"Gastly, Gastly!"
Just as Red and Charizard finished tying up all the Team Rocket members, a voice echoed from the gate.
Gastly, who had disappeared earlier, slowly floated back into the building. Trailing behind was a fainted figure levitating in the air—Team Rocket Captain Wright, the very same man who had escaped moments ago.
"Well done, Tong," Robert praised with a satisfied nod, watching as Haunter gently lowered the unconscious Wright to the ground.
"Gastly~"
Haunter waved his arms, as if to say, Of course—just doing my job.
Without delay, Robert securely tied up Captain Wright to a pillar, just like the others, and began searching through his possessions. He collected all the useful items—like documents, gadgets, and rare Trainer tools—and packed the worthless ones, including the Team Rocket uniform and dangerous paraphernalia, into a separate pouch for Officer Jenny.
With all the captured Rocket members accounted for, Red and Haunter began a more thorough search around the Rainbow City Game Corner. Any time they encountered someone resisting or questioning their presence, Haunter would swiftly cast Hypnosis, rendering the person unconscious in moments.
Red made sure to comb through the entire facility, collecting anything of value. He left nothing of use to Team Rocket, looting the base clean and ensuring the organization wouldn't recover anything significant from this location.
After sweeping the Johto region's contact points linked to the Game Corner, Red scribbled a brief letter, placed a few items bearing the Team Rocket insignia into an envelope, and attached the note to Pidgeot. He gave the majestic bird a command, and it soared off into the skies, en route to Officer Jenny's station.
With everything handled, Robert left as quietly as he had arrived. He made no noise and left no trace—except for the stripped-down, empty shell of a once-bustling criminal base. He waved his sleeves metaphorically, taking nothing but the spoils and leaving chaos behind.
Less than thirty minutes later, Officer Jenny received the mysterious letter from Robert, delivered by Pidgeot. The note contained damning evidence of Team Rocket's operations in Rainbow City. Without hesitation, she rallied every officer at the station and rushed to the Game Corner.
At first, Jenny was skeptical. The idea that the popular Game Corner was secretly a major Team Rocket base seemed like a wild accusation. But upon entering the "VIP Room" and witnessing the truth—Rocket members tied up, Captain Wright unconscious and restrained, and crates of stolen documents—she was forced to accept the letter's claims.
Though she had no idea who the anonymous informant was, Jenny couldn't help but feel a deep sense of gratitude toward Robert. Together with Officer Mathius, she immediately contacted the Pokémon League Alliance, requesting reinforcements and investigators.
While Jenny and the Alliance investigators worked to secure the Game Corner and interrogate suspects, reinforcements from Team Rocket began arriving.
But upon seeing the perimeter locked down by Alliance forces and under an Embargo field preventing teleportation and unauthorized entries, they were forced to retreat. The Team Rocket agents abandoned the mission and returned to their base, where they reported everything that had occurred to their superiors.
News of the loss quickly reached the higher-ups in Team Rocket. Giovanni, the boss of the entire syndicate, was furious. He summoned Lance, one of the elite Rocket executives responsible for overseeing Rainbow City operations.
"What were you doing, Lance?" Giovanni growled, his voice cold and unforgiving. "This wasn't just any base. That Game Corner was one of our primary financial sources."
Though Team Rocket had lost bases in the past, this one stung more than most. The Rainbow City Game Corner had been a critical source of funding and influence. Losing it was more than a minor setback—it was a serious blow to their operations.
"You have one month," Giovanni warned. "Find out who's responsible. If you fail… go back to the bottom. Become cannon fodder. Start over."
Lance clenched his fists but knew better than to argue. He could only curse Robert under his breath while beginning the difficult task of tracking him down.
The best lead he had was Captain Wright. If they could retrieve him, perhaps they could force out some valuable information. The other captured grunts were expendable and knew little, but Wright might hold key details about the mysterious intruder.
Unfortunately, Wright had already been handed over to the Alliance's elite investigative division. Due to his rank and the sensitive knowledge he likely possessed, the League specialists had taken over his interrogation.
Lance cursed Robert again, wishing he could hunt him down personally. If not for Robert's interference, none of this would have happened. His rage boiled as he imagined taking revenge, fantasizing about tearing him apart.
Unable to come up with a plan on his own, Lance reported back to Giovanni, requesting help in recovering Wright. Giovanni paused, considering the request, before simply instructing Lance to continue investigating. He would handle the matter of Wright himself.
With no other choice, Lance resumed his search. It was a daunting mission, and the consequences of failure loomed large. He had fought for over ten years to climb to his current rank. A fall from grace now would be devastating.
Team Rocket dispatched more operatives to investigate the incident, focusing on any trace left behind by Robert. However, by this time, he was long gone.
Robert had already left Rainbow City far behind. Sitting comfortably on the back of his massive Pidgeot, he was cruising through the sky with the wind in his hair and a sense of satisfaction in his heart.
The newly evolved Pidgeot was a sight to behold. Towering at over two meters in height when standing, it was much larger than any typical Pidgeot. In fact, it was likely bigger than even a Mega-Evolved Pidgeot.
"A real beast," Robert murmured, patting Pidgeot's feathers. He sat cross-legged, scanning through a virtual screen visible only to him—his system interface.
He opened the system backpack, a grid-like digital inventory containing all of his items. Among the personal tools and gadgets he previously carried, a wealth of new items now glittered—spoils from the Rocket base.
The inventory was packed with rare Pokémon items: evolution stones, elemental amplifiers that enhanced specific move types, high-grade Poké Balls, and much more. Each item gleamed with value, both in money and in strategic worth.
"Didn't have time to go through these earlier," Robert muttered. "But it's true—Team Rocket was loaded."
His fingers swiped across the digital grid, inspecting item after item. The loot was even better than expected. While he had certainly taken some of the most valuable items, Robert suspected there was more he had missed. Rare Pokémon might still be hidden in the Game Corner's vaults.
But time had been short, and he'd already taken the best of what he could carry. He decided not to dwell on it.
"Still," he said to himself, "this haul is more than enough. I just saved a ton of points and cash. These items would've cost me a fortune at the Poké Mart or the online Elf Mall."
With that thought, Robert closed the screen and leaned back. The wind rushed past him as Pidgeot soared higher, wings stretched wide, slicing through the clouds.
He had no regrets. Rainbow City was behind him, the future ahead.
And somewhere in the shadows, Team Rocket was burning with revenge.