The ground was torn up and uneven. Scorch marks and frost from clashing energy attacks scarred the surface. Broken rocks were scattered everywhere, and in some places, the stone had been eaten away by lingering Ghost-type energy.
The air was chaos itself. Pokémon roared. Trainers shouted commands. The wounded cried out. Ghost-types let out shrill, hair-raising screams. The smell of blood and burning hung so thick that even Kairos couldn't help frowning.
Ferro took a deep breath and stepped forward, ready to introduce Kairos to a few nearby squad leaders.
Then everything changed.
At the far end of the canyon, the warped space began to ripple like boiling water. A violent energy shockwave burst outward, sweeping through like a tidal wave, even more unstable and destructive than before.
"Woooo—!"
A piercing alarm echoed across the canyon. It was the highest-level alert. A second surge of the Ghost World Tide.
"Damn it! Another big wave incoming!" a booming voice roared across the battlefield. "All units, maximum alert!"
Sirens blared. Pokémon roared in response. From the churning gray mist deep in the canyon, Ghost-types poured out like a collapsed dam. There were more of them than before, their forms even more twisted and grotesque. The red glow in their eyes was so intense it looked almost solid.
Haunter, Dusclops, Misdreavus, Drifloon, Banette. Even several massive Drifblim and Trevenant.
They surged forward in a frenzy, slamming into the already strained defensive line.
And within this wave, something new appeared.
Strands of dark mist seeped out from the canyon depths, writhing like countless living black snakes.
The mist seemed aware. It avoided humans and their Pokémon entirely, slipping past them to coil around the frenzied Ghost-types that had emerged from the Ghost World.
The moment the mist touched them, it either fused into their bodies or wrapped around them like something alive.
The effect was immediate.
The wild red light in their eyes flared brighter. Their auras climbed steadily, as if they'd been injected with something.
A Dusclops that had been at Elite level suddenly absorbed a thick strand of mist. Its body swelled, its shrieks grew sharper, and its power spiked to nearly Elite Four challenger level.
"It's those damn things!" a Nightwatch member shouted. "They're getting stronger again!"
The pressure on the defensive line skyrocketed. Trainers who had barely been holding on were suddenly pushed to the brink.
A Drifblim enhanced by the dark mist twisted into a sinister grin. It tore open a gap in the encirclement, its Shadow Claw slicing toward an Alliance trainer.
"Dusknoir!" Ferro roared.
The massive Dusknoir at his side was already moving. Despite its size, it shot forward with shocking speed, planting itself in front of the endangered trainer.
Its enormous arm swung out, dragging a swirling black vortex that collided head-on with the Drifblim's Shadow Claw.
Boom!
Shadow energy exploded outward. The Drifblim was blasted back, but a deep claw mark now scarred Dusknoir's arm. Wisps of dark energy clung stubbornly to the wound.
"Gengar, Confuse Ray! Chandelure, wide-area Will-O-Wisp!"
Kairos's voice cut cleanly through the chaos as he stepped into the fight.
Gengar let out a cold laugh, crimson pupils blazing. Dozens of eerie light orbs scattered forward like sparks, striking the charging Ghost-types with pinpoint accuracy.
Those hit by Confuse Ray immediately lost coordination. Some spun in place. Others turned on their own allies. The advancing wave faltered.
Chandelure's ghostly red flames flared high. Dozens of chilling fire wisps drifted outward in a wide fan.
This wasn't precise crowd control. This was area denial.
Sizzle. Whoosh.
The frenzied Ghost-types ignited like dry brush. Haunter or Drifloon, it didn't matter. Their bodies were instantly wrapped in ghostly red fire.
The weaker ones collapsed almost immediately.
Those strengthened by the dark mist screamed as the mist around them churned violently, trying to resist the flames.
It didn't work.
Under sustained burning, the mist thinned rapidly and finally dissipated. Stripped of the enhancement, their auras dropped sharply. Soon after, they too were overwhelmed by the Will-O-Wisp and lost the ability to fight.
Kairos's intervention had an immediate impact.
Within dozens of meters in front of him, the charging tide of Ghost-types had been forcibly cleared.
For a split second, the battlefield seemed to freeze.
"So… so strong!"
"Who is that?"
"Reinforcements from the Third Outpost? Captain Ferro brought him?"
Shocked voices rang out.
Nightwatch members and Alliance trainers alike turned toward the young man standing beside Ferro. His expression was calm. A Chandelure wreathed in ghostly red flames floated at his side, along with a noticeably larger-than-average Gengar.
Ferro let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. He had blocked the Drifblim earlier, but he knew the truth. Against a wave like that, especially with the dark mist amplifying them, he and Dusknoir alone couldn't have turned the tide.
Kairos had changed everything.
"Don't just stand there!" someone shouted, raising an arm. "Now's our chance! Counterattack! Push them back!"
Morale surged.
With Kairos holding the line and Ferro coordinating, the trainers rallied. Pokémon launched attack after attack. Brilliant flashes of moves lit up the canyon again, and the thunder of clashing energy grew louder.
This time, the momentum shifted.
With Kairos supporting them, the defense flowed far more smoothly.
