When it comes to matters involving the safety of oneself, companions, and Pokemon, would Ash really place his hopes on the legendary God of Victory?
This question cannot be answered now, but perhaps she will find out soon.
"Alright, since you have such faith in the God of Victory, Ash, why don't you give it a try. But even if the God of Victory doesn't watch over you, the Ice Elite will definitely look out for you~" Lorelei winked playfully, cracking a joke that didn't quite match her personality and appearance.
Ash was taken aback by Lorelei's close-up wink, the faint fragrance refreshing his mind a little.
He quickly realized the meaning in Lorelei's words—even if Victini doesn't appear, she will still be there.
As a Champion Trainer, Lorelei didn't think she fell short of Giovanni by much.
"Then I'll thank the Ice Queen in advance for the help. Brock, Misty, let's go!" Saying this, Ash led the way towards Viridian Gym.
Misty and Brock exchanged a glance behind him, ultimately following with a shrug.
It's his chosen companion, after all, what else is there to say? With Lorelei as a backup, they might as well let Ash go ahead.
...
Twenty minutes later, at the entrance of Viridian Gym, Ash and his companions learned from the guards that someone had already stepped in to challenge the Gym.
However, it shouldn't take too long; a result is expected within ten minutes.
So the three of them stood at the entrance waiting for a while. A few minutes later, the Pokeball at Ash's waist suddenly shook, and a message was received in his mind—Mewtwo is inside.
This was information transmitted to him by Gardevoir, and he was caught off guard by it.
Gardevoir carries part of Mewtwo's psychic source, and if it were released and Mewtwo is within a fifty-mile radius, it would be sensed.
So Ash had refrained from releasing Gardevoir ever since entering Viridian Forest, to avoid accidentally exposing Gardevoir and alerting Giovanni and Mewtwo.
Unexpectedly, even with the Pokeball in between, Gardevoir could still sense Mewtwo. The only question was whether Mewtwo could sense Gardevoir...
'You sensed Mewtwo, but did Mewtwo sense you as well?'
'Probably not. I sensed Mewtwo because the energy fluctuations from inside triggered a reaction in my psychic source, but it wasn't a strong one. I've suppressed it.'
Upon learning that Mewtwo likely wouldn't sense Gardevoir's presence, Ash breathed a sigh of relief.
He wasn't afraid of Mewtwo, but being sensed by Mewtwo would indeed complicate things a lot.
'It's strange, when we first arrived at Viridian Gym, why didn't your psychic source react? The distance between us and the Gym hasn't changed, logically, you should have sensed it right from the start.'
Suddenly, Ash had a sense of unease. If Gardevoir's psychic source reacted to Mewtwo, it should have done so when they first arrived at Viridian Gym. What does it mean that it only reacted a few minutes later?
'I'm not too sure... Maybe Mewtwo hadn't mobilized its energy earlier, but now it has, entering a battle state, hence causing a disturbance in the psychic source.'
Gardevoir wasn't clear about the situation, only able to speculate.
If her speculation was correct, it meant Giovanni had brought out Mewtwo to deal with the challenger who had just arrived?
Thinking of this, Ash's expression turned quite peculiar. Just who was the unlucky person that made Giovanni bring out Mewtwo for battle? Was the opponent too strong, or did that guy provoke Giovanni?
With this in mind, Ash activated his Aura Power to probe inside, and in the next moment, his expression changed dramatically.
"I need to go in!!!" The expression on Ash's face shifted as he shouted towards the guards.
Wearing metal helmets, the guards shook their heads silently at Ash, indicating clearly: no entry.
Only one batch of challengers can enter at a time, and those accompanying them count as that batch. If they weren't initially part of the group, they have to wait for the challenge to end before entering as the next batch.
Viridian Gym had always operated under this rule, and it wasn't specifically against Ash.
But Ash could no longer care about any of that. In his Aura scan, besides identifying an immensely powerful aura, he also sensed a very familiar one—it belonged to Gary!
This meant the challenger inside was Gary, and it's very possible he was facing Mewtwo.
How could Ash not be anxious? Even knowing this was the Gym's rule, Ash couldn't bear it any longer.
In response to the guards' refusal, Ash flickered past, appearing behind them, and the two guards clad in metallic armour, stood straight, suddenly slumped to the ground by the entrance.
"Ash, what are you..." Brock, seeing Ash's actions, was bewildered. Why was he in such a hurry?
Even when challenging Gyms, Ash had never been so urgent, let alone while someone else was challenging the Gym. Rushing in uncontrollably wouldn't let him battle Giovanni either.
To do so by knocking out two guards first—it was Brock and Misty's first time seeing Ash agitated like this.
"Gary is inside, and he's likely facing Mewtwo. We need to get in quickly," Ash quickly summarized the situation and his anxiety in one sentence.
Upon hearing this, both Misty and Brock's expressions drastically changed, immediately following Ash as they charged into the Viridian Gym.
...
Inside Viridian Gym, Gary was half kneeling on the ground, with Blastoise, Arcanine, and Nidoqueen all toppled around him, and his cheerleading girlfriends all knocked out. He was the only conscious one present.
At this moment, Gary's eyes were full of terror, and his body trembled uncontrollably as he knelt on the ground.
That Pokemon... was a monster!!
So-called Elites and Champions didn't even compare in pressure to that Pokemon. Even when that Pokemon merely stood before him without emanating any aura, Gary felt a chilling cold.
At first, he sought to be ahead at Viridian Gym, partly to test the waters for Ash, and because Ash had already beaten three of the four Kanto Gyms, he too wanted to see if he could take on a Gym.
Though Viridian Gym is the toughest, it offered an Elite Level challenge option.
Gary chose this option and effortlessly defeated the opponent's two Pokemon. Cheered on by his squad, Gary got a bit carried away, convinced his training skills weren't weaker than those Elites and Champions.
So long as he had Pokemon of the same level, he was confident he could match Elites and Champions!
Then he uttered a couple of careless remarks, and the opponent sent out the current Pokemon covered in machinery onto the field.
According to Giovanni's claim, despite the high level of this Pokemon, its power was suppressed by machinery, supposedly not surpassing Elite Level.
Yet… he was swiftly defeated one after another, and the Pokemon Giovanni called not surpassing Elite Level didn't even stir, move a step, or lift an arm.
You call this not surpassing Elite Level? Not even Elite pressures him so much!
What exactly is this Pokemon? He didn't recall any Pokemon of this appearance in his memory!
"Oak's grandson... hmph, lacking his strength, yet possesses his arrogance. Just as Oak threatened me earlier, I'll show him the price of threatening me. Mewtwo, seal the boy's consciousness."
Mewtwo… where had he heard that name before?
Gary unconsciously pondered, then saw the Pokemon before him lift a hand, with visible blue light charging towards him!
If it hits, nothing good would come of it, but he had no means of resistance, only able to raise his arms to shield, closing his eyes instinctively.
"Bang!!"