Ch. 78. Team Rocket Admin

(Unedited)

Keeping his eye on Mewtwo, who was still recovering under the urgent care of Mew, Ares turned his sight to the dangerous figure in front of him. The lingering emotions and energy clinging to the man told him of the danger the man in front of his possed. The air around him was different, carrying complete confidence in his strength, not daunted by the unknown, a hint of eagerness and arrogance made the man only seem more unsettling.

The unknown man was no doubt stronger than any other trainer he had encountered, on par with a gym leader no less. If there was a man that was stronger, then it would surely only be Giovanni, the last gym leader Ares had battled against.

"What is a trainer doing in a place like this. This place should have been guarded by the grunts. The timing itself is rather odd, most unlikely to be a coincidence."

The man spoke, his short blue hair standing out amonst the darkness around them. Behind the man were more than a few dozen Team rocket grunts, more than Ares could handle, even with his pokemon partners.

"Sir, do we engage?"

A grunt whispered, though not soft enough to escape Ares's ears.

The man chuckled, his eyes not leaving Ares's figure for a moment.

"Have you seen a tall, purple, humanoid pokemon? If you have, don't even think of hiding it."

Ares remained silent, his hand hovering above his pokeballs as the tension build up.

"From your silence, iI can only assume you do know something. I would be most delighted to extract everything you know. Perferably personally. It has been too long since I had some hands on experience."

As the man spoke, his words sending shivers down Ares's spine, the lack of presence of the other trainer caught his attention. From what her remembered, there should be another trainer, the hunter he had seen from Mewtwo's memory.

Where was the silver-haired woman?

The man didn't bother with the lack of answers as he called out his pokemon, a snarling Houndoom and a Ariados.

The Houndoom growled menacingly, while the Ariados scuttled away into the darkness, no doubt waiting for its chance to strike. The other team Rocket members called out their pokemon as well, most of them being Ariados, as well as Crobat and Golbat.

Seeing his odds dwindling, Ares called out his own pokemon as well, though not all of them.

At his side appeared Lucario, Charizard, Umbreon and Metagross.

With their sudden apprearance, Ares's pokemon took in the situation, their expressions turning for the worse as they noticed the clear disadvantage they were in. While strong, the area in which they were fighting was less than ideal, being small and dark.

Not all their opponents were visible as well, as the bug pokemon had disappeared as soon as they had been called out. 

Should they lose concentration for just a moment, their trainer could be attacked. Even if Ares was stronger than most humans, he was still human all the same.

Lucario and Charizard stepped forward, indicating to Metagross and Umbreon that they should stay back and protect their trainer.

Putting itself behind Ares, Metagross kept its eyes on its surroundings, ready to block whatever attack was directed at its trainer. 

Umbreon stayed at Ares's side, ready to put himself between any attack and Ares.

With little to no room left for his other pokemon to be called out, Ares had to do with the pokemon he had on hand. If worse comes to worst, he would force his way back, hoping Mew could teleport Mewtwo and herself out.

Under the intent gaze of the team Rocket admin the assault began, as his Houndoom pounded forward, followed closely by the rest of the team Rocket pokemon. They surrounded Ares and his pokemon from all sides. While teams Rocket's pokemon were weaker, their numbers were far greater, as well as the sheer unknown of the pokemon the admin still had on hand gave the situation a sense of urgency.

Not waiting for the opponents to make the first move, Charizard rushed forward, releasing copious amounts of dragon pulse bursts, scattering the grouping swarms of Golbats, leaving the ground enemies to Lucario. If it used any fire attacks, chances were they would sooner suffocate than defeat their opponents. 

With Charizard occupied, Lucario faced the Houndoom in front of him. He was worried about the Ariados, but he could do nothing about that now, as the Houndoom advanced with ferocity most dark-type pokemon had, snapping its sharp fangs at every opening it could find. 

Lucario dodged, left and right, parrying whatever attack that came too close with a Bone Rush. When Houndoom showed an opening, Luacrio lashed out, sometimes connecting, sometimes missing as a well timed String shot would deviate his attack.

With his attention stretched taut, Lucario had no other choice but to increase his pace, wanting to finish his opponents faster. From time to time he was warned by Ares about incoming attacks, their aura's connecting to smoothen the strain of the battle.

All the while that it was happening, the team Rocket Admin looked on with interest, his hand stroking his chin in deep thought, a pokeball lingering in the other, ready to be called out.

As his pokemon continued the fight, Ares was silently conversing with Mew as well, the telepathy once again connecting with him as she shared the healing progress.

It wasn't good news.

Mewtwo's injuries were severe, taking a long time to heal due to the fact they were caused by Dark-type energy.

Mew urged them to flee, assuring she would come soon after, yet he knew it was a lie.

He could sense her fright, the glowing slate behind her being a major concern.

Even he could feel the danger coming from it, even while there was a strong barrier between him and the plate. While the barrier was still hidden, there was no knowing when it might be discovered. Even if he attempted to flee, there were still too many pokemon to assure he could.

Not holding back anything anymore, Ares turned his gaze back to the fight, his aura blocking attacks where necessary, increasing their odds little by little. At this point, the pokemon attacking them from the air were slowly but surely taken down. 

Charizard rushed forwards again and again, sustaining injuries at the same time, taking down the last of the Golbats, only half a dozen Crobat remaining.

String shots and Poison stings were shot down around them, only to be blocked by his aura. While he might not be able to see the Ariados, he was still capable of sensing their movements, their presence known when searched through his aura.

All this went on continuously, all of his pokemon tiring out, till eventually the Ariados were taken down, the Houndoom falling soon after. 

Ares panted in exertion, a feeling of nausea washing over him due to the sheer overuse of his aura. While he had wasn't running out anytime soon, the amount he had been using had overexerted his mental faculties to the point even moving his arms had become a chore.

Charizard and Umbreon had been called back, leaving only Lucario and Metagross to protect him, though both of them were spent as much as the others.

At that point, the team Rocket admin slowly applauded, the pokeball that had been previously in his hand having fanished, only for a menacing Tyranitar to stand beside him.

The battle had no end in sight.