"Darkrai, stop them at all costs!"
Giovanni knew things had gone critical. After recalling his Pokémon, he gave one final command to Darkrai.
With the situation collapsing beyond salvaging, Giovanni made the call that favored his survival: abandon Darkrai and use it to buy time for their escape.
Darkrai obeyed without hesitation, intercepting the furious Moltres and holding off Shaymin's incoming attack, ignoring its own injuries in the process.
"Shaymin, aim for the collar on Darkrai's neck!"
Once Sabrina had teleported Giovanni and Matori back to the airship, Rex calmed the enraged Totem Swellow before turning to give Shaymin new orders.
"Moltres, keep Darkrai occupied. Once we free him, we'll settle the score with Giovanni. Don't worry—he's not getting away."
Hearing Rex's words, Moltres seemed to recall its own painful experience under control. It ceased its relentless attack and began targeting the collar instead.
Though Darkrai fiercely guarded the collar, it was no match for coordinated strikes from four mythical Pokémon—Moltres, Shaymin, Diancie, and Celebi. It didn't take long for their barrage to overwhelm its defense.
Crack!
The collar finally shattered. Darkrai's once-glazed eyes instantly regained clarity.
With a shake of its head, Darkrai looked around at the unconscious Pokémon still writhing in distress—victims of its nightmare realm.
Then, a gentle pulse of dark energy radiated from Darkrai, sweeping over each fallen Pokémon like a soft breeze.
Gradually, they began to stir. Though shaken and visibly traumatized, they were safe. The nightmare was over.
"Now it's time we repay Team Rocket."
Rex looked up at the massive airship, still hovering above—its engines humming as it began to retreat.
Inside, Giovanni and the others found the crew unconscious—victims of Celebi's earlier hypnotic assault. In a panic, they roused the pilots and ordered a quick escape.
Giovanni was regretting everything. He had thought himself overprepared—bringing both Moltres and Darkrai. But Rex had outplayed him at every turn.
What began as a tidy operation had spiraled into a disaster. Giovanni had underestimated Rex, wrongly believing that only Diancie posed a threat. But then Shaymin had appeared. And Celebi.
Now even in the "safety" of his airship, Giovanni felt anything but safe. He knew—Moltres and Darkrai wouldn't show mercy.
Sure enough, the ship trembled with every blast. Explosions rang out as it came under assault.
Outside, Moltres unleashed a barrage of flames, burning as hot as a second sun. Darkrai hurled Shadow Balls, shaking the sky with every impact.
Booms echoed through the clouds. The mighty airship was ablaze in places, its hull cracked, some engines sputtering.
But still, it accelerated—desperate to flee.
"Join them—don't let them escape!"
Rex thought of the bleak future Celebi had shown him and didn't hesitate. He commanded his three mythical allies to press the attack.
With Diancie, Celebi, and Shaymin joining Moltres and Darkrai, the ship's condition deteriorated rapidly. It looked ready to fall from the sky.
Despite the onslaught, the ship held firm—a testament to Team Rocket's technological might. Even under this scale of attack, it stayed airborne.
But Rex wouldn't let it escape. Climbing onto Totem Swellow's back, he gave chase.
"Are the weapons systems online?"
Despite the chaos, Giovanni remained composed, coordinating from within the crumbling command deck.
Under Matori's direction, the crew—now mostly awake—scrambled to execute his orders.
This wasn't just any ship. It was a high-spec, elite-class vessel built for capturing legendaries like Moltres. It wouldn't go down without a fight.
"Online. Activating now!"
With a final press of a button, the hidden weapons array deployed—laser cannons aimed at the pursuing legends.
Though several weapons had been destroyed earlier, the ship's pulse drones remained intact.
Like a swarm of mechanical insects, the drones surged forth—blasting at Moltres and the others with pulsing energy bursts.
The attacks weren't especially powerful, but they were disruptive. The relentless barrage forced the mythical Pokémon to fall back and deal with the drones.
Seizing the moment, Rex guided Totem Swellow to Diancie's side.
"Diancie—Mega Evolution!"
It was time. Rex would hold nothing back.
A radiant burst of light enveloped Diancie as she transformed into her Mega form. Immediately, countless diamonds formed around her, swirling together into a massive dragon-shaped construct.
CRASH!
The diamond dragon tore through the ship's hull like a drill, punching a massive hole from one side to the other.
With structural integrity gone, the ship exploded in midair and plunged from the sky.
The wreckage slammed into the ocean below with a deafening splash—sending waves rolling across the surface.
But Rex had no time to celebrate. He spotted several figures breaking away from the wreckage, flying off into the distance on aerial Pokémon.
On the back of a Fearow, Giovanni fled with a grim expression. It had been years since he'd known such defeat.
Not since his youth had he been forced into such a humiliating retreat.
And he knew—Rex wouldn't stop here.
As the shrieks of Moltres and the shadows of Darkrai drew closer behind him, even the iron-willed Giovanni felt a flicker of despair.
(End of Chapter)