Saffron Gym.
Sabrina stood on her bedroom balcony, gazing at the distant view.
Suddenly, a faint tremor came from beneath her feet. She raised an eyebrow, tilted her head as if listening for something, and her beautiful eyes gradually narrowed.
…
Silph Co. Headquarters Building.
The Team Rocket Squad Leader in charge of security was greatly shocked upon receiving Archer's command and immediately rushed with dozens of grunts to provide reinforcement.
Just as they ran to the secret elevator entrance, they saw a large group of Pokémon burst out of the elevator.
Caught completely off guard, the Team Rocket formation was scattered. Many grunts didn't even have time to send out their Pokémon before they were tripped and stepped on by the escaping Pokémon.
"Stop them immediately!" The Squad Leader knew that if these Pokémon escaped and caused a commotion, Team Rocket's operations within Silph Co. would be exposed.
Unfortunately, the Squad Leader wanted to stop the enemy, but he was powerless to turn the tide. By the time he managed to organize his Grunts, most of the Pokémon had already fled.
"Squad Leader, what do we do now?"
"We have no choice. You take a few people and proactively contact Officer Jenny. Tell her that the Pokémon we were raising ran wild and escaped. To prevent affecting the lives and property of citizens, request their assistance in capturing those Pokémon." The Squad Leader quickly devised a solution, reiterating, "Remember, use Silph Co.'s name. Distance us from Team Rocket."
"Understood!"
Watching the grunts leave, the Squad Leader could only suppress his unease and lead the remaining members down to the base via the elevator.
Seeing many black-uniformed Team Rocket Grunts lying on the floor by the door, the Squad Leader made an immediate decision: "We will set up defenses here! No one is allowed to leave!"
"Yes!"
…
Before the great Pokémon escape, Archer had already returned to the central control room with his grunts.
Seeing that the central control room had not been infiltrated, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Returning to the central control room was not only to ensure the security system wasn't stolen by the enemy, but more importantly, a hidden secure passage to the outside world was concealed here.
Only he knew the location of this secure passage. It was their ultimate contingency plan for evacuating the base.
If the situation developed too badly, he would use this secure passage to retreat and simultaneously detonate the entire base, destroying all evidence.
Fortunately, the Master Ball's experimental data had already been saved. While rebuilding another laboratory would cost more budget, the actual time delay wouldn't be too long.
"Lance, I hope you don't force me to take such drastic measures," Archer's eyes glinted coldly.
"Archer-sama, Dr. Namba is requesting a communication."
Hiss~
Archer suddenly felt a headache. Although he was ostensibly the leader of the Master Ball laboratory, Dr. Namba, who was actually responsible for the experiments, held greater authority.
He always treated this scientist, whom even Boss Giovanni respected, with caution.
Hoo~
Letting out a soft breath, Archer said, "Connect the call."
"Yes!"
The video call connected, and the face of an old man who looked like a scientist filled the entire large screen.
"Archer! I only stepped out for a little inspiration, and the base has already been infiltrated? Incompetent!"
His voice was deafening, and everyone in the central control room felt his spit spraying through the screen onto their faces.
Archer gently wiped his face and said calmly, " Dr. Mamba, it was just a small thief who got in. It's not a big problem. Don't worry, I will handle this successfully."
"I told you my name is Namba, with an 'N'!" Dr. Namba angrily corrected Archer's address. "It better be. Also, pay attention to the Pokémon in the warehouse. There's a batch of Ditto in there that I painstakingly begged off that Fuji fellow. Don't you dare lose them!"
"Don't worry, Dr. Mamba."
"I said my name is Namba!" Dr. Namba angrily responded before cutting off the video communication.
"Phew~" Archer tidied his hair and complained, "I can't stand that old man."
"Archer-sama, the grunts on the surface are calling."
Archer had a bad feeling and picked up the phone.
"What? You said a large number of Pokémon escaped?"
"Not bad. You handled it well. Just keep guarding the entrance."
Hanging up the phone, Archer narrowed his eyes: "Lance is trapped in the laboratory, so he definitely didn't have time to release the Pokémon. Does he have an accomplice?"
He ignored Dr. Namba. He could catch those Pokémon for him later if need be. The main priority now was to catch the few little mice scurrying around the base to prevent Team Rocket's secrets from being exposed.
"How long until the security system is restored?"
"Six more minutes."
"Good!"
Go ahead and run around, Lance. You only have six minutes left.
…
"Boss, one minute left."
"Received!"
After leaving the warehouse, Aomori had intended to rush over to watch Lance's battle, but by the time he arrived, the fighting had already ended.
Looking at the ruined laboratory, he felt deep regret.
"Lance wouldn't be caught that easily."
Aomori deployed his Mind's Eye, taking in the layout of the base.
"Found him!"
He found Lance cornered. The Dragon Master was looking dusty and miserable, clearly having been forced into a tight spot by Team Rocket.
Aomori chuckled softly. He searched a communication device from a grunt lying on the ground. He was going to help Team Rocket find Lance.
"The stronger the enemy, the better a Justice Seeker is tempered. No need to thank me."
With Aomori's help, Team Rocket was always able to find Lance's location in time, forcing him to scurry around desperately. Finally, he was cornered by Team Rocket at the elevator entrance.
"Damn it!" Lance didn't know he was being targeted by someone and assumed Team Rocket's black technology was so powerful it could accurately pinpoint his location.
"After this mission, I definitely need to ask the headquarters to develop a jamming device for me!"
The battle reignited.
This time, Lance used two Dragonair and a Flygon.
The two Dragonair were clearly his main Pokémon. They surged with immense power, and their combined attack scattered the Team Rocket Grunts.
Flygon guarded Lance's side, crushing any sneak attackers.
…
"Boss, only one minute left," Akihiko reminded him in the headset.
"No rush."
He was already at the elevator entrance. Getting out would be effortless, so there was no need to worry about the security system anymore.
Aomori intently watched Lance's command style and the performance of the two Dragonair, comparing them to his own abilities.
If this was the full extent of Lance's power, Aomori was confident he could fight any of the Elite Four to a draw. By extrapolation, he could at least retreat safely from the Champion's hands.
Just as Team Rocket was about to be overwhelmed, the security system was restored. With the assistance of their black-tech weaponry, they managed to hold out until Archer arrived and engaged Lance in battle.
Using Ditto, which was stuck to his face as a human skin mask, Aomori pretended to be a passing grunt, observing the entire battle and having a great time.
In the midst of the fierce fighting, Lance suddenly shouted toward Aomori's direction: "Now! Take down Archer quickly!"
In a flash, the Team Rocket grunts surrounding Aomori scattered, leaving him standing alone.
Archer had long known Lance had an accomplice and kept a Houndoom ready as a guard. He turned to Aomori and asked, "Are you Lance's accomplice? You were the one who released the Pokémon from the warehouse, weren't you?"
Aomori hadn't expected Lance to recognize him even now. Could this also be a Dragon Master's ability?
'It looks like the role-play as a spectator is over,' he sighed and admitted, "That's right. I'm actually Lance's cousin, Alan!"
————
You can read the ahead chapter on Patr-eon if you're interested: p-atre-on.c-om/Overgod [Just remove the hyphen to access normally]