At The Gates of Devon
Arriving in Rustboro City almost felt like stepping into a crystal empire after their rough experiences in the past couple of days. The Pretty Petal Flower Shop had given them a comfortable place to stay for a night. Hilary and the bladers had been under the impression that after the flower shop the rest of Rout 104 was just a home stretch to Rustboro. Instead, they ended up having to stop for a night at the edge of a lake that was standing between them and their goal. A long pier network ran from one side of the lake to the other and was a popular hangout for fishermen and water Pokémon enthusiasts. After dealing with that they set up camp by a trainer garden before moving on.
Rustboro City was a real city in the way Hilary and the bladers were used to thinking of one. It was positively bustling with people. The roads were neatly sealed and the footpaths were paved prettily. The streets were lined with black, charmingly old-fashioned streetlamps and tasteful urban greenery. There were modern and high rise buildings with reflective surfaces gleaming in the sunlight. Yet between these were also the old, austere buildings from centuries past.
Hilary squealed delightedly when she finally stepped off the dirt track and onto a paved road. "We made it! I was wondering if we'd ever make it here at all."
"Why?" Max asked. "We were only on the road for a few days. It wasn't like we ran out of supplies or anything."
"I almost died in a forest trying to get here," Hilary bit back, "and you were almost murdered. We must be under a bad sign right now or something because terrible things keep happening one after another."
"You're letting superstition get to you," Ray interrupted sensibly. "Nonetheless, it is great to finally be here after running into all of those dilemmas. What should we do first?"
"Find the most science-y building in the city and get them to help us find Polygol Z," Tyson decided, taking up the leading spot and turning around with his fist in the air. "Let's get that thing and then get out of here!"
"Porygon Z," Mari corrected him again. "We should check into a Pokémon Centre first. Then we can settle down and figure out how to tackle the Pokémon Gym."
"Oh yeah," Daichi realised. "I forgot that was here. I can't wait to check it out."
"No!" Tyson protested. "Ponygon Z is a priority! It's been four days since we found that poster. For all we know it could be January already."
"Porygon Z!" Mari hissed.
"Tyson actually has a point," Ray conceded, "but so does Mari. Let's put our bags down and then search for some places that are likely to have what we need."
"Oh, that's easy," Mari said confidently, making Hilary and the bladers turn to look at her. "Devon Corp. is a big technology company with their headquarters here. Would be the most obvious place to start."
"Well if you already know that then forget about the Pokémon Centre," Tyson huffed. "Let's go! Which way to Devon Corp.?"
He was already tearing down the road before he'd even finished speaking, let alone letting anybody answer.
"Tyson!" Hilary screeched. "Where the hell do you think you're going?! Nobody's told where Devon Corp. is!"
He knew she had a point but Tyson didn't like to listen to anything Hilary said. He figured he could make an educated guess about which building belonged to the Devon Corporation. If they were a technology company their headquarters was probably one of those huge, shiny buildings. As he ran down the street, dodging people from side to side, he passed an alley. Someone quickly leaped out and collided with him. She was a woman judging by how she squealed – in a very nasally voice, it could be added. They knocked each other over. Something clattered to the ground between them. Tyson sat up, grumbling irritably.
"Hey!" they yelled at each other simultaneously. "Watch where you're going!"
"Wait," Tyson gasped. Now that he was looking at her properly he could see that she was wearing a black coat with a blue lining. She'd been wearing a hood but it fell back during the fall, revealing her face and her short, red hair. "I know you! You're from Team Aqua."
"Oh, shit. One of those brats," Josie muttered.
"Yo, Jose, why'd you stop?" yelled a man coming up behind her. He appeared from the alley wearing a similar outfit to Josie but with his hood up. He got one look at Tyson and growled. "You!"
"I take it I know you too, then," Tyson replied, getting up at the same time as Josie did. He looked at the space between them. There was a box-shaped package wrapped in a dark cloth lying on the ground.
"Ain't letting you interfere with Team business again," the Jake snapped, taking out a Pokéball.
"Oh yeah?" Tyson smirked, responding to the move in kind. "If you wanna go, bring it on. I've got a new Shoom that's been going through the ropes. Let's see how your water-type holds up against that."
"Forget about him," Josie retorted, leaning down to pick up the package. "Need to get out of here."
Before she could get her hands on it a Pokémon jumped down from somewhere above and landed on it. It was a white cat-like Pokémon with large ears and a long tuft of blue fur around its neck like a scarf. It folded its arms and glared at the Team Aqua duo challengingly.
"That's it, Mimi! Don't let them get away!" a woman called down the alley.
