Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, but I sure do love it!
A/N: This chapter shows how insane a certain person truly is.
Chapter 63: Inside Altru Tower: Part 4
"Sven, how's the trek going through the tower?" Linda asked.
"It's a difficult climb, but Wendy, Jim and I have been doing our best to help out Kellyn and Luana." Sven said.
"I'm glad that you guys are helping them out but…we have serious problems happening. The Ranger Union is coming under attack even more than before and even Keith, Crawford and Barlow can't keep up with the large amounts of Pokémon trying to swarm the place!" Linda said as we all turned wide eyed.
"Okay, Sven, how about Luana and I head over there?" I asked as Sven shook his head.
"No way Kellyn, you and Luana are much more capable of handling Team Dim Sun. If the Ranger Union ends up being taking over…there's no telling what will happen. Linda, can you give an estimate of how many Pokémon are attacking the Union?" Sven asked.
"How many? There's at least a hundred Pokémon running amok here." Linda said.
"A h-hundred? W-what about the Ranger Base?" Wendy asked.
"The Ranger Base attack was ceased after Barlow captured the Pokémon that were there. Elaine, Jen and Ollie helped with rounding up the grunts as well. The Ranger Base is safe, but Team Dim Sun's main concern is to bring down the Ranger Union itself. There are several citizens being attacked in Pueltown by the mind-controlled Pokémon, but Area Rangers are doing their best to help." Linda said.
"This is awful…Kellyn, Luana. The two of us are going to help out the Ranger Base, there's going to be a lot of chaos if it ends up being taken over!" Sven said.
"Can I help you guys out? I want Almia to be at peace, it's why I'm training to be a Ranger after all." Jim said.
"Yes! We need all the help we can get! Sven, Wendy, Jim, your help is more essential than ever. Come back with the gems once everything at the Ranger Union is finished!" Linda said.
"Got it! Kellyn, Luana, you two got this! We'll capture the rampant Pokémon attacking the Union and then come back here to help you guys out!" Wendy said as Sven quickly hanged up.
"Thanks Wendy. Sven, make sure that you, Wendy and Jim stay safe…it's going to be a very tough battle over there and here." Luana said.
"We'll do our best! Do you mind if we take Raichu and Vulpix with us?" Sven asked.
"Definitely, their Poké Assists will be helpful!" I said.
"That's exactly what I thought, thanks Kellyn! C'mon Jim, let's go save the Ranger Union!" Sven said as Vulpix and Raichu went over to the trio, who then said their goodbyes before running off.
"We should get going too Luana, let's take down Team Dim Sun!" I said as I pressed the elevator button.
"You bet! It'll be difficult to do…but we've faced many challenges before!" Luana said as the elevator doors opened.
Luana and I both entered the elevator with Pachirisu, Buneary and Eevee happily at our side. Despite whatever it was we were going to face on the upper floors…we knew that all of us had to continue, for the sake of Almia. Now that I took my time to observe the elevator, I saw that it went up to the fortieth floor.
"How strange…the elevator doesn't go to the rooftop or at least close to it! Oh well, let's keep trekking through these floors!" I said.
"That's the spirit Kellyn! We can do this, let's just stay as determined and focused as we've always been!" Luana said as I pressed the button, with the elevator doors soon closing as we began to rise.
"Haha, you bet we will! It feels a bit…surreal though, it's like how it was in the beginning, with you and I working together. I mean, for the rest of this climb, the two of us and our Partner Pokémon will be going up the tower…it's pretty reassuring then if just you or me had to do this by ourselves." I said.
"I agree, though I am nervous, I mean sure, we'll be on the fortieth floor and then we only got about twenty more floors to traverse…but it also takes us closer to Blake Hall." Luana said.
"You're right…it does. But we have to stop him before he brings any destruction to Almia!" I said.
"Blake Hall can have any Pokémon at his beck and call, but you are correct…let's take him down!" Luana said as we gave each other a high five.
Luana and I waited for the elevator to continue going up, albeit impatiently as we were feeling ready to face any challenges. A few minutes later, the elevator announced that we had reached the fortieth floor and its doors opened. We both stepped out to see several large wires running along the length of the large room, which was shaped like an upside down U, along with a doorway to our right and several large windows around the entire room.
