The makeshift arena inside the warehouse echoed with the sound of cracking stone and roaring flames as Enzo pushed his team to their absolute limits. He knew exactly what he was up against because Steven Stone was not a standard opponent by any metric. The Devon Corporation heir relied on a formidable and nearly impenetrable lineup consisting of Metagross, Skarmory, Aggron, and Armaldo. Enzo understood perfectly well that raw power alone would never break through a solid wall of Hoenn steel and ancient rock.
To simulate the crushing weight of Steven's team, Enzo released his strongest Pokémon to act as the ultimate adversary. His massive Corviknight materialized with a deafening screech, its black steel armor gleaming under the harsh industrial lights. Enzo commanded the giant raven to relentlessly dive-bomb and batter his other Pokémon, perfectly mimicking the aerial speed of Skarmory and the sheer physical dominance of Metagross. He drilled his Houndoom to the point of exhaustion, forcing the dark hound to dodge the Corviknight's heavy metallic wings while unleashing concentrated bursts of fire meant to melt through thick armor. He prepared his entire team for a brutal and highly physical fight where a single miscalculation against a heavy steel strike could mean instant defeat.
Miles away from that intense training session, a very different kind of operation was taking place under the starry night sky on the rugged terrain of Route 3. Proton and Ronnie moved through the tall grass with ruthless efficiency as they executed their boss's bizarre orders to secure a monopoly on Fairy types. A red beam shot out of a Great Ball, pulling a dizzy and confused Mr. Mime inside before the sphere dropped to the dirt and clicked shut. Ronnie walked over to pick it up and casually tossed it into a heavy canvas sack that was already bulging with captured Clefairy and Jigglypuff.
"If we catch one more Mr. Mime, I swear we are going to have our own personal clown army," Ronnie joked as he wiped a layer of sweat from his forehead.
Proton was usually the picture of stoic professionalism and serious duty, but even he let out a genuine laugh at the sheer absurdity of two hardened mercenaries hunting pink blobs in the middle of the night.
What those two didn't notice was a small figure crouching silently in the dense foliage just a few yards away from their position. A mysterious young girl with sharp eyes was watching them closely, taking careful mental notes of their highly unusual behavior in the wild. She found it incredibly suspicious that two heavily armed men were entirely ignoring the rare and valuable Pokémon roaming the route just to systematically hoard the weakest and most obscure creatures they could find. Deciding that she had seen enough strange activity to warrant further investigation later, the girl slowly backed up and slipped away into the shadows without making a single sound.
Enzo finally recalled his exhausted Corviknight and wiped a thick layer of grime from his face with a towel before making his way toward the heavy metal door of the basement. The chaotic sounds of the training arena faded as he descended the stairs into the sterile and quiet environment of the underground lab. Professor Leni was standing over the main bio-bed while adjusting a series of intravenous drips connected to the unconscious field commander. Viper was still incredibly pale but the erratic beeping of the heart monitor had settled into a slow and steady rhythm that filled the room with a profound sense of calm.
"His vitals have completely stabilized and the risk of immediate shock has passed," Professor Leni reported while pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "It is entirely up to his own resilience now but we just have to wait for him to wake up."
Enzo let out a long breath that he had not realized he was holding and felt a massive weight lift from his shoulders.
"That is exactly what I needed to hear right now," Enzo replied quietly as he looked down at his injured friend.
Before he could ask anything else about the recovery process, the TR Device in his pocket vibrated with a sharp sequence indicating a high-priority encrypted transmission. Enzo pulled the sleek black phone out and opened the secure channel to find a brief text message from Executive Nero. The text confirmed that the Mew DNA package was successfully delivered to Viridian Headquarters and that the Boss was incredibly pleased with the results of the Faraway Island operation. Nero added a personal note wishing Enzo the best of luck in the upcoming tournament finals while emphasizing that the primary objective was already completed regardless of whether Enzo won or lost the tournoment.
Enzo felt a surge of grim satisfaction knowing that their brutal sacrifices on that island had secured Giovanni's ultimate prize. He typed out a quick and carefully worded response to ensure Nero knew the true status of their most closely guarded secret.
