Chapter 61: Peace of Mime
~Third POV~
[Kanto Region, Pallet Town]
In Pallet Town, Blue confirms with Red that Saffron City is the final battleground between them and Team Rocket. Blue says calmly, "Like I said, it's time for the final showdown… between us and them!"
Red gasps, suddenly remembering the Pokémon he gave to Professor Oak using Bill's transporter. Quickly accessing his PC's data on Professor Oak's computer, he sighed a breath of relief and said, "Whew… seems like that Team Rocket hasn't stolen any of my Pokémon."
Blue checks the computer in turn, curious that his Pokémon haven't been touched as he said, gazing at Azure, "Same. The Pokémon that I sent over haven't been touched… but it seems like they've been trying to break into yours, Azure… even though you don't have one registered with my Grandpa, care to explain?"
Eyes on him, Azure sighed, revealing his Arc Phone as Blue eyes gazed at it, thinking, 'It's that device again. Wait, does that mean – '
*Shiii*
Showing that he brought a Poke Ball containing Moltres, he explained to them in a serious tone, "Easy. They tried to steal back their experimented Pokémon Eevee, and just recently, I've taken the Legendary Moltres away from them. Red, did Erika ever mention the Eevee Reconstruction Project to you?"
Hearing the name Red took a moment to think, eyes widening, seeing Eevee over his head, as he exclaimed, stunned, "Wait! You mean that Eevee on your head is – "
*Shiii*
Eevee jumped down, revealing her Sylveon form. Seeing the new form of Eevee surprised Red and Blue as he continued to explain with a sly smile, "Yup, the very same one! But no worries, I've managed to help Eevee out by managing to control her transformations thanks to Mew's help, and this form here is the Fairy Type Sylveon."
Sylveon waved at them with its feeler's ribbons cutely, "Syl! Sylveon!"
Red eyes widened as did Blue, thinking to himself in a stunned tone, seeing a new Pokémon Typing, 'So the Fairy Type Pokémon do exist… and to even get a Legendary Pokémon like Moltres away from Team Rocket… but still…'
Blue couldn't help but helplessly shake his head, but also said in a stern tone, eyeing the two, an undeniable fact, "But the reason they attacked this place, you're both the cause of our hometown getting attacked. That's what you get for trying to be everyone's protector!"
Red was angry as Blue suggested that Red was the reason they attacked Professor Oak's Laboratory in the first place, chastising him for always trying to be the hero. And for Azure that his constant battles with Team Rocket led them to Pallet Town.
Azure remained quiet, not denying that his actions, however minor, could come back to bite him with Team Rocket targeting people from Pallet Town. From Giovanni's perspective, most, if not all, Trainers have their Pokémon sent to Pallet Town in Oak's Lab to be taken care of and studied.
Red takes immediate offense to this and throws a punch, which Blue catches in his hand as he says neutrally, "Listen up, Red. I'm going to deal with Team Rocket, okay? You stay out of this. I don't care if Team Rocket wants to buy, sell, or experiment on Pokémon…"
Red glares at Blue, saying that, to which he interrupts in frustration and begins to tell him off in an angry tone, "Then you're the one who better stay out of it!"
Blue stares off into the distance for a moment before posing both a question in a serious tone, "Do you both know why my grandfather built his research center in Pallet Town… out here in the middle of nowhere? This is the one place on Earth where Pokémon aren't threatened by pollution! A 'palette' is the blank surface an artist mixes paints on! Pallet town was pristine until they came!"
*Fwah*
Blue rode on his Charizard as it began to lift off as Blue finished off his words in a heated tone, "And it's MY town! Whoever kidnapped my grandfather and defiled this place answers to me! So, YOU stay out of this!"
Red says nothing, anger still on his face as he stares at Blue with his fists clenched. Blue mounts Charizard as he finishes his point, saying that whoever hurts his town and his grandfather needs to answer to him as well, and takes off, again telling Red to stay out of it...
*Pop*
Red and Azure are left alone and call on Aero, Red saying that he deserves the chance to protect his hometown just as much as Blue does in a determined tone, "Who is he to tell me to stay out of this?! Pallet Town is my hometown, too!"
*Pop*
Azure brings out his Dragonair, mounting on her as he said in a calm tone, his cap adjusted, shadowing his eyes, "Then you aren't going alone, are you now, Red? No one ruins a town and gets away with it, much less a hometown of my friend."
Red smiled, having some backup as they left into the air. Azure, on the other hand, narrowed his eyes as he thought seriously, 'Besides, it would be rude not to go after Team Rocket Admin came to invite us. But also… THEY'RE SCREWING ME OVER MY JOB OF BEING RICH!!!!'
/////
[Kanto Region, Later, Saffron City – West Entrance]
Back in Saffron City, Blue is again trying to penetrate the barrier, testing its strength. Proving itself to be just as durable as before, he figures there must be a weak spot somewhere if it's truly a single Pokémon projecting something so large.
Red and Azure arrive on the scene and immediately order a double Hyper Beam, not even leaving a dent. Recalling when Blue said there's no way through, he laments the thought that he might have been right.
Red suddenly comes to the same conclusion as Blue, catching sight of each other as they're both making their way to the top of the barrier. Azure only sighed as they bickered, but he took notice of Green as he greeted her, "Oh? Didn't expect to meet you here, Green. How's life?"
