~Rosa~
"Are you ready?" I whispered, my feet slithering along the walls of the seaside cave while Lil' Shit's hot and musky breathe lay heavily upon the back of my neck. I wanted to push him away but that might be a little dangerous considering we were on a short ledge trying to keep out balance because below was a pair of Plasma grunts talking to each other. A little further and I would be able to hear as well as attack. Serperior was perched and ready beside me as well as my ugly-ass Mandibuzz who had proven herself a real warrior in the battle against Marlon just a few hours ago. She wasn't even harmed and I I had to admit seeing her take out a full on wailord was quit something. My heart went out to the carrion-eating bird, she was exactly the kind of partner I needed now.
There was also Emolga, who was proving herself a valuable electric type when in the right setting—like about now when the water coated the cave walls. I knew she could penetrate even some of the stronger rock types around here with her electricity and speed—she was good for that if anything.
Also on my team now was a raging, horny bastard I had recently found by pure accident and managed to catch. It was a Scrafty that literally couldn't keep its pants up—and as far as I was concerned Scraggy was the only pokemon known for losing them. The thing had been caught using its thumbs for bad instead of good twice now, and I knew that if something with that much aggression to let off in the form of wanking off while taking a break in training—well it must be worth something. Scrafty was a ruthless fucker that disgusted me, and yet I knew that this mission or this team would not be completely without him.
Arcanine, Serperior Mandibuzz, Emolga, and Scrafty were in it to win it with me and I knew that upon our sixth pokemon we would be the strongest we could be.
As for right now though… it was time to settle and old score—to make Team Plasma pay for what they had done to everyone who ever loved a pokemon. Tate could say that this wasn't my battle to fight all he wanted but I knew that deep down it was—it was everyone's battle.
"There's aint'a soul around. Not a trainer or a pokemon. Yah' wanna tell me the'fuck we were stationed here?" One of the grunts went on with his mission partner, who looked to be getting irritated at the sound of his voice. I couldn't say I blamed him; even for a grunt he was annoying to have to listen to.
"Just stop bitchin'." The other said. "As soon as you let yah' guard down we'll be runnin' into trouble."
I couldn't say I was sure where these grunts came from but I knew that they were foreign because they had the thickest accent lying heavily in their voice. It disgruntled me a little actually—how far had Plasma gone to recruit this time around?
I shook myself free of the worry and just focused on our plan. Emolga and Mandibuzz were on the other side, clinging to the wall ready to drop when I gave them the signal. While Serperior, Lil' Shit and I stood on the ledge about to come in for backup. Horn-dog, the Scrafty, stood back towards the entrance, twitching with pleasure at the idea of a good fight—I vowed to get his balls chopped off after these battles were over.
"Are you ready?" I whispered again in a repeated tone—Emolga heard me from across the cave, her large ears pricking with interest. I nodded once at her and Mandibuzz. "Go."
Within a heartbeat the two flying pokemon soared down from the ledge, letting out a fierce battle cry and created a vibrant echo beyond the ears of the grunts. They turned, horrified in the scene before them and fumbling for the pokeballs at their waists. Madibuzz screeched with hate, bowling into the first one messily while Emolga launched a very sharp and precise attack on the other. They both fell, shaking with pain and trying to cover their face from Mandibuzz as she threatened to pluck their eyes out with her talons. Emolga glided back around to a defensive pose while Scrafty ran forward, unable to control himself.
"Let's go!" I pushed Lil' Shit's face away from me, turning and slipping down the ledge to the awaiting grunts below. Serperior came crashing down with an array of sharp stones just behind me, his leaves rustling and his forked tongue spiking out between his dagger fangs. Gracefully he went hitching his tail up around one grunt and then the other until both were swathed by the eleven feet of my prize grass type.
"Ahh! FUCK!" The grunt snarled, a deep gash inside his head from where Mandibuzz had clawed him. The other was too paralyzed to speak—but I was happy because that was the one with the more annoying voice.
"Alright grunts!" I stepped up to them cracking my knuckles and trying to look intimidating (in the back of my mind I pictured myself with high black boots and a piercing gaze like Touko often wore when she was mad). "Start talking. I want to know just what Team Plasma is up to!"
"Never!" The bloody one cried as Serperior tightened his grip on them.
