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"Boom!" Garchomp slammed into Arbok with devastating force, sending the serpent Pokemon blasting directly into the wall behind it. The purple snake embedded deeply into the concrete!
If it wasn't for Ariana's quick reflexes in dodging, she would have certainly been hit alongside her Pokemon.
"It's just like dealing with Lance all over again!" Ariana shouted in frustration as she recalled her two defeated Pokemon and turned to flee.
"Is she retreating already?" Chris asked in surprise. "That was just our first face-to-face encounter." He wondered if his team was simply too powerful for the Rocket Executive.
The assessment seemed accurate. While Ariana's Pokemon weren't low-level by any means—her Arbok was Level 73 and Muk Level 71—they were at a severe disadvantage. Both were Poison-type Pokemon facing Chris's Mega Gardevoir with its Fairy typing, creating a quadruple type disadvantage.
It was like watching a master trainer battle a novice.
"Let's follow her!" Chris commanded, leading Garchomp in the direction where Ariana had disappeared.
After passing through a relatively short corridor, Chris entered another hall. A thick poisonous fog rushed toward his face like a tide, but when it came within two meters of Chris, it was completely absorbed by Mega Gardevoir's protective aura.
"The poison mist was absorbed? Does that Gardevoir have the Poison Heal ability?" Ariana complained from the shadows.
A Mediterranean-looking older man with peculiar pink hair suddenly appeared beside her.
"Professor Sangbo, I'll leave this to you. Show me the results of your research!" Ariana declared.
"How many times must I tell you? My name is Namba!" The Mediterranean old man bellowed in fury.
"Fine, next time I'll remember to call you Professor Heibo correctly," Ariana replied dismissively.
"My name is NAMBA! NAMBA! NAMBA!" Dr. Namba growled through gritted teeth while operating a complex machine and pulling down a lever.
With a thunderous "BOOM," an iron gate suddenly dropped from the ceiling.
"Huh?!"
With low growls like wild beasts, two Weavile smashed through the iron bars of their cages and rushed out. Both wore hoop-like devices around their heads, their eyes glowing an unnatural red. They appeared completely devoid of sanity as they charged toward Chris at frightening speed.
Chris quickly assessed the situation. Weavile were Ice/Dark types—clearly chosen to counter his Garchomp and Gardevoir. However, something was off about their condition, reminding him of the rampaging Red Gyarados he'd encountered at the Lake of Rage.
"So they're being forcibly enraged by electricity to enhance their fighting capabilities?" Chris guessed, realizing the Red Gyarados incident wasn't accidental—Dr. Namba had been conducting experiments nearby!
Chris recalled Garchomp to its Pokeball while Mega Gardevoir took a defensive position. He reached for another Pokeball and threw it with precision.
"Come out, Tyranitar!"
With a powerful roar of "Tyran!!" Tyranitar emerged with tremendous force! Winds began swirling as a sandstorm gradually formed around the Rock/Dark-type Pokemon.
Tyranitar immediately unleashed an Earthquake attack!
"BOOM!" The massive tremor shook the entire hall. Violent shock waves spread like a tide, shattering the ground everywhere they passed.
Though the two Weavile appeared crazed and ferocious, their battle instincts remained intact. As they raced across the ground, they instantly leaped onto the left and right walls to avoid the Earthquake's damage.
Simultaneously, a notification appeared before Chris: [3 minutes and 27 seconds until Lance arrives!]
"The commotion is too loud—Lance must have heard our battle," Chris realized. He had thought Lance would only arrive if he pressed the alert button.
Apparently, the Dragon Master could be summoned by more than just the press of a button.
"We need to speed this up and finish it quickly!"
Chris raised his hand and snapped his fingers. "Tyranitar, use Rock Slide!"
"Tyran!"
Tyranitar spread its arms wide, and the ceiling of the entire hall suddenly darkened as if a portal to another dimension had opened. Countless fist-sized rocks with sharp edges came crashing down, creating a dense barrage impossible to evade.
This time the two Weavile couldn't escape no matter how fast they moved. They barely managed to run three meters before being completely buried under the Rock Slide.
With their quadruple weakness to Rock-type moves, they stood no chance of emerging from the onslaught.
[Defeat Weavile (Rage) LV69, gain experience 7220] [Defeat Weavile (Rage) LV71, gain experience 7783]
Experience notifications appeared, specifically marking the Pokemon's enraged state.
"That Tyranitar is impressively powerful and ruthless—it would make an excellent test subject!" Rather than appearing disappointed by Weavile's defeat, Dr. Namba stared at Tyranitar with gleaming eyes full of greedy enthusiasm.
"Yes, I agree with your assessment," Ariana replied, "but Professor Minami, you'd better focus on defeating this trainer first." She glanced nervously at Chris, whose battle prowess exceeded her expectations. Something felt wrong, and she prepared to retreat deeper into the hideout.
However, as Ariana backed away toward the passage behind her, Mega Gardevoir had already teleported to block her escape route. The Fairy Pokemon stared at her with cold, beautiful eyes devoid of emotion.
"So you want to finish me off!" Ariana said coldly. "Then don't blame me for fighting dirty."
She suddenly hurled a Pokeball—not toward Gardevoir, but directly at Chris himself.
"Crobat, use Poison Fang!"
The Pokeball opened in mid-air, releasing a Crobat that immediately powered up its sharp fangs with a menacing purple glow. In the blink of an eye, it transformed into a shadowy blur, swiftly bypassing Tyranitar and rushing straight for Chris.
Capture the trainer first, then deal with their Pokemon!
In Ariana's mind, the best strategy to defeat a powerful rival was to eliminate the trainer! Once Chris was taken down, his Pokemon would be left vulnerable. And that beautiful Mega Gardevoir would soon be hers!
Facing Crobat's surprise attack, Chris remained calm. Having positioned Mega Gardevoir to block Ariana's escape, he had naturally prepared for his own protection as well.
When Crobat was merely a meter away from Chris, a Pokeball on his belt opened automatically.
A small blue Pokemon jumped out and politely saluted Crobat.
"Wobbuffet!" it announced cheerfully, raising one arm to its forehead.
Chris had replaced his Red Gyarados with Wobbuffet at the Mahogany Town Pokemon Center before entering the Rocket Hideout, knowing the confined spaces would favor the defensive Pokemon.
"Wobbuffet, Counter!" Chris commanded confidently.
"Boom!" Crobat collided head-first with Wobbuffet's body.
The Patient Pokemon inflated its round belly, immediately deflecting Crobat and sending it flying backward. The bat Pokemon not only failed in its attack but would now suffer double damage from its own Poison Fang!
Unfortunately, Counter was a Fighting-type move, so it couldn't inflict significant damage on Crobat, a Flying/Poison type with quadruple resistance to Fighting moves.
"Blaziken, Flame Charge!" Chris called out, releasing another Pokemon.
"Gardevoir, Dazzling Gleam!"
Chris brought Blaziken into the battle as Dr. Namba unleashed two more berserk Pokemon under his control—a pair of maddened Shiftry!