Normal POV
With the grunts who'd formed the main line of defense largely taken out of the way, it wasn't long before Antonio and his group reached and entered the base. After briefly looking in all directions for any sign of grunts or other obstacles, Antonio looked to the rest of his group.
"We're gonna have to split up, everyone." he stated. "You all know what to do. We need to search the base for Brittany and take out any grunts that we find along the way. Once Brittany's found, all of the kids must retreat with her to the sub and leave finishing off Team Rocket to the adults."
Everyone nodded and split up, with Antonio and his two partners rushing down one corridor, Jason and Michelle running down another, Trevor bolting down a third one, and Amber hurrying off down a fourth.
As Amber hurried down the corridor that she'd chosen, she found herself briefly glaring and feeling jealous about how Megan was the one currently partnered up with Adam instead of her. She then shook her head to clear her thoughts.
Don't think like that, Amber. Now's not the time to be petty, especially not after I already agreed fair and square to let him and Megan team up for this mission. Brittany's safety is what's most important. she thought to herself.
"STOP RIGHT THERE!"
Amber promptly skidded to a halt, eyes widening in fright as she raised her head just enough to see who was now standing directly ahead of her with an arm cannon pointed her way. Already, Amber's heart was sinking at the sight of the purple-haired woman now in front of her. It was Hunter Mya!
"I was hoping that I'd see you again." she purred with an evil grin as she placed her left hand on her hip, revealing an unnervingly sharp and serrated knife attached to her belt. "Especially considering that I'm feeling in a mood to make things extra painful for you this time, after you escaped from us last year before we could give you the execution that we had scheduled for you, should you have denied to join us."
I've got to get away from her, and quick! Amber thought, fearing what kind of execution she would likely suffer.
But of course, with the arm cannon currently pointing her way, Amber knew that only engaging in a Pokemon battle with Mya would allow her the chance to escape without immediately getting turned to stone. But at the same time, she was also well aware of how there was a serious difference between battling a mere Team Rocket grunt and battling a hardened and competent Pokemon hunter, and she knew that she had no chance of defeating Mya own her own. But at this point, considering her only options were to either fight her way out or be guaranteed to be turned to stone by attempting to run, her decision was clearly already made for her.
Mya then swiftly lowered her arm cannon and drew out a Pokeball, shouting, "Salamence, let's get this over with!"
"Go, Rapidash!" Amber cried, not willing to go down without a fight.
As both Pokemon appeared, Amber was quick to make the first move, hoping that this would catch Mya off-guard.
"Rapidash, use Flamethrower! Now!" Whinnying, Rapidash spewed out her Flamethrower attack from her mouth.
"Salamence, deflect it with Dragon Claw! Then follow up with Hyper Beam!" Salamence did as commanded, dispersing the Flamethrower with its now-green-light-encased claws before opening its jaws and beginning to charge up the planned Hyper Beam.
"Rapidash, use Fire Spin! Hurry!" Rapidash spewed out flames that trapped Salamence in a swirling pillar of fire that Amber could only hope would damage it enough to make a difference.
But it sadly wasn't long before Salamence's Hyper Beam finished charging up. Salamence roared as the resulting beam of energy shot from its jaws and slammed into Rapidash. And when the beam and resulting dust cloud finally cleared away, Rapidash was revealed to be lying on the floor, completely out cold.
Mya chuckled, her cruel grin widening as she said, "You really want to drag this out before I carve you up?"
"I'm afraid you're the one who's gonna get carved up with that knife if you don't stand down!" a new voice cut in.
Eyes widening, Pokemon and trainer alike turned their heads in time to see none other than a very angry-looking Oakley strolling into view, alongside her Houndoom. Mya and Houndoom came to a stop directly next to Amber before turning to face Mya and Salamence.
"We all know the stories of how a mother Ursaring will go above and beyond to protect their Teddiursa offspring." Oakley stated, her eyes narrowed hatefully. "And right now, you've messed with the wrong Ursaring, Mya."
Mya snarled silently, her eyes narrowing and teeth gritting at this development. Meanwhile, Amber looked to Oakley with relief and mild confusion on her face.
"Where's my dad? I thought that you were with him and your sister?" Amber inquired.
"I was. Your dad's still helping out Annie right now. He told me to go after you and lend you a hand. And judging by what I just walked in on, it looks like I'm just in time." Oakley explained.
"Nice to know that Dad's watching out for me." she said with a grateful smile.
Amber couldn't help but mentally take note of how this was the second time in a row since the assault on the base began that Oakley had come to her rescue. And while the first time had left her fairly confused, she now had a feeling after this second time that her dad must've secretly told Oakley prior to the assault to always stay by her side.
Oakley chuckled warmly, then looked back to Mya and Salamence, a confident smirk on her face.
"And now that I'm here, you and I can take Mya down together!"
"Let's do this!" Amber declared, taking out another Pokeball.
With Oakley now there to even the odds, the battle began anew.
Meanwhile, with their acquired map still in their hands, Megan and Adam were able to very swiftly make their way through the base and reach the room where Brittany was located, thankfully not encountering any more grunts.
"I'm honestly surprised about how easy our mission's starting to look." Megan stated.
"We'd best continue taking advantage of our current good luck while it lasts." Adam said as he unlocked the door and opened it.
As if to further show their current luck, Brittany was indeed in the room, as indicated by the map. At that moment, she was lying on what appeared to be an operating table while a white helmet-like device was on her head that was currently beeping and glowing, as if it were in the midst of carrying out some kind of procedure.
"That doesn't look good." Adam stated.
Megan rushed into the room and towards the nearest computer, which was currently displaying ongoing data.
"Hold on a second while I see if I can shut down that helmet. Depending on just what's going on, yanking it off your cousin while it's still active could cause some serious harm to her mind." she said.
Adam nodded, well aware of what Megan was getting at. Fortunately, it wasn't long before Megan was able to successfully shut down the helmet. Adam then grabbed the helmet device and removed it from Brittany's head.
Megan walked over to the still-fast-asleep Brittany and began gently shaking her to wake her up. Fortunately, as if the helmet itself had been keeping her asleep, it wasn't long before Brittany started to slowly regain consciousness.
Groaning groggily, Brittany slowly opened her eyes, blinking a couple of times and rubbing her eyes as she slowly regained her sight and full awareness of her surroundings. Eventually, her eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Adam and Megan looking down at her.
"Adam? Megan? What are you doing here?" she asked, clearly confused about her situation. She then looked around, her eyebrow rising as she took note of the technology-filled operating room that they were in. "And where are we?"
"We're in Team Rocket's Hoenn base." Adam stated, visible relief on his face that there didn't seem to be anything wrong with Brittany, despite having likely spent multiple hours under the effects of the odd helmet-like device. "But right now, any further explaining will have to wait."
