Chapter 33 has arrived and is ready for orders. But before we head off, let me just express some concerns that I have for the fic at the the moment.

Last month has been extremely rough mainly because of a series of family issues that I had to cope with. Because of that, my motivation to continue the story has taken such a huge hit that I wasn't able to get anything down at all for quite a while. Also, I believe my writing quality has taken a severe drop. Perhaps I burned out over the last few years of working on this, but I can't be sure.

Needless to say, I'll see to it to the best of my abilities. Once again, no guarantees that this fic will remain alive forever.

Thanks to Tendou Souji, now under a new name, for his edits of this chapter.

As usual, I don't own Pokémon.

Chapter 33

POW Rescue: Raid and Liberate

"Conflict of interest? No, I have interest in conflict! The media may lambast me for my ways, but the works of the Rangers is what keeping the future generation secure." - Lieutenant Havoc, when interviewed by a reporter of the SNN about his tendency to undertake missions against dangerous targets his own way

"Smashing tanks was never my thing nor did I ever think about it but after doing so for once, now I know why my dear Garchomp loved battling so much." - Cynthia

"Some may say killing is a difficult experience to undergo but you simply get used to it as time passes. And it's not mental sickness. I get paid and rewarded to protect my people and allies, so that's my job. Simple as that." - Unspecified Pokémon Ranger sniper quote in The Almia Times

"Looks like trouble," Riley alerted the group, his eyes fixated on the prowling helicopter in the distance. "It's a model I've never seen before, but chances are it's anything but harmless."

"A helicopter of that design is new to me too," Lucario admitted as its red-coloured irises remained fixed on the helicopter that lurked in the darkness. "What model is it?"

"It's a Comanche," Havoc answered almost instantly, recalling the images of the helicopter when he was residing in the United States. "It is an advanced trial product attack helicopter made by the Unova Defense Force that never left its prototype stages due to funding issues and preference of older yet more reliable kinds, like the Apache. I guess a foreign buyer decided to pick up the scraps and change that around. It was, however, stolen and used by Red Falcon as their chief strike helicopter on numerous instances."

"Red Falcon?" Riley asked, lost.

"A Unovan-based separatist organization that had its ass kicked by a group of daring marines and several Unovan soldiers when they attempted to use a stolen nuclear arsenal against the government. They were around way before most youths of today were born," Havoc summarized rapidly as a means of conserving time. He didn't go into the details as they were relatively redundant and of course, he didn't want the others to know too much about his past.

"Comanches?" the female anti-armor Ranger questioned. "I thought they were only available for the elites, like the Annie and Oakley duo. But those witches get everything in the Team Rocket arsenal anyway…and didn't Team Rocket also abandon the project several years ago?"

"Never assume anything until you have some factual evidence to back it all up. Perhaps that helicopter is piloted by an elite agent, which may be problematic," a veteran Ranger replied, keeping his submachine gun in ready mode as he scanned the terrain ahead of him. "Lieutenant, I recommend you to give us some orders on how to deal with this situation. We're standing by and waiting for what you have planned."

Havoc bit his lips anxiously. Even the chilly air of the night environment in the desert was not capable of keeping him cooled down: situations such as these were always a problematic dilemma that required some thinking to solve. He wasn't concerned about himself should he be taking this mission by himself; heck, he could have shot the pilot out of the Comanche with his 12.7mm rifle ages ago. The Lieutenant cared about his troops and the prisoners' health and well-being, and he wasn't about to jeopardize both himself and the entire mission with such a careless move. "I'm thinking. Give me a minute."

"We don't have a minute, Lieutenant!" the female Ranger answered quietly yet fiercely. "Each second of lagging around is a moment closer to us being detected! For all we know, that Comanche has sensors that can pick us up even in the darkness." The eager soldier was more than willing to shoot the gunship out of the sky, but she opted to listen to the commanding officer's orders.

The Comanche helicopter scanned the sandy territory with its nose-mounted searchlight, as if it somehow knew that there were potential intruders out in the dead wasteland. But of course, some of the Rangers had assumed it was on one of its daily patrols, hence why the pilot aboard was being so suspicious. After all, prison breakouts, either externally by outside parties or by the inmates revolting, were very common, especially in the UAAF and Team Rocket's concentration camps.

"Lieutenant, we may have trouble getting past that airborne target," Lucario advised Havoc thoughtfully. "We may request Miss Cynthia's assistance, but only and if only we're within attacking range. Taking the aerial threat out now will only raise the alarm."

"Lucario's right," Riley agreed. "Once we have either secured or got the captives to a safe distance, we can safely engage the helicopter and take it down. I'm sure Cyn—I mean, Garchomp can handle it. Striking it now would make our situation even more difficult than it already is." The Aura Trainer realized that Cynthia's true identity wasn't revealed to most of Havoc's troops, and there was no reason to do so now.

A minute of silence or two drifted over the squad as Havoc's soldiers waited for their commander to finalize the decisions that the attacking party would carry out. The only noises that were present in the night environment were crickets chirping, the beating sounds caused by the rotor blades of the Comanche flying a short distance away, and the deep breathing sounds of the Pokémon Rangers that waited anxiously. As the majority of them were action-seeking specialists that did not like to follow the rules of the textbook and classroom back at Ranger school, just about every one of them were itching to fight. That and the scratching noises of the combat columnist's pencil writing on a notepad and his partner about to take a picture or two, but a veteran stopped him just in time.

"Kid, put that thing away!" the Sergeant barked quickly, fearing that the flash from the camera would allow the squad to be detected. "The flash will give our position away in the darkness! Didn't they teach you that back at the academy?"

"Oh, sheesh, I should've remembered," the cameraman grumbled stupidly before he tucked the picture-capturing accessory away. As a photographer who looked forward to documenting some sweet shots for the next newspaper circulated throughout the Pokémon Ranger Corps, he sighed as he carefully placed the digital camera back into the holster on his belt. "There goes the chance of getting good photographs for the next issue of The Almia Times."

"You'll get your chance, perhaps when we're actually doing some fighting there," a Ranger at the rank of Master Sergeant recommended quietly, keeping his M60 machine gun tightly gripped around his gloved hands. He turned to the Ranger Commando before asking, "Do you have a plan made up yet? Time is of the essence sir."

"Alright," Havoc confirmed seconds later with a deep inhalation of the cool night-air oxygen. "Everyone, we'll approach the facility within striking range and wait for the distracting F-22 to fly over us as it drops the countermeasures to give the false impression that it crashed. Once that's done, everyone will open fire with their heavy weapons and destroy as much of the facility's defences as possible. Riley, tell your Garchomp to bring the gunship out of the sky during that time, okay? Our next order of business is doing what the Rangers do best—charge in with unrelenting ferocity, retrieves the prisoners, and let no enemy unit out alive. Those Andromedan Cult bastards and their UAAF partners are going to pay dearly for what they did to my forces the last time we met on the battlefront. Does everyone understand? Once I shoot off the flare, that's your sign to begin opening fire. Pulverize everything in your line of sight, and leave nothing that's donning a UAAF uniform or a cultist mantle standing."

His troops answered fiercely in unity, but in a much quieter tone for obvious reasons. "Sir, yes sir!"

"Good, let's move out! We have to be in and out before 6:30AM. I want us all to meet back at LZ Beta before six in the morning. Evacuation will be there to take us all out, and from there, an airstrike will be authorized to level the entire compound," Havoc reminded, taking a quick look at his watch. The arms on his analogue-themed clock showed that it was 11:30PM, meaning they had around seven hours to finish the mission at hand. "Should be more than enough time for us to finish the mission and be home for a celebratory breakfast."

The accompanying Rangers nodded in confirmation as they adjusted their watches' alarms to six in the morning. This meant that the alarm would alert them to bail it for the evacuation point once it sounded off.

Once all was done to organize the squad, the rescue division began their real approach. Having to travel several hundred meters wasn't a hard task, and it only took several minutes for the entire company to be placed in strategic points, weapons at the ready. The anti-tank detachments had their rocket launchers and other models of explosive weapons pointed directly at the many defences placed in crucial positions around the complex, ranging from machine gun nests to missile turrets. Thankfully, the Comanche helicopter hadn't spotted them, since Havoc had ordered all radio communications to cease and all sources of illumination, ranging from the glowstick-style lamps to the laser sights of his men and women's weapons, to be deactivated.

Meanwhile, Riley got into touch with Cynthia once again. "Cynthia, be aware of the helicopter. Havoc has given orders for you to eliminate it as soon as the ground troops engage, but until then, stay put until the assault begins and try to minimize the potentiality of making yourself known to the fortification's personnel," Riley informed. His Lucario was also readying itself, preparing to jump into action and contribute to the defences' destruction with its powerful Aura Sphere move.

"I got you, Riley. I'll stay in the air and keep a keen eye out," Cynthia responded. The link was cut, and the Dragon/Ground-type resumed her surveillance runs. She was aware of a strong presence of corrupted Pokémon, but she didn't let this distract her as she was confident that Riley's Lucario was more than capable of protecting its trainer, along with the rest of the Rangers who had Pokémon. There was no need to jump the gun unless it was absolutely necessary.

Back on the ground, Havoc radioed to the F-22 in charge of placing up the commotion that would draw the attention of the base's personnel towards the sky. "This is Havoc to Blackwing. You are clear to perform the distraction manoeuvre."

"Roger that Lieutenant," the pilot spoke back laconically. "Blackwing is inbound to the designated sector."

"It's now or never," Havoc thought as his heart raced indefinitely. "If this ends as a screw-up, I'll have to attempt an uncontrolled and disorganized rush that may be potentially costly in lives."

The night toiled on, and it wasn't long before the distinctive sound of a jet fighter flying through the sky tore through the dark nocturnal atmosphere, the advanced Ranger fighter aircraft flying lowly as it swooped in from the nearby canyons, making a flyby through the camp and quickly exiting the area. The Rangers below all peered into the sky, noticing a dark silhouette of a sleek-shaped figure zoom by. This was a sign that the time to open fire was near as they steadied the aim on their weapons.

To give the impression that his plane had crashed, two specialized incendiary bombs were lit up before they were dropped from the aircraft as they exploded on the ground, fooling the soldiers stationed at the prison that there was a plane accident in their vicinity. Countermeasure flares were also dropped to give the impression to the defenders of the prison that it had attempted to make an effort to evade. The pilot aboard detected tremendous amounts of anti-air fire directed at him, but due to the stealthy capabilities of the F-22 and the fact he performed the impression that his vehicle had crashed allowed him to evade the attacks thrown at him easily. The approach and distinctive whining of an F-22 immediately prompted every single defensive turret to aim towards the sky and open fire blindly, as air raids were taken very seriously by the UAAF and their allies. Since they never expected anyone to get past their ground defences and hazards of all kinds, approaching aircraft, unless they were of an affiliation with Team Rocket, the UAAF, or any of their allies, were not always met with welcome from sentries manning a base's defences.

This gesture of attention soon proved to be a very disastrous move for the prison's sentry personnel.

"Just a few more seconds…," Havoc anxiously spoke in his mind, waiting for all of the base's defences to aim at the sky and away from the ground.

"Blackwing to Havoc, the distraction run is complete. I will be on standby should you need further aerial support. Blackwing out," the pilot reported to the lieutenant-ranked Ranger Commando as he flew his plane out of the area, staying wary for any potential UAAF airborne threats in the form of enemy jets or wild Pokémon.

"Roger that." Havoc severed the link and raised his flare gun, shooting off a bright green flare into the night sky. Gripping his Barrett sniper rifle, he moved forward to find a safer spot to camp and eliminate any hostilities before moving in and beginning his sniping runs. The soldiers that served under his orders did as they were told should they witness the signal to open fire, and they did so in the form of unloading their portable heavy artillery and automatic weapons.

The gesture of the flare being launched immediately raised all types of hell—the Rangers unleashed a barrage of ordnance at the distracted defences that were turned towards the sky. The quick-minded soldiers targeted the defences that posed the greatest threat to infantry units: the machine gun towers, nests, bunkers, and anti-armor turrets. Since the majority of the AA guns did not have enough inclination to hit ground troops, they were placed on a lower priority in terms of targets but they were not ignored overall. Those equipped with anti-infantry weapons picked off as much human targets as they could with their marksman reflexes as they downed cultist soldiers in black ponchos and UAAF combatants in their black spec ops uniforms alike.

Within fifteen seconds, the attacking force had decimated dozens of enemy infantry, fortifications, and emplacements in a firestorm and myriad of rockets, grenades, and bullets.

"Go, go, go! Take the forward points!" the Master Sergeant Ranger with the M60 machine gun yelled in ferocity as he charged forward with reckless ease and fired his machine gun at several searchlights, his assault destroying the sources of illumination. Several other Rangers followed him as they sprinted up to the base with unheard ferocity, rushing into the complex and taking out dozens of shocked personnel who were not prepared for such an assault, especially one carried out by experienced veterans.

