D sat cross-legged on the floor of his room, back against the couch, laptop balanced on his knees. Multiple prototypes were scattered along the floor around him, alongside regional network pings, half a dozen things only Rotom or Porygon would normally care about. His phone buzzed against his thigh.
And since he was in his room, he didn't have to hide his face or wear the eyepatch, so both were off, while Meowth nuzzled against his cheek.
He picked up the phone and saw that Taka had texted him, not surprising, since neither of them particularly cared about the organizations they were working for. D had been getting Taka to help him with some things.
And D, in turn, was helping Taka be lazy and keep doing his favorite thing: mostly nothing.
—
{ScarfBoys Group Chat}
Scarf: you alive or did hoenn finally do what meteor couldn't
Dos: Disappointed to report still breathing.
Scarf: tragic. i was hoping the humidity would finish the job (╥╥)
Dos: hoenn's trying. respect the effort, especially cuz we lost a lot of money after the Masked Man incident
Scarf: ಠ_ಠ Yikes, yeah that guy was pretty dumb, not gonna lie
Scarf: you hiding or just openly vibing now
Dos: openly vibing. turns out when people think you got mind-controlled, they let you get away with a lot
Scarf: Lucky. any way you can share that over here? maybe if i pretend to be mind-controlled i can get my dad off my back
Dos: Meh. your dad doesn't seem like the kind
Scarf: Honestly, i don't know anymore, man ¯\(ツ)/¯
Dos: how's life in 'definitely not a cult' these days ≖‿≖
Scarf: boring
Scarf: solaris is monologuing again
Scarf: dad's pretending this is all part of the plan (〜￣△￣)〜
Scarf: lin stabbed a table
Dos: metaphorically?
Scarf: no
Dos: noted
Scarf: sent you something BTW don't freak out (••)
—
D looked away from his phone and over to his computer, where a message had popped up. He accepted the notification, then received a file.
[Incoming: SHARPEDO_PULSE_PROTO_v0.7 — SCRAPPED]
D's expression shifted. He gently pushed Meowth aside and sat up, legs uncrossing as he pulled the laptop back onto his knees.
"…you absolute menace," he murmured, though a grin tugged at his mouth.
He opened the file.
Blueprints bloomed across the screen, old Magma schematics, half-redacted, with half-handwritten notes crammed into the margins. Pulse conduits wrapped along Sharpedo's dorsal line, a modified injector array near the gills, emergency venting systems that clearly hadn't worked in testing.
—
Dos: Yeah… that explains why this got scrapped (￣ω￣;)
Scarf: it never left the internal servers. everyone pretends it doesn't exist
Scarf: figured you'd want it ¯\(ツ)/¯ since you know you're doing the thing
Dos: It will come in handy. Also, this thing would've liquefied the Sharpedo and the operator.
Scarf: yeah that tracks. Solaris called it 'acceptable losses' ಠ_ಠ
D winced, "…of course he did."
Dos: Sending you something in return. Consider it… mutual enablement (≖‿≖)
[Outgoing: PROJECT_G]
Scarf: …
Scarf: why does this smell like a setup
Dos: Because it is (＾▽＾)
Scarf: Ok, let me look at this, give me a minute
Scarf: ...
Scarf: ...
Scarf: …oh…OH…you're evil
Dos: Evil is such a strong word (￣▽￣)
Dos: I prefer proactive risk redistribution.
Scarf: you sent me a comparative analysis on Team Galactic with footnotes. Solaris has been looking for something like this for way too long, and you just have it
Scarf: who does that (ಠ_ಠ)
Dos: Someone who's very tired of cleaning up other people's apocalypses
Dos: Also someone who knows Solaris hates competition almost as much as Cyrus hates everything (＾▽＾)
Scarf: Cyrus? Is that the leader's name? huh… i expected something cooler, not gonna lie, like Apollo, you know, like Apollo 13
Dos: you know, that is a cool name. i might steal that if i ever try to infiltrate Galactic, but anyway, you see my plan here
Scarf: …ok yeah, i see it
Scarf: if Galactic thinks Meteor is infringing on "universal balance," Cyrus will lose his entire mind (•_•)
Dos: Yep. and from what i saw with Solaris, if he finds out his vision isn't unique, he's gonna get so mad
Scarf: wow you're awful
Scarf: ...i love it
[Incoming: SHARPEDO_PULSE_PROTO_v0.7 — ADDENDUM_NOTES]
Scarf: There, added my notes
Scarf: mostly 'this will kill people'
Scarf: and 'Solaris is insane'
Scarf: usual stuff ¯\(ツ)/¯
Dos: Appreciated.
