Chapter 794 - 794 - Lugia

Riku's brother's sailors were losing ground fast. Between Gengar, Flygon, Muk, and Gyarados, Spider's Elite Four-tier Pokémon had pushed the defenders into a desperate fight just to stay on their feet.

Even the injured Gyarados was tearing through the sailors' ranks, sending water spraying across the deck and leaving dents in the metal plating wherever its massive body struck. The crew could barely slow it down, much less deal with the other Pokémon attacking from different directions.

And these were only the Pokémon Spider had chosen to use. Each Elite Four-tier Trainer had brought out just one, leaving the sailors wondering how many more they might have waiting in reserve.

A.J's Sandslash and Shingo's Scizor were exceptions. Both were distinctive enough to expose their Trainers' identities, so after using them to strengthen Spider's initial display of power, their owners had recalled them before the fighting began.

Not that their absence made much difference.

Riku's brother was being overwhelmed despite having an extra Elite Four-tier Trainer on his side. He couldn't defeat Spider in a straight fight, and the black-robed man sent to help him had made it painfully clear that he wasn't interested in risking his life to save the ship.

"Spider, huh?" Riku's brother snarled, glaring at the masked figures. "Fine. I'll remember every last one of you!"

He caught the third mate's eye and gave him the signal to retreat. The man immediately recalled his Gyarados and hurried toward Slowbro, abandoning the sailors still struggling against Spider's Pokémon.

Meanwhile, Gengar was having trouble shaking off the black-robed man's Gyarados. Taunt had finally worn off, giving it another chance to use Mean Look on Slowbro, but its opponent refused to let it get close.

The Gyarados was exceptionally strong, and its Trainer knew exactly how to use it. Every time Gengar tried to change targets, Gyarados intercepted with another powerful blast, sending attacks across the deck and out over the sea.

Reiji watched in frustration as Riku's brother recalled Tyranitar and retreated toward Slowbro. His plan had depended on Gengar cutting off their escape, but the black-robed man was proving much harder to deal with than expected.

The newcomer was watching the captain too, keeping his Gyarados between Gengar and Slowbro while gradually working his way toward the railing. He clearly had no intention of staying aboard any longer than necessary.

Then several explosions erupted from the direction of the storm's eye.

The sound carried across the ocean, loud enough to interrupt the fighting. Everyone looked toward the flashes lighting up the distant clouds, where Team Aqua's submarine had surfaced again and turned its weapons toward the heart of the storm.

Its cannons fired repeatedly, sending shells into the towering mass of clouds.

The response was immediate.

The violent wind suddenly died, and the rain falling around the storm's eye froze into enormous hailstones. They struck the water with enough force to throw up splashes visible even from the cargo ship.

"What the hell are they doing?" one of the sailors muttered, watching the strange change in weather.

A blast of freezing wind swept across the deck before anyone could answer. The sudden cold stung exposed skin, and several sailors instinctively ducked their heads against it.

Then a furious roar came from inside the clouds.

Something enormous was moving within the storm.

A white head emerged from the dark cloud cover, followed by a pair of massive wings that spread across the sky. The Pokémon's eyes were fixed on the submarine below, and even from this distance, its anger was unmistakable.

Someone aboard the cargo ship recognized it first.

"That's... Lugia! The Sea God!"

The name spread through the crowd as everyone stared at the Legendary Pokémon. Most had only heard stories about Lugia, the guardian of the seas, and none had expected to see it emerging from the storm right in front of them.

Lugia beat its wings once.

The resulting gust sent enormous waves rolling across the ocean, tossing Team Aqua's submarine through the water. The vessel rolled several times before its crew managed to stabilize it, and for a moment, it looked as though Lugia would destroy the entire operation with another flap of its wings.

Being a submarine gave Team Aqua one advantage. They could dive beneath the worst of the storm if necessary, though escaping Lugia's attention was another matter.

But Team Aqua hadn't come without a plan.

While everyone on the cargo ship was distracted by Lugia's appearance, a massive mechanical device rose from the top of the submarine. It resembled an enormous metal dish, and once it had turned toward Lugia, it began emitting an invisible wave.

The effect was immediate.

Lugia's strength seemed to drain away as the sound waves struck it. Its wings trembled, and the powerful movements that had whipped the ocean into a frenzy became weak and unsteady.

The Legendary Pokémon struggled to remain airborne, but its enormous body began dropping toward the sea.

Team Aqua launched a huge capture net before it could recover.