"Let's get you up, Brittany. We're gonna get you out of here, we promise." Megan reassured her.
Brittany quickly grabbed Megan's hand with her own and was soon lifted back onto her feet before getting gently taken off the table and lowered to the floor by Megan and Adam. The three kids then hurried out of the room to escape from the base.
"We've got a submarine docked outside." Megan quickly explained to Brittany. "Adam and I will be taking you there and we can all get out while the adults finish their business here."
Adam, meanwhile, said through his communicator, "Megan and I have Brittany! We're on our way to the sub as we speak."
"Sounds good, Adam." said Michelle. "Jason and I will head straight for the sub."
"Darn it!" Jason said. "Right as I was hoping that we'd be facing something more exciting than some stupid grunts."
"Be glad that's ALL that you had to face." Amber said. "I'll head right over as soon as Oakley and I are finished with Mya. Be careful, Adam!"
"Don't worry, Amber. I will. What about you, Trevor? You hear me?"
"Yes." Trevor stated, sounding strangely disappointed and irritated. "I'll be on my way momentarily."
Jacob Berlitz was in a less-than-happy-mood as he remained positioned in his office, his eyes narrowed as he tried as hard as he could to maintain control over Groudon and Kyogre, even as both of the gargantuan Hoenn Legendary Pokemon fought furiously against Rayquaza.
"Come on, COME ON!" he growled, visible irritation on his face at just how unexpectedly long the battle was lasting, after he'd been so confident that both of the giants under his control would have already defeated Rayquaza by now. "How is this battle still not over?!"
The sudden sound of screaming from outside his office caused him to grit his teeth and look irritably towards the doors leading to the outside corridor, already having a bad feeling as to who was responsible for the screams of the grunts stationed outside his office at that moment.
And sure enough, with an incredibly loud explosion that sent the doors flying off their hinges, none other than Ash came stepping through the now-gaping doorway and into the office with a determined glare on his face as his right hand still glowed with blue light from his recent Aura Sphere.
"It's over, Jacob!" Ash yelled. "Release Groudon and Kyogre, and just maybe I'll go easy on you!"
"Curse you, Ketchum." Jacob growled in rage. "You just can't leave well enough alone, can you?"
But before he could say anything else, Ash threw off his gloves and pointed his hand with the Mark of Arceus on it towards Jacob. The mark began glowing as he channeled its power to hack into the orbs' energy within Jacob and wrest control of Groudon and Kyogre away from him.
It didn't take long for Jacob to feel the pull of Ash's power against the energy of the orbs. He closed his eyes and concentrated with all his might to steel his mind against Ash's effort and firmly root his hold upon the orbs.
"Oh no you don't!" Jacob snarled. "You're not taking this victory from me. Not this time!"
Ash gritted his teeth as he tightened his focus even further upon binding the power of the mark to the orbs so that he could eject them from Jacob. And before long, he and Jacob found themselves in a vicious mental tug-of-war, with neither of them willing to give up!
Jacob, sensing how unexpectedly difficult his son-in-law was discovering this to be, couldn't help but let a smug grin appear on his face.
"You might as well give up, Ketchum." he said, his confidence starting to return as a result of how good of a job he was currently doing at resisting Ash's efforts. "After all, even if I weren't actively resisting your efforts, these orbs still wouldn't let you make them let go of me that easily. And so long as I'm breathing and Team Rocket's agenda remains unfulfilled, I'll gladly assist them in their desire to stay where they currently are."
Ash felt the strain from Jacob's resistance starting to get to him. And to make matters worse, Pikachu could only remain helplessly perched upon Ash's shoulder and do nothing else, lest he risk accidentally breaking his trainer's concentration.
Even with the Mark of Arceus, the orbs and Jacob's willpower combined are still able to resist my efforts! This could very well be a case where I've bitten off more than I can chew. It wouldn't be the first time that that's happened, either. Ash thought.
But then, at the exact same moment that he was starting to briefly consider the possibility of defeat, images of those that he knew he couldn't afford to let down filled his mind. He could flashes of Misty, Brock, Gary, Leaf, May, Max, Iris, Cilan, Serena, Bonnie, Clemont, his mother, so many others that he'd befriended...but especially of his son Adam and beloved wife Dawn.
No, I can't give up! Ash mentally snarled to himself. Not with so much at stake! Everyone's counting on me, and I've never let them down before!
At that instant, with a newfound determination, Ash channeled all of the power and willpower that he could muster, with the end result flaring up in his mind like an inferno and soon rapidly flooding over Jacob's own willpower like a tsunami!
"AHH!" Jacob howled, eyes clenching shut in discomfort and pain as he felt Ash's power completely flood his mind and override his efforts at maintaining his hold over the orbs.
And in that moment, even as Jacob's hold over the orbs was already wavering, Ash grabbed onto Jacob's wrist with his hand that bore the mark to give his power an even stronger hold to absorb the power. And before long, both orbs materialized out of Jacob's body, landing on the floor and rolling to a stop, near the still-open door to Jacob's office. Ash let go of Jacob, who crumpled to the floor, panting and gasping in his powerless and weak state.
With the Mark of Arceus still glowing, Ash focused on all three of the Hoenn giants outside, now noting with relief that Groudon and Kyogre's minds no longer had the distinctive feeling that had come with Jacob's influence on them.
"Be at peace now." he said. "The one who wishes you to act as mindless destroyers is no longer your master. Return to your domains. And Rayquaza? Thank you for being there when I needed you."
All three Pokemon growled in understanding, though not without Groudon and Kyogre very briefly glaring at each other. Clearly, they still had every intention of fighting a world-ending battle at some point, in the event that they ever crossed each other's paths again without someone stronger to keep them in line. Nevertheless, today would not be the day that they ended the world. Groudon and Kyogre both turned and dove back down under the ocean to return to their respective lairs. Rayquaza let out a low hiss and went flying back up into the stratosphere.
Nodding his head, Ash grabbed the orbs and placed them in his supply bag. He then looked to Jacob, slipping his gloves back on in the process.
"It's all over, Jacob. Your plans have been foiled yet again, my niece is, even now, in the process of being extracted back to where she belongs, and your grunts are falling to the police as we speak. Team Rocket ends for good today, Jacob. So you might as well make it easy on yourself and let me bring you in."
Jacob lifted his head, a withering glare on his face as he looked at Ash. But then, much to Ash's confusion and surprise, a grin started to slowly form on his face before he started...laughing. This caused Ash to raise his eyebrow in concern. This wasn't the reaction that he was expecting.
"You think that this is the end for Team Rocket?" Jacob asked. He then started laboriously working to get back to his feet, gritting his teeth and wincing a couple of times from the effort of doing so while still in his drained state.
