~Aether Paradise~
Inside a room filled with high-tech equipment, Giovanni's emotionless face was illuminated by the cold glow of multiple screens...
One screen displayed an encrypted video call with Cyrus, Archie, Maxie, and the others on the other end.
"Where's Ghetsis?" Cyrus asked, eyeing an empty black quadrant on the grid.
"That fool failed and got himself captured by the Unova League," said a man with flame-like hair. He was Lysandre, leader of the Kalos region's Team Flare.
Cyrus scoffed, "Tch. What a waste."
Lysandre didn't argue. He turned to Giovanni, who still hadn't spoken, asking, "Does his absence matter?"
Giovanni's eyes narrowed slightly, as if recalling something. He let out a cold snort, "He failed. That's all that matters."
The implication was clear: even if Ghetsis mattered, he wasn't coming back.
Lysandre nodded in agreement.
Giovanni continued, "But at least his failure proved one thing."
The others froze. Their faces twisted into identical expressions of realization. They had all thought the same thing.
Giovanni's voice dropped low and grim, "This world has been infiltrated."
For some time now, their plans had been repeatedly disrupted by outsiders who seemed to know everything; their secrets, their hidden bases, their moves before they made them.
At first, Giovanni suspected internal leaks. But after thorough investigation, he found something impossible: those people didn't exist in this world at all.
They came and went like ghosts, yet always knew too much. And that young investigator named Caleb was clearly one of them.
Silence filled the room...
After a pause, Giovanni asked, "How are your plans progressing?"
Archie and Maxie exchanged glances, "We've located Groudon and Kyogre. With the orbs, we can awaken them anytime."
Lysandre added, "Thanks to you, I've captured Yveltal and Zygarde. Unfortunately, Xerneas escaped. But it doesn't matter. We're ready to activate the Ultimate Weapon."
Then, all eyes then turned to Cyrus.
The man in question snapped, "Why are you all looking at me?! That damn Caleb stole the key to Spear Pillar! What do you expect me to do?!"
Lysandre sneered, "Tch. Useless."
Cyrus fumed, but could only lash out verbally, "You should be glad you never met him! Your Team Flare would've been crushed even worse than my Team Galactic!"
Before Lysandre could retort, Giovanni cut in sharply: "Enough! I didn't call you here to bicker!"
The two turned away from each other.
Giovanni glanced at another monitor feed and said, "Begin your operations."
Cyrus blinked, "What about you?"
Giovanni's voice turned cold, "He's coming."
As if on cue, alarms blared through the facility:
<..Alert! Alert! Powerful energy signature approaching! Distance: 560 meters… 480 meters… 200 meters..>
Giovanni stood. The metal walls of the room parted automatically. He stepped onto a central platform that rose to the surface.
Above Aether Paradise, the protective barrier opened. From four corners, massive metallic pillars extended upward.
In another chamber, Lusamine heard the commotion. She abandoned her work and took an elevator to the surface.
Elsewhere in the facility, three cloak-wearing figures dismounted from their Pokémon below and looked up at the spectacle...
...
"You came," Giovanni said, as if he'd expected it all along. His hawk-like eyes locked onto Caleb, who sat atop Dragonite.
Caleb landed and helped Lillie down.
Lillie stared nervously at Lusamine behind Giovanni, "Mother…"
Lusamine's expression hardened, "Don't speak such nonsense. I have no daughter nor son. A child who rejects my love and abandons me is no child of mine."
Lillie's grip tightened on her bag. She looked down, biting her lip.
Lusamine watched her coldly, "How utterly disappointing."
Giovanni clapped mockingly, "How heartless." Then he turned to Caleb, "Is someone else's family drama part of your 'quest' too, Caleb? Or should I call you the annoying interloper from another world?"
"At least I've never harmed humans or Pokémon," Caleb replied calmly, then released his other Pokémon:
Mimikyu, Lucario, Hydreigon, Celebi, And both Mewtwos.
"Is that so?" Giovanni's gaze swept over them, then he laughed, "Tch. Lance and the other two died because of you! Boom! Blown to dust in that building!"
"And you'll pay for that," Caleb said quietly.
Giovanni just smirked, "Don't forget, Mewtwo was created by Team Rocket! Who do you think understands its biology better than us?"
The moment he finished speaking, the four mechanical pillars surrounding Aether Paradise hummed to life, glowing with deep violet energy. Four beams shot skyward, merging into a single, colossal dark-purple column like a divine cannon descending from the heavens.
The terrifying blast struck within seconds.
"Teleport!" Caleb ordered, frowning.
But Mewtwo didn't respond.
Giovanni laughed mockingly, "Did you really think I'd let you escape so easily? I've been preparing for this day for a whole year!"
Caleb could still teleport away using the Warp Beacon, but he didn't want to leave Lillie and his Pokémon behind.
With their Teleport disabled, the two Mewtwos locked eyes, nodded, and instantly Mega Evolved, charging straight into the energy beam.
"You fool," Giovanni sneered, "You came alone thinking Mewtwo makes you invincible?"
The cataclysm struck.
Caleb barely had time to recall Lucario and Celebi before the shockwave hit.
At the last second, his Substitute Glasses activated, and a white energy shield expanded from him, perfectly shielding Lillie and the remaining Pokémon.
- Substitute Glasses: Conceals identity and blocks one attack. Functions like the Pokémon move, Substitute...
- Cooldown: 1 hour...
The devastating blast knocked both Mewtwos out of Mega Evolutions and stripped them of their levitation. They crashed hard onto the ground.
*Snap!*
Giovanni snapped his fingers.
With a mechanical hiss, countless metal spheres shot out from the walls, swarming toward the downed Mewtwos like a tidal wave.
The Mewtwos tried to retreat, but there were too many. One sphere struck true, and a sharp pain flared as something was injected into its body.
"Fool! What have you done!" Lusamine shrieked, seeing the crater left by the blast. "Cosmog is with them! It's the key to opening the Ultra Wormhole!"
Giovanni shoved her aside impatiently and said, "It doesn't matter anymore."
He had obtained two Mewtwos, and his enemy was dead. The Aether Foundation had outlived its usefulness...