Pokemon: I Transmigrated Twice [110]

(Double Chapter)

The clock rewinds to two days ago.

 Cynthia, Steven, Lance, and Riley had temporarily formed the "Joker Investigation Team" and arrived in Goldenrod City in the Johto region.

For over a month, the temporary team had revisited all the places where Joker had previously appeared, including Goldenrod City—the city that had made Joker infamous. It was during the Goldenrod Station incident that Joker's name spread throughout Johto.

"Nothing," Riley, who had been sensing the Aura of the Jewel of Life, shook his head after wandering around Goldenrod City.

"This is troublesome," Steven muttered, propping his chin on one hand and striking a pose reminiscent of a washing machine. "We've checked every city where Joker has been spotted. Where should we investigate next?"

Initially, they thought that after stealing the Jewel of Life from Sinnoh, Joker might return to his base to lay low.

 Blackthorn City, Goldenrod City, Olivine City… these cities, where Joker had appeared, were all potential locations of his hideout.

 But after over a month of investigation, the four discovered that none of these guesses were correct.

"It's also possible that guy went back to Kanto, to the Team Rocket's headquarters," Lance speculated with a furrowed brow.

Although Joker had been active in Johto since his debut, everyone knew that Kanto was the main base of the Team Rocket's activities. Most of the troublemakers in Johto were from the Shadows. After stealing the Jewel of Life and becoming the League's most wanted criminal, Joker likely knew that he couldn't fend off the League's pursuit alone anymore. It made sense for him to return to the Team Rocket's hideout in Kanto.

"That's a possibility. So, Lance, where is the Team Rocket's headquarters?" Steven asked, nodding.

Lance: …

 He wanted to ask Steven, "Are you deliberately trying to embarrass me?"

 If he knew where the Team Rocket's headquarters was, he would've raided it long ago instead of running around like a headless chicken.

Realizing he had asked a stupid question, Steven quickly apologized. "Sorry, my bad… my bad…"

Sensing the awkward atmosphere, Riley changed the subject. "Speaking of which, where's Cynthia?"

"Nine times out of ten, she's at some ice cream shop," Steven replied without hesitation.

Lance rolled his eyes discreetly. After a month of working together, he had come to understand this rising star from the Sinnoh region. He even felt that the rookies from other regions weren't particularly reliable.

Steven from Hoenn — Obsessed with stones.

Cynthia from Sinnoh — A history enthusiast and ice cream addict.

Kalos' Diantha — An actress and celebrity.

...

At a certain ice cream shop in Goldenrod City:

"Uh… little girl, have you decided yet?" The lady behind the counter wore a strained smile.

"Almost, almost…" Cynthia stared intently at the various colorful ice cream flavors in the freezer.

The lady glanced at the clock on the wall. It had been nearly an hour and a half…

"Excuse me, are you Miss Cynthia from Sinnoh?"

At that moment, a young voice reached Cynthia's ears. Turning her head, she saw a cute little girl about nine years old, wearing round glasses. It was Mary.

"Hm? You know me?" Cynthia asked, surprised.

She hadn't yet become the Sinnoh Champion and was only moderately famous within the region. She hadn't expected someone to recognize her in Johto.

"You're the Cynthia who helped defeat one of Joker's companions, right?" Mary asked for confirmation while pulling out a newspaper.

It was last month's Celebration Daily from Sinnoh, with the headline: "Rising Star Cynthia Defeats Joker's Masked Girl Ally"—referring to Karen.

"Yes, that's me," Cynthia replied, briefly stunned as she looked at the headline.

Compared to Johto's Goldenrod TV Station, which had falsely claimed during the Blackthorn incident that Lance scared Joker away, Sinnoh's Celebration Daily had at least reported the truth. While she hadn't completely defeated Karen, Cynthia was confident she could have won if Joker hadn't intervened.

"My name is Mary, and I'm working toward becoming a journalist," Mary said shyly, but her determination was evident in her eyes.

"Is that so? Then good luck, Miss Mary," Cynthia smiled and encouraged her.

"I'd like to interview you, Miss Cynthia," Mary said, pulling out a pen and notebook. "About the artifact Joker stole from Michina. The news mentioned it was a valuable relic, but neither Sinnoh nor Johto reports ever explained what it was."

"Uh…"

Cynthia, who had been smiling moments ago, now froze as if she were a Psyduck caught off guard. If news about the Jewel of Life leaked, it could cause serious problems.

"Is there some secret behind it?" Mary's eyes widened in excitement, sensing there was more to the story.

"Sorry, Miss Mary, but this matter is too complicated for me to explain," Cynthia said, shaking her head. She wasn't good at lying, so she opted to refuse politely.

Just as Mary was pondering how to get more information out of Cynthia, Cynthia's phone rang.

"Sorry," Cynthia said, turning to answer. "Hello, this is Cynthia."

