"Is what this bald fool said true?" Sabrina asked coldly, her voice sharp as glass.
The Team Rocket members nodded frantically, trembling under her gaze. With a flick of her hand, Sabrina hurled Tem, the bald grunt, back from the cliff's edge as if he weighed nothing.
She fell silent for a moment, lips curling faintly. "Interesting. Lavender Town may not only hide a powerful Ice-type Pokémon, but perhaps one skilled in hypnosis as well."
She didn't believe the reports of warped space and frozen time. To her, those sounded more like illusions—memories altered by a master of psychic trickery. Her eyes flicked to the Alakazam behind her. Without a word, Alakazam stepped forward, offering its spoon of fate.
"Show me," Sabrina murmured, her pupils dilating, her long blue hair rising as if lifted by an unseen current. "Let me see what awaits Team Rocket when we march into Lavender Town."
She glowed with eerie divinity as her consciousness expanded.
"Brother Tem," one grunt whispered nervously, "what is Director Sabrina doing?"
Tem, still shaken and smelling faintly of urine, snapped, "Watch and learn. She's using her own psychic power, channeled through Alakazam's fate spoon, to glimpse the future."
Within Sabrina's vision, the world unfolded: she saw herself leading Rocket forces into Lavender Town, clashing against a girl commanding a Garchomp. The battle was fierce, but eventually Team Rocket overpowered the dragon.
Then, a shadow darted from within their own ranks—a traitor? This figure blocked her path, unleashing a Munchlax that jabbed the air with Metronome. The world instantly collapsed into darkness, swallowing sight and sound. Even in her trance, Sabrina reeled, her mind spinning until she forcibly tore herself from the vision.
Cold sweat dampened her brow. Never before had she felt dizzy while scrying the future. That tiny Munchlax's power… it reached even me?
Her eyes narrowed. "Why would such a Pokémon appear among my own soldiers? Is there a mole among us?"
She turned her gaze upon the Rockets. Panic froze them in place. No one dared breathe.
"Release all your Pokémon. Now. No one hides anything. Anyone who disobeys will be thrown off this cliff." Her voice was ice.
The Rockets scrambled to obey, Poké Balls flashing as Pokémon appeared one by one. Sabrina's eyes scanned the line, but there was no Munchlax. Her frown deepened. Was my vision wrong?
She turned back to Tem. "Tell me, what do you know of the trainers in Lavender Town? Will we face resistance?"
Tem swallowed hard. "Director Sabrina, there aren't many strong trainers there. If you lead us, they won't be able to resist."
"Then why did the last mission fail?" she pressed.
"An accident, nothing more!" Tem stammered. "If I had to name one trainer worth noting, it would be the boy who commands a Charmeleon—he used Clear Sky against me. I nearly lost to him, but compared to you, he's nothing."
Sabrina's eyes glinted. "Charmeleon… and no mention of a Munchlax?"
"None, Director," Tem said quickly. "The only Munchlax in Lavender Town is the one in the Pokémon House. I saw it once when I kidnapped Mr. Fuji's granddaughter."
"The Pokémon House… a shelter for abandoned Pokémon?" Sabrina asked softly.
Tem nodded. "Yes. A charity founded by Mr. Fuji himself. If we invade, we can seize the secrets he took from the Cinnabar Island Research Institute as well."
At that, her suspicion eased. The Pokémon House was indeed a gathering place for unwanted creatures. Even if a Munchlax appeared, she was certain she and Alakazam would prevail.
She turned, cloak whipping in the wind. "We march at dusk. Two objectives: seize Lavender Town, and recover the secrets Boss Giovanni desires from Mr. Fuji."
Recalling Alakazam into its Poké Ball, Sabrina stepped to the cliff's edge—and leapt. Gasps rose from the Rocket grunts as she vanished into the twilight, a Psychic aura carrying her safely down.
Meanwhile, Ethan was far from town, pockets heavier with Cynthia's wager. Alongside Charmeleon and his loyal Munchlax, he battled wild Pokémon on Route 10 to grind precious experience.
"Too slow," he muttered after Charmeleon scorched an Arbok. "Wild battles don't cut it. If only a few more trainers passed by… we could earn money and experience faster."
"Ka~"
He looked down as Munchlax tugged his pant leg, then pointed ahead. Ethan followed the gesture and froze.
There, descending from the cliffs in the distance, was Sabrina herself.