"Take cover behind tactical points, and cover each other! Don't let them sneak up on you!" another Ranger, equipped with an M4 carbine rifle, bawled over the sounds of gunfire crackling and screams piercing into the midnight air as he covered himself behind some wooden crates and shot down targets with deadly precision.

"You got it! These fanatics are going dirt-tasting!" a submachine gunner spoke courageously as he knelt down on one knee and downed several guards with several bursts of his weapon.

The prison guards though were not thinking of so readily throwing in the towel: a counterattack was soon launched, but it was largely ineffective since Havoc's soldiers were far better prepared and trained thanks to their Lieutenant mapping out the compound and pinpointing any potential weaknesses they could exploit. Each member of Havoc's twenty-man team did their part flawlessly as within several seconds of the battle, hundreds of casualties were inflicted on the Andromedan Cultists and UAAF soldiers while not a single Ranger was harmed in the approach. Close calls were frequent since the counterattacks by the prison's defenders often came in the form of stray and inaccurate shots into the darkness.

"Humvees! They'll eat us alive!" a Ranger yelled, diving for cover behind a triangular stack of metal pipes right before his position was saturated with heavy machine gun fire from a nearby lightly-armoured utility vehicle. While the vehicles were by far no means a threat to tanks, they were quite dangerous even to heavy infantry forces.

His partner knew exactly what to do as he reached for the Poké Ball on his belt. "Now let's show them how we deal with heavy opposition—the professional way!"

Enemy jeeps and Humvees alike soon rolled forward to meet the onslaught of the Rangers as the mounted machine gunners on the vehicles sprayed gunfire into the darkness, hoping to score a lucky and critical hit on an unfortunate soldier. Given the large inaccurateness of the vehicles, they were pretty much a futile gesture that resulted in wasted ammunition as opposed to inflicted casualties.

Strike Team Delta immediately released their powerful Pokémon on the field to handle the vehicle threat. Pokémon teams composing of various final evolutions of starter Pokémon from all the primary regions were unleashed on the camp by the veteran and volunteer Rangers. The angry Pokémon were equally eager to get revenge for their fallen companions that had perished earlier in the Black Obelisk mission; to this end, the Ranger-trained creatures released their strongest moves on the battlefield. A barrage of Flamethrowers and Hydro Pumps collided with wave after wave of bullets, neutralizing the steel rounds fired by the vehicles.

"Take care of the armored vehicles!" the first sergeant-ranked M60 machine gunner ordered his Samurott.

The fully-evolved form of Oshawott screamed an ear-deafening battle cry as the Formidable Pokémon rose on its hind legs and approached a nearby armoured vehicle that was succeeding in pushing the Rangers out of the base. Given the fact that the Rangers had used up most of their explosives in neutralizing their defences, they had little to use against heavy opposition in the form of vehicles. Believing that his heavy machine gun could wound the Samurott and kill it within seconds, the mounted M60 on the vehicle proved to have little to no effect on the armoured body of the Unovan Water-type.

"Come on, come and get it! I'll turn you into grounded meat and bones, you Ranger dog!" the attacking machine gunner cursed as he fired in vain, confident in his automatic weapon's abilities to slay the sea lion-like creature.

Not amused by the words that the cultist had used to describe the Pokémon, the Ranger-trained Samurott drew a sword-like weapon that was stored in the left front leg of its body, all the while ignoring the bullets that thudded against its armoured body and fell harmlessly to the ground. It propelled itself through the air with a skillful jump before using its Razor Shell attack to practically slice the engine block of the jeep in half, disabling the vehicle instantly. The driver was so panicked by the attack that he had fled from the seat of his vehicle and paid no attention to the Samurott executing the human manning the machine gun of his vehicle.

"G-get away from me!" the cultist screamed as he drew out his sidearm and used it to pitifully attempt to ward off the samurai-themed Pokémon, but to no avail. The Samurott used Razor Shell once more, this time on the religious fanatic. A swift but blunt slash from the sword weapon that the Pokémon wielded sent the hapless fanatic human flying into the sky, ending his life rather swiftly as soon as he dropped from the air like a stone and crashed into the ground. It was just one of the more miserable deaths that were met by the unfortunate victims of the raiding Rangers.

The machine gunner joined up with his Pokémon before grimacing slightly at the amount of blood that was spilled, but being a soldier that had seen plenty of deaths throughout his career, the soldier didn't let this bother his mind, although he did want to throw up his dinner he had eaten several hours earlier. His Samurott looked down at him with pride as it stored the weapon it had wielded back into a shell-like storage section on its left leg and awaited extra orders. "Let's move!"

The Pokémon gave an assuring grunt as it followed its master into the battle, covering its human ally from all kinds of attacks. At the same time, a Blastoise, fulfilling the role of the anti-vehicle tank, utilized its pressured Hydro Pump attacks to cut through several vehicles. The dominant Water-type attack that was used by just about any experienced Pokémon with the water element sliced through the remaining gun towers, turrets, and lightly armoured vehicles like a devastating tsunami dislodging and sweeping houses.

"Take them out like flies. Don't give them a chance to strike back," Havoc called into his radio as he clenched the trigger of his weapon, shooting through three infantry units in a row with his armour-piercing rifle.

Near the water storage tanks of the first prison complex that held the inmates captive, the female Corporal and her partner moved towards the first sector of the vehicle storage area—their mission was to destroy the armoured tanks should the cultists or the UAAF attempt to man them as a means to deter the attack. The female Pokémon Ranger had called out on her Blaziken to deal with the attacking light vehicles, the Pokémon's unrelentingly powerful Blaze Kick and Fire Punch literally stamping charred and burned-out holes in the jeeps and Humvees that it had targeted. The swift speed at which Fire/Fighting-type Pokémon was travelling meant there was little to no way anyone was able to land a precise shot on the bipedal avian creature.

"Now that's some serious power we're talking about!" her partner, who carried several spare anti-armour missiles, cheered in awe as he watched the Blaziken utilize a Blaze Kick to strike a lightly-armoured jeep with such force that the vehicle was sent flying across the camp like a football. It rolled and tumbled on the dirt ground for several dozen meters or so before it came to rest, its passengers killed almost instantly with the car's frame and structure battered and ruined: it was highly unlikely it would ever be repaired to a functional manner ever again.

"Never underestimate my Pokémon," the Corporal responded proudly. "When it comes to close-ranged backup and fighting, my Blaziken is second to none! Blaziken, throw an oil drum at the vehicles and cover our teammates!" The Ranger gave the command after she became aware of some scattered oil drums that were particularly volatile in nature.

Her Pokémon gave a confirming caw as it grabbed a barrel filled with explosive material, lifted it as if it was a five pound dumbbell, and tossed it through the air like a baseball. The container made contact with a Humvee, and the resulting impact caused both the cylindrical can's contents and the vehicle to go off into a sea of flames, cooking the relatively unprotected driver and gunner into a pile of burnt ashes as hot fuel spilled over the exploding steel keg. The experienced Pokémon turned its attention towards several sentries that began to fire on it; in response, it utilized Flamethrower to quickly dispatch the attackers.

Her partner had turned his attention on several guard towers that were still standing even and survived the anti-armour assault which was carried out earlier. With only a little moonlight providing illumination, he could clearly decipher two targets in one such tower and noticed that one of them was carrying a lengthy weapon of some sort. His eyes widened as realization dawned upon him—it was an enemy sniper team. Glancing at his partner, he noticed a distinctive red dot targeted at her unprotected chest section.

"Sniper!" he cried as he leapt up and pushed his partner to the ground just as something caused a section of the dirt-covered terrain close to them erupt with a small blast of rocks, dust and sand. As they lacked no weapons aside from their Pokémon and explosives, they were at the mercy of the sniper that was ready to take another shot at them.

Thankfully, the second shot never came. Havoc had already taken out the remaining guard towers by that point and with skillful shots from his outrageously powerful 12.7mm calibre sniper rifle, he easily eliminated the hapless sentinels quickly and efficiently. The same sniper team that had attempted to remove the female Ranger and her partner were quickly dispatched as a single shot from the rifle pierced through both victims simultaneously, their bodies dropping from the tower before they crashed onto the ground with a bone-crushing thud.

"Target down. That should be the last of their snipers," Havoc muttered. He picked both himself and his trusty precision-killing tool up before moving forward to join the rest of his division. The nervousness of the commando soon came to an ease, as he came to realization that the attack was a greater success than he initially expected it to be. "That Comanche will have to wait. I hope Cynthia deals with it quickly before it cuts us all down!"

The Comanche that was responsible for patrolling the area did not sit out of the fight at all. As soon as the pilot aboard had spotted the flare being shot off into the night sky, the vehicle instantly deployed all of its weapons and searched the ground for viable targets to dispatch with its rockets and machine gun. Although the heat seeking devices could pick up the Rangers to an extent, they were scattered in various positions, and targeting one was difficult as they were practically invisible in the darkness.

"I didn't sign up to be a headless Torchic being bait for bigger units!" the combat journalist screamed in fear as he and his partner fled from the ensuing blasts caused by the explosive all-purpose rockets that the gunship had launched at them.

"Keep moving!" the accompanying photographer urged, not willing to fall victim on the battlefield today. Since both soldiers did not carry Pokémon given their low ranks and their ineffective weapons in the form of regular service rifles, they were practically helpless against the might of the Comanche that pursued them. The helicopter pilot became so obsessed with shooting off the lone Rangers that he didn't realize his ammunition for the rockets were running low with only several dozen left in the launchers.

Unfortunately for the Comanche, the helicopter and its pilot were greatly outnumbered in terms of numerical superiority. Strike Team Delta members were all over the place, positioned in areas that could not be penetrated by bullet-based weapons. To make matters worse, the helicopter gunship no longer had a secure location to land and replenish its supplies—the two Rangers had quickly secured the helipad and drove out the personnel with stolen rifles, and the demolition specialists were prepared to light up the ammo and fuel storages with their explosive charges, thus depriving the advanced attack copter of much-needed fuel and ammo.

It was not long until the pilot realized he had another airborne problem to deal with—Cynthia.

"Did you actually think you are free to take shots at the boys and girls down below without dealing with me?!" the Sinnoh Champion hybrid taunted as she closed in on the Comanche gunship with blistering velocity. Opening her razor-toothed maw, the Mach Pokémon released a blast of vermillion-coloured fire at the revolutionary-constructed gunship.

The pilot was more than prepared to meet the threat head-on unlike some who would have waves of chills sent down the back of their spines upon coming face-to-face with an enraged pseudo-legendary Pokémon. He composedly clicked a button on the control panel of his helicopter which activated the specialized energy shield that protected his vehicle from anything short of a Hyper Beam attack. He smiled to himself, the relatively combat-seasoned aviator pleased to know that he could have a potential pay raise and promotion for shooting down a pseudo-legendary.

"Hmm, the boss will definitely promote me for taking out such a prized target…although I must be careful. This Garchomp doesn't look like it'll go down easy," he muttered to himself delightfully as he witnessed the Flamethrower that Cynthia had attempted to scorch the battle helicopter with dissipate against the force field. For the time being, he was pleased that there was nothing else that could match him in the air: the Rangers lacked sufficient weapons to engage him, and their Pokémon were far too preoccupied on the ground.

Cynthia halted her attack as she levitated in the air after she came to realization that her overwhelming Fire-type attack was doing little to no damage to her mechanical opponent. Floating steadily in the night air, she faced the UAAF Comanche helicopter, studying its features and wondering how it was capable of repelling her most powerful move after Draco Meteor. "The UAAF and Team Rocket really place all of their trust into enhancing their forces, both in the biological and mechanical departments," she mused. "Fortunately, this particular model is rarely produced. I hope this is the only Comanche I face in a while."

Ever since her escape from the UAAF Sinnoh Facility and Prison with her mate, the UAAF had sent countless agents with skilled Pokémon or, if the going became too dangerous for ground forces, helicopters in the form of Apaches or AH-1Z Cobras to hunt them. Both gunships lacked the technology that the Comanche models had as they were built for forward support and heavy anti-tank support. Cynthia and her mate easily dealt with both models relatively easily, but the Comanche was one they always fled from as it boasted superior manoeuvring controls that were capable of matching a speedy Pokémon's handling when it came to hairpin turns.

She didn't have a lot of time to think up of a plan as the attack helicopter opened fire on her once again, using its anti-personnel machine gun mounted on the undercarriage of the pilot's cockpit. The automatic cannon fired rapidly as the pilot looked forward to downing the Mach Pokémon quickly and ending the battle before he would return to the duty of slaughtering the grounded Rangers from the safety of the sky.

"You'll regret standing in my way!" the pilot announced through a speaker installed on the helicopter.

Cynthia did not even bother to dodge the bullets as the armour-piercing ammunition had no effect on her titanium-hard body, although she did raise her wing fins to protect her eyes from being shot out by the bullets. The rounds simply ricocheted off her body as she yawned slightly at the gesture. "Perhaps the UAAF Science Division's engineering on me has its benefits. Thank Arceus they aren't ice bullets or sub-zero projectiles," she mentally shivered.

