Chapter 679 - 679: 679. A Deal with Shelly

"Let you off?" Kai looked Shelly up and down, his gaze sharp and unyielding. "That depends on whether you can offer something of equal value, Start talking. Where are you going?"

The pressure he exerted was suffocating. Remembering his overwhelming strength, Shelly found herself unable to even consider resisting.

Yet when it came to her objective, she hesitated.

Kai shook his head. "You still don't understand your position, Fine. If you won't tell me, I'll hand you over to the International Police. You can explain everything to them."

As he spoke, two Poké Balls flew from his hand. In a flash, Dragonite and Tyranitar materialized on either side of Shelly, boxing her in.

Faced with such overwhelming force, Shelly panicked. "W-Wait! I'll talk!"

After a brief struggle with herself, she finally spoke.

"After… after our last encounter—when we retreated from you—I went to the Weather Institute near Fortree City. We occupied it temporarily and conducted simulations. That's when I realized… Team Aqua's long-held goal is utterly foolish."

Team Aqua's ambition, driven by Archie, was to awaken Kyogre through Primal Reversion and expand the seas to create what they believed would be an ideal world for Pokémon.

To hear a senior admin call that dream ignorant was shocking at least to Misty.

Kai, however, already knew the consequences.

"What did you discover?" he asked calmly.

Shelly shuddered. "Archie is too naïve. Primal Kyogre won't obey anyone. It would endlessly raise sea levels, summon catastrophic storms, and create massive whirlpools to swallow everything."

Kai sighed. "That much should've been obvious."

Embarrassment flickered across her face. Archie's charisma had blinded them.

"So you're heading back to stop him?"

"Yes. I left the team and rushed here to prevent him from awakening Kyogre."

Kai's eyes narrowed. "Meaning… he's already found it?"

Shelly hesitated, then nodded. "Not just that. At Mt. Pyre, he obtained a mysterious Indigo Orb, With it, he can awaken Kyogre and trigger Primal Reversion."

That changed everything.

Mt. Pyre, much like Pokémon Tower in Kanto, was a sacred resting place for departed Pokémon. Its mist-shrouded peak concealed powerful artifacts—among them the Indigo Orb, twin to the Red Orb, capable of awakening Kyogre and Groudon.

If Archie possessed it, disaster was imminent.

"How do you plan to stop him?" Kai asked.

"I'll try to persuade him."

"Persuade?" Kai gave her a flat look. "You think he'll listen?"

She fell silent.

Kai withdrew Dragonite and Tyranitar a few steps, then proposed, "This concerns all of Hoenn. Let's make a deal."

Shelly blinked. "A deal?"

"I'll overlook you—for now. In return, you take me to Archie."

"And then?"

"I'll do what I do best," Kai replied matter-of-factly. "Defeat him. Take the Orb. Return it to Mt. Pyre."

Shelly wrestled with herself. Bringing Kai meant betraying Archie—and Team Aqua.

Yet failing to stop him meant risking Hoenn's destruction.

At last, she nodded. "Fine. I'll take you. But don't harm the other members—"

Kai cut her off. "You're not in a position to set terms."

Her shoulders slumped. "Understood. Let's go."

---

Before departing, Kai sent a message to Looker of the International Police, ensuring backup if things spiraled out of control.

They proceeded to a hidden Team Aqua facility near the docks. Inside, a small submarine bearing the team's emblem rested in a seawater dock.

Shelly handed them spare Team Aqua uniforms. "Wear these. It'll make approaching Archie easier."

Kai couldn't deny the practicality. Infiltration would be far smoother in disguise.

As they changed, Misty quietly asked, "Do you really trust her?"

"She's telling the truth," Kai replied softly. "And even if it's a trap, I'll get us out safely."

"But can Kyogre truly flood all of Hoenn?"

"Don't underestimate Legendary Pokémon," he murmured. "You saw Rayquaza's strength before. But against Primal Kyogre, even that wouldn't be enough without matching power."

Misty swallowed. "And your strongest Pokémon aren't here…"

"That's why we must seize the Indigo Orb before Archie makes his move."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You're not secretly planning to catch Kyogre, are you?"

"Of course not," Kai said firmly. "Some Pokémon are meant to remain guardians of the world. Kyogre and Groudon belong where they are."

"What about Rayquaza?" she teased.

"That's different," he said with a faint grin. "But that's a story for another time."

The warehouse doors opened fully, revealing the waiting submarine.

The mission had begun.

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