Disclaimer: I do not own pokemon and am in no way affiliated with Nintendo or Gamefreak, or other companies that write or produce pokemon. Now that that legal stuff is out of the way, on to the story!
Pokemon Legends: Kanto Saga
Chapter Thirty Four
From Hunter to Hunted
Part One
After making a brief stopover in Pallet Town to drop off Ashley's mom, the group flew over to Vermilion City. They stopped by the pokecenter to restore so Ashley and Rina could restore their pokemon and make changes to their line-up, and then they boarded the Sea Gallop. The ship speeded off toward the Sevii Islands, and the group took the time to make a plan of attack.
"The base is located on a small island off the coast of Seven Island." Lance explained to the two girls, pointing out the island in question on a nearby map of the Sevii Islands. They were gathered in the ship's lounge for the meeting. Only the three human trainers were present, neither Rina nor Ashley had released any of their pokemon. "The base is split up into several sections. Koga, who will be joining us in the assault, has already infiltrated the base to provide us details."
"How did he manage that?" Ashley asked.
"He's a ninja." Lance replied with a shrug. "Even I'm not sure the extent of Koga's abilities, but that is precisely why I enlisted his assistance for this mission. He has been able to move about the base undetected. From him, we know that the five remaining hunters are current divided. The area each Hunter resides in is apparently set up like a small pokemon arena..."
"Why would they be in a pokemon arena?" Rina asked. "That makes it sound like they..."
"Are expecting us." Lance nodded to her. "It seems likely. However, if they were able to find out we're coming, then it hardly makes a difference. They would be ready for us anytime."
"Right, so there's no reason to back down now." Rina said, nodding in agreement.
"Koga has also planted several devices around their base designed to block a psychic pokemon's Teleport." Lance continued. "There will be no need to confiscate any smoke balls, as they won't work."
"So then all we have to do is go in there, beat up any pokemon they have, and take them in." Ashley said. "Sounds easy enough."
"We can only hope that will be all." Lance said quietly. "In any case, the plan of attack is as follows: Ashley, you will be going after the one known as Fire with Lorelei. Rina, you will be with Agatha and going after Mystique. Gary and Bruno will go after Thunder. I will go after Freeze personally, and I have contacted Red to go after Galactica."
"Alright. But who are Galactica and Mystique?" Ashley asked Lance.
"Msytique is a psychic trainer. According to Koga's intel, she has captured the pokemon Mew, thought by many to not even exist. Based on its appearance, Koga did not believe it to be much of a threat. As for Galactica, we are not sure what pokemon she was using. Koga said the pokemon does not appear in any records or legends. As the true champion of Kanto, we're relying on Red to deal with this one."
"Wait! Why am I battling Mystique?" Rina asked, sounding upset that she was facing a pokemon that Koga considered to be 'not much of a threat'.
"Also, why are you going solo against Freeze? And whats this about Red being the true champion?" Ashley added.
"Just because we don't think its a threat doesn't mean it isn't." Lance said to Rina. "Mew is, afterall, the mother of all pokemon according to some legends. If that is the case, it would be best it was freed from Mystique's control as soon as possible. That is where you and Pippi come in."
Lance then looked to Ashley to address her questions. "I may be the dragon trainer, however not all of my pokemon are of the dragon type. I also have Aerodactyl and Charizard, both capable of dealing with the ice type Articuno. As for Red, he defeated the Elite Four and Gary earlier this morning. Gary has been rather bitter over it, especially after his grandfather showed up."
"So Gary beat Red to becoming Champion, but then Red just beat the newly formed league..." Ashley thought, grinning to herself. "Hehehe! That'll teach that jerk, Gary!"
"Do you two understand the plan?" Lance asked Ashley and Rina. They both nodded in response. "Good. We should be arriving shortly, make sure you are ready to move out when we arrive." Lance got up and started to leave but stopped, remembering something else he thought he should mention.
"One last thing...they've upgraded their slave collars."
The Sea Gallop, being one of the fastest brand of ships in the world, reached the Sevii Islands in little time. Crossing the ocean at highway speeds, it took little over half an hour to reach the small, unnamed island off the coast of Seven Island. The ship pulled up as close to the shore as it could. There was no dock on the island, so instead Ashley, Rina, and Lance used their pokemon. Arriving on the shore, they met up with the rest of the Elite Four, Koga, and Gary.
