"What should we do now?" Cole asked, looking at Sabrina.
"If that's true, we're in trouble! There are only two of us..." Sabrina said with a frown.
"We can call for help!" Cole suggested.
"But what if we make too much noise and alert the Team Rocket members in the Pokémon Tower? They might escape or take the townspeople hostage." Sabrina's brow furrowed.
Cole suddenly slapped his forehead, "We can put on an act!"
"What do you mean?" Sabrina looked confused.
Cole leaned close to her ear and whispered, "We can do this..."
After listening, Sabrina's eyes lit up, "That's quite clever!"
"Just average." Cole replied modestly.
"Then let's start our plan!"
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
Outside, Nurse Joy and Chansey were anxiously waiting at the Pokémon Center entrance when suddenly three figures came flying out — Cole, Bayleef, and Heliolisk who had just gone in moments ago.
The human and two Pokémon crashed heavily onto the ground (an illusion created by Cole's Psychic Powers).
"Ahhh!!!"
"Bay!"
"Helio!"
They cried out in pain, especially Cole, who had what appeared to be blood coming from his mouth (actually tomato juice he'd found in the Pokémon Center kitchen).
"Ahhh!!!" Nurse Joy screamed, rushing over to help him up, "Are you alright?!"
"Cough, cough, cough..." Cole's acting skills were on full display as he grimaced in apparent agony, "The Ghost-type Pokémon inside are too powerful. I'm no match for them, and Sabrina is in a tough battle. We need to call for help!"
"But your injuries — you're coughing up blood..." Nurse Joy asked with a worried expression.
Suddenly, she noticed something strange — the smell of tomato juice. It seemed like the same brand she had bought at the supermarket that morning.
Seeing her expression change, Cole quickly gave her a meaningful look.
Although Nurse Joy didn't know what was happening inside, she knew he had arrived with Sabrina, so there must be a reason for this act.
So she immediately put on an expression of extreme panic and called out loudly to Chansey, "Chansey! Chansey! Come quickly and treat his injuries!"
However, Cole gently pushed them away, saying, "These injuries are nothing. I will not coexist with evil!"
"Bay!" — I will not coexist with evil!
"Helio!" — I will not coexist with evil!
Bayleef and Heliolisk also got up and shouted in unison.
Nurse Joy: "…"
Chansey: "…"
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
Meanwhile, at the top of the Pokémon Tower, a man and a woman were hiding in the shadows, observing the situation at the Pokémon Center.
"Lady Aurora, what's the situation over there? Has that Gengar been caught?" A young man asked the young woman holding binoculars.
The woman called Aurora shook her head, "It's not that easy. That Gengar is indeed powerful — even the Saffron City Gym Leader can't handle it! But everything is going according to plan. Once the League people capture it, that Gengar will be ours! Hahaha..."
"It's all thanks to Lady Aurora's unparalleled strategy!" The young man said respectfully.
"My little tricks are nothing compared to Lord Vicious's brilliance. Without his research on the Dark Ball, how could we control so many Pokémon in the Pokémon Tower?"
{T/N: Vicious is the literal translation from Japanese, but he goes by the name Iron-Masked Marauder in the official translation. Since the official name is long, I'll just use Vicious.}
As she spoke, a black Poké Ball appeared in her hand. With a flash of dark purple light, a Marowak appeared before the two.
This Marowak had lifeless eyes and stared blankly ahead when it emerged.
"Marowak, reward yourself with your bone club!" Aurora said with an evil expression.
Upon hearing this, Marowak didn't hesitate. It raised its bone club and struck its own head hard.
The Pokémon seemed unable to feel pain, hitting itself repeatedly until both the bone club in its hand and the skull mask on its head developed tiny cracks. Clearly, this wasn't the first time the woman had ordered Marowak to perform this self-harm.
"Hahaha..." The woman laughed wickedly, "Look how obedient it is. The Dark Ball is truly a remarkable invention!"
"Yes, praise Lord Vicious!" The young man chimed in.
"By the way, has old man Fuji been sent away? The boss specifically asked for him — don't mess this up!" Aurora suddenly stopped laughing and fixed her gaze on the young man.
"Rest assured, Lady Aurora. The old man was sent away long ago. We used a fake identity, telling him we were researching special Pokémon genes, and he happily went with our people." The young man replied proudly.
"Hmph~ We didn't lie to him!" The woman snorted coldly, "You'd better be careful. That old man is more important than your life in Team Rocket's plan for world domination. If anything goes wrong, you might as well be dead!"
"Yes, yes, yes~" The young man nodded repeatedly and bowed, "Everything is going smoothly. By now, the old man should have already arrived at headquarters' research facility."
Hearing this, Aurora nodded with satisfaction, then casually recalled Marowak to its Poké Ball.
✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲✲
Meanwhile, Cole had secretly contacted Professor Oak by phone, briefly explaining the situation and requesting reinforcements.
After hearing this, Professor Oak immediately instructed Cole and the others to stay safe, promising to bring help as soon as possible.
