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"Houndoom, use Counter!"
Archer remained prepared and threw his Poké Ball directly into the air. Houndoom appeared mid-flight, still airborne when it materialized.
The Dark-type Pokémon executed Counter while suspended in the air, its body becoming shrouded in red energy. The moment the Fire Spin made contact, Houndoom struck back with Counter, and the power of the flames was blocked by the Fighting-type move.
Moreover, with the magma continuing to cool down and Moltres already injured from the earlier battle, the legendary bird was in a weakened state. The moment its attack was deflected by Counter, the Fire Spin rebounded directly back at its user. Moltres was struck by its own redirected flames.
SCREEECH!
Moltres released a piercing cry as its body plummeted from the sky. Witnessing this development, Archer continued issuing orders without hesitation.
"Fire the capture device!"
"Yes, sir!"
Following Archer's command, his subordinates launched another containment sphere. The glass ball was released once again, flying directly toward Moltres' position, about to strike the falling legendary Pokémon.
"Magmar, use Fire Blast!"
At that critical moment, a voice suddenly rang out across the volcanic crater. A star-shaped flame attack came streaking through the air. The instant the glass sphere was about to reach its target, the Fire Blast struck it directly. The powerful Fire-type move exploded with tremendous force, scattering flames in all directions and deflecting the capture device completely.
Archer was momentarily startled by this intervention, and everyone else turned their attention toward the source of the voice. They could now see a Pokémon standing prominently in the center of the volcanic crater's mouth.
The creature had flame-like hair burning atop its head, and its body was marked with red and yellow patterns that formed flame-like designs. Its physique resembled that of some kind of humanoid monster, but its face had distinctly duck-like features.
Behind this battlefield position, a pathway constructed over the solidified magma led to a cave entrance built into the volcanic crater's wall. From this cave, a figure emerged.
"You people are just as arrogant as you've always been. Breaking into someone else's territory and causing such a commotion without even bothering to announce yourselves!" The person who appeared was none other than Blaine, the Cinnabar Island Gym Leader.
As someone who had once been an important figure within Team Rocket's organization, it could even be said that Blaine had previously held a higher rank than Archer and the other current executives. Naturally, he was familiar with them, though his allegiances had completely changed since those days.
"It's been a long time! Houndoom, use Dark Pulse!"
Archer showed no surprise upon seeing Blaine's appearance. He seemed to have anticipated that the Gym Leader might show up here. He glanced at Moltres, who had crashed to the ground and was struggling to get back on its feet, then gave an order to Houndoom, who had also landed after falling from the air.
Houndoom howled in response to the command, then immediately launched Dark Pulse. The attack manifested as dark purple rings of energy that shot toward the wounded Moltres. Seeing this development, Blaine's expression grew stern.
"Magmar, use Flamethrower!"
"Weezing, use Hyper Beam!"
Blaine issued his command to intercept the attack. However, at that same moment, another voice called out from a different direction, and a golden beam of energy came streaking through the air, colliding directly with Magmar's Flamethrower.
BOOM! BOOM!
Two explosive sounds rang out simultaneously. One came from the collision between Flamethrower and Hyper Beam, while the other was the impact of Dark Pulse striking Moltres. Houndoom had landed on the ground not far in front of Magmar after its aerial descent.
At the same time, a Weezing slowly floated downward through the air, and Blaine looked in Moltres' direction with a deeply troubled frown.
"Blaine, you'd better stay out of our way!" Proton called out coldly from the helicopter positioned on the opposite side of the crater.
"Hmph! If you can't successfully capture Moltres, are you planning to proceed with that particular plan?"
Blaine ignored Proton's warning. In his assessment, Proton was nothing more than a muscle-headed brute, and it would be pointless to waste words on him.
"As expected from someone like you—you can see through our true objectives immediately!"
"But why? The research on Mewtwo has already been completed. Isn't having Mewtwo sufficient for your purposes?" Blaine asked with a furrowed brow.
"Well, that's your fault, isn't it? You understand Mewtwo's situation better than anyone else. When you were with us, we felt secure about our control over it. Now that you're gone, we can only prepare backup measures."
When Archer spoke these words, he wore a smile that concealed malicious intent like a hidden blade. Upon hearing this explanation, Blaine's expression shifted noticeably, and he unconsciously clenched his fists. Everything that was happening now was a consequence of his own past research.
"I won't allow you to succeed!" After a moment of internal struggle, Blaine collected his emotions and spoke with firm determination, pushing aside his troubled thoughts.
"Ha! Are you trying to make me laugh? In terms of the actual harm caused, your previous research was far more serious than anything we're doing now. Yet here you are, acting all righteous and declaring that you won't let us succeed!" Archer responded with mocking laughter.
"It's true that I've made unforgivable mistakes in the past, so it doesn't matter to me if I die here today—as long as I can finally do something right."
Blaine understood that during his time with Team Rocket, he had never harbored thoughts of world conquest. The organization had simply provided him with a research environment and funding for his scientific pursuits. However, it was indeed a grave error that the results of his research had been utilized by certain members of Team Rocket for evil purposes.
But now he no longer wanted to dwell on those regrets.
"I demand to know—where is the young man you captured?"
Seeing Archer and the others arriving by helicopter, it was clear that Ash was no longer with them at this location.
"Oh? So it turns out you know Ash as well! I was right to suspect that his identity isn't as simple as it appears—even someone like you has been drawn into this situation!"
Archer was momentarily surprised when Blaine mentioned Ash's name, but he quickly regained his composure.
He hadn't expected that Blaine would actually know Ash personally. If there was a connection between Blaine and the boy, it might explain how Ash had acquired so much knowledge about Team Rocket's operations.
Of course, what Archer didn't realize was that Ash and Blaine had never actually met before, and Ash only knew about Blaine through reputation—they had no prior relationship whatsoever.
"What have you done to him?"
"Don't worry, he's perfectly fine at the moment! That boy possesses extraordinary abilities, so we have no intention of harming him!"
Archer sneered as he spoke, though it was obvious that while nothing might have happened to Ash yet, the future remained uncertain.
Blaine frowned slightly as he processed this information. Extraordinary abilities? In other words, they hadn't arrested Ash simply because of his connection to Moltres?
If that was the case, even though Ash might be safe for now, he would certainly be in grave danger if he wasn't rescued quickly.
"I strongly advise you not to harm him. Otherwise, neither you nor your organization will be able to bear the consequences that will follow!"
Blaine's eyes darkened as he delivered this warning in an icy tone, which genuinely surprised Archer.