Chapter 8
The Assault
Tomorrow is Char's 24th birthday, at least that's what Ethan tells me, and so Ethan says we need to buy him a present. That is how we ended up going to the mall, gift searching for our Charizard friend. The only problem is that we don't know what to get him. The only thing I know is that he loves is Michael; and Ethan said that Char told him that he didn't want anything for his birthday. I send Ethan into the bookstore while I head into the department store's men section to try to find something adult for Char. I don't really know why I bothered it's not like he would use anything we got him today, and I shudder to think what Michael would do if he ever found what we would get him, or if he found the babysitting money I've been paying to him. But I did see a certain blue jackal pokémon sifting through dress suits. "Hi Anubis, going to a fancy party anytime soon?"
The younger jackal pokémon leaps about a foot into the air from the surprise I gave him, "D-detective Blaze?! Wh-what are you doing here?"
"Shopping for a birthday present, what are you doing here?"
My question is answered when Captain Typhus walks out of the changing room looking down, disdainfully, at the dress suit he has on. He finally looks up from the suit when Anubis hasn't replied to his physic communication and is startled to see me standing with the Lucario. "Detective, how are you today?" nodding in my direction.
"Good for you Anubis you finally asked the Captain out on a date!" I laugh as the two pokémon blush a vibrant red, "This, this is a date isn't it?" Anubis shakes his head slowly. "Alright then, I've ruined your day enough. Have fun." I shout as I run out of that department store as fast as possible.
While I don't know the exact reason for their trip to the store I do know that I've made it a thousand times more awkward than it needed to be. I laugh and head into the bookstore to find Ethan. He was relatively easy to find in the small bookstore that this mall has, he was sitting down reading a magazine on pool, with two books by his side. "So Ethan did you find anything for Char?"
Ethan jumps up, startled. I am not a small pokémon, how is it that I am sneaking up on people today? "Yea. I found a book on the history of Ketchum-Red and another on fire-type moves."
I can understand the Ketchum-Red book; it's about his families company. But the book on fire moves? "Ethan, he probably knows those already."
He shakes his head, "No he doesn't I asked him to teach me Fire Blast once, he admitted that he never learned how to use fire moves, they frowned on fighting in the orphanages. So I figured why not."
"That's smart Ethan. So are you ready to pay and go?"
"Yea can we get this magazine two, there is a local pool tournament and I want to enter." He asks handing me the magazine.
"Sure why not." I answer him
He jumps up in excitement at the thought of entering another pool tournament, something he hasn't done since we left Johto. And it will give him a chance to get his mind off of Char; it is something someone of his age doesn't need to worry about. I lead Ethan to the food court to get lunch before heading home. I see Anubis and Captain Typhus sitting at a table across the food court, well at least Anubis is eating; since the Captain is a Mewtwo he doesn't need food, he "eats" the physic energy that living things give off. Anubis is laughing at something the Captain just thought-told him, maybe one of them finally manned up and asked the other out. Hey dad, look! It's Anubis! Can we go and say hi?"
"No, Ethan. I think they're here together, so give them some privacy, alright?"
He gives a defeated sigh and nods, "Fine but I want ice cream!"
"Alright" I laugh.
"Boss." James says knocking on the door to the Persians office, "He is here."
"Good. Show him in." purrs Giovanni.
"Why did you send for me? I hate doing business in the Kanto region you should know this by now cat." The shadowy figures eyes glow as he hisses that statement in the mind of Giovanni.
"I know you do, but that is why I love calling you here. I love seeing you displeased and squirming, and knowing you could do nothing about it." The shadowy figure makes a growling sound. "With the pleasantries out-of-the-way. Shall we get down to business?"
"Very well, what is it that you want me to kill for you lazy cat."
"The current heir to the Ketchum-Red company and fortune."
"Good, I love a kill with guards."
"Unfortunately for you the only kind of guard he has is a next door cop. However, his mate crossed me as well. Find a way that makes an example of them."
"Very well" The shadowed figure turns and leaves the room.
"Sorry Michael but you shouldn't have let Char make that concession in his will." Giovanni laughs loudly at Michael's impending death.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHAR!" came Ethan's excited cry before I even had the door even halfway open. The Cyndaquil's back is burning in his excitement of my birthday. He is holding a sloppily wrapped present and there is a chocolate frosted cake on the table in the kitchen, also sloppily done. I think Ethan did both by himself, it makes me smile that he would go to all of this trouble.
