Chapter 326: Beginning of the End (7)
~Third POV~
[Hoenn Region, Later, Route 108]
The saline air hung heavy over the turbulent patch of ocean where the battle had begun and ended, only moments before, with the incredible departure of two legendary titans. High above the sky were Kyogre, once four Gym Leaders.
Below, the four Hoenn Gym Leaders—Wattson, Winona, Norman, and Flannery—were left momentarily stunned, then relieved. The immediate cosmic threat had been neutralized, albeit by a stranger.
Wattson murmured, wiping sweat from his brow, his yellow jumpsuit slightly scorched, "Well, that was rather shocking, wasn't it?"
His Manectric flickered nervously beside him, "Bark!"
Winona, the commanding figure of the group, agreed, her voice tight, "Shocking, indeed. But the danger is not over. Team Aqua will not tolerate this outcome."
As if on cue, the distant whine of powerful water vehicles cut through the wind. Two figures on motorized skiffs, radiating pure, incandescent fury, sped toward them.
It was Shelly and Matt, the Subleaders of the Sea Scheme (SSS). Matt bellowed, his massive frame shaking with rage, "They caught it! That… that Kantonian bastard stole our future!"
Shelly hissed, though her face was equally thunderous as she ordered, "Control yourself, Matt! Amber should be here soon. We need to stabilize the situation and retrieve Kyogre for the Boss."
*Beep*
Shelly's communication device chirped frantically. Amber was indeed on his way. As they discussed their plan of attack—a coordinated water-based assault—a sonic boom ripped through the air above them.
*BOOOM*
Shelly looked up, anticipating the arrival of her comrade, "Amber, already?"
*Fwp*
*Wooosh*
She was proven catastrophically wrong. A powerful, swirling vortex of energy impacted their skiffs. The force sent water spraying thirty feet high, knocking Matt off balance.
*PEW*
It was a Dragon Breath attack, potent and precise. Hovering just above the cloud cover, the figure was Winona, having been given clearance to engage.
Her magnificent Altaria, its wings like cotton clouds, banked sharply, immediately focusing its aggression on Matt. Winona's voice carried the authority of the skies, "You'll not touch my colleagues, pirate!"
*Pop*
Matt roared and sent out his Sharpedo, which attempted to leap from the water and strike Altaria with a powerful Crunch. But the speed of the Dragon/Flying-type was overwhelming. Altaria dipped and weaved, blasting sharp Drill Peck attacks that forced Sharpedo back into the turbulent sea.
*SMACK*
Norman, the stoic Gym Leader of Petalburg, joined the aerial fray, his majestic Flygon using swift Sandstorm attacks to disorient Matt's Pokémon further, ensuring Winona maintained the advantage. Seeing Matt pinned down, Shelly turned her attention to Winona, ready to deploy her own aquatic counter-strategy.
*Sssss*
Before she could move, a wave of blistering heat washed over her. Flannery, wildfire burning in her eyes, stood blocking Shelly's path as she roared, "Oh no, you don't, hussy! Wait a second – "
Her deep recognition was immediate. Flannery's youthful determination solidified into rigid focus as she yelled, "You! You're the one from Mount Chimney! You tried to kill the volcano. You won't escape justice this time!"
Shelly, annoyed at the interruption and the recognition, smirked as she taunted Flannery, "A little firecracker, aren't you? Fine. Let's see if your heat can match the deep pressure of the sea."
*Ssssss*
*Wooosh*
Shelly dodged a rapid-fire Ember from Flannery's Torkoal and charged, engaging the fiery Gym Leader in proximity, a necessary distraction to buy Matt time. While the fierce 2 vs 2 battle raged, Wattson used the opportunity to withdraw slightly, applying specialized healing items to his Manectric and his Magneton.
He muttered, adjusting his Full Restores and Berries for his Electric types as he cautiously said, "A quick recharge, old boy. You've done a lot battling that mighty Pokémon. But with Kyogre captured, our primary goal shifts from defense to neutralizing these misguided activists for good."
He surveyed the chaos, fully expecting Team Aqua to attempt a coordinated retrieval. But then a new voice echoed was a low, oily drawl, confirming Wattson's suspicions, "Azure has Kyogre, huh?"
