"Stop wasting time!" a familiar man in a trenchcoat shouted from within the circle. "We're here to do business. Some of you go fight these guys off so we can finish." A handful of men immediately stepped forward and released their pokemon all at once. The police officers were the first to step in, some of which had managed to knock down and cuff a couple of Rockets before they had the chance to retaliate. Mostly the less muscular men went down fastest, and the ones that actually could fight back were concentrating on weakening the Articuno; the battle was very one-sided for a while.
Derrick took a step away from the chaos and toward Iris, a pokeball in hand. Kain stepped in front of Iris protectively, growling and waving its flaming tail. "You're an easy target" Derrick said as he called out his pokemon. "Come on Raichu, this'll be quick." The eager pokemon burst out of its ball, its four-foot-long tail whipping behind it in anticipation and impatience.
"Let me take this battle" said Delilah, stepping in front of Iris. "You go help your mother."
"Isn't that sweet" said Derrick with what sounded like disgust. "I'd be honored to take you in battle. I've already taken you every other way I possibly could."
"Don't even start with that shit" spat Delilah. "Come on Jade." She sent her faithful pokemon from her ball, waiting for the first attack.
"Alright, Thunderbolt!" Derrick called out to his Raichu. It stood high up on its tail to give itself some leverage, then blasted a stream of lightning bolts from its cheeks. The electricity could be seen surrounding Jade's body and turning her into a gigantic lightbulb for a moment, but the aura just as quickly faded; it left her completely unscathed and rather confused at the useless attack. She tilted her in that familiar, curious manner.
"You are so fucking stupid" Delilah said bluntly.
"Shit. Ground-type... Alright then Raichu, Double Kick!"
"Get it with a Tail Whip, quick!" Delilah shouted almost as soon as she heard Derrick's voice. The resulting collision would have almost been humorous; Jade's tail met Raichu's comparitively small body and momentum played its part, sending the electric mouse flying like a homerun baseball. It landed somewhere in the trees after soaring for quite a few meters.
"Fuck" was Derrick's only response. Instead of rushing to his fallen pokemon's aid, however, he called out another pokemon. This time it was a particularly vicious-looking Houndour, crouched low to the ground as if it were to pounce at any moment.
"Good job Jade" Delilah said. "Time to get someone else out there now. Come on Pidgeot." The bird swooped down from the skies and landed, kicking up dust and snow drifts with her wide wings.
"Fire Blast!" Derrick called out immediately. Pidgeot easily dodged an oncoming flurry of red flames without even having to leave the ground. The attack continued soaring past until it hit a group of trees, setting them ablaze as soon as the fire touched them. A candle effect began, each tree lighting the one next to it until the clearing was surrounded by a barrier of six-foot-high flames.
"This can't be good" said Delilah, coughing from the drifts of smoke on the wind. "Pidgeot, Wing Attack!!" The bird soared up into the air, circled around, and hit the Houndour with outspread wings too fast for it to react properly. It was knocked backward into the wall of flames, yelping and running from them as soon as it could use its feet again. It reluctantly went back to its position on the battlefield, panting heavily and trembling from head to tail.
"Slash attack!!" Iris yelled from the sidelines. Kane came out of nowhere and went after the Houndour, slashing at its already injured body until it retaliated with a Bite attack right on his tail. Kane spun around, whipping its tail with enough force to throw the enemy pokemon into an unsuspecting Rocket member. The Houndour came back to the fight, stumbling from dizziness. Kane promptly knocked it out cold with a Tail Whip.
"Thanks kid" said Delilah. Iris nodded in response.
"How're you holding up Mom?" asked Iris.
"I could swear Amethyst was already trained" Rose responded. "She's not even tired out yet." The pokemon in question was locked in battle with a Meowth, the two of them circling each other like a pair of wild ready-to-brawl tigers. In the blink of an eye, the two ran toward each other, slashing and biting and trying to overpower the other. The Meowth rolled, pulling Amethyst with it, and pinned her down. It bit relentlessly at its neck until she finally pushed it off with her hind legs and ran after it.
"We've got three pokemon down between just the four of us" Delilah said.
"How are the police holding up?" asked Iris as she knelt beside her Drowzee's fallen body. It had passed out from fatigue in the middle of the fight and hadn't gotten back up. However, it panted heavily, meaning that it was at least still alive.
"The police arrested five of them" said Rose. "But we still have over twenty more."
"Jade, watch out!" Delilah shouted. Jade jumped in front of Rose just in time to block a rather large bat pokemon from attacking her with its fangs. The Golbat hit Jade's rock-hard chest and landed flat on its back. It hissed and flapped as it tried to get up, only to be trampled by a pokemon on its own team.
"Remind me to repay you for that one" said Rose with a sigh of relief. Delilah simply shrugged.