"It won't end with me. It's bigger than me, and it's certainly bigger than you. No matter how many times you stop us, Team Rocket will never die! Because unlike all of those rival teams from back in your time like Aqua, Magma, Galactic, Plasma, and Flare, Team Rocket was actually prepared to play the long game, instead of putting all of their eggs in one basket as soon as possible without considering the mere possibility that they could fail. And it's only become more willing and prepared to play the long game under my leadership than it ever was under Giovanni. Much like how the Hydreigon was once believed to regrow its heads whenever you chopped them off, a new leader will replace me when I'm gone. Sure, Team Rocket will have to be rebuilt from the ground up like it did all those years ago, after you captured Giovanni. But make no mistake, Team Rocket will always come back! 'They' won't let it die! 'They' can't afford to!"
Hearing this, Ash felt himself feeling even more confused, though also understandably wary at this potential higher power above Jacob that he apparently would need to worry about.
"They? Who are 'they'? Tell me!" Ash demanded.
"I'll die before I tell you, Ketchum! But I will say this: Not everyone in your life is as innocent as they seem. People who you see as your friends may very well have a dark side to their lives...and Team Rocket has seen it in them."
Ash's eyes narrowed in concern. But before he could ask any further questions...
"YAH!"
Hearing the scream, Ash turned his head just in time to see none other than Paul, who had just burst in through a nearby side door that Ash hadn't noticed, screaming in rage with his right fist drawn back for a punch as he charged straight at Ash. Ash hurriedly turned his entire body and raised his arms just in time to block Paul's punch, but was still sent sliding a couple of inches back from the blow.
When he came to a stop and lowered his arms, he saw Paul draw out all six of his Pokeballs, sneering in disgust in the process, before throwing them all aside. Clearly, he wished to fight Ash hand-to-hand instead of with Pokemon. Nodding his head, Ash looked at Pikachu.
"Stand back, Pikachu." he said. "I should be able to handle fighting hand-to-hand against him."
Pikachu nodded, jumping off of Ash's shoulder and scampering off to the side...but not without pausing and turning his head towards where Paul's six Pokeballs had landed.
Ash and Paul then rushed at each other with an incoherent roar of rage in unison as they readied their respective fists. Before long, they found themselves engaged in a vicious fist fight, with the both of them proving evenly matched as they successfully blocked each other's punches with their arms and fists. But Ash couldn't help but notice a curious detail: Paul's arms seemed to rather strangely feel as if they were made out of steel.
I definitely don't remember him being this tough the last time. Is he wearing some kind of armor? Ash wondered.
Eventually, both combatants took a step back from each other, panting as they worked to catch their breaths. Paul then gritted his teeth in a silent snarl and reached up and threw off his Pokemon hunter coat and visor. Ash's eyes widened in surprise at the sight of Paul's blood red cybernetic eye and metallic arms.
"See what you've gotten me reduced to, after our last fight?" Paul hissed. "Yet you still call yourself a hero?"
"You brought this upon yourself, Paul. You're the one who's kept coming after me. I used to believe that you had a chance of becoming a better person, not to mention after I heard about the promisingly kind way you treated your Electivire after your battle with Brandon. But clearly, judging by how you've only gotten worse and worse, I clearly had too much faith in you."
"You should've killed me back in Johto when you had the chance. Now I'm going to you show why you made the biggest mistake of your life by letting me live!"
"Good luck with that. I've never killed anyone before in my life and this time will be no different."
"And that's why you've never deserved to be the Pokemon Master! You're too weak at heart! You don't stop threats, you merely delay them. By letting your enemies live, they always keep coming back. You may knock them down, but they're always capable of getting right back up. A real Pokemon Master would knock them down and make sure that they STAY down! You're no hero! You're no savior! You're not protecting the world, you're just dooming it to a perpetual cycle of harm and danger! You're not saving anybody, you're just letting them suffer for eternity!"
"There are millions of people who'd be DEAD right now if it weren't for me and the others on my side. And at least we've worked to help those still alive who ended up suffering to get back on their feet! And you know what? For all your talk about me not permanently getting rid of threats, at least I'm not actively becoming one of said threats, which is more than I can say about you!" Ash yelled.
"Yes, you save them. But not forever! You're helping them to keep living in a world where Team Rocket will always threaten their lives. They won't ever be safe until Team Rocket is gone for good! You want to know why all of the other teams stopped being a threat after their first and, ultimately, only major world-threatening schemes? Because something or someone always came into the picture and put them down for good! And since nature hasn't seen fit to unleash the same punishment upon Team Rocket after all they've done, it's up to you as Pokemon Master to do it! But you don't have the resolve to do what's necessary for the good of the world! And by NOT doing anything to stop the problem permanently, you're just as much at fault as Team Rocket themselves are! Like I said, you don't deserve the title of Pokemon Master at all! Not after all of your inaction!"
"Contrary to what you think, even as the Pokemon Master, it's not up to me to decide who gets to live or die. And don't think that I didn't notice how you've just now conveniently ignored what I said about you actively turning yourself into one of the threats that you're shaming me for not permanently getting rid of. And while we're on that note, you can keep saying half truths and twisting the facts all you want about me, but at least I'm not a hypocrite! You've been directly working with Team Rocket for the last two years! If you care even half as much about permanently saving the world from Team Rocket as you're trying to claim, how come you yourself aren't practicing what you're preaching?"
"Is that what you think this is?!" Paul screamed, now looking even more angry. "You think that I joined Team Rocket because I believe in their ideals?! Because I WANT to help them control the world?! Like always, you're completely wrong about me!"
"Then let me ask you AGAIN." Ash growled. "Why aren't you taking advantage of your working with them and trying to kill them yourself?!"
"I joined them because we shared a common enemy: You. I hate to admit it, but I don't have the strength to stop you on my own. But for now, I'm only helping Team Rocket until you're dead. Why? Because you don't deserve to be the Pokemon Master. A person with that title has the responsibility to ensure safety for the entire world for both humans and Pokemon alike. And you're too weak at heart to take the permanent solutions that are necessary for fulfilling such a responsibility! And you know what? We've got time. So how about I give you my full story from the beginning? I may hate you, but as small as it is, I've got just enough respect for you to allow you the right to understand my true motives for everything I've done."
"Fine, let's hear it." Ash said with a sigh, already raising his Aura to be prepared for any potential tricks that Paul could potentially have up his sleeve.
