The figure of Mewtwo vanished into the horizon, taking away the divine beast that symbolized the north wind.
It came abruptly and left decisively, leaving behind only a piece of thoroughly ravaged land, silently recounting how overwhelming the battle just now had been.
The wind by the lake carried a fishy smell mixed with gunpowder and water vapor; it blew against one's face, sticky and very uncomfortable.
Dead silence.
Except for the sound of the wind, nothing else could be heard.
Viper and Dar stood there like two statues whose souls had been sucked out, their mouths half-open, their Adam's apples rolling, yet unable to squeeze out a single syllable.
Their perception and their pride in their Superior-level strength had been completely blasted into powder by that Shadow Ball that descended from the sky just moments ago.
It turned out that true power didn't need to follow any logic.
It turned out that so-called legends were as fragile as a sheet of paper in the face of absolute strength.
Ariel took a deep breath, cold air filling his lungs, but it couldn't suppress the churning heaviness in his chest.
He knew Mewtwo was strong and had even prepared himself mentally before coming, but the reality before his eyes still hit his imagination hard.
"It's... gone?"
Viper's voice was trembling.
Dar didn't speak, but in his narrowed eyes, his emotions were complicated to the extreme.
"Let's go."
Ariel withdrew his gaze, his voice devoid of any ripples.
This place was not suitable to linger.
No one knew when the League's next batch of Investigators would arrive.
The three of them looked at each other, turned around in tacit agreement, and quickly left this scene of devastation.
They headed for Team Rockets' secret base in Johto, where arrangements for their reception had already been made.
Ariel returned to the room assigned to him.
The room wasn't large, but it was fully equipped and filled with a sense of high technology.
Metal walls, a built-in bed, and a multi-functional terminal.
Not long after he sat down, the terminal screen lit up, emitting a slight hum.
It was Ariana.
Ariel organized his thoughts and connected the call.
Ariana's holographic projection appeared in the center of the room; she was still in her signature red Executive uniform, her posture upright and her face cold and elegant.
Her image had slight electrical fluctuations, but those sharp eyes seemed to penetrate the screen and look directly into Ariel's heart.
"Mission status."
Her voice lacked any extra emotion, sounding like a machine.
"Reporting, Lady Ariana."
Ariel stood up straight and steadily recounted the entire operation from beginning to end: from clearing obstacles to encountering Lance, Corona's desertion, and finally the arrival of the mysterious Mecha Pokémon and its one-hit kill of Suicune.
He didn't embellish or deliberately belittle anyone; he was simply stating the facts.
But in this kind of mission report, the facts themselves were the most powerful weapon.
He focused on describing how he dealt with Lance's Dragonite, using the terrain and Pokémon abilities to create openings for Viper and Dar, and how he stabilized the situation to continue collecting battle data after Corona fled.
"Among the four heirs, I believe my performance was the only one that was qualified."
Ariel concluded at the end.
Ariana's projection listened quietly, her face showing no sign of joy or anger.
Only after Ariel finished speaking did she nod slightly, and a faint, almost imperceptible curve appeared at the corner of her mouth.
"Very good, Ariel. Your growth rate has exceeded my expectations."
"Boss Giovanni will have a final judgment on your performance this time. As for you,"
Ariana's gaze seemed to soften for a moment, but it was so fast it felt like an illusion,
"When you come to Hoenn, I will teach you some more useful things. Team Rockets doesn't need reckless fools, but strong individuals who can control everything with their minds and strength."
"Yes, Lady Ariana."
The communication cut off, Ariana's projection disappeared, and the room returned to its cold silence.
Ariel sat back on the edge of the bed, but his heart was not at peace.
Ariana's words undoubtedly gave him a sense of reassurance and also gave him a clearer understanding of his future path.
...
The four of them met again in the Kanto region, at Team Rockets' headquarters hidden deep beneath Celadon City.
The massive underground space was brightly lit, with members in black uniforms coming and going with solemn expressions. The entire base was like a precise and cold war machine, operating silently.
In the main hall, they ran right into Corona.
After not seeing him for a few days, this once high-spirited young man now appeared somewhat disheveled.
He had probably received orders and was forced to return from his hiding place.
The feigned gentleness from their first meeting was gone from his face, replaced by undisguised malice and resentment.
His gaze scraped over Ariel like a knife.
"Ruth."
Corona's voice was squeezed out from between his teeth,
"This time, I'll count it as your win."
He paused, the disdain in his eyes growing thicker,
"But don't get cocky. Next time, I will definitely crush you under my feet!"
Before Ariel could respond, Viper beside him let out a scoff.
She crossed her arms and squinted at Corona, her tone full of mockery:
"Hey big guy, are you still dreaming? Little brother here used his brain to play Lance's ace like a fiddle. What about you? When you ran away with your tail between your legs, you sure were fast."
Dar still had that squinty-eyed look as he slowly wiped the Poké Ball in his hand. Although he didn't say a word, that leisurely manner was in itself the most thorough form of contempt.
"You!"
Corona's face instantly turned the color of pig liver, burning with rage, his fists clenched until they cracked.
He could accept failure, but he could not accept this kind of blatant humiliation from his peers.
Just as the atmosphere became tense, Ariel smiled.
He took a step forward, mimicking the way Corona had first met him, and patted his shoulder, his tone as gentle as if he were comforting a throwing-a-tantrum child.
"Corona, don't say such hurtful things. We are still teammates, all striving for the great cause of Team Rockets, aren't we?"
These words, paired with his sincere expression, were ten times more lethal than Viper's mockery.
Corona's body froze.
He could feel that Ariel's hand on his shoulder wasn't forceful, yet it felt as heavy as a thousand pounds.
Those gentle words sounded like loud slaps to his ears.
Ariel was using his own method to return the hypocrisy he had shown back then, in full!
Corona stared deathly at Ariel, his chest heaving violently, but he couldn't say a single word.
He knew he had lost, lost completely.
Ariel withdrew his hand and stopped looking at him.
He knew in his heart that from the moment Corona chose to flee, this so-called heir squad had already completed its first reshuffle.
Corona was out.
No matter how much he clamored or how unwilling he was, it was just the howling of a defeated dog, insignificant.
Viper and Dar, these two clever people, having witnessed Mewtwo's power and seen how he handled Lance, had naturally placed their bets on him.
Of course, Ariel didn't become complacent because of this.
Ariel originally had no deep grudge against Corona; it was just the accumulation of Corona's repeated frustrations.
There was no helping it; this guy had placed himself on too high a pedestal from the start.
In a genius squad where strength was paramount, when you were at the top, no one would truly admire you from their heart, but when you hit the bottom, everyone would surely step on you.
He glanced at Viper and Dar beside him. These two could stand on his side today for profit, and tomorrow they could just as easily stab him in the back for even greater profit without hesitation.
Corona's fate might be a reflection of his own future.
In this dog-eat-dog place, if you wanted to survive and live well, you had to keep climbing up, making yourself stronger and more irreplaceable.
Just then, the heavy door ahead, marked with a giant red 'R', made a low turning sound.
The door slowly slid open to both sides.
The figure of a man in a black suit with an upright posture appeared behind the door.
Boss Giovanni.