"Thanks, we are all fine here," Enzo typed and hit send.
He knew Nero would immediately read between the lines and understand the coded message confirming that Viper had survived the night and was on the path to recovery.
Enzo put the TR device back in his pocket and turned his full attention back to the scientist.
"What is the current progress on the Fairy Type thesis?" Enzo asked while leaning against the cold metal edge of the workstation.
"I have already finished writing the core paper, and I am just editing the final drafts right now." Professor Leni explained with a confident nod. "I used to do this exact type of tedious formatting work all the time when I worked alongside Professor Oak so I can promise you that the entire document will be perfectly ready within a day. After that, we just have to send it to the Pokémon Science Committee so they can officially validate the veracity of the research."
"When you finish the final edits, I need you to hold onto it and wait for my explicit signal before sending it to the committee," Enzo instructed with a calculating look in his eyes.
"Okay." Professor Leni agreed without hesitation.
"Thank you for all your hard work until now," Enzo said with a genuine note of appreciation in his voice. "Very soon, you are going to be known across the entire world as the Father of the Fairy Types, and you will become a professor who will never be forgotten by history."
"Thank you so much." Professor Leni stammered as a light blush appeared on his cheeks. "I honestly do not know what to say because absolutely none of this would be possible without your help. I actually feel a little uncomfortable being the one to take all the public credit when you were the person who made the actual discovery."
"You do not need to worry about that at all," Enzo reassured him with a sharp and ambitious smile. "If everything goes according to my plan, I am going to get a reward that is infinitely better than mere academic recognition."
Professor Leni tilted his head in confusion and asked if something like that even existed in this world. Enzo took a slow step closer to the scientist and let his ambitious smile widen just a fraction before delivering a single word.
"Money."
Later, the heavy atmosphere of the warehouse had settled into a quiet routine. Enzo, Proton, Leni, and Ronnie were gathered around the small folding table in the upstairs living area, eating takeout noodles in silence while the glow of the television illuminated their faces.
The news cycle was entirely dominated by the aftermath of the Pallet Town tragedy. Helicopter footage showed rows of white tents set up for the refugees, followed by a live press conference broadcasting directly from the Indigo Plateau. Standing at the podium, looking regal and absolutely furious in his signature cape, was Lance—the Elite Four Leader and Keeper of the Throne.
"The Kanto League will not tolerate this cowardly act of terrorism against our citizens," Lance declared, his voice echoing with draconian authority. "We will find those responsible, and they will face the absolute full wrath of this region."
Suddenly, a red breaking news banner flashed across the bottom of the screen. The news anchor interrupted Lance's speech with an urgent update. The body of the suspected bomber had just washed ashore on the beaches of Cinnabar Island. Authorities had officially identified the corpse by his waterlogged uniform and belongings, confirming him as a member of the Hoenn-based eco-terrorist group known as Team Aqua.
The broadcast cut back to Lance, who immediately announced that the Kanto League was now entering into active cooperation with the International Police to bring the foreign syndicate to justice.
"Well, that ties up that little loose end perfectly," Proton muttered around a mouthful of noodles as he leaned back in his chair.
Ronnie, who was ignoring his food to scroll rapidly through his phone, snorted in amusement. "You should see what the internet is saying about all of this because the forums are an absolute mess of conspiracy theories. People are blaming everyone from the Silph Co. executives to... wait, you have got to hear this one." Ronnie looked up with a wide grin. "A viral thread with ten thousand shares is aggressively claiming that Samuel Oak planted the bombs himself for a massive insurance payout."
Enzo paused with his chopsticks halfway to his mouth and actually laughed out loud.
"They can believe whatever crazy theories they want," Ronnie continued, pulling up another social media page on his screen and turning it toward the table for everyone to see. "Because the only thing trending higher than Professor Oak's imaginary insurance fraud is you, Boss."
Enzo looked at the glowing screen to see a chaotic collage of his own face. The video of his impassioned speech promising to hunt down Team Aqua had amassed millions of views. High-definition photos of him carrying soot-covered children out of the flames were plastered across the front page of every major news site. But the most shared and discussed image by far was the candid, dramatic photograph of him kissing Officer Lilian amidst the ruins of the town.