"Hmph. You're wasting your time bringing those two losers along, Lance." Gary said as the group arrived and hopped off their respective pokemon, Ashely using Pidgeot and Rina and Lance both using their respective Dragonites. Gary's attitude earned him a swift smack in the knee from Agatha's cane. "Ow!"
"You had best show other trainers some respect. Especially after your defeat by Red." Agatha said to him.
"Ashley, Rina, this is Lorelei, ice trainer of the Elite Four..." Lance gestured toward a red-headed woman wearing glasses and a dress with a black, sleeveless top and blue skirt. "Lorelei, this is Ashley..." Lance gestured back to Ashley. "You two will be parterned to face Fire."
"So you're Ashley? I've heard about you." Lorelei smirked lightly. "I look forward to seeing how you handle yourself in battle."
"Its a pleasure to be able to battle alongside you, miss Lorelei." Ashley replied, bowing to her.
"This is Agatha, mistress of ghost and poison pokemon." Lance continued, gesturing next to an old lady with faded blonde hair, wearing a purple dress and carrying a wooden cane in her hand. "Rina, Agatha will be your partner."
"Lance has told me about you, child." Agatha said to Rina. "Do not assume the upcoming battles will be easy just because you've faced so many hunters before. A flame flickers violently just before it goes out."
"Huh? Whats that supposed to mean?" Rina asked, blinking in confusion.
"Even with all of us here, this will be your toughest battle yet." Agatha replied.
"And finally, this is Bruno." Lance gestured to the final member of the Elite Four, Bruno. Bruno was a rather large and muscular man who wore only a pair of ragged looking pants. His feet were bare and he didn't wear a shirt either. "I'm sure you both already know Gary and Koga." Lance added, gesturing toward the remaining two individuals. Gary gave a 'hmph' and turned his back to the group.
"A bit too well in Gary's case." Ashley thought bitterly.
"Ashley, Rina, you must give your best today so this criminal empire will finally be brought to an end." Bruno said to Ashley and Rina in a gruff-sounding voice. Both girls nodded to him in agreement.
"The teleport disruptors are all in place and I've taken the liberty of sealing all of the storage areas. They will not be able to call any of their enslaved pokemon for reinforcements." Koga said to Lance. "I only wish I could be more of service, but alas these particular hunters are a bit out of my league."
"Your help has been much appreciated, Koga." Lance said, nodding to him. "However, I have one more favor to ask of you. Ensure that Galactica does not manage to slip by before Red shows up."
"Understood, I will stop her in any way I can should she try to escape." Koga replied, nodding in understanding.
"Good. Everything should be ready then." Lance looked around at the group of trainers gathered. "Any questions?"
"I have a question! Whats the deal with you calling all the shots?!" Gary angrily demanded, turning to face Lance. "I'm the champion now, that means I should be the one calling the shots here!"
"What?! Why would we listen to..." Ashley began, but Lance threw out his arm and motioned for her to stop.
"Gary, if you have a better plan, then lets hear it." Lance said to Gary in a challenging tone. Gary was taken back at first and turned to the side.
"Tch...we'll go with your plan..." Gary muttered, folding his arms. "But only because I said so."
"Of course." Lance smirked.
"-Man, I can't believe you guys lost to someone like that.-" Knight said to Lance's Dragonite.
"-In spite of his attitude, his pokemon are actually pretty strong.-" Lance's Dragonite replied with a shrug. "-He beat Gyarados and Charizard fairly easily. Of course, it took all three of his pokemon to beat me.-"
"-Of course...-" Knight rolled his eyes.
"Where exactly is their base anyway? This is supposed to be the place, isn't it?" Ashley asked Lance. The island they were on was incredibly small and barren aside from grass and trees, yet there was no such base in sight.
"Where else? Its underground." Lance explained to her. "This island simply houses the entrance to the base."
"Underground base, should have figured." Ashley thought bitterly. "The bad guys always get cool bases like that, where do they get the money for that kind of stuff anyway? Is there an black market bank that funds projects for these people?"