*Splash*
Wattson jumped, turning to find the speaker slowly rising out of the water, a smirk plastered across his angular face. It was Amber. Amber said, fully emerging from the choppy water, dripping wet, "Thank you for the update, Wattson. We appreciate the intelligence."
The battle instantly escalated to a three-on-four engagement. Amber wasted no time, quickly grabbing a Poké Ball...
*Pop*
He tossed a Poké Ball, and a large Pelipper emerged, flapping lazily. He ordered, "Pelipper, use Stockpile now! Then Spit Up on that electric mutt!"
*PEW*
Pelipper absorbed energy quickly, then launched the stored power in a concentrated blast of stored kinetic force directly at Wattson's Manectric. The attack landed, scoring a solid hit on Manectric.
*BAM*
Amber crowed, seeing his attack hit, "Hah! The ocean always wins!"
Wattson retorted, his eyes flashing as he countered confidently, "Never underestimate the power of a charged particle, boy! Manectric, Thunder Bolt! Full power!"
*KA-BOOOM*
The resulting blast of raw electricity was overwhelming. Pelipper, already weakened by previous skirmishes and the residual energy of the legendary confrontation, crumpled instantly, knocked out cold before it hit the water.
*Thud*
Amber blinked, genuinely surprised. He cursed under his breath as he muttered disdainfully, "Well, damn. I left the rest of my main team behind at Seafloor Cavern. That was an effective counter, I admit."
*Wooosh*
Shelly, momentarily breaking away from her dance with Flannery, looked back. She tossed a spare Poké Ball to Amber, yelling, "Take this, Amber. Use it wisely!"
*TAP*
Amber caught it eagerly. He saw the Pokémon inside as he smirked, replying, "A Nincada! Excellent choice, Shelly. I owe you one."
Wattson merely chuckled, readying Manectric for its next opponent. He said jokingly, with a serious expression on his face, "A Bug-type? Against a fully charged Electric-type? You must be truly desperate, son."
*Pop*
Amber grinned, releasing the small bug Pokémon in a confident tone, "Desperate, perhaps. Predictable, never."
*Shiii*
Nincada, vibrating with released power, immediately began to glow, its form rapidly stretching and growing. Wattson watched, dumbfounded, as the small creature quickly evolved into its sleek, winged form: Ninjask.
Seeing the newly evolved Ninjask, Amber commanded, "Go, Ninjask! Show him the power of speed! Fury Cutter!"
*Zooom*
The newly evolved Pokémon was terrifyingly fast. Its innate Ability, Speed Boost, activated instantly, and Ninjask was a blur, already far outpacing Manectric. It struck Manectric repeatedly with blinding cuts, the electrical canine struggling to keep up with the overwhelming velocity.
*Shinng*
*Shinng*
Wattson admitted, adjusting his strategy mid-battle as he followed up, commanding, "Clever, I'll grant you that! But electricity can be instantaneous. Manectric! Use Double Team!"
*Wooosh*
Manectric obeyed, splitting into a dozen shimmering duplicates. The clones created a field of visual static, confusing Ninjask's trajectory. Though the speed was still there, the precision was lost.
*BAM*
The original Manectric seized the fractional moment of confusion, slamming into the real Ninjask and pinning it to the ground. Wattson bellowed, seeing the Ninjask pinned, "Now! Finish this with Thunder!"
*KA-BOOOOM*
A massive, deafening bolt of blue-white energy descended from the sky, impacting the pinned Ninjask. The attack was devastating, defeating the evolved bug instantly upon contact.
However, the immense strain of the electrical discharge, combined with the earlier damage from Pelipper and the rapid strikes from Ninjask, was too much for Manectric. The electric dog shuddered once, slumped, and collapsed, knocked out alongside its opponent.
*Thud*
Wattson surveyed the two fallen Pokémon, still having his Magneton and Electabuzz ready for battle as he recalled his Manectric, "Well, the advantage remains with the Gym Leaders! We win that round!"
Amber replied, a strange calm in his voice, "Do you, Wattson?"
*Buzzz*
Unseen a few feet away, lying where Nincada's discarded shell had fallen, a third, ghostly figure slowly materialized: Shedinja. Wattson, focused on the immediate battle and his remaining Pokémon, completely missed the new threat.
