Pokémon: Agent of Entei
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Flannery, as I quickly surmised, was right at home in the smoldering ruins of her town. She was also a bit scattered brained. She would point out burned out buildings and tell me what they were for or who lived in them before they burned into charcoal shells with dirt floors. She rode her Rapidash around happily. I rather liked her, strange or not. "So, as Gym leader of Lavaridge, isn't it your job to help your town?" I asked Flannery, seeing if she would be recruited to help. "Yup. I don't know how to handle it well though. Never been invaded before. I'm doing the best I can. I'm hoping Nate will be able o help me." "Nate?" "Oh. He makes sure everybody calls him Nathan. You know, white hair, Nathan Stone? Hunky?" Flannery told me in a dreamy tone.
I stopped asking questions. Roxanne had also called Nathan Nate. Brawly hadn't. Was Nathan in relationships with either of these girls, or did they just shorted his name? Why was I bothering with this? "Point is, can we rely on your help when we take back the region and save Hoenn this week?" I asked, skipping the pleasantries. "Without a doubt. And I should be able to help you personally." She added, almost in an afterthought. "What do you mean?" I asked Flannery, confused. She jumped down from her Rapidash and squeezed me while squee-ing, "Aww, the little fire user is so cute!" I broke free of her surprisingly strong grip and stood back. Victini made a low chattering sound and nudged my head in a 'you-sly-dog-you' gesture. I resisted the action of throwing the vampiric fire type off and stood before Flannery. "You dodged my question. Can we ask for your help?" "Of course. It is my duty to my town, the league, and my grandfather!" she told me happily.
I accepted this and considered my position. "What's the next step?" Flannery asked me. "We need to find a way of getting the other three members of my group up the mountain side. And we also need to collect our allies that are coming in to help." "Allies?" "Yeah, my older siblings, Manson and Julia Sheldrake. And their friends." I explained to Flannery. "Oh? You don't seem like either of them." "Oh yeah, they would have had to beat you to get out of the Hoenn league." "So I know a way we could get your friends up the mountain. I flattened some spots out on the mountain side by pooling lava. All we've got to do is take the ladder by the gym and relay it until we're down the side. It's stealthy enough that the Syndicate doesn't notice it. As for your other friends, they can all fly in." Flannery explained. We grabbed the large metal ladder and between the two of us we carried it out of town.
We slowly descended the mountain, climbing down the mountain on Flannery's lava rock platforms. It was slow, but when we got to the bottom we found the rest of group three exactly where I left them. There was evidence they had gotten up and moved around. Camp had been set up. A fire pit smoldered unhappily. The Pokémon sat around on guard. I walked into camp, unafraid of the Pokémon of my friends. They accepted me and Flannery, seeing that she was with me. I sprayed an Awakening on my three friends, who were roused from their deep sleeps. "Get up you bums! I'm not doing your jobs for you any longer!" I told them all as they shifted unhappily. "Jack you idiot. You're the reason we're not in town by now. Harold could have teleported us up the mountain side up these strange lava rock platforms they formed on the mountain side. We think Flannery or you had something to do with it." Jesse informed me sleepily. Victini jumped off my shoulder (where he had been for an hour now) and landed in the middle of camp. Instantly the Pokémon were on guard. "%$^#$^%&#!" he cried in gibberish, and all three of the other champions shot upright. A strange tingle went up my spine and I nearly sneezed. We four all glared at the legendary. He chitter-laughed again and flew back to my shoulder.
Nathan and Jesse's reactions to Flannery were interesting. Nathan got a pensive look on his face, then one of what seemed to be regret, and then finally a neutral face that showed neither pleasure or surprise. Jesse glared until she recognized Flannery, nodded in recognition, and then went back to glaring. Harold's expression could only be regarded by mirth. Someone's thoughts were funny, apparently. "Flannery" Jesse and Nathan said at the same time. Nathan was neutral, but Jesse was cold and angry. "Hello again you two trouble makers!" Flannery told them happily. "She got your message about me. For some reason you took three years off my age." I told them discreetly. Hopefully they would get the message. They all took a second to observe me, careful to not betray anything. "So I did. Did we get a base of operations yet, or the reinforcements?" "We have the gym building as the base, and Flannery has volunteered to help us. The first two groups are still on the way. We have another four days left until the projected deadline. We need to get you up the mountain side. We brought a ladder down, as this is one of the only ways into town that does not alert the Syndicate." I explained.