"If there are no more questions..." Lance looked around at the group. Everyone remained silent. "Lets move out then." Ashley, Rina, and Lance recalled the pokemon they had used to fly to the island. The group then set off toward the middle of the island with Lance and Koga leading the way while Ashley and Rina took up the rear.
"Hey, what do you think those new slave collars do?" Rina whispered to Ashley.
"Probably just make it harder for the pokemon to resist." Ashley whispered back. "Remember when Zapdos and Knight resisted the slave collar's control? They probably strengthened them so that wouldn't happen."
"Would that be all though?" Rina wondered. "If they made them out of stronger materials too then it'll be harder for Pippi's Volt Tackle to remove them. But I guess if we can knock the pokemon out then it wouldn't be an issue, we could find a way to get the collar off after."
Toward the center of the island, the group came upon a hole in the ground with a set of stairs leading down. There was a metal wall along either side of the stairs, but at the top it was corroded at the edges and gave way to the soil around it. Parts of the stairs were also corroded a bit. Earlier, Koga had used his Muk's acidic sludge to slowly burn through the secret door that was once there.
"I've taken the liberty of removing the traps they placed in this stairwell while I was here." Koga said to the group. "Its safe for us to go down."
"Traps?" Rina asked. "Why would they put traps in a secret base?"
"Perhaps they've known we would be coming for some time." Agatha said to her.
"Hardly makes a difference, they're gone now." Gary said with a shrug.
"No, I only had time to remove the traps in the stairs before your arrival." Koga corrected him. "There are bound to be traps further in. I suggest you all stay alert."
One by one, everyone followed Koga down the flight of stairs. At the bottom of the stairs was another sliding metal door, or a spot where one was anyway. On the other side of the door was a small foyer-type area with three corridors leading away from it. One directly ahead, and one to the left and right. The corridor straight ahead of them looked like it used to have a door as well. The other two corridors had doors, but they were opened normally.
The inside of the base didn't seem to be anything special, either. For as far as they could see, it consisted of unpainted walls and a white tile floor. Any sort of furnishings seemed to be either non-existant or spartan at best, with the foyer's only addition being a wooden desk in the corner with a computer set up on it. There was noone at the computer, however, and it wasn't even turned on.
Koga stopped and turned to the group as they entered the room. "This is where we must split up. Fire and Thunder are down the left corridor, Freeze and Mystique are down the right corridor." Koga pointed out the corridors as he mentioned them. "Bruno, Agatha, and Lorelei already know the directions to Thunder, Mystique, and Fire respectively. Lance, I've marked the path to Freeze on the walls with chalk."
"I will keep an eye out for them." Lance said.
"Wait! How is Red going to find his way to Galactica when he shows up then?" Rina asked.
"I will wait outside for Red and lead him to her when he arrives." Koga replied. "My Crobat will be keeping an eye on Galactica until then. He will report back to me if she makes a move."
"You all know where you're going then." Lance said to the group. "Split up and move out."
The group split up with Bruno, Gary, Lorelei, and Ashley taking the path left from the entrance and Lance, Agatha, and Rina taking the path right from the entrance. Once everyone was out of sight, Koga walked back into the stairwell and then seemingly vanished.
"So, Gary, I heard you've already had your first loss as Champion, huh?" Ashley said to Gary, stifling a giggle.
"Well I don't see you doing any better." Gary grumbled bitterly.
"Don't you two start bickering now." Lorelei said to them, then she and Bruno came to a stop in the corridor. They had come up to a red door with the word 'Primary Power Supply - Do Not Enter ' written on it. "This is where we split up again."
"Gary, you and I will continue through this door." Bruno explained to Gary.
"Fine by me. The less time I spend with this loser, the better." Gary reached for the door handle and threw it open.
"NO!" Bruno shouted and quickly tackled Gary to the ground. A ceiling-mounted gun flared to life, firing a blast of electricity at the door. The floor tiles where Gary would have been standing exploded from the blast. The turret maintained a stream of electricity for a few seconds before shutting back down.
"Ack! These guys are really pulling out all the stops this time!" Ashley said in surprise, taking a step back away from the door. Her and Lorelei were already standing past it and out of harm's way.
"It should hardly come as a surprise. This is their base of operations, afterall." Lorelei said to her.
