"They're retreating…"
Watching the Magma members withdraw like a receding tide, Lance showed no sign of relaxation.
Rather, he sensed something ominous.
"Beast roars and whale cries I've never heard before… and more importantly, the sudden weather change."
"Could it be—"
What interrupted Lance's thoughts were Nemona, Paul, and Shizuka running over from the retreating Aqua encirclement.
Though confused why both sides were retreating, they weren't too tense since they didn't know much about Hoenn's myths.
"Wow! It really is Mr. Lance!"
Nemona ran over holding the umbrella Shizuka gave her. Her eyes sparkled especially brightly when she saw Lance's signature wild red hair.
If the situation weren't so dire, she would have immediately challenged him to a battle!
Even in Paldea, Nemona had heard of the Dragon Master Lance.
Paul and Shizuka also greeted him with slight admiration.
"You came at the right time."
Lance nodded to the three. Without them sharing half the pressure, he—who hadn't brought his full team—might have been trapped.
Though if they hadn't shown up, he would still be undercover.
"Based on the current situation, it's very likely the contained ancient Pokémon have been released for some reason."
"This is both a crisis and an opportunity."
"I know where Team Magma is holding Ash. Let's rescue him first, then plan our next move."
Lance's mind remained cool and clear during missions.
Since they couldn't reverse the ancient Pokémon's escape, they should complete what they could and figure out the rest along the way.
He briefly explained his plan.
"I'll take Brock, May, and Max to rescue Ash. Nemona, can you three contact these two people outside the signal jamming area and tell them the situation?"
Lance showed his communicator, which only had two contacts saved, and looked at Nemona, Paul, and Shizuka.
Brock, a former Gym Leader, hadn't brought his main team, and Rock-types weren't very effective at sea.
May was a rookie Trainer and mostly a Coordinator who wasn't great at fighting.
Her brother Max hadn't even received a starter yet.
Lance was confident he could protect them while rescuing Ash, but heading out to sea again to find a signal for backup would stretch him too thin.
Nemona had just proven her strength, and Paul and Shizuka were also Lucas's students. Though embarrassed to entrust such a task to youngsters, it was the only solution Lance could think of right now.
Nemona took the communicator. Seeing the contacts labeled Steven and Wallace, her eyes flickered.
The situation must be urgent…
After exchanging glances with Paul and Shizuka, Nemona nodded firmly. "Leave it to us, Mr. Lance!"
They had originally planned to call for help anyway. They only ended up on Monsu because they ran into Brock's group.
Lance's eyes brightened. "My Gyarados can also ferry you. As long as you can hold your breath, traveling underwater will be easier than on the surface."
The pouring rain made it clear how dangerous the sea was. His Gyarados, trained by the International Police, could protect them through the storm.
"No need, Mr. Lance. Keep your Gyarados."
Nemona shook her head and explained they had a reliable sea mount of their own.
Wailord was still waiting for them at the shore. With its size, it could easily conquer even the roughest seas.
Since Nemona insisted and Lance was indeed short on combat power, he didn't press the issue.
The situation could worsen at any moment. Time was limited.
After dividing tasks, Lance led Brock's trio toward the Magma submarine. With the enemy busy chasing the freed Groudon, now was the best time to infiltrate.
Nemona's group headed toward the meeting point with Wailord. After that glance they exchanged, they had reached a consensus.
—Besides calling the two Hoenn Champions, they also had to call Teacher Lucas!
What? Wouldn't that trouble him?
What trouble? Lucas always taught them: "Beat the small fry, the big one comes." If the problem was truly beyond them, forget everything else and contact him immediately.
Besides, the news they saw before leaving Mossdeep City said Lucas had single-handedly restrained two legendary Pokémon and even beaten them once.
They didn't know how Rayquaza compared to the two ancient Pokémon Team Aqua and Magma were after.
But asking him for help was never wrong!
…
Archie and Maxie, who had chosen to retreat, reached opposite ends of Monsu Island.
On Archie's side, thick dark clouds covered the sky. Dense rain fell like an endless black curtain.
In the sea, a submarine painted with Team Aqua colors rocked helplessly in the storm. Every rising wave threatened to smash it.
Human technology looked like a helpless child before nature's fury.
Archie, standing on a flying device and holding the red Orb, had veins bulging on his forehead. He was shouting something at the top of his lungs, but the rain and wind completely drowned his voice.
In the sea, a mythical giant fish leaped freely between water and air. Its wide fins stirred the ocean, creating wave after wave that threatened to swallow all of Monsu Island.
Archie tried to project his will onto Kyogre through the red Orb, but the Pokémon didn't even spare him a glance.
—Kyogre seemed to be gathering power, waiting to meet its old rival.
On the other side, Maxie faced the same situation.
After the sunny sky was covered by rain, a dazzling white beam shot into the heavens, instantly dispersing most of the dark clouds over Mossdeep. Scorching sunlight poured down.
Compared to the turbulent sea on the other side, this area was relatively calm.
—Provided one ignored the giant beast covered in red armor that had created a path of lava across the sea for itself to walk on.
That was the ancient Pokémon Groudon.
It seemed to dislike flying or jumping. Only after the path to the island was complete did it slowly raise its feet and walk firmly onto land.
According to Courtney and Tabitha's speculation, its destination seemed to be the volcano on the island that could erupt at any moment.
