Chapter no.427 Realization
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Giovanni felt a shiver run down his spine, Austin's words echoing in his mind: "You managed to defeat my weakest Pokémon." He glanced at Nidoqueen, his loyal companion from the very beginning, now utterly exhausted. They had struggled immensely, just to defeat what was supposedly this brat's least formidable Pokémon.
In his thoughts, Giovanni wrestled with doubt and paranoia. 'This must be a mind game,' he told himself, trying to stay calm. 'He is just trying to unnerve me. There's no way that was his weakest.' Despite his efforts to reassure himself, the uncertainty lingered, gnawing at his confidence. 'Was it really his weakest? Are we prepared for what's coming next?'
Austin spoke, his voice cold, "Do you know why I am doing this?" Giovanni watched, confused, as Austin pulled out a cigarette. "Enlighten me," Giovanni responded, his curiosity piqued.
Austin's tone grew bitter. "A few months ago, during the SS Anne incident, a little Pokémon named Raticate died. It was mine." Giovanni felt a wave of intense bloodlust emanating from Austin, so strong he instinctively stepped back. "She was robbed of her life. Since then, I've been trying to cope - working out, taking pills, smoking these cigarettes I despise, just to feel something else."
He lit the cigarette, the flame flickering defiantly in the rain. "This is my last one. It's for Team Rocket, for you." Austin's expression hardened as flames began to encircle him, the fire taking on a blueish hue, resting on a white claw.
Then, above Austin, a giant white Gengar appeared, surrounded by a swirling miasma that morphed into flames, engulfing the rooftop and burning away the mud and rain. "Hell can have you once I'm done," Austin declared.
Giovanni, quickly assessing the situation, ordered, "Nidoqueen, Earth Power!" He aimed to use Gengar's known weakness to Ground-type moves. The ground underneath Gengar trembled, rocks surging upwards towards the Ghost-type.
However, Gengar merely laughed as Austin commanded, "Energy Pulse." Suddenly, Gengar's arms glowed with grass and dark energy, releasing a combined pulse that neutralized Nidoqueen's attack.
Austin then said calmly, "Pyromancy." Gengar's eyes flashed with psychic power, manipulating will-o'-the-wisps to form a ring of fire around the battlefield. This fiery barrier threatened to burn Nidoqueen if she moved.
As Giovanni considered recalling Nidoqueen, Austin anticipated his move. "Prevent her from switching," he instructed. Gengar grinned, the flames from the will-o'-the-wisps swirling closer, effectively trapping Nidoqueen and blocking any chance of escape.
Giovanni, desperate to break through, shouted, "Dragon Tail!" Nidoqueen's tail shimmered with draconic energy as she swung it powerfully towards Gengar. But as the tail sliced through the air, it collided with the ring of will-o'-the-wisps, igniting instantly.
"Burn," Austin commanded softly. Gengar's eyes intensified, and the flames around Nidoqueen blazed into a searing white heat. The intense pain overwhelmed her; she roared in agony, unable to continue her attack, her cries piercing the chaotic battlefield.
In a moment of desperation and pain, Nidoqueen did the unthinkable. With a gut-wrenching effort, she tore off her own flaming tail. The sight was horrifying – flesh tearing, blood sizzling as it hit the flames. Giovanni watched in horror and disbelief as Nidoqueen, driven by instinct and agony, made this self-sacrificing move.
Giovanni turned to Austin, who wore a look of ecstasy, almost as if he reveled in this torturous battle.
Giovanni clenched his teeth and commanded, "Ice Beam on the tail!" Despite her excruciating pain, Nidoqueen complied, focusing her Ice Beam on the severed tail, attempting to quell the flames.
She then redirected her Ice Beam towards the surrounding flames. However, the heat was so intense that the ice quickly melted into water, unable to douse the inferno.
"Execution," Austin said coldly. Gengar's eyes shimmered with psychic energy, and water bubbles started forming around them. Giovanni sensed something amiss as these bubbles, manipulated by psychic power, began to converge around Nidoqueen's head.
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[ Nidoqueen's POV ]
Trapped inside the water bubble, I felt an overwhelming sense of panic. The water engulfed me, filling my lungs as I gasped for air. I thrashed desperately, my movements sluggish and ineffective against the psychic force confining me. My vision blurred, the outside world distorted through the swirling water.
My powerful limbs, usually so adept in battle, now felt weak and unresponsive. I tried to claw at the bubble, to break free, but my efforts were in vain. The pressure in my chest built up with each futile attempt to breathe.
The world around me began to dim, sounds muffled as if coming from a great distance. I could feel my strength ebbing away, my consciousness slipping like sand through fingers.
My last conscious thought was a wish to have been able to fight longer, to have been stronger for Giovanni. Then, darkness enveloped me, and I knew no more.
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Giovanni watched, heart in his throat, as Nidoqueen struggled within the water bubble. Her body convulsed in a futile fight for air, and then, as the bubble burst, she crashed heavily onto the floor. A wave of dread swept through Giovanni, but it was quickly replaced by a sigh of relief when he saw her chest rise and fall – she was still alive.
He looked at Austin, who, having finished his cigarette, flicked it aside. "I never got that sense of relief. I only lived the nightmare that my Pokémon was gone," Austin said, his voice tinged with a deep, unresolved pain.
For a brief moment, Giovanni felt a connection to his opponent's anguish. 'Remember why you're doing this, Giovanni,' he thought. 'Think of your son, your wife, that masked man. Remember all the reasons you started this journey. You can't give up now. Not here, not against this grief, not against these odds.'
Giovanni reached for another Pokéball, his resolve hardening. Austin smiled, almost mockingly. "Ready for what hell feels like?" he taunted.
Giovanni replied calmly, his voice steady despite the turmoil within, "I was ready the moment I started Team Rocket."
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[ Omake Paragraph ]
Although beloved outside the region, where environmental organizations have raised countless dollars in the hope of saving them, Mudkip are despised as pests by Hoenn's miners and spelunkers, who have driven them to the edge of extinction. This is because of their habit of moving around boulders with their strong fins, occasionally for a game of catch, but far more often to seal off caverns and find a safe resting place for the night.
Many miners in Hoenn still carry pokemon capable of using strength for their own safety, but before the invention of that Hidden Machine, many could be trapped for days, weeks, or even the rest of their shortened lives. Similarly, although the maps of areas like Mount Moon and Mount Coronet are extremely reliable, Mount Pyre has historically been avoided by Hikers because the Mudkip population left it extremely hard to navigate, requiring remapping on a monthly basis. Although as the population has dwindled it has become possible to rely on old maps, Hikers still fear to venture there because of its historical reputation.
In Hoenn, even environmental organizations use more exotic pokemon on their logo to avoid controversy, and the only people who like Mudkip are the few who worship Rayquaza and wish for a lasting peace in Hoenn's eternal war. They see in their water and ground typing and amphibious nature proof of the legend that Groudon and Kyogre once worked together to create a pokemon, so they hold up Mudkip as a symbol of the hope that Hoenn can someday find peace. And then, if their dream is to be believed, the earth and sea shall live in harmony.