After spotting the large column of black smoke in the distance, the Spartan squad immediately followed their leader.
Meowth's suggestion about seeking other trial participants was still fresh in everyone's mind. The smoke could mean many things, but one possibility stood out above all others.
People were nearby.
Silas led the group cautiously through the forest.
Although the smoke was visible from far away, it still took a considerable amount of time to reach the source. The trees in this section of the island were dense and healthy, creating a thick canopy overhead that blocked much of the sunlight.
As they drew closer, a new smell reached them. The smell of burning flesh. Silas nearly threw up. The odor was overwhelming.
He managed to keep his composure, but only barely. His pride as the squad leader wouldn't allow him to show weakness in front of Jessie and James.
Even so, the smell lingered in his nostrils. It was impossible to ignore.
Silas immediately signaled for Jessie and James to stop.
"You two wait here."
Neither argued. The seriousness in his voice was enough.
Silas advanced alone, suppressing his presence with both psychic power and aura. The closer he got, the more clearly the scene came into focus.
His expression gradually darkened.
There were 5 Team Rocket members gathered near a large pile of corpses.
Some searched bodies for valuables while others carried corpses from one location to another.
The surrounding area was heavily damaged.
Several craters scarred the battlefield while broken trees and scorched earth stretched throughout the clearing.
A Magmar stood near the largest pile.
The powerful Fire type continuously launched flames into the mass of bodies.
Silas scanned it immediately.
Level 43, it was strong but not impossible to beat. The result allowed him to relax slightly.
Then his eyes shifted toward the person issuing orders. The man wasn't someone Silas recognized.
He appeared a few years older than Silas and possessed a short, stocky build. At first glance he seemed unimpressive. Then Silas noticed the Arbok beside him.
After scanning it, his heartbeat quickened.
The Arbok possessed B rank potential. More importantly, it was level 47.
Silas immediately understood the danger.
His team had become significantly stronger over the past 10 days, but they still weren't capable of defeating a pokemon like that in a direct confrontation.
The queen Beedrill had only fallen because it was wild.
Wild pokemon rarely fought with coordinated strategies.
A trained pokemon was an entirely different matter.
The more Silas observed the battlefield, the worse the situation appeared.
At least 40 corpses littered the area. Most belonged to pokemon. Several belonged to humans. When he realized this, Silas involuntarily shuddered.
The enemy was powerful. The enemy was also cruel and proud of that strength.
The stocky man turned toward a group of frightened grunts gathered nearby.
A smile spread across his face.
"You see? This is what happens when you grunts defy an Elite Officer like me."
The terrified group remained silent.
Most stared at the ground.
A few glanced toward the burning corpse pile before quickly looking away.
Eventually one of the grunts gathered enough courage to speak.
"Why did you kill them? All they did was ask what the benefits of joining you were."
The question barely finished leaving his mouth before the stocky man's smile widened.
"Rule number one."
His tone became cold.
"I hate questions."
The surrounding grunts visibly stiffened.
"The only things I want to hear are yes sir and no sir. Do you understand?"
The grunt's face twisted with frustration.
He clearly wanted to respond.
Unfortunately for him, he never got the chance.
The Arbok moved. One moment it stood beside its trainer. The next it had crossed the distance entirely.
The giant serpent wrapped itself around the grunt's body with terrifying speed.
Before anyone could react, its fangs sank into the side of his neck.
The grunt screamed.
A sickly purple color immediately began spreading throughout his body.
The poison worked quickly.
The man's cries became increasingly desperate.
Silas clenched his fists.
The stocky officer watched the suffering without the slightest hint of sympathy.
Eventually he sighed.
"Fine. I'll put you out of your misery."
He looked toward Arbok.
"Do it."
The serpent tightened.
The pressure increased dramatically. A loud crunch echoed throughout the clearing.
The grunt screamed again.
Then the screams stopped.
Silence followed.
The remaining grunts looked completely broken.
Without any hesitation, several were ordered to search the body.
They stripped it of valuables then they threw it onto the burning corpse pile. Just like that, another body added to the fire.
Silas understood the message immediately.
The officer wasn't simply killing people, he was making examples.
Fear was his preferred method of leadership and in this case, it worked. The surviving grunts no longer looked rebellious.
They looked defeated.
In the face of overwhelming power, what could they do?
Silas slowly exhaled.
Fortunately, neither the officer nor the Arbok had detected him.
His aura training and psychic abilities allowed him to erase his presence almost completely.
When supplemented by the energy of his pokemon, the effect became even more impressive.
Unless a pseudo elite pokemon was present, few individuals could detect him at this distance.
Silas carefully retreated.
He didn't stop until the clearing disappeared from sight.
Only then did he turn around. He wasn't a hero. He wasn't some champion of justice destined to save every innocent person he encountered.
His primary concern was himself and his pokemon.
Choosing to fight a battle he couldn't win would accomplish nothing.
Those grunts were strangers.
Even if he somehow managed to rescue them, there was no guarantee they wouldn't betray him later if circumstances changed.
The world wasn't that simple.
Silas regrouped with Jessie and James.
Neither questioned his expression.
Both immediately understood that whatever he had seen wasn't good.
"We need to move ASAP. Pack up now!"
His tone left no room for argument. The group immediately returned to the pond.