A few seconds later, her tone suddenly changed. "What?! You found it…"

Although Mary couldn't see Cynthia's face, her shocked voice suggested that whoever was on the other end of the call had said something important.

"Big sister Cynthia, I'll leave you to it. Goodbye," Mary said, taking the initiative to leave.

"Alright, take care," Cynthia replied distractedly, waving her hand before hurrying off to regroup with Lance and the others.

However, the 12-year-old Cynthia failed to notice one thing:

As she turned away, Smea-Smea at Mary's feet slipped into the crowd and began following her.

...

"Wait! How did they find us?!" Will shouted in disbelief as the police surrounded the three of them.

Noticing Will's questioning glance, Stephen shook his head. Truthfully, even he hadn't expected this outcome.

But as he had said before, "If you've done something, you'll always leave some trace behind."

Luckily, all three of them had already put on their masks.

"This is the end for you. You'll spend the rest of your lives in the League's prison. How poetic for an artist, don't you think?" Lance scoffed, mocking Joker for his previous "artist" comments.

Stephen shrugged and turned to Steven. "Even the heir of Hoenn's richest man is here, huh?"

"This is a serious matter. The wrath of Arceus isn't something anyone can bear," Steven said solemnly. As someone obsessed with stones, he was indeed interested in the Jewel of Life, but more importantly, he wanted to protect the world.

"Hand over the Jewel of Life now!" Cynthia demanded again, like a broken record.

Stephen reached into his coat and pulled out the Jewel of Life, its azure glow illuminating the forest.

"Sure, but on one condition—let us go."

The Jewel of Life was no longer of any use to him, and he didn't mind returning it to Cynthia.

Cynthia, however, was completely stunned.

"No, no way, bro. Are you serious?"

 Steven, Riley, and the surrounding Police Officer all looked utterly dumbfounded.

 "So… generous?"

"Don't let your guard down!"

 Lance shouted:

 "Watch out, it might be another fake!"

Fake!?

 Hearing that word, Cynthia immediately recalled the events in Michina. Pressing her lips together, she tightened her grip on the Poké Ball and said:

 "Hand over the Jewel of Life to me. I'll let Sister Sheena verify its authenticity. As for you… even if you return the real Jewel of Life, it won't erase the crime of theft you committed."

Karen scoffed, "Heh, as if the Jewel of Life in your sister's hands wasn't fake to begin with. We just…"

 "Forget it. Even if Miss Cynthia agrees, there's one guy who will never let us go."

Stephen turned to Lance with a smile.

 "Correct. There's only one place for you all to go: the League Prison."

 Lance grinned coldly, looking every bit the villain.

 "Don't think your little tricks from before will work again."

Finally, this moment had arrived.

 Last time in Olivine City, he had fallen victim to Stephen's schemes. He would never make the same mistake twice!

Now, in the forest, there was himself, Stephen, Cynthia, and the police force.

 On the perimeter, Elite Trainers led by Alder, had sealed every exit.

 There was no way out this time.

"Tricks? Strategy and tactics are high-level skills. And let me remind you… we're very strong!"

As Stephen raised his voice, he suddenly threw out a Poké Ball.

 The two Dragonair flanking Lance's shoulders immediately focused all their attention on the front.

Boom—

 As the Poké Ball opened, a yellow flash darted out.

 In the blink of an eye, it was already in front of Lance.

However, one of the Dragonair swiftly coiled its long, slender body into a spiral.

 Like Sasuke's Susanoo armor, it shielded Lance in the center.

As pure Dragon-types, Dragonair had exceptional defensive resistance.

Zzzzt—!

The next moment, the Dragonair winced slightly, its deep blue scales crackling with tiny electric arcs.

 It was Thunder Wave!

"Is that a Jolteon!?"

 At this moment, Cynthia and the others could finally see the Pokémon that had leapt out of Stephen's Poké Ball.

 It was indeed Jolteon, the fastest member of the Eeveelution family.

Sveten frowned. "Is that his new partner?"

 Joker's Umbreon was well-known within the League.

 Had he captured another member of the Eevee family during his time in hiding?

"What's that?"

 But Cynthia noticed something else.

Around Jolteon's neck hung a necklace.

 The gem at its center was glowing with a rich golden light.

 Its shape was strikingly similar to the Jewel of Life.

Vroom!

 The sound of something like jet engines roared to life.

 And not just one, but two.

Lance's two Dragonair had taken to the air, their bodies radiating deep blue auras of cold light.

 They transformed into two green flame-like dragons.

Double Dragon Rush!

"That Dragonair's ability… is it Shed Skin?"

Karen noticed the electric arcs on the Dragonair that had shielded Lance earlier had completely vanished.

 What remained on the ground was a shed layer of skin.