"Expected from a Garchomp," the helicopter aviator murmured to himself with disappointment. "Maybe I'll try unguided missiles, even though I'm running low on them. If that doesn't work, seeker rockets will definitely blow this annoyance out of the sky."

Clutching to the control stick of his helicopter, he maneuvered his attack chopper until his target was within the sights of the electronically-advanced targeting HUD system. Without disinclination, he unleashed a large barrage of explosive, unguided rockets—fourteen, to be exact. The untraced rockets that possessed potent armour-piercing capability zoomed towards Cynthia and deigning that things were getting serious now, his opponent zoomed into battle.

Upon the approach, she utilized a combination of evasive moves to skirt around the missiles and quick bursts of Dragon Rage to neutralize those that were too close to be avoided. The majority of the shots missed as they flew off into the night and fell to the ground after burning up all their fuel, while one managed to explode against her body, clouding her with smoke and dust.

"Hmm, that seemed to have gotten her good…" The pilot was just about to continue the assault with a second bombardment of explosives to ensure the Pokémon hybrid was finished off when Cynthia shot through the cloud of smoke and dust and closed in at rapid speeds.

Attempting to strafe his helicopter out of the incoming melee assault of the Pokémon, he was a tad too late when the Mach Pokémon delivered a Dragon Rush attack right in the rear fuselage of the aircraft. The force of the attack was powerful to knock the vehicle out of its hovering position, but it wasn't enough to force it down and out of the sky. The vehicle stabilized itself moments later, much to Cynthia's surprise. However, it was evident some damage was dealt to the futuristic UAAF attack vehicle.

"Hmm, unlike the other models, this one doesn't go down with one Dragon Rush to the weak point. Perhaps that force field is also protecting the gunship. Whatever it is, perhaps I should target the rotor, as it's the source that keeps these machines afloat in the air for starters." She devised a rapid plan to take out the helicopter's rotors, and hopefully take the pilot in alive, since she knew the veteran aviator would have plenty of information to share with Havoc.

Running low on rockets, the gunship pilot decided to use heat-seeking rockets against Garchomp. Given its explosive power and strength against armoured vehicles, he thought that their capabilities to bust tanks would prove useful in putting an end to his opponent. "Let's lock the pest on radar…"

Then he came to realization his adversary could not be locked on with the existing onboard hardware. Since Garchomps were cold-blooded creatures, their heat signatures were so low that most sophisticated heat-seeking equipment could not pick them up to begin with, and thus it took a painfully long amount of time to attain a firm missile lock. While he got a very faint lock on Cynthia, the Dragon/Ground-type did not even bother to evade once again; she zoomed forward with alarming speed, charging a Dragon Rage in her maw as she made the approach.

"Oh, I'm not going down this easily!" the pilot yelled with a combination of recklessness and fright as he fired the missiles nevertheless and crossed his fingers for a lucky hit. This had no effect on Cynthia's part, as she evaded them by simply flying to the side. Once she was within sufficient range, she spat the Dragon Rage with unrelenting force, a ball of violet-coloured flames scorching the rotor blades of the Comanche helicopter and twisting them into bent extensions of steel.

As the helicopter went down into the desert's clearing, Cynthia followed it. Since she wanted the pilot alive, she had to ensure the vehicle made a soft landing. If the vehicle spiraled out of control, the dragon girl was prepared to dive in and use her immense strength to soften the aircraft's crash landing procedure. "Weakness discovered, but this is probably just a prototype. The fully developed models may be even more dangerous than this one. At least I can come to the conclusion they leave the rotors largely unprotected when the force field is down."

The failing vehicle soon crashed into the desert sands with a banging thud and despite the force of the crash, the majority of its hardware still intact, save for the rotors that were twisted apart by Cynthia's Dragon Rage. The pilot was shaken but was relatively uninjured. Spitting in defeat, he kicked the glass cover that encased the cockpit open and attempted to vacate from his wrecked chopper, only to be met with the fierce stare and dark outline of a Garchomp that was at least ten feet tall.

"You're coming with me," Cynthia declared with a clear feminine voice, feeling slightly different for sparing a sworn enemy for once. "Either that, or I can leave you out here to die when the sun rises, considering you won't last against the elements as a mere human. So what'll it be?"

"I hate my life at times…," the pilot grumbled. His potential captor shook her head, and the UAAF aviator surrendered as he raised his hands and admitted defeat. Nevertheless, he was relieved he was spared, as he was getting tired of working for his brutal employers nevertheless. Cynthia soon took him captive with the promise that he would not be subjected to harm or punishment unless the situation really called for it to happen.

Back on the ground, the conflict continued to unfold, although the Rangers this time around were definitely doing a better job than they did during the Black Obelisk operation.

"Take care of this captive, will you?" she requested as she dropped the prisoner next to a sniper and his spotter. Both sharpshooters, wide-eyed, complied without saying as they secured and detained their subject with specialized energy handcuffs. When the deed was done, the Garchomp hybrid went back into combat, zooming off into the horizon as her senses picked up several armoured objects headed directly towards the detention centre. "Let's hope it's not what I think it is…but if it is, I'll have to stall them alone," she conceded as she flew off into the darkness at the speeds of a fighter jet.

Chaos and mayhem continued to explode all over the camp as the battle continued to rage, with the Rangers clearly displaying the winning edge with their fine destruction and demolitions that were occurring all over the hectic battlefield.

"Now that's a hot display! That should keep the patrolling Comanche out of commission for a while," the female Corporal giggled at the handiwork she had managed to accomplish, watching a plume of fire erupt into the sky as the fuel stacks and ammunition crates were blasted into fireworks.

"Talk later! We've got company!" her partner yelled as several UAAF soldiers, equipped with sapphirium plasma rifles, converged on their position and began firing their high technology weapons, the blue-tinted bolts of energy targeted at turning the Rangers into flaming carbon waste. However, they didn't anticipate on the female Corporal's Blaziken to come screaming at them in a state of rage and fury as the Blaze Pokémon defeated the majority of them with its fighting skills. To make matters worse, an Emboar, its thick defences absorbing the plasma shots fired at it, proceeded to brutally smash the troops without even thinking of the danger it was exposed to.

"Thought you guys were a little holed up back there with serious trouble, so I decided to come help out!" a Ranger greeted as he sprinted over rapidly and joined the duo. He carried a M16 rifle with a grenade launcher attachment, revealing his role as a grenadier for Havoc's rescue squad.

"Save the greeting for later. Cover us while we blast the concrete buildings that are holding the captives!" the female Pokémon Ranger reminded the sergeant as her partner began to pull out several explosive charges from his backpack.

"Got it," the Ranger confirmed as he made sure his weapon was loaded. "Just don't take too long, as they never stop covering. Emboar, cover us while the kids here prepare to hit the plunger!"

The Mega Fire Pig gave a fierce snarl as it stomped the ground with unrelenting force before blasting another approaching three-man squad of UAAF troops with an earth-scorching Flamethrower, causing the men to instantly scatter behind whatever cover they could find. Its partner joined in on the battle as he unloaded his grenade launcher at the incoming droves of soldiers, reloading a fresh round whenever necessary. Once he ran dry of explosives, he used whatever ammo remained for his rifle as a means of suppressive fire.

"Well, he definitely bit the dust with a big bang," the grenadier confided amusingly as he blew a charging cultist to pieces with a high-explosive grenade. "Seems like his tribute and chance of a twisted redemption is all but a forgotten dream."

Havoc approached the compound's ruined entrance alongside a Warrant Officer with a M4 carbine and a Venusaur, the Seed Pokémon clearing a path to the front gates of one of the prison complex through debris and wreckage with Razor Leaf. Due to a Humvee that had accidentally crashed into the entrance, Havoc had to request backup from a Warrant Officer in his division. His Poison/Grass-type had proven itself exceptionally capable of removing wreckage that blockaded their path to their main objective using its pair of ambidextrous vines.

"Back me up here," Havoc calmly requested as he drew his M9 handgun, the standard handgun used by the Ranger Special Forces units.

"I got your back Lieutenant, but they never stop coming!" the Warrant Officer yelled, unloading his rifle's magazine with short yet accurate bursts. "Hurry Venusaur, clear the path before they overwhelm us!" His rifle ran dry, resulting in a full magazine being slapped into the receiving port of the weapon moments later.

"Saur!" the Pokémon huffed as it continued its work of throwing debris aside with its pair of vines.

"We'll make it," Havoc asserted, hefting his rifle as he kept his semiautomatic 9mm pistol sidearm on the attack, shooting and reloading rapidly. "Just hold them off! We just need to get the captives out of there on the double!" His Houndoom was also on the defensive with the accompanying officer that safeguarded the Lieutenant, occasionally suppressing incoming troops with her Flamethrower and at times, Ember.

Like the other frontline Rangers save for the snipers, Riley charged forward with his Lucario, having undertaken the role of ensuring all of the base defences were destroyed. His Aura Pokémon had proven itself to be a worthy guardian, as the Fighting/Steel-type repulsed countless attacks with its enhanced Protect and Detect moves. Its Aura Sphere was also handy in destroying bunkers and other types of emplacements, and along the way it would ensure that everything that proved to be of a threat to either its human trainer or the Rangers was destroyed.

"You're a loyal one to Riley aren't ya, short stuff?" a Sergeant's Infernape complimented, but in an appreciative manner. Since Riley's Lucario was taller than out of the ordinary, the Aura Pokémon had garnered quite a lot of attention from the accompanying combatants.

"It is my duty and role to ensure my master stays unharmed," it replied through aura speech. "It should be yours too, considering you and your partner are also close to each other."

"That I do, Sir Lucario!" the Flame Pokémon cheerily laughed as it sprinted alongside its human partner. "Now let's get this operation finished and go home!"

"I suggest the exact same recommendation," Riley's normally silent Pokémon returned with little emotion in its spiritual voice, destroying an incoming anti-tank missile with a well-placed Aura Sphere.

Their human partners were also on the move, focusing their approach on one of the three prison complexes that held the captives. Both Riley and the Sergeant that identified himself as Frank Weems had to slow down at times to ward off threats, although the Aura Trainer did not fight back considering he was unarmed. In spite of that, Weems's weapon which came in the form of a G36 assault rifle with a grenade launcher was more than capable of beating back the attackers that came at them.

As soon as they reached the front of the prison complex, something greeted them in the form of something radically different. A Zoroark and Weavile leapt from the rooftop of the concrete building and they landed on the dirt ground to face both Riley and the Master Gunnery Sergeant head-on, both Pokémon displaying their razor-sharp claws as a means of menacing the humans and their accompanying Pokémon. Riley stepped back with a small ounce of fright in his heart. While his Lucario and his accompanying partner's Infernape possessed a clear and distinctive advantage over these two types, he learned that the Pokémon under the jurisdiction and orders of the UAAF and the Andromedan Cult definitely didn't follow the standard strengths and weaknesses carried by regular Pokémon, especially when the Zoroark and Weavile had achieved a stable level of corruption. This could be confirmed by the fact they didn't have deformed parts like the Emboar or Machamp back in the Black Obelisk, and the fact they seemed normal, save for the shimmering-blue irises in their eyes and elongated claws that seemed to appear crystalline-bluish in colour and design.

"Not corrupted Pokémon again! Well, there's no plan except I have to beat them down personally. I hope Lucario's ready," Riley pondered, readying himself for another battle.

"We'll have to fight our way out of this one personally," Sergeant Frank Weems informed Riley, lowering his rifle. He glared at the Weavile and immediately sent his Infernape into battle without hesitation. "Infernape, start it off with a Mach Punch, and follow up the initial strike with a Fire Punch!"

At the same time, Riley directed his right arm forward at the Zoroark before he announced, "Lucario, close the distance with ExtremeSpeed and use Close Combat against the Zoroark!"

After the human trainers commanded their Pokémon to attack, the two corrupted entities emitted a shrieking battle cry from their throats, displaying the lengthened and curved teeth that sprouted from their jaws. Both leapt into the battle, determined to raze their opponents to the ground before making a meal out of the trainers, and if they were lucky enough, the rest of the Rangers and their Pokémon.

Riley's Lucario, acting on its quick mind, tapped into its powers as it blindingly sprinted towards the Zoroark with speeds that could not be witnessed with the naked eye. The corrupted Illusion Fox Pokémon retaliated with repeated Shadow Ball strikes as a means of hoping to hit the Pokémon somehow, but this was where the Aura Pokémon under Riley's command demonstrated its agility when it came to evading attacks. The globs of ghostly energy fired from their progenitor had no effect as they missed entirely and narrowly exploded close to Riley, causing the trainer and his accompanying Ranger companion to dive for cover.

"Far too close," the Sergeant, revealed to be a cyborg due to his machine-like optics, spoke with a grunt. "Dark-types play dirty, so watch out!"

"I knew that ever since I faced them for the first time on my adventures," the Aura Trainer grumbled. He witnessed his Lucario close in on the Zoroark as he clenched his fists in anxiousness. Knowing very well that the species of Pokémon kept lots of tricks up their sleeves, he knew he had to devise a countermeasure should the Dark-type fox pull any off. "Close Combat, Lucario! Assault the Pokémon with all your physical might!"

