has successfully wrapped Arcanine but it was immediately forced to release its prey.
The cut wasn't heavy but the cut was deep enough for Arbok to writhe in pain for a few seconds before steeling itself. .
The three men faltered, just slightly. They weren't used to prey that fought back like predators.
Madam's eyes stayed calm. "You came all this way for the vest," she said, almost conversational. "Why not stay forever?"
"Jolteon–-Charge"
Jolteon's fur spiked even harder. The static in the air became suffocating, like the world itself was holding its breath.
Silas watched the attackers' Pokémon—Fearow had recovered some stamina by using Roost, Raticate was still in good shape, Weezing was shaking but still in good form, Arbok had stopped the bleeding by flexing its entire body. Machamp was simply angry. Its killing intent towards Arcanine was almost palpable.
None of this mattered though because Jolteon had built up enough boosts.
Madam gave the command like she was placing a seal on a contract.
"Discharge."
Numerous blasts of electricity exploded outward from Jolteon, violent and unavoidable. The blasts only targeted every enemy pokemon and their trainers. The road lit up bright light as Jolteon unleashed this devastating blast. Grass snapped and smoked. Fearow convulsed where it lay.
Raticate's body seized so hard its teeth clicked together like stones. Golbat dropped from the air, wings locking as it slammed into the dirt. Weezing's gas sputtered and collapsed, the Pokémon shaking like it was being wrung out.
The bolts had struck with a roar that made Silas' ears ring, punching through the chaos like judgment. The electrical field intensified for an instant, and every enemy laid on the ground but they had begun to get up.
Madam smirked at this scene. "I guess even thieves have their own pride. Your strength is decent but it doesn't change your fate."
The three men felt the threat of death. .
The scar-knuckled one took an unconscious step backward. "What the—"
Nidoqueen moved.
Fury Cutter again.
The pokemon had not finished recovering from the powerful electric attack so their bodies couldn't respond with the same timing as before. Nidoqueen made quick work of the enemy pokemon. The sound was sharp and wet and horribly efficient.
The men watched as all their pokemon were cut down. They were furious as years of time and resources had gone into their team and it was gone just like that. However there was no time to mourn their losses.
Nidoqueen's eyes shifted toward the 3 men..
Silas' stomach dropped.
He'd seen death before—Tangrowth's body cooling in front of him, wounds too deep for miracles. This was different. This was professional.
The first man tried to run. Nidoqueen didn't chase like an animal. It simply closed the distance like an executioner stepping forward with its superior speed. Fury Cutter rose and fell.
The second man lifted a Poké Ball with shaking fingers. He had a last resort but it didn't matter since he wasn't fast enough. Fury Cutter slit his throat. .
The third man froze, mouth open, eyes empty with disbelief, as if his brain couldn't accept what his body was seeing. Madam didn't stop Nidoqueen. She didn't look away either. A final slash ended it.
The road was quiet again, but it wasn't peaceful. It was the kind of quiet that came after something irreversible.
Silas stood there with Monferno and Elekid beside him, both Pokémon staring wide-eyed, ears and tail flame held still, as if even they didn't want to disturb the air.
Silas looked at the three bodies, then at Nidoqueen's bloody claws, then at Madam.
His chest felt tight. His mind refused to settle into a single emotion—shock, disgust, understanding, and something else he didn't want to name.
Madam finally spoke, voice level.
"They were never going to let us walk away. I will never look for trouble but I fear no trouble. Silas, do you understand my meaning?"
Silas tried to respond. Nothing came out.