"So it really is Lugia… not Ho-Oh."
Giovanni stood with one hand in his pocket, bending slightly forward as he gazed at the massive bird slowly emerging from the radiant gate in the sky. He murmured to himself quietly. His tone carried a heavy trace of disappointment, along with a faint self-mocking amusement, as if he had overestimated something.
Although his voice was very soft, Logan's hearing and vision far exceeded that of ordinary people due to Mewtwo's genetic influence. Moreover, his consciousness had only recently merged with Mewtwo's psychic power, and the lingering psychic energy had not yet completely dissipated.
Because of that, he heard Giovanni's whisper clearly.
Ho-Oh… Lugia… What does Giovanni want with them?
Logan frowned slightly. His sharp gaze shifted toward Giovanni. Strangely, the normally perceptive man seemed momentarily distracted and did not notice Logan watching him.
Lying on the ground, Lance looked between the two men with growing unease.
For the first time, he felt a crushing sense of defeat.
It was as if the grand plan he had spent years constructing had somehow become known to the entire world.
He recalled how everything had begun.
He had discovered an ancient document in a forgotten ruin that mentioned the true purpose of the original Viridian Badge. That same document also contained the precise location of Cerise Island.
At first, he had doubted it.
But when he arrived in these seas, the island truly existed—hidden within the fog of history.
That discovery had sparked everything that followed.
Every step of his plan.
Years of preparation.
Years of execution.
Yet now—
A strange unease crept into his heart.
It felt as if every action he had taken had been watched from the shadows.
As if he himself were merely a chess piece placed upon the board by some unseen hand.
A pawn moved at the will of a hidden player.
The thought startled him so badly that he immediately shook his head violently, forcing it away.
How could he be someone else's pawn?
How could he be acting according to another's design?
He was the commander of the Kanto Elite Four.
The Dragon Tamer.
The undefeated master who had never lost since the day he began his career.
Everything he had done—
Every plan he had crafted—
Was for his ideal.
For the salvation of Pokémon.
For the salvation of this polluted world ruined by humanity.
So—
"It's not over yet!"
"I still have Lugia!"
"I can still fight!"
Blood dripped from Lance's forehead, sliding past his brow and falling to the ground. His eyes burned crimson with madness.
He stared at Giovanni and Logan, his voice hoarse.
"It's not finished… I, Lance, have not lost yet!"
"Come on!"
"Come try and defeat the Lugia under my control!"
"Zekrom!!"
Among all his Pokémon, only Zekrom still had enough strength left to move.
"Take me up there… take me to Lugia…"
His eyes were bloodshot like a gambler staking his entire fortune on a final desperate bet.
Zekrom's scarlet eyes looked at him one last time.
As if silently telling him—
This was the final chance to realize his ideals.
Grinding his teeth, Lance climbed onto Zekrom's back.
With a thunderous beat of its wings, the Dragon of Ideals soared into the sky toward the enormous bird glowing in divine light.
"Are you not going to stop him, Logan?"
Giovanni finally spoke after Lance had nearly reached Lugia.
Logan did not move.
"Compared to a drowning dog that has already lost," Logan replied with a faint smile, "I'm more concerned about you, Uncle Giovanni."
"Lance is impulsive. Not nearly as calculating as you."
Lance had already become a desperate man clinging to his last lifeline.
He was no longer a real threat.
Giovanni, on the other hand, had suffered almost no losses.
That made him far more dangerous.
"You call him impulsive?" Giovanni laughed softly. "You're even younger than him, Logan. Hearing that from you sounds rather strange."
Then he shrugged.
"Relax. I'm not here for you this time."
"Regardless of our grudges, that is still Lugia. If Lance manages to control it, even a drowning dog could bite back."
Logan shook his head lightly.
"That's exactly why I'm not worried."
"Yes, the badge's power comes from a lost ancient civilization."
"Yes, it can control Legendary Pokémon."
"But it can't make Lugia obedient instantly."
"Lance needs time."
"And right now… time is exactly what he doesn't have."
Giovanni snorted but said nothing further.
After all—
Logan's caution was understandable.
Flying beside Lugia, Lance stared at the legendary bird before him.
Its body was enormous.
Its wingspan exceeded thirty meters.
Even Zekrom looked small beside it.
Lugia's body was wrapped in the radiant light of the eight ancient badges, making it impossible to clearly see its true form beneath the brilliance.
Dragged from the deep sea into the open sky by force, Lugia was furious.
It struggled violently, roaring in rage.
When it saw Lance, it seemed to recognize the one responsible.
The colossal bird lunged forward, trying to bite him.
But the rings of light produced by the badges restrained its body completely.
"Hehehe…"
"As long as I control Lugia…"
"…and defeat Giovanni and my foolish younger brother…"
"…I can wait for my Pokémon and Zekrom to recover."
"Then I will march into Kanto!"
"And finally build the perfect kingdom for Pokémon!"
"Soon… soon!"
"Can you see it, my beloved Dragonite?"
Standing atop Zekrom, Lance waved his arms wildly like a madman.
Despair and terror had shattered his sanity.
"Lugia!"
"Show me your power!"
"Aeroblast!"
The badge's power had not yet fully stabilized.
But Lance could not wait any longer.
Lugia paused briefly.
Then it inhaled deeply—
As if pulling the entire atmosphere into its lungs.
The compressed wind pressure condensed within its mouth.
Then—
It unleashed it.
A world-ending hurricane burst forth.
The roaring wind shook the heavens and the earth.
Branches.
Lava.
Boulders.
Mountains.
Even the island itself—
All were blown away like grains of sand by Lugia's Aeroblast.
Logan instantly ordered Mega Mewtwo Y to erect a barrier.
Giovanni positioned his Rhydon in front of him.
The roar of the wind tore at their ears until it felt as if their skulls might split apart.
When the hurricane finally passed—
Nearly a quarter of Cerise Island had been blown away.
A massive crater remained, seawater instantly rushing in to fill it.
"…Lugia's power really is incredible."
Because Lance could not fully control Lugia, the attack had missed its intended target.
But even the residual shockwave had left Logan looking slightly battered.
He touched his cheek.
A sharp stone fragment had cut it slightly.
Blood stained his fingertip.
After the attack, Lugia struggled even more violently.
No matter how Lance shouted commands, it refused to obey.
And then—
Suddenly—
Logan felt the air temperature plummet.
He looked up in confusion.
The world had changed.
It was as if an ice age had arrived.
Endless frost spread across the sky and sea.
Even Lugia, still struggling in midair—
Had begun to freeze. Ice crept across its wings, slowly consuming them.
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