He hoped that the super-effectiveness of his Pokémon's strongest move would be able to put an end to this battle rather quickly.

The Zoroark was not planning on being submissive of the Lucario's approach though. As soon as the Aura Pokémon closed the distance, it proceeded to assault the Dark-type with a flurry of punches, jabs, kicks, leg thrusts, and a variety of moves one would expect from a professional martial artist to execute in battle. As expected, the Fighting/Steel-type had most, if not all, of its moves intercepted from several blocks and guarding moves by the Zoroark. The Dark-type adversary only smiled sinisterly at the moves that the Lucario had attempted to harm it with, as if it was taunting the Aura Pokémon for being a futile fighter.

"Lucario, keep your guard up!" Riley warned, knowing all too well that the move Close Combat made the user Pokémon drop his/her guard due to the assault, making them extraordinarily vulnerable for a short period of time. "Hurry, use Protect and—"

His order came a moment too late as the Zoroark seized this opportunity to deliver a bone-jarring Rock Smash attack. Clenching one of its clawed hands into a fist, it directed and propelled the limb forward directly at the Aura Pokémon's stomach, knocking the wind out of the lungs of Riley's combatant and dealing extraordinarily heavy damage. Despite Rock Smash being a relatively weak move compared to stronger Fighting-type moves, Lucario's weakness to Fighting-types meant it was just as painful and damaging as something like a Low Sweep or Force Palm.

The corrupted fox grinned and watched the Aura Pokémon reel back and clutch its stomach in pain before it breathed a tremendous stream of fire from its throat, the blue-coloured flames directed at its adversary. Exploiting the second major weakness of its natural rival, the Illusion Fox Pokémon looked forward to melting the Pokémon into a pile of burnt ashes with its Virus Flamethrower.

"Lucario! Look out!" Riley screamed with dread. He remembered the potential lethalness of the Virus Flamethrower from their last encounter with the mutant Emboar which bore the unfortunate fate of losing half of its face due to the corruption it succumbed to, and all that fear was returning here; worse, the move was in control by a far more witty and tactical Pokémon. Direct exposure meant grave injuries that even the most skilled field medic would have difficulty in treating.

His loyal companion forced the pain out of its body with its meditative ways, and it snapped its sharp eyes just in time to witness the torrent of flames propelling in its direction. Acting on its wits, the jackal-like creature immediately performed a swift somersault to the left in order to avoid an untimely death. Lucario was just in time too, as he had barely avoided the earth-scorching, corrupted Fire-type move. The jet of flames struck the ground where he once stood, transforming the dirt-covered ground into an ash and charcoal-covered surface.

"That was far too close," the Aura Pokémon bitterly communicated to its trainer. "One hit and it could have possibly all over for me. This fight isn't starting off too well for us, isn't it Master Riley?"

Riley had to slap himself mentally for making such a foolish mistake but he couldn't really blame himself since he did not know that the Zoroark even had a Fire-type move in its repertoire of attacks. "You should blame me for commanding you to use Close Combat against an opponent who is skilled at exploiting loopholes in your defences. My apologies."

"Accepted. It's not entirely your fault, as I should have been more aware too." His Lucario cracked his hardened knuckles as he prepared for a secondary strike against the Zoroark. "Ready to continue this, partner?"

The Aura Trainer took a moment or two to compose himself and focused back on the battle at hand. "Of course. This time, use Flash Cannon!"

As the Lucario focused its palms together to fire off a blinding sphere of Steel-type energy, Frank Weems's Infernape was having the ultimate melee showdown with the corrupted Weavile. The pair exchanged salvo after salvo of endless punches, kicks, slashes, and elemental attacks such as Fire Punch and Ice Punch. Although the Flame Pokémon's powerful and nearly-impossible to dodge punches managed to connect and inflict extremely effective damage against the Dark/Ice-type, the corrupted and controlled status of the Weavile had some of the pain that was dealt to it reduced, as the corrupted element provided a small resistance to all of the natural elements of the Pokémon species besides granting regenerative powers. Nevertheless, the Fire/Fighting-type fought on valiantly with great pride and honour, not willing to surrender or forfeit from the battle.

"Come on, Infernape! Stay tactical and don't let the sneak hit you when you least expect it!" the Ranger urged desperately as he prayed to Arceus that his Pokémon would not push himself too hard.

The Infernape continued to use its reliable but relatively energy-consuming Mach Punch as a method to quickly dispatch the Weavile and quickly end the bout. The Dark/Ice-type opponent made this complicated with repeated dodges and illusions, although the latter tactic was rather ineffective since the Infernape had heightened senses that allowed it to differentiate which Weavile was real and which was a phony.

Mach Punch was thrown after Mach Punch, the Weavile being able to intercept every single one as the Sharp Claw Pokémon fought back with Night Slash. Given the Infernape's increased resistance to Dark-types, the blows were rather ineffective but still damaging as the claws of its adversary had traces of Phazon. While it wasn't enough to kill or corrupt a victim, they were nevertheless burningly painful.

"Fire Punch!" the Ranger shouted after noticing a small opening where the Weavile accidentally stepped on a small rock and lost its footing.

Roaring with power and ferocity, the Fire/Fighting-type raised its right fiery fist and coated it with scorching heat. With great strength, the flaming limb was thrown at the temporarily stunned opponent, and the blast struck it head-on, causing the Sharp Claw Pokémon to screech in immense pain. Other than that, it was still primed and ready to go owing to its corrupted status.

The Ranger dropped his jaws at the fact that a move which was normally super-effective ended up as something that wasn't even partially effective to begin with. Changing his plans to the defensive side again, he shouted, "Heads up, Infernape! Hold it off until you see another opening!"

His Pokémon gave a frustrated grunt from its seething lips as it held off against the relentless slashing physical attacks that the Dark/Ice-type once again subjected it to.

Realizing that this match was going nowhere, the Ranger decided to make use of the desert environment to their advantage as he recalled that their opponent's kind thrived in colder climates and came to the conjecture that they would not fare so well on a desert battlefield.

"Infernape, pull back and use Blast Burn to heat the battlefield up! Keep the heat sustained around your body so it acts as an aura of deterioration for the Weavile!" the Ranger commanded angrily, growing weary of drawn-out nature of the fight.

The bipedal Pokémon focused all of its vigour and will into building up a tremendous Fire-type attack that had the potential to change the battlefield's weather circumstances for a temporary amount of time. Once the simian creature gathered enough mental and physical power to call upon the energy-consuming move, it unleashed a loud-toned battle cry as a wall of fire was projected from its body and heated up the area. Thankfully, Lucario's battle with Zoroark had been taken to a different location—the rooftops—so the Aura Pokémon was not at a risk of being subjected to scorching levels of temperature.

The Weavile stumbled back as it tried to stay away from the intense heat generated by its challenger, but it could only go so far. It realized that should it flee the battlefield, it would fail its mission and potentially fall victim to another Ranger-aligned Pokémon. Its hesitation was just what the Pokémon Ranger was looking for as a smirk crossed the human's features.

"Assault it with Fire Punches before you run out of energy to prolong that fiery aura!" the Ranger ordered zealously.

Obeying its trainer's command, the Infernape focused part of its energy into keeping the intense heat generated on his body burning with power and another portion into delivering the attacks before it moved in for the kill.

Although the Weavile began to lose its edge due to its inherent weakness to Fire-types, the corrupted Zoroark was far from being overpowered by Riley's Lucario. Since it was not able to fire its Virus Flamethrower attack without leaving itself open to attack, Riley had figured out a weakness in the Pokémon by advising his Aura Pokémon to constantly assault the Illusion Fox Pokémon with every Fighting-type move it knew along with the Bone Rush. The Ground-type move was later discovered to be a rather effective counter for warding off the Zoroark's attacks, which mainly composed of Faint Attack, Shadow Claw, Shadow Ball, and the rarely-used Night Daze.

Gripping the brightly-glowing bone club in its hands, Riley's Pokémon was rather shocked when the Zoroark decided to fight back with a weapon of its own—a steel pipe it salvaged at the last second from the rooftop right before its foe delivered a skull-shattering blow that would most likely knock out the Pokémon in one strike.

"This thing knows how to use handheld weapons!?" Lucario thought with fright, feeling uneasy. "It looks like I'll have to find a way to trip it up so I can finish it with my Aura Sphere…" They had plenty of time to finish their mission—about four hours—but it was definitely going to be impossible to continue fighting for that long without falling down dead exhausted.

At the very least, both the Aura Pokémon and its trainer were relieved the Zoroark wasn't using a firearm, otherwise that would have been problematic on so many levels.

Meanwhile, the Rangers had successfully freed the prisoners after dealing with the obstacles in their path. Nothing stopped the Pokémon Rangers and their Pokémon allies: everything that the Andromedan Cult and the security force threw at them were mown down with deadly efficiency. To the relief of the Rangers, the prisoners were in great shape, but because they were not well-fed or cleaned, they were in poor levels of nourishment and were particularly filthy in terms of body hygiene. Nevertheless, the rescue force was relieved they arrived in time to liberate them from cruel treatment of the corporate military and their criminal allies.

"Oh dear Arceus, are we glad to see you!" a Pokémon Trainer, wearing a tattered T-shirt and worn-out jeans, thanked as the cybernetic Ranger used his immense physical forte to practically rip the rusted cell door open as if it was made of cardboard.

"Save the need to thank us for later," the Lieutenant instructed as Helly used her teeth to bite through the metal restraints of another captured soldier while rapidly tapping commands into his gauntlet styler. "We're taking you home now. I'm going to authorize an airstrike to level this hellish jail."

"Thanks for the save, Lieutenant," a rescued Ranger spoke with gratitude. The same Warrant Officer that accompanied Havoc into the rescue was now escorting the ten prisoners out of their cells and out towards the ruined base where the fighting was still fierce. However, the custodial complex's resistance had faltered significantly as just about all the guards were killed off in the first few minutes during the assault.

"Take them outside, and escort them to LZ Beta on the double," Havoc instructed, leading everyone out of the concrete structure. He was surprised that Riley and his Lucario were locked in battle with a Zoroark, with the majority of the jailbirds now freed and being led by his fellow men and women to safer lines. However, there were a much greater number of freed detainees than expected and this made the peerless Lieutenant reach the conclusion that they would need additional Blackhawk helicopters to extract them all. Dawn was approaching fast, and getting caught in the open while being pursued by UAAF helicopters was the absolute last thing he wanted to happen.

"Yes, sir," the Warrant Officer answered obediently as he, along with the rest of the regrouped Rangers, began to make their way back towards the darkness and towards LZ Beta. There were still some Rangers in combat, but many of them were dealing with either light-armoured vehicles or Pokémon released by the cultist guards.

Hoping it was over, Havoc sighed as he prepared to take the escapees back to the rendezvous point where the helicopters would take them to a safer haven. "It's over for now. At least—"

The Lieutenant was about to have all those dreams come crashing down on him like a brick wall as an incoming transmission interrupted his thoughts. Due to static interference, he wasn't able to get a clear signal of the message, and he tapped into his earpiece to send another call quickly.

"Come again?" he inquired.

"Lieutenant, its Cynthia," the voice spoke from the other side. "We've got some serious trouble brewing up here. There's a detachment of eight tanks of an unknown origin rolling at full speed towards the prison camp as we speak. From the looks of it, I think it's the doings of the UAAF."

Havoc's expression fell from relieved to blank with horror. "…Are you dead serious?"

"Why would I joke at a time like this, sir?" she replied, a tone of stress present in her normally cool and laid-back voice. "I suspect they'll get to the camp within sixteen minutes."

"Just what we needed…," the commando grumbled with a mixture of frustration and fear. His division lacked adequate equipment to take on the tanks, and he was definitely not risking his fellow soldiers' Pokémon to be employed against the armoured beasts. Getting and mobilizing reinforcements to fight the tanks off would take time, at least thirty minutes. By the time their saviours would arrive, they would be very well dead.

As the Rangers continued to battle the defenders of the prison complex, an unknown lifeform of a clandestine origin placed its cephalopod-like eyes on the disabled Comanche helicopter as it crept towards the surface of the cooling desert sand, clambered into the cockpit of the wreckage and spread over the driver's seat of the attack gunship.

Without anyone taking notice, the vehicle was mysteriously brought back online.

Desert, about ten kilometres from Prison Camp

"Tanks…and so many of them. I can take them on, or head back and get the injured and weak off the battlefield first, but…there's no time. The boys and girls back there won't stand a chance against them."

Cynthia looked on in shock as she witnessed the armoured M1 Abrams war machines thunder across the desert, their cannons and machine guns primed to turn every Ranger and prisoner into bloody pieces the moment the crew placed their sights on the currently retreating troops. Given the speeds of the treaded vehicles of sixty kilometres per hour, they would easily catch up with Havoc's troops and the rescued prisoners long before they could reach the designated evacuation zone. The UAAF series of main battle tanks were significantly stronger, faster, better armoured, more advanced and far more resistant to tank ordnance than the previous models fielded by the Unovan Military or the Pokémon Rangers. In spite of these strengths, they were by far no means invincible—a strong Psychic-type could use telekinesis to toss one of them miles away, while intense flames could scorch through their composite armour. In addition, brute force was also effective when it came to smashing them directly head-on, although one would need superhuman-like prowess and survivability to do so.