As they bicker, neither of them notices Green watching them, amused at the two boys' relationship as she greeted Azure back in a friendly tone, "Oho… those two! Figures they'd know each other, and hello to you, Azure! Know those two?"
Jabbing her thumb at Red and Blue, he nodded his head as he replied calmly, "Yup. Although those two are surprisingly stubborn. And you?"
While Azure and Green talked to each other like friends, greeting each other. Meanwhile, Red and Blue are now both attacking the barrier at once from different places, concluding that any angle of attack is equally as ineffective.
Blue comes back to the ground, concluding that if there's no way to break through physically, they need a Psychic approach, and sends out Golduck. Using Confusion, he asks Golduck to scan the barrier and find where the Trainer and their Pokémon are. He channels Golduck's thoughts to his Pokédex, allowing his thoughts to display on the screen.
Suddenly, he gets a vision of two Team Rocket Grunts flanking a Mr. Mime, intense focus visible on its face. Able to identify the barrier as a Light Screen, he's also able to ascertain their location, directly outside the Silph Co. building, content at least in knowing who and where his enemy is.
Red is overwhelmed with jealousy, frustrated that Blue was able to figure something out. Coming up with his plan, he sends out Pika, sending Substitute's energy clone past the barrier into the streets of the city.
Both Trainers are stuck, Red unable to locate the enemy, and Blue unable to find a way inside. Both Azure and Green see their frustration as she floats above them on Jiggly and tells them nonchalantly, "Oh, brilliant!! Together you can win! Separately, you can just keep score!"
Azure added in with a childish tone, looking at Blue and Red wagging his finger, "What do you guys think this is, a video game?!"
Red and Blue both reveal their progress to the other, and they agree on a plan. Golduck transmits the psychic data to Pika, letting him know where he needs to go.
As Mr. Mime is on the move, Blue has Golduck give Pika constant updates on its location. Meeting in an alleyway, Pika begins to attack as Mr. Mime starts fading away, and Golduck loses focus on the vision.
Refocusing, they have just enough time for Pika to strike with a Thunderbolt, knocking out Mr. Mime and causing the Light Screen to start dissipating. Red takes some time to cheer, quickly running after Blue as he takes a head start.
Meanwhile, Green is pleased with herself, letting the two boys take care of the problem for her so she can still get what she's after as she says happily, "They do all the work… and I get what I'm after! Oooo, I'm so good!"
But before she could continue, she'd forgotten Azure was behind her as he said bluntly with a deadpan expression, "Really now? Did you happen to forget about little old me there, Green?"
She was startled as she looked nervously, seeing Azure was still here, as she asked confused, "Ah! Azure, why are you here? Didn't you follow the two boys inside with your Dragonair by air through town already…?"
Green points that Red and Green both dashed through the gates. Azure grinned as he said calmly, staring at her, "Don't put me with those kids, Leaf Green. I'm cool-headed when I need to be and don't let my emotions dictate me… at times. And besides that, I just have a gut feeling that you know, say… the back door entrance to Silph Co. by chance?"
Green merely had a strained smile on her face as she thought in an annoyed tone, 'Oh great… I must deal with the smart one here. Just… perfect… Sigh, at least I can use him as a meat shield if anything.'
/////
[Kanto Region, Saffron City, Silph Co. – 3rd Floor]
With Red and Blue facing off against Lt. Surge and Koga, respectively, Green is free to enter the Silph Co. building unfettered to accomplish her objectives as she mutters, "This place is huge! Team Rocket must be making some real lettuce!"
Following behind her is Azure with his Pikachu and Eevee out as he exclaimed with a raised eyebrow, "Lettuce? Do you mean the fruit?"
Green rolled her eyes at his response as she clarified bluntly about her tag-along in a nonchalant tone, "The paper money fool. It's amazing how far you can just by slipping through the back door! Now there's nothing between me–ahem! I mean us and our target… 3F!!"
However, when they enter the room on the third floor, a loud gonging sound stops them in their tracks. Azure eyes narrowed, casually opening one of his Poke Balls as Gengar slides out, hiding in his shadow.
*GONNNG*
Green was alarmed as she was nervously checking her surroundings for where it could've come from, "What was that?!"
Azure simply shrugged his shoulders as he said calmly, "Probably the emergency alarm of Red and Blue fighting the admins below."
Passing through the door leading to her destination, she suddenly finds herself outside as she says, startled, "W-Wait a minute…! I thought we were indoors?!"
A voice speaks from behind them, revealing it to be Sabrina as she says arrogantly to the two eyeing them, "Through the power of Psychic-Type Pokémon, you must endure your most terrible secret fears!"
As Sabrina finishes teleporting in along with Kadabra, Green decides to engage her in battle, but is stopped by Azure as he says calmly, holding his Poke Ball out, "Sorry, Green, but she's mine. After all, you did say to come, ain't that right, Sabrina?"
Sabrina's eyes narrowed, taking full attention on him as she said coldly, "I have no time for rats like her. If you'll be a good little boy and return the Pokémon you stole from Team Rocket, you may get out of this unscathed."
Azure simply grinned as Green took her cue to slip out of the incoming fight. Both Trainers' eyes locked could only signal one thing… it was time for a Pokémon Battle.