"As you know, I used to really respect my older brother Reggie. But I quickly learned the error of doing so, after his loss against Brandon during his time going through the Hoenn Battle Frontier showed me how he was too weak to push his Pokemon to their maximum potential that would be required for beating all seven of the Hoenn frontier brains. So I vowed to be stronger than him, to make it further than he could. I was catching multiple Pokemon and only keeping the ones that I deemed would be strong enough to be worthy of keeping by my side in the long run. I was even able to beat you every time we fought, leading up to the Sinnoh League. But then, when we finally battled each other in the tournament, I was convinced to give your methods a shot after you proved good enough to finally beat me for the first time, and with my old Chimchar-turned-Infernape being the one to deal the winning blow.
"But even when I tried it your way, you still continued to beat me as we kept competing to be the Pokemon Master. You became champion in all six of the leagues from the regions that you traveled to, defeated their regions' Elite Fours, all five of their champions, and earned the title of Pokemon Master. And by the time I finally won all six of the Pokemon League tournaments myself and earned the right to challenge you for the title of Pokemon Master, I still lost. And after several more tries and defeats, I was truly at a loss for how to beat you. No matter how hard I trained my Pokemon, even with your training methods, it was never enough!
"I did try to forget it all and live a normal life, maintain good relations with Reggie, continue to treat my Pokemon the way that you always treated yours, even getting married to Misty. But becoming the strongest trainer in the world had always been my dream for as long as it had been yours, and no matter how hard I tried, I just simply couldn't bury that feeling. Then came the day that you and the authorities seemingly destroyed Team Rocket for good. And while I'll admit the fact that Giovanni and his top agents were sentenced to life in prison instead of getting sent straight to the chair or injection table was something I found concerning, I was still willing to give you the benefit of the doubt and hope that maybe life in prison for its leader and best agents would truly be enough to keep Team Rocket out of existence for good.
"But when the news of Giovanni's escape from prison broke, and it became clear that he'd revive Team Rocket, that's when I realized that I HAD to do something! Why? Because I saw on that day that you didn't deserve to be the Pokemon Master. You didn't have the resolve to do what was necessary for the good of the world by ending Team Rocket for good. You could've finished it by cutting off the head of the Ekans. But no, you threw him in a cage and hoped that that would be enough. And even if, by some miracle, someone else were to have finished the job the right way in your stead, you still would have been too weak at heart to ensure that no one else would rise to fill the gap and start the whole cycle of havoc all over again. Simply put, I knew that if I had been in your position, I wouldn't have hesitated to do what was truly necessary! So do you remember in Johto when you said that I was jealous of you? Well, you were only half right, and now you know the other half of the reason.
"So eventually, I left Misty, went back out into the world, and started training again. And since your methods, at this point, seemed like a clear sign of the same weakness that you possess, I reverted back to my old methods of training, to ensure that I didn't develop that same weakness. It took many years, and I even went to Altomare to catch Latias to bolster my team. I thought that if I had a Legendary Pokemon, it would finally give me the edge needed to finally beat you again. I was initially disappointed when you disappeared at the hands of Team Rocket, which robbed me of my chance. But I got over it. After all, regardless of whether you personally would be around to defend your title, the fact that you were gone still seemed like a sign from Arceus that my time had finally come. The Elite Four from all six regions were even considering having a new tournament to choose a new Pokemon Master. But then, just my luck...you returned.
"But I wasn't going to be denied my latest chance to earn your position, so I showed up unannounced at the start of the Kanto Pokemon League two years ago to challenge you directly. I thought that Latias would be able to take on anything that you had...but I was wrong. You had gained the power of all the known Legendary Pokemon themselves. My rage was boiling inside. Even with a Legendary Pokemon, I still couldn't beat you! That's when Kenny approached me, and he had a bone to pick with you as well. It was because of your wife. You want someone apart from yourself to blame for my joining Team Rocket? It's him. He's the one who proposed the idea. I realized that Team Rocket, who hated you just as much as I did, would be useful tools that I could use to finally get rid of you for good, so long as I helped them with their own plans in the meantime.
"But guess what? There's something that they, you, and nobody else on the planet knows: I have an ulterior motive. After you're dead and I take my rightful place as the Pokemon Master and Team Rocket is therefore no longer of any use to me, I'm going to accomplish what you never had the guts to do: Destroy Team Rocket for good. Want to know how? Simple. I've won their trust, after everything I've done for them. THAT is their fatal mistake. They don't know that I plan to backstab them all and take them all out as a threat from the inside! Ironic, huh? They think they're so clever, but I'M their biggest danger. One of their own Pokemon hunters. Not you, not the police, not the Elite Four, not even the Champions. Do you see now? Their entire organization is just my naive pawn! An arrogant bunch of useful idiots that I can manipulate into doing my work for me and cast aside once they've outlived their usefulness. I'm helping Team Rocket...so that I can end them for good!
"Your death here can be chalked up as a tragic accident at their hands, leaving me to take your position! And if I'm lucky, they'll just hand it to me by default without even holding a tournament! And when I take Team Rocket down and leave no survivors, the world will see that the problem is solved forever and I'll be seen as a bigger hero than you could ever hope to be! I'll be the most powerful trainer in the world, looked up to and idolized by all future trainers! AND YOU! WILL! BE! NOTHING! NOW DIE!"
And immediately after shouting out that last sentence, Paul drew out a knife and charged forward, swinging it at Ash. Ash managed to smack Paul's wrist with enough force to jar him into harmlessly dropping the knife, sending it sliding harmlessly across the floor and out of Paul's reach with a sweep of his right leg.
"You know, for a guy who wants to kill me so badly, you seem awfully intent on killing me with a weapon or your bare hands instead of having any of your Pokemon do the deed for you." Ash taunted.
"And give you the excuse to let your own Pokemon get involved? We both know exactly how that will end after how many Pokemon battles we've had at this point. And besides, those same Pokemon battles? All they've taught me at this point is that NO Pokemon in the entire world will be remotely capable of being worthy of having me as their trainer, so long as you live! Because no matter what Pokemon I've used since your first victory against me in the Sinnoh League, you've always been able to beat me in a Pokemon battle. It's clear now that I'll never be able to break your winning streak in that regard. So until you're dead, every Pokemon on the planet will be forever too weak for me to have on my team! Even my Electivire!"
Hearing this, Ash narrowed his eyes in disgust, and said in a dark tone, "And just like that, you've truly crossed the line. A real trainer would never say something like that about Pokemon. Especially not about their most loyal one!"
And with an incoherent roar of outrage, Paul lunged at Ash, sending the both of them tumbling to the floor of Jacob's office as they started punching and kicking at each other with pure rage, as if they were in a wrestling match!
Pikachu sat and watched the whole thing unfold, tempted to try to jump in to assist his master, but holding himself in place out of respect for his master's wishes. And he wasn't alone in watching this impromptu wrestling match. For as it so happened, all six of the Pokemon that had been inside the Pokeballs that Paul had tossed aside were watching alongside him, having been released from their Pokeballs by Pikachu, so that they could watch the battle and perhaps finally see just how far their own master had truly fallen. And it looked very clear that Paul's return to his ruthless ways of training had really put them through the ringer.