*Zooom*
The Shedinja flew to attack Wattson, but Norman didn't. His eyes narrowed, recognizing the eerie, silent approach of the Ghost/Bug-type.
Norman shouted, throwing a Poké Ball mid-glare at Amber, ordering, "Wattson! Behind you! Kangaskhan! Sucker Punch, now!"
*Pop*
The massive, maternal Pokémon emerged mid-strike, its huge fist hurtling toward the seemingly invulnerable Shedinja. The attack landed with a dull thwack, as its fist coated in darkness landed a Sucker Punch.
*THWAK*
Shedinja, which should have knocked out Wattson, has been swiftly defeated by Kangaskhan's Sucker Punch. Amber stared in shock as he yelled, "Impossible! Wonder Guard should have negated that!"
*THUD*
Norman's Flygon landed beside him, the Gym Leader's posture radiating cold focus. He briefly explained bluntly to the foolish man, "You forget that not every Trainer relies on pure power. Your Shedinija Wonder Guard could only be hit by super-effective attacks. Fire, Flying, Rock, Ghost, and… Dark-type moves."
Norman advanced on the Admin, not bothering with a Pokémon battle anymore, cracking his knuckles as he continued, "You lost because you underestimated the depth of our knowledge, the skill we honed defending this land. Now… here's your punishment!"
*Wooosh*
*SMASH*
Norman raised a fist, the same one that had trained countless local competitors. He struck Amber squarely in the jaw, knocking the Team Aqua Admin out cold. Amber splashed into the water, unconscious.
*THUD*
Matt cried out in horror, attempting to rush out of the aerial battle to help his fallen comrade, "Amber!"
*Wooosh*
He never made it. Winona swooped low on Altaria, blocking his path. Winona stated simply, "Your focus is here, Matt."
Shelly, though clearly rattled by Amber's swift and ignominious defeat, gritted her teeth. She yelled at Matt, "Matt, calm yourself. In pursuit of Team Aqua's noble goal, sacrifices are inevitable. Those who fall will be remembered in the new history we forge."
Winona tensed, ready to strike Shelly. She harshly replied, issuing a command, "A chilling sentiment. Altaria, Dragon Dance!"
But Altaria merely hovered, giving a curious, discordant chirp. It refused to obey the command, surprising Winona.
Matt interjected smugly, a sliver of defiance returning to his eyes, "Your Altaria will not neglect its duty, Winona. While you were distracted, I had my Sharpedo use Taunt on your Pokémon. Unless you have an attacking move in mind, she'll be forced to use only attacking moves, or she simply won't listen."
Winona, though visibly annoyed by the low tactic, gave a measured nod as she muttered, giving Norman and Wattson time to enter the fight, "Clever. A display of teamwork, at least. Subleaders of the Sea Scheme, is it?"
Shelly confirmed, offering a sarcastic bow, analyzing the scene before her, "SSS, for short. A compliment, coming from the Gym Commander."
Enraged by the Admins' sudden, if brief, tactical success, Flannery ordered a fierce counterattack as she ordered, "Ninetales! Use Flamethrower on Shelly!"
*Sssss*
A torrent of brilliant orange fire hurtled toward Shelly…
*SPLASH*
… but before it could connect, a powerful jet of pressurized water erupted from the sea, neutralizing the flames in a hiss of steam. Flannery assumed it was Matt's Sharpedo, but Shelly shook her head, smirking proudly.
*Pop*
Shelly said proudly, releasing her surprise Pokémon: Ludicolo, "You're fighting on our ground, little firecracker! Ludicolo's Nature Power!"
*Shiii*
Shelly explained the ability as Ludicolo bobbed gently on the waves in a confident tone, "Depending on the terrain, Nature Power transforms. In the dense forest, it might be Razor Leaf. In the caves, Shadow Ball. But here, bathed in the nurturing essence of the ocean, it becomes pure Hydro Pump."
*SPLASH*
She pointed to the churning sea around them as she boldly declared, issuing her commands, "We want to raise the sea, Flannery, because all life came from it. The world belongs to us! Ludicolo! Attack!"
*SPLASH*
The Ludicolo responded with another colossal Hydro Pump, aimed directly at Flannery's Ninetales. Flannery braced herself, preparing to pivot her team defensively…
*CLANG*
… But before the water blast could land, a behemoth struck. Wattson and Norman had converged as Wattson commanded his Magneton, "Magneton! Protect! No way I'm letting this firecracker flame sizzle out just yet!"
