Every single word… every single movement…
Was filmed and documented.
The little camera drone had still been lingering about, catching all of Jethro's movements with the most sinister of purposes.
It caught the whole conversation.
Back at their main base, the Sinister Division technician operating the camera relayed the video feed into the main control room. A woman dressed in dark red and black sat with her legs crossed and her fingertips pressing against each other. She smiled coldly.
"So we know his weak points… good. How soon can we commence our operation?" she asked.
"We are almost prepared, ma'am. The last touch-ups are being made as we speak," the technician said over the intercom.
"Good," she said. "Very good."
All of a sudden, something obstructed the camera lens. The woman sat forward in her seat.
"What's happening?" she demanded.
"I don't know," the technician said. "Something's got the camera!" There was a sharp movement, and then the screen went blank.
"We've lost the signal," another technician said.
"How?" demanded the woman.
"Someone… or something… has found the camera and destroyed it." The woman sat back in the chair again and put two fingers to her head.
"This complicates things… but not too terribly," she said to herself. "We continue as planned."
"Yes, ma'am," replied the technician. The woman sat back in her chair and smirked at the screen.
"Soon, Jethro," she said to herself. "Soon…"
Jethro held the damaged camera device in his hands, his brow furrowed in anger and disgust. The crimson 'S' on the top was now dark, the lens cracked. He wanted so badly to crush the camera, but first, he wanted answers.
"Where did you find this?" he almost growled. His Staraptor, the one who demolished the camera, pointed to the tree just outside the Center. Jethro growled to himself, and then turned to Eloquence. "It caught every single thing today… where we were… our midnight debacle… the little convo… everything. All to study me. How'd I miss it?"
"It's only big enough to fit in your hands, Jethro. It's not that easy to catch!" Elly protested.
"Given the fact that I have rather sizeable hands, that's not helping," Jethro muttered. He turned back to his Staraptor. "When exactly did you see this?" he asked.
"At the same time I arrived; I heard you were in the area, so I decided to stop by and say hello to my old friend," it told him. Jethro looked back to the camera in his hands.
"And that's when you spotted this," he said.
"Well, I am a renowned aerial hunter, so it wasn't very hard," Staraptor said proudly, puffing out its chest. It looked at the camera. "What do you plan on doing with it, boss?" it asked. Jethro stood looking at the camera for a moment, and then smiled slyly.
"Somehow, I get the feeling I'm going to like this look," Eloquence said.
"Oh, it gets better," Jethro replied. "It gets much, much better."
At the same table he healed the Tailow, Jethro set up shop with the camera. He pulled out his multi-tool, one of his own creations, and set his backpack aside. He whipped out a scanning device and scanned for schematics. A holographic projector showed a remodeled way to reconstruct the device. Jethro smiled to himself.
"Let's get to work," he said.
About an hour later, Jethro walked out from the room, his hands behind his back. Elly, Nurse Joy, Lucario, Staraptor, and Blaziken were standing in the lobby waiting for him.
"Ladies and Pokémon, I give you the new and reprogrammed Sinister Spy-Cam," Jethro said, holding out the more angular and durable-looking device in the palm of his hand. It whirred to life and lifted off, flying right out the doors. The group went outside to watch it disappear over the hill.
"Very nice, boss," Blaziken told Jethro.
"Thank you," he said, beaming.
"And what happens when they get it back?" Elly asked. "Or did you just give them a free upgrade?"
"Don't worry, it's only meant to broadcast the signal of their base. As soon as it gets there, pfft!" Jethro said as he imitated an explosion with his hands. "It goes up."
"Subtle, Jethro, very subtle," Staraptor told him.
"How big is the explosion?" Elly asked.
"Not too big… just big enough to wipe out a control room," Jethro said calmly.
Elly's eyes widened. "And everyone inside it?"
