Alex's plan revolved around three important requirements for each Team Dominion base in Unova. They all had to lose their leader, the base had to be destroyed, and the gunmen had to be left in a chaotic panic. This would ensure any standing orders they had would become their last priority as they tried to save their own lives. If they attempted to reorganize, they would have no leadership to rely on, and if support was sent from Team Dominion's main headquarters, it would take time to salvage or rebuild their bases from scratch.
A problem with their plan was that he and the girls couldn't handle all 30 bases in Unova by themselves. They would have to move fast to take them all down, otherwise the untouched bases would be able to retaliate. If they were given an hour to do as much damage as possible, the devastation they could cause would be immense. To address this, he ensured there were 9 of them moving at the same time.
The 6 estimated remaining Champions under Team Dominion were placed under Alex and Clarissa's responsibility, while the strongest Elites, who might have a Champion ranked Pokémon or two in hiding, were assigned to Sable. The remaining targets were divided among Lyra, Mika, Dale, Morgan, Emma, and Lily, in order from strongest to weakest.
The problem Alex was currently facing was that his own target, the biggest boss in all of Unova, was missing. This meant their operation was immediately compromised, as they wouldn't be able to prevent a swift resurgence later on, potentially allowing Argent Solutions to rise again in the future.
"It doesn't matter," Alex ultimately decided. "We should still try to deal as much damage as possible while we can. We'll worry about what happens next once we finish the initial plan. Worst case scenario, I'll just have to pay a significant sum to the Unova League as an apology."
Alex took out Rhea's Earth Shaker, a cluster grenade designed to synchronize and amplify Earthquakes, capable of unleashing a tremor with the power of a peak Champion ranked attack. He pressed and held the activation button, aiming it at the side of Twist Mountain. A red beam scanned the mountainside, then the device began beeping.
With a powerful throw, Alex sent the Earth Shaker toward the slope. Before it even reached the surface, it detonated in midair, scattering its cluster grenades across the target area. The grenades embedded themselves in the mountainside before exploding, triggering a series of coordinated Earthquakes.
The resulting damage caused a massive landslide, shaving away a section of the mountain and exposing the reinforced dome of the Team Dominion base hidden inside. Despite the destruction, the dome remained largely intact because most of the Earthquake's energy had been absorbed by the collapsing mountainside.
Alex took out another Earth Shaker to finally destroy the base when suddenly
BOOOM!!!
It exploded on its own, sending metal shrapnel flying everywhere. Some of the fragments scraped against Mantine's underside armor, forcing him to veer sharply away from the sudden blast.
With the support of the base having been removed and the explosion cracking the surrounding load bearing stone, a large chunk of Twist Mountain came toppling down, burying the area where the base had been as well as everything below it, including the initial landslide, in rubble.
Alex, still reeling from the shock, struggled to regain his senses. The site where the base had stood was reduced to nothing but loose rubble. As he took in the scene, he narrowed his eyes in suspicion.
"Did I just get framed for murdering the head of Team Dominion's Unova branch?" Alex muttered in realization. "I mean… it's not like I wouldn't own up to it. It just feels wrong for some reason."
He thought it over and realized Rhea was going to be pissed. Without a doubt, Orvan Kestrel, the man who orchestrated her father's downfall and murder, was still alive somewhere out there, running from both the League and Team Dominion after having benefited from running an entire branch for decades.
"I guess I have more work cut out for me after this," Alex said, shaking his head before refocusing on their operation.
He still needed to take out two more bases, after all.
With a sigh, he patted Iris's Butterfree on his shoulder, prompting it to teleport him to his next destination, an underwater base south of Virbank City. In truth, he had a more pressing target to hit before this, but he decided to give its leader a little more time to decide on his future before finally pulling the trigger, so he opted for this location instead.
Mantine dove into the water as Alex released his water team and Clawitzer, while Ditto transformed into a Deep Suit to cover him. They wasted no time searching, as the base was located directly beneath them.