"Let's scram!" Josie hissed, grabbing Jake and slipping into the crowded street.
The cat-like Pokémon unfolded its ears, revealing the orange eyes underneath. Electrical energy surged between them and shot a Charge Beam into the streets. The beam missed both of its targets and shattered some paving. The Pokémon powered down and snorted disappointedly, folding up its ears. It searched the crowd but it wouldn't be able to launch another attack without collateral damage.
"Bad luck, Mimi," that woman said. She came jogging out of the alley, slowing down and letting out a long breath of air. "Next time we'll catch them."
The woman who'd just appeared must have just come from a laboratory or a hospital, judging by the white lab coat she was wearing. She was a fair woman with green eyes and light brown hair that was up in a loose bun with some flyaway bangs that may have come loose from the running. Her Pokémon turned to her and meowed apologetically before it hopped off the package, allowing the woman to pick it up. She turned to Tyson with a smile.
"Thanks for your help, kid."
"What? But I literally didn't do anything."
"If you hadn't stalled those guys I wouldn't have been able to recover this so quickly." She held up the package. "Small favours, even those that only coincidences, should never be overlooked."
"Aw, it was really no biggie," Tyson replied, grinning and rubbing the back of his neck. If someone was going to dish out compliments who was he to refuse? "Is that thing really important? What is it?"
The woman tucked the package under her arm and waved a finger at him. "Sorry, can't tell. Isn't for public eyes until it's been through more rigorous testing."
"Is that why you were running after them? Couldn't you have just left that to the police or something?"
"I was called over here because of recent worrying activity that only someone with my expertise could handle," the woman retorted indignantly. Suddenly she gasped and covered her mouth as if she'd said too much. Tyson's eyes sparkled.
"So you're like a spy! That's so cool! Do you have spy gadgets? Can you show me some? Is this your spy cat? What is it anyway?"
"Spy… cat?" the woman said confusedly. "What Pokémon is a Spycat?"
Tyson opened his Pokédex to consult it on the white Pokémon called Mimi. "Meowstic, the constraint Pokémon. The eyeballs under its ears readily emit psychic energy. It must keep its ears tightly folded up to hold back its immense power. It unfurls its ears to attack foes when threatened."
"Cool! Where do I catch one of those?"
"Not in Hoenn," she answered. Then she cleared her throat and continued, "But enough about that. The goods are secured, which means Mimi and I need to get back to work. Yeah, work. Our job, which is not being spies. Let's go, Mimi."
Mimi leaped onto her shoulder and in an act that defied the laws of nature the woman sprang up and landed on the roof of the nearby three storey building. Tyson gaped. Nobody else seemed to have seen that happen. That lady was definitely a spy.
"Tyson!" Hilary growled, running up to him at the head of the group that was catching up. She smacked him upside the head. "Why the hell did you think it was a good idea to run off like that with no idea where you're going?! This is how most of our problems so far have happened!"
"I am doing us a favour!" Tyson yelled back at her, stomping his foot angrily. "I am actually trying to find out how to get to Devon Corp. so that we can get back home before people start holding funerals for us!"
"Didn't have to run off," Mari interjected. "I know how to get there."
"Then why didn't you say so earlier?"
"You ran off," she deadpanned.
"Well, I'm here now. So where do we go?"
On the way to the Devon Corporation headquarters, Tyson tried to explain to the others about the bizarre experience he'd had with that professional-looking woman. Naturally, everyone was sceptical, except for Daichi (although it was probably possible to convince him that bacon grew on trees). It was duly pointed out by Ray that even if she was a spy, jumping a building in a single leap was a superhuman act and simply being a spy doesn't bestow people with that kind of power.
"Do people in this world have superpowers then?" Hilary wondered aloud. "I mean, if all the animals have superpowers then it makes sense that the people probably do too, right?"
"Depends what you mean by 'superpowers'," Mari answered. "There are definitely people who are psychic and some cases of people with super strength but humans don't have abilities on the same scale as Pokémon."
"Psychics?" Max said, raising his eyebrows. "What kind of powers do psychics have?"
"Telekinesis, telepathy, teleportation – genuine psychics can do some really impressive stuff, sometimes on the same level of psychic-types. Closest to a Pokémon's level of power that a human has ever achieved."
"Awesome!" Tyson exclaimed. "Do you think a psychic could jump a building in one leap? Or help us find Polygon G?"
"It's Porygon Z," Mari growled through her teeth. "Possibly. Before you ask: no, I don't know any psychics nearby who could help us." She looked up ahead of her and grinned. "Hey, almost made it!"
