Norman lifted a hand and patted Ethan on the shoulder, his tone bright and full of battle spirit as he stepped forward, ready to lead him deeper into the Gym and toward the battlefield. Ethan clenched the Poké Balls at his waist, anticipation flashing in his eyes. His fingertips rubbed lightly over the ball's surface. This was the official prelude to a real Gym challenge at Petalburg Gym in Hoenn, and he had been dying to trade blows with this famous Gym Leader.
But just as they crossed the front hall entrance, only a few steps away from the stone gate that led to the arena.
Boom!!!
A deafening explosion tore through the air. The Gym's solid stone wall was blasted open by sheer brute force, leaving a massive hole. Shattered rock and dust sprayed everywhere, rubble clattering as it rained onto the floor. A thick gray haze spread across most of the front hall, the sharp stench of pulverized stone making everyone instinctively frown.
The sudden disaster froze everyone in place.
May snapped out of it first. She stumbled back two steps, hands flying to her mouth, her clear eyes filled with fear and shock as her voice trembled. "Ah! What happened?!"
She stared at the shattered wall still shedding stones, her body trembling with disbelief.
Through the dust, three familiar and infuriating figures walked out. Jessie stood in front, hands on her hips, head thrown back in wild laughter. Her signature cackle cut through the haze and echoed across the hall.
"Wahahaha! Since you asked so sincerely!"
"We'll kindly answer you!"
James jumped in immediately, theatrical as ever, even flicking his cape for emphasis.
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unite all peoples within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now, or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!"
Meowth stood upright with his paws on his hips, finishing the routine with a smug look that practically begged to be punched.
"Ah! It's you again! And that Meowth who can talk!" May's pupils shrank as she recognized them. She pointed straight at Team Rocket, her cheeks flushing red with fury as her fear turned into anger. "How dare you break into Petalburg Gym and blow up the wall!"
In the middle of the chaos, Caroline, Norman's wife and May and Max's mother, hurried in from the inner hall. She took in the mess, looked at Team Rocket standing by the hole, then saw her daughter glaring at them. Instead of reacting the way anyone expected, she walked up with a warm, polite expression and gave Jessie, James, and Meowth a small nod.
"Oh, so you're May's friends. Thank you so much for taking care of our May all this time."
The entire front hall fell into dead silence.
The sound of loose stones rolling across the floor was painfully clear. Team Rocket's arrogant grins froze on their faces. May and Max stared at their mother, stunned into speechlessness. Ethan stood there with multiple black lines practically forming on his forehead as his mind screamed. Friends? These three were Team Rocket. And they just blew a hole in your wall and wrecked the Gym. What part of that looked like friends? What kind of friends demolish your house?
"Mom! You misunderstood! They're not my friends!" May snapped back to her senses and rushed to Caroline, waving her hands desperately, her voice urgent and helpless. "They're criminals who steal other people's Pokémon! The worst kind!"
"Yeah, Mom!" Max clenched his small fists and ran up beside his sister, his young voice full of anger. "They just blew up our wall. How could people that bad be my sister's friends?"
On Team Rocket's side, Jessie heard Caroline, then got hit by May and Max's immediate rejection. She practically exploded, pointing at her own nose as she shouted, "Hey, hey, hey! May's friends? We're Team Rocket, famous and feared across Kanto and Hoenn! How could we be friends with some little brat? That's a huge insult!"
James frowned and waved a hand with disgust. "Exactly. Our goal is to capture the strongest Pokémon and become the number one villains in the universe. Getting tied to kids like this lowers our standards."
Meowth put his paws on his hips and screeched, "Meow, that's right! We're not friends, we're here to grab Pikachu, meow!"
Before he even finished, Ethan's eyes sharpened and his fighting spirit surged. He flung a Poké Ball forward. A red flash burst out, and Pikachu landed firmly in front of him with a crisp cry.
"Pika!"
"It's you, Pikachu!" Ethan's voice was decisive, not wasting a single word as the battle stance snapped into place.