Working together, they dismantled the campsite and erased every trace of their presence.
Silas even took time to replenish their water supply.
Using his storage space, he drained several hundred gallons from the lake in a single motion.
The sight still amazed Jessie and James despite having witnessed it numerous times.
Water quality wasn't a concern.
Humans in this world possessed significantly greater resilience than ordinary humans from Silas' previous life. Furthermore, the island remained largely untouched by civilization.
The water was perfectly safe.
As they worked, Silas found himself thinking about the scene he had witnessed.
At least 10 grunts had likely died. Possibly some officers as well.
The stocky Elite Officer hadn't even spared their pokemon. That was what disturbed Silas the most.
Capturing pokemon and selling them at the base was far more profitable. Killing them accomplished nothing.
The man was clearly one of those bloodthirsty individuals who reveled in violence.
People like that were dangerous. Reason couldn't reach them. Logic couldn't influence them. They simply did whatever they wanted.
The encounter reignited Silas' desire for greater strength. Power solved problems. Without it, one could only watch.
Fortunately, the previous 10 days had been productive.
After countless battles and continuous training, his BP balance had climbed to 2,505.
It wasn't enough but it was progress.
Eventually the camp disappeared entirely.
Not even a skilled tracker would easily determine someone had stayed there.
With everything packed, Silas made a decision.
"We're heading back to the base."
The group needed supplies.
They also needed somewhere to sell their recently acquired inventory.
The trip would take roughly half a day on foot.
Flying would be faster but Silas had no intention of risking another encounter with the Altaria. Convenience wasn't worth a pokemon's life.
The Spartan squad traveled cautiously through the wilderness. Traveling on foot had one major advantage; Training never stopped.
Frogadier remained hidden within Silas' shadow.
The ninja pokemon had improved tremendously. It could now remain concealed indefinitely.
The rest of Silas' pokemon stayed within their pokeballs.
All except Eevee.
Eevee had reached level 27. The small pokemon trotted beside Silas while wearing her gravity vest.
Unlike many species, Eevee represented a special case when it came to evolution.
Most pokemon benefited from delaying evolution. Eevee evolved into various different species. As a result, level 30 generally represented the ideal point.
Silas had spoken with Eevee many times regarding her future. The decision belonged to her. He refused to force a particular evolution.
Fortunately, their goals aligned perfectly. She wanted to become the strongest Psychic type possible.
That meant Espeon.
As a result, Silas invested heavily in her with the psychic crystals.
Originally both Eevee and Electabuzz benefited from them.
Now Electabuzz had reached the point where the crystals offered little improvement.
Every remaining crystal went directly to Eevee. The results were obvious. Calm Mind and Stored Power had become the core of her battle style.
Together, the moves transformed Eevee into a dangerous opponent.
Along the journey, Silas allowed Jessie and James to handle any pokemon above level 30.
Everything weaker became Eevee's responsibility.
Unfortunately, the island continued disappointing him.
The levels were acceptable but the poor talent ratings were not. Most wild pokemon barely reached D-rank potential.
Even so, they served as useful training partners.
Whenever Eevee became tired, Tropius would use Grassy Terrain.
Silas supplemented the recovery with Oran Berries.
The combination allowed Eevee to battle far longer than normal.
Meanwhile, her gravity vest had already reached 2.5 times normal gravity.
The training was intense.
Fortunately, Eevee's body adapted exceptionally well.
One memorable battle occurred against a level 32 Mightyena. As expected, Stored Power proved useless because of dark type immunity.
Eevee immediately adapted.
After using 3 Calm Minds, she switched to Swift instead.
The glowing stars bombarded Mightyena from every direction.
The Dark type took significant damage but managed to close the distance and followed up with a fierce crunch. Mightyena was practically foaming at the mouth.
Eevee narrowly avoided the attack.
She immediately retaliated with Quick Attack.
Mightyena barely reacted but then came Double Kick. The Fighting type move proved far more effective.
The final Swift attack ended the battle.
Watching the fight, Silas identified a weakness.
Eevee's special attacks were excellent but her physical attacks lagged behind. The issue wasn't physical conditioning. It was a lack of practice and repetition.
She simply spent far more time training special attacks. Silas made a mental note to correct the imbalance.
By late afternoon, the beach had finally come into view.
The base wasn't much farther.
Suddenly a hoarse voice echoed through the area.
"Halt, traveler! This is a toll road."
Silas froze.
The voice came from somewhere nearby.
Then another answered from a different direction. Silas realized they were surrounded.
Before anyone could react, the ground began shaking. A massive pokemon erupted from beneath the earth.
The imposing Nidoking landed heavily in front of them.
Silas immediately scanned it.
His expression changed. It was at level 48 with B+ potential.
His heart sank.
There had been multiple voices which meant multiple opponents. They were caught off guard and badly outmatched.
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Thanks for the continued support on my first fanfic!!
Moving forward, every 50 Power Stones, I will release a bonus chapter.
I will also be releasing bonus chapters for milestones. The next ones are 100k views and chapter 100.
Finally, I will be releasing 3 extra chapters once we reach 10 reviews. 5 star reviews are appreciated but not required, I want honest feedback so I can improve.
Once again, thanks for all the support and feedback!