Chapter 11
The two of them searched high and low for their missing friend. In the streets, in shops and buildings, in even the darkest and disgusting alleyways imaginable. However, there was no sign of Megan or Clefairy and no such clues could be found as to their whereabouts. Cyndaquil could not pick up on their scents either. Now Frost was annoyed, as he did not want to waste time looking for someone who was smart enough to not get lost in the first place. He had no business complaining, for she would have done the same for him.
"I wonder what could ever have happened to her?" Frost pondered. "You say that she went shopping several hours ago. What time exactly?" he asked. Brett shrugged.
"I would say maybe around one or two," He answered, even he was not sure.
"Well its five now, and you have been searching for her for about an hour wouldn't you agree?" Frost thought. He knew that Brett was not on the same page he was, but there was little to go on, and therefore even less to be lost on. "That means she must have gone missing between one and four. In two hours, she could not get so far that she still cannot be found," Frost sat there on the curb and thought and thought and thought. Brett and Cyndaquil just sat there, trying to figure out what Frost was getting at.
"Perhaps if we search the area, you know, do some detective work? We can be regular sleuths," Brett suggested. "There must be someone who has seen her. Even if it was just a passing glance, there must have been somebody,"
They stood up, and looked around, just down the street, were several shops. Frost and Brett went in to one of them; a record store, and asked the Counter Runner if he had seen Megan. "What does your friend look like?" He asked glumly.
"She's about five feet tall, give or take a few inches, blonde hair, and let me see…I think today she was wearing a white blouse and jeans. Oh yes, she had a Clefairy with her," Frost tried to describe her. The Counter Runner nodded his head.
"Yeah, I think I saw someone like that pass by a few hours ago, said she was looking for a Razor Claw or something. I told her we sell music, and she left," He told them. That was all the information he had to offer, so Brett and Frost thanked him for his time, and they went on their way. Frost was wondering why she would be looking for a Razor Claw. Those are pretty much useless unless used to…evolve Sneasel.
"Brett, do you know what Megan went shopping for?" Frost asked suspiciously. Brett shook his head.
"No, she just told me it was for cloths and junk," He answered. "She didn't tell me anything else," Frost grinned, even though he figured Brett was telling the truth. He began to see exactly why she went shopping.
"Well, I'll fill you in. Megan, has apparently gone missing, looking for a Razor Claw so that I could evolve my Sneasel," Frost told him. "So we had better look in stores that sell items of that nature," Frost scurried down the street with Cyndaquil and Brett close behind. Each store they went to, neither had seen Megan, or knew anybody who might. In just two hours, Frost thought, Megan could not have gotten far, even when running as fast as she could. Jeneville was not a particularly large city either. Finding someone should not be a chore here. Soon, Frost and Brett had given up, by seven o'clock at night, they had accepted their failure, and gave up.
"Now wait a minute, why don't we call the police?" Brett asked. "After all, it's their job to protect the people,"
"Yes I suppose it is," Frost agreed. "However, I do not think that the police will have a better job at finding her than we did. After all, we asked every shop owner in the city. I don't suppose there is anybody left we can talk to," Frost sighed. The pair of them returned to the Pokémon Center where they were staying, and Nurse Joy did her best to comfort them after a hard day.
"I'm sorry to hear about your friend. I hope you find her soon," She did her best to comfort them, the two of them were doing best to keep their spirits up. "I hope that she is alright," She sighed and returned to the back room to attend to a sick Pokémon. A Hypno, Frost suspected from the looks of it.
"Frost?" Brett whispered. "I hope Megan is okay," He yawned. Cyndaquil cuddled up with Frost on his bed.
"Me too," Frost whimpered softly. He had tucked himself and Cyndaquil in the blankets. He felt guilty, that Megan had gone missing because of him. She went to find something for him and now she's gone. Where did she go? She is smart she is strong and tough. Too smart and tough in fact, to get lost. Which must mean that she isn't lost at all, she was kidnapped! Who would want to kidnap a child? Jeneville was not widely known for abductors or criminals. Even in the worst parts of town, the most common form of criminal activity was hustling. A very low level crime, but a crime none the less.
Jeneville is not a dangerous place, there was no reason to be concerned about criminals. Or maybe, just maybe…that is exactly why nobody on this good Earth would suspect a crime wave. "Brett, I think we had better dig a little deeper," Frost suggested.
"How do you mean?" Brett asked. "We did what we could," He tried his best to fall asleep.
"Well, Jeneville is a very safe city, is it not? Well who do we know that can move about unnoticed?" He sat up in the bed and got up to turn on the light.
Brett covered his eyes when the lights came on. "I don't know, now please, if you would, turn of the light will you?" He groaned.
"Don't you think its mysterious that Megan would just vanish? Something is amiss in this peaceful city. Something is amiss indeed," Frost paced back and forth for a moment before turning back to Brett, who was still trying to sort the whole thing out.
"You don't suppose that Team Rocket may be at the back of it, do you?" Brett guessed. "That must be it, they must be behind it all," He concluded.
"Oh I'm sure that those fiends are involved, one way or another," Frost sneered. "Perhaps we better pay them a visit, and see what they are up to,"
The two of them left the Center, and started looking for any sign of their enemies return. Down the busy city street's, they searched. Past all of the innocent people, unaware of the great evil that lurked within their very home. Now that Frost thought about it, Jeneville was the perfect place to have a criminal hideout of some sort. Perhaps that is why Team Rocket was able to thrive. Perhaps that is why Team Rocket was able to take hold of Santem.
Frost thought it only logical that they take up residence in a more well-known city such as Palendome or Calviton. Though he knew that Team Rocket must be stopped at whatever cost, he had to give them kudos for being able to remain enigmatic to the authorities, to the government. They must be up to something, but what? Clayton and Talia said that Cyndaquil would have been very valuable to their employer, whoever he was. Cyndaquil was important to them, for one reason or another.