Bruno stood up and held out a hand to Gary to help him up. "We were warned to watch for traps, did you forget?" Bruno said. Gary swatted his hand away and stood up.
"I'm not worried about a stupid electric gun." Gary grumbled and then reached for a pokeball. He took the pokeball in his hand and then aimed it into the next room. "Rhydon! Go!" The pokeball opened in Gary's hand and released Rhydon into the next room. The turret immediately turned on it and fired another blast of electricity. The electricity was drawn into Rhydon's horn and grounded out by its body, leaving Rhydon completely unaffected.
"My Rhydon can stand there all day." Gary said with a grin.
"It would be easier still to simply destroy the gun." Bruno said to Gary. Gary waved a hand dismissively.
"I was getting to that part." Gary said. "Rhydon, rip that gun down!" Rhydon nodded and reached up to the electricity-shooting gun. The gun kept blasting Rhydon with no effect until Rhydon grabbed the turret in its hands and ripped it out of the ceiling. With its power supply cut off, the gun shut down immediately and Rhydon tossed it aside.
"Alright, now keep going through the room and rip down anymore you find." Gary said to Rhydon. Rhydon nodded and walked further into the room, out of sight of the trainers standing next to the door. Another blast of electricity soon sounded through the air, followed by the sound of the crushing and tearing of metal.
"Lorelei, Ashley, you two keep going now." Bruno said to the two girls. "We can handle everything from here."
"Just make sure you keep our hotheaded champion out of trouble." Lorelei replied. Bruno flashed a slight grin and nodded to her. Ashley and Lorelei continued down the corridor while Bruno and Gary entered the power supply room.
"We could save ourselves a lot of trouble if we just destroyed all these generators." Gary said as he stepped into the room. There was a clear aisle down the center, leading to another room, with several noisy generators on either side. "That'd take care of the traps anyway. Rhydon, go on and..."
"Do you really think that will work?" Bruno said, cutting him off. "The sign said this was only the primary power supply. That suggests there is at least one other power source to act as a backup."
"Fine then." Gary shrugged. "Forget it then, Rhydon." Gary brushed past his pokemon to get to the next door. A sign on the door read 'Electric Field'.
"Gee, what do you wanna bet Thunder is behind this door?" Gary rolled his eyes and reached for the handle. Bruno quickly grabbed his hand, stopping him.
"You may be strong as a trainer, Gary, but you are certainly not strong in the head." Bruno ripped off a small piece of fabric from the leg of his pants and dropped it onto the handle. There was a brief zap of electricity that knocked the strip of fabric off and set it on fire.
"Another trap..." Gary muttered.
"This is something best handled by your Rhydon." Bruno said to Gary, then nodded to the Rhydon standing behind them and stepped aside. Rhydon, understanding the message without needing an order from Gary, stepped forward and smashed through the door with one fist. The door was ripped clean off its hinges and Rhydon stepped through into a vast room that looked like a typical gym battlefield.
On the other side of the room was the legendary pokemon Zapdos, wearing the usual slave collar and what looked like a metal backpack strapped to his body. The metal canister was directly attached to the collar with only a hinge to allow for movement of the neck. Standing behind Zapdos on a raised, square platform was Thunder wearing his trenchcoat. A single metal post was erected next to him, with one red and one green button on top of it.
"Must you make such a destructive entrance?" Thunder said to them, seeming only slightly annoyed by the arrival of the two trainers.
"I don't see what difference it makes." Gary said to Thunder, stepping out in front of the doorway. "We're taking you in, what condition this place is in won't matter after that." Gary took another step forward, and Thunder reached for the metal post next to him. Seeing this, Bruno quickly reached out and pulled Gary back into the power supply room.
The buzz of electricity was heard throughout the room. Several generators hidden in the walls and floor shot out a line of electricity toward each other, forming a grid throughout the gym. The grid was nearly impenetrable, except for the spot where Rhydon was standing and disrupting the flow of electricity. Thunder was standing in the one spot that was missed completely by the electricity, and the pack on Zapdos back seemed to absorb the bolts directed at it.
"Well, well, well! All those muscles and you still have a brain in your head, Bruno!" Thunder chuckled.
"An electric field...only our ground-type pokemon will be able to survive in there." Bruno said to Gary.
