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"Watch out! Come out, Garchomp! Use Sandstorm!!"
"Roar!!"
Seeing the attack incoming, Liam had no time to think! A flash of white light burst out in front of him—Garchomp, who had long been prepared, let out a roar and whipped up a raging sandstorm vortex!
Crack! Crack!
Pelipper and Sealeo's Ice Beam shot forward, striking the sandstorm vortex in front of Garchomp. Instantly, a freezing sound rang out as the swirling sand turned into an icy, frigid tornado standing between the two sides!
"Hmph! Since you attacked first, don't blame me for being ruthless! Come out, Slowbro! Use Psychic!!"
Lorelei made her move decisively!
"Ha~"
A flash of white light—her Slowbro appeared! Its eyes glowed with brilliant colors, and in an instant, Pelipper and Sealeo were enveloped in psychic energy!
"Gwaa! Gwaa!"
"Mo! Mo!"
The two Pokémon were lifted into the air, struggling helplessly under the crushing force of Psychic!
"What?! Sealeo! Pelipper! Break free!"
Wave's eyes widened in shock as he shouted upward at his Pokémon.
"Slowbro! Throw them down!"
Lorelei gave another command!
"Ha!!"
Slowbro raised both arms—and slammed them downward!
BOOM!!
With a heavy crash, the ground shattered into a crater. At the bottom, Pelipper and Sealeo lay unconscious, eyes spinning—they had lost all ability to fight!
"What?! With just one attack?! Who… who are you people?! Damn it! Come out—Guh—!"
Wave's face changed drastically. Just as he gritted his teeth and tried to release another Pokémon—
"ROAR!!"
Garchomp flashed like white lightning and returned!
The next second, Wave rolled his eyes and collapsed unconscious before he could even act.
Clap clap clap~
"Impressive, impressive. Who exactly are you? League members? What are you doing at Mt. Chimney?"
Seeing his opponent defeated so easily, Meltfire felt his mind collapse a little. But since their organization's grand plan was still underway, he had no choice but to step forward and question them.
"…What if I said we're just passing by? Would you believe me?"
Liam paused slightly, then gave a wry smile.
"…Heh. Do you think I'd believe that? Camerupt! Mightyena! Use Flamethrower!!"
"Fwoooh!!"
"Roar!!"
Meltfire's face darkened. Clearly, there was no point talking anymore—he immediately ordered an attack!
"Sigh… Garchomp! Use Stone Edge!!"
"ROAR!!"
Garchomp stomped the ground hard! Sharp stone blades erupted in succession, shattering the incoming Flamethrower attacks before violently striking beneath Camerupt and Mightyena!
BOOM!!
Both Pokémon were launched into the air, then crashed straight into Meltfire himself! In an instant, Camerupt, Mightyena, and Meltfire all went completely still.
"What now? We've been discovered. Should we retreat?"
After defeating the two opponents, Lorelei recalled Slowbro into its PokeBall and turned to Liam.
"No. Since we're already exposed, we might as well go in and find out what's going on. If possible, we'll resolve everything tonight—no need to leave trouble for later."
Liam shook his head and looked toward the cave entrance, his tone cold.
"Alright. I'm with you."
Lorelei agreed without hesitation.
"Heh, thanks. Let's go take a look."
Liam smiled faintly and led the way into the cave, with Lorelei following close behind.
"Cough… hehe… they've gone in, huh? Heh… better notify the boss…"
Not far from the entrance, Meltfire slowly crawled out from beneath Camerupt, barely conscious. Seeing Liam and Lorelei gone, he quickly activated his communicator to contact Team Magma's leader.
...
At the same time—inside Mt. Chimney, at the edge of the volcanic crater—
Two groups stood in confrontation: Team Magma and Team Aqua.
Team Magma had been pushed toward the cliffside by Team Aqua. The tension between them was thick and suffocating.
"Mm? …Alright, I understand. Be careful and withdraw."
At the front of Team Magma stood a red-haired young man with glasses, finishing a communication.
"Hey, Maxie, what's wrong? Retreating? Finally giving up on your plan? Hah, you should've done that earlier—would've saved us a lot of time."
From Team Aqua's side, a burly man wearing a blue bandana laughed as he spoke.
"Hmph. I only told an injured subordinate to withdraw. I never said I was giving up my plan. Archie, you should know—Mt. Chimney is already surrounded by the League. And just now, my subordinate reported that two 'rats' have already infiltrated the mountain. They'll probably reach here soon. So I suggest—you take your people and leave now. Otherwise, if the League wipes you all out, that would be quite embarrassing."
Maxie smirked, waving his hand dismissively.
"Hahaha! If you're not afraid, why should I be? Two 'rats,' huh? Heh… With all our people across the mountain—and guards like Wave from my side and Meltfire from yours at the entrance—if they still got in, those 'rats' must be pretty big! Hahaha! Now I'm actually curious to see what kind of 'rats' they are!"
Archie showed no intention of retreating, laughing loudly as if this were entertainment.
"Archie! Don't push your luck! I've tolerated your interference long enough. Leave now, and I won't hold it against you. But if you continue to stand in my way—"
Maxie's expression darkened, anger rising in his voice.
"Oh? Or what?"
Archie grinned.
"Hmph! Tabitha! Activate the machine! Everyone else—prepare for battle!!"
"Yes!!"
At Maxie's command, all Team Magma members snapped into action! One Pokémon after another was released. Meanwhile, a chubby youth named Tabitha excitedly activated a strange, crude-looking machine. Sparks of electricity flickered as the device slowly powered up!
"Haha! Finally ready to fight? Good! We'll take you on! Men—prepare for battle!! Take care of that machine!"
Archie roared with excitement. Instantly, all Team Aqua members also entered battle stance!