"I can risk my own life and take them head-on, but what would Riley think of that? He definitely wouldn't allow it," she thought, her mind boiling up into a sea of stress and doubt. The Mach Pokémon had to make a rough choice now: she could attempt to take on the tanks and hopefully survive but emerge with a weakened body that would take weeks to recover. On the flipside, she could also assist in the evacuation of the Pokémon Rangers and the freed prisoners, but this would allow the tanks to move forward even faster. She had to find a way to delay the armoured division's arrival, but it was likely the former Sinnoh Champion would have to do so alone…

Her mind was made up as she took a steep dive and prepared to execute a Dragon Rush against the foremost rear tank in the division, using the cover of darkness of the night to her advantage. Believing strongly in her ability to serve up harsh deliverance of punishment to her foes, she prayed to Arceus that she and the rest of the humans that served alongside her would live to tell the tale tonight.

Thankfully, the tanks were totally unaware of her approach as she closed the distance between her and the targets cruising below, inwardly thanking her cold-bloodedness that shielded her presence from heat and armour sensors.

The UAAF tanks were composed of a crew of four: a driver, a commander, and two machine gunners that were responsible for repulsing any small threat that moved in too close. Given the vehicles' ability to automatically load explosive rounds into its primary weapon, it did not require a fifth crew member, which saved expenses and space for the other squads that had to already cramp themselves in a rather small-sized cabin. Its successor, the classified M2 Abrams Mk. II, the next generation armoured tank for the UAAF and Team Rocket, would prove to be a worthy replacement of the first model.

One of the tanks' drivers kept his eye on the computer-generated image of the terrain ahead of them as he kept his tank in full drive, making sure to reach the prison camp before the Ranger rescue party could be given a chance to flee with the fugitives. "Why can't the boss simply send in a gunship strike squadron to wipe out the intruders? They've confirmed that the opposing side lacks any heavy weapons that could pose a serious threat to aircraft. A single scorched earth bombing run would decimate them all in a far more efficient manner compared to a tank rush."

"I don't know about you, but something was reported to have taken out a prototype Comanche that was on station there. Perhaps HQ realized they wanted better armoured units to get the job done?" the tank commander offered, his ears feeling numb from the constant humming sound of their armoured vehicle's engine. "Maybe we'll get a promotion for wiping out a squad of elite Rangers."

"Elites? They must be mad for attempting direct confrontation with them!" the primary machine gunner gulped. The veterans and elites of the Pokémon Ranger Corps was both feared and respected by friend and foe alike due to their extremely high success rates, even on the most dangerous of missions.

"Considering this band caught the security force stationed at the prison by complete surprise and pretty much decimated their primary fighting strength within the first fifteen seconds of the battle, I suppose they won't be that easily killed by a bombing run. I guess Commander Zetta wants them to be killed on the spot," another crewman spoke from a different tank after overhearing the conversation on the communications link.

"At least this will be a quick in-and-out mission. Should the Rangers flee to the drop-off point, they wouldn't get too terribly far," the same driver mumbled mentally, wondering about the worth of sending armoured tanks against human targets: it was practically overkill.

Right as the tank commander in the same vehicle was about to issue another order to the men manning the other onboard hardware, a loud deafening sound of armour being ripped forcefully apart tore through the night air, as if something was tearing steel apart with their bare hands. It was soon followed by an almost bloodcurdling shriek that pierced the ears of those in the vicinity, and it wasn't long before the yelling of several men was heard.

"What in the name of hell?" A machine gunner swivelled the heavy-calibre automatic weapon on the turret of the vehicle towards the direction of the noise and realized what was happening.

What entered the eyesight of the shooter was the shadow of a dragon-like Pokémon practically tearing the turret gun off of one of the Abrams tanks in the convoy and was proceeding to pulverize another one by repeatedly using the aforementioned object as a battering weapon. The cannon-less tank, now nothing more than an armoured chassis with a pair of treads and two machine guns, was officially out of commission whereas the crew had abandoned their unit as they fled into the blackness of the night.

Even Cynthia herself was astounded herself with the strength she possessed. While she realized she could easily take on a tank alone by using her Flamethrower, Dragon Rage or just employing brute force in the form of various close-quarter strikes against it, the Mach Pokémon hybrid did not grasp the fact that she was able to use her strength to practically rip a tank turret free from its parent chassis. The second armoured tank she was currently beating the screws and bolts out of was soon in a crumpled state, its once smoothly and neatly plated surface now rendered into crumples and bumps of ruined armour. Although the tank's driver attempted to pivot the primary weapon to deliver a powerful 125mm round at the marauding Dragon/Ground-type, the cannon was also affected as it was bent and mangled into an unrecognizable coil, effectively rendering the weapon unserviceable. Her combat nature evolved from plain conventional to just outright savage with truculence and deadliness.

The same machine gunner that had caught her in his sights began firing the machine gun with unrelenting might, but little did he know that the bullets had virtually no effect against the armoured hide of the Pokémon. Due to the one UAAF soldier's gesture of opening fire, other gunners began to fire wildly into the darkness, as if they believed an entire detachment of enemies of an unknown kind and origin were ambushing them.

"What in the name of Arceus is attacking us?! I want answers!" the convoy commander yelled over the blazing noises of machine guns firing, along with the electronic-like sounds of turrets turning and adjusting themselves for engagement.

"I don't know sir, but I think we're being ambushed!"

"It's too dark to see anything! Just shoot whatever that doesn't look like one of our own!"

"Check the armour and ammunition!"

The panic and chaos that erupted in the blackest of night practically handed the lone attacking Pokémon the advantage she wanted from the start—she had critically damaged the first tank she had targeted, and the rest of the group had no idea what they were up against or where their assailant was coming from, at least for the time being.

"This is amusing," Cynthia remarked gleefully, preparing to spit a Dragon Rage at the ruined fighting vehicle. "Their sensors are rendered virtually useless against me, and all they have left to discover me is with their plain eyes, which isn't easy to accomplish in this level of darkness." Finishing her victorious thought, she finished the beaten tank with a wave of purple flames, the scorching wave of draconic energy corroding the armour away and exposing the inner components of the defeated battle tank.

Surprisingly, the crew was left unharmed, although two of the machine gunners had suffered minor burns as they were exposed directly to Cynthia's projectile assault. The squad of four immediately abandoned their vehicle.

"Oh good Arceus…," the fleeing vehicle pilot gasped in horror upon witnessing the Dragon/Ground-type. He continued his escape with his surviving partner until they were within a reasonable distance from the fight, and the two communicated with the convoy's commander with their handheld radios.

"A Garchomp, huh? Well, it'll definitely give me a promotion if I kill it," the tank commander laughed mentally. His tank's cannon adjusted at a particular shadow, and taking a guess, he ordered the main weapon to be fired.

"They won't pose any harm to us for the time being," the Garchomp hybrid thought, almost feeling a slight ounce of pity for the vehicle pilots as she simply swerved around the incoming tank shell.

Her next assault was against another tank that had its turret facing away from her, the gunners totally unaware of her presence. The Mach Pokémon charged at the vehicle's rear with one strengthened leap, where the armour that protected the tank was significantly weaker. In addition, that particular portion housed the vehicle's engine and other systems that were crucial to the armoured beast's ability to function and strive in combat. Once she was within arms' reach, she dug both of her clawed wing-like arms into the thin-skinned plating that granted access to the vehicle's engine and ripped off the covering as if she was unwrapping a Christmas present in the manner of an impatient child. Ready to deliver the fatal blow that would practically cause the tank to end up in several hundred fragments of scrap, she leapt into the air and breathed a Fire Blast at the exposed engine.

The flames scorched the vehicle's fuel tank, which was powered with jet fuel. The volatile components reacted violently to the Fire-type attack and this caused the tank to explode spectacularly, leaving nothing more than a burning carcass of the formidable armored vehicle.

"She just got another one!" a gunner screamed, watching the vehicle burn in a spectacular bonfire of flames and scrap.

"Counterattack!" the convoy's commander bawled. "We are not losing to a Pokémon that's going Zubat-shit crazy on our asses!"

The tank convoy was practically hopeless against an enemy with little to no chances of retaliation until it was too late. However, the UAAF tanks quickly regrouped themselves as they shone the searchlights from their turrets, looking for the troublemaker that was devastating the cavalcade effortlessly. Rapidly being pushed to the brink of defeat, the vehicle pilots soon pushed for a comeback as the still battle-operable tanks switched their radar screens from thermal screening to night-vision mode. The former was often used when hunting targets of strategic importance, but with Cynthia's cold-blooded nature, it was rendered all but impractical. Night-vision mode would give the tanks a better fighting chance.

It wasn't long before the silhouette of a Garchomp was displayed clearly on the navigation panels of the armoured vehicles, and while the surviving UAAF combatants weren't shocked at the sight of such a rare Pokémon, they were alarmed at the thought of that one Pokémon being capable of brutalizing or outright destroying three vehicles in such a short amount of time.

"Give me status!" the convoy commander demanded. "How many tanks do we still have in operational status?"

"Five, sir," the driver of the tank reported meekly. "The target took out three of our other tanks and…she just took another one!" On the night vision monitor, the leading officer and driver of the tank division were met with the sight of yet another spectacular yet shockingly unbelievable sight.

Dropping his jaws in disbelief, the mission's leader knew he was going to have a hard time explaining the case to his superiors, that is, if he escaped from this battle alive and in one piece.

Cynthia screamed with uncontrollable rage as she delivered a full-force Dragon Rush to the side of the attacking tank that had its cannon trained on her. It never got a chance to fire off the explosive round that was loaded as the Mach Pokémon hybrid had smashed right into the side, the strength and energy exerted from the attack practically toppling the tank on its side. Left sitting in an upright position, the vehicle was left helpless, aside from being a potential roadblock and shield from projectiles. The crew members scrambled out of the vehicle before abandoning it for good, as there was no way they could recover it.

Admiring her handiwork, the former Sinnoh Champion didn't realize that one of the other tanks had its main gun targeted right at her back. Since the division wanted to avoid the prospect of potential friendly fire of harming their fellow vehicles with their primary weapons, the crews hesitated to use the explosive weapons they had but if given the clear chance, there was little doubt that stopped them from employing the armour-piercing cannons that the armoured juggernauts bore in all their glory.

"I've got her in my sights! Weapons primed!" the driver that had the gun trained on Cynthia announced.

The gun fired, and an explosive round the size of a five-foot long steel pipe ejected from the vehicle's cannon as the warhead screamed towards its target. As a result, the same tank that fired it recoiled significantly, the knockback pushing the tank back about two feet in the desert terrain.

The lone Garchomp caught sound of the noise, and she quickly cocked her head towards the source of the sound, only to feel a strong explosion impact her body as she was thrown through the air. Crashing into the upturned Abrams tank, the collision caused the vehicle to topple over, its treads pointing directly towards the sky. The turret was promptly crushed due to the extreme weight of the chassis of the vehicle.

Hissing through her teeth and cursing her inability to stay alert, Cynthia spat some blood from her lips and surveyed her body: aside from a small wound caused by the explosion, there was little damage done. The last serviceable M1 Abrams moved slightly, keeping their sights on their victim. Their crews were not positively sure if that attack, which was capable of demolishing an entire building, had placed their attacker out of commission.

While Cynthia was highly resistant to military ordnance given her tough scales, skin, and natural armour, the tank's weapon had wrought her body in a state of jarring pain. Grunting in ache as her body throbbed after being hit directly by an armour-piercing shell, the female Pokémon hybrid forced all her senses and energy into expelling the sensation. She kept on telling herself that she had managed to pulverize four tanks singlehandedly—a feat that even skilled attack helicopter pilots had difficulty pulling off—and that the lives of the rescued prisoners and Pokémon Rangers depended on her victory against the attacking UAAF tanks. They trusted in her kindness and strength to help them survive, and that was without a doubt considering she was the strongest Pokémon among Riley's temporary team and Havoc's 13th Armored Brigade of Almia. Losing was not an option on her part.

The same Abrams tank that had fired the shot on her kept the cannon's aiming reticule on its ruined accompanying vehicle, waiting for movement. The driver and soldiers that manned the weapons remained nervous and tense as they knew it would take more than a single shell to knock out such a fabled Pokémon.

"See anything?" the mission's commander asked from his tank.

"Negative," the corresponding driver returned. "I think we did her in good. No sign of movement or presence of the target."

Unfortunately, they were fatally wrong as Cynthia blasted herself through the tank, her immense force tearing through the armour as she shot towards the same M1 Abrams tank that had fired upon her earlier.