Hundreds of dedicated fan accounts had sprung up overnight. He was being hailed universally as the Hero of Pallet Town and the fearless Kanto Prodigy. According to the analytics Ronnie was showing him, Enzo's popularity was skyrocketing globally at an unprecedented rate. He had somehow managed to become one of the most famous and beloved public figures in the entire Hoenn region without ever actually setting foot inside their borders.
Enzo stared at his own heroic visage on the screen, his sharp mind already calculating the immense political value of this new public armor.
The morning of the Cerulean Tournament Finals brought a suffocating wave of absolute chaos to the streets of the city. Walking to the stadium was impossible.
He pulled out his sleek black TR Device, activated the digital interface, and ordered the Porygon-Z residing inside the system to teleport him directly to the exact luxury hotel room where he and Steven had spent the other night examining rare Mega Stones. A burst of pixelated light completely enveloped his body, and he instantly materialized, standing perfectly still on the heated marble floor of Steven Stone's private hotel bathroom.
When Enzo stepped out, Steven was startled but quickly understood the logic of avoiding the mob outside. He laughed, agreed to give Enzo a ride, and they bypassed the crowded lobby by taking a private elevator down to a heavily armored Devon Corporation van.
As the van pulled smoothly out of the garage, the noise of the city faded, and the atmosphere inside the vehicle shifted. Steven poured a glass of sparkling water, his friendly demeanor growing noticeably serious.
"First of all... are you okay?" Steven asked softly, looking at Enzo. "I saw the news. You were right there in Pallet Town. As a member of the Hoenn League, I want to sincerely apologize for letting a criminal organization from our region act in such a barbaric way here."
"You don't need to apologize, Steven," Enzo replied, maintaining his resolute, heroic persona. "The actions of terrorists aren't your fault. But the people who did this will pay."
Steven nodded slowly, studying Enzo's face. He took the opportunity to ask the question that the whole world was wondering. "So, is it true then? Are you really going to Hoenn?"
"I'm a man of my word," Enzo said firmly. "I promised the people of Pallet Town and the rest of Kanto that I would bring them justice. I'm not going to back down from that decision."
"Very well," Steven said with a respectful nod. "You know, if you need absolutely anything in Hoenn, you can just ask for my help. My family has a lot of influence in the region."
Enzo smiled slightly. "So I've heard."
They both shared a brief, knowing laugh about the massive understatement regarding the Devon Corporation's wealth. But then, Steven's face hardened into a much more serious expression.
"Jokes aside, Enzo... before you go to Hoenn, let me warn you," Steven said, leaning forward slightly. "Hoenn is not like Kanto. How should I explain this... the League is governed by highly individualistic entities who push for their own personal interests far more than the actual well-being of the region. The Elite Four doesn't care much about the region's welfare either."
Steven sighed, looking out the tinted window. "I'll even risk saying that if the Devon Corporation wasn't leading various infrastructural and social processes in Hoenn, the people would have turned their backs on the League a long time ago. Honestly, the only good thing they've done in recent years was bringing in a new Gym Leader to the region named Norman."
"Norman?" Enzo asked, prompting him to continue.
"Yes, a very strong Normal-type specialist originally from Johto," Steven explained. "He actually cares. The rest of the higher-ups? It's a mess. Our Champion, Lucy—the Pike Queen—is far more interested in developing her new 'Battle Frontier' project than actually managing the League. Then you have the Elite Four. Wallace is obsessed with Pokémon Contests and the beauty of Pokémon, completely ignoring public safety. Phoebe is incredibly difficult to communicate with and highly introverted. Drake is a great trainer, but he's more interested in making maritime discoveries and sailing his boat than cultivating new talent or helping the League progress."
Steven shook his head in frustration. "Honestly, the only normal person in the entire Elite Four is Glacia. She is the only one who actually puts in the effort to do her job. Because of this lack of leadership, every Gym Leader just does whatever they want in their own cities without ever being held accountable or called to reason."