Norman, wasting no time, tossed a Poké Ball, releasing his Ace Pokémon…
*Pop*
Slaking emerged onto the field. Norman's eyes narrowed as he ordered coldly, "Slaking! End this! Giga Impact!"
*BOOOOM*
The sheer, overwhelming force of Slaking's charge, focused into the deadly Normal-type attack, was explosive. It hit Ludicolo with ground-shaking momentum, instantly defeating the Water/Grass-type.
The battle was a resounding defeat for the Admins.
Seeing the inevitable conclusion—Amber unconscious, their chief strategic Pokémon defeated, and four Gym Leaders converging—Shelly and Matt exchanged grim glances. They nodded in synchronous defeat, their final, desperate plan ready, reaching for their Poke Balls on their belt…
*Pop*
They both released their respective Starmie, the core of their remaining team. The purple gems at the center of the Starmie began to glow, humming with teleportation energy.
*Shiii*
Wattson's eyes widened as he shouted, "Winona, stop them!"
*Shiii*
But Flannery was faster as she reacted first before Winona could take the chance. Before the Teleport effect could fully engage, she moved Ninetales's focus as she ordered, "Ninetales, Disable the Starmie's! Now!"
*TING*
The Starmie's mental focus was jarred, the teleportation power dying in mid-charge. The Admins froze, caught in the delay.
Flannery wasn't done as she pressed forward, "Finish it, Ninetales! Hypnosis!"
*Shiii*
A subtle, swirling pattern of light emanated from Ninetales's multiple tails, washing over the two remaining Team Aqua Admins. Shelly and Matt swayed, their fighting spirits instantly extinguished, their heads lulling as they fell into deep sleep, leaving them utterly defenseless.
*Thud*
Winona swooped down, her movement precise and commanding, grabbing the two slumbering Admins. Wattson and Norman quickly secured their remaining Pokémon, locking the Poké Balls in specialized, non-releasable restraints to prevent any further intervention or calls for help.
The water vehicles were secured, the Admins were captured, and the battle was decisively over. The Subleaders of the Sea Scheme had been defeated and placed under arrest.
The Gym Leaders breathed a coordinated sigh of exhaustion and relief. The ocean, however, remained restless, churning with the knowledge that while Kyogre was gone, Groudon still remained to be dealt with, somewhere beneath the shifting sands of Hoenn.
As they secured the SSS, Norman's eyes turned to the distance as he muttered, "Hopefully, they can contain Groudon soon. And I just hope Ruby and Sapphire didn't bite off more than they can chew…"
/////
[Hoenn Region, Meanwhile, Lilycove City – Lilycove Museum]
The sky above Lilycove City was a bruised, oppressive gray, not from clouds, but from the steam and particulate matter churned up by the raging Groudon far offshore. The city itself, abandoned in the hasty evacuation, was eerily silent, save for the rhythmic crash of manufactured waves and the distant, earth-shaking rumble of the legendary Pokémon's fury.
The coordinated efforts were underway. Wattson and the other Hoenn Gym Leaders had managed to neutralize the Subleaders, clearing the way for the Elite Four and the Hoenn Champions to focus on the main threat.
At the epicenter of the dead city, the grand Lilycove Museum stood, its polished granite façade reflecting the distorted, humid light. This structure, dedicated to Hoenn's natural history and art, now served as an unwilling arena.
Inside the museum's main hall, Dark met Fire.
*Tmp*
Sidney, the Hoenn Elite Four member specializing in Dark-type Pokémon, landed lightly after a brief flight courtesy of his Hydreigon, letting the massive Dragon soar down with its Levitate Ability. He deposited his charge, Blaise, one of Team Magma's Three Fires, onto the ornate marble floor.
*Thud*
Sidney commented, adjusting the sunglasses perched precariously on his spiked lavender violet hair, "Charming. A little dusty, but the ambiance is certainly… abandoned. Just the right spot for you to cool off… Blaise, right?"
Blaise was a man fueled by zeal and burning ambition, traits that manifested physically in the intense heat radiating from his skin. He sneered, his eyes narrow slits of anger as he growled disdainfully, "You think a few shadows can stop the glorious rebirth of the land? You think this small battle matters when Groudon is awakening the continent?"