Cole hadn't expected the professor would personally lead the team.
Inside the Pokémon Center, explosive sounds echoed, suggesting an intense battle. Not far away, several Ghost-type Pokémon hid in corners, secretly observing Cole and the others.
These Ghost-type Pokémon were being controlled by Team Rocket members to monitor the situation.
Cole pretended to pace anxiously at the Pokémon Center entrance, occasionally stretching his neck to glimpse what was happening inside — his acting was superb.
I'm truly worthy of being Diantha's friend!
Nurse Joy also cooperated by looking uneasy.
After some time, darkness had completely fallen, and Cole was secretly pleased — perhaps this would be more advantageous for the reinforcements.
"Cole!"
Suddenly, he heard a familiar voice calling him. He turned around to see Victoria waving at him from not far away.
"Professor Victoria, why are you here?" Cole ran over and asked in surprise.
"I heard about what happened here from Professor Oak and was worried about your safety, so I came along with the professor and the rescue team." Victoria replied.
"Has Professor Oak arrived?" Cole asked excitedly.
"Yes, with the cover of darkness, the professor and the rescue team should have already surrounded the Pokémon Tower. Don't worry! You did well this time — you didn't act rashly after discovering the problem but calmly called for help. I'm proud of you." She praised him.
"Hahaha..." Cole scratched his head embarrassedly, "I might just be a bit cowardly, not daring to take the initiative."
Victoria was amused by his words. She thought, 'How could Cole be a coward when he chose to help Sabrina deal with this incident? Such a clever and calm student should be in our Battle Department! I need to discuss transferring Cole to our department with Teacher Hanada when we get back!'
(Cole: Teacher, what about my opinion?)
Then Cole heard sounds of battle coming from the direction of the Pokémon Tower, while Officer Jenny's voice came through Lavender's broadcast system.
"Residents, there is an emergency situation in Lavender Town. Please stay quietly in your homes and do not go outside unnecessarily! Residents..."
In reality, even without her announcement, the town residents wouldn't go out at this time.
They generally believed that once nightfall came to Lavender, the town connected with the other world, and countless ghosts and spirits would emerge. If someone went outside then, they'd likely encounter these spirits.
For this reason, very few people lived in Lavender, and most were elderly.
"Teacher, wait here for a moment. Sabrina is still in the Pokémon Center. I'll go get her!"
Cole suddenly remembered that Sabrina was still unaware of the reinforcements and was continuing her pretend battle with the Ghost-type Pokémon in the Pokémon Center. Even Gengar had woken up by now.
Having learned about the plan from the other Ghost-type Pokémon, Gengar was also cooperating with the act.
"Sabrina, everyone, the reinforcements have arrived. We don't need to pretend anymore!"
"Gen~"
"Gast~"
"Misdr~"
...
Hearing Cole's words, the Ghost-type Pokémon immediately cheered, floating in the air hand-in-hand, joyfully spinning in circles.
"Sabrina, let's quickly go to the Pokémon Tower and see what's happening!"
"Right!"
By the time Cole and Sabrina reached the Pokémon Tower, the battle had reached a stalemate.
Initially, Professor Oak had led the League members who, under cover of darkness, completely surrounded the Pokémon Tower from all sides and from the air. Their positioning ensured that even if Team Rocket members grew wings, they couldn't escape.
But the despicable Aurora had threatened the lives of the Pokémon in the tower. These Pokémon were being controlled by Dark Balls, and with just one command from her, they would either rush forward to fight the League members to the death or harm themselves if they couldn't win.
In the end, Professor Oak had no choice but to order his forces to ease their assault on the Pokémon Tower under this threat.
"Professor Oak, as long as you let us leave, I'll immediately release these Pokémon." From the top of the Pokémon Tower, Aurora looked down at him with a smug expression.
The Pokémon Tower was brightly lit, and her petty, triumphant face was clearly visible to everyone. The League rescue team members were all so furious they could barely contain themselves, wishing they could fly up and tear her apart!
"I advise you to surrender peacefully. We will not let you leave!" Professor Oak shouted.
"In that case, don't blame me for being ruthless!" With that, Aurora took out a Dark Ball and released a Marowak, "Marowak, show these people our determination."
With vacant eyes, Marowak listened to her words and immediately raised its bone club, striking itself hard on the head.
Thud~ Thud~ Thud~
The dull sound seemed to strike the heart of every League member present. Some even turned away, unable to bear witnessing such a horrific scene.
Seeing the cracks on Marowak's skull mask growing larger, with thin streams of blood seeping out, Professor Oak finally couldn't take it anymore.
"Enough! Stop!"
"Alright, Marowak, take a break for now." Seeing his reddened face, Aurora commanded smugly.
Hearing this, Marowak immediately stopped its self-harming actions.
"So, do you still insist on your previous decision? Pro~fes~sor~ Oak~" Aurora's tone dripped with mockery as she taunted him.
"You!!!" Professor Oak trembled with anger at her words, but thinking about the Pokémon under her control, he couldn't help but feel defeated.