"Well thats fine for us then." Gary said, grinning widely. "Our pokemon would still have the advantage over Zapdos anyway."
"That, however, you are correct about." Bruno said, nodding in agreement as he reached for a pokeball. "ONIX!" Bruno yelled, taking the pokeball in his hand and thrusting it forward as he released his pokemon. The giant rock snake emerged from its pokeball next to Rhydon, taking up a large section of the gym. Like with Rhydon, Onix's body disrupted the flow of electricity around it.
"Fools. Don't you think I had planned for this?" Thunder said with a grin. "Perhaps I should explain. You see, I designed this slave pack specifically for Zapdos. As long as it has a constant power supply, it will continually restore Zapdos' health and increase its power."
"So what?" Gary said dismissively. "You still can't harm our pokemon."
"Can't I?" Zapdos flapped its wings and then held them out stiff. A metal coating quickly formed on them. "Now, now. You shouldn't underestimate a legendary pokemon. Zapdos, take them down with Steel Wing!" Zapdos let out a screech and charged on foot toward the two rocky pokemon, holding its wings ready to strike.
"This may be more difficult than we thought it to be..." Bruno said, his body tensing as he prepared himself for battle.
"Tertiary power supply?" Ashley said in disbelief while she stared at the door ahead of them.
"This 'Fire' clearly has something up his sleeve that requires a lot of electricity." Lorelei said to her.
After continuing down the corridor, Ashley and Lorelei came upon yet another corridor that lead north through the base. They then turned right down another corridor and came upon another power supply room, which Lorelei was pointing out as where they had to go.
"Ashley, step aside." Ashley nodded and moved to the side of the door. Lorelei moved to the side near the handle. She turned the handle and pushed the door open, then waited for the sound of a trap to go off. Nothing appeared to happen, though, so they took a quick peek inside. There was no sign of any ceiling-mounted turrets, just more power generators.
"No traps...interesting." Lorelei mused.
"Not that we can see anyway..." Ashley added.
Ashley and Lorelei continued through the room, nearing the door on the other end that said 'Fire Field' on it. As they approached the door they stopped and looked at each other.
"Its starting to feel a bit warmer in here..." Ashley said to Lorelei.
"He might not have any traps but he definitely has something set up." Lorelei said, then quickly moved to the side of the door. Ashley followed suit, and then Lorelei threw the door open. Again, no trap went off, however a bright light was now filtering into the room. A very bright light. The two of them stepped out to find the field in the next room bathed in an intense white light and giving off a lot of heat. A large, white globe was positioned in each corner of the room and provided a similar effect to Sunny Day.
"Lorelei, ice and water trainer of the Elite Four, and Ashley, the annoying photographer, welcome to my barbecue." Fire greeted the two of them from the back of the arena. Moltres was positioned in front of her, wearing a metal slave collar and matching metal pack on its back.
"You must be Fire then." Lorelei said to the other woman.
"Indeed I am." Fire smirked lightly. "And I'm afraid your crusade against the hunters comes to an end here."
"Ha! You're not the first to say that!" Ashley shot back as she reached for a pokeball. Lorelei likewise took a pokeball from her belt, preparing herself for the impending battle.
"Oh? But am I not the first to have a fire pokemon with four times the effect of Sunny Day?" Fire threw her arms out in a gesture. "Each one of those orbs you see produces a similar effect to the technique, greatly enhancing the power of Moltres' fire attacks. Even your water pokemon will not be able to withstand it."
"Lorelei, Sunny Day doesn't work like that, does it?" Ashley asked.
"Normally, no. But that is only because the technique causes the new effect to override the old one." Lorelei explained to her. "In this case, we have the same effect four times simultaneously."
"Not a good thing then..." Ashley muttered to herself. "Well, lets fight fire with fire! Charizard, go!" Ashley held out Charizard's pokeball and released him from it. Charizard gave a roar, announcing his prescence as usual as he appeared on the field.
"Slowbro, go!" Lorelei held out a pokeball as well and released her pokemon. A pink-furred pokemon with a dopey expression appeared on the field. On the end of the pokemon's tail was a cone-shaped shell pokemon.
