It was as Seth had anticipated. The power plant was under heavy surveillance by Team Flare. Several guards were stationed around the outside, and he was willing to bet there were more, aside from the one's he'd just dispatched, waiting on the inside. Glancing back at the unconscious bodies of the grunts he'd knocked out, he signaled the others that it was safe to approach the plant. Shauna looked down at a few of the grunts and shivered as she saw weapons at their waists. Thankfully she didn't have to go through that horrifying experience ever again.

"I managed to get one to talk before putting him out," Seth said as they approached, inputting the code they'd set up to enter the plant as he spoke. "They're drawing power from the plant. That's about all he was willing to tell me. Whatever they're doing they must really not have wanted anyone to know about it if they were willing to put this much effort into guarding the place..."

"It certainly was a bit much wasn't it? I mean, they all shot at you," Serena said in a worried tone.

"They've all got poor aim. The way they hold their weapons is amateurish at best. They weren't going to hit me anyway," Seth replied with a reassuring smile, motioning to Cerise who had his back the entire time. "Now, why don't we take a look inside and see what all the fuss is about?"

Moments later, the group found themselves walking down the first hallway of the power plant, taking note of how empty it seemed at first. They had half expected there to be more grunts stationed behind the first set. Judging by how things looked inside, they could deduce that Team Flare hadn't anticipated anyone getting by their outer guard.

"Something doesn't feel right," Seth said as he paused to look around.

Relaxing his breathing, Seth began to concentrate and dip into his aura well, his eyes illuminating as he focused on the path in front of him. Seeing things more clearly now, he could deduce that there was a struggle in this hall. He could sense the life energy of several individuals at the very end of the hallway.

"There're people still in here, this way!"

Seth took off running, the others following his lead. As they reached the end of the first floor hall, Seth halted in front of a large steel door. Seth could hear people talking on the other side, and from what he could gather, Team Flare had changed the code on this door as well. Sighing, he stepped back and withdrew his sword from its hilt.

"Hey, can you all hear me in there!?" Seth called out, earning a surprised response.

"Arceus above, is someone out there!? everyone, someone's here!"

"Someone's here?"

"We're saved!"

"Yes, we can hear you!"

Seth smiled, relieved that everyone behind the door seemed unharmed.

"I'm gonna need you all to move as far away from the door as possible. I'm going to knock this door down!" Seth called out to them.

"Knock it down? how do you propose to do that? this door is solid steel," said another individual from the other side.

"You're just going to have to trust me on this one. Now, you either move back or someone's going to end up flatter than a Stunfisk," Seth warned as he lowered his stance, drawing his blade back so that the point was extended toward the door's center.

Seth glanced back at the others, a trickle of sweat rolling down his face as he saw they had stepped back too. He needn't ask their reason for doing so. He knew full well why they were staying clear.

"Alright, we're clear of the door on all sides! I don't know what you plan to do, but we hope it works!"

Seth set his eyes on the door, all the while tapping into the well of aura springing up from within. Harnessing it, he formed it into an outward manifestation of light that set his body ablaze in a brilliant display of purples and blues that intermingled in an elegant dance around him. 

I know I could use one of my Pokémon to do this... and while it might be easier, I don't want to chance setting the place on fire or something. Besides, after being in that garden, I want to test something.

Remembering what Mathilde had taught him about Aura Control, he began to direct his aura into a single point at the tip of his sword, outlining it with bright, fiery energy. And then he lunged, faster than the eye could register, and pierced the door, blasting it off its hinges at the same time. The door slammed into the far wall and collapsed upon a wooden table, breaking it as it fell. Seth sheathed his blade and sighed. 

Seems like my suspicions were well founded. Being in that garden did have an effect on me. Looks like Mathilde had more reason for training me outside than I thought.

"We're... we're free? but how is that even possible? that door was made from heavily reinforced Aggron steel plating. It's even been outfitted to be heat resistant so how!?" one of the scientists stuttered upon seeing the gaping hole left in the door from Seth's sword. 

"I think I can answer that," Serena volunteered with a nervous laugh. "See, Seth's sword, if I recall correctly, was made from the same material as that door. So, the whole, only diamonds can cut diamonds scenario applies here."

The scientist blinked at Serena's explanation. She wasn't aware that a sword like his existed. Most were forged from typical steel with the occasional Steelix metal thrown in the mix. But pure, Autotomized Aggron steel was incredibly hard to come by. Glancing up at Seth, she could see her colleagues were already thanking Seth and the others for coming to their rescue. 

"We're sincerely grateful to you all. We've been stuck in here, forced to adhere to the demands of Team Flare," another scientist said as he heaved a relieved sigh. 