The net spread open above Lugia and closed around it, trapping its wings and restricting its movement. Lugia fought against the restraints, but the dish continued directing sound waves at it, weakening its resistance while the submarine slowly reeled the net closer.

From the cargo ship, it looked as though Team Aqua might actually capture the Sea God.

Danny had been watching Spider's battle without getting involved. The masked Trainers were strong enough to handle the Black Ship crew themselves, and the best thing he could do was stay out of their way until League reinforcements arrived.

But seeing Lugia trapped changed everything.

"They're trying to capture Lugia!"

Danny immediately released Pidgeot and climbed onto its back.

"Scyther, with me!"

Scyther took flight beside him as Pidgeot headed toward the storm's eye. Danny knew he was leaving the cargo ship investigation behind, but he couldn't stand by and watch Team Aqua take Lugia.

For the people of the Orange Archipelago, the Sea God held a significance far beyond that of an ordinary Legendary Pokémon. Whatever Team Aqua intended to do with it, Danny was determined to stop them.

Back on the cargo ship, the fighting had barely slowed. The sailors were still trying to hold Spider off, and Reiji had more immediate concerns than the struggle unfolding around Lugia.

He had already tried several times to get Gengar past the black-robed man's Gyarados, without success. Every attempt gave Riku's brother another few seconds to prepare his escape, and Reiji was running out of patience.

He turned toward Tai.

"Number Two, go keep them busy."

"Got it."

Tai moved immediately, leading Muk toward Riku's brother and the third mate.

The captain saw them coming and burst into laughter.

"You Spider bastards better remember this! I'll turn the entire Orange Archipelago upside down if that's what it takes to find you!"

His face twisted with anger as he glared toward Reiji.

"And since you want this ship so badly, you can have it! Let's see how much you enjoy it when it takes you straight to hell!"

He placed a hand on Slowbro, and the third mate hurried into position beside him.

Before Tai and Muk could reach them, Slowbro's eyes glowed blue. A moment later, Teleport carried both men away, leaving nothing but an empty stretch of deck behind.

Reiji had lost his chance to stop them.

The black-robed man noticed the captain's disappearance almost immediately. Having already retreated to the railing, he gave the battlefield one last look before deciding he'd done more than enough for the favor he'd been asked to repay.

"About time. I'm getting out of here too."

He jumped overboard, followed by his two Water-type Pokémon. All three vanished beneath the rough surface before anyone could stop them.

Reiji reached the railing and watched the water for a moment, but he didn't order a pursuit.

The man had accomplished exactly what he'd come to do: buy enough time for Riku's brother to escape. Chasing him into the ocean now would be a waste, especially when he had three Elite Four-tier Pokémon and wasn't even Spider's original target.

Reiji couldn't help thinking back to Danny's interference. Gengar had been moments away from disrupting the incoming Teleport, and if Danny hadn't stopped those Shadow Balls, the black-robed man might never have reached the ship.

Instead, one unexpected decision had given Riku's brother the opening he needed.

Still, there was nothing to be gained by dwelling on it. Reiji had known from the beginning that catching an Elite Four-tier Trainer determined to escape would be difficult.

And the cargo ship was still theirs.

"We're dead! The captain must've activated the self-destruct system!"

One of the captured sailors had begun shouting in panic. Another broke down beside him, sobbing that he didn't want to be blown up, and their fear quickly spread among the others lying helplessly on the deck.

Reiji turned toward the noise with a frown.

"Knock them out."

His people dealt with the panicking sailors while Reiji called Gengar over. Riku's brother had abandoned the ship after threatening to take everyone down with it, and Reiji wasn't about to ignore that warning.

"Gengar, get below deck. Find the bombs, disable them, and dump them into the sea."

He turned toward the rest of Spider.

"Anyone with a Pokémon that can move through walls or track things by scent, send it in. Help Gengar find every bomb."

"Yes, Leader!"

The members immediately spread through the ship, releasing Pokémon suited to the search. Some worked their way through the corridors and storage spaces, checking suspicious compartments, while others followed Gengar into areas the crew had tried to keep concealed.

Whenever they found a bomb, Gengar swallowed it, phased through the hull, and carried it beneath the ship before spitting it into the deep water.

Kazuma's presence made the search considerably easier. He knew the cargo ship's layout, including the places where Riku's brother was likely to have hidden explosives, so Reiji left the operation in his hands.

With the search underway, Reiji returned to the railing and looked toward the distant storm.

Flashes of light continued breaking through the darkness around Lugia, and the explosions were growing louder. Whatever was happening between Danny and Team Aqua, neither side seemed willing to back down.