Steven looked back at Enzo, his silver eyes completely serious. "You're walking into a fractured region, Enzo. Be careful who you trust over there."
Enzo absorbed the incredibly valuable political intelligence, his mind already spinning webs of how to exploit a region so deeply divided. "I appreciate the warning, Steven. I'll keep that in mind."
As the heavy armored van navigated the final few blocks toward the Cerulean Stadium, the sheer density of the crowd outside became almost overwhelming. Enzo looked through the tinted glass and noticed that a massive portion of the screaming fans pressing against the police barricades were wearing the stylish jackets and sleek shirts from his exclusive Devon Corporation clothing line.
Enzo turned his attention away from the window and looked at his wealthy companion. "So how are sales actually going?"
Steven let out a rich laugh and shook his head in disbelief. "If I told you that they were just going well, I would be completely lying because my father currently refers to you as our walking pot of gold. Your numbers in Kanto are something that we have absolutely never seen before, and back in Hoenn, the sales are completely exploding after your public declaration of war against Team Aqua. We are actually already planning the design for a brand-new collection and strategizing our immediate expansion into other regions."
Enzo allowed a sharp and highly satisfied smile to touch his lips. "Good."
"I can personally guarantee that you are going to have a very pleasant surprise when you see your first dividend check," Steven added smoothly.
Enzo smiled genuinely this time because the prospect of massive funding was exactly what his dark plans required. "I can hardly wait then."
The privacy partition behind the driver's seat suddenly lowered with a soft mechanical hum. "We are arriving at the VIP entrance now, Young Master," the driver announced politely.
The doors of the van slid open to reveal a deafening roar of flashing cameras and shouting journalists desperate for a final quote. A heavy line of local police officers struggled fiercely to clear a narrow path through the massive crowd gathered at the entrance. Enzo stepped out into the blinding lights with a charismatic smile, waving graciously to the hysterical fans before quickly following Steven inside the stadium corridors to leave the absolute chaos behind.
However, the atmosphere inside the exclusive VIP waiting lounge was just as overwhelming and suffocating as the streets outside. The massive room was completely packed to the brim with corporate CEOs, wealthy sponsors, League representatives, and famous Gym Leaders who had traveled from entirely different regions just to watch the finals. Enzo even spotted several of his former tournament competitors lingering in the opulent space, recognizing the familiar faces of Nessa, Bea, Misty, and Brock mingling in the endless sea of high society.
Seeing the aggressive crowd of socialites turning their hungry eyes toward the two finalists, Steven immediately snapped his fingers to signal his Devon Corporation staff. A team of suited bodyguards seamlessly formed a tight protective circle around Steven and Enzo to keep the persistent reporters and greedy executives at a comfortable distance.
Enzo felt his anxiety spiking sharply as the noise washed over him because all he truly wanted right now was a few moments of absolute peace and quiet to mentally prepare for the brutal battle ahead. Desperate to find a quiet corner, Enzo scanned the crowded room over the shoulders of the bodyguards until his sweeping gaze suddenly locked onto a solitary woman radiating a terrifying aura of beauty and absolute nobility.
It was Cynthia.
Before Enzo could even process the fact that the Champion of Sinnoh was staring directly back at him with piercing eyes, a blinding red notification violently hijacked his vision.
[ SYSTEM ALERT ]
> WARNING. Avoid all contact or proximity to individual. Life in extreme danger.
Enzo felt his entire body tremble with a sudden jolt of primal terror, but he forced his facial muscles to remain completely paralyzed in an expression of bored indifference as he smoothly looked away to pretend he had not seen her at all.
Enzo was still trying to calm his racing heart after looking away from the terrifying Sinnoh Champion when a sudden and perfectly clear voice echoed directly inside his mind.
"Squad Leader Enzo, it is so wonderful to see you again." The telepathic voice possessed a silky and highly amused tone. "Though I have to ask why you are shaking so much right now, because it almost looks like you are actually terrified of losing a battle to the Hoenn boy."
Enzo barely suppressed a physical flinch as he subtly scanned the far corners of the opulent room. He quickly spotted Sabrina standing entirely alone near a decorative marble pillar while she swirled a glass of red wine and completely ignored the wealthy socialites around her.