Maxie tried to project his will onto Groudon using the blue Orb, but encountered the same problem as Archie.
—No matter how they shouted, the two ancient Pokémon never even looked at the humans holding the Orbs.
"It's impossible… Ancient humans already proved that differently colored Orbs can control the corresponding ancient Pokémon!"
Maxie couldn't understand where the problem lay.
Their mental power couldn't even make the Orbs glow.
Was their will to pursue their ideals not strong enough?
Maxie refused to accept such nonsense. Standing on a Magma flying device, he followed Groudon while continuously shouting at it with the Orb.
Unbeknownst to him, Groudon had already reached the crater.
Perhaps it had arrived at its destination and started paying attention to its surroundings, or perhaps Maxie's constant chattering had annoyed it.
Groudon, which had never even given Maxie a glance, finally looked at him properly.
Normally, Groudon couldn't be bothered with the noisy little things that always appeared whenever it woke up.
It would rather prepare to fight that fat-headed fish.
But the moment Groudon's gaze landed on Maxie—more precisely, on the blue Orb in his hand—its originally emotionless eyes, which only reflected the cold indifference of nature itself, suddenly flashed.
—The next second, Maxie was shocked to see the blue Orb in his hand glow. He sensed a vast will.
"Oooooh, Groudon! Obey my will!"
Maxie's face lit up with joy as he raised the blue Orb high.
CourtneyReal, Tabitha, and the others climbing the volcano behind him clearly saw the glowing Orb merge into Maxie's body.
They, along with many Magma members, were filled with excitement.
Wonderful! Once Groudon accepts Team Magma's control, expanding the land to the ends of the earth and letting humanity's footprints cover the world will no longer be a dream!
Once the Orb fully merged, ancient red patterns identical to those on Groudon's body appeared on Maxie's skin.
It was a sign that his will had synchronized with Groudon's.
"—Good. Groudon, expand the land now!"
Maxie, who had completely lost his usual calm, shouted excitedly.
Whether Maxie's command worked or not, Groudon raised its ferocious head and let out a roar that shook all of Monsu Island.
The next moment.
A violent tremor swept across the entire island.
Accompanied by the shaking earth, the volcano that had only been sporadically emitting black smoke briefly charged up—then erupted!
Sky-piercing lava spewed out, turning into countless falling fire-meteor rain that indiscriminately bombarded Monsu Island and the surrounding sea.
Groudon's roar echoed between heaven and earth. The lava column from the erupting volcano pierced the clouds. Maxie stood at the crater's edge, red patterns flowing like lava across his skin. Heat waves billowed his red-and-black uniform.
At this moment, he could clearly sense Groudon's simple thoughts.
This was also Groudon's "provocation" or "challenge" to Kyogre.
In the sea, Kyogre, which had been gathering power, was naturally extremely familiar with this force.
Its emotionless pupils locked onto Groudon standing atop the volcano—especially on Maxie beside it, holding the blue Orb.
The next instant.
Archie, who had been unable to draw Kyogre's attention no matter what, was shocked to see the completely unresponsive red Orb suddenly glow and merge into his body.
Immediately, Archie sensed Kyogre's vast will—and the rage mixed within it.
—It seemed to view the blue Orb as its own.
Though he didn't understand why, Archie, now connected to Kyogre, shouted:
"Hahahahaha! First, submerge this island, Kyogre!"
Kyogre opened its fanged maw and let out a whale cry that shook the sky. It then mercilessly flapped its fins, instantly raising a massive tsunami capable of swallowing Monsu Island.
The hundred-meter tsunami blocked half the sky. Sunlight refracted strangely behind the wave wall. Archie stood in the hollow of Kyogre's dorsal fin. Blue patterns pulsed like veins on his neck. Salty sea wind filled his maniacal laughter.
His emotions seemed influenced by Kyogre.
"I won't let you succeed!" Maxie's expression turned cold. Groudon stomped its forelimb heavily. Spiderweb-like red light patterns cracked across the crater. Lava surged along the paths, forming a boiling lava dam along the coastline.
It also opened its giant mouth. Without any charge-up, a thick Solar Beam blasted a huge gap in the tsunami.
The moment the broken tsunami collided with the lava, Monsu Island shook violently. White steam shot skyward. The shockwave from the steam explosion flattened the coastal forests.
Fortunately, most members of both teams had boarded the submarines. The rest gathered behind Maxie or Archie, avoiding the moves' direct impact.
Casualties weren't too severe.
After the first tsunami was shattered, Archie's expression didn't change. He waved his hand again.
"Ice Beam!"
Blue light glowed on Kyogre's dorsal fin. The second tsunami it raised was hit by the beam and instantly frozen into an ice wall.
The ice wall crushed the gradually cooling lava barrier with its weight.
This fierce battle was witnessed by Lance, who had just rescued Ash and was watching from a safe spot.
"…So this is the power of ancient Pokémon?"
Even though it was only two exchanges, the shocking feeling of commanding nature's forces like an extension of their bodies left Lance speechless.
He could now confirm it.
The legends Wallace had told him before he infiltrated Team Magma were not exaggerated in the slightest.
In fact… they had been quite conservative.
Watching the two extreme weathers spreading and clashing, Lance suddenly had a premonition.
—Without exaggeration, if left unchecked, Groudon and Kyogre's battle would truly affect the entire Hoenn region!
…