However, the surface of the starship instantly lit up with a dense layer of pale purple energy shields flowing with intricate patterns!
"BOOM!!!"
The Hyper Beam slammed violently into the shield, erupting in blinding light and intense energy shockwaves.
The shield rippled and flickered violently, as if it might collapse at any moment.
Yet, it ultimately withstood this mountain-shattering strike and quickly returned to its original state.
In that brief window of time, the traction beam had already completely lifted the massive black crystalline beast off the ground, dragging it toward a huge, dark hangar door opening at the bottom of the starship!
An even more chilling sight unfolded before Cynthia's eyes!
From both sides of the starship's hull, several massive cannon-like devices suddenly extended outward, their tips glowing with dazzling, unstable purple light! This light wasn't for attacking.
Instead, it crazily gathered and twisted the space in front of the starship!
"CRACKLE!!!"
A teeth-grinding, tearing sound rang out! While the aftershocks of Rayquaza's Hyper Beam had not yet fully dissipated, the space in front of the starship was forcibly torn open.
A new Ultra Wormhole, smaller than the one that had appeared naturally before and crackling with violent purple lightning around its edges, instantly formed!
The massive starship, dragging the black crystalline beast locked in its traction beam, showed not a moment's hesitation.
Its engines erupted with terrifying blue-white flames far more intense than before, and the enormous hull suddenly accelerated, plunging into the newly opened Ultra Wormhole!
"WHOOOM!!!"
Accompanied by an even more violent spatial distortion and roar, the Ultra Wormhole suddenly collapsed inward and vanished without a trace!
All that remained was the initial Ultra Wormhole in the sky, now slowly dissipating and becoming extremely unstable after losing its target energy.
And the scarred, newly quieted ruins of Sootopolis City below.
Plus, Rayquaza, hovering in the air, roaring furiously in the direction where Team Plasma's starship and the black monster had disappeared, only to find nothing.
And of course... standing on the shore, completely dazed, her mind blank, was Cynthia's character.
Cynthia was completely stunned, her eyes wide, fingers frozen on the keyboard, staring in disbelief at the now-empty sky.
Who on earth were the people on that starship?
They could actually create that terrifying Ultra Wormhole out of thin air and capture that horrifying monster that had nearly destroyed everything?!
What the hell... was going on?!
However, Cynthia noticed that the CG on the screen hadn't ended yet. It was still playing.
The scene abruptly cut to a bizarre space.
This wasn't among the stars of the universe, but rather a void of chaotic territory, with no stars or other light sources, only twisted, flowing purple energy streams and various strange debris floating about.
At the center of it all, a silver-gray starship base so massive it exceeded Cynthia's imagination sat quietly.
Its scale far surpassed the ship that had appeared over Sootopolis City, even dozens of times larger than Rayquaza's body!
Countless gun ports, sensors, and energy conduits on the hull flickered with cold light.
The huge "P" symbol glowing with an eerie blue light was clearly visible at the core's peak, radiating a cold, metallic presence.
Inside the base, in a brightly lit command center.
Several members wearing matching silver-gray uniforms with smaller "P" logos on their chests busily operated complex control panels.
On the massive main screen, they could clearly see the black crystalline beast being captured by the traction beam, slowly dragged into a special sealed chamber.
It was the same one from before.
The glow on its body's surface remained dim, seemingly restrained by some powerful force field, unable to move.
"Sir Lysandre, reporting in," the subordinate said into the communicator, his voice carrying a trace of fanaticism.
"Shadow Core capture operation complete. Energy extraction device activated.
Initial analysis shows the Ultra Energy it contains has a purity far exceeding expectations, sufficient to support the next phase of the Ideal Ark Project's transition."
The communicator fell silent for a moment, then a steady, elegant male voice responded.
"Excellent.
Maintain maximum energy suppression. Ensure the Shadow Core's stability at all costs.
Its power will be the key to achieving our purification and reshaping of the ideal world.
Analyze its energy composition and attempt to replicate its mechanism for opening Ultra Wormholes.