"Allow me to show you how powerless you are before the mighty Moltres! Moltres, attack them both with Heat Wave!" The enslaved Moltres began flapping its wings, sending a strong wind toward Slowbro and Charizard. The wind then seemed to catch on fire, surrounding Charizard and Slowbro in a searing inferno. They both growled in pain and braced themselves against it.
"Even being resistant to fire attacks, those two are barely holding up out there!" Ashley thought in dismay. "This isn't good! How are we supposed to defeat a pokemon with so much firepower?"
"You know, Lance, many people would find it morally questionable that you are ordering a young girl and an old lady to deal with a potentially powerful legendary pokemon." Agatha jokingly said to Lance as they continued through the base. They had already come to one turn in the corridor and were continuing north now.
"Age means little when it comes to pokemon. Many young trainers experience great hardships and are forced to adapt quickly, becoming talented young trainers." Lance looked to Rina as he said this, smiling lightly.
"We also have our friends to push us to become better." Rina added.
"Age also does not dull one's experience." Lance then said, looking back to Agatha. "Once a trainer achieves greatness, it does not go away so easily."
"Hmph. Explain that to Samuel Oak then." Agatha replied in a sour tone. "Back in the day he was one of the best, now all he does is study them. His talent has gone to waste, it has."
"He's simply chosen to apply his talent elsewhere." Lance said to Agatha. As they reached an area where another corridor intersected their path, Lance came to a stop. Agatha and Rina then stopped as well and looked back at him curiously.
"This is as far as I go." Lance said to them, pointing at an arrow on the wall. The arrow pointed down the corridor branching off to the right. "Rina, be on your guard in the upcoming battle."
"I will." Rina replied with a nod.
"Do not worry, I have no intention of retiring early." Agatha said to Lance.
Lance nodded to them. "Alright, good luck to both of you then." Lance turned around, flipping his cape behind him and continuing off down the right corridor while Rina and Agatha kept going straight ahead. As Lance neared a door at the end of the corridor he felt the air getting a bit colder. There was no sign on the door to suggest what was inside.
"Suppose I should be careful of a potential trap..." Lance thought. He stepped to the side of the door and then carefully opened it. He then peeked inside and saw nothing except what looked like several freezers with pipes connecting them to the ceiling.
"Some sort of air conditioning?" Lance wondered. "But why would they need a central air conditioning room?" Lance stepped into the room and began to cautiously walk through the middle. As he neared the other end of the cold room he saw a wall of bricks covered in ice blocking his path.
"Thats a strange choice for an obstacle. I don't see what else it could possibly be, but its nothing Dragonite couldn't get through." Lance reached down to his belt and unclipped Dragonite's pokeball, then held it up and released him. Dragonite shivered as he materialized and felt the cold air of the room.
"-Hate the cold.-" Dragonite muttered.
"Dragonite, smash through that wall and be prepared to defend yourself after. There's no telling whats on the other side." Dragonite nodded and slowly walked up to the wall, stopping when he was an arm's length away. Dragonite then raised his arm back and slammed his fist into it, shattering both the bricks and the ice in a single punch. On the other side of the wall was an opening leading into the next room.
"Nothing? Lets keep going then." Lance followed behind Dragonite and the two of them walked through the doorway. The next room was set up like an arena, which was where they expected to find Freeze. Sure enough, the blue haired man was standing at the other side of the arena with the legendary bird pokemon Articuno standing before him. As soon as Lance entered the room a blue beam of light shone down on him from the ceiling.
"What is this?!" Lance yelled in surprise. The light faded soon enough, though, and Lance felt nothing from it.
"I call that the 'pokeball freeze'." Freeze explained with a wide grin. "It renders a pokeball unable to restore a pokemon to its true form, leaving the pokemon trapped inside until it wears off."
Lance took another pokeball from his belt and then tried to release a pokemon from it. The pokeball opened up, revealing the red glowing ball that the pokemon had been transformed into, but nothing happened. "I can't release another pokemon! Then that means..."
"Thats right, you're stuck facing Articuno with Dragonite." Freeze said, grinning widely. "I left that blockade there just so you would have your Dragonite with you when you arrived. Afterall, I want to have at least a little fun with your pokemon."
"You knew you would be fighting me!?" Lance replied, a shocked expression overtaking his usual calm demeanour. "How could you know so much in advance?"
