"It's a success!"
The light from the evolution went away. A new Mega Beedrill was now there.
Compared to before it evolved, the changes to Mega Beedrill were very clear. The stingers on its arms now looked like knight's spears. Its feet were also two stingers. A very large stinger grew from its tail.
Its power felt much sharper. It was very scary and strong.
"Great! Now we have the basic power we need to fight Team Rocket."
Steven felt relieved. He was very happy. Damian and his group were already very powerful. They even knew how to use Mega Evolution. Steven had felt too much pressure.
Cynthia and the others were only visiting from other places. Steven wanted to stop the danger of Team Rocket now. He worried about what would happen when Cynthia and the others went home. He wondered how the Hoenn League would fight Team Rocket alone.
With Mega Evolution, they finally had the tools to fight Team Rocket in Hoenn.
Next, Cynthia and the others let their main Pokémon try to find the Mega Stones they needed.
Steven found the Metagrossite. Leon found the stones for Charizard. It is important to say that Leon's Charizard found two different stones.
They tested them. One form turned black and blue. This form made its physical and special attacks stronger. Its type also seemed to change. The other form did not change how it looked very much. However, it made its special attack much stronger. Its ability changed to Drought. This made the weather very sunny.
Leon was very happy, but he also had a hard time choosing. Both Mega forms were very good!
Cynthia found the stone for her best Pokémon, Garchomp. She was very happy. She tried it and found that Mega Garchomp was incredibly strong! However, she thought Mega Garchomp moved a little slower than before.
Nemona got a Mega Stone for Altaria. She had an Altaria on her main team last year. This made Nemona feel unsure. To be honest, she had planned to move Altaria to her second team this year. But now that she had the Mega Stone, she felt conflicted.
Also, Mega Altaria was very beautiful!
Wallace was very sad. His best Pokémon, Milotic, did not find a Mega Stone. However, his Gyarados found one. After it Mega Evolved, Mega Gyarados became Wallace's new best Pokémon. Wallace looked at his crying Milotic. He promised he would find its Mega Stone! Milotic was very important to him.
Steven was happy that everyone found something. He did not want Cynthia and the others to travel so far for nothing. He took everyone to dinner. While they were eating, they talked about their next plan.
"With Mega Evolution, our battle power has improved a lot. But what should we do about Damian's Mewtwo and Kyogre?"
Steven was not as hopeful as Wallace. He knew their situation was serious.
"Mewtwo is one thing. It is powerful, but we still have a chance," Giovanni said in a deep voice. "Our best Pokémon can now Mega Evolve. I believe that if we work together, it is not impossible to defeat Mewtwo."
Giovanni looked at Steven and Cynthia. Then he looked at Leon. Leon was late for the first battle because he got lost. He seemed a bit silly. But Leon was actually the strongest person there, except for Giovanni. Leon's Charizard was especially strong. Giovanni had seen Leon practice with Nemona, and that Charizard was very powerful.
"Gym Leader Giovanni is right!" Wallace agreed.
That was true. If the Champions worked together, they could beat Mewtwo.
Nemona looked at Wallace with a strange face. She looked like she wanted to say something, but she did not.
"But the main problem isn't Mewtwo right now," Giovanni sighed.
"It's Kyogre!" Leon said the name of the Pokémon Giovanni was worried about.
"Exactly. Ho-Oh and Deoxys do not belong to Damian. Officer Jenny said someone saw them fly away after the battle. But Kyogre did not leave. Kyogre belongs to Damian!" Giovanni said seriously.
Everyone who saw the battle in LaRousse City knew how strong Primal Kyogre was.
"Either way, we can try. We can't stop moving forward just because the enemy is strong, right?" Leon spoke as the room became quiet.
Leon was the Champion who never lost, but he was still a bit worried. But he was a Champion, so he had to lead. He could not give up just because the odds were low.
"Champion Leon is right. We have to try," Cynthia agreed.
"Yeah, yeah! How will we know it won't work if we don't fight?" Nemona kept nodding. "And, isn't there another legendary Pokémon besides Kyogre and Rayquaza?"
Nemona remembered something. In the legends of Hoenn, there was the sky dragon Rayquaza and the sea king Kyogre. But was there one more?