"No, no, no, no, it's more of an EMP explosion; it only knocks out their computers." Suddenly, the bushes in front of them rustled slightly. Jethro reached for his sword, and Elly grasped hers. Another Lucario jumped out of it, and looked Jethro dead in the eye. He let go of his sword and his shoulders sagged.
"Doesn't anyone know how to approach me in a decent manner these days?" he asked aloud. "Alright, Valin, you can come out now."
A Trainer a little older and slightly shorter than Jethro rose from the bushes and stepped forward. His eyes were sharp and battle-worn, and a bit tired as well. His dark hair was neatly combed to one side. His mouth was stretched into a sly grin, showing his admiration for Jethro's deduction. He had a slender and yet very toned body, hinting further of his skill in the shadows, as well as stealthiness.
"Hello, Jethro," he said, walking forward to give his younger cousin a hug. "How've you been?"
"Well, it could be better; I've been helping beat-up Pokémon get better all day, Elly almost got possessed by a mask, and the creep that was wearing it almost took out the Center," Jethro informed him.
"One guy? It was one guy that nearly took out a Pokémon Center with you and Eloquence defending it?" Valin asked, bewildered.
"Val… this guy used Dark Balls," Jethro said as he dropped his voice. Valin's eyes got wide for a moment, and then became stern and cold.
"Those things were supposed to have been banned."
"Yes, but banned doesn't necessarily mean 'destroyed'," Jethro said as he raised a hand to stop his cousin's protest. "Yes, I know there was a law that said to destroy all Dark Balls and wherever they were being created, but I doubt that the task forces dealing with those facilities were able to destroy every last one of either. There was most likely a few people who hid them and their blueprints away. The Sinister Division is probably the main group behind it, dealing with Team Rocket's Iron Masked Marauder on the sly."
At the mention of the word 'Sinister', Valin's Lucario growled deeply.
"I know, right?" Jethro agreed. "As if what they did in Hoenn Region wasn't bad enough, now they have to strike out against the world!"
"It might not be the world that they're after, you know," Valin stated.
"Well, yeah, I kinda figured that when Staraptor here found that camera," Jethro said.
"You did defeat them in the Hoenn Region, and I'm pretty sure they don't find that flattering."
"Well, it's their own fault for trying to usurp Mount Chimney… again," Jethro said flatly, remembering what Teams Magma and Aqua did to it years ago. "That, and they terrorized the Lavaridge citizens! They should've known that nobody messes with my hometown—and I mean nobody," he added.
"Whatever you say, tough guy," Elly smirked. "Meanwhile, while we're waiting for that little camera of yours to respond, don't you think we should get some rest?"
"Fair point," Jethro said. "Anybody wanna play cards before we hit the hay?"
"What game?" Valin asked as they turned to the Pokémon Center.
"Whaddya say to a good game of Murder?" Jethro suggested.
"Oh, sure, nothing like a game with a name that could be our fate to brighten the mood, Wanderer, real smooth," Elly retorted.
"Despite the tongue-twister, I get the point," Jethro said. Elly punched him in the arm. "Ow."
By the light of the lantern, the small trio of heroes and their Pokémon sat on the floor of their room, putting card after card down on the pile. Valin was currently winning, with only four cards in his hands. Eloquence wasn't having much luck; the constant 4s and 2s weren't being very friendly, increasing the number of cards in her hands each time. Her Lucario was doing fairly well, holding only about 10 or so cards. Valin's Lucario was holding merely three cards, while Jethro and his Blaziken both held five.
"So, Val, what have you been doing these past few days?" Jethro asked him.
"Oh, I've just been traveling hither and yon. I just got back from Unova, actually. I was in Kalos the week before that…" Valin said.
"Ah, Unova," Jethro said. "Good memories. How was Iris?"
"Oh, we had a ball. She actually took me to the Village of Dragons, her hometown!" Val pointed out.
"Really?" Elly asked, surprised. "The Champion of Unova took you to her hometown? How nice!"