The building they were approaching was not the super shiny high-tech building Tyson was expecting. It was an old, brick building with arches, columns and pilasters and even gargoyles on the roof. It had a courtyard out the front paved in colourful bricks and complete with a fountain. The path leading up to the front steps was like a boulevard of fancy lampposts with people walking up and down leisurely.
"Is this old building really a technology company?" Ray asked sceptically.
"Yeah," Mari replied. "Makes all sorts of gadgets for trainers. Sure they'll have something that'll be of help to us."
They approached the building and went up the front steps. Everything about the building was aged from the worn concrete steps to the wooden doors with glass panelling. Inside wasn't much different. They had entered a grand reception room with an old-fashioned carpet and antique lights. The two receptionists each had their own desk, made of hard, dark wood. If there was any technology in the room it was cleverly hidden among the vintage finishes and furnishes. For example, Hilary and the bladers didn't realise that some of those small paintings hanging low on the walls were actually pictures on computer screens that, when touched, became interactive guides. The receptionists' computers were also touch screens imbedded in their desks where the writing board would be on a traditional desk setup.
"Why is this place so old-looking?" Daichi complained.
"Just the down-to-earth style the owner likes, probably," Mari shrugged.
One of the receptionists greeted them as they approached her desk. "How may I help you this morning?" she asked politely.
"We need one of your company's gadgets to track down a Pokémon," Tyson blurted out.
She nodded and immediately began searching through her computer. "I'll pull up a detailed product list. Won't take a second."
Not even a split-second later a set of elevator doors – hidden behind wooden panelling – opened with a ding and two people walked out, deep in conversation. It wasn't any of their business but Mari and Tyson couldn't help but start to overhear when they each realised that one of the voices sounded familiar.
"Again, thank-you for retrieving it so quickly."
"No problem. Will you send it back to the lab?"
"Main lab has no further use for it. It'll be secure here until it's ready."
"Hey!" Tyson and Mari exclaimed, breaking from the group to run up to the pair, much to everyone else's alarm. Tyson pointed the accusing finger while Mari clasped her hands and grinned up at the man in front of her with an expression of admiration.
"Spy lady!"
"Steven Stone!"
The woman Tyson had seen before was indeed one of the people who had stepped out of the lift. Her Meowstic was trailing her instead of confined to a Pokéball. She narrowed her feline eyes at Tyson. The woman growled and shook a fist at him. "Told you I'm not a spy! I just work here!"
Her companion was a tall, slim man with steel blue eyes and hair. He was dressed impeccably in a dark grey and purple suit with a red cravat. Thick steel rings adorned every second finger and steel armbands were clamped around his biceps. A shiny steel lapel pin and steel belt completed the tasteful accessorising.
"Pardon me but do we all know each other?" Steven asked.
"She's the spy lady who jumped a building in a single leap, I swear it!" Tyson said.
"No such thing happened!" the woman snapped. Mimi meowed her agreement.
Steven chuckled. "Have to say I can't quite believe such a thing. And how about you? Have we met?" he said, turning to Mari.
"Oh, uh, yeah, well… almost," Mari stuttered.
He squinted as he scrutinised her. "Hold on… actually, I do recognise you. Wanted to meet you in person for a while, Ms—"
"Really?!" Mari squealed, eyes lighting up with sparkles. "Oh, feel free to just call me Mari, or Mar. Don't feel comfortable with all that formal 'Ms' business."
"If you insist. Your battle record is extremely remarkable. Never seen anything like it."
"Oh, well…" Mari trailed, tracing circles on the floor with her toe and blushing. "Thank-you. Your compliment means a lot, really. Although, my great streak came to an end recently."
"Can't win them all," Steven said wisely. "It's how you pick yourself up after a fall that will truly define you as a person and a trainer."
"Th-thank-you," Mari gushed. "Course you would have such sage advice. We should go somewhere and chat, that is, if you really were looking forwards to meeting me."
"Sounds lovely but unfortunately I'm very busy this week. There were some urgent matters a few days ago and recent security breaches at Devon Corp. have only added to the dilemmas."
The woman beside him nodded. "Had to hire more company security but at such short notice it'll take a while to get organised. The interim is an ideal period for the criminals to strike again and have a chance at succeeding."
"Does that mean you're hiring trainers?" Mari exclaimed. "We're trainers. We'll take the job."
"Hey, hey, hey!" Tyson piped up. "We didn't come here for a job! We've got bigger fish to fry."
"Actually, we were," Steven said. "If you'd fill the positions for interim security that would take one massive burden off my mind."
