Watching Xiaodie and Xiaoda safely exit the secret realm, Su Feng turned to Dragonite who was still deep in thought.
"So, made up your mind?"
"Draaah. (No. Proud dragons never initiate peace with forest dwellers.)" Dragonite shook his head firmly.
"Easy fix." Su Feng snapped his fingers. "I'll go then. I'm on good terms with them anyway."
"Draaah. (Acceptable.)" Dragonite nodded immediately, having waited for this exact proposal. As a neutral third party, Su Feng was perfect for mediating.
Su Feng scratched his head. The quick agreement made him feel manipulated somehow.
Whatever. Results mattered.
"I'll convince the forest dwellers. You handle your clan's objections." Su Feng assigned tasks, worried about dragon dissent.
Dragonite shrugged—this was his duty anyway.
"Another hour-long walk..." Su Feng sighed toward the canyon exit. He didn't mind walking, but worried readers would call it filler content.
"Draaah? (Need a lift?)" Dragonite offered. He'd avoided carrying all three humans earlier, but now...
Su Feng's eyes lit up: "Hell yes!"
Who could refuse a Mach 2 dragon ride?
Nearby, Dragapult eavesdropping perked up. Though accompanied by two Dreepy, staying in this sunless canyon grew tedious. How he longed to bask in meadows with his Dreepy!
Storing Growlithe in Pokéballs, Su Feng climbed onto Dragonite's back.
"Draaah. (Hold tight.)"
With razor-focused eyes, Dragonite leaped skyward, accelerating to Mach 2 in ten seconds.
The G-forces slammed Su Feng flat against Dragonite's back, nearly knocking him unconscious. Without biological force fields like superheroes, humans endured the same physics as their mounts.
Once stabilized at cruising speed, Su Feng weakly lifted his head. The drone buzzed persistently nearby, capturing his狼狈 state from all angles at Mach 2 without breaking a sweat.
[OMG the canyon below is zipping past! That's definitely supersonic!]
[How is Wind Bro surviving this without protection? Superspy genes?]
[666! Wind Bro's OP, but this drone's even more OP!]
[Thought the Mach 2 thing was a joke... Holy hell!]
[Thank god Wind Bro warned us about Pokémon. Imagine pissing off a Mach 2 dragon...]
[Forget moves—its body alone could turn us into salsa...]
[Eating here! Stop the gore talk!]
Before Su Feng could comment, Dragonite decelerated, landing at the forest border.
"We're... here already?" Su Feng blinked. One minute?
"Draaah. (Obviously.)" Dragonite side-eyed him, as if questioning his grasp of physics.
"Draaah. (Can't go further—forest dwellers' patrols start here.)" The dragon glanced warily at the trees. While he could overpower the forest's defensive Fearow flock, they could stall him—not worth the hassle.
Rustling came from nearby bushes as Dragonite smirked. Gardevoir's concern for this human exceeded expectations—perfect.
"Draaah. (Go. See you soon.)"
With a wing flap, Dragonite vanished like a fired cannonball.
From the bushes emerged a familiar figure.
"Sceptile? You're here?"
"Grooove. (Gardevoir foresaw your return.)" The forest guardian replied coolly.
"She knew?" Su Feng marveled. He hadn't planned this return himself.
But considering Gardevoir's power, Future Sight seemed plausible. No wonder dragons avoided provoking her—this temporal cheat code let her steer events favorably.