"Holy shit!" was the only word that the same vehicle's crew was able to utter before the Mach Pokémon proceeded to employ a Dragon Rush against the weakly-armoured turret. Slamming into the steeple that contained the primary weapons of the UAAF-built combat unit, the extension soon came loose before it was bent out of place and thrown into the desert sand, exposing the driver and tank commander. Both gunners in charge of the machine gun emplacements weren't so lucky since they were trapped in the turret, but they soon freed themselves and made themselves scarce. The end result was another vehicle that ended up without a turret, leaving nothing more than a near-useless vehicle shell with treads.

A furious Cynthia soon stood her ground against the remaining three tanks, none of the remaining vehicle pilots and their crew daring enough to continue the fight anymore. They had witnessed her power, and continuing to battle would only result in them being killed off. What was even more frightening was that a single Pokémon had successfully destroyed a convoy of tanks, something that primarily required a closely-coordinated airstrike to do so.

"I don't want to fight," Cynthia hissed in the most threatening manner she could possibly enact. "But you corporate dunces don't know when to cut it or call it quits. If you wish to continue the battle, I'll tear you all apart like I did with the other tanks, but don't expect me to go merciful on you. I spared a couple of your fellow soldiers throughout the fight, but I won't present to you the same treatment should you decide to continue the battle."

The commander of the operation immediately recognized the voice. For years, the captured Sinnoh Champion was considered killed in action after her escape but now, every unethical crime doer's worst nightmare was standing right in front of them. Caring for the welfare of his surviving troops, the chief of the prison raid operation remained silent for a moment or two before he gave the order to retreat.

"…Abort the operation," he announced quietly. "Fall back."

"What? Are you out of your mind?" the third surviving tank's gunner shot back. "This beast just killed off five of our tanks—"

"An order is an order, soldier!" the mission's leader barked in retaliation. "You will follow that order, or continue the battle if you wish. I know the target will spare us if we stand down, and from the looks of it, the operation has gone fubar." He poked his head out of the tank turret, turned to Cynthia with his arms raised, and firmly pronounced, "We surrender. However, I hereby request that you let my troops leave in peace."

Cynthia smiled with glee, content to see things were solved via non-violent means. In order to ensure the commander and his persisting soldiers complied with the negotiation, she quickly disabled each and every tank's primary gun with lightning speed, using her brute strength to rapidly cut and beat the cannons into disfigured and bent shapes.

"There," she pleasingly and softly returned. "Just to make sure you live up to your words. Now scram, otherwise I'll ensure my friends in high places will definitely order in an airstrike to wipe you all off the map."

Without saying anything, the trio of M1 Abrams vehicles pulled back and towards the darkness of the desert. The mission was a failure, but at the very least, the tank crews felt fortunate that they were spared by an enemy, something that was practically unseen, considering their commanders and employers had no tolerance of failures and screw-ups.

"That went well. Time to see how the boys and girls are doing back at the prison complex," Cynthia thought to herself as she soared off into the sky and back towards the shambolic detention centre.

Prison Complex

"Come on, Lucario! Keep it up and finish off the Zoroark!" Riley urged as time, ammunition, and supplies for the raiding party ran short.

"This slippery fox isn't faltering! I can only do so much before I fall before it!" the Aura Pokémon desperately linked with its trainer via aura while blocking, parrying, evading, and warding off multiple attacks from its adversary.

Spotting an opening, Riley's Pokémon immediately delivered a sweeping bash with its bone club directed at the Zoroark's right knee—a sickening cracking noise was heard, but the corrupted Dark-type continued to fight on with no plan of surrendering. Knowing that an eventual assault from its masters would seal the victory, its goal was to ensure the belligerent invaders did not escape. Ignoring the dreadfully damaging treatment it was undergoing, it continued its myriad of constant bludgeoning attacks with the steel pipe it wielded and Shadow Claw attacks.

"Riley, forget about the battle!" the accompanying Master Gunnery Sergeant yelled, having called his Infernape back into its Pokémon Ball as he waited for the order to evacuate. "Just call your Lucario back and let's make ourselves scarce! Lieutenant Havoc has given the order to retreat!"

The Aura Trainer knew that, if anything, the corrupted Zoroark would not let them leave unless either it or the opponents it was ordered to kill were lying out cold on the ground. "No can do. It won't let us leave alive, so the only option is to knock it out completely or outright kill it. I'd avoid the latter option, but it may become an inevitable choice."

Sergeant Frank raised his G36 rifle at the Illusion Fox Pokémon as a means of dispatching the Dark-type extremely quickly, but Riley held out a hand.

"Kid, let's just kill it off. A couple rounds of gunfire will—" the cybernetic soldier spoke before being abruptly cut off mid-sentence.

"Negative," Riley boldly announced, his eyes never leaving the sight of his loyal Lucario fighting against its natural rival in an all-out brawl. "This is my fight. I do not require external assistance for a job that only I and my Pokémon can handle alone. I never did, and I never will."

Gritting his teeth, he composed himself together, coming to understand the trainer's words. "Your call. But I'm on standby, and I'm not going anywhere until you're coming with us."

"I'll get this done," the navy-blue haired trainer replied confidently. "Lucario, use ExtremeSpeed to get close to the Zoroark so it can't track you!"

His Pokémon nodded before it proceeded to close in on the quarry with blinding speed, evading a barrage of Shadow Balls and dark energy blasts that were flung at it.

The two major squads that were responsible for the safe evacuation of the prisoners were already en route out of the area. The snipers continued to cover the remnants of the Ranger forces that remained at the camp to perform cleanup work, but everyone had fallen back to LZ Beta for immediate withdrawal from the battlefield. In addition, just about all the cultists and UAAF troops that safeguarded the compound were history, allowing the retreating liberators to safely flee with the prisoners under their wings.

Having eliminated just about every possible threat, Havoc and his remaining forces took the time to raid the communication centre located close to the jail compounds of the desert base, seizing multiple data disks, USB memory sticks, and various papers that contained valuable intelligence of several UAAF and Team Rocket projects, the majority of them being extensive information that provided more detailed outlooks on the same material that Cynthia had managed to steal during the Black Obelisk campaign. As this was all happening, the rest of the Rangers secured the entrance while the 1st Lieutenant and the Warrant Officer accompanying him continued their theft.

Plugging his styler into the USB port of a computer, Havoc rapidly downloaded all informative files that were related to the secret future operations that the corporate military was preparing to execute in the future. With forewarning intelligence under his belt, it would hopefully allow the Ranger Commando to plan ahead of time and intercept the campaigns before they could be executed.

"Ranger intelligence is falling to abysmal levels of quality these days," he murmured sceptically, questioning the competence of his superiors. "There was a gigantic Obelisk the size of the Silph Co. building in Saffron hidden in the deserts of Sinnoh, and they never made one mention about it? This is something that I should investigate when I have the time."

"Download complete," a distinctive feminine voice alerted the Lieutenant, prompting Havoc to retract the styler from the advanced computer system's interconnecting port. He turned to the Warrant Officer at his side before he asked, "Find anything interesting? I'm authorizing a bombing run to wreck this place so they can't re-fortify it."

"Yes, a wealth of information here, sir," the Ranger responded quickly, collecting various folders as quick as his hands would allow him. "I can say there's all kinds of intelligence here, ranging from plans for new hardware to several important profiles of high-ranking Rocket and UAAF officials. In fact, I think I have Ghetsis's file here. Who knew a detailed outline of that madman would be lying in the middle of some insignificant desert base?"

Just hearing the name of the most notorious criminal that commanded several campaigns through Unova with his ears made the hardened veteran blink and cringe. "What? Let me see that."

"Here you go, sir." The Warrant Officer handed the folder over. "I can understand your reaction perfectly as he isn't exactly the warmest ray of sunshine. Let's just grab what we need and haul our asses home."

"My point exactly. Let's just hope that this folder is only false intelligence," Havoc grumbled with a small tone of anger before he flipped through the file, hoping that this folder was nothing more that contained a post-mortem analysis of the vicious revolutionist. His fears were confirmed to be true as soon as he opened the folder.

Ghetsis, a man with a relatively unknown background, went underground after the fall of Red Falcon, an organization that attempted to subjugate the entire landmass on which Unova and Orre was located with a 'might makes right' policy. Being the second-in-command of the leader in charge of the operation known as Colonel Bahamut, their plans were grinded to a halt when Havoc stepped in as a youthful Unovan Marine and eventually defeated the organization singlehandedly, but not before the revolutionists captured him and nearly left him for dead. After his rescue by the Unovan Military and rebirth as a cyborg/human hybrid, he was relieved to hear that his mission was a success. Never though in a million years would the veteran in his mid-thirties imagine the faction making a potential comeback.

"What does the report say?" the tired Warrant Officer huffed, carrying his M4 carbine over his right shoulder in an upright manner.

Havoc handed the folder back to his accompanying partner for the mission before placing his hands on his hips, sighing distressfully. "Ghetsis's alive, just as I suspected even though I hoped it wasn't the case. Of course, bastard wouldn't roll over and die that easily."

"Uh, what do we do then?" the disbelieving soldier asked.

"I'm afraid after we deal with the situation in Sinnoh, we'll be packing our bags for Unova next," he articulated, sighing deeply. A quick check of his watch revealed that it was around 4:20 in the morning, meaning they had a few hours before broad daylight was upon them. He promptly contacted one of the sniper teams that were responsible for covering the escape.

"Sniper Teams, this is Lieutenant Havoc. Has the retreating force pulled out yet?" he spoke into the radio earpiece.

"Affirmative, sir," the spotter replied. "We also have confirmation that the tanks were eliminated after, err, Miss Cynthia smashed them all. Not all of them, but her gesture was enough to pull the force into full retreat."

"…No comment about that," Havoc bluntly responded. "Anything else you wish to inform me?"

"Negat—wait…" The observing member of the sniper team paused for a moment. "Sir, it looks like the Comanche that was taken out earlier has returned for some reason. I don't know, but it's back somehow. I suggest immediate viable countermeasures considering we lack anti-air hardware."

Having no clue what the heck the soldier had just said to him, the Lieutenant brushed it off as if it was nothing, but he soon found himself noticing a distant object that was approaching the prison camp from a fair amount of distance. Feeling somewhat curious about how the marksman described the unidentified object, he took a quick survey.

Using the scope of his sniper rifle, he immediately recognized the "thing" that the sniper was informing him about. Humming to himself and clicking into the earpiece, he gave one final order to the snipers that were still stationed on the perimeters of the base. "Snipers, fall back immediately. I'll get the rest of the boys and girls down here. Meet me at LZ Beta at 0600 hours, and don't be late."

"Roger that Lieutenant," the same spotter answered before the line fell silent and all remaining sharpshooters in the area rendezvoused with the rest of the squads via foot across the desert.

The struggle between Lucario and Zoroark ended shortly when the Aura Pokémon closed in on the Illusion Fox with ExtremeSpeed and utilized Force Palm in such a quick manner that even the Dark-type Pokémon could not react fast enough to counter. The energy blow fired from the palms of the Steel/Fighting-type practically destroyed the steel pipe that the Zoroark wielded and reduced it into a hundred tiny fragments of metal; as a result, the super-effective attack caused the Pokémon to fly through the air before it crashed into the dirt of the desert topography, wincing in pain. Even though the genetically-engineered and poisoned Pokémon had no qualms about continuing the battle, its body had been pushed beyond its limits.

As it witnessed the crimson-haired Dark-type Pokémon crash into the dirt in defeat, the opposing Lucario stood on standby just in case the entity sprang back to life with desire for bloody vengeance.

"It seems prolonged battles are a corrupted Pokémon's major weakness… it proves why they do not use tactics for the first few minutes of a battle," Riley analyzed with knowledgeable experience. The Black Obelisk confrontations proved so otherwise, as all the Pokémon that the Andromeda Cult fielded against him utilized brute force and overwhelming might to slam their enemies flat into the ground.

His Lucario, seemingly unwounded save for a few bruises and cuts, prepared to finish the battle as it focused its palms together to fire off an Aura Sphere. Thinking that this was what its master wished for the valiant Pokémon would do, it was rather shocked when its trainer walked forward and placed a hand on his furry shoulder.

"No, Lucario," Riley suggested. "The fight is over. There is no point in killing something that was directed on a wrong course of fate."

"Master, this Zoroark is very much alive and willing to kill us, why would you let it live? It was only your methods of fighting and killing the cultists in the Black Obelisk missions that allowed us and our allies to triumph in that battle!" the Aura Pokémon attempted to reason with its trainer.

"It's gone. Your Force Palm shattered its corruption and extinguished the spirit of the Pokémon," the Aura Trainer informed upon using his heightened senses to detect the life force of the Dark-type, which was fortunately nonexistent. "You could not sense it as your mind was far too focused on eliminating it."

The Lucario dipped its head as a means of apology, and it dropped the fiery aura flames that were concentrated and blazing on its iron fists. "I understand. Let's go. We've done what was needed to be finished."