Ursaring had vicious bruises all over his body and had lost a claw talon on each paw. Torterra had severe burns on his shell and had recently lost the tree that had been originally rooted upon said shell. Gliscor had lost one of her ears and gotten said ear replaced with a bionic replacement, and had also gone through three surgeries, each one for the same purpose of healing and repairing her wings. Honchkrow had some vicious scratch marks across his body and also looked as if he had been tearing off his own feathers from the stress of keeping himself up to Paul's standards. Magmortar didn't have any visible injuries on his body, but the flames on his head, shoulders, and tail looked noticeably small and weak, as if he hadn't been keeping up on maintaining a steady diet. But the ever-so-loyal Electivire looked the worst, clearly having suffered the most by virtue of having a savage-looking scar across his left eye that had come from an injury that had left that eye permanently closed, not to mention having also lost an arm, a leg, and both of his tails. All of which had since been replaced with remarkably strong and realistic-looking bionic implants.
And in that moment, all six of them had looks of visible outrage on their faces, after having heard their master's comment about how he essentially viewed them all as worthless, as long as his hated rival was still alive. They all looked to Pikachu, their facial expressions all silently asking permission to intervene. Pikachu shook his head with a patient "wait" expression on his face. He had a feeling that it could yet prove necessary for at least one of them to get involved at some point, but now wasn't that time.
Meanwhile, Jacob had long since gotten out of his office during Paul and Ash's confrontation, making it all the way to the security room, where he swiftly became aware via the camera footage that the grunts were only delaying the inevitable by continuing to try and fend off the International Police agents. Even Hunter Mya had been unexpectedly defeated. Mentally cursing, but nonetheless accepting the reality of the situation, he hurriedly used his communicator to call to Mya.
"This had better be good news, Boss." Hunter Mya's voice growled irritably, clearly still peeved at having been defeated and forced to flee by Amber and Oakley.
"I'm afraid not." Jacob stated bluntly. "At this point, our plan with Groudon and Kyogre is no longer possible, and staying here will only get us all arrested or killed. Spread the word to everyone else. It's time to evacuate."
"As you wish, sir."
Meanwhile, outside the base, Adam and Megan had successfully gotten Brittany to the cove where the submarine was still docked. Amber, Michelle, and Jason were currently all standing on the beach portion directly in front of the sub, all of them smiling in relief at the sight of Adam, Megan, and Brittany having made it back safely.
"Thank goodness." said Amber, hugging Adam the instant he got close enough. She directed a warm side glance towards Brittany as well. "It's good that you made it back. Especially you, Brittany."
Brittany chuckled and said, "Thanks."
"Darn right." said Michelle. "And we can continue this reunion once we're all safe and off this island. Right now, we'd better get in that submarine and get out of here!"
"You said it." Brittany agreed. "Dad must have been so worried about me."
"Wait...where's Trevor?" Adam asked, noticing that he was the only one missing from the group.
The rest of the kids all looked around in confusion...only for their eyes to widen in shock as it finally registered to them that Trevor was not present.
"We were hoping that he'd met back up with you while you were on your way here." Amber stated.
"We didn't see him." Megan added.
"Well, we can't leave without him." Michelle stated. "Nikki would kill us for abandoning her brother!"
"I can definitely believe that." Adam said, already using his communicator to try and contact their missing friend.
"What is it, Adam?" Trevor's voice snarled, clear annoyance in his voice.
"Where are you? We're already at the sub, waiting for you!"
"I'll be on my way in a minute." Trevor muttered irritably. "And right now, the last task that I need to get done is taking slightly longer than I was expecting."
"What are you talking abou-" Adam's eyes then narrowed in realization. "You can't be serious."
"When have I ever not been serious? Regardless, I've found Hunter Michael and I'm on my way to head him off."
"Are you crazy?!" Adam yelled. "We're talking about Hunter Michael! You can't possibly take him on all by yourself! You're nowhere near strong enough!"
"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. But like it or not, I'm not letting him escape again. I've got a twofold score to settle with him and he needs to pay for what he's done. And if I have to die in order to ensure that he goes down for good, then so be it! I won't have any regrets if I can make sure that what happened to Nikki and Valerie never happens to anyone else ever again!"
"Well, at least let me help you! Just tell me where you-"
The communicator suddenly beeped to indicate that Trevor had hung up. Adam glared in irritation. He then looked to his friends, who were currently staring at him with worried looks, alongside Brittany.
"Get in the submarine and get to safety. I'll go back inside and find Trevor. Don't wait for me to come back with him. Just get out of here. I can't just leave Trevor to face Michael alone. I need to help, and we all know Nikki would never forgive us if we left her brother behind." Adam said firmly.
He started to turn around to run back to the base, only to abruptly feel two hands grab onto his shoulders from behind. Startled, he turned his head in time to see a very worried-looking Amber and Megan holding onto his shoulders with a hand each.
"Promise me that you'll survive and come back safely." Megan stated, a firm tone in her voice, despite the almost panicked and pleading look on her face.
"Yeah, and I'm not letting you go back in there until you do." Amber added, her expression and tone exactly like Megan's. "Especially not after you got yourself killed and had to be revived by Celebi when you pulled a similarly reckless stunt last year."
Michelle winced at the reminder of that incident, with Megan also briefly glaring at Amber for seemingly putting up a more impassioned plea than her own. But Megan nonetheless nodded her head in agreement.
At this point, realizing the futility of trying to head back in without making the requested promise, and feeling that it would only be fair to reassure both girls, Adam nodded his head, saying, "I'll try my best."
Michelle soon nodded in agreement, placing a hand each on one of Megan and Amber's shoulders with a determined look on her face as she said, "I'll make sure that he honors that promise. Because I'm going with him."
So Adam and Michelle both hurried back towards the base, with the rest of the kids getting aboard the submarine, which sailed away within seconds after they'd gotten aboard and closed the entrance hatch.
"We don't for sure where Trevor is, so we might want to split up. That way, our chances of finding him should be increased." Adam suggested.
Michelle winced, briefly nervous about splitting up so relatively soon, after she'd promised Megan and Amber that she'd do everything that she could to ensure Adam's survival and return. But then she nodded her head in agreement and they split up as they made it back inside.
At that moment, Michael, more than a little irritated that he was now being forced to flee from the base instead of continuing to battle against and kill the agents unfortunate enough to encounter him, was rushing like a raging Tauros to reach the hangar where his airship was docked. The grunts who'd chosen to evacuate on his ship were rushing as close behind him as they could manage.