"Frost, where do you suppose a gang like them would have a hideout?" Brett asked. "We may need help finding them, and even more help stopping them," Brett looked around at the buildings and such, trying to guess where he would put a criminal headquarters. Frost knew that he was right, they did need help, as much help as they could accumulate. There was one person who may be able to help, and if Frost knew him as well as he thought, he would be in Jeneville by now.
By the gym, Frost and Brett ran in at just the right time. There was John, talking to Brandon, the gym leader, just after winning the Wyvern Badge. "Have you come to try your luck?" He asked. "Even I had trouble with those last two," The gym leader smiled.
"I only do my best," He said." As far as your friend here is concerned, he has already won," He shrugged. "Frost here is a very good trainer,"
John groaned. "Yeah I guess he is. So if you have the badge already, why did you come back?"
Frost stepped forward, and noticed that Sentret was giving him the stink eye. "Megan has gone missing. We need your help to find her," John was not interested, and instead laughed.
"What makes you think I would help you find your friend? I'm sure she can take care of herself," He scoffed. Frost was not so sure he meant it, and frankly, neither did John.
"She isn't just missing," Brett told him. "She was taken. She was abducted by Team Rocket," When John heard this, he turned down his attitude a bit. "She has been taken, and we need help to find her,"
Brandon looked at both of them. "Well look, if you ever get in to trouble, or need help, just let me know. I will do what I can," He told them.
John and Sentret exchanged glances, then they looked at Frost. "Look, she is your friend. Besides, you are the most powerful trainer in the world, you don't need help," He snarled. "Sentret, we are leaving," Sentret hopped on his shoulder and they left. Frost and Brett would have to handle this on their own. "The nerve of that guy! What a selfish jerk," He cursed.
"I'm sorry that boy won't help you, but if you need help, don't hesitate to let me know," Brandon reassured them. "If this Team Rocket is as dangerous as you say, then you'll need all the help you can get," Frost and Brett thanked Brandon and left the gym. Brett and Cyndaquil insisted upon getting the authorities involved, but Frost tried to convince them that the police would be of little help until the situation and threat would be fully realized. Team Rocket was not a group to underestimate. Their grip was tightening on Santem, who knows what else they would seek. Kanto? Sinnoh? Even Johto would certainly fall against their immense numbers and relentlessness.
"How do you expect us to stop Team Rocket?" Brett asked. "We don't stand a chance against them, there could be hundreds, maybe even thousands of them. What do you think we should do?" He complained.
"We have got to try, besides, I'm the greatest Pokémon trainer of all time," Frost bragged. "Besides, Megan needs help, she can't handle them on her own. She needs us,"
There were few places that could possibly be the home to a group of thugs. The two of them looked in several laundromats, a couple of pizza joints, and a bank. They found no evidence of Team Rockets whereabouts. Their search continued all across Jeneville for almost three days. Three days on their trail, and nothing to show for it. They had no clues, no ideas, they were completely exhausted.
Frost and Brett were sitting in the local library, not having any idea what to do now. Perhaps there still remained one possibility left to be explored. There must be something, anything they could do. Surely there must be someone that could help them. Officer Jenny? What good would the police be? They would not be of help without more information, and so far, Brett and Frost had none. Where could they be hiding? Frost looked around at the citizens, just ordinary, plain folk.
Frost suspected that the reason Team Rocket was so elusive was because they hid in plain sight. Just like their first encounter with the group in Camwell with that nightclub scam. Perhaps they were scattered throughout the city. No doubt they had encountered members without realizing it. Then it hit them, they had seen members before, in those public places. Libraries, movie theatres, bowling alleys, the works. Their only problem was exposing them to the authorities without being caught by them.
Now, as far as Megan was concerned, she was having a bad time of it. Her Pokémon, including Clefairy had been confiscated, and taken to some other place for something the goons referred to as treatment. No doubt some cruel experiments. Megan was, at that time, kept in a storage closet in what she could only guess was a warehouse. She was cold, and she was hungry, and had no way to call for help. She looked around the room she was in. Scattered throughout were containers of radioactive materials, some crates of unidentified contents, just simply labeled Lab Storage.
Megan began to put the pieces together. Team Rocket was not just a group of thugs and criminals. They were building an army. Pokémon are powerful enough as they come. Let alone those who are super charged with pure nuclear energy. Powered by unnatural means, they could be super weapons of pure destruction. Who then could stand against the might of Team Rocket? Who would dare stand in their way? Megan knew what they wanted, but their direct interest in Cyndaquil still mystified her. Before she could ponder the information further, a group of grunts came into the room.
"Our employer wishes to meet you," One of them snickered. "You are coming with us," He sent two goons to grab Megan, and as much as she pulled and resisted, she could not break free. The goons took her into a nearby elevator, and they went up to the top floor of what Megan guessed was a skyscraper. She was take into a cozy room, which looked way too friendly and welcoming for a group like Team Rocket.
She was thrown into an arm chair by the window. For a single moment she was able to break free of their grip and try to escape through the window. Looking out she could see the Pokémon Center just a block and a half away. She could see the city for miles, she was so high up. Down below, the cars and people were barely visible, escape was futile. One of the goons put her back in the chair. "Our boss will be here in a few moments, so stay here, or you'll be sorry," He ordered, slamming the door behind him.
She was beyond scared at this point. Nowhere to go, nowhere to hide. She could only pray, that Frost and Brett would come to help. Before she could make a desperate escape, the door opened and a man walked into the room. "Hello my dear,"
Megan was in a state of bewilderment. "What are you doing here?"
