They dispatched over thirty members for this operation.
Although the number was similar to when they faced Natsui last time, these were all elite members. Their combat power far surpassed that of ordinary members, making them a formidable force.
A single Elite Four member couldn't stop them. With Maxie and two Admins leading, Team Magma was confident of success.
Their goal was clear: reach the mountaintop and prevent Phoebe from escaping with the orb. To do this, they split into three teams—led by Maxie, Courtney, and Tabitha—each approaching the summit from different directions.
To stay coordinated, the three leaders used special communication equipment to keep in touch. If any team ran into trouble, the others would know immediately and could provide support.
They had prepared thoroughly.
Such a large group couldn't move as quietly as a few individuals. The combined sounds of their footsteps and breathing made it impossible not to attract attention.
But none of this was a problem.
This was exactly what Maxie wanted. With so many people together, he had no intention of hiding.
He wanted Phoebe, the Elite Four member, to know that opposing Team Magma would only end badly.
If she realized resistance was futile, she'd hand over the orb, saving herself pain and not wasting anyone's time.
Unfortunately, in his view, Phoebe didn't have such awareness, which also made him slightly disappointed.
Why don't these people understand our vision?
Maxie sneered and refocused on leading the team up the mountain.
At first, everything went smoothly.
Mt. Pyre made Maxie uneasy, as if countless eyes were watching him. He knew many Ghost-type Pokémon lived here and liked to scare visitors. Still, as long as he obtained the Red Orb, any trouble or delay would be worth it.
It was just that as they walked, he slowly felt something was wrong.
The fog that was originally only at the mountaintop actually began to spread downward. They had just reached the mountainside and were already enveloped by thick fog.
At first, Maxie thought it was just the weather. But after several accidents, he realized something in the fog was attacking them.
Moments ago, a huge rock rolled down from above, knocking a member's Pokémon down the mountain...
Before they could recover, a large tree suddenly fell, blocking their path and nearly hitting the two Pokémon in front...
Most importantly, not only did his team encounter trouble, but through the earpiece, he could clearly hear that the other two teams also encountered various strange incidents!
Shouts of chaos and panic were incessant...
Now it was obvious. It had to be wild Ghost-type Pokémon causing trouble.
No one saw the attackers, but only Ghost-types could pull this off without leaving a trace.
Usually, Ghost-types bothered people who were alone, not large groups. Why was today different?
This feeling was like being targeted by someone...
Thinking of this, a bad feeling arose in his heart. He hurriedly ordered his subordinates to blow away the nearby thick fog.
But just as the thick fog was blown away, continuous mist filled that vacancy again.
Seeing this, Maxie's brow sank, knowing things really became troublesome.
...
On the mountaintop, Natsui was lying on the soft grass, enjoying the warm sunlight while closing his eyes to rest, preparing for the upcoming battle.
Misty lay beside Natsui, watching the clouds. She wondered what he was thinking.
As for Phoebe, they didn't know where exactly she hid. Anyway, after assigning the task, they never saw her figure again.
This lazy state lasted until more than half an hour later, when Gengar returned again, finally changing things.
At the moment Gengar appeared, Phoebe swung down from a distant tree trunk like a monkey. With just a few jumps and swings, she landed nimbly beside it.
Before Gengar could speak, Phoebe asked impatiently, "How is it? Found traces of Team Magma?"
Perhaps sensing Phoebe was a bit too enthusiastic, Gengar subconsciously moved a bit away from her, then smiled at Natsui who had just sat up: "Saw them; they are rushing here!"
Natsui nodded. "How long until they arrive?"
"Hard to say." Gengar laughed loudly. "I asked those new friends I met to create a little trouble for them. Now those guys should be exhausted from running under their constant harassment!"
"New friends? Where did other people come from here?" Misty was puzzled at first, but then suddenly realized, "Oh! You mean those wild Ghost-type Pokémon, right?"
"Of course." Gengar laughed strangely, 'Geh geh geh'. "There are many Duskull, Shuppet, Sableye, and Misdreavus in this mountain. They are all very interesting guys. I just explained the matter simply, and they were very willing to help!"
"Sending you to scout was the right choice." Natsui turned to Misty and Phoebe. "Even with help from wild Pokémon, they can't stop Team Magma. Let's get ready!"
When Maxie, Tabitha, and Courtney rendezvoused at the mountaintop with their respective teams, they all saw the Team Magma members in each other's teams who had been devastated by various pranks and looked very miserable.
Although looking a bit wretched, fortunately, there was no large-scale reduction in personnel. This could already be considered agile on their part.
Had they known, they wouldn't have split up. They didn't catch Phoebe and wasted their energy.
Opening their mouths, the two Admins wanted to say something more, but seeing Maxie's bad expression, they wisely didn't speak rashly.
Scanning these people, Maxie kept a long face and snorted: "Don't stand there stupidly; continue to advance!"
Hearing his command, more than thirty Team Magma elite members moved again. Under the protection of Pokémon, they walked toward the mountaintop from the narrow entrance.
No matter what, although the process had some twists and turns, they finally arrived here. Next, as long as they defeated Phoebe, that orb seemed to be within easy reach!
However, encountering such unexpected situations before a big battle cast a shadow over Maxie's heart more or less.
He had a premonition that perhaps this operation wouldn't be as smooth as he imagined.