"Thats a secret, and not one you will live to find out. If you thought facing a legendary ice pokemon with your Dragonite was bad enough, you haven't seen anything yet." Freeze clapped his hands. Several ceiling fans roared to life and snow began to fall from the ceiling. Fans at the back of the room started up as well, creating strong winds to send the equivalent of a blizzard toward Dragonite and Lance.
Lance quickly pulled his cape across his body, using it to shield himself from the blowing snow. "Now I understand why those machines were there...they create snow, for this." He thought. "This is going to be a tough one, I hope Dragonite can take it..." Lance looked hopefully at his Dragonite, bracing itself against the storm. The dragon pokemon would now have to face off against Articuno on its own, and while being pelted by snow.
"Umm...are you sure this is the way?" Rina asked Agatha, blinking in disbelief as she gazed around the room the two now found themselves in. It looked like a typical break room. There was a tv, chairs and couches to lounge around in, and two vending machines. There was also a spot for a pool table, though it was currently just empty space.
"Koga did say Mystique's arena was just through a break room." Agatha replied, then raised her cane to point at a door on the far end of the room. "I would say our target is just through there." Agatha looked back over at Rina, but she was already gone. She then heard the sound of a machine running and looked up to see Rina getting a bar from the vending machine.
"Mmm! They have all my favorites here!" Rina took the bar out of the machine and then turned to face Agatha and found the older woman giving her a cold glare.
"This is not the time to be indulging your sweet tooth!" Agatha scolded her. She whacked Rina's hand with her cane, forcing her to drop the bar. "We have serious work to do. Let us be on our way."
"Yes mam..." Rina whimpered, holding her wrist in pain as she followed Agatha toward the door. Agatha opened the door with her hand and then pushed it open the rest of the way with her cane. No traps were sprung by the door opening and the two of them walked into a fairly ordinary looking arena. A purple haired woman in a black trenchcoat stood at the opposite side of the field. A pink, feline pokemon, with a collar around its neck and a metal cap on its head, was floating around the woman.
"You two kept me waiting long enough. I can't believe you actually had the gall to stop for a snack." Mystique said to them.
"What? How did you know?" Rina asked in disbelief.
"Same way I knew you would be coming, and what would happen here today." Mystique replied, a grin spreading across her lips. "I had a vision of your arrival several months ago, and we prepared accordingly. You have no chance of defeating us now, I have already forseen the outcome!"
"Thats impossible!" Rina shot back.
"She is correct. Even if you had psychic powers, there is only so much you can tell. Glimpses of the future, and not necessarily accurate either." Agatha said.
"How true. But I have already seen your downfall." Mystique said to them. "You see, I have a particular psychic talent that you're not going to like. Observe." Mystique held out a hand toward Rina to focus on her. Almost immediately Rina's eyes went wide in shock and she dropped to the ground, curling up into a fetal position and whimpering.
"What did you do to her?!" Agatha demanded angrily, clutching her cane.
"Its quite simple, really. I forced her mind to recall her worst fears." Mystique replied with a wicked grin. "She will be forced to experience a neverending nightmare so long as I maintain a grip on her mind."
"Then I will put a stop to you!" Agatha reached into her apron and took out a pokeball. "Gengar, come forth!" She called out, releasing the purple ghost pokemon out onto the battlefield. A grinning set of teeth appeared first, and then the rest of Gengar's body faded into view.
"A ghost type pokemon, normally that would give you the advantage against a psychic type." Mystique said to Agatha. "However, your Gengar is unfortunately a poison type as well and thus weak to psychic attacks. Not only that, but the slave collar worn by Mew increases the power of its psychic attacks!"
As if to demonstrate this, Mew's eyes gave a blue flash. A blue glow then surrounded Agatha's Gengar as Mew focused its psychic powers on the ghost pokemon. Gengar winced in pain as it felt the psychic force pressing down on it and collapsed to its knees when the psychic attack finally ceased. With only one attack, Gengar was left barely able to stand and gasping for breath.
"As you can see, Agatha, your poison pokemon are just no match for me." Mystique proudly boasted. With Rina disabled by Mystique's psychic abilities, it was down to a one on one match between Agatha and Mew. A match in which Mew seemed to have the advantage.