"What exactly are they doing here anyway?" Trevor asked, knitting his brows in confusion. 

"They wouldn't say. They just stormed in here and took over the plant. We were told to obey their every order or... or..." the woman's voice cracked, remembering the snarling of the Mightyena in front of her, as well as the saliva dripping from its mouth. 

"Or they'd kill you, correct?" Seth finished for her as he headed toward the door. 

The woman's silence was all Seth needed for confirmation. He'd be a fool not to assume that there had been threats of death. It was Team Flare's style, from what he experienced anyway. After his first encounter with Jacqueline, he made it a point to take them more seriously. She, along with the others she was with, were a cut above the one's he'd faced before them. 

"Seth, you're not thinking about heading out there on your own are you?" Serena asked hesitantly, almost feeling stupid for asking a question with an answer so obvious. 

"I'm not thinking about it, I'm doing it, Serena. I need you four here to keep an eye on things in case the guards outside wake up," Seth replied sternly. 

"But—"

"Let him go Serena," Tierno spoke up, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder to prevent her from following him. "He'll be fine."

"Dammit," she pouted, crossing her arms with a huff. "It's like he never wants to play it safe. Always diving into things without any thought at all. I swear if that idiot gets himself killed I'll never forgive him," she grumbled. 

"I can understand that feeling, young lady. Having to deal with those we care about getting hurt isn't easy, especially if they're someone we're quite fond of," one of the scientists inputted with a soft chuckle. 

"Eh!? oh Arceus no! Seth's not... I-I'm not..." Serena stammered, shaking her head profusely at the insinuation that was just made. 

"Serena and Seth are more like siblings than anything," Shauna stepped in, getting a nod from the honey blonde who was scratching her head nervously. 

"Y-Yeah, he's uh—already got someone he's got his eye on anyway," Serena laughed. "We're all good friends," she said finally, managing to calm herself down. 

Seth glanced back at the trail of guards he'd left behind him as he held another up by the scruff of his neck. Looking up at the man, his penetrating gaze bore into the Team Flare agent, demanding answers to questions he hadn't even asked yet. 

"I don't like resorting to violence, but you people leave me with little choice. I need some answers. Why did you all attack this power plant?" Seth asked with a stern expression.

The Team Flare agent simply grinned at Seth, even though he was sweating profusely out of nervousness. 

"You imperfect people are all the same. So demanding and unsatisfied with anything," he stated with a laugh. 

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Seth replied in a warning tone. 

"You poor fool. Just like the others of this imperfect world, you will burn under the flames of our revolution. We of Team Flare will overthrow this world and subdue all of you inferior low lives!" 

Seth narrowed his eyes and sent a controlled Force Palm straight into the abdomen of the agent while he held him up.

"You're dreaming way above your weight class..." Seth shot back, sending him flying down the hall from a pulse of aura that expelled from his hand.

The agent landed in an unconscious heap on the ground. With a sigh, he continued forward toward the stairs that lead upward to where he felt the presence of just two individuals, one of which felt oddly familiar. Reaching the top of the staircase, he found himself looking at what appeared to be the power source of the entire plant. And standing in front of that, were two uniformed individuals, one male, the other female, with two canine-like Pokémon standing beside them. The male turned around after hearing someone behind them and met Seth's gaze with a scowl. 

"YOU!" He hissed, venom in his voice as he pointed at Seth. "HOUNDOOM, FIRE BLAST!" 

Seth didn't have much time to counter. The flames of death roared toward him, seeking to devour him whole. An explosion followed shortly after, shaking the entire complex from sheer amount of power behind the blast. 

"What was that just now!?" Shauna exclaimed as she felt the entire place shake from the explosion on the top floor. 

"I-I don't know... but I have a bad feeling about this," Serena said, swallowing the lump in her throat. 

"You guys don't think—"

"Tierno! now is not the time to go against your positive nature!" Serena said sharply, turning away and fixing the ceiling with a determined stare. "He's okay, I know he is... he has to be. I don't want to be stuck with telling Allie about, well... that."

The man grinned triumphantly as he stared at the fire that danced along the floor and the smoke that shrouded the staircase. His euphoric sense of victory was short-lived, however, as he saw a bright green light flash within and push the smoke and flames apart, revealing Seth, unharmed.

"You guys don't seem to learn do you?" Seth said as he stepped forward. "You're lucky that blast didn't get away or we'd all be up in smoke..."

"Y-You survived!?" the admin exclaimed, clenching his fists and gritting his teeth as Seth advanced toward him. "How!?"

"That's none of your business," Seth replied, his gaze shifting to the woman beside him. "However, what I am going to tell you, is that you are both going to tell me what I need to know or things are going to get rough for the two of you..."