Chapter 7: Missing
"Butch where the hell did you go?" Cassidy demanded when she saw him coming. Tears of relief flooded into her eyes as she threw her arms round him holding him close. Butch seemed startled by her sudden show of affection but hugged her back all the same. "Where have you been?" Cassidy repeated as they went inside. "I stepped out for a bit I guess" Butch said not remembering doing so himself. "I had to get some aspirin for my headache" "Butch you have to get this sorted" Cassidy said. "I worry about you" "There's no need Cassie" Butch said softly "I feel fine now" "If you're sure," Cassidy said. "But I still want you to take it easy ok?" "I will" Butch replied but he was more worried than he was letting on. What was happening to him?
Jesse yawned and opened her eyes. Outside she could hear the Pidgeys chirping and calling to each other. The sun streamed in through the gap in the curtains and fell on the space beside her in the bed. It was empty. "James?" she called thinking he was in the shower or something but then yesterday's memories came flooding back to her. The fight and the fact that James had lied to her about the future sight and he had done a viewing at the beach. Jesse jumped up and dressed hurriedly into a skirt and blouse before going downstairs. "James!" she called hoping he was in the kitchen. Meowth had been snoozing on the sofa and woke when he heard Jesse calling. "He didn't come back," the cat said softly. Panic gripped Jesse as she raced back up the stairs. He's