Gyarados and all the Wishiwashi in Schooling Form surrounded the base from every side before unleashing a coordinated Earthquake. It wasn't precise enough to mimic the effects of Rhea's Earth Shaker, but it was enough to leave a dangerous crack running along the top of the dome.
With a final coordinated burst of Hydro Pump, the crack widened enough for water to begin flooding the interior of the base. Meanwhile, Alex and his Pokémon stood guard outside, ready to intercept anyone attempting to escape.
After a minute, a small torpedo shot out of the base, followed by several other torpedo-shaped projectiles darting toward the surface. The water team immediately targeted the leading torpedo, firing Whirlpool after Whirlpool to slow it down.
Suddenly, the other torpedoes turned sharply, intercepting the Whirlpools and taking the damage for themselves, protected by a shimmering barrier.
Upon closer inspection, the torpedo-shaped projectiles were actually Champion ranked Sharpedo, moving to protect their trainer, who was riding the first torpedo in an attempt to escape to the surface. The other Sharpedo pressed forward to engage Alex's Water team in a brutal melee, buying their trainer precious time to flee.
Meanwhile, Alex had Mantine surface, recognizing that his water team wouldn't be able to help once the escaping trainer breached the water. Despite the threat of facing half a dozen Champion ranked Sharpedo, his Wishiwashi were strong enough to contend with them as long as it wasn't a race. Clawitzer, Gyarados, Milotic, and the two Araquanids provided ample support, ensuring the team's survival against the relentless attackers.
Once Mantine breached the water's surface, Alex spotted the torpedo speeding toward Virbank City's shores. He released Grim's attack team and sent them in pursuit. In no time, they caught up to the escaping base leader and crippled the torpedo's engines, leaving him stranded on the water's surface without his prized team of Sharpedo to defend him.
Grim bit down on the torpedo-shaped vessel while Knight slashed open the cockpit with Spirit Break. Knight then swung one final time to behead the Champion ranked trainer sitting inside, completing Alex's task of bringing down his second base.
After confirming that his target was dead, Alex retrieved Grim's team and dove back down to recover his water team, only to find them fighting for their lives.
The Sharpedo were absolutely ruthless, using their high Attack and Speed to full effect, while Alex's team barely held on through coordinated support. The tanking Schooling Form Wishiwashi maintained Aqua Ring, Milotic continuously used Life Dew, and Clawitzer kept critically injured allies alive with Heal Pulse. Gyarados was locked in a one-on-one clash with a Sharpedo, holding firm, while the Araquanid pair repeatedly refreshed Infestation to prevent any of them from breaking away to assist their trainer.
The only reason they had survived this long was the Sharpedo's lack of coordination. They preferred isolated one to one engagements, either because they no longer had a trainer directing them or because they were in a frenzy after losing their bond. Either way, Alex couldn't allow this to go on.
He released Grim's attack team, Togekiss, and Gardevoir to provide additional support, unhindered by the water. Togekiss reinforced Milotic with Life Dew, stabilizing the healing cycle and relieving the burden on Clawitzer, which allowed her to pivot from support to offense.
Gardevoir immediately assumed command and restructured their formation. Grim's team moved to assist Gyarados, collapsing on his opponent to end the duel quickly. The unengaged Wishiwashi, together with Clawitzer and the Araquanid pair, focused another Sharpedo, eliminating targets at a steady rate of two at a time.
With the reinforcements and tighter coordination, the rampaging Champion ranked Sharpedo were dispatched in short order.
Alex retrieved his team along with the Champion ranked corpses and ignored the fleeing henchmen and staff. He then resurfaced with Mantine.
Once above water, he called over Iris's Butterfree and teleported to his final destination, Castelia City, intent on confronting Leonard, the man he had already given an ultimatum.
The world shifted, and Alex reappeared above the waters south of the city, directly over the submerged base. A lone, luxurious yacht floated below him as if it had been expecting him. Leonard stood on the deck, staring up at Alex riding the massive Mantine without the slightest hint of fear.
"We finally meet, Mr. Wattson."
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