"Well, about time!" Sergeant Frank Weems spoke, wiping his head clean of sweat before slapping in the last ammunition magazine he had in his inventory. "Let's get the heck out of here and—"

He was not given a chance to finish his sentence as a series of explosions began to pepper the camp, coupled with the noise of whirring helicopter rotors. Both Riley and the Ranger that was with him at the moment turned their heads towards the sky and noticed the same Comanche helicopter that was shot down a while ago in the air once more hovering over the camp with destructive tendencies, but something was off about it.

"I thought your other Pokémon took it out an hour ago!" the Master Gunnery Sergeant yelled in fright.

"True," Riley confirmed as he studied the physical features of the gunship. "But I'm afraid this is something…different."

The Comanche gunship was still in its beaten-up and damaged state, but most of the physical damage done to it was somehow mysteriously gone. To the trainer's surprise, he noticed several tentacle-like limbs sprouting from the pilot's cockpit of the helicopter, as if there was some form of invertebrate that was related to octopi and squids positioned in the driver's seat of the vehicle. Above all else, the vehicle possessed several organic-like "roots" and "veins" that ran alongside the overall foundation of the once-downed UAAF gunship and all of its weapons were brought to bear on the prison camp—the communications centre most notably. The target was promptly transformed into rubble and a sea of flames, the missiles slamming into the foundation of the building akin to chainsaw slicing through paper. From the eyes of the observers from below, it was as if the vehicle was invaded and consumed by a plant of some sort.

"Hope Lieutenant Havoc got his ass out of there…," Sergeant Frank Weems muttered, speechless as the inferno blossomed into the black night sky. "But I'm sure he wouldn't go down this easily."

"Doesn't he punish you for saying things like that?" Riley asked with uncertainty, as speaking of a superior in such a manner was a one-way ticket to being demoted.

The Ranger laughed at his partner's lack of knowledge when it came to humorous remarks among the members of 13th Armored Brigade of Almia. "He likes it when people refer to him as the tough guy."

Fortunately, Havoc and the last of his Rangers had fled the area long before it was destroyed by a barrage of high-explosive rockets, the shadowy organic helicopter bringing down the com centre in a fiery detonation of flames and rubble. The Lieutenant and his squad soon linked up with Riley and the MSG-ranked Ranger momentarily as the group prepared to leave the camp.

"Go!" Havoc urged the other Rangers immediately without wasting a second on the clock. "Join up with the rest of the boys at LZ Beta and get your butts out of here on the double. Riley and I will catch up later, as we have to take care of this bird before it discovers our LZ. We cannot let it follow us back to the evacuation zone. Is that fine with you, Riley?" In response, Riley and his Lucario nodded quietly over the cracking sounds of rifle gunfire in the background.

"Sir, we can't just abandon—" the female Ranger intervened, not willing to leave their commander behind.

"This is a direct order from your superior officer, hence that means you must comply," the aged and experienced Pokémon Ranger demanded. "That goes for everyone else. Whatever this thing is, it's tracking me and Riley… I just know it. Don't ask but I have a feeling."

The Rangers remained silent for a few minutes before they nodded in unison and promptly began the long trek towards the landing zone where the Blackhawk helicopters awaited to extract them back to camp. To Havoc's relief, the reconstructed gunship did not follow them. "Great. At least I can take care of this without the need of worrying about casualties," he mused, delighted that his plans were falling into place.

This left Havoc, Riley, and his Lucario standing to face the "infected" Comanche alone, the Lieutenant keeping a firm grip on his Barrett M82 sniper rifle. The trio shuffled themselves behind an abandoned Humvee while the helicopter continued its search for them with its spotlight, a circle of illumination sweeping across the burning base.

"We have to take it down," Havoc informed. "I've seen one of these things before, and fortunately, you have a Pokémon that can track it down and hit it with dead-on precision."

"What is that thing exactly?" Riley's Lucario questioned with an inquisitive mental voice.

Huffing in tiredness, the Pokémon Ranger began his detailed explanation. "It's called a bio-gunship, or at least, that's what intelligence calls it. It's what happens when an unidentified lifeform takes over the seat of any human vehicle, but most of the time it goes after helicopters, especially the attack variants. After it is integrated into the system, it becomes as effective as a veteran chopper pilot. Don't ask me where it comes from, but I'm more concerned of killing this thing at the moment as armour-piercing projectiles and powerful moves are the only methods of bringing them down. For now, we have to take it out as quick as possible. Any news from Cynthia yet?"

Riley shook his head. "She's on her way back but it'll take her around another six minutes at the very least to get here."

"Good. I don't want her to risk being infected and assimilated by whatever controls that vehicle in the air. A couple of white labcoats were taken over by one of that thing's tentacles after they tried to examine the remains when I shot one down several years ago," the Lieutenant recalled, shaking his head. "Curiosity can kill when you least expect it."

"How do you suppose we'll take out the bio-gunship? Cynthia is apparently the only one that can accomplish such a task considering your squad's heavy gear is all but expended," Riley queried.

Havoc grinned despite the desperate situation at hand, for the wisecracking commando was always a step ahead of his enemies. "Simple. Just hit it with everything you have. I'm going to man that derelict AA gun over there and turn it into road kill." He paused as he pointed at an abandoned quad-barrelled anti-aircraft machine gun that was in relatively good condition, hopefully loaded with enough ammo. The dead body of a cultist was positioned in the gunner's seat, the crimson blood of the deceased soldier tinting the seat with a stream of red liquid. "You and Lucario are responsible for distracting it. Do you understand?"

Although Riley and his Pokémon were not particularly fond of the plan, they didn't really have an option since they could not do role reversals, both lacking experience in manning military ordnance.

The unknown lifeform controlling the bio-gunship scanned the entire area for its targets, but all it could notice were bead bodies of UAAF and cultist soldiers, the burning wreckages of vehicles, ruined buildings and a sandy desert ground with plenty of abandoned weapons. The being wondered—where did the intended targets go, and if they didn't escape, where were they hiding?

It continued its search, carefully scanning the entire compound. Havoc was already en route to the abandoned anti-air turret, while Riley and his Lucario kept themselves hidden in the shadows, both individuals making sure to stay away from any source of illumination.

The Aura Trainer knew his Pokémon was durable, but not enough to take on a helicopter's wrath of heat-seeking missiles and armour-piercing cannons. He would have to hope that his Ranger ally was quick enough to man the turret and down the helicopter as soon as possible. In the meantime, he waited for the infected gunship to focus its attention in a different area.

It happened momentarily, and he immediately gave the order for his Lucario to fire off an Aura Sphere, which it did as it leapt out of cover, facing the septic attack chopper with unrelenting bravery and courage.

Focusing its palms, the bipedal Fighting/Steel-type quickly charged a sphere of pure fighting energy with all the remaining fighting strength it could exert with its mind. Seconds passed and the orb was flung straight at the prowling gunship, causing a blue-tinted explosion to overcome the helicopter before it wobbled off course. However, the bio-gunship had caught the source of the attack almost instantly, and it immediately began to unload a barrage of missiles and bullets from its arsenal. Lucario's Aura Sphere had done impressive damage due to the steel plating of the vehicle, but it wasn't powerful enough to down it from the skies.

"Defensive manoeuvres now, Lucario!" Riley roared with fierce determination. "We are not perishing here!" Across from his position, Havoc shoved the corpse out of the AA gun before he leapt into it and quickly adjusted himself to the control schematics of the turret.

Changing its tactics from offence to defence, the Pokémon immediately threw up an aura shield around it and the human which caused the bullets to repel harmlessly off the barrier, although the missiles quickly destroyed the frontal cover that protected both individuals since Riley's faithful fighter did not have enough energy to keep the force field up. Two lone missiles managed to get through and explode against the Aura Pokémon, throwing it back as it screamed in pain from the discharges. It was thrown back as it crashed into the dirt-laden ground, and Riley got to his feet and covered his arms around the Pokémon.

"This is it…" he thought, biting his teeth as he prepared for the inevitable.

As the infected helicopter took aim prepared to finish the targets off, a wave of hot lead punctured the fuselage of the aircraft and riddled the entire vehicle—and the lifeform that controlled it—with hot .50 calibre lead. A small series of explosions erupted across the vehicle as it, once again, turned its attention on its assailant.

"Get a load of this!" Havoc howled with infuriating might as he finished the helicopter once and for all, glad to find out that the gun was fully loaded with at least a thousand rounds worth of armour-piercing ammunition.

What met the infectious creature's senses was the same Ranger it had intended to kill manning a heavy anti-aircraft gun and firing while screaming with a mixture of insanity, pride, happiness, and triumph. Yelling incoherently, Havoc continued to let the anti-aircraft gun rip as he expelled dozens of rounds within mere seconds, his action causing the bio-gunship to spiral out of the sky for a few moments before exploding into a morass of blood, steel, and flesh. What remained of the helicopter were fragments of meat that was once the organic creature of unknown origin and shards of burnt, twisted metal.

"Ah, shit," the commando cursed as some blood splattered onto his armoured vest. "Hope that doesn't happen again." Tired from the energy-draining yet successful mission, the Lieutenant took a deep sigh of relief, hopped off the AA gun and helped Riley and Lucario to their feet. "Guys, you're safe. It's okay. I saved your asses, but I'm sure that won't be the only close call that tries to claim our lives."

Both Riley and Lucario, their bodies covered and wracked with dust, dirt and overwhelming exhaustion, shot grins at the Ranger Commando. "We owe you one, Lieutenant Havoc," the trainer spoke as his new friend and commanding officer handed both him and his Pokémon bottle of water.

Lucario took a deep gulp from the bottle of refreshing fluid before he spoke through his aura, "My master speaks the truth. If it wasn't for your guidance, we would not have known the existence of this camp, and how they misused the unfortunate recidivists, just because they opposed their twisted ideologies."

"Don't thank me." Havoc brushed off the gestures with modesty. "If it wasn't for your handiworks, I can say we would have all lost the fight ages ago. Oh look, here comes your friend Cynthia now."

The Garchomp hybrid banked into a tight turn as she saw the group on the ground with her flawless vision and made a quick landing. "Hey guys! Did I miss anything?" she asked cheerily, perhaps the first time Riley ever saw her in such an upbeat manner.

"Shot down the Comanche that came back as a bio-gunship, but nothing else. We're the only ones left. Everyone has returned to LZ Beta," Havoc explained. "I…I heard you drove off a tank convoy. Please tell me you're not lying."

Cynthia blinked her eyes blankly at the Lieutenant and began the story. "You know I am not one to lie in a serious situation, Lieutenant. I did scare the tanks off, but I let three of them go. Perhaps they can be the witnesses that it isn't a wise idea to mess with me or my friends, thus discouraging future attacks. Doubt it'll work, considering how much the UAAF want us for dead." She turned her ferocious visage at Riley and Lucario. "Glad to see you're still in one piece, you two."

"Come on, there are times when I have to learn to battle without your guidance. Isn't that right, Lucario?" Riley groaned tiringly, being able to barely keep himself stable.

"At least we can go home now. At least no one was seriously hurt," his Lucario added with a nod. It too was exhausted beyond belief.

"…And here comes the welcome wagon," Havoc pointed towards the sky as a lone UH-60 Blackhawk approached the camp and began its descent to extract the remaining combatants at the camp. "They always go against my orders when I tell them to stay put at the current positions."

"They respect you," Cynthia remarked. "That is why they are willing to fly into such a sizzling combat zone just to get you out of here safe and sound."

The co-pilot that was in the secondary seat greeted his mission commander as he stuck his head out of the side window of the helicopter. "Sorry I'm late, Lieutenant! We had to make sure everyone at LZ Beta had returned to base before we could come in."

"Has everyone been accounted for?" the commando asked.

Nodding, the secondary aviator performed a surface scan to check if there were any more hostile targets in the area. "All are safely en route back to camp, and this place is deserted anyways. You four are the last. Now let's bail before they mop it all up with a bombing run."

Havoc shook his head, but quickly dismissed any upset thoughts about his men and women disobeying orders. Most of the time, they were for completely reasonable and ethical aims, such as rescuing wounded Rangers in the field, ensuring civilians were taken care of, and making sure missions were carried out should other divisions assigned to the tasks fail at accomplishing them. "Let's go home."

"What about this place?" Riley asked, observing the ruined complex around them that was once a heavily fortified detention centre.

"Airstrike will take care of it and nature will do the rest to what remains," Havoc finalized, having ordered for an airstrike during his time in the communications centre. "We've done our work here, now the flyboys will mop up the remains."

Riley, Havoc, and his Lucario were promptly extracted from the warzone as they sat in the passenger compartments of the utility helicopter, while Cynthia played the role of being the bodyguard once more as she flew in a flanking position of the Ranger transport. She was far too large to fit in the hold of the heavily-armoured flying vehicle, and cramping herself in a Poke ball was out of the question.

