Latias peeked her head out, brows furrowing slightly as she stared at the "Gardevoir" grinning wickedly not far away.
She couldn't explain it, but sothing about this Gardevoir's vibe felt… off. Very off.
And if she rembered correctly, there had been a photo in that news article—one that showed a shiny Gardevoir clinging suspiciously close to Elias.
So... was it this one?
Her expression darkened at the thought. She tightened her grip on the Poké Ball in her arms and snapped coldly:
"You cheating cat—where's Elias?"
"Hand him over. Oh, and my brother, too—give him back while you're at it!"
In her mind, this "Gardevoir" was clearly a howrecker, blocking her from seeing Elias.
When she heard Latias' voice, the disguised w blinked, then suddenly lit up inside.
She couldn't believe her luck—this red jet plane had just walked into the trap without her needing to do anything.
What a sucker!
Feeling confident, w folded her arms like she'd seen the real Gardevoir do before, then tilted her chin to glare haughtily down at Latias.
"Hmph! Garde, garde! (Elias is mine now. He's going to give a baby Ralts, so you'd better go back where you ca from!)"
"Garde~ (Out of respect for Elias, I don't want to fight.)"
She even waved her hand dismissively, imitating the sa casual flick Gardevoir often used when brushing her off.
w was having the ti of her life.
But Latias... was stunned.
She couldn't believe what she was hearing. Not only did it feel like her mate was being stolen, it also felt like her son—one she'd raised for years—was being handed over to pigs.
Staring at this arrogant "Gardevoir" in front of her, Latias clenched her jaw so tightly she nearly cracked a molar.
This was no re howrecker. This called for violence.
Before w could even get another word out, Latias opened her mouth—and a beam of [Dragon Pulse], thick as a human arm, blasted straight toward her.
"Garde!"
w widened her eyes, shocked by the sudden retaliation.
But honestly? She was thrilled.
Perfect! She'd baited her into fighting—exactly as planned.
Soon, she'd beat Latias into tears, and the poor thing would go crying to Elias.
anwhile, she could sit back and enjoy the show.
Thinking this, w launched a [Shadow Ball] to et the incoming attack.
The inky-black orb collided with the [Dragon Pulse] midair, releasing a shockwave that rippled outward in all directions.
Using the smoke as cover, w [Teleported] behind Latias, following up with a [Psycho Cut]—her aim was to seize control of the battle right away.
But…
As they exchanged blow after blow, w began to realize sothing was very wrong.
Didn't Latios say his sister was weak?
This is weak??
A knot of doubt ford in her chest.
True, in order to maintain her Gardevoir disguise, w had to limit which moves she used—it made her movents a bit stiff and her options narrower.
But still, Latias' strength wasn't fake.
What should have been a one-sided battle was instead shaping up to be neck-and-neck.
In fact… Latias might even be slightly stronger than w in this form.
Sothing's off. Seriously off.
And on Latias' side, she too was realizing that this opponent wasn't so easy to deal with.
Since Elias had left, she'd trained hard and grown powerful—powerful enough to handle even brutal poachers with ease.
Yet this "Gardevoir" was giving her trouble in a way she hadn't felt in a long ti.
No wonder my idiot brother couldn't beat her. No wonder she forced Elias to give her a baby Ralts. She's got so strength.
Latias huffed and narrowed her eyes in recognition of her opponent's power.
But acknowledgnt didn't an surrender.
On the contrary—after hearing that kind of talk, there was no way she was letting this "Gardevoir" off the hook.
"Help out—Salance!"
With a sharp command, Latias tossed the Poké Ball she'd been clutching into the air.
Boom—!
ROAR!
A flash of white light erupted midair, revealing a massive Salance—larger and more imposing than most of its kind.
Its blood-red wings spread wide, each flap stirring violent gusts through the sky.
w stood frozen, staring blankly at the new arrival.
Since when did she have a Salance?!
Before w could recover, Latias threw another Poké Ball with a smug little hum.
Boom!
"tagross!"
Another flash of light—and this ti, a bulky, shiny tagross appeared, its tallic body gleaming with force.
Watching the utterly stunned "Gardevoir," Latias grinned triumphantly.
Bet you didn't see that coming, huh?
Not only had she brought Elias' old Salance, but she'd also borrowed this tagross from his good friend Steven Stone.
With the three of them—herself, Salance, and tagross—working together?
No way was a single Gardevoir walking out of this.
---
Half an hour later, Latias—now in human form—arrived breathless at the front gate of the Saffron City Gym.
Despite the intense battle she'd just been through, she didn't feel the least bit tired.
Because—
Elias is inside this building.
Just that thought alone made her throat dry and her heart pound faster.
"So nervous…"
Latias rubbed her palms against each other, trying to ease her nerves.
She couldn't wait any longer.
Just thinking about that "Gardevoir" made her stomach twist.
If she could say sothing like "He's going to give a baby Ralts" right to Latias' face, who knew how far she'd go behind closed doors?
Taking a deep breath, Latias gently pushed open the door.
Inside the hallway, the first thing she noticed were paintings hung along the walls.
As her eyes passed over the portraits of a small boy in doll-like poses, her brows furrowed slightly.
If she wasn't mistaken... these were all paintings of Elias as a child.
After all, every mother rembers exactly what her child looked like when they were little.
Don't tell that Gardevoir did this too…
Uneasy, she quickened her steps.
Soon, she reached another wooden door. Testing it with a hand, she pushed gently—it creaked open into darkness.
Narrowing her eyes, she stepped inside.
Just as she was about to use telepathy to scan her surroundings—
A warm hand suddenly closed around her wrist.
"Who's there?!"
Latias flinched, her body tensing as her eyes snapped toward the source.
...
"GACHA!!"
"WOOOO you made it to the end! That's commitnt! That's—wait—wait—are you F2P!? Disgusting. Fix it."
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