Our ark needs more stable, broader passages."
"Yes! Sir!"
The subordinate immediately responded, his voice full of conviction.
"Engines are charging. Next spatial anchor coordinates have been set.
Target area is the Alola region. The legends there might provide us with more perfect specimens."
"Mm," Lysandre's voice betrayed little emotion.
"Alola... Pay attention to those Island Guardians and the so-called 'Aether Foundation.'
Keep operations covert and efficient. When necessary... for a better future, some sacrifice is inevitable."
"For a better world!"
The subordinate immediately responded. The communication was cut off.
The final shot lingered on the starship base's massive "P" logo, its cold gleam flashing once.
The CG ended.
Cynthia sat before the screen, unable to snap out of it for a long time.
She felt her fingertips growing slightly cold.
Who were the people on that starship? Wasn't their power a bit too overwhelming, able to easily control even a Legendary Pokémon like that?
And this organization's symbol, she had never seen it before.
Plus, creating Ultra Wormholes out of thin air, that starship base as massive as a mobile fortress... what exactly did they want to do?
"Purification… reshaping… the Ideal Ark… Alola… what are they planning?"
Each term weighed on her heart like a heavy stone.
This far exceeded her understanding, even more incredible than the conflict between Groudon and Kyogre.
The conspiracy and power hidden behind all this made even her, a Champion, feel unprecedented pressure.
At this moment, the game screen returned to the Sootopolis coastline.
The smoke of battle had cleared, the Ultra Wormhole in the sky was slowly closing, and it finally disappeared completely, leaving only the devastated city.
Seawater gently surged, washing over the broken rocks.
Rayquaza hovered in the low sky not far from the shore, its massive body still bearing traces of battle, yet its presence remained majestic.
Its golden vertical pupils slowly turned, finally landing on the tiny human on the shore.
Only then did Cynthia snap back to reality. The game content wasn't over yet.
She controlled her character, instinctively walking forward a few steps, looking up at this legendary dragon who had just saved Hoenn.
Everything that had just happened, from helping Rayquaza recover to Team Plasma's sudden intervention to that CG revealing their terrifying plan... the information overload, the overwhelming impact, made her feel like she'd had a complex dream and was still a bit dazed.
Just then, the on-screen Rayquaza gently nodded its massive head toward her character.
In those golden pupils, a hint of... acknowledgment seemed to flash?
Cynthia froze.
Was this its way of thanking her for her earlier help?
Before she could react, Rayquaza's massive body was once again bathed in soft green light.
It took one last look at this sea and city that had experienced two fierce battles, releasing a low, resonant dragon cry, as if announcing the end of everything.
Immediately after, the green light flashed, and its massive form transformed into a streak of light, shooting skyward, disappearing into the clouds in the blink of an eye.
The sea breeze, carrying a salty scent, swept past. Only Cynthia's character stood alone on the shore.
After quite a while, Cynthia finally seemed to steady her breathing.
She let out a long breath, her tense shoulders easing at last.
The heart-pounding storyline had finally reached its end.
The game's plot resumed from there.
Before long, Steven and Wallace appeared along the coast.
They had clearly witnessed that earth-shaking final battle and everything that had just unfolded.
Steven looked exhausted, yet his eyes were filled with gratitude.
"...Hard to imagine what Hoenn would have become without you and Rayquaza's courage in that fight.
And that group that showed up at the end… their power is beyond anything we've seen."
His brows knitted tightly, the shock of it all still settling in.
"From here on, we'll have to stay on high alert."
Wallace also seemed shaken, his elegant demeanor unable to fully mask his recent tension: "Yes, thanks to all of you.
Strawberry Ice Cream, your composure in the face of danger and your wisdom bought Rayquaza the chance to win."
He looked at Cynthia's character with eyes full of approval.
"Hoenn owes you an enormous debt."
Steven nodded, taking up the thread, his tone becoming serious and expectant: "This debt, perhaps on the Champion League battlefield, we can respond in another way.