UH-60 Blackhawk, en route to Ranger Field Base

The journey back to base was monotonous as any helicopter ride that one could possibly experience, with Havoc staying firmly awake while Riley and Lucario napped quietly in the hold. With the exception of a light song playing on the radio and the two pilots up in the cockpit chatting, the Ranger 1st Lieutenant viewed the passing desert terrain below with a tired face, relieved the mission was such a great success—no casualties, with all prisoners saved and an entire enemy battalion wiped out by a team of less than thirty skilled individuals and their Pokémon. That, coupled with plenty of intelligence gathered and enemies eliminated, would net him a promotion almost immediately. He exhaled with a sense of accomplishment as he looked out the side of the machine they were currently flying in, watching Cynthia fly alongside them like an escorting fighter jet. As the helicopter departed, a trio of Rayquaza-class Stratodestroyers delivered their strafing run of high explosive bombs as a cluster of flames and annihilation blossomed from the burning reformatory compound.

"Bombing run complete," the squadron pilot radioed to the Blackhawk transport. "Returning to base."

His silence was soon broken as the Ranger Lieutenant was complimented by the co-pilot during their returning voyage. "The Almia Times will really want an interview with you considering what happened today."

"Oh please," the foul-mannered human/machine hybrid scoffed back, with his muscular and rough arms placed across his well-built chest. "They can interview the others for all I care, but I've done enough in terms of gaining publicity. An aging Arcanine like me could give two shits about the media and fame."

"I thought you wanted to be famous, sir?" the pilot asked, noticing a small tint of orange on the eastern horizon.

"Ask Cynthia. She'll tell you all about how bad it is to be famous. I'm a soldier, not a celebrity, so why should I care about fame? I don't want paparazzi following me around and recording Taurosshit of me like my smoking and drinking habits that may risk me demoted," the Ranger rolled his eyes as he clarified his verdict of being someone who did not wish to seek stardom in his life. "I would've hit the rank of Colonel by now if it wasn't for the bureaucrats and politicians bitching about my combat doctrines."

"Whatever, sir! It's just an option, though. Perhaps they'll star you in movies? After all, they did star Jack Walker, Lunick and Solana in several hit films, such as Pirates of the Sevii Islands and Black Staraptor Down," the co-pilot voiced as he snapped his fingers in a rather jolly manner to the tunes of Boogie Boardin' Pidgeotto that was being played over the radio speakers.

"Oh for the love of Rayquaza, no. They'll just use an awful actor to play my parts. No thanks," Havoc retorted, relaxing in the cockpit as he allowed the thought of a relaxing shower, a nice meal coupled with an ice-cold beer, and a good night's worth of sleep to soothe his mind. If anything, more combat was the last thing he wanted to be subjected to. He was dead tired and required some rest until the eventual invasion would be pulled off. "How long until we return to base?"

"ETA to base, 30 minutes," the co-pilot announced, scanning his eyes across the navigation instruments to make sure the aircraft was functioning smoothly. "Enjoy the ride sir, because it might take a while."

"Roger that," Havoc spoke back tonelessly, keeping his eye on Cynthia as she glided alongside the transport helicopter. Even his sharpened senses were not able to keep the fatigued soldier in a state of awakening, and he soon gave in to the grogginess and fell into a nap.

Unova

Although the majority of the world's governments were completely oblivious and denying to the allegations of the rising conflicts that were taking place around the globe, the legendary Pokémon caste were well aware of the happenings that were unfolding across the planet. Across the Pacific Ocean in the distant region of Unova located in the United States, two legendary Pokémon perched themselves at the peak of the highest mountain in the state, using their extrasensory powers to observe the battles and conflicts that were erupting in various regions of Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, and Sinnoh. The two mysterious figures finished their observation of the Ranger Corps' prisoner liberation mission, and they could only acknowledge on the bravery of the Pokémon Rangers, given the fact no casualties were suffered.

Their mission was to oversee the stability of Unova in many aspects, ranging from tranquility in the weather to potential threats that may endanger the population and the state. Since Unova had been quiet for several years, both Pokémon turned their attention to the skirmishes across the Pacific. The Black Obelisk campaign caught their attention, as the deployment of a relic so detrimental to nature gave them more than enough reasons to destroy the Andromedan Cult and its allies.

Arceus was hesitant to declare an open state of war against the antagonistic forces that were actively hunting for his own kind and their human allies: the Supreme Overlord of all legendary Pokémon was not willing to alienate humanity nor was he willing to help the human race fight a war that was potentially started by them. Two legendary Pokémon that resided in Unova had a different saying, as they operated under a special branch of the Arceans.

Those two legendaries happened to be the Deity of Fire and Lightning, dubbed Reshiram and Zekrom respectively. Being Lieutenants for the Arcean military—or what remained of the once mighty empire—they were fully-fledged holy beings of war and their special allegiance allowed them to undertake battles whatever manner they wished.

"Well Zekrom, I guess you proved me right. That old hound Nick Seymour Parker really knows how to put on a show to impress. First he stopped the Red Falcon insurrection, then the completion of the Unova League, after that was the termination of the Phobos Alliance. Now it's the Black Obelisk and a perfect rescue," Reshiram complimented. "Although I do hope he is ready for the upcoming trials ahead of him."

"You worry too much, sis," her brother scoffed at his sister's rather questioning nature. "Havoc may be past his days as a youth with a brave heart and soul, but he still has what it takes."

The Vast White Pokémon raised her right eye in scepticism. "You think so?"

"He used me for a battle that I was willing to aid him with on one occasion. My acceptance of the Ranger is more than enough of an explanation that he's a soldier unlike any fighting human that I've set my eyes on for the last several thousand years. Some warriors from the middle ages caught my attention, but Havoc was something entirely different," the Electric/Dragon-type legendary proudly proclaimed.

Being born and raised in Unova, Havoc had his own fair share of run-ins with criminal organizations just like Ash Ketchum and Jimmy's constant confrontations with Team Rocket, Raine's crusade in the neutralizations of various renegade groups such as Team Magma, and Lunick, Kellyn, Ben, and Leon's constant battles against smaller yet just as equally formidable felonious factions such as Team Dim Sun, Sword of Deimos, Plutonian Industries, and the Pokémon Pinchers. Their victories over the antagonistic blocs have led to the discoveries that they were funded by an unknown organization, but authorities have not released the details to the public.

The Lieutenant, in his days as a youth, fought an endless conflict with a band of criminals that claimed that they were be a part of Red Falcon, presumably a separatist and terrorist faction that used Pokémon, military weapons, scandals, and hacking alike to forward their objectives. The group consisted of criminals, ex-soldiers discharged for problems they caused during their time in the military, corrupt authority figures, and rich businessmen that provided the funding for the group. The coat of arms for the organization was a flag that sported an imposing avian creature, presumably a bird of prey, spreading its wings wide and clutching a bloodstained battle axe in its elongated talons. Coloured with a combination of red and black combined, the flag became a well-known sight in both news reports and defeated cities that had fallen to their control. Their actions mainly involved attacks against those who opposed their ideals and theft of tactical military hardware, something that greatly irked both Reshiram and Zekrom even though they had their own ways of thinking.

Since the United States government possessed little to no available strategy that was effective in fighting against their former agents of the state, the conflict soon evolved into a guerrilla-style skirmish, mainly involving espionage and sabotage from both sides.

"Like how your reckless friend took on terrorists with 21st century weapons of warfare without regarding his own safety? He was a Marine at the Master Sergeant rank, yet he was prepared to take them head-on," Reshiram prodded with a teasing voice.

Zekrom nodded proudly. "That's what I look for in a warrior worthy of my assistance and teachings."

Havoc, in his younger years, was a Marine Corps infantryman that had just returned from his duty in the sands of Western Asia only to find out his country had fallen to the fanatics. Not one to sit by and watch his home country fall to a totalitarian state, he proceeded to set out singlehandedly with his crack squad of Pokémon and several other close companions that were brave enough to follow the future Lieutenant on his daredevil tactics of battling the Red Falcon military alone. Through endless struggles and several other conflicts that never seemed to end, the soldier decimated the majority of the extremist forces and soon came to face the head of the organization, a former US Military Commander that identified himself as Colonel Bahamut. The rogue human wished to draw both of the Unovan Administrators into the battle with tactical missiles, where his forces would proceed to capture and incarcerate them with stolen and reverse-engineered Master Balls. His ultimate plan was to dominate the entire nation of the United States under his rule with the newly-acquired godlike power, but Havoc, with the help of both Reshiram and Zekrom, put an end to Bahamut's plans as the dragons levelled the rogue Colonel's HQ while Havoc personally killed the madman during the final days of the battle, dubbed Operation Revolt by the remaining military forces that partook in it. It was revealed within the extremist sect's captured computer databases that they were a different sect of the infamous Team Rocket organization.

Hoping to leave his bloody past behind and to go after Team Rocket, he resigned from the Marine Corps despite being promoted to Major and receiving several medals for his bravery, left Unova, and decided to pursue a career in the Pokémon Ranger Corps as a peacekeeper. Today the blunt and bad-tempered Lieutenant, along with his own special division, ended up fighting cultists and corporate adversaries alike.

Although Reshiram was never too fond of Nick due to his absolute macho and warlike attitude, Zekrom forged a close companionship with the Ranger as they were the traits that the legendary greatly enjoyed within potential followers. This was mainly because the former preferred those who were kind and loving, and the latter showed great respect for valorous and honourable heroes. The Deep Black Pokémon offered himself to be captured by Havoc, but the human refused, given his belief that things in life have to be earned and not be taken for granted. Zekrom accepted his proposition but he promised to be always available should the legendary Ranger Commando ever need his assistance.

"It's been ten years since Red Falcon was vanquished," Reshiram recalled, her light, airy-looking feathers waving gently in the evening breeze. "That was really some conflict that required our immediate attention, yet we were hesitant to join the battle."

Zekrom shrugged his armoured and imposing shoulders with a rather uncaring gesture. "Like Lady Dialga and Giratina instructed us, humanity must fight its own wars with the exception of very special circumstances. We are not their babysitters or nursemaids and helping them just because of an insurrection caused by some agitated terrorists would only make them lazy. That and there is no justified side in war—every country has their own reasons, mostly wrong ones, for going to battle."

"The Red Falcon group gave us an immediate urgency to join the battle," Reshiram corrected her sibling.

The deity of lightning crossed his arms across his chest before riposted, "That one force was an exception, as that bastard of a Colonel Bahamut was willing to drop a thermonuclear warhead on Castelia City just to draw us out. Hypocrisy is a funny thing in life. That rogue human served his country proud in several wars, yet he turns his back on it as years passed and he decides to wipe out several million people to forward an objective that evidently failed miserably."

Reshiram sighed with deep strain and pressure. Being a goddess that loved those who lived peacefully and without conflict, the constant skirmishes across the globe placed a heavy toll on her mood. She knew absolute peace could not be achieved, but the Fire/Dragon-type couldn't contemplate the fact that the past years of relentless warfare were omens of something that was to come in the very near future.

"Is something bothering you, sis?" Zekrom asked with a voice of care and comfort.

"…Nothing, really," she uttered quickly in response. "But was it possible that we'd be able to defeat the Red Falcon Corps on our own, considering they were willing to hold several major US cities ransom with tactical weapons? It was only Havoc and his allies' ingenious tactics of sneaking into their launch facilities and sabotaging their striking arm that allowed us to join without fear of retaliation." Since Colonel Bahamut had addressed a threat prior to his takeover that any intervention in the form of legendary Pokémon would result in a nuclear attack, both Administrators could not do much but sit by idly and watch.

Zekrom released a deep, thundering breath as he turned his head towards the sky. "I'm sure if we couldn't, Lord Arceus would help us. He certainly wouldn't stand for a mass genocide of humans and Pokémon alike since the final battle against Entity Three several million years ago. You're thinking too much, sis. Perhaps you should get some sleep. After all, it won't be a while until Havoc and the 13th Armored Brigade of Almia launches an assault on the UAAF facility. Even if we were to intervene considering those corporate monsters are planning to unleash something big on the attackers, we'd need the permission of Arceus or one of his Generals first. Then, I am Havoc's guardian, so I have no regrets for going against our Lord's orders if he denies authorization to enter the battle."

Reshiram continued her observation of Castelia City's skyline; even at night, the elevation of the mountain haven in which the legendary siblings resided allowed both to clearly see the brightly lit metropolis from such a distance. The city, aside from being a major landmark and attraction for foreign tourists and trainers alike, also held a dark history considering the municipality was nearly erased from existence with nuclear weapons. The sight of the warhead re-entering the atmosphere and zooming towards the population centre remained a dark reminiscence inside the Vast White Pokémon's heart, even though the missile was destroyed by her actions moments before the impact and detonation took place.

"Perhaps Red Falcon's actions are just gestures that were manipulations of a far more secretive organization out there, similar to how Team Rocket is the striking arm of the UAAF, the latter organization only participating in high-risk operations," she pronounced.

She watched her brother return to the mountain's cave where the legendary supernatural being caught some shut-eye, but Reshiram had far too many thoughts on her mind that kept her awake as a result.

The Vast White Pokémon knew the Red Falcon organization was still active and hiding somewhere and it was only a matter of time before they would return.

This story has come a long way, hasn't it? Three years and going. Anyways, rate and review, and see you on the next update.

-Soldier of the Future