"If you had teleported up the mountain, the Syndicate would have been all over you in an instant. They have sensors for that type of stuff up at their base." Flannery explained. I shot the others a smug look and they rolled their eyes. "So… Victini. Why are you here?" Harold asked tentatively. "#%$^#$%!" "He's now a sponsor for the fire champion." I told Harold quietly. Flannery glanced at us oddly and moved on, directing the others back into the burned and war-torn town. The other three took the burned town in the way I had, carefully walking around the smoldering grounds and taking in the burnt buildings in a sad stupor. Flannery and I headed to the gym, where we waited for the others to arrive.
When they finally showed up we all went in. The fire gym was massive in construct, but the sandy and ashy volcanic floor didn't seem all that different from outside. Under different circumstances, where I didn't burn in lava (to death) I'm sure the gym would have been very interesting. As it was, I just slumped down tiredly on a park bench. Flannery took her Pokémon to her private healing machine. She had likely fought some Syndicate while she was out searching for me. Luckily they weren't a match for her personal Pokémon. The other three closed in on me for information. "Tell us everything you did and found out." Nathan instructed quickly as he glanced furtively at the door.
"I was going to try and take the cable car system up the mountain, because that's what you do in the games. But they had sabotaged it. It's not in use. I saw the guards switch, and the relief members came in from fire path. That meant that it somehow connected to the base at the top. I followed them into fire path and found an elevator. I met a level 45 Torkoal named Bruce. He's been alive for about five hundred years and was a Pokémon of one of the X-champions of fire from Ho-oh and Heatran. He accompanied me up the elevator after it came back down and he defeated some trainers before they could fight back. The elevator took us to a base in the middle of the mountain, suspended by these huge chains on the rim of the volcano. They use this suspended base as the mining base, as it leads to a series of tunnels built around the sides of the volcano. Bruce and I fought our way through the base, and I found a broken shaft that would lead to close to town. I took it. Tanner talked Bruce into coming with me. I swam in lava to get to the town. It healed me of anything that was wrong with me, but I can't do it anymore because I used up my resistance. Tanner caught a Slugma I named Holdin. Victini showed up and Entei told me that he was now sponsoring me. Victini gave me a Numel whom was named Agin. The Syndicate control the entire top of the Volcano, which is where they ship all their ill gotten loot out by helicopter to a base held by the Men in Black. All the expensive tech is up at the top. If we can take the top of the volcano, it will cripple the entire operation. Flannery knows about the threat and evacuated the towns people to the south east. The Syndicate number at about a hundred trainers. They are varied in strength, but none of them are as tough as we are individually." I surmised quickly.
The rest of the group took this in. Flannery came back out again, accompanied by a small brunette girl. "This is my gym Aide. She won't be fighting, but she can help around town. I've looted the mart, so we've got plenty of supplies." Flannery told us before she sat down. The gym aide scurried off. "So, any other good news?" Flannery asked Nathan. "The reinforcements should be arriving soon. They're all multi-region trainers, so they're strong. Then you've got us. If you hadn't heard, Wattson went loco, and we had to take him down. Dad's got him locked up in an old folks home or something. As such, we need a new Electric gym leader." Nathan told Flannery tiredly.
"You feeling okay Nate? You look paler than normal." Flannery asked Nathan, before she brushed her hand on his forehead. "You're burning up!" Flannery told Nathan before quickly withdrawing her hand, waving to dissipate the heat. "I'm fine. My name is still Nathan, just as it always has been. It's just rather hot up here. I'll be fine." Nathan told her before he smothered a cough in his elbow. Harold and I shared a look. Element sickness had struck again. Nathan saw us and hissed, "I'll be fine." At us again before he slumped forward. "How long has he been like this?" Flannery asked us. "Since it started getting hotter, probably. He's right about being fine, I'm sure." Jesse told Flannery carefully.
