"The celebration is about to begin. All units, attention!" The mayor of Celadon City stood backstage, addressing all staff members.
Lance sat expressionlessly in front of a mirror, letting the makeup artist apply strange liquids to his face.
Honestly, he wasn't used to events like this.
Officer Jenny who was responsible for maintaining order at the venue walked in and crossed her arms, amused by the powder on Lance's face.
Lance glanced at her and asked, "How's the perimeter sweep going?"
Jenny grinned, "Don't worry, no suspicious individuals will get in!"
Lance wasn't entirely convinced. The event's audience seating could hold five thousand people. With such a massive crowd, it was impossible for Jenny alone to thoroughly screen everyone.
And besides… he had a bad feeling about this...
....
~Outside the venue~
The spectator area was packed. Some who couldn't get tickets even rode their Flying-type Pokémon to watch from the sky.
Caleb seamlessly blended into the crowd. Strangely, the Team Rocket agent assigned to monitor him hadn't followed.
He glanced back, puzzled.
There was no way he'd shaken them off that easily...
...
~In a building across from the venue~
Ariana peered through binoculars at the swarming crowd below... Uneasy, she said, "Boss, are you sure it's okay not to have Ahua and the others follow him?"
Giovanni smirked confidently and opened his laptop. On the screen, four green dots moved in real time.
Ariana's eyes widened in realization... tracking devices and remote bombs had been secretly planted on them!
"The show is about to begin." Giovanni rested his chin on his hand, watching the screen with keen interest...
....
~Celebration Venue~
As an intense, heroic soundtrack blared, Lance stepped onto the stage in dazzling attire.
The crowd erupted into frenzied screams.
Lance gave a slight nod, then crossed his arms and, seemingly out of nowhere, tossed four Poké Balls into the air.
White flashes burst forth as four powerful Dragon-type Pokémon materialized beside him:
- A plump, orange Dragonite.
- A ferocious, crimson Gyarados with its maw wide open.
- A prehistoric Aerodactyl with fossil-like skin.
- And an Altaria with wings as fluffy as cotton.
The moment Dragonite appeared, the audience lost their minds, screaming nonstop even as Altaria took its place.
It reminded Caleb of the rabid fangirls from his past life.
Absolutely insane...
Standing at the edge of the crowd, Caleb rubbed his temples, the noise giving him a headache. Not wanting to suffer alone, he released Mimikyu from its Poké Ball.
"Pretty lively, huh? You like it here?" he shouted over the noise.
Mimikyu: '…My Trainer might not be very bright...'
Caleb cradled Mimikyu in one arm while trying to pocket the empty Poké Ball with the other... But someone bumped into him, cause the ball to slip from his grasp and roll away.
A fan who was jumping excitedly stepped on it and fell flat on their face.
Like dominoes, the crowd collapsed in a chain reaction, screams and gasps filling the air.
Caleb couldn't bear to watch. He shut his eyes, and covered Mimikyu's eyes too... Except he covered the wrong ones...
Mimikyu's real eyes were on its belly, not its Pikachu disguise.
Mimikyu: '…Yep. Definitely not bright...'
It sighed softly, using its tiny claws to pull Caleb's hand down to its actual eyes...
...
On stage, Lance immediately noticed the commotion...
His eyelid twitched, 'I knew it. Today was bound to be a disaster...'
At the same time, two figures seized the distraction to rush onto the stage; Gwen and Victor!
Instead of following Giovanni's orders, they shoved the evidence they had gathered on Team Rocket into Lance's hands.
Giovanni saw it instantly. His face darkened, and without hesitation, he triggered the remote bombs.
Lance barely had time to process the USB drive and documents before–
*BOOOM!*
...the two figures exploded into bloody blossoms, splattering hot blood across Lance's face.
Stunned, Lance looked down at the documents... evidence of Team Rocket's crimes...
It was the last legacy of two brave investigators. Rage, unlike anything he'd ever felt, erupted inside him...
...
Caleb froze...
A cold sweat broke out on his back as he finally came to a realization, 'So that's why those four hadn't followed me... Itʼs because weʼve been rigged with bombs!'
"...Wait– why aren't I dead?!"
Just then, a shriek came from the crowd.
The Poké Ball that had been kicked around suddenly exploded, blasting a crater into the ground.
Caleb's face paled, "Damn Team Rocket!"
If that ball hadn't rolled away… If he hadn't released Mimikyu…
The consequences would've been unthinkable...
...
With this tragedy, the celebration couldn't continue...
Officer Jenny evacuated the crowd while Lance stood on stage, shell-shocked.
Caleb and Mimikyu lingered in a corner, unsure where to go.
'Should I return to the League? But my main mission is still tied to Team Rocket...'
But in Team Rocket's eyes, he was already dead, and they clearly wanted him gone.
He couldn't go back. At least, not now...
Just then, Gwen, Lucien, and Victor floated over as specters.
Caleb gasped in shock, "You guys turned into ghosts?!"
Lucien shook his head, "Of course not."
Victor patted his chest in relief, "That was too close. We finished our main missions right before the bombs went off... otherwise, we'd really be dead."
Hearing they could leave, Caleb relaxed slightly.
Before he could respond, Lucien spoke again, "Our main missions are complete. We can't stay in this instance much longer. I don't know what your mission is, but I hope you survive."
"Good luck!" Victor said.
"Hang in there!" Gwen added.
With those final words, their forms dissolved into bubbles and vanished.
Just as Caleb turned to leave...
"You're alive?!"
...Officer Jenny's shocked voice rang out.
Caleb looked at her and pointed at the bomb crater, "Barely..."
...
Dragonite, Gyarados, Aerodactyl, and Altaria...
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Read ahead on my P@treon...
p@treon.com/MayaMatengele01