"Wow, we've come a far way up…I'm curious to see how the Ranger Union's doing." I said as Luana and I headed over to the giant window.
I couldn't see the chaos in full detail due to the purple cloud that seemingly wrapped around the window, however, I could tell that the Ranger Union had taken some damage even from this distance. Nothing extensive, but it certainly wasn't as pristine as it always is. Seeing the Ranger Union like that really upset me and it only further strengthened our resolve to save Almia.
"How awful…I hope that everyone at the Ranger Union is going to be okay…" Luana said.
"Don't you worry, they will be. Let's head into this room!" I said as we went into the room.
Upon entering the room, we saw that it was an office room of sorts. A large wooden desk was to the right and there was a computer on top of the desk, there was also a small fridge and a few metal cabinets next to it as well. We walked further into the room when my Styler began to ring, which I quickly picked up.
"Hi Kellyn and Luana. I have great news for you guys, thanks to an update Isaac made, you two can now open the hearts of Pokémon even if they're under mind-control! It's already been installed in your Stylers." Marcus said.
"Really? That's awesome Marcus!" I said.
"It sure is, in fact, there's a Pokémon you can use it on in the same room you guys are in! Keep up the great work you two, we'll try holding down the fort here, the Rangers are slowly capturing the Pokémon without any issue." Marcus said.
"Thanks Marcus, we'll put your information to good use. Stay safe!" I said as Marcus hanged up.
"Now let's go find that Pokémon!" Luana said as we looked throughout the room before laying eyes on the desk.
The two of us slowly approached the desk and went around the side, spotting a Growlithe that was in severe pain.
"Oh no…it's okay Growlithe, we're here to help. Capture on!" I said as I made loops around the small Pokémon.
The Growlithe was in agonizing pain like the other mind controlled Pokémon that we've encountered, however, due to the Shadow Crystal's location being here and influencing the Pokémon and possibly the grunts, the pain the Pokémon were going through was much more severe. I made sure to make quick work in filling up the Pokémon's friendship meter as the sooner I do it, the sooner the Growlithe doesn't suffer. After making a few more loops, the Growlithe reacted by doing a fast moving Ember, which managed to char my shirt, since the damage was miniscule, I continued with making loops around the Pokémon and I successfully captured it.
Just as Marcus described, the mind-controlled Growlithe broke out of its trance and hopped towards me, though Luana was understandably concerned because of the burn on my shirt.
"Kellyn, how badly are you hurt?" Luana asked as she inspected my uniform.
"I'm alright Luana, I'm so glad that the Styler can capture Pokémon being influenced by the Shadow Crystal. Let's head back outside and see this floor in more detail." I said as we both headed out of the room.
Luana and I headed around the upside down U shape where we saw a sturdy electrical fence blocking us from the staircase to our left. On the right was a solid steel door with blue flames on the front and an Arcanine.
"You know what we have to do." Luana said as we jumped into action.
"Pachirisu, use Thunder Wave on that Arcanine!" I said as Pachirisu struck the Pokémon, making it unable to move.
I quickly made loops around the Arcanine while Luana repeatedly had Pachirisu paralyze it whenever it started to break free. The Arcanine's friendship meter increased slowly but surely, though the paralysis wore off as Pachirisu got tired. The Arcanine then unleashed a Flamethrower at us, which made Luana and I quickly get on the floor for cover. Once we got back up, the Arcanine tried to use what looked like a Fire Blast, luckily for us, I only had to do a few more loops until the Arcanine was captured. Once that was finished, the majestic Pokémon sauntered over and joined our Partner Pokémon, as well as Growlithe and Eevee.
Now that we had another Friend Pokémon to help us out, Luana and I were ready for Ice. We approached the doorway and noticed that the same wires we spotted upon entering the fortieth floor were going under the blue door.
"Alright everyone, let's go ahead and show Ice who's boss!" I said.
Luana and I looked at each other and we pushed open the door, knowing who we would be facing. The room itself was small, with the only thing inside being a large machine with a blue orb on top. The machine itself was nearly the size of the room and I put two and two together, realizing that the machine had to connect to the fence we spotted only moments ago.