Flannery scrutinized Jesse unbelievingly. "Who the heck are you three anyways? I understand Nathan being wherever they're trouble, but why are you three here?" "I am Harold Golding. Psychic extraordinaire! I just was heading here to... see my Grandma." Harold lied smoothly. Flannery looked skeptic, but accepted this before turning to Jesse. "I'm Harold's older sister, Jesse. Ignore my annoying little brother." Jesse told her. Flannery narrowed her eyebrows and was about to call bullshit when Harold snapped forward fast as a snake and touched her forehead with his index finger. "You believe us unconditionally." Harold told her slowly and clearly. Flannery nodded, eyes glazed. Harold snapped his fingers and she woke up. She looked confused for a second before she shrugged it off and turned to me. "I am Jack Sheldrake. I'm on my Pokémon journey. Mr. Stone thought it would be a good idea for us to travel together some, seeing as Nathan is going to be dealing with lots of influential people in his future. It's always good to have friends, right?" I told Flannery. She looked like she was about to protest again, but then she simply nodded happily as her gaze unfocused.
Harold leaned back and shuddered. "I hate doing that." He muttered lowly. Flannery looked at him and Harold snapped his fingers again. Flannery was released from his spell. "So, how good are you lot?" She asked us. "I beat Wattson with Nathan. These other two beat Roxanne and Brawly." I told her, attesting for our skills. She nodded and handed each of us a TM. "Which are these?" Nathan asked tiredly as he held up his own case. "It's got my favorite Tm in it. It's TM 50, Overheat. Plus, it's made in the new Unovian way, so it won't ever break." Flannery told us as she generously handed over the powerful fire type move. I nodded and pocketed it, thinking about which Pokémon of mine could be trusted with such a powerful move. Then I realized fire didn't work on me, so I should teach it to all of them.
Flannery asked us some questions about the outside world, and we answered honestly unless it somehow involved some of our… misdeeds. Time passed quickly, and each of the four people around me slowly got more and more tired. I was still drawing energy from the volcano, but I was going to need sleep also. We had four days until the point of no return. Occasionally Flannery's gym aide would run in and report something, or ask a question. Flannery would give it some thought before she would give the aide some new instructions. Finally, Flannery looked over at the clock and announced we needed our energy for tomorrow and should go to sleep.
Flannery guided us to the Pokémon center. Joy wasn't there, but Flannery instructed us how to use the heal machine and swiped some room keys from behind the counter. Jesse and Harold split for their rooms and I supported Nathan until we found his, where I dumped him on the bed and released his smaller Pokémon. Then I left for outside again. I unleashed my twelve Pokémon and watched them interact. I also taught all my but Flare and Voltage Pokémon Overheat. I wondered vaguely if Manson would give me back Jackal the Mightyena next time I saw him. Flannery had retreated back to her gym to sleep and recover for the next day. Victini had run off but, I could still feel his presence in town, like a strong gut instinct. The night was lit by a smog cloud covered moon, and no stars could be seen. It was hot and muggy. Each of my Pokémon wandered around town. Frash and Xiuh went their own ways. Tanner rode Ignacia around as she looked for grass. The ash on the grass didn't bother her in the slightest. Agin and Holdin, my brand new Numel and Slugma sat right where I released them; Agin looking lost and a little confused, and Holdin smoldering angrily. The pack ran through town together in formation, patrolling. They might've been hunting, but the lack of wild Pokémon in the area meant they were unlikely to find anything. Bruce had wandered off.
Out of boredom and too much energy, I went to go look for Bruce. I eventually found him in what must've been the town's brewery, chugging bottles of alcoholic beverages by the barrel. His internal fire blazed merrily, as he decimated the stock of booze. I wondered vaguely if the Syndicate would be blamed when the towns' people came back. I wandered off. Something was wrong. I felt tired, and sluggish. Movement was slow, and my eyesight was hazy. It was like everything was being viewed from underwater. I headed back to the Pokémon center, to my room. I fell against the bed and knew no more.