Sidney replied, a bored drawl masking coiled intensity, "Oh, it matters to me, bub. The Boss asked for cleanup duty. I hate cleanup."
*Wooosh*
He raised a hand, and a shadow detached itself from the gloom of the vaulted ceiling—his massive, three-headed partner, Hydreigon. The battle began without preamble as the mighty Brutal Pokémon roared, "HYYYY!!! (Blood for the blood god!!)"
Blaise seized the initiative, determined to turn the museum into a sauna. Blaise bellowed, tossing a Poke ball, "Magcargo, roast him!"
*Pop*
*Sssss*
The magma snail erupted from its Poké Ball, its shell a molten landscape of cooling lava. Instantly, the oppressive humidity in the chamber spiked to an unbearable level. Magcargo unleashed Flamethrower, but its primary effect wasn't the attack itself; it was the intense, immediate thermal output.
The air shimmered, thick and viscous, turning the vast hall into a grotto of perpetual twilight, where heat distortion made lines blur and motion unreliable. Sidney scoffed, though he felt the sweat immediately prickling his sleeves as he ordered, "Hydreigon! Use Dark Pulse!"
*PEW*
Hydreigon unleashed a terrifying volley of dark energy, but the heat was already taking its toll. Sidney, relying heavily on his sight and sense of movement, found the targeting difficult.
*Wooosh*
His vision swam, and the air felt like liquid glass. Suddenly, a massive, scalding-hot claw—seemingly manifesting from the heat haze—slashed across Hydreigon's flank. The Dark/Dragon-type cried out, a sound of agony and rage, the scent of singed hide briefly overpowering the sulfur.
Blaise crowed, "Hah! Too slow, Elite Four!"
Sidney blinked, wiping moisture from his face. He checked Hydreigon.
The burn was genuine, a painful reddish stripe across the scales. He cursed under his breath. Hydreigon, enraged, followed the phantom claw back to Magcargo and slammed a focused Dragon Pulse into its center mass.
*Wooosh*
The attack struck true, a blinding emerald flash. But when the light dissipated, Magcargo was gone. Sidney murmured, suddenly alert, "A mirage? Heat haze combined with a quick retreat? That's cheap, even for Team Magma."
The heat didn't recede; it intensified, suffocating them both. Sidney realized his visual impairment was critical. He took a calculated step back, moving towards the heavy velvet rope surrounding a display dedicated to ancient Hoenn culture.
*Tmp*
He leaned back instinctively, resting a hand near a massive, gilded painting of a stern-faced noblewoman from the region's founding era. That was when the static tableau of the museum shattered.
The painted noblewoman's eyes blinked open, a deep, unsettling indigo. Her canvas-dry hand emerged from the frame, thick with cracked paint, and seized Sidney's forearm with surprising strength.
*GRIP*
Sidney yelled, genuinely startled, "What the hell—!?"
A horrified shriek tore from Hydreigon's three throats, "Graooo!!!"
The other paintings along the wall—seascapes, portraits of ancient Pokémon, battle scenes—began to twist and warp. Figures stepped off the canvas, spectral, silent, and beginning to close in.
*Ripple*
The floor seemed to ripple, and the pillars around them took on the shape of grotesque, grinning faces staring at them. Sidney yanked his arm free, stumbling back as the museum instantly transformed from a historical archive into a terrifying nightmare.
He and Hydreigon bolted, their polished retreat turning into a frantic scramble through corridors that now seemed endless and haunted. Sidney ducked a massive, animated Porygon statue that lunged at him, "Calm down, partner! It's all fake—Haaargh!"
*PEW*
Hydreigon was beyond calming. It roared, spitting useless Dark Pulses at figures that dissolved upon contact, the rage of being tricked compounded by the pain of the lingering burn, "HYYYYY!!!"
It despised weakness and deception, and this whole scenario reeked of both. Blaise's voice echoed through the chaotic, hallucinated hall, smug and confident, "Give up, Sidney! You can't fight what you can't see, and you certainly can't fight what isn't real! My mastery of heat and distraction is absolute. You're lost in the fire and the shadows!"