Shed Skin was an ability that gave Dragonair a chance to heal itself from status conditions.

Lance waved his hand downward.

 The Double Dragon Rush attack descended simultaneously, creating a deafening boom in the air.

 This was raw Champion-level power!

"Heh…"

 Yet, at such a critical moment, Stephen's companion, Will, suddenly chuckled.

 Cynthia and the others stared at him in disbelief.

"Open your eyes wide and watch closely."

In the next instant, the gem on Jolteon's necklace shifted from gold to silver-white.

 At the same time, Jolteon's body started emitting a blue-white glow.

 Her sharp, spiky fur transformed into soft, smooth, short fur.

"Blizzard."

Stephen uttered the command softly.

 The blue-white light dissipated.

Now, it was Glaceon who stood there, mouth open wide.

 "Gla—ce—eon!"

A massive silver-white blizzard, filled with countless snowballs the size of ping-pong balls, surged forward.

Blizzard vs. Double Dragon Rush!

"How is this possible!?"

 As the attacks clashed, Lance, Cynthia, Stephen, and the police all stood dumbfounded.

There was another Eeveelution besides Water, Fire, Electric, Sun, and Moon?

 No, that wasn't the key point.

 The key point was… how did that Jolteon turn into an Ice-type Glaceon!?

"You still have time to be distracted?"

 Just as Cynthia gaped in shock, a voice rang in her ears.

A cold sweat immediately formed on Cynthia's forehead.

 She turned her head.

A Houndoom, its fangs bared, was charging at her under the command of the masked girl.

 Flames flickered between its teeth.

Fire Fang!

"Garchomp!"

 Without hesitation, Cynthia called out her ace.

As Houndoom's Fire Fang came down,

 Garchomp extended its arm, shielding its trainer.

 Fire-type moves barely scratched it.

"Picking up where we left off in Michina?"

 Facing her enemy, Cynthia instantly switched from her usual approachable big-sister demeanor to a valiant warrior mode.

 "But the result will be the same."

"Oh?"

 Karen smirked mockingly.

"Garchomp!"

 Suddenly, Garchomp, who had been calm and composed, staggered awkwardly.

 A faint bluish-purple hue appeared on its face.

Poisoned!?

 Cynthia's expression changed dramatically.

How?

 Fire Fang didn't have a secondary effect that inflicted poison.

 And Houndoom didn't have an ability like Poison Point that could poison on contact either!

So how did her Garchomp get poisoned?!

At this moment, Houndoom released Garchomp and leapt back to Karen's side.

 The flames in its mouth dissipated, revealing something Cynthia hadn't noticed before.

On Houndoom's fangs was a coating of dark purple venom!

 It had pre-coated its fangs with poison and used Fire Fang as a cover!?

There was such a strategy!?

Cynthia was stunned for two seconds but quickly regained her composure.

 "Lucario! Milotic! Cover us!"

Without hesitation, she summoned two of her main Pokémon.

 They positioned themselves in front of Garchomp, shielding it as Cynthia pulled out a Full Restore to cure the poison.

In the games, using items on Pokémon took up a turn.

 But in real life, it was even more perilous.

By sending out two of her main Pokémon to cover her, Cynthia presented a huge opening for Karen.

"Houndoom! Overheat!"

 Sure enough, Karen raised her finger and pointed at her opponent.

A massive fire blast erupted from Houndoom's mouth, raising the temperature in the area sharply.

"Honchkrow! Hurricane!"

 Right after Overheat, Honchkrow flapped its wings.

 A powerful gust of wind merged with the flames.

Together, the fiery hurricane surged forward like five roaring dragons.

As Cynthia quickly applied the Full Restore to Garchomp, she shouted:

 "Milotic! Hydro Pump! Lucario! Aura Sphere!"

Milotic and Lucario followed their trainer's orders, firing a blue and white energy beam that merged mid-air.

Boom—!

 The instant the two sides collided, the entire forest seemed to quake.

 Two seconds later, the Elite Trainers positioned at the forest's exits saw a small mushroom cloud rising from the center, followed by dense white steam spreading out like a thin fog.

At the center of the battlefield, the surrounding trees were all snapped in half, leaving the area in chaos.

 Many broken trunks were still burning.

But it was clear that Cynthia's side had taken more damage.

 This time, Karen had the upper hand.

After all, combining Water and Steel was at best a 1+1=2 situation.

 But Fire and Wind? That was an absolute 1+1>2!

The Garchomp, having already recovered from its poisoned state, raised its Protect barrier, shielding its trainer behind it.

Meanwhile, Lucario and Milotic, its two companions, bore varying degrees of burn marks on their faces.

Boom!

On the other side, a dull thud echoed as if striking steel.

A Metagross used its Meteor Mash to slam into the Protect barrier created by a Slowbro.

Standing behind these two Pokémon were Will and Steven!