"Thank you Ethan. But you didn't have to do all of this."
He nods, "I know but I wanted to." He replies handing me the present that he got me.
I open the gift, and I am slightly surprised, the cover is a picture of the Infernape, Flint using Blast Burn against the Magmar, Blaine. "You got me a book on learning Fire moves?"
"Yea. You told me you never really got a chance to learn them from your parents. So I thought we could learn them together.
I smile at the kind-hearted Cyndaquil; I can feel the corners of my eyes start to tingle as I start to cry. "Char? Are you okay?" he asks worried now.
"I'm perfectly fine. This is such a nice gift Ethan. Thank you." I answer him hugging the smaller Cyndaquil. "Now How about we eat that cake? Okay?"
"YAY!" he shouts throwing his stout arms in the, his fire growing larger with his excitement. And leads me into the kitchen
- Sometime later -
"So it says you're supposed to focus on the heat inside you and expel it." Ethan says to me, as he tries to teach me how to use Ember. I do feel a twinge of shame learning such a basic move from someone not even half my age. But I push it out of my mind as I focus on this "heat" he's talking about.
I open my mouth again, and like the last time nothing except a choking black cloud of shoot leaves my mouth. I gag and cough on it before saying to Ethan, "I'm sorry Ethan, and I just can't do it."
"When dad taught me he said that you need to focus on something you have a passion for, something or someone you care about. Like for me I want to protect my family and friends and that's what gives my flame fuel" he explains unleashing a volley of the superheated embers at the concrete wall separating our houses. "Try it again Char."
I try focusing on the love of my life, Michael. I can feel the "heat" that Ethan was talking about now. I can feel the heat rising up my throat and I can see my embers leave my mouth. And then there is a huge noise and a bright flash of light as I'm thrown back and hit the ground.
"CHAR!" Ethan rushes over to me and helps me up. "I've never seen that before. Your embers exploded as they left your mouth!"
I stagger up dazed and confused from the explosion. "What happened?" came a new voice, one filled with worry.
"Anubis? What are you doing here? Is it five already?" Ethan asks.
"It's five already?! Ethan I need to go thank you for my gift!" I shout as I pick up the book and dash to my house before Michael can get home.
-POV Change-
"What was that about?" Anubis asks again this time with an authoritative voice.
"Well, today is Char's birthday. So I got him a book on fire attacks, and well he tried using ember. And they, well, they exploded in his face." I answer, putting on my best innocent face.
"Fire attacks don't usually do that to the user, do they?" Anubis asks.
"None that I know of, but dad would know more about them than I would. What about moves you know?"
"I know when I perform Close Combat, my muscles feel like they're about to turn into an acidic mush. And then it's hard to focus on defending myself." He says looking on the black burnt patch now present on the grass. "Let's make you something to eat, alright?"
"The Captain has been acting funny all day, don't you think Blaze. Blaze. BLAZE!" Lily shouts at me drawing the eyes of our co-workers.
"No Lily I hadn't noticed, he's in his office, as usual." I say.
"You think I am doing something odd today?" Lily jumps in surprise as the Captain floats up behind her. "Detective Ferris, you are in charge of the unit for the next week. I will see you all in a week." The whole unit looks confused as the shiny Mewtwo leaves the floor.
"Like I said weird." She states one more time before she disappears behind a wall of file-folders.
I wondered if the trip that Mewtwo and Anubis took to the shopping center yesterday and his sudden trip are related to each other. Maybe he was going to an old friend's wedding. Well I can ask Anubis, he'd know. I take the turn into our street, when I see another car speeding towards me. I swerve onto the curb to avoid being hit by the lunatic driver. I scream at the driver, even knowing he couldn't hear me, it helped me. Anyway I continue my drive home I need to get Anubis home before Lily puts a hit out on me. As I pull up into my driveway I see Anubis opening the door, to come out and greet me. When he stops and looks around confused, I can see him sniffing, smelling something for something. I get out of my car, "Anubis is something the matter?"
