In the heart of the battlefield, the two opposing factions were poised for action.
On one side, the Team Rocket contingent was led by a fiery red-haired woman dressed in a white robe. She reached out to caress the Houndoom standing beside her, her face dark and foreboding.
Facing her was a spry, white-haired old man from the Pokémon Association. Leaning on his walking stick, he was accompanied by a seemingly harmless Swinub. But no one dared to underestimate the unassuming creature by his side.
This elderly man from the Association was none other than Pryce, the Gym Leader of Mahogany Town. He was exceptionally skilled in the use of Ice-type Pokémon, and he had taken the Swinub species to new heights by breaking the limitations of its kind.
The Team Rocket leader in charge of Mahogany Town, Ariana, was one of the four Team Rocket Executives. Gritting her teeth, she addressed Pryce, "What did those Association politicians promise you to make you take action, old man?"
Her reputation was at stake. If the Association succeeded in breaking through, she would bear the primary responsibility, even if it wasn't her fault. In Giovanni's eyes, it would be a dereliction of duty.
"Heh, young lady, don't be so agitated. You know very well what you're doing," Pryce chuckled, rubbing his walking stick's handle. "I'm only following orders this time. If you continue to stand in my way, don't blame me for overpowering you."
Pryce's words only soured Ariana's expression further. She was self-aware enough to know that, although both she and her opponent were Elite Four-level trainers, there was a vast difference in strength among those at that level. Facing a seasoned Elite Four powerhouse like Pryce, she didn't stand a chance.
However, she couldn't just let him pass. At the very least, she had to stall until her operatives managed to secure the data they needed, minimizing their losses. Otherwise, she would have a hard time explaining herself to Giovanni.
Ariana unclipped several Poké Balls from her belt—a total of eight, to be precise.
With a swift motion, she threw them all out, and one by one, imposing Pokémon materialized on the battlefield.
Observing Ariana's actions, Pryce chuckled, shook his head, and then summoned four Pokémon of his own.
A fierce battle was about to erupt. But the gap between Ariana and Pryce was painfully obvious. Including the Houndoom she already had by her side, Ariana fielded nine Pokémon in total, while Pryce only employed five, including his Swinub. Yet they fought on equal footing, making it clear who was the stronger trainer.
As the two leaders clashed, the remaining members of the Pokémon Association and Team Rocket plunged into battle.
It quickly became apparent that the Association trainers, unaccustomed to the brutality of real combat, were struggling against their ruthless adversaries. A single determined Team Rocket member could often hold off two Association trainers of equal level, and if an Association trainer made a misstep, death wasn't off the tables.
Pryce, taking in the scene, furrowed his brow. He summoned three more powerful Pokémon, either at the Elite Four or close to that level, and only then did the tide begin to turn in the Association's favor.
Snow began to fall from the sky as Pryce demonstrated his true strength. Ariana gritted her teeth, watching helplessly as her side was decimated by the old man's Pokémon. She had to give her all just to hold him off, unable to spare a thought for anyone else.
The battle grew increasingly chaotic.
From a distance, Cain watched silently, lying low on the ground, not daring to move. He couldn't see the battle between Ariana and Pryce clearly, but from the snowflakes as large as thumbnails that appeared above his head—despite being almost two kilometers away from the battlefield—he could tell that Pryce was incredibly powerful. His ability to manipulate snowfall and change the environment in a radius of over two kilometers was no mere Pokémon move; it was akin to altering the weather in an entire region.
The might of a veteran Elite Four member was truly terrifying.
Only when Cain saw the Association members breach Team Rocket's defenses did he quietly summon Slowpoke. He switched his mask for one he'd never used before and placed his hand on Slowpoke's back, waiting for the perfect opportunity.
Ariana's battle with Pryce was at a stalemate, but it was clear that she was at a disadvantage. Even though she had more Pokémon, quantity didn't equate to quality.
Each time she launched a surprise attack aimed directly at Pryce, his Swinub would block it. Its sole purpose was to control the snowfall and protect Pryce's safety.
In reality, Ariana's battle against Pryce was nine against four, and she was still losing ground.
Cain waited until the Association's battlefront had completely pushed Team Rocket back to the entrance before he prepared to act. By now, quite a few people had already broken into the underground base, with the first wave of intruders likely having already penetrated deep inside.
"Slowpoke, use Teleport to the coordinates we marked earlier," Cain said, touching Slowpoke's back and connecting with it through telepathy.
Slowpoke's eyes lit up, and since the distance wasn't too great, it quickly located the previously marked coordinates. Wrapped in psychic energy, they vanished from their original spot in an instant.
As Slowpoke activated Teleport, a Pokémon Association psychic trainer furrowed his brow. He approached Pryce and whispered, "Pryce, someone just used Teleport, and it seems they're headed into the base."
Upon hearing this, Pryce squinted, a glint in his eyes. "No matter," he said. "Keep sensing. When they reappear, try to detect which direction they're Teleporting to. If possible, intercept them with a spatial distortion!" His tone carried a hint of coldness.
He wouldn't let anyone take advantage of their hard-fought efforts. True to his nature, he would make sure to track down the intruder.
"Yes, sir!" the psychic trainer responded. The Association had many psychic trainers within their ranks, and this individual was just one of many.
"Quicken our attack! Break through!" Pryce's voice was low, but it carried across the entire battlefield.