Jessie gave a cold snort, greed flashing in her eyes as she locked onto Pikachu. "Hmph! Whatever your relationship is, that Pikachu is ours! Go, Arbok!"
A purple Poké Ball burst open. Arbok appeared, dark and menacing, tongue flicking as it coiled on the floor, its vicious gaze fixed on Pikachu.
James followed instantly, shouting with a nasty grin, "Go! Weezing! Use Smokescreen right now!"
Weezing's bulky body materialized and immediately spewed thick black smoke. The cloud spread like ink, swallowing the entire front hall in moments. Visibility dropped to nothing, like being blindfolded.
"Everyone, be careful!" Norman barked. He raised an arm and pulled Caroline, May, and Max behind him, his eyes sharp as he scanned the darkness. As a Gym Leader, he knew Team Rocket never relied on Smokescreen alone. There would be a follow up.
"Wahahaha! Arbok, Poison Sting!" Jessie's voice rang out from inside the smoke, dripping with smug delight.
"Weezing, Sludge! Full power!" James's voice followed immediately.
In the black fog, countless thin toxic needles shot out like a storm. Reeking sludge came whistling through the air, rushing straight toward Ethan and Pikachu. When the sludge splattered onto nearby stones, it ate into them, leaving pitted marks that showed just how nasty it was.
In that split second, Ethan closed his eyes. His brow tightened, and a gentle yet powerful pale blue energy spread from within him like ripples of water, flowing through the entire front hall. It was his Aura.
The invisible Aura pierced the thick smoke, locking onto Team Rocket and their Pokémon with precision. Even the paths of the incoming needles and sludge appeared clearly in his mind, every angle and direction laid out like a map.
"Pikachu, dodge hard to your right!" Ethan snapped his eyes open, sharp and focused. "Pidgeot, come out! Use Hurricane to blow the smoke away!"
"Pika!"
Pikachu sprang into motion, launching like an arrow and narrowly avoiding the incoming barrage. The needles scraped past its fur and sank into a stone pillar behind it, the pillar instantly blooming with dark purple poison stains.
At the same time, Ethan threw another Poké Ball. A red flash erupted, and Pidgeot burst out with powerful wings. One fierce sweep of its wings and a violent wind roared through the hall, shredding the smoke cloud apart. In only a few breaths, the black fog was blown away completely, and Team Rocket, Arbok, and Weezing were exposed again.
Jessie stared at Pikachu, completely unharmed, then at Pidgeot clearing the smoke. Her face twisted in disbelief. "What is this?! How is this kid predicting our attack directions so perfectly? Our Smokescreen was supposed to be flawless!"
Meowth scratched his head, eyes wide with confusion, shaking it over and over. "This is a huge mystery, meow! Smokescreen can't even block his vision. This kid is seriously freaky, meow!"
"Enough talk!" Ethan's voice dropped, cold and firm. "Pikachu, Thunderbolt! Pidgeot, Hyper Beam!"
Norman stopped watching. He threw his own Poké Ball, releasing a massive Slaking that landed with a heavy thud. His voice was steady and commanding. "Slaking, keep up. Hyper Beam!"
Electricity exploded across Pikachu's cheeks. A blazing bolt ripped through the air with crackling thunder as it slammed toward Arbok. Pidgeot gathered dazzling silver white energy and fired a brutal Hyper Beam at Weezing. Slaking raised an arm, power surging, then unleashed its own Hyper Beam straight at Team Rocket.
Three devastating attacks hit almost at once.
Boom! Crash!
Explosions erupted in rapid succession. Fire flared, rubble flew, and Team Rocket, along with Arbok and Weezing, were blasted back like broken kites, smashing into the wall behind them and kicking up another cloud of dust.
"What a horrible feeling!" Jessie and James wailed.
"Wobbuffet!" came a weak cry as their Wobbuffet popped up and got caught in the chaos.
Arbok lay twitching on the floor, Weezing wobbling and groaning, both clearly knocked out. Meowth clutched his head, screaming as the shockwave launched him out of sight.
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]