"I- I don't know, something just feels… off" he says still looking around; "something feels wrong in the aura of the place." He says before raising his paw. I guess he was feeling for the 'aura' of his surroundings. "It's in Char's garden something is wrong there." Anubis leaps over the small fence that encloses Char's garden. "This is weird," he says, "it's like the garden itself is in a severe amount of pain." He moves his paws through the flowers as if trying to pinpoint their pain. "Who planted these?"
"Char did, why?"
"Char is in trouble." He states jerking up into a standing position
"He always is, Michael is likely to kill him before I can get him out of that house." I say getting annoyed with the obvious statement that Anubis is making.
Anubis however hasn't heard me, he has already walked up to the window and is looking in, shortly after that he's rattling at the window frame trying to get in. "Anubis! What are you doing?!" I yell at him reaching for the offending paws.
"But Char is in trouble! LOOK AT HIM!" He yells at me before throwing a sub-zero punch at my midsection. When I do recover from the freezing punch I look in the window, and instantly I can feel my face pale. Char is lying on the ground; the floor around him is wet with water, I can't tell if he's breathing or not, but I know he is alive, for now, because his tail is still alight but it's burning dangerously low, almost ready to give out. I connect the dots I think it was Michael who nearly hit me with that car earlier.
"Call your sister, have her bring a lock-pick kit from the station." I saw to him as he darts back inside my house to call Lily.
"My, my detective. Breaking and entering. What a devious crime for such a handsome police officer." The high-pitched voice of Madame laughs.
"Not today Madame, I'm trying to save Char's life!" In an instant Madame's face has changed from one of aloft amusement, to a face only fitting of a really old and really serious nun. It's almost scary how fast her face has changed.
"Wait here." She says before turning and leaving for her house.
A few seconds later Anubis comes rushing out, "Lily says she will be here in a half hour." When he says that I want to cry. Any minute now Char could actually be dead and I don't even know where Michael went to make him pay for doing this to him. I can feel the tears beginning to prickle at the corners of my eyes, when Madame and a Mr. Mime come back across the street.
"Move aside please, Detective, I will have the door opened soon." The Mr. Mime says, putting his hand over the doors handle. I can see the faint blue glow of the physic pokémon power, and the clicking of the door's looking mechanism. I'll apologies later to him as I push him out-of-the-way and into Char's Heatran Roses, known for the incredibly painful burning sensation that comes from the thorns and the plants sap. But my first and only priority was Char.
Michael probably doubled Char's weight with the amount of water he attacked him with. There are several dozen forming bruises around his body. In his claws he has a book, torn, tattered, and all but unreadable, except for the cover I can see the two fire-type Champions attacking each other. If my face was pale before it is the color of a Froslass now, knowing that I had something to do with how Char was now was unbearable. Anubis comes in just then, wincing from his own brush with the fiery flowers. "He's soaking wet, we need to warm him up somehow." I nod as I let my fire erupt from my shoulder blades while Anubis goes and gets some towels. I try to carefully sit up making sure to keep his flickering tail above the puddles of water.
I hear him groan as I try to remove the book from his claws. As I finely get the ruined, Char wakes up, he screams at the top of his lungs before finally realizing it was me and not Michael. Before he passes out again. "What was that?" Madame asks walking in without the Mr. Mime.
"He woke up, screamed, and passes out again. I'm sorry about pushing your friend into the rosebush."
"It's alright he'll recover. And Char? What do you want to do with him." She asks as Anubis comes back with several towels and begins drying the Charizard off.
"I know we need to get him out of this house. But I don't know where to take him." I tell her. "He needs to be watched so that he doesn't try to call Michael again." She nods in agreement.
"I know the perfect place. Here Anubis, is that your name sweetie, help me put him into my car. Then I will take you home. While you mister detective need to deal with your son and come up with a reasonable excuse for Michael when he asks."
I nod as Anubis and I lift the Charizard and take him to Madame's car. By the time I walk back to my house the three of them have already turned the corner and the Mr. Mime has reset the house to how it looked before minus the injured Charizard. I start to cry as I walk back inside the house, hoping and praying that Madame can keep Char safe until Michael is either dead or in prison. And if I catch him, it wouldn't even be a choice.
Alright everyone I'm sorry about the recent bout of lazy updates but my life has decided to be a dick and get busy. So I will endeavor to type faster for my faithful one :3
So please R&R and as a favor make sure that the review makes sense.