Fortunately, it wasn't much longer before they reached the hangar...only to pause in surprise immediately after entry at the sight of what they saw. Standing right by Michael's airship, a withering glare on his face and his arms across his chest, was a very ticked-off Trevor. His Aggron was standing right next to him, snarling in rage as the claws on its hands were completely soaked and dripping with blood. The source of said blood was all too clear, with the sight of a large number of grunts lying dead and bloodied all over the hangar floor, clearly having been already at the hangar to try to get aboard of the airship before Michael and the other grunts reached the hangar, only to subsequently get slaughtered by Aggron.
The sight of this was enough to cause all the living grunts currently with Michael to blanch and widen their eyes. Michael, however, was only shocked for a couple seconds before he raised his eyebrow, a look of mild amusement forming on his face that eventually gave way to a disturbing grin.
"Well, well, well. Look what we have here. If this is all your handiwork, I daresay that you'd make a fantastic member of Team Rocket." Michael said.
Trevor gritted his teeth, his eyes narrowing in a hate as he replied, "Thanks for the offer, but no. I'd rather see your dead body on the floor, alongside these others."
Michael chuckled darkly, his eyes now narrowing in an ominous glee to match his grin, saying, "Awfully dark stuff you're dabbling in, with words like that. What would your sister think?"
This seemed to quickly set Trevor off, as he swiftly pointed his finger at Michael in an accusatory fashion while his eyes blazed with rage.
"NO! You don't get to talk about her or even mention her! Not after what you did to her in Kanto!" Trevor yelled.
"Struck a nerve there, did I? Well, what about that other girl that you knew from Neon Town, whom I had my way with? The one with glittering blonde, hair similar to my own? Oh...what was her name? Hannah? Velma?"
"HER NAME WAS VALERIE!" Trevor roared, now even more visibly outraged than he'd already been. "AND NOW YOU'LL PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO HER AND MY SISTER! YOU'RE NOT GETTING ON THAT SHIP, OR LEAVING THIS BASE ALIVE!"
Bizarrely, Michael burst out laughing. He then let his earlier narrow-eyed grin return to his face.
"Believe me, you aren't the first one who's vowed to kill me, and you wont' be the last. And besides, even in the impossible event that you succeed, then you might as well get aboard my ship and take my place as Team Rocket's newest Pokemon hunter! We both know Jacob would love to have a bloodthirsty killer like yourself taking my place."
"Oh, I'll take your ship alright." Trevor admitted. "To escape from here after I kill you. And I'll even let your grunts here with you come aboard as well to fly it for me...under the threat of joining you in the afterlife! But your ship will be flown to the police, not to wherever your boss is going."
"You may say that now. But really think about what your sister will think when she finds out about the lengths you'd hypothetically have gone to in order to reach that point."
"My sister would understand what I did!" Trevor shouted. "And she'd be very happy to know that the man who caused her so much physical and emotional trauma is gone for good and can't hurt her or anyone else anymore! Valerie would feel the same way, if she were alive!"
"I'm sure that would be true." He then gestured meaningfully towards the dead grunts with his right hand, his left hand surreptitiously moving behind his back and rummaging around in his belt. "If my boss and I were the only ones that you were planning to kill."
"Don't play innocent!" Trevor spat, scandalized at how Michael was trying to play the morality card on him. "You've killed many of your own grunts as punishment before. Every Pokemon hunter here has. You have no remorse about what you've done, so you have no right to shame me!"
"You're right about one thing." Michael admitted. "I don't feel remorse for what I've done. And I really don't care about whether or not there's any reason to kill my grunts or not. Even if it came to light that any of them just happened to be unwilling in their service to this organization, I'd still feel no remorse in killing them. Heck, I'd be even happier to kill grunts that DO fit that kind of description, since those would only be useless dead weight for the likes of my boss and I. And the fact that you have the same opinion on the matter as I is all the more proof I need as to how perfect you'd be as my replacement."
"Like I said, I'll NEVER join Team Rocket. I still have my sense of right and wrong, of good and evil. My methods may be like yours, but yours come from malice while mine come from justice." Trevor then rammed his right fist against his left palm. "Now, enough of this. DIE, YOU MONSTER!"
Aggron roared as it began to charge straight towards Michael, it hand already drawn back and ready to slice at the hunter with its claws...only to shriek in surprise as Michael's Dragonite rammed it from the side while using a Dragon Rush and sent it flying into the right interior wall of the hangar and both Pokemon began to engage in a vicious tussle.
Trevor's eyes widened at the sight of this, clearly having not expected any of Michael's Pokemon to be in the area, only to then swiftly look back to Michael at the sound of the latter letting out a malicious chuckle.
"Come now, boy. Did you really think that I was that stupid? I let my Dragonite out of his Pokeball while you were too distracted by talking to me to notice me doing so. And now your doomed efforts at trying to kill me will at least unfold in a lot more interesting fashion!"
Trevor could see that he had underestimated Michael. Still, he wasn't prepared to go down without a fight! If battling Michael was the path to stopping him, then he was ready and willing!
At least ten minutes after they'd first started fighting, Ash and Paul had finally finished their duel, with Ash being the victor. The whole clash had been considerably tougher than the last bout of hand-to-hand combat he'd engaged in against Paul during the previous year, due to Paul's metal arms giving him a slight advantage. But ultimately, Ash's determination had allowed him to outlast Paul just long enough to defeat him. At that very moment, Paul was lying on his stomach, groaning in pain as he felt too weak to stand. Ash, meanwhile, was on his hands and knees, gasping to regain his breath.
"You certainly put up a good fight." Ash admitted, gritting his teeth from the blows that Paul had managed to land. "You almost had me at one point. But once again, you lose."
The sound of footsteps caused Ash to look away from Paul and see Michelle at the main entrance of Jacob's office.
"Master Ketchum," she said, bowing her head slightly in respect, "It's great to see you're alright."
Ash nodded, teeth briefly gritting once more as he reached towards Jacob's desk with his left hand and grabbed onto the nearest edge to help himself back up to his feet.
"I thought that you were back in the submarine and getting away to safety?" Ash asked.
"I was at the sub at first." Michelle stated. "But Trevor was insistent on going after Hunter Michael, so Adam and I had to hurry back in here to try to help him." She then gestured towards where her father was still lying on the floor. "And when I overheard all of the noise that you were making in what I guess must have been a fight of some sort against my father, I honestly thought that Trevor and Michael were in this area."
She then narrowed her eyes into a glare as she directed her gaze towards her father. Paul was audibly growling, his eyes narrowed and teeth gritted at the sound of his daughter's less-than-pleased voice. And in that moment, with her own glare still on her face, Michelle walked into the office and into position, right where she knew her father would be able to see her. She looked down at him, a mixture of amusement and disgust on her otherwise hatefully glaring face.