Thinking of this, he narrowed his eyes and waved Tabitha over.
When Tabitha arrived beside him with a baffling look, Maxie whispered a few words in his ear. Hearing the leader's order, although Tabitha was greatly surprised, he still nodded and left directly with a few trusted aides.
Courtney at the side saw all this.
But she didn't say anything. After all, the leader's wisdom was outstanding within Team Magma; he must have his reasons for doing this!
The group soon arrived at that fog-free place and saw Phoebe's grandparents' house from afar.
After checking once and confirming the orb wasn't here, they continued to advance and finally arrived in front of the stone shrine.
It was also here that Maxie saw Phoebe waiting at leisure in front of the shrine at a glance.
Moving his gaze away from her, Maxie focused on the Red Orb emitting a soft glow inside the shrine!
It's really here!
Feeling a burst of ecstasy in his heart, just as he was about to step forward, Phoebe blocked his line of sight at this moment.
"Team Magma, this is not a place you should come. Leave here immediately, otherwise don't blame me for being impolite!"
Looking around and confirming she was the only one here, Maxie didn't rush to attack. Instead, with a smile on his face, he said in a tone full of temptation, "Little girl, don't you understand? This world needs people like me to make it better! The ocean occupies a large area of this world. With the multiplication of us humans, the land has become increasingly crowded. Only by awakening Groudon and making it undergo Primal Reversion can we dry up the seawater and expand the land, increasing our living space and building an ideal world for humanity!"
Don't look at Phoebe's young age; she wasn't someone easily distorted by such paranoid ideas.
"What nonsense are you talking about?" Phoebe said disdainfully, "Although I only like Ghost-type Pokémon, I also know the ocean is the cradle of us humans. Neither climate nor ecology can do without it. If we really do as you think, the first ones affected will be ourselves!"
"Tsk, it seems I can't persuade you." Maxie shook his head with pretended regret. "I just wanted to give you a chance to join Team Magma. But I see now—a person as short-sighted as you simply cannot understand our great dream. Hand over the orb behind you, quickly!"
Unfortunately, what his words exchanged for wasn't any orb, but Phoebe's Pokémon.
As Phoebe threw out Poké Balls one after another, instantly, six Ghost-type Pokémon appeared in front of Team Magma.
Maxie's gaze swept over these Pokémon one by one.
Mismagius, Banette, Drifblim, Chandelure, Dusknoir, and Sableye.
Although he hadn't dealt with Phoebe before, he also knew the young girl in front of him was a Ghost-type Elite Four member. Seeing her Pokémon now, it was indeed so.
Snorting coldly, Maxie said disdainfully, "Although you are an Elite Four member, you don't really think you can stop us with just these few Pokémon, do you?"
As his voice fell, those Team Magma elite members behind him grinned hideously and released their Pokémon one after another.
For a time, blue lights lit up constantly. In the blink of an eye, sixty or seventy Pokémon swarmed Phoebe!
If it were an ordinary Trainer, seeing so many malicious Pokémon that seemed ready to pounce at any time, they would definitely have panicked by now. But Phoebe showed no fear at all. Instead, after seeing these Pokémon, she actively launched an attack!
Even Maxie didn't expect that even facing such a situation, the girl in front of him actually dared to strike first!
"Not knowing what's good for you!"
He cursed under his breath. Without needing his instructions, those subordinates of his already commanded various Pokémon to meet the attack.
Regarding Phoebe's resistance, he actually wasn't worried at all. Even without himself and Courtney taking action, he feared none of these elite members' Pokémon were something she could deal with!
In fact, just as he thought, although upon engaging, relying on stronger individual abilities, Phoebe's Pokémon achieved a good start, knocking several of their Pokémon to the ground.
But as they were surrounded instantly, these few Ghost-type Pokémon found it somewhat difficult to handle such a situation.
There was no helping it; there were simply too many opponents!
Team Magma couldn't withstand their moves, but similarly, they also couldn't cope with attacks coming from behind or both sides.
Moreover, the strength of these elite members' Pokémon wasn't weak at all. Fighting them wasn't as easy as dealing with wild Pokémon!
And according to this development, defeating this Elite Four member seemed only a matter of time.
But somehow, the more it was like this, the more uneasy Maxie felt in his heart.
But he glanced at the situation on the battlefield, then glanced at Courtney beside him who also had no intention of intervening and chose to stand by, yet he didn't find anything wrong.
Hope I'm overthinking it...
Just as he had this thought, he suddenly heard two explosions coming from the left and right simultaneously!
And at the moment of the explosion, several members' Pokémon were also blown into the sky together! Hmm?
Maxie frowned, his gaze sweeping quickly to both sides. He saw another dozen or so Pokémon suddenly rushing out from the forests on both sides, joining the battle!
So there was an ambush!
Seeing this scene, while Maxie was alarmed, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He had vaguely felt before that things weren't that simple. Looking at it now, it was indeed as he expected. And as the ambushers revealed themselves, although catching him off guard, the opponent's trump cards were all revealed, so there was nothing more to worry about!
However, scanning inadvertently, he found the expression of Courtney beside him was very wrong.
"What's wrong?"
Looking at the familiar figure of the man behind those few Pokémon newly joining the battlefield, Courtney said in a deep voice, "Now we're in trouble; it's Natsui."
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