Meanwhile, outside the base, Koga was vigiliantly guarding a small device near the entrance. The device held two pokeballs within and emitted a faint yellow aura. The device was channeling the power of the two pokemon, combining their abilities to prevent any pokemon from teleporting off the island. Though he was waiting for Red, he was sure any hunters that managed to get out would come straight for the device.
"Red is running late." Koga thought, looking up at the starry sky above. "I hope he hasn't decided not to come..." Koga took a quick look at his surroundings, but found nothing out of the ordinary. "I suppose I should relax. If there was any trouble then Crobat would be here to warn me."
Koga sat down on the ground next to the teleportation-inhibitor and took a deep breath. He didn't get to relax long before he sensed movement. He quickly grabbed the device and jumped out of the way, narrowly avoiding a large ball of electricity. Koga quickly looked up and saw an orange colored, humanoid looking pokemon with no feet and a pair of long tendrils instead of arms. He recognized the pokemon as Galactica's pokemon, but Koga also realized it looked different now. The pokemon was holding an unconscious Crobat in one pair of tendrils, which it then tossed to Koga's feet.
"Crobat!" The bat pokemon slowly opened its eyes and looked upon its trainer.
"Failed...I...have...-" Crobat wheezed weakly and then fell unconscious again. Koga quickly drew out a pokeball and recalled it.
"Seems you're as quick as they say..." Came a woman's voice. A middle aged woman, with cyan-colored bowl-cut hair and wearing the same black trenchcoat every other remaining hunter wore, emerged from the stairwell and came into view. "I call this pokemon Deoxys. Its a pokemon with many faces, and what you are seeing is its power face. This is its strongest attacking form. But I wonder...can you keep up with its speed form?"
For a moment, Koga was confused. But when he looked back up at the strange pokemon he saw it was shifting its appearance. Its two tendrils merged into one, and its body became more streamlined and thinner.
"Deoxys, circle." Deoxys dropped to the ground near Koga and then began quickly circling around him. The pokemon was moving almost too fast for even Koga to follow.
"What is this pokemon?!" Koga wondered. "It can shift from an offensive form into a speed form? I can barely keep up with it now!"
"Now, I am afraid we will have to finish this. I have places to go, you see, and that device of your's is proving to be rather annoying." Galactica said to Koga. "Deoxys, destroy them both. Psycho Boost!"
As Deoxys continued to circle around Koga, a pink aura seemingly crackling with electricity began to surround it. Deoxys was building power for an attack, and Koga was trapped in the middle. Eventually the pokemon came to a sudden stop and fired the large ball of psychic energy at Koga.
Koga braced himself, but just then a purple feline pokemon appeared between Deoxys and Koga using Quick Attack. A gem on the pokemon's forehead flashed and a blue aura surrounded the ball of psychic energy. It came to a stop just inches away from the pokemon's forehead. The pokemon, an Espeon, then thrust its head skyward and sent the ball of energy straight up.
"Hmm? Whats this?" Galactica looked up and saw a Charizard come in to land next to Koga and the Espeon. Red jumped off Charizard's back and then turned to face Galactica.
"Koga, I'll take over from here." Red said to him.
"Your timing is impeccable." Koga replied with a smirk and nodded to him. "I will leave this in your care then." Koga set the device down on the ground.
"Alright." Red nodded.
"My job here is done. Good luck, Red." Koga took off across the island and then disappeared into the shadows.
"So you must be Red, then." Galactica said with a smirk. "It hardly matters. You're no match for my Deoxys." Red glanced over at the psychic pokemon. A slave collar was fitted around its neck, with another snapped around its forehead and a metal bar connecting them. Red then looked back at Galactica and shook his head.
"No...I don't think you realize who I am." Red said to her. "If you did...you wouldn't rely on a single pokemon. No matter how strong it is."
"Oh? And why is that?" Galactica asked with a smug grin.
"Because I never lose."
Author's Notes: So! Final showdowns all around, and a chapter that basically exists just to set up a cliffhanger for everyone! On a side note, I think at some point I need to define a ninja's capabilities in the pokemon world. Just incase I ever decide to include one in the main cast. Oh yeah, and I need to start planning actual layouts when I'm going to have a base or something like this. Other than that, nothing else to say for a change...