Molten lava, heated to over a thousand degrees, spilled from the mouths of volcanoes and flowed down ridges and valleys, leaving behind a black, glass-like surface of obsidian once it cooled.
The ground temperature reached seven to eight hundred degrees Celsius—any human stepping upon it would be burned into charcoal in seconds. Near the volcanic mouths, the heat soared past a thousand degrees, and the skies above were eternally shrouded in smoke and flame. This was the largest volcanic cluster in the Kanto Region, a place utterly inhospitable to human life.
Yet it was here, beneath this lethal terrain, that Dr. Blaine's laboratory was hidden. Known worldwide as a geneticist of remarkable skill, Blaine had many scientist friends. With the help of a geologist, he located a section beneath the volcanoes where magma would never flow. The temperature there was stable and survivable for humans. It was in this refuge that Blaine built his underground research facility.
The environment was so hostile that even Team Rocket struggled to locate the lab without exact coordinates. That difficulty was precisely what had allowed Blaine to remain free ever since betraying the organization. But now, at last, his sanctuary had been discovered.
The one that uncovered the lab's location was none other than the legendary Pokémon of Kanto's myths—Moltres, the Flame Bird!
If legendary Pokémon were considered gods, then Moltres belonged to another rare category known as "mythical Pokémon." There might exist only a single one in the entire world. Though lacking divine authority, its sheer strength far surpassed that of ordinary Pokémon. For this reason, such beings were often described as dreamlike existences.
In terms of rarity, Moltres was equal to the so-called legendary Pokémon. Human sightings of such creatures were exceedingly rare. The only real distinction was that legendary Pokémon wielded powers akin to divine authority, while mythical ones did not. But in combat strength, a mythical Pokémon like Moltres could even surpass some legends.
For generations, it was said that Moltres dwelled in the Indigo Plateau. Indeed, many claimed sightings there. Still, some scholars dismissed the legend. They believed Moltres lived in volcanic regions like Cinnabar Island. After all, the Indigo Plateau was as vast and impenetrable as the Tibetan Plateau—human investigation could never be thorough enough to prove the truth.
Now, however, the rumor had been confirmed. Team Rocket had tracked Moltres in the Indigo Plateau, and under the leadership of Sabrina, their three Executives, they launched an all-out mission. With Kanto's most powerful psychic at the helm, and aided by ancient relics from long-extinct civilizations, they managed to capture and temporarily subdue Moltres.
The relic that enabled them to bind such a creature was none other than the Original Gym Badges!
According to ancient records, multiple civilizations had thrived before modern history. All were eventually annihilated by combined retaliation from legendary and mythical Pokémon. Every era's downfall was passed down in myth. At some point, desperate civilizations—seeking to avoid destruction—began researching ways to enslave these divine beings.
Modern scholars argued that such hubris was precisely why those civilizations were destroyed. Yet their research, dangerous as it was, had borne fruit. That success explained the vengeance of the gods.
Fragments of these ancient technologies survived through ruins. Across generations, knowledge accumulated, making it almost inevitable that one day humans might truly succeed in enslaving legendary Pokémon.
Kanto's eight Gym Leaders each possessed an "Original Badge," excavated from ancient ruins. The badges were forged from unknown materials, resistant even to the League's most advanced scientific analysis. They eventually became mere symbols of Gym authority.
But Team Rocket's research, ruthless and cruel, uncovered their true function: the ability to control mythical and legendary Pokémon!
Creatures like Moltres had highly developed minds. To capture them through ordinary means and gain their willing obedience was nearly impossible. Here was where the badges revealed their terrifying value. One needed only to defeat the Pokémon, then use the badge's resonance to force control upon it.
Though the control was limited in time and scope, by repeatedly subduing and re-binding the creature, it could eventually be broken and made fully obedient.
After seizing Moltres in the Indigo Plateau, Sabrina immediately received orders from Giovanni. She was sent to Cinnabar Island to track down Blaine. To Moltres, the boiling magma rivers of the island were no more harmful than warm water. Sabrina commanded it to dive into the volcano, navigating streams of molten rock until it unearthed Blaine's secret lab.
The cry of the divine bird shook the heavens. Flames poured endlessly, blotting out sky and earth. With wings spanning four to five meters, Moltres soared through the volcanic clouds. Its wings could not block out the sun, but its fiery trail ignited everything. Unlike ordinary flame, this fire needed no fuel—it devoured air, stone, or water alike.
The volcanoes here burned hot enough to kill any human in seconds. Yet on Moltres's back, Sabrina felt no pain, no scorching heat. Its flames cocooned her in warmth, almost comforting.
In her hand, she gripped the badge that bound Moltres, while commanding a second Pokémon—Charizard—to duel fiercely in the sky. Like warplanes in an aerial dogfight, the two flame-breathing titans circled and struck. Upon Charizard's back rode Blaine himself. Their battle had already raged long in the skies above the island.
Sabrina quickly realized the truth. Charizard was Blaine's ace Pokémon. Even with Moltres under her command, she could not easily overpower him in the short term.
As Blaine declared, in all matters of fire, he was the true expert. He had studied Moltres extensively. Sabrina, in contrast, was no fire-type specialist. She wielded Moltres not with finesse, but sheer brute force, relying on its overwhelming might.
Her brow furrowed. Sabrina was the world's strongest psychic, yet directing Moltres in combat felt awkward. Had it been Mewtwo or Mew she commanded instead, Blaine would already have fallen.
Blaine himself, however, fought with frustration. Legendary and mythical Pokémon often defied the ordinary rules of battle. Where a normal fire-type might expend energy with every burst of flame, for Moltres, flame-breathing was as effortless as breathing itself. Its body was composed of fire. Its energy seemed endless.
Only large-scale, devastating attacks taxed it at all. Otherwise, Moltres could unleash fire endlessly—burning all in its path.
At that moment, Logan also arrived upon Cinnabar Island. From below, he gazed at the scorching battle. He saw Blaine already pushed to the defensive. Logan longed to join the fight, but found himself restrained—because Green hung limply on his back, her body weak and almost unable to move.
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