Gengar moved like an assassin in the shadows, using Confuse Ray to shatter enemy formations and Shadow Ball to pick off stragglers.
Chandelure functioned like a living artillery piece. Its ghostly flames formed walls of fire to block advances and condensed into waves of Will-O-Wisp to sweep entire areas clean.
Under this pressure, the wave of frenzied Ghost-types was gradually driven back. The survivors shrieked as they retreated into the warped space deep within the canyon.
When the final Haunter fell to a Flamethrower, silence briefly descended.
Only heavy breathing remained, along with the low groans of exhausted Pokémon and injured trainers.
Many people sank to the ground, even veteran Nightwatch members. Their faces carried that hollow, stunned look that came after surviving something they shouldn't have.
Based on past experience, a secondary surge like that would have cost them dearly. With the strange mist in play, casualties were usually inevitable.
But this time was different.
Because of the young man's intervention, they had held the line. Losses were far lighter than anyone had expected.
Grateful eyes turned toward Kairos.
"Th… thank you!"
The Alliance trainer who had nearly been ambushed forced himself to stand and bowed deeply, his voice still shaking.
"Thank you for saving me!"
Several Nightwatch squad leaders approached and saluted him solemnly, their expressions filled with respect.
"Man, that was insane!" a blood-covered bounty hunter grinned, giving Kairos a thumbs up. "Those moves were incredible!"
Kairos shook his head lightly. "No need," he said calmly. "You're the ones holding this place, keeping these frenzied Pokémon from reaching the cities. You're protecting ordinary people. I should be thanking you."
His gaze swept over the exhausted, wounded trainers still standing their posts. No matter the world, people like this were indispensable.
His words struck home. The Nightwatch members and Alliance trainers looked at him differently now.
Kairos turned his attention toward the canyon depths, where gray mist and traces of dark vapor still lingered.
He gestured toward the drifting black mist. "What do you know about that? It only targets Ghost-types from the Ghost World. It doesn't affect us at all."
An older Nightwatch member followed his gaze, concern etched deep into his face.
"You noticed it too. We call it Soul-Eroding Mist."
He sighed heavily. "It seeps out from the depths whenever the Ghost World Tide erupts. It gets thicker every time. Like you saw, it only approaches the frenzied Pokémon and seems to deliberately avoid us."
"Ghost-types that merge with it become even more violent. Their power jumps significantly, and they're much harder to handle. We've tried everything: energy bombardment, barriers, isolation. Nothing works very well."
He shook his head, frustration evident in his eyes. "All we know is that it seems tied to the Tide itself. Maybe it's a manifestation of that chaotic energy. What it really is, how to deal with it… I've been guarding this place for decades and still don't have the answer."
Kairos frowned.
Even the veterans stationed here long-term knew so little.
He glanced at his system interface. It offered only vague information such as "high-concentration pollution source."
Not surprising. His system wasn't built for detailed environmental analysis.
Ferro walked back over after arranging emergency treatment for the wounded. His expression was intense.
"Mr. Kairos! Thank goodness you stepped in. If you hadn't acted when you did, we would've taken serious losses today."
He clapped Kairos on the shoulder, unable to hide his emotion.
"On behalf of everyone here, thank you."
Without waiting for a reply, he continued.
"Your strength speaks for itself. This Ghost World Tide has only just begun. We don't know how many more waves are coming, and the pressure deeper inside will only increase."
"We're stretched thin, especially when it comes to high-level fighters. Would you consider staying and helping us hold this sector for a while? Just until we get through the worst of this surge."
"The Nightwatch Fortress will compensate you properly. Whatever resources or payment you need, as long as our Ghost World division can provide it, it's yours."
He looked at Kairos with open anticipation.
Having someone capable of clearing the field against Elite Four–level Ghost-types would be an enormous boost. It could mean the difference between holding the line and collapsing.
Kairos slowly shook his head.
His eyes drifted past Ferro toward the depths of the canyon, where the dark radiance churned and the Soul-Eroding Mist still lingered.
"I'm sorry. I came here for something else. I can't stay."
The eagerness on Ferro's face froze, giving way to disappointment. He opened his mouth to argue, but Kairos raised a hand to stop him.
In Kairos's vision, the map hovering before him suddenly flashed.
An enormous red dot had appeared.
It sat at the very core of the Ghost World's deepest zone.
The red dot pulsed like a heartbeat.
With each pulse, it absorbed countless tiny points of chaotic energy around it, swelling at an alarming rate.
This wasn't a natural energy node. It wasn't an ordinary Pokémon nest.
Kairos stared at it for several seconds.
He was nearly certain.
That red dot was the core of the Ghost World Tide eruption. If he could eliminate it, or at least understand what it was, the chaos here might be resolved at its source.
He dismissed the interface and looked back at Ferro.
"If I'm going to head into the Ghost World's interior, I need some information. How do I get there? And what key dangers should I watch out for along the way?"
Ferro went completely still.
He had assumed Kairos wanted to search for resources or capture rare Ghost-types in the outer zones.
He hadn't expected this.
This young man wasn't interested in the outskirts.
He was aiming straight for the core.
Around them, Nightwatch members and Alliance trainers who overheard the question turned to stare at Kairos as if he had just announced he planned to walk into a volcano.