Morning did not come when the sun rose. The clock beside my bed read 11:20, the latest I'd woken up in for about a month on the road. I felt groggy and had a headache. My Pokémon must've still been roaming around town. The water and electricity still worked so I took my shower and headed out. I found the pack camped outside the center. I let them tail me on my way to the gym. When I arrived I found Nathan looking just as miserable as he was yesterday. Jesse and Harold were training their Pokémon against Flannery, who was using some of the gym's weaker Pokémon to match them for strength. I sat down next to Nathan and nursed my fading headache. "I understand you getting sick, being so close to something that's effecting you. But why am so messed up?" "You just went three days without sleep. You're already recovering as we speak." Nathan grumbled unhappily as he tried to get some more sleep. I watched the battles between my friends and Flannery. They were running it three way, no trainer on each other's side. Flannery wasn't doing well, with her weakness to Jesse's water and two ice types. Harold only had his six Pokémon, whom were busy supporting each other behind walls of defensive psychic moves and occasionally lashing out with blistering psychic attacks. Harold's strongest Pokémon was clearly Thompson, his Mime. Jr.
The aide dashed in, out of breathe. "The reinforcements are arriving, and a Man in Black agent is coming down the mountain with some thugs to intercept them!" the aide cried. Flannery withdrew her Pokémon and swapped it for her own personal level fifty plus Pokémon. Harold and Jesse healed quickly. I called my Pokémon back, making sure I had all twelve of my Pokémon. Nathan picked himself up, pained but ready. We followed the Aide to the edge of town. Sure enough, one of the groups was descending from the air, and a small detachment of thugs were picking their way down the lava channel ridden volcano side.
Group two arrived in fashion, their flying Pokémon hitting the ground hard enough that dust and ash swirled around them while the flying grass type flapped its massive palm tree leaf wings. A Tropius, a massive flying grass type plant being, that bore exotic fruits and was rare and native to Hoenn. The two other flying escort Pokémon landed with more grace and finesse then when Tropius just dropped from the sky. A Pidgeot and a Honchkrow both lighted down gently beside the behemoth grass type. All five members of group five dismounted, ash covering them and all of them but Ace looking very windswept. I took in the second group of champions, my extended family.
Julia Sheldrake, my older Sister, champion of electricity. She dismounted the Tropius, looking happy to see us. Happiest to see me, and still very happy to see Nathan.
Clay, the champion of earth, dismounted the large Tropius, looking very happy to be back on the ground. He stomped his massive army boots together and threw a salute to Flannery and us of group three. Then he noticed the foe's coming down the cliff and moved to stand in defensive position.
Blake Trinity, another champion of Psychic type, representing the darker edge of the type. Blake was the last one to get off the tired looking Tropius, and he levitated down in the same way Harold could float around whenever he wanted. Blake observed everything and everyone before approaching Harold.
Mindy Trinity, the champion of Dark, climbed off the Honchkrow, whom she petted and handed some berries before withdrawing the large bird. Mindy then observed the group before wandering off to glare at the foe's coming down the mountain.
And Ace, the champion of Flying/Air. He got off the Pidgeot and gave the bird some berries before recalling it, and then sprayed a potion on the Tropius before recalling that too. Then Ace approached us.
Julia came into contact with us first. "Group three, it's good to see friendly faces again!" she called. "What do you mean?" I asked me sister. "Once you get through your second region it's less about the journey and much more about big world changing missions like this. That you're here makes this one unusual." Julia told us before grabbing me in a hug. I recalled her randomness in her mood swings and just went with it. Julia unhanded me and looked around the burnt up town. "Normally we're given more time to arrive. This must've really been only just discovered, or it has taken no time at all to happen. Such a shame. I really liked Lavaridge." Julia lamented as she gazed around the razed town.