Dos: This saves me weeks of reverse-engineering failure modes.
Scarf: happy to help destabilize the world responsibly ✌️
Dos: Aight, i'ma head out. i need to start the projects for these things, stay out of trouble
Scarf: i'll duck, or pretend i'm busy. works 60% of the time
Dos: Better odds than most. (＾ω＾)
Scarf: Yep, i've got a gift. anyway, see ya, next time let's go for milkshakes
–
D put down his phone and stretched. With that, a lot of things actually became easier for him. For one, if Taka could get Team Meteor to go fight Team Galactic, then best case, one, or both, of them would knock each other out and stop being a problem.
Worst case, nothing happened. But that was fine too, because no matter what, they'd be dealing with each other. And if they were dealing with each other, that meant it wouldn't be his problem. More importantly, it meant they wouldn't be here in Hoenn. He already had enough to deal with with two idiots.
As for why keeping them out of Hoenn mattered, well, for Meteor, it was simple. They were just annoying. But for Galactic, there was a deeper reason.
There was a spy in Team Rocket. A Team Galactic spy.
And he knew that anything he did could be reported straight to Cyrus.
Of course, he knew exactly who the spy was. None other than one of the Beasts, Sird.
From the manga, he knew she was a high-ranking Team Galactic spy, and based on what she was doing here, there was only one reason she'd come to Hoenn. She was after Deoxys. Or maybe she already had it, he didn't know.
What he did know was that the Deoxys movie was a thing, and he vaguely knew when it was going to happen. That was probably the cutoff point. He needed to find a way to expose her and get rid of her before then.
Now, D could just run in, beat everyone up, and grab Sird, but there were two problems with that.
First, he wasn't strong enough. Sure, he was pretty strong, but D was deliberately nerfing himself so it looked like he wasn't good at training Pokémon. That meant he wouldn't be able to beat the three Beasts, and that was assuming no one else got involved.
Second, he had no evidence. Even if he could beat them, what then? He didn't have proof that Sird was part of Team Galactic.
Believe it or not, while Carr was incompetent, Sird was actually a well-respected and valued member of Team Rocket. And while D had been promoted to Admin, it was under… special circumstances.
And even if it somehow got that far, there was still the risk that she'd take information about him straight to Team Galactic. And if it was manga Team Galactic?
Yeah. No thanks.
That was why making sure Team Meteor and Team Galactic fought each other was so important. It would isolate Sird. She wouldn't be able to call for support if she got caught.
Brute force was off the table. Reputation assassination without proof would backfire. And if he tipped his hand too early, Sird would vanish, or worse, frame him.
Which left him with exactly one viable option.
He needed Sird to expose herself.
But that was easier said than done. Everything was getting more and more complicated by the minute.
Thankfully, that was what D did best.
For now, he was going to start modifying PULSE. He still had PULSE 06 from last time, and now he had PULSE 0.7, or whatever he wanted to call it.
All he needed to do now was modify them with Porygon and Rotom.
Why? Well, he wasn't going to use them on his Pokémon, at least, not like this. No, it was for something far better.
He wondered what would happen if the other side thought the other had one of these.
If Aqua thought Magma had the one for Camerupt.
If Magma thought Aqua had the one for Sharpedo.
It sure would be a shame if someone leaked fake blueprints.
And it would have to be the same person who leaked to Team Magma that Team Aqua was planning on attacking the volcano.
He reeeealllllyyy wondered who could ever do that. It would cause panic and make both sides think they needed to attack directly.
Couldn't be Ash…
…but D, though?
—
{Back in Mauville}
After the gang finally made it out of underground New Mauville, something they were more than happy to be done with, and reunited with Brock and Max, they were more than ready to do something normal.
Considering Wally and Brendan hadn't eaten since yesterday thanks to being stuck down there, getting lunch was first on the agenda. So they found the closest place they could.
A small café near the edge of Mauville Square had dragged its outdoor tables back into place, brushing sand off chairs and umbrellas. The owner looked exhausted but grateful the sandstorms were over, and more than happy to serve a group of kids who looked like they'd just crawled out of a desert.
Soon, they were all sitting together, legs stretched out, food spread across the table.