"Tell me or I'll ki—
"Hahaha…"
Freezing with a sudden realization I paused, my stomach sinking as an all too familiar voice came back to me—back from deep inside my memory where it had stayed hidden from now. That voice… that voice was…
A large, cold hand gripped my shoulder and mimicked the way Serperior squeezed the grunts. I nearly flinched, but held steady trying to push myself to look brave now that I could remember just who this was.
I hadn't exactly prepared to fight anyone else on this encounter… let alone this one person here.
Arcanine let out a hell of a snarl, crouching low and baring his long canines to the man behind me, hand on my shoulder so tightly—and yet somehow it was most intimate touch I had ever felt.
It was Colress, the pokemon scientist that had beaten me into the hospital back in the sewers of Castalia City. My heart began to pound as silence fell—all but a tiny fraction of my sanity screaming at me to defend myself—why did his touch make me frozen? Why did I feel like if I turned to see the sky blue eyes, rimmed beyond large clear glasses I would shatter and crumble and let him beat me again?
Wasn't I stronger than that?
Gritting my teeth I felt his hand move down my shoulder to the side of my arm, and then away gently, the latex of his gloves leaving a cold trail of goosebumps where it had just been. I shivered.
"My dear…" He murmured. "You're pup has grown…"
"Lil' Shit…" I was panting, my heart unbearable in my chest. "Flamethrower…"
He dipped his head at the command, prepared to launch the attack though Colress's hand only returned to my shoulder, and I felt him shift just so, softly out of the way until I stood between him and the flames rising in my Arcanine's throat. He paused, his eyes furious at the distraction. Serperior was too wound up in the grunts to stop him, and the other pokemon I owned hadn't seen the way Colress was, so they mistook his interactions with something of a friend of mine—after all he did touch me so carefully.
I felt like I couldn't breathe.
"Let me warn you." Colress dipped his face into my shoulder, inhaling where my hair slipped across my neck. "My beatings only get worse from here on out—call off your precious pokemon my dear."
"N—never!" I bit my lip and closed my eyes, prepared to feel his fist jab into my ribs again—just like last time.
However it was delayed, painfully delayed to a point where I wasn't sure if I should take a chance and open my eyes, or allow myself to breathe in his cologne scent. My throat felt weak, and just as I was about to open my mouth to command all my pokemon to attack another voice stopped me.
"Is this who you are?" it was deadly, a whisper that seemed to echo not through the cave but through the walls of my heart. However much, it was also familiar. "I never thought a lab-rat like you would make it to higher ranks."
"T—Tate?" I my eyes peered open to see the broad chest of the ex-shadow triad member right before me.
"This is my future…" Colress hissed.
"This is not your battle." Tate insisted, and for a moment I was sure he was talking to me—however his silver eyes pierced the individual who stood beyond me.
Was this not Colress's battle? Was this not my battle? Was this only ever meant to be Tate's battle? I didn't understand him as far as his priorities in fighting went, but I knew that for once I was grateful to have him here. Asshole or not Tate was dependable and wanted justice—he wouldn't let Colress beat me.
I swallowed my fear as the ex-Shadow member tilted his eyes downward into the crystal blue ones of the scientist behind me. Colress took a heavy breath, and the two seemed to exchange long lost hate towards one another.
"Step back." Tate said so delicately that I was sure Colress, nor my pokemon, nor the tied up and terrified grunts could hear him.
The hand disappeared from my shoulder though, and again I felt security.
"Return your pokemon." Tate then commanded.
"B—but—
"NOW!" His eyes turned down on mine, and I hadn't a choice but to reach for my belt and obey. One by one my team of five came back to me, and the two grunts instantly fled from the scene when given the chance. Colress was only just stepping back, trying to vanish into the darkness where he originally had come from.
"You don't know what you are getting yourself into." A careful voice came from behind me a way—somehow I knew those words weren't meant for Tate, but only for me. I shivered at the voice as Tate's firm and ice cold hands came around my wrists.
"He's right." The shadow whispered. "Rosa… You need to go home and stop fighting this war."
I shook my head, still too frightened to talk properly. "I—I ca—
Tate snorted in annoyance, looked both way and then sighed.
"Let's get you out of here…"