Ace stopped by us. "If I recall right, Nathan, you were the champion of steel?" Ace asked Nathan. Nathan nodded glumly. "Sucks to be you right now. I know what you're going through. It happens to me every time I go into an underground base or a cave. The best advice I can give you is that if you power through it and don't let it get to you, it stops affecting you so powerfully. I wouldn't recommend throwing yourself in a puddle of lava like Jack used to be able to do, but you should find somewhere hot and camp out." Ace told Nathan. "Used to be able to? Is this because Jack ran out of resistance?" Jesse asked Ace. Ace raised an eyebrow at her and then glared at me. "Yeah. Something like that." Ace muttered.
Julia observed Nathan's sickness. "He's right about overcoming it. I've never had a ton of trouble with elemental sickness, so I wouldn't know what it's like, but if you can get some of your own element into you, it helps." "Are you telling me to go eat some steel?" "Sure, if you really have to. Maybe eat some meat, get some iron into you. Some Zinc and other minerals." Julia informed Nathan. Jesse turned to me. "You never explained why you're older. Now you've got a chance to do it and inform the other group members." Jesse told me smugly. "It's because he swam in the Lava." Ace said a little too quickly. The others stared at him and I glared. "What? Ho-oh and Moltres told me. He used up all their resistance they gave Entei to work with before Victini decided to sponsor him, so now he's older. He got healed by the magma as he swam in it." Ace explained. "What was swimming in lava like?" Julia asked me. "Very strange. It wasn't like swimming, and it wasn't like walking because it was still liquid. I couldn't feel a thing." I did my best to explain. "You didn't feel anything because the heat fried all your nerves beyond use. You're lucky you were healed after you got out." Ace told me.
Our little meeting was interrupted by Flannery. "The Syndicate is almost upon us. We've counted them out, and there's fifteen trainers being led by one Black Suit." Flannery informed us. "The Syndicate, eh? They were a pain in the side. Let's give them a beating they'll never forget!" Julia announced to us. All the champions cheered and broke to form ranks among the rocks and lava terrain. Ace didn't leave my side, and as soon as we were alone he turned to me. "You're a fool, Jack! You died! Nobody but Manson gets over that!" Ace hissed in my ear as we walked into positions. "How do you know all this?" I asked lowly. "Ho-oh and Moltres, just like I said. Listen, I won't say a word, but your friends aren't stupid. They'll figure it out, it's better to just spill the beans. Group two was too dysfunctional until Clay and I finally learned to work together. I can tell nobody in group three is loyal to it or the cause. You won't live like that. Just look at what happened! You died. Don't let your differences get between you lot, work together!" Ace hissed before he threw open the pokeball for his Pidgeot and took to the skies.
Clay's ground types were making trenches and pitfalls. Clay himself wielded a shovel with what looked like a granite head and was making short work of the lava rock and obsidian mountain side. Julia and Ace had hidden themselves up on outcroppings and huge rocks scattered along the mountain side, ready for ambushes and devastating ranged attacks. Harold and Blake hid themselves and their few Pokémon around the field. Neither of them had more than six. Nathan set himself up in plain sight along with Jesse, whom I stood with. Everyone was in position.
The trainers hid themselves, as if they didn't think we hadn't seen them. The Black Suited man looked just like every other Black Suited individual. He was tall, bald, wearing a black tux suit and white undershirt. He looked to be forty, and was tall and broad shouldered. A barcode stood out on the left side of his forehead. The Black Suit pulled out a Megaphone from his I.S. "We know you are down here! We have legal mining rights to this area! We must ask you to vacate the area, as being here poses a danger to yourself." The Black Suit called in a low threatening voice. "They always try diplomacy first, just in case we're travelers. They've tricked several people away this way." Flannery told all of us over the radio's we carried. Every champion had one in their I.S., and we were all on the frequency. Flannery stood up from beside me. The Black Suit noticed her immediately, and turned to her. "Ah. Flannery. Finally decided to give yourself up? We have been more than generous in our offers to recruit you, and to ask you to vacate. We even let the villagers escape. Are you ready to join us?" The Black Suit asked.