"Did you just ignore me?" Tyson said aghast. "I said we're not look—"
Mari shoved him over as a way of interrupting him. "We'll take the positions. There's seven of us here; we'll gladly be of service."
"Seven of them plus the girl Roxanne recommended," the woman muttered. "That's perfect."
Tyson stood up growling. "No way! I don't want to get wrapped up with those Team Aqua goons any more than possible, especially when we've got a teleporter to track down."
"You know of Team Aqua?" Steven inquired, blinking at him.
"According to Mimi, they apparently also know of exactly the pair we're looking for," the woman said.
"W-what?! How did you know that?" Tyson spluttered.
"Mimi's psychic. These trainers would be the perfect candidates."
Steven nodded. "Would you ask your friends if they mind sticking around? We'll get someone to give you a brief and then assign you a position and a shift. Interim security should only be required until tomorrow morning."
"No trouble at all," Mari replied before Tyson could get a word in.
"Great. This really means a lot to me." Steven put a hand on Mari's shoulder affably before continuing to see his co-worker out.
"Omigosh~!" Mari giggled. "Steven talked to me! He wanted to meet me and wants my help. Gah! This is the best day ever!"
"Oh, really?" Tyson said bitterly. "Just wait until everyone else finds out what you've just roped them into."
"What have we just been roped into?" Ray piped up. Mari and Tyson gasped and turned around. The rest of the group was still milling around the lobby but Ray had come up behind them.
"Mari just randomly decided to sign us up for guard duty here," Tyson replied grumpily.
"Guard duty?"
"A temp job," Mari explained with a shrug. "Trainers often get hired for really short temporary jobs that need to be filled on short notice, no big deal. Really easy way to get money if you're on the road."
"Oh, that's good then."
"How is that good?" Tyson demanded. "She's setting us back here."
"The receptionist found the kind of product we're looking for. Problem is: it's a really expensive app for the PokéNav."
"How can an app be that expensive?" Mari wondered aloud.
"It's really new software, according to the receptionist," Ray explained. "Apparently it had to be adapted from software belonging to a different gadget and it's really sophisticated. If we get a bit of money from this job we could purchase it without having to worry about our finances too much."
"Even after all those battles we did on the lake?" Tyson groaned. "Fine, I guess we have to do this job then."
"Perfect!" Mari grinned. "I'll just go and tell the others that all of our problems are solved and we're going to be working with Steven Stone. This'll be great!"
She skipped off, leaving Tyson and Ray a bit confused.
"Why is she so excited about this 'Steven Stone' guy?" Ray asked.
"Beats me. He didn't even have to ask, all he did was mention the job and she didn't care about anything else."
"You seem really worried about it. Is there more to this job?"
Tyson folded his arms and nodded. "Yeah… Team Aqua." Ray's eyes widened and he waited for Tyson to continue. "I saw them earlier trying to steal something. They got away but that lady who was just here retrieved the thing they were making off with. What if they come back while we're on duty?"
Ray frowned pensively. "I guess we'll have to hope that they don't but keep your grass-type on the ready just in case."
"Right," Tyson sighed, taking out his green and yellow Pokéball to examine it. "I'll make sure Shoomie is ready for battle then."
"Tyson, we went over this at least twenty times yesterday. It's called Shroomish."
Jake and Josie waited for hours until they were sure that they hadn't been followed. They slunk through the shadows of the alleys and as the sun began to set they found a park with a pond for water Pokémon. They pulled their hoods down and took off their coats, since there was hardly anyone around. They both folded their arms and brooded over their current predicament while their Pokémon relaxed in the pond.
"We coulda gotten away with the device if that brat hadn't shown up," Jake growled.
"Tch. Boss won't be happy," Josie muttered grimly. "If we go back empty-handed like this there'll be punishment for sure."
"Whaddo we do, then?"
Josie was gloomy and quiet for a while before responding: "Have to try something else. If we put in the effort and still fail then maybe the boss'll be a little kinder."
"Whaddya have in mind?"
She pursed her lips. "Could go straight to the labs and try to steal the research documents directly."
"What?! You crazy?"
"Only thing we can do." She unfolded her arms and looked up to the sky. "Let's make a plan for now and strike during the night."
A/N: Hi, I'm back! And this time I'm on holidays. Not the kind of holidays where you go somewhere to do interesting things, the kind where I go back to my parents house for a few weeks and get free food and internet off them. So I'll do my best to return to weekly updates.
Sorry we marginally missed out on seeing 'Shoom' in action for the first time. Next chapter, I promise.