Steven and the others were surprised.
"Nemona, do you mean... the legendary Groudon?" Steven asked.
"Yes! Since Damian has Kyogre, we can go find Groudon!" Nemona said. "Use a legendary Pokémon to deal with a legendary Pokémon!"
"That is a good idea. If we find Groudon and ask it for help, we will have a better chance to beat Team Rocket," Leon agreed. He liked the idea of using one Legendary Pokémon against another.
"Champion Steven, I remember in the Hoenn legends, Kyogre and Groudon are equal in strength, right?" Cynthia looked at Steven.
"I am sorry to say I don't know much about that legend, but I remember that is true," Steven said. He looked a bit worried. "However, the ancient legends say Kyogre and Groudon are enemies. As soon as they meet, they will start a violent battle."
Steven was not sure. He was afraid he could not control what would happen.
"Isn't that perfect?" Nemona was confused. She thought they might not even need to ask Groudon for help. Maybe if they told Groudon where Kyogre was, Groudon would go fight Kyogre by itself. "As long as Groudon keeps Kyogre busy, we can take the chance to defeat Damian."
That was what Nemona was thinking.
"The idea is good, but the problem is..." Giovanni looked at Steven. "Champion Steven, you are worried that the situation will get out of control, right?"
"Yes. In the legends, once Groudon and Kyogre wake up and fight, the environment changes a lot. And... everyone saw the battle in LaRousse City," Steven said worriedly.
"That is indeed a problem." Leon looked like he was thinking. The power of legendary Pokémon was too great.
"But if we don't find Groudon, our chance of defeating Damian is too small," Nemona said with a pout. She thought their chance was only 10%. Primal Kyogre was not as strong as the black Rayquaza, but it was still a nightmare. Even for the strongest trainers, Primal Kyogre was too powerful.
Cynthia put a hand on Nemona's shoulder and shook her head. She wanted her to stop talking.
Steven was thinking. He tapped the table with his finger. He was trying to decide if he should use this plan. Cynthia and the others did not say anything. This was Hoenn, and Steven was the Hoenn Champion.
If Groudon fought Kyogre, it would affect Hoenn. This was serious. If things went wrong, the land and people would suffer. They could not choose for Steven. He had to decide.
Wallace stayed quiet. He waited for Steven to decide. He would support Steven no matter what.
After a long time, Steven took a deep breath. His voice was a bit tired as he spoke.
"I will send people to find Groudon!"
Steven finally made his choice.
"If I don't act now, there will only be more trouble later. If I cannot decide, we won't drive Team Rocket out! The most important thing now is to kick Team Rocket out of Hoenn!"
Steven's voice was firm. Waking up Groudon would cause problems, but Steven was ready. LaRousse City was already destroyed. At worst, there would be another disaster. But it would be worth it if they could defeat Team Rocket in Hoenn.
"As expected of Champion Steven!" Leon praised him. He thought the same way. It was better to take a risk now than to let an evil group stay in this land.
"In that case, finding Groudon is the most important thing right now," Cynthia added. She did not disagree.
"Yes. A trainer named May caught a Team Magma Executive before. He escaped because he didn't want to join Team Rocket," Steven said calmly. "I will go ask him myself. Team Magma always looked for Groudon, so maybe he knows where it is sleeping."
"That is possible. And Champion Steven, if one of us can get Groudon's approval, the situation will stay under control," Giovanni said to Steven.
Steven was surprised, and then he looked happy. That was true! If one of them became Groudon's partner, they would not have to worry. Then the League would have a legendary trainer to fight Damian. (Everyone knew the truth about the trainer named Brandon.)
"I'm going to go ask that Team Magma Executive right now!"
Steven felt much better. He was ready to go.
"Hey! Steven, I'm coming with you!" Nemona was very excited. She had never questioned a prisoner before. This was her first time!
"Alright." Steven did not say no. He took Nemona and left the room.
Giovanni laughed quietly. He had a calm face and secretly sent a message to his son.
"Damian, the Hoenn League wants to wake up Groudon to deal with you."
That was what a secret helper was for.
Steven and the others never thought there was a traitor with them.
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