"Looks like this thing requires a Field Move to destroy. Let's hurry up and destroy it before Ice comes here!" Luana said as I scanned the orb, revealing that it could be destroyed with a Pokémon that has a Burn power of four.
"Just what we needed, Arcanine, burn that orb!" I said as we prepared to destroy the orb.
Arcanine trudged forward to use a Fire type move, only to end up hesitating for a brief moment before walking back to us.
"Arcanine, do you sense something…or someone?" Luana asked as the room went dark.
A thud was heard in front of us, and a moment later, the lights came back on revealing no one other than Ice standing with his hands in his pockets. Ice took a few steps toward us with a smirk on his face, which made us all back up in response.
"Well now…if it isn't Kellyn and Luana. I'm glad you two have showed up after all this time, the boss was rather annoyed that you and your friends took back the three Gems. The boss was mad at me even when I explained that the entire thing was just a way to lower your guards. As I stewed in frustration about my defeat, I became frustrated to the point that I realized that taking my anger out on you two would be far better than anything else!" Ice said as he took out a Miniremo.
As Ice began furiously typing, I knew that whatever Pokémon he sent out would be as enraged as Ice was and that bracing ourselves for the opponent was the only option we could take. Luana and I heard the sound of metal being torn open, causing us to cover our ears. I observed where the noise was coming from…to the right of the blue orb, an appendage, identical to a Garchomp's, tore through the wall and in no time, the Grachomp swiftly forced its way into the room.
'W-we're…we're fighting…that?!' I thought as absolute horror came over me.
The Garchomp eyed all of us right before Ice hit a few keys on the Miniremo. All of us were clearly fear stricken, but I knew that hesitating or failing to act would lead to us getting hurt…or killed.
"Growlithe, we'll need your Poké Assist!" I said as I activated Growlithe's Poké Assist, which wrapped my Capture Line with flames.
Making loops around the Pokémon cautiously was important, as I was worried if I moved too fast, then it would retaliate and attack. Ice took note of this and typed in another command, fearing the worst, I recoiled my Styler just as Garchomp spat out two mud puddles despite its tired state. I quickly made a few more loops around the Garchomp, making sure not to slip on the mud puddles while the enflamed Capture Line tired the Pokémon out.
"Nice work Kellyn!" Luana said.
"Thanks Luana, get Buneary ready, I'll need to use her Poké Assist soon!" I said as Luana got Buneary into position.
Before either one of us could have Buneary use her Poké Assist, Garchomp began to glow a dark red, meaning that we had to head for cover. Eevee barely got out of the way before we were rushed at with a fast Tackle.
"Eevee? Are you okay?!" Luana asked as Eevee nodded, undeterred despite the close shave.
Garchomp ended up hitting the wall behind us and we turned around to see what Ice would have it do next. Surprisingly, Ice didn't have the Garchomp charge at us again, but instead made it spit mud puddles, covering the floor around it as I prepared to have Buneary use her Poké Assist.
"Alright Buneary, we need your Poké Assist!" I said as Buneary did a little dance, which helped boost my Styler's power as the Growlithe exited the room.
"Pachirisu, stun that Garchomp!" Luana said as Pachirisu successfully paralyzed the fast Pokémon.
Now that Garchomp was stunned and the Styler was able to increase the friendship meter faster, I then wasted no time in making loops around the Garchomp. Luana had to continue paralyzing the Garchomp every so often, due to the Garchomp being part Ground and shrugging off the paralysis faster than I thought was actually possible. However, I knew I had to remain focused and do my best in capturing this Pokémon while Luana and I had a pattern in place. Luana would paralyze the Garchomp whenever it would shake free from paralysis while I continued making loops around it uninterrupted. Eventually though, both Pokémon became tired and had to rest, meaning there were only a few seconds left before Garchomp would be able to move again.
"Heh, you two may have tried getting the best of me, but that ends now." Ice said as Garchomp's paralysis wore off.