"Got to hell!" Flannery shouted up the mountain. The Black Suit smiled like she had said something amusing and lifted the megaphone to his lips. "You cannot win this Flannery. We know you have called in allies, although we know you did not try to contact anyone, just like you said you would. How did you do it?" "I didn't, they came because they're hero's!" Flannery shouted up the mountain. The Black Suit bend over double laughing, but the sound was lost in the wind. He held the megaphone up again and resumed his speech. "Flannery. You are beaten. You fought valiantly. Nobody expects anymore from you. But you've lost. We cannot allow you to escape, and we prevented the villagers from talking by taking the children, just like you knew we would. We respect your deal. Their safety in return for your silence to the other gym leaders and the league. We know you have not tried to contact anyone. But there is nothing more you can do. Give yourself up, or go home to your grandpa's gym. It does not matter what you do. You cannot beat us. We respect that you have not tried anything. Go home." The Black Suit yelled down the mountain. "Charming isn't he?" Flannery asked us beside her.
"Today it stops! The villagers are already free, and I myself have assured that the children are safe again!" Flannery shouted up at the Black Suit. The Black Suit frowned and called something in over the radio. He listened a good long while before he turned back to us. "It would seem that a fellow Black Suit associate has not done her job properly. She and ten Syndicate troops have been beaten and jailed. The Syndicate failed to report this in. Steps will be taken to ensure their silence. The proper people will be punished. But you. You have sealed your own fate. Troops! Kill her, and anyone that may be slumming around in the ash down there. When you are done, raze the town. Then pick up our fellow member from the gym and we shall be on our way." The Suit called to his troops. "Fellow member?" Jesse asked Flannery. Her face darkened and she growled out, "Tracie, my gym aide."
The Syndicate members broke cover and charged down the mountain side, a horde of Pokémon at their feet and in the air. "Take out the trainers, and break pokeballs. Many of those Pokémon are wild, and even from the area around here." Flannery radioed to the rest of the champions before the enemy hit the first layer of traps. Pitfalls and trenches hidden behind rocks and under ash took out trainers and Pokémon alike as they fell to their incapacitation. Nathan and Clays Pokémon attacked from below as the Syndicate trainers and Pokémon leaped over the trenches. Ace and Julia attacked from above with lightning and speedy dive-bombs, scattering the forces. The foes's were now truly broken and scattered, and were not ready for the charge of Jesse and my Pokémon. The psychic users and types lashed out their power over the field, taking down stronger Pokémon in the confusion. Any Pokémon that belonged to the champions took down Pokémon left and right, each far better trained that any member of the Syndicate. Flannery's Pokémon followed up behind mine with a second charge, dividing the enemy with a wedge. Flannery herself rode up the mountain on her Rapidash with her Houndoom at their side, heading right for the Black Suit, who frowned and threw out his own six Pokémon.
The battle the Syndicate waged was pitiful. Totally taken by surprise and weaker than us champions to begin with, the Pokémon fell where they stood, and trainers were rounded up by the psychics on the field. We had totally crushed their offensive. It was over in minutes, and I hadn't even had to get close enough to direct my Pokémon as they ripped through the ranks of bug and grass Pokémon on the field. Because the Syndicate was made up totally of trainers, diverse types were to be expected, but none were a match for the superior training put into each Pokémon that belonged to a champion. The Pokémon from group two must've all been level sixty by now anyways. As the last stronger trainers fell, the champions went over the rounded up and tied up groups of trainers, taking Trainer cards, money, I.S.'s, and Pokémon alike. I vaguely wondered if there were enough jails in Heonn to house the trainers of a super massive organization such as the Syndicate.
Flannery rode back to us, the Black Suit tied up and thrown over the back of Rapidash. He looked very undignified compared to how he had carried himself before, and we had to laugh at his expense. All in all, we counted thirteen trainers. Two must've escaped in the battle. Ace quickly set off, his flying type birds hunting for the missing thugs. We didn't want them to report back. We used the Trainer cards to tediously store or release the Pokémon belonging to the trainers of the Syndicate. There were so many local Pokémon we released noise returned to the forest.