Behind Reiji, the last of the cargo ship's fighting crew had been disarmed and knocked unconscious. Sailors lay scattered across the deck, their Poké Balls confiscated, while Spider's members moved freely through the ship.

There were probably still support workers hiding somewhere below, but Reiji wasn't interested in hunting them down. Finding the explosives mattered far more than rounding up people who weren't putting up a fight.

Elsewhere aboard the ship, Cassidy and Butch realized the main battle had finally ended.

Neither had any intention of approaching Spider. Team Aqua had already retreated, Danny had flown off toward Lugia, and Riku's brother had abandoned his own sailors. Whatever valuables remained aboard, they were clearly beyond the reach of two Team Rocket agents.

The pair finished putting on the diving equipment they had prepared earlier, checked their masks, and slipped into the sea.

There was nothing left for them to gain by staying.

As the last of the resistance disappeared, Reiji left the distant battle to Danny and the League. He brushed the rain from his coat and headed inside the cargo ship, eager to find out whether the raid had been worth the trouble.

His first stop was the captain's cabin.

The room smelled faintly of tobacco, and the bed had been left in a mess. Reiji searched the furniture and checked every corner, expecting at least a safe or somewhere the captain might have stored valuables.

He found nothing worth taking.

The third mate's room wasn't much better. It was tidier, although the smell of sweat and body odor was considerably worse. Reiji went through it anyway, only to come away empty-handed again.

Apparently, these two had followed the same habit as the dead first and second mates, keeping their valuables on their person rather than leaving them aboard the ship.

Since both had escaped, whatever they carried was gone too.

Reiji gave up on the cabins and headed toward the cargo holds, where he found several Spider members gathered near the entrance. Nobody had started rummaging through the shipments yet, which pleased him. At least they understood that stealing cargo wasn't worth much if the entire ship exploded underneath them.

"How's the search? Did you get all the bombs?"

Kazuma stepped forward.

"All taken care of, Boss."

He sounded confident, and for good reason. Kazuma knew exactly where Riku's brother had planted the explosives. He had even helped install some of them himself, so there hadn't been much guesswork involved.

"We found the bombs and got rid of them. The dangerous explosive cargo's been dumped overboard too. There's nothing left that should blow up the ship."

Reiji nodded, satisfied with the answer. Having someone who knew the ship from the inside had saved them a great deal of trouble, especially with League forces already on their way.

Before he could say anything else, a series of explosions rolled across the ocean from the direction of the storm's eye.

The distant battle had clearly intensified. From the cargo ship, they could see flashes of attacks lighting up the clouds and enormous waves rising where powerful strikes hit the sea.

Danny was still aboard Pidgeot, with Scyther flying beside him, determined to keep Team Aqua from escaping with Lugia. Amber, meanwhile, was directing his Pokémon against the Gym Leader while trying to give the submarine enough room to dive and withdraw.

Neither appeared willing to give way.

The two sides were fighting seriously now, with attacks powerful enough to send waves rolling across the surrounding ocean.

Another series of explosions suddenly erupted much closer to the cargo ship.

This time, the blasts came from the water behind them.

The bombs Gengar and the others had removed were detonating beneath the surface, throwing up towering columns of spray. Riku's brother's attempt to destroy the ship and erase the evidence had failed, though he probably had no idea how thoroughly Kazuma had ruined his plan.

Reiji glanced toward the explosions, then turned back to his people.

"Kazuma, show us where the good stuff is. The League won't be far behind, so grab everything worth taking."

"Right this way, Boss."

Kazuma led them deeper into the cargo holds, where the shipments were waiting to be sorted through. The Spider members followed eagerly, already thinking about what they might find inside the crates.

They had come after the cargo ship for two reasons.

The first was revenge. Riku's brother had tried to kill Reiji, and getting rid of him would have been the ideal outcome. But Reiji had never assumed that would be easy, especially against an Elite Four-tier Trainer with a Pokémon capable of Teleport.

The powerful Trainers he had managed to kill in the past had generally been cornered with nowhere left to run. This time, Reiji had been the one doing the chasing, and he'd learned just how difficult it was to finish off someone whose only goal was escape.

That left the second reason for the raid.

Money.

If Riku's brother had gotten away, Spider certainly wasn't going home empty-handed. That would be completely against Reiji's principles, especially when there was an entire cargo ship full of valuable goods sitting right in front of him.

And with the bombs gone, they could finally start collecting.

[End of chapter]

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