Garchomp let out a fierce roar and began to charge directly at me, to make matter worse, my reaction was just like the Hyper Beam from earlier, with me being frozen in place due to fear. As I braced myself for impact, I saw Eevee darting right for the Garchomp as the large Pokémon was hit directly on its left side and went flying through the air. Garchomp wasn't able to move too much thanks to Eevee tackling it, though this certainly wasn't something that Ice would take well based on how red his face was.
"Garchomp! Get over here now, I have a plan." Ice said as he continued typing.
Garchomp limped over to Ice's side, with a smirk being prevalent on his face.
'This is dangerous…whatever plan he has in mind, Luana and I are going to be ready for it. We have to do this not for ourselves, but for everyone in Almia. Ice isn't going to stand in our way.' I thought to myself as Garchomp's arms began to glow white.
"Here's a little taste of what'll happen if you two don't back down right now." Ice said as Garchomp used Slash, sending a pair of swift moving white triangles at the wall behind us, which made a large gap in the steel.
"W-we're not giving up!" I said as Ice smirked once more.
"I must say that you two are quite determined. I assumed that you two nearly getting your heads taken off would have been enough to scare you two into leaving. I'm surprised to see that I was wrong." Ice said as Pachirisu hopped up.
"Even if we did leave, you'd be the type to kill us when our backs are turned! Now enough talk. Pachirisu, use Thunder Wave!" I said as Pachirisu stunned the Garchomp, angering Ice as I made loops around the Pokémon.
The Garchomp's friendship meter slowly filled up, it was at fifty six percent before Ice's demonstration, but now it was beginning to increase steadily. Luana then took over with making loops around Garchomp while I had Pachirisu continuously paralyze the Pokémon. By the time Pachirisu got exhausted once more, Garchomp's friendship meter had risen to seventy five percent and continued to increase even as the paralysis wore off.
"Looks like you two can't paralyze my beloved Garchomp anymore. What a shame." Ice said.
We ignored Ice and continued to make loops around the Garchomp. However, it slashed at the air, making the white triangles shred the floor as we stumbled out of the way. Eevee came out of nowhere and followed up with its previous attack by giving Garchomp a powerful Headbutt, making it almost hit Ice in the process.
"Alright Eevee, good work! Now let's beat Ice!" Luana said as I took over and made loops around the Garchomp.
Garchomp then charged up rather quickly and flashed a bright purple, its eyes seething with rage.
"Hmm, maybe one of our Partner Pokémon can do something…" I said as Garchomp began to rush towards us.
"Now Garchomp…use Draco Meter on those pesky Rangers!" Ice said.
"D-did Ice just say what I think he said?" Luana asked.
"I…I think he did…" I said.
"Heh, yeah, you all heard me right. Garchomp, go ahead and use Draco Meter." Ice said.
All of us, even the rage induced Garchomp, looked at Ice like the madman he was, none of us could comprehend what he just said as a last ditch effort to get rid of us.
"W-what…are you insane?! Using Draco Meter in an enclosed space, no less a building, would be the end of all of us." I said as Ice grinned manically.
"I know that…but what's your point?" Ice asked.
"The point? The point is that even if you forced Garchomp to use Draco Meter here, then you'd kill us, even worse you would end up getting your boss killed as well. Wouldn't that bother you at all?" I asked as I tried to talk some sense into Ice.
"I know that the boss would be happy to know that I got rid of the most troublesome Rangers to ever live…even if it ended up destroying the headquarters in the process!" Ice said.
'Nothing is getting through to Ice…he's so adamant about taking us out that he doesn't care if he and everyone else in this building goes with us. I have to think of something drastic…aha, I know what to do!' I thought to myself.
"Now then, enough talking. Garchomp, last time, Draco Meter." Ice said as Garchomp reluctantly faced towards us.
"Pachirisu, use Thunder Wave on Ice!" I said as Pachirisu paralyzed Ice and rendered him immobile.
"Nice work Kellyn, you just gave me an idea." Luana whispered.
"What's your plan?" I asked in a hushed tone.
"We can't destroy the Miniremos, but let's have Buneary try something." Luana said.
"I like the sound of that, let's do it." I said.
Ice glared at me with absolute fury and since he wasn't at the Miniremo to input anything, Garchomp was unsure of what to do and just looked at Ice.
