"Milotic, Surf!"
"Sharpedo, counter with Waterfall."
It was the fifth day of battle between Sato and Cynthia atop the cliff. Over these past few days, they had been holding two matches per day, consistently pushing each other in battle.
And Cynthia's Elite Four level Pokémon had already been revealed one by one. Aside from her strongest, Garchomp, there were Gastrodon, Lucario, and Roserade.
On the field, Milotic was the fifth Pokémon Cynthia planned to train to Elite Four level.
Coincidentally, Sharpedo was also the fourth Pokémon Sato intended to train to Elite Four level.
Although both were Water-type, Milotic and Sharpedo had completely different battle styles.
Sharpedo relied on its Speed Boost Ability to get faster and more ferocious as the battle progressed, often dominating opponents with its overwhelming speed alone.
But Milotic was the complete opposite. With access to Recover, Aqua Ring, Refresh, and Coil, it was naturally gifted in health/stamina recovery.
As long as it wasn't one-shot, it simply couldn't be defeated!
In the early stages of battle, Sharpedo's Speed Boost hadn't yet kicked in, so its infrequent attacks couldn't deal any fatal damage to Milotic.
But later on, once Sharpedo moved so fast it became nearly invisible, Milotic's buffs had also reached their peak.
So in the end, Sharpedo still couldn't break through Milotic!
Yet Milotic also had no way of striking back at Sharpedo; more accurately, it couldn't catch the speed-blurred shark in the sky at all.
In the end, Sato and Cynthia could only end the battle helplessly…
If they kept going, who knew how long it would take to finish?
After recalling Sharpedo, Sato and Cynthia walked side by side toward the camp, chatting along the way entirely about how to grow stronger and how to advance.
Their drive for success was absurdly competitive...
"…Now that the Mt. Coronet operation is over, the League has begun issuing demobilization orders."
Just as they were about to reach the camp, Cynthia casually mentioned it, as if she'd only just remembered.
Sato instinctively asked, "Any plans after that?"
Cynthia smiled, clearly satisfied with his response.
"Didn't you say you wanted to go to the Sunyshore Power Plant? I went ahead and signed us up for that mission."
Sato raised an eyebrow, surprised and a bit delighted.
"Ohh! I'm going with you?"
"You can go alone if you want~"
"…Let's go together."
Clearly, Cynthia had been joking, but Sato completely missed the setup.
It was awkward…
The next day, the camp began its demobilization, but as the commander-in-chief, Cynthia stayed until the end.
After supervising the cleanup personnel and commanding Grass-type Pokémon to regrow the camp into natural terrain, Cynthia and Sato finally mounted Garchomp and Hydreigon, following the main forces as they retreated toward Eterna City.
---◓---
Upon arriving in Eterna City, they completed the handover in record time, then set out directly for the Sunyshore Power Plant.
And as for how they traveled, of course, it was by riding Flying Pokémon.
To make the trip a bit more comfortable, Sato had quietly swapped out Hydreigon for Honchkrow. After all, avian feathers were much softer!
Didn't Cynthia also send out her Togekiss?
With Garchomp's rough, shark-like skin, it was a mystery how Cynthia endured that ride for so long…
In the sky, the pure-white Togekiss and jet-black Honchkrow flew side by side. And to be honest, they looked quite like a matching pair… cough!
From Eterna City to the Sunyshore Power Plant, the two of them crossed nearly a quarter of the entire Sinnoh region.
But since both Togekiss and Honchkrow were Peak Ace level, they arrived at the Sunyshore Power Plant in just over a day.
By then, a large number of Trainers had already gathered outside the Sunyshore Power Plant, clearly lured by the generous rewards and the rumored appearance of a Legendary Pokémon.
Sato and Cynthia exchanged a glance, both nodding in unison, then immediately pulled out their "Makeup Bags" to disguise themselves.
When the two landed on a patch of open ground, the presence of the massive Honchkrow and Togekiss instantly drew attention from all directions.
Fortunately, with their new disguises, neither of them were recognized. The crowd simply assumed two more powerful rivals had arrived.
It wasn't until they reached the front gate of the Sunyshore Power Plant that Sato and Cynthia gradually realized things were far from simple.
From the outside, the power plant hadn't suffered much damage, but the flames and lightning coiling around its structure were far too unnatural.
Normally, Fire- and Electric-type Pokémon were highly aggressive, yet here they seemed unusually united.
Right at the main gate, a group of Magmar and a group of Electabuzz stood side by side, watching Sato and Cynthia with wary eyes, ready to attack at the slightest provocation.
Sato and Cynthia exchanged another look, each silently considering a… "gentler" approach to the situation.
"Try looking for another entrance, Gengar."
"Spiritomb, you go too."
Each gave a quiet command to their respective shadows before circling the power plant perimeter.
They weren't the only ones doing this, there were silhouettes of Trainers moving all around the building.
Before long, both Gengar and Spiritomb returned. As expected, aside from the large and reinforced main entrance, all smaller entryways had been forcibly destroyed by wild Pokémon.
"Underground route?" Sato pondered aloud, then sent out Krookodile, an expert at Dig.
Cynthia hesitated for a moment but finally gave a small nod. She didn't send out her only Ground-type Pokémon, Garchomp.
Even though Garchomp was a Ground type, digging wasn't exactly its strong suit…
Soon enough, Krookodile returned.
"Anything?" Sato asked.
Krookodile nodded… then shook its head.
"Kroo~ Krooko kroo!"
A flicker of doubt crossed Sato's eyes, then he spoke up to explain.
"Krookodile says the area beneath the plant has already been tunneled through by wild Pokémon, and it found a river of magma underground."
A magma river!
Cynthia's eyes flashed with surprise as well, but she quickly seemed to recall something. She looked around thoughtfully.
"I remember… there's an extinct volcano not far north of the power plant, but there hasn't been any eruption recorded for years."
"Shifting tectonic plates…?"
"Very likely!"
Cynthia was well-versed in Sinnoh's history, geography, mythology, and much more.
Combined with the information Krookodile had discovered, the two of them uncovered several new clues through a simple exchange.
But new questions followed right behind.
"If the underground magma shifted and Fire-types moved with it, that makes sense.
But the area around the power plant should be home to Electric-type Pokémon. Not only are they not repelling the Fire-types, but they've actually joined them?"
Faced with Sato's question, Cynthia frowned and turned her eyes toward the power plant, now completely engulfed in lightning and flame.
"The only way to find out… is to go inside."