"Must be painful." she said. "Even with the both of you fighting without the use of Pokemon and despite the bionic enhancements you've apparently gotten since last time I saw you, you're STILL not strong enough to beat Ash."
"Do you seriously expect me to care at all about your pity?" he snarled. "After you've now thrice thrown your lot in with that weakling and his son? Not to mention with your mother, who's just as spineless about crossing the hard line for the world's safety as they are?"
"And why should I care what you think? After how little involvement you've had in my life? And especially when the man my mom's set to replace you with has been acting more like a proper dad to me than you'll ever be?"
"I made a mistake, leaving you with your mother." he muttered. "If I'd raised you? You would have been a proper trainer, had the guts to do what needed to be done, and you certainly wouldn't suffer fools like the Ketchums or associate with vermin like that weak little girl that monster Giovanni has for a granddaughter!"
"You really could have been a better man." she hissed in anger and disgust. "I've been told about how promisingly kind you behaved towards your Pokemon after Ash defeated you during his first time in the Sinnoh League. Not to mention how kindly you treated your Pokemon after your loss against the same Frontier Brain who beat Uncle Reggie. You could have been just as great and noble as Master Ketchum, or at least a close second, if you'd just let go of your stupid pride and continued treating your Pokemon right!"
"First Ash, and now you?" Paul growled, glowering hatefully at his daughter. Then he spat at her, managing by sheer luck to allow the spit to directly land across her face. "You sound just like Reggie!"
Michelle rolled her eyes, utterly unfazed as she nonchalantly reached up and wiped her father's spit off of her face, saying, "Good. At least one of us sees sense in my uncle Reggie's ideals."
Paul snarled angrily, "You little-"
"Attention!" Antonio's voice suddenly stated over the comms. "I bring good news. The base has been secured. All of the grunts have either been arrested or fled in the hunters' airships. So long as nothing else remains to be done, now's probably a good time to return to our boats and helicopters and leave the island."
It was at this point that Ash finally realized that he hadn't heard a word from Jacob since Paul had entered the office room, so he quickly looked around...only to find that Jacob was no longer in the room, likely having fled during his fight with Paul.
Darn it! I was so close to capturing him! Now he's gotten away yet again! Ash thought in frustration.
But then, he suddenly heard Adam's voice over the comms.
"I'll head on over soon." Adam said. "I hear some battling noises going on in one of the hangars and I think that Trevor might be in there, battling Michael right now."
"Adam," Ash said, "I know that you and Michelle have come to help Trevor. But please be care-"
A new alarm suddenly started blaring throughout the base, this one sounding noticeably more urgent than the one that had gone off when Team Rocket had first become aware of the intruders. Ash and Michelle both jolted slightly, clearly startled by the sudden new alarm.
And as if to give them further reason to be wary of the new alarm, Paul suddenly started laughing. The sound of this caused Ash and Michelle to look back at Paul, who eventually ended his laughter and directed a slight smirk of smug satisfaction their way.
"Jacob's previous experiences with you taught him to place an additional trap here that he didn't have in his bases in Kanto and Johto: a self-destruct sequence." Paul nodded his head, starting to get his hands and arms into a position that would allow him to potentially get himself back on his feet, or at the very least, onto his hands and knees. "Presumably, Jacob's safely aboard his ship at this point. He wouldn't have activated the self-destruct sequence otherwise. And at this point, we've all got five minutes to get off this island before the base explodes!"
In that instant, Ash couldn't have felt happier that his communicator was still active and on speaker mode, not to mention that Antonio had been directly broadcasting his message to the entire assault team.
"Antonio!" Ash shouted into his communicator. "Did you hear that?!"
"Yes, I did." Antonio stated. "Now's DEFINITELY the right time to get back to the boats and helicopters! We need to evacuate! I repeat, we need to evacuate!"
"You heard him, Adam!" Ash yelled through his communicator. "Get out of here while you still can! Michelle can meet up with you on the way out. Just tell me which hangar you're near and I should be able to hurry by and extract Trevor!"
"No, Dad." Adam's voice stated over the transmitter. "I'm not leaving without Trevor. You'd never abandon your friends, no matter the danger. And neither will I!"
Ash was about to reply, when...
"YAH!"
Ash shrieked in surprise as he was suddenly lunged upon by an unexpectedly recovered Paul, the latter of whom had pounced on him. Ash found himself pinned to the floor on his back from underneath Paul's weight. Paul snarled, drawing out his earlier knocked-away knife, which he had managed to roll by and reclaim during the impromptu wrestling match that he and Ash had been engaged in. Ash had just enough time to widen his eyes as he took note of the knife and realized how Paul must have gotten it back.
Paul then snarled, "There's no way that I'll make it to my ship in time to escape at this point. But if I'm gonna die, at least I'll take you with me!"
And in that moment, he lifted the knife in preparation to stab it downward into Ash...
"VIRE!"
This sudden scream, plus the equally sudden feeling of thick yellow arms snapping in place around his arms and upper body was enough to cause Paul to widen his eyes and shriek in surprise as he found himself subsequently getting yanked off of Ash, his knife once again getting sent flying harmlessly from his grasp as he found himself suddenly pinned up against a thick, furry yellow body with his feet dangling above the floor of the office. Paul gritted his teeth and closed his eyes as he finally connected the dots and realized that, somehow or other, his own Electivire had gotten out of his Pokeball and grabbed him!
Paul directed a withering glare towards his treasonous Pokemon out the corner of his eye and roared, "You IDIOT! What do you think you're doing?! Grab Ash, not me!"
Electivire snarled, his single eye narrowed hatefully and teeth gritted in a murderous snarl, clearly saying 'no'.
Paul then noticed that his other five Pokemon - all of them being Pokemon that he'd used against Ash during their battle at Lake Acuity so long ago - were also inexplicably out of their Pokeballs. And in that moment, it seemingly completely escaped him that they all had glares on their faces similar to Electivire's.
"What are you waiting for?! Kill him!" Paul ordered his Pokemon.
But much to his shock, confusion, and rage, none of his other five Pokemon present obeyed him, either. Ursaring, Magmortar, and Torterra all growled hatefully in unison and shook their heads. Gliscor hissed venomously and Honchkrow raised his wings and reared his upper body up, as if in an intimidation gesture and cawed defiantly.
"What's the matter with you all?! Have you lost your minds?! I'm your trainer! Do as I command!"
"Not gonna happen, father." Michelle said.
She then noticed Pikachu standing at her feet while holding all six of Paul's empty Pokeballs in his little arms, and nodded her head before accepting the Pokeballs and letting Pikachu climb into position on her shoulder.