The Rocket members who hadn't yet joined the fight had managed to bind the Articuno's wings with rope. They were now attempting to seize its legs, which were kicking and clawing at the ground furiously. Three of the men had been scathed by an Ice Beam attack and remained on the sidelines, groaning and writhing in pain as frostbite settled in their nearly frozen limbs. They were surrounded by a "layer" of Rockets, making the arrest of the ones who had fallen quite difficult. The police continued to fight and handcuff those who were helpless until all that was left were the twenty or so men trying to capture the giant bird. One of them, who seemed to be the oldest, stepped out from the circle.
"Enough with this interfering" he said in an icy cold voice. He bore a striking resemblance to the Team Rocket leader himself, and his uniform even looked the same. The Rocket R logo glistened on a well-polished metal pin against a burgundy suit jacket. He threw out two pokeballs without a word, stepping back to allow room for the upcoming fight. The first of the two pokemon emerged in a blinding flash of light, stretching its wings and taking a battle stance – a Dragonite. The second one came right after – a seven-foot-tall Feraligatr with bared fangs. The two of them stood up straight in an attempt to intimidate their adversary before attacking; it was working.
"Back up guys" said Delilah. She reluctantly sent out the only pokemon she had left out of the battle up until now – Scyther – and prepared to call out her first attack. A horrid screech from within the circle of Rockets turned all heads in that direction.
"We got it!" said one man triumphantly. The Articuno was now on its stomach, its legs bound by coils and coils of rope that looked like they were cutting off the circulation of its feet. Its feathers were stained crimson from the non-lethal bullets that had constantly pelted it, and some of the soft feathers had fallen out and were scatted all over the ground.
"Now let's take care of these guys" said another man. The entire crowd of them turned to face the battlefield and took out a handful of pokeballs each.
"No" said the man who looked like Giovanni. "This is my fight. You guys, call up the Boss and have him send in a helicopter. I'll handle these fools."
"You can't do that Vincent, you're outnumbered!" Derrick argued.
"The Boss, my brother, isn't here, and I'm second-in-command. Do not question me." After a moment's hesitation, Derrick pulled out a cellphone and dialed a quick number. Attention turned back to Iris and the others as the second-in-command called out an attack.
"Take to the skies Cairo!" he said to the Dragonite. "And use Dragonbreath!" The dragon soared up as high as it could, circling for a bit as it aimed its attack. A beam of purply-blue fire shot straight downward and ripped through the ground. Rose and Iris, who were closest to the attack, leapt backward immediately. The blast left a small, smoking crater in the soil as if a bomb had gone off in that spot. "Again!" shouted the man in a hysterical tone. Iris almost expected the high-pitched evil villain cackle to follow. This time, Delilah ordered Scyther to fly up to the enemy and try to knock it out of the skies, but it seemed that 120 pounds versus 460 pounds was not a fair fight. Scyther was batted away like a pesky fly with Cairo's tree trunk of a tail. Cairo finished unleashing its attack as if nothing had happened, but Scyther was able to kick herself off the ground and fly back up. She swooped underneath the dragon's belly and behind it to escape more blasts of purple flames, landing on its back.
"Swipe at it Scyther!" shouted Delilah at the top of her lungs. "Get it down on the ground!" The pokemon obeyed and slashed at its back, and it seemed to be working until Cairo went into a roll. It swooped close to the ground, swung back up, and backflipped. The Scyther fell to the ground - landing on its feet, however - then took off again at blinding speed to try and hunt down the attacker.
"This is getting nowhere" said Delilah. "And Scyther is gonna end up fighting on her own anyway. She never listens."
"Why isn't he using the Feraligatr?" Rose asked. She eyed the drooling, snarling beast warily.
"He's probably too full of himself to think that he can't get the job done with just one pokemon."
"Hit it with a Tail Whip!" Cairo's master ordered. The pokemon spun in midair and struck Scyther with a concussion-inducing blow, sending her flying through the wall of flames and into a tree; she didn't come back.
"Shit" said Delilah. "I can't even get over there." Delilah watched the spot where the Scyther had landed, but there was no sign of her. "Alright Alakazam, you're up next" said Delilah. Alakazam, who had been standing off to the side to meditate for another fight, teleported to the battlefield.
"Cairo isn't the least bit worn out" the man named Vincent stated proudly. "I'll make this quick, I promise. Let's go Apollo, time to fight." The Feraligatr got on all fours, and a rumbling growl sounded from deep within its throat. Rose backed away at the almost-too-familiar sound.
"I still have most of my pokemon left" Iris said. "I'll help. Let's go Heracross." The large bug lumbered forward, its powerful horn aimed and ready to strike. It flexed its membraneous wings as it waited. "Alright, let's finish this finally." As Iris said those words, numerous heads lifted as they heard the chopping of helicopter blades overhead.
"It's about time" Vincent said with a grin. He looked up at the approaching helicopter, probably carrying his brother in the front seat. The copter hovered over the spot where the Articuno lay helpless, and five thick, long cables dropped down to the ground. A tarp was also dropped down, which was promptly hooked up to the cables after they had rolled the almost unconcious pokemon onto it. Giovanni's tiger eyes watched from above, a hint of a smirk around his lips. If he had been grinning, Iris wouldn't have been surprised to see a pair of sharp white fangs.