Sidney skidded to a halt behind a colossal, illusory display case. He struggled to catch his breath, not from exertion, but from the thermal stress. Sidney gasped, his voice tight, "You've certainly got flair, I'll give you that…"
Blaise replied from somewhere close, yet always obscured by the heat haze and the dancing illusions, "Flair won't stop Groudon, but it will stop you!"
Sidney finally straightened, the panic in his posture vanishing, replaced by a cold, predatory focus. He smoothed out his jacket, and his breathing evened out immediately. The heat suddenly seemed less irritating, more of a minor inconvenience.
He let a slow, cruel smirk spread across his face, one that made Blaise falter slightly in his movements. Sidney said coldly, his voice dropping to a low, carrying growl, the playful inflection gone, "You know… You're awfully chatty for someone who's playing with his food."
Blaise frowned. He rebutted in a defiant tone, "What are you talking about? You're clearly in distress! Your Hydreigon is wounded and terrified!"
Sidney leaned forward, his eyes burning through the gloom as he asked Blaise a question, "Tell me, Blaise. What are Dark-types best known for… other than being pure, brutal, battle-hardened Pokémon?"
Before Blaise could respond, the whole scene snapped.
*SNAP*
The terrifying noblewoman melted back into her canvas. The grinning statues dissolved into inert granite. The endless corridor collapsed into the original, short museum hall. The oppressive, shimmering heat haze vanished, replaced by the normal, stifling humidity of the coast.
Blaise stumbled back two full steps, gasping. He looked around wildly, his mind struggling to integrate the sudden, jarring return to reality.
He stared at Sidney. Sidney was still standing by the painting. Hydreigon was beside him, its three heads held high, its eyes still narrowed in displeasure—but the searing burn across its flank?
It was gone. There had never been a burn.
Sidney finished smoothly, gesturing to the air as he smugly said with a cocky grin, "Illusion. Trickery at its finest. You thought you were fighting a heat-induced hallucination. You were fighting a Dark-type trap."
*Swf*
Emerging from the shadow of Hydreigon's triple neck, two new Pokémon materialized as if they had been waiting patiently. One was a sleek, magnificent Zoroark, its scarlet mane flowing like dark flames.
It looked vaguely bored, having just shed the elaborate Illusion that had manifested the entire haunted museum show and convincingly fabricated Hydreigon's injury. The other was a monstrous Houndoom, its coat obsidian black, steam rising from its jagged horns, its fangs bared in a silent, menacing grin…
*Sssss*
The residual heat that had filled the room was rapidly dissipating, absorbed into the Houndoom's body, fueling its rage. Sidney explained, nodding towards his dog, "Flash Fire. Any residual heat you tried to keep active went straight into my powerhouse. Thank you for the setup."
Blaise felt a terrifying, cold dread seep into his core. He had wasted valuable time, energy, and focus fighting phantoms and relying on a single, flawed data point—the visible damage on Hydreigon—which had been a complete lie.
Blaise yelled, spinning around, desperate to locate his primary Fire-type, "Magcargo! Where are you!!"
He found it immediately, collapsed in a smoking pile of cooled rock and magma near a display case of ancient pottery. It was brutally beaten, its defeat so swift and decisive that Blaise hadn't even registered the blow beneath the visual chaos of the illusion.
Blaise's eyes dilated, panting from genuine fear as he thought worriedly, 'That Fox Pokémon must have slipped away moments after the battle began to deliver the knockout blow. And I didn't notice this…'
Sidney's demeanor had completely shifted. He was no longer the bored Elite Four member hoping to finish the job quickly; now he was the executioner, relishing the moment of absolute psychological dominance.
Sidney stated bluntly, his voice laced with disdain, looking down on Blaise, "You fell for Zoroark's Illusion Ability hook, line, and sinker. You think your Fire is hot? My types thrive in the shadows and the dark. We are brutal to our core, punk. We don't just defeat you. We expose you."
*Tmp*
Blaise took another involuntary step back, his eyes wide with a fear that had nothing to do with Groudon's tectonic fury and everything to do with the predatory power standing before him.
He fumbled for another Poké Ball, ordering, "Magmar! Teleport, now!"
*Pop*
Magmar materialized, its body glowing with contained fire, ready for a desperate rescue. But Dark-types are known for speed as much as stealth.