Ash leaned back in his chair with a skewer of grilled meat in one hand, Pikachu perched beside his plate, happily munching on a berry tart… which he had covered in ketchup. Vee had claimed half of Ash's fries without asking and was unapologetic about it.
May cradled a paper bowl of curry, or tried to. Ever since she'd managed to get out, Max hadn't let her go. He was still clutching her like she might fall into another hole.
Max's grip only tightened when May shifted, like he was afraid the ground itself might open up again.
"Max," May said gently, trying to laugh it off, "I promise, I'm not falling into any more underground robot cities today."
"You don't know that," Max muttered into her arm.
Brock set a plate of sandwiches down between them and sighed in relief as he sat back, "I, for one, am extremely grateful that today's crisis ended without poison gas, ancient curses, or me having to cook for fifty displaced Pokémon."
Ash snorted, "Give it time. We're still in Mauville."
Brendan dug into a sandwich like he hadn't eaten in days, "I swear, everything tastes better after you almost get buried alive."
Wally nodded in quiet agreement, sipping soup with both hands like it was the most precious thing in the world. His Ralts sat close, clearly tired but content as he nibbled on a tart.
Meanwhile, they watched the cleanup happening literally across the street.
Workers swept sand into massive piles. Electric-types helped power street cleaners. A couple of Machoke hauled debris while people shouted directions over the noise. And for once, the Rangers showed up… sure, it was after everything was over, but at least they were here now, moving in to start relocating all the knocked-out Pokémon.
Wattson was over with the people, helping out, mostly by having a few Rotom possess vacuum cleaners to suck up the sand and clear it away so it could be sent back to the desert.
Tricky, meanwhile, had to leave. Since he'd been down there, he needed to go make sure his inventions were still working properly, so he wasn't around.
May shifted slightly, adjusting her grip on the curry, and Max, after a long internal debate, finally loosened his hold just enough to sit beside her instead of clinging like a life preserver. He still kept one hand hooked around her sleeve.
"There," May said softly, "Progress."
Max huffed, "I'm still not convinced the ground isn't evil."
"Fair," Ash said around a bite of food, "Ground-types are scary."
Pikachu nodded seriously, getting ketchup on his cheeks, "Pika."
Brock eyed Pikachu's berry tart with concern, "You know, that's not a normal—"
"Don't," Ash said immediately, "Don't start, buddy. You tried for two years. He's not gonna stop."
Brock sighed and took a sandwich instead.
Across the table, Brendan finally slowed down enough to breathe. He leaned back, rubbing his stomach, "Okay. I feel human again."
Wally smiled faintly, "Same. I don't think I realized how tired I was until we stopped moving." He glanced down at Ralts, who leaned against his leg, "You did really well today."
Ralts straightened a little at the praise, eyes bright, then yawned and leaned fully against Wally's leg again.
That was when a familiar, booming laugh cut through the noise of the square.
"WAHAHAHA! Now that is what I call a positively charged appetite!"
Max glanced up first, "Oh no."
May followed his gaze, and immediately groaned, "Speak of the thunder."
Wattson strode toward their table, sandals clacking against the stone, green jacket flapping slightly as he waved enthusiastically. He looked far more energized than a man who'd just helped clean half a city.
"Kids! Kids! I see you've successfully powered yourselves back up!" he said, leaning one hand on the table and peering at the food, "Good! Very good! Nothing restores your volts like a proper meal!"
Max squinted up at him, "Do you ever talk normally?"
Wattson gasped, clutching his chest theatrically, "Normally? My boy, normal is overrated! Life's much more fun when you keep things current!"
Ash snorted, "He's not gonna stop either, Max."
Wattson noticed Ash's plate, Pikachu's ketchup-covered dessert, and Vee halfway into the fries. His eyes sparkled, "Wahahaha! Looks like this table's got more energy flow than Mauville's power grid!"
Brock gave a polite nod, glancing over his shoulder at the ongoing cleanup, "I'm glad to see everything's going back to normal after… well, you know."
"Ah yes! Minor brownouts, a sandstorm, a few rampaging Pokémon, and one underground robot incident!" Wattson waved a hand dismissively, "All in a day's work!"
May deadpanned, "You and I have very different definitions of 'minor.'"
Wattson laughed again, loud enough to turn a few heads, "So! I wanted to stop by and thank you properly. You kids didn't just fix the problem, you grounded it! Wahahaha!"
When he finished laughing, he was about to say something else when suddenly voices called out from behind them.