"Grab that one with your jaws Apollo!" Vincent yelled. Iris was so distracted by the helicopter that was taking the Articuno away that the Feraligatr's attack had almost become deadly. The Heracross, which had been Apollo's target, jabbed the enemy straight down its throat with its enormous horn. Apollo gagged and stumbled backward to get away, only to be attacked once more.
"Use Megahorn now!" said Iris, trying not to become distracted by the battle that had broken out between one of Richard's rare, exotic pokemon and Cairo. The Heracross finished with a violent jab of its horn, knocking the wind out of Apollo and leaving it gasping for air as it laid on the ground.
"This isn't over yet!" Vincent screamed angrily. "Get up Apollo!" The pokemon groaned, lifting its enormous body off the ground slowly and shaking its head as a response to the dizziness that clouded its senses. It took an uneasy step back, then regained its balance and stood up tall on two legs. The man smirked the same way as his brother does.
"I'm running out of pokemon" Iris said to Delilah quietly. "This thing is like a tank."
"I still have Alakazam" responded Deliah. "We still have a chance if we tagteam it. Richard, why don't you try to take down the Dragonite?" The man nodded in response, sending out a pokemon and preparing for battle. Delilah called Alakazam to her side, and Iris called Heracross to hers.
"Hydro Pump!" yelled Vincent. The blast of water was enough to hit both defending pokemon, but the two of them got out of the way just in time. Heracross took to the skies while Alakazam teleported away.
"Use Take Down attack!" Iris called to the bug pokemon. It landed a bit clumsily on the ground, then sent a full-body tackle into Apollo's side. It stumbled, but the attack wasn't enough to even knock it down. It retaliated with Slash attack, leaving Heracross almost in shreds. Its wings fluttered as it tried to take flight and get away, but all it managed to do was kick up some dust around it as it laid helpless on the ground. Iris ran to its side.
"It's alright, you did good" Iris said in a comforting voice. She returned the pokemon to its ball and prepared to send out her final pokemon. Before she could, however, Delilah got the upperhand.
"Hit it with Solarbeam!" she said to Alakazam. From the purple star on its forehead came a stream of solar energy that hit Apollo spot-on, weakening it enough to make it stop moving. It was like electric shock, the waves of energy giving the enemy's body a golden glow much like what the Thundershock attack did to Jade previously. This time, however, the attack was at least ten times as effective, leaving small bits of "static" sparking from Apollo's body.
"Good one" said Rose admiringly. The fallen Amethyst was still laying limp in her arms, one eye opened to watch the fight taking place. Once in a while she'd whimper in pain and wriggle around, but Rose's soothing voice was enough to keep her calm.
"One more Alakazam, you're doing good" said Delilah. "Now get it with Hypnosis." The pokemon closed its eyes and sent pulsing, visible airwaves to the weakened Apollo, who promptly fell asleep. Its huge head went limp and hit the ground with a thud. Delilah smiled with satisfaction.
"You still have one more to go" said Vincent, returning his pokemon. "Cairo isn't the least bit weakened. Why don't you just give it up? The Articuno is already gone."
"We're not going to give you that satisfaction" said Richard. He was concentrated on his Blaziken, which was currently tussling with Cairo on ground-level. It seemed the fighting-type could dodge the oncoming attacks fairly well, but when it came to offense it was as though the dragon were made of concrete.
The remaining Rocket members stood in a semi-circle to watch the fight, cheering and booing as if it were a sports game. The battling pokemon were the only things keeping the police from getting to them. The Blaziken hit with mostly Ice Punch attacks, but even the dragon's elemental weakness couldn't take it down. A Headbutt to the stomach and a Thunderbolt attack left Blaziken in a heap of shed feathers and blood on the ground. Silence fell.
"Come on Blaze, you can do it" said Richard. "Get up..." The bird laid there for a moment, trying to catch its breath, then slowly but surely it managed to get back on its feet. The crowd of Team Rocket members were in an uproar once more, dispite the loathful looks they were getting from Vincent.
"High-Jump Kick!" Richard called out with new confidence. Blaziken displayed its Tae Kwon Do skills well as it jumped up nearly six feet off the ground, swiveled around, and kicked Cairo in the side of its head with its outstretched leg. Cairo was knocked to the ground.
"Come on Cairo!!" Vincent screamed. "Get up!" The dragon lifted its upper body off the ground with shaking arms, but couldn't seem to get into a standing position. It fell to the ground weakly after trying twice to stand up, then finally shut its eyes and stopped moving.
"He's out cold and you're out of luck" said Delilah. "Now that you're out of the way, we can finish off your friends."
"No" said Vincent shortly. Some Rocket members who had stepped forward stopped in their tracks, holding a pokeball each. Vincent signaled for them to stand down. "I will not waste my time on you fools when we've already gotten what we wanted. Let's go." Before anyone could stop them, each of the Rockets released a winged pokemon, mounted them, and took off. Vincent was last seen on the back of a Charizard, looking down at Iris and the others with those tiger eyes.