Strawberry Ice Cream, your strength and responsibility have proven you worthy of standing on that stage.
Wallace and I will await your official challenge at the highest point of the Champion League!"
Cynthia looked at the message on the screen, surprise welling up in her heart.
Having experienced such a shocking event, she'd forgotten that the game's progression seemed to be nearing its end.
The battle for the Champion title was imminent!
The Elite Four battle was the highest hall where trainers faced off honorably with their Pokémon and convictions!
However, before that, there was one final hurdle to overcome.
After Steven and Wallace left, her gaze turned toward that building in Sootopolis City that had returned to calm: the Sootopolis Gym.
This was the final Gym in the Hoenn region!
The Ice-type Gym!
Cynthia took a deep breath and controlled her character, heading toward the Sootopolis Gym.
---
Meanwhile, in the Paldea region.
Iono glanced at the fallen Magcargo on the screen and grinned, her fingers tapping happily on the keyboard.
Lavaridge Gym… that's it? Way easier than I expected.
She smiled, satisfied, and turned to her livestream audience.
"Gym Leader Flannery's ace Torkoal looked pretty strong on paper, but in the fight… my Blaziken took it down with just one Double Kick."
It felt less challenging than that guy on the roadside in Pokémon Dark Phantom with three Torkoal.
This difficulty drop is pretty massive, isn't it?"
She controlled her character to walk out of the Gym while sharing her thoughts into the microphone.
The comment stream quickly floated past in agreement:
[Definitely easy... that previous Flannery was insanely tougher]
[Iono's Challenge Notes (4/8)]
[Just got here, heard Pokémon Dark Phantom had low difficulty, and it's true!]
[Next Gym, let's gooo!]
Iono scanned the comments, lost in thought.
After defeating Flannery, she'd obtained the Heat Badge. Outside the Gym, she'd also encountered her blue-haired rival, Yuki.
After a brief exchange, Yuki directly handed over the [Go-Goggles].
Now she had the desert pass and could traverse the desert on Route 111.
However, the desert wasn't the immediate priority.
An idea had been floating around in her mind since earlier, and it was becoming increasingly clear.
"We'll hit the desert in a bit," Iono said into the microphone, her tone carrying obvious curiosity.
"There's a place I'm really interested in right now. Let's check it out first."
She controlled her character to open the bag, where a TM for [Strength] lay quietly.
She'd obtained it early from the cave in Mossdeep City based on experience.
She still remembered that time with Emerald.
Cynthia told her there was some Victini in Fiery Path, so she went... only to be greeted by a level 80 Moltres!
Wasn't that supposed to be a Legendary Pokémon?? Why would it be in a place like that??
But now it was different. This time, she was playing Pokémon Dark Phantom!
The difficulty was much more friendly, and the story had been adjusted.
Since the overall difficulty was lower, a place like Fiery Path surely wouldn't still have a Legendary guarding the entrance, right?
That would be absolutely ridiculous.
But... there should still be something good there.
Maybe this time it really would be that Victini? Even if not, it had to be a rare Pokémon at least, right?
After all, in this game, even Beldum and starters were pretty common.
The more she thought about it, the more restless she became. Iono didn't hesitate any longer.
She controlled her character to mount the Mach Bike and raced off, heading straight for the entrance to Fiery Path from her Emerald memories.
Soon, the familiar cave entrance came into view. Iono took a deep breath and directly controlled her character to walk in.
The scenery inside the cave wasn't much different from the Emerald era: scorching rocks, flowing lava, and high temperatures distorting the air.
Relying on memory, Iono found that a small path required "Strength" to push aside a boulder.
"This is it." She selected the TM and used "Strength" on the boulder.
Beldum exerted its power.
Accompanied by sound effects, the heavy boulder was slowly pushed aside, revealing a narrower path behind it with more obvious heat waves.
A thick wave of scorching air immediately rushed toward her!
Iono instinctively hunched her shoulders, suddenly feeling a strange premonition.
"This feeling... why does it still seem a bit off?"