Just as he was about to speak, countless transparent bubbles suddenly appeared around the Pokémon Tower.
"What's going on? Where are these bubbles coming from?"
Team Rocket members looked around in confusion.
With a "pop" sound, a Team Rocket member was suddenly encircled by a bubble.
"What's happening? What's happening?" The person desperately pounded against the bubble, but it was extremely soft yet resilient — no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't break free.
More and more transparent bubbles floated around, trapping an increasing number of Team Rocket members and their Pokémon.
"Who is it? Show yourself!" Aurora roared in anger.
Just then, another bubble appeared beside her, encircling Marowak.
While the bubbles trapping Team Rocket members were meant to confine them, the bubble around Marowak was for its protection.
"Marowak! Marowak!"
Watching Marowak being carried away by the bubble, Aurora shouted in frustration. With no leverage left to threaten Professor Oak, she was powerless — the bubble had a sound-isolating effect, and Marowak couldn't hear her calls at all.
The same fate befell other controlled Pokémon. Because the bubbles cut off sound, Team Rocket members, even while holding Dark Balls, could no longer issue commands. They could only watch helplessly as the bubbles carried the Pokémon further and further away from them.
Even when they tried to recall the Pokémon with their Poké Balls, the bubbles reflected the beams of light, deflecting the recall lasers back.
Seeing this, Professor Oak realized it was the perfect moment to strike.
"Attack!!! Hit them hard!" He shouted to the League members behind him.
In an instant, the League members swarmed forward, surrounding Team Rocket and overwhelming them. Fueled by their earlier frustration, they showed no mercy, regardless of whether their opponents could fight back.
Aurora received special attention from Professor Oak's Dragonite.
Her team consisted of a Raticate, a Fearow, a Crobat, a Persian, and a Muk — Pokémon strong enough that the bubbles hadn't yet managed to trap them.
Watching Dragonite dive toward her, Aurora frantically shouted, "Quick, stop it!"
At her command, Raticate and Persian leaped simultaneously from the tower top. Raticate bared its fangs for Hyper Fang while Persian extended its claws for Fury Swipes — both lunging at Dragonite.
Dragonite halted mid-air with surprising agility. With Fire Punch in its left hand and Thunder Punch in its right, it struck each Pokémon once — clean and efficient.
"Squeak!"
"Meow!"
With twin cries of pain, Raticate and Persian plummeted to the ground, completely incapacitated.
Crobat and Fearow then approached Dragonite from opposite sides — Crobat unleashing Cross Poison while Fearow charged with Drill Peck.
Dragonite's figure blurred as it used Extreme Speed to evade Fearow's attack, then delivered a powerful punch to its back.
"Fearow!!!"
Fearow wailed as it crashed to the ground.
With another burst of Extreme Speed, Dragonite appeared beside Crobat, giving it no chance to react before landing another devastating blow.
"Crooo!!!"
Crobat instantly shared Fearow's fate.
Without the constraints of controlled Pokémon, Dragonite displayed its full might. Who could possibly withstand its attacks?
"Ahhh!!!" Seeing Dragonite flying toward her, Aurora lost all her previous arrogance and screamed in terror.
At this moment, Muk appeared beside her, slithering with its soft body. Aurora screamed again as she cowered behind it.
"Splat~"
Muk spat poison at Dragonite, but the dragon Pokémon nimbly dodged the attack.
"Nite!!!"
It roared, opening its mouth to release an ice-blue beam that swept outward. In an instant, both Muk and Aurora behind it were frozen solid into blocks of ice.
"Nite!!!"
Still not satisfied, Dragonite flew over and delivered a powerful punch.
Crack!
The ice block trapping Muk and Aurora shattered. Immediately afterward, Dragonite's body began to radiate with lightning. The golden electricity, under its perfect control, instantly engulfed its opponents.
When the lightning dissipated, Aurora lay on the ground completely blackened and twitching, with circles of black smoke rising from her mouth.
If Dragonite hadn't held back, she and Muk would probably have been reduced to charcoal by the electric current.
"Ptooey~" — You trash! (* '̀-'́)
Dragonite contemptuously spat at Aurora, then carried her and Muk down from the Pokémon Tower, one in each hand.
Thud~~
Dragonite landed with a thud, unceremoniously dropping both Aurora and Muk on the ground. Professor Oak tactfully looked away, choosing not to comment on the rough handling.
He smiled warmly at his Pokémon, "Excellent work, Dragonite. I'll make sure you get extra food when we return home."
Dragonite: (✦ ˘෴˘)✌
The dragon Pokémon raised its chubby paw, giving Professor Oak a cheerful thumbs up.
With Aurora now in custody, the remaining Team Rocket members were swiftly rounded up. Not a single one managed to escape the League's grasp.
Professor Oak turned his attention to the transparent bubbles still floating through the sky, finally able to wonder about their mysterious origin.
"Professor Oak!!!"
Just then, Cole and Sabrina came running into view, a Brionne bouncing along beside them.
✲✲✲
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