Art of War: Game of Chess

Chapter 28- After Attack Aftermath

"208 crew members killed, the rest were Team Aqua. Out of the League Forces, 5699 were killed in the crossfire. I didn't know that Team Rocket had become this powerful. They weren't supposed to, you know. They were a fucking mob earlier, what changed?" Blaine asked the air, shocked.
Drake seemed to be staring at the ground. He still couldn't believe the callousness with which she'd shot his Salamence. It was like a knife through the heart. Fury and determination swept through him. He wouldn't stop till Salamence was avenged, and Team Aqua hunted down.
Blaine, his old friend, knelt down beside him.
"Hey. Drake. Drake. Snap out of it. There's nothing you can do. She's dead and There's nothing you can do."
Drake, if possible, looked even more livid.
"They! Killed! Her!"
"You wanna hunt them down, right? All of them?"
The steely glare in Drake's eyes were back again. He looked at his old friend with a gaze full of determination.
"Yes. I do. You know I do."
"Then let's do it together. You wanna pick the others up?"
"Who? Surge, Wikstrom, Pryce? Moore's dead, of course. Giovanni, maybe?"
"Whoever it may be, let's go."
"Happy hunting."
"You too."
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"What's the Hoenn Champion, Steven Stone, doing in Cinnabar Island? Am I worthy enough to ask?"
"Yes, you're worthy enough... Ash Ketchum. "
Ash started: "How did you discover my true name, Stone?"
Steven's eyes twinkled: "A certain Pokémon Professor, Samuel Oak, may or may not have seen it fit to reveal your truthful identity. You may have thought yourself invincible, but every Pokémon Trainer has a sponsor."
Ash looked gobsmacked and then furious: "Oh... that old man, why does he keep spreading word of my true identity? How many others know of this?"
"Just four. Bill already knew. Myself and Drake. And Elite Four Agatha Creepey, a long- time friend of Oak's. One other person who knew... was Uncle Derrick. "
Ash looked sober at the mention of Derrick: "I'm sorry. He shouldn't have been killed like that. "
"Oh, don't. He wasn't killed like that... he was a collateral damage. Mewtwo treated him like collateral damage after he did so much! Like another victim! If there's anybody who should be blamed, it's him!"
"Yeah... I guess. "
"I heard you had a... confrontation with Mewtwo near Fuchsia City?"
"I did, and more than 4000 Pokémon were killed in the attacks. "
"Of course, Mewtwo lacks an amount of subtlety, it seems. Using mind- controlled drones to finish off a powerful Trainer in front of his Pokémon is a foolish, even quite suicidal move. "
Ash nodded: "So... he overlooks the simple to look at the complex. Looks like I figured him out this time. "
"We all did. Time to take out a Legend. So... you taking Blaine?"
"Yep."
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(A/N: 1. Blaine is next. Drake is confirmed as an enemy of Team Rocket and Team Aqua.
2. Steven meets Ash. What next? )