"W-what are you staring at me for…? Go and k-kill them!" Ice said.
"Buneary, smash that Miniremo with Hi Jump Kick!" Luana said as Buneary sprang up and hit the Miniremo, shattering it as the machine broke into pieces.
With the Miniremo smashed, the trance that was over the Garchomp subsided and it regained its senses as it shook its head, trying to make sense of the situation. Now that the Garchomp was back to normal, it looked at us for a moment before smiling and heading out of the room. Turning our attention back to Ice, we saw that he was still struggling with the paralysis as we walked over to him.
"How did you manage to break my Miniremo…I don't understand…" Ice muttered.
"We figured that if people couldn't break it, then a Pokémon certainly could. It's over for you Ice." I said as our Partner Pokémon and Eevee jumped for joy, while Arcanine furiously glared at Ice.
"I must admit…the two of you beating me, I never thought that would have happened. Not bad you two." Ice said as Luana got on her Styler.
"Hello Marcus, we need a Ranger or two to pick up one of the Sinis Trio. We have to continue up the tower but leaving Ice by himself isn't an option." Luana said.
"No worries Luana, I understand. I'll be sending an Area Ranger your way right now. You're both in luck, she has an Alakazam as a Partner Pokémon, so she'll be there very quickly!" Marcus said.
"Thanks Marcus, we appreciate it." Luana said as she hanged up.
"So that's it then…I couldn't even escape this time. I didn't think you two would aim for me and the Miniremo." Ice said.
"We had to…it would only be a matter of time for Garchomp to use Draco Meter considering that it was under such harsh mind control. The fact that it resisted for so long despite that means that the friendship meter definitely played a role in keeping all of us alive." I said as a female Ranger and Alakazam teleported next to Ice.
"Hi guys, I'm here to take this scum to Almia's Prison. Marcus informed me of his dangerous status." The Ranger said as she cuffed Ice with zip ties.
"Aw c'mon gorgeous, you can't let me go?" Ice asked as the Ranger took out a handkerchief, which she then placed around Ice's mouth.
"No, now keep quiet. Alakazam, take us to Almia Prison please. Good luck you two." The Ranger said before the trio vanished.
"Wow…what a battle…we all did some great work!" Luana said.
"We certainly did, let's finish what we started. Arcanine, go ahead and destroy that Orb!" I said as Arcanine nodded and walked forward.
Arcanine arched back and used a fierce Flamethrower to melt the Blue Orb, which then turned to liquid as we heard a loud noise occurring outside.
"Thank you Arcanine, great work!" Luana and I said as the Arcanine proudly smiled before sprinting out of the room.
"Awesome, now let's head upstairs!" I said as we exited the room.
Just as I thought, the noise we heard outside was the electric fence being deactivated and promptly opening. Luana and I headed upstairs, as we were more than ready to fight whoever got in our way. The fortieth first floor was a wide open room with four doors, with two on our left and right. On the right hand side was what looked like a large metal counter with four red lights on the front…to make matters worse, there was an admin standing there as still as a statue, blocking what appeared to be a doorway. In the center of the room were bathrooms which were, oddly enough, isolated from everything else on this floor. Even though we were hidden from view, the main issue is that we could clearly see the admin…meaning he could definitely see us as well. Taking into account that the admin could most likely spot us at any time, we knew that going when he wasn't looking would be the best option, especially since he looked to be more serious than any other admin we've seen.
"Okay Kellyn, when that admin's not scanning around the room, we'll go over to the bathrooms where they'll provide us with enough cover." Luana whispered.
"I like that idea, let's go in…three…two…one…now!" I said as we all sprinted over to the bathrooms.
"Huh? I could have thought I heard some people running around…" The admin said.
'Uh oh…since the admin heard us, he'll definitely come and check up on the noise now. If that's the case, then we have no choice but to knock him out.' I thought to myself.
"Yeesh, how annoying. It's probably Franklin playing a stupid joke on me…he's lucky Leilani gave strict orders as usual. Bossy woman." The admin said.
"Good thing he's stuck there. Let's head into that room." I said as I motioned to the room directly in front of us.
Luana and I quickly headed into the first room and opened the door, wondering what we would see once we entered.