The previously defensive Pryce finally began directing his Pokémon to go on the offensive. As he changed the tempo, Ariana's pressure increased significantly.
However, she was waiting—waiting for her subordinates to transfer all the data.
At that moment, Cain, with the help of Slowpoke's Teleport, re-entered the middle-aged man's deserted office.
No one knew how the Association had caused such a commotion, but the once-sturdy walls of the office now bore subtle cracks.
With Slowpoke by his side, Cain crept out of the office. He was familiar with the layout of the fourth and fifth floors, having cleaned them more than once in his previous life. And this was one reason Cain dared to stir the pot now.
The hallways were empty; Team Rocket's researchers must have evacuated at the first sign of trouble, while their combatants were engaged in battle with the Association above.
Unobstructed, Cain bypassed the access-restricted doors as if they were mere illusions. He simply placed his hand on the small pad next to each door, allowing his AI system to hack in and open the door without leaving a trace.
In less than five minutes, Cain arrived at the entrance to the fifth floor.
Meanwhile, the Association members who had been fighting their way through had only just reached the second floor.
But as Cain stood before the door to the fifth floor, he started to hesitate. He had overheard the middle-aged man talk about sending someone to the fifth floor to copy and destroy the database earlier.
So if Cain barged in now, he'd likely run into that person, and with his current strength, his chances of victory were low.
Cain lowered his hand from the door's security pad as his thoughts raced. But just as he considered abandoning his plan, the sounds of battle erupted from the third floor.
The Association members realized that by the time they breached the final defense and reached the fifth floor, Team Rocket's research data would be all but destroyed.
So, several leaders decided to pick up speed and sent a few scouts ahead.
The first two elite Association trainers to break through were now trying to force open the door between the second and third floors.
It must be said that Team Rocket had put a lot of effort into securing these critical doors; that even two elite trainers couldn't break through quickly.
After a moment's hesitation, Cain decided not to enter the fifth floor. Instead, he punched the alarm switch at the entrance, shattering it.
Instantly, alarms blared throughout the fourth and fifth floors.
Having destroyed the alarm switch, Cain darted into a small room near the fifth-floor's entrance. He pressed his hand against Slowpoke's back, ready to have Slowpoke Teleport them away at the first sign of someone entering the room.
Pressing his ear to the door, Cain slowed his breathing, a skill he had mastered during his previous life as a member of Team Rocket.
Many infiltration missions required this skill, so Cain was quite adept at it.
Outside, the sound of a mechanical door opening could be heard, followed by hurried footsteps and a string of curses. "Damn it! Damn it!..."
As the sounds faded away, Cain took a deep breath but chose not to open the door immediately. Instead, he decided to wait in silence.
Sure enough, three minutes later, the frantic footsteps returned, but this time, they were calmer, stopping in front of the entrance to the fifth floor.
"Nobody here? Then who destroyed the alarm switch?"
Hearing the man's muttered question, Cain's heart raced. He employed his meager psychic power to create a thread-like connection between himself and Slowpoke, which would allow Slowpoke to use Teleport and cut the channelling time required in half.
"Boom!"
A loud crash echoed from above, signaling that the intruders had broken through the second-floor door and were now attacking the third.
"Damn you, Association dogs!"
With rapid footsteps, the man hurried away once more.
Cain let out a long sigh. Finally, the man outside had been lured away.
Without any further hesitation, Cain and Slowpoke entered the fifth floor.
Inside, they found a ring of computers with numerous keyboards and some empty shelves that once held various items—all now gone.
Cain sprinted to the main computer terminal and placed his hand on it.
"System, analyze the database and gather information!" he shouted inwardly.
"Beep! Task initiated. Database analysis in progress. Due to the large volume of data, the process may take a while. Current progress: 0.1%."
Cain knew there would be a lot of data, but he hadn't expected this much. Even with the AI system's analytical speed, the progress bar inched forward at an agonizingly slow 0.1% pace.
Although anxious, Cain knew there was nothing he could do but wait. He kept his hand on the computer and scanned the room, looking for anything of value.
It was clear that the person Ariana had sent had been thorough in cleaning up the place. Apart from the untouched computers, everything else had been taken, leaving nothing but scattered papers strewn across the floor and tables.
With nothing else to do, Cain focused his attention on the system's scanning progress.
Ten minutes had passed, and the progress was only at 5%.
Still, that 5% wasn't to be underestimated; it was an enormous amount of data.
Another ten minutes went by, and the sounds of battle neared. The voice of the Team Rocket member who had fled earlier could be heard commanding from outside.
From the sound of it, he was in quite a predicament, struggling to handle two Association trainers of the same level. In the lower ranks, Team Rocket members might be stronger than Association trainers. However, as they climb higher in rank, the Association trainers' strength tends to grow exponentially, with Elite Association trainers usually being able to suppress Team Rocket Elites in normal battles.
That was because, by the time they reached the elite level, Association trainers were no longer naive newcomers. At the very least, they had experienced real, bloody battles and some even had the lives of underground organization members on their hands.
Moments later, the battle gradually reached the entrance of the fifth floor. Cain had no choice but to stop. If he didn't leave now, he probably wouldn't be able to once they entered. Fortunately, the system's task was now 15% complete, which for Cain, represented a vast amount of data. He could only hope that much of it would be useful.
"Slowpoke, Teleport... Huh?"
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