Magmar hadn't even fully solidified from the red light before Hydreigon was upon it. Sidney's command was low, sharp, and merciless, "Hydreigon! Volley attack! Dark Pulse, Dragon Pulse, and Crunch!"
*PEW*
*VOOOOM*
The three heads moved with horrifying, coordinated precision. The lower two heads fired their energy blasts—one dark, one draconic—striking Magmar simultaneously, overloading its internal systems and shattering its defensive poise.
*BOOOM*
Before the fire Pokémon could even shriek, the central, most dominant head clamped down on its torso, leveraging its massive jaws in a single, devastating move that ended the battle instantly.
*CRUNCH*
Magmar was tossed aside, unconscious and smoking. Blaise stared at the wreckage of his team, his hands shaking violently near his empty belt. He had fought a pitiful, pointless fight, defeated not by force, but by a calculated display of psychological warfare.
The true nature of the Dark-type specialist—the cold, efficient dismantling of opponents through lies and overwhelming power—had been proven. Sidney gave a flick of his wrist as he ordered dismissively, "Zoroark. The final touch. Give him his glorious victory."
*Swf*
Zoroark shimmered and then stepped forward, fixing its eyes on the defeated Team Magma Admin. A powerful, focused stream of Illusion energy washed over Blaise under Zoroark's Illusion Ability.
Blaise's vacant, frightened eyes suddenly glazed over. The panic drained away, replaced by a vacant smile. He looked down at his empty hands, then around the desolate hall, now seeing not the defeated Magmar, but a triumphant glow.
He imagined Sidney's Hydreigon knocked flat, his own Magcargo standing tall, Sidney himself sprawled in defeat. Blaise imagined that he had won. He had secured the launch of Team Magma's next phase. Victory was his.
Sidney watched the dullness settle into Blaise's eyes, a satisfied, if slightly bored, expression returning to his face. Sidney muttered coldly, "Enjoy the dream, kid. Despair is so much sweeter when reality hits."
With the immediate threat neutralized, Sidney retracted his Pokémon, leaving the catatonic Blaise slumped near the museum's entrance. Sidney walked to the shattered remnants of a large bay window, overlooking the coast…
*RMBL*
The main event was far more spectacular. The sky was filled with chaos: the enormous, terrestrial rage of Groudon facing off against the combined might of Steven Stone's Metagross, Wallace's dazzling Milotic, and the fierce, icy defense of Glacia's Glalie.
But Sidney's attention was drawn to a streak of emerald green descending rapidly towards the conflict. It was Azure Sky. The Indigo Champion, who had swept the last two League tournaments, was riding a powerful, magnificent Pokémon—a Rayquaza, blazing across the sky.
While the legendary Dragon wasn't part of Azure's regular roster, it spoke volumes that the young man was tackling this crisis with the same intensity he brought to every challenge. It was something Sidney couldn't help but admire.
Sidney smirked excitedly, running a hand through his purple hair. Azure and his partners—Pikachu and Eevee—were already legendary, known for their unconventional, brilliant strategies.
Watching the Champion dive into the fray, coordinating with Steven and Wallace, made Sidney's blood sing. The victory over Blaise, while psychologically satisfying, had been too easy, too quick.
Sidney sighed, though his eyes sparkled with anticipation, "Looks like all the real action is over there."
He watched Azure execute a stunning dive, dismounting the Rayquaza and seamlessly transitioning onto his own colossal Dragon, Salamence, ready to engage Groudon directly. He could only watch.
Sidney pulled out his Rotom Phone, sending a brief, confident message to Steven: Blaise secured. Lilycove Museum cleared.
He then paused, his grin widening, a glint of challenge in his dark eyes. He addressed the screen, though the message was meant for the Champion, thousands of meters away, as he uttered excitedly, "Steven, Wallace, Glacia—do me a solid and contain that legendary beast. I'd hate for Azure to stop Groudon before I get a chance to test my team against him. A True Champion… that's a fight worth waiting for."
Sidney leaned back against the smashed window frame, settling in to watch the greatest spectacle Hoenn had ever produced, knowing his turn for true fun would come soon enough. The Shadow was always ready for a challenge, especially one that glittered as brightly as Azure Sky.
/////
A/N: Reach the goal of 100 PS to get a Bonus Chapter!