"From where I'm standing, it looks to me like they've finally seen and heard firsthand just how evil you truly are. And judging by their current behavior, that's enough for them to refuse to be used as tools for evil anymore!" Michelle continued.
"I'm guessing that Pikachu must have let them out while you and I were busy talking, if not during our first initial scuffle before you took off your coat and visor." Ash clarified. He then let a brief smirk of amusement come on his face. "And I have an extra good feeling that they really didn't like hearing you say that they would apparently be forever useless to you, so long as I was still alive."
Paul's eye widened in shock as he realized how he'd unwittingly said the words he thought he'd been saying out of his Pokemons' earshot had, in fact, been directly overheard by them the whole time.
The self-destruct alarm suddenly started going off at a noticeably faster pace than before. The eyes of all of the office room's occupants, human and Pokemon alike, widened in horror.
"We're running out of time!" Michelle shrieked. "We need to get out of here!"
Almost all of the Pokemon present vocalized in agreement, with Electivire being the sole exception, staying quiet. In that moment, all five of Electivire's compatriots looked at him, telling their friend in their language that it was time to escape. But Electivire directed a half-apologetic and half-determined gaze their way, shaking his head. He was indicating that he was choosing to stay behind and likely be killed, keeping Paul restrained. And in that instant, all five of Paul's other Pokemon widened their eyes and then hung their heads, finally realizing what their friend had in mind.
Ash, Pikachu, and Michelle couldn't help but very briefly direct looks of sympathy towards the five Pokemon that would be escaping with them, for they also knew how utterly painful and saddening it was to be forced to leave a friend behind in a dangerous situation, especially one where death would be all but guaranteed. But with a resigned nod, Michelle returned Magmortar, Honchkrow, Gliscor, Torterra, and Ursaring.
"Farewell, Electivire." Michelle said. "You're truly brave, and a better Pokemon than my father ever deserved. Thank you."
She and Pikachu then looked to Ash. Ash nodded, managing with the energy he currently had to lift his right hand towards the ceiling and blast it out with an Aura Sphere. He then quickly drew out a Pokeball and unleashed his Charizard.
"You know what to do, Charizard." Ash said. "Get us out of here."
Charizard lifted Ash onto his back while also allowing Michelle and Pikachu to hurriedly hop aboard before taking to the sky through the hole in the ceiling of Jacob's office and flying away from the island as fast as he could, leaving Paul and Electivire behind to die.
Seeing them escape, and knowing that this was the end for him, Paul let out one last scream of rage, the loudest and longest one of his life.
Charizard continued flying away at maximum speed as Ash, Michelle, and Pikachu all panted and gasped in exhaustion and relief.
"That was definitely too close for comfort." said Ash.
"Too true." Michelle agreed. "Still, it's sad that we had to leave Electivire behind."
"Yeah, but he made his decision to sacrifice himself so that your father wouldn't hurt anyone anymore, and there was no time to bring him to the police. So that's something that we're just gonna have to respect. And at least his sacrifice won't be in vain now, that we're all out safe and sound."
"Master Ketchum?" Antonio's voice suddenly stated over the transmitter. "Do you read me?"
"Loud and clear. What's going on?" Ash asked.
"I've done a roll call for everyone that came with us. Everyone's been evacuated...except Adam and Trevor!"
"What?!" Ash yelled. "He's still on the island?!"
"That's what it currently looks like."
Ash hurriedly tapped into Adam's communicator and yelled, "Adam! Where are you?!"
"I'm in the hangar." Adam said, his tone of voice making it clear that he was well aware that he was in trouble. "But all I'm seeing are dead grunts. There's no ships left and there's no sign of Trevor or Michael. Best case scenario, Trevor's made it to somewhere else in the base or is outside on the island. Worst case scenario..."
Whatever it was Adam said next completely failed to reach Ash's ears as Ash swiftly realized that his son had no chance of escaping in time, with the way that things were currently looking! Thinking fast, he removed the glove from his hand with the Mark of Arceus and channeled its power to summon the one Legendary Pokemon he knew of within Hoenn that would be fast enough to have any chance of reaching the base and getting Adam out before the worst happened!
Now he just had to hope that she could get there in time!
Meanwhile, onboard the submarine, Jason, Megan, Amber, and Brittany all had their eyes widened at the news that they'd just heard from the transmissions being broadcasted directly to the sub and the rest of the assault team's vehicles.
"This is bad." Jason muttered.
"Well, here's hoping that Adam and Trevor can still somehow make it out alive." Brittany stated, trying her best to stay optimistic, like her aunt would do.
Megan nodded her head numbly in agreement, saying, "I agree, Brittany. Here's hoping for the-"
All of a sudden, the sub shuddered from an underwater tremor and started shaking violently as a large current suddenly engulfed it from behind. This current, plus the sound of a distant thunderous explosion from behind them, was enough to cause everyone on the sub to realize in shock that the self-destruct had finally gone off and blown up the base.
When the shockwave finally ended, all four of the kids looked nervously at each other. All of them were silent, and having a very bad feeling that they didn't want to voice out loud. In a flash, Megan and Amber drew out their transmitters.
"Adam! It's Megan! Can you hear me?" Megan yelled. "Are you okay?"
"Adam! This is Amber!" Amber yelled. "Where are you?!"
There was no reply. All that they heard was static.
Jason gulped and stated, "That doesn't sound promising."
"This isn't funny, Adam! Where are you?!"
"Pick up, Adam! Please pick up!"
Static once again.
"Adam...can't be dead...can he?" Brittany whispered nervously.
Jason shuddered, then directed a sympathetic look towards Brittany, replying, "I certainly hope not."
"ANSWER ME, ADAM!" Megan screamed, clear panic on her face.
"SAY SOMETHING, ADAM!" Amber screamed with panic equal to Megan's. "ANYTHING! ARE YOU OK?! WHERE ARE YOU?!"
Still static.
With three separate calls going unanswered, Megan and Amber both looked at each other, identical looks of horror and despair on their faces. They realized why Adam wasn't answering...and why he never would again. It was looking like the worst had happened. And unlike this time, there was no Celebi around to reverse things.
And in that moment, both girls turned to face the general direction of where the island had been located, visibly struggling to remain standing and avoid breaking down into tears. And then, with a whimper in unison, Amber and Megan both found themselves letting tears start rapidly sliding down their cheeks, and they subsequently collapsed to their knees.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Amber and Megan both screamed, pure heartbroken agony and despair in their voices as they unleashed this mighty howl of grief.
Author's Note: Team Rocket has finally been defeated in Hoenn. Kyogre and Groudon are gone...but it comes at a steep cost.
Electivire, Paul, Adam, and Trevor are all gone. Plus, Jacob is still alive, and by extension, so is Team Rocket.
Stay tuned for the aftermath in the next chapter of Pokemon NG!