"Wattson! We challenge you!!"
A group of young kids, probably around Max's age, came running toward Wattson, their Pokémon charging or flying alongside them.
Wattson laughed and struck a pose, "Ah, here you are! Okay then, come and get it!"
He threw out three Pokémon: an Electrike and two Magnemite. What followed was a quick battle, three versus six Pokémon between the four kids, but Wattson swiftly knocked out their teams.
"Ohhh… you're too strong, Wattson," one of the kids said.
"No wonder he's a Gym Leader, he can't be beaten that easily," another added.
"Hahaha! That's right!" Wattson laughed, "If you want to beat a Gym Leader, you're gonna have to get a lead on me!! Bwahahaha!"
He then walked up to them and pulled something from his coat pocket.
"But your attacks were pretty good. Here you go, your Dynamo Badges!"
Wattson handed one to each of the kids.
"Ahh, thank you!" they all shouted as they ran off laughing with their Pokémon.
"Eh… what was that…?" Max blinked.
"That was a Gym battle," Wattson said proudly, pointing to his chest, "My motto is: challenge me anytime, anywhere!"
"No wait! Why did you give them badges? They didn't even win!!"
"It was a good battle," Wattson replied.
"It wasn't even close!" Max protested.
Wattson chuckled and scratched his cheek, "Wow, you're too serious, aren't you?" He held one of the badges up, "These aren't official badges. They're participation badges I give to kids."
To prove his point, he handed one to Max. The moment Max held it… yep. Plastic.
"Oh… sorry…" Max apologized.
"Ah, no problem at all!" Wattson waved it off immediately.
Then Wattson straightened and clapped his hands together, "Anyway! That brings me to the real reason I came over!"
He puffed out his chest proudly, "As you all know—" he gestured dramatically to himself, "—I am Mauville City's Gym Leader! And I've seen what you all can do, so how about it? Care for a real battle!"
"So, you're inviting them to go get their badges?" May asked. She wasn't involved in this one, she didn't collect badges.
Brendan raised a hand casually, "Yeah, I already got my badge last year."
Wally shifted slightly, then looked up, a little nervous but smiling, "Um… I actually… I challenged the Gym last week."
There was a beat of silence.
May blinked, "You did?"
Brendan turned toward him, "Wait, seriously?"
Wally nodded, cheeks pink, "Y-Yeah. I wanted to see if I was ready." He hesitated, then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small case. Inside, nestled neatly, was a bright orange badge shaped like a stylized lightning bolt.
"I won," he said softly.
"Ha!" Ash let out a breath through his teeth and gave Wally a light slap on the back, "I knew you could do it, and you doubted yourself!"
May smiled and nodded happily, "Wally, that's amazing!"
Wally ducked his head shyly, "Th-thanks."
Wattson's grin widened, "Well then, I'd say you've more than earned the right to challenge Mauville Gym. What do you say, care to catch up with these two?"
Ash let out a chuckle and stood up, stretching an arm behind his back, "Bring it."
—
{Meanwhile, at the Hoenn Association Base}
In the top office of the building, a man stood looking through a window into a laboratory below.
Inside the lab, scientists were all working on a single project. At its center was a small, shard-like chunk of crystal, but most importantly, it was green.
The man watching from the window had long blond hair that reached his lower back. He wore a white outfit traced with yellow lines, forming a pattern similar to Rayquaza's markings, and around his neck hung a necklace strung with shards of jade. He was the current president of the Pokémon Association.
As for what they were doing in the lab: they were creating an artificial Green Orb. Something similar to the Red and Blue Orbs, but since no true Green Orb existed, creating an artificial one was the only option.
The president watched with growing interest. The project was almost complete.
A young woman in a lab coat stepped up beside him, holding a clipboard. Her nametag read Professor Yanase Berlitz. She cleared her throat to get his attention.
"Sir, we are approaching ninety percent completion on the Green Orb."
"Perfect. I knew I could entrust this project to Hoenn's best researchers," he said, though, to be honest, he would have said that to any team assigned to this project, "Soon, all of this will have been worth it."
"But… there are some questions about certain design choices you requested. Perhaps you could shed some light on them for us?"
"What is there to explain?" the president replied confidently, "This is all for the good of Hoenn. If we can control the power of Rayquaza, what do we have to fear? Even the Legendaries will never be a threat again."
Professor Yanase adjusted her glasses, "With all due respect, those aren't the design choices we were curious about, Mr. Jaern."