"Yeah, she was rather impressed with my Garchomp and asked if I wanted to show some of the younger ones what it was like to battle with one," Val said.
"Right, you were showing the little ones fighting techniques," Jethro said mischievously. "What else did you two do?"
"Oh, cut that out," Val muttered as he put a 7 of spades down. Jethro let out a goofy laugh as Val's Lucario set down a 7 of hearts.
"Well, now wait a second," Jethro said through chuckling, "you were where before Unova? Kalos, you said?"
"That's right."
"I haven't been there yet… I guess that's where I'll be going next after Sinnoh!"
"Hey, don't forget, we need to deal with the Sinister Division first while they're here," Elly pointed out as she laid down two 3s, three aces, and a 6 of clubs. Jethro looked at the pile of cards.
"Hey, nice one. And don't worry, Elly. We'll deal with whatever forces they have left here. Dark Balls or not, they're no match for us," Jethro assured as his Blaziken laid down an 8 of clubs and called the next suit; "Spades". Jethro looked at his hand and groaned. "Really?! The one suit I don't have, and you have to call it!"
"I know," Blaziken smiled with a grin. Jethro hung his head.
"That thing about Pokémon adapting their Trainer's personality really has bad karma when you're rather ornery," he muttered as his first Pokémon laughed.
"Well, if you fight the enemy as badly as you play cards, we're in real trouble," Valin said as he laid down an ace and a three before claiming "last card" and then laying down a jack of clubs. Elly and Jethro groaned and dropped their cards.
"Again?! That's three times in a row you've won!" Elly remarked.
"Let's call it a night before he owns us even worse," Jethro said as he got up and climbed into the bottom bunk of the boys' beds. Blaziken lay back on the floor and reached for its Poké Ball on Jethro's backpack. It pressed the little white button on the front, enlarging it with a small chirping sound. It pressed it a second time, returning to the inside of the red-and-white capsule.
"It does know it's allowed to sleep out here, right?" Elly asked.
"Elly, we've gone over this before. It knows that very well; it just chooses to go in the Ball on its own accord," Jethro said. "It's not really my choice with him; he just does it on his own."
"Good to know you have a nice flaw in your Trainer leadership skills," Elly's Lucario said.
"Oh, go to sleep before I let Blaziken back out," Jethro muttered. Lucario laughed as it curled up on Elly's top bunk.
"Good night, folks," Jethro yawned.
"Good night, Jethro," Elly said.
"Good night, Jethro," Val said.
"Good night, Val," Elly added.
"Good night, Elly," Val replied.
Val's Lucario growled softly.
"Good night, Lucario," Elly replied. "Good night, my Lucario," she added.
Her Lucario growled softly back. It then did the same to Val's Lucario, which replied in turn.
"Good grief, what have I started?" Jethro grumbled as he pulled the covers over his head. The others laughed as they finally settled down for the night.
Beep-beep, chirp! Beep-beep, chirp!
"Oh, you gotta be kidding me!" Jethro grumbled.
It was merely 3 o' clock in the morning. Jethro reached for his Poketch, pressing the alarm button. The alarm continued its ambient noise. Jethro pushed himself up on the bed.
"Well now, wait a sec," he said. He got out of bed and went to his backpack. He opened the left side pocket and brought out his Poké Nav. Mr. Stone, the head of Devon Corporations, edited the Poké Nav himself specifically for Jethro's needs. He flipped the front of the phone up, and viewed the information on the screen.
"Guys! Wake up! We got a signal from the camera!" Jethro shouted excitedly.
"What, what, what?!" Elly yelped as she jolted awake. Val leapt from his bunk onto the floor, followed by his Lucario. Elly's Lucario sat straight up in its bunk, looking around with alerted senses.
"We've got the location of their base!" Jethro said excitedly. "We know where it is!"
"Really? And where would that be?" Elly asked sleepily. Jethro turned around to show them the screen.
"Looks like we're going to Kalos sooner than expected," Jethro said with a broad smile on his face.