Enzo projected his thoughts back through the telepathic link while maintaining his outward facade of calm indifference. "Executive Sabrina, it is always a distinct pleasure to be in your presence. I sincerely apologize for not having the opportunity to say a proper goodbye back in Pallet Town before the chaos forced my departure."
Sabrina's mental laughter purred in his mind with a distinct edge of wicked amusement. "Oh, please do not act so formal with me. And do not tell me you wanted to say goodbye to me in the exact same passionate way you did with that cute Officer Jenny on national television."
Enzo felt a cold drop of sweat slide down his neck as he carefully controlled his racing thoughts. He knew perfectly well that showing even a hint of irritation or disrespect to a psychic monster of her rank could be a fatal mistake.
"I would never dare to presume such a thing with an Executive of your incredible standing," Enzo projected back with a deeply respectful and measured tone to ensure he did not offend her in any way. "That situation was strictly a calculated public relations move to build my armor and cement my cover as a hero for the League. If I may be so bold to ask, what brings you to such a crowded public event today instead of remaining in Saffron City?"
"Giovanni personally ordered me to be here to protect you in case anyone tried something foolish before the match begins," Sabrina explained as she took a slow sip of her wine. "And I suppose I also wanted to come here in person to cheer for our little rising star."
Enzo processed the strategic information quickly and immediately saw a golden opportunity to survive his current predicament. "Could I possibly ask you for a massive favor while you are here?"
"I suppose you could, but you are going to owe me one in the future," Sabrina replied with a sudden spike of mental intrigue.
Enzo knew internally that owing an unspecified favor to a powerful psychic Executive was an incredibly dangerous debt to take on, but his primal survival instincts regarding Cynthia completely overrode his logical caution. "The Champion of Sinnoh is staring at me in a very unsettling way, and I absolutely cannot afford to interact with her right now. Could you please distract her until the finals begin?"
Sabrina's mental laughter rang like silver bells echoing in his head. "Wow, you certainly aim high when you ask for help, but I will see what I can do to intercept her. You can always just wait in the one room in this entire stadium that she cannot legally enter."
"What room is that?" Enzo asked in genuine confusion as he scanned the layout of the lounge.
"The men's restroom, silly," Sabrina mocked playfully.
Enzo physically brought the palm of his hand to his face as he realized the brilliant simplicity of her suggestion. He quickly turned to Steven, who looked incredibly bored while fielding endless questions from a persistent Kanto CEO, and politely excused himself to use the facilities. The moment Enzo stepped outside the protective perimeter of the Devon Corporation bodyguards, a massive swarm of well-wishers and flirting young girls descended upon him from all sides. Enzo maintained a superficial and highly charismatic smile as he shook hands and offered shallow thanks to his fans while ruthlessly pushing his way toward the hallway.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Cynthia elegantly stepping through the crowd on a direct intercept course to speak with him. The System warnings continued to flash violently in his peripheral vision with every single step she took in his direction.
Just as Cynthia closed the distance to reach him, Sabrina seemingly materialized out of thin air to completely block the blonde Champion's path.
"I cannot believe my eyes because it is actually Cynthia the Champion of Sinnoh." Sabrina said in a perfectly crafted tone of starstruck awe.
Cynthia paused her pursuit and glanced over Sabrina's shoulder just in time to watch Enzo slip safely through the heavy wooden door of the men's restroom. The Champion looked back at the psychic with a polite and carefully measured smile.
"And you must be Sabrina, the Gym Leader of Saffron City," Cynthia replied gracefully.
"I have wanted to meet you for so long because you have always been such a profound inspiration and a perfect role model for female trainers everywhere." Sabrina continued smoothly, effortlessly trapping the powerful Champion in the unbreakable chains of high-society small talk.
Inside the quiet restroom, Enzo quickly locked himself inside a private stall and let out a long and shaky breath as his racing heartbeat finally began to slow down to a normal pace. He leaned his head back against the cold tile wall and closed his eyes.
"Do not forget, you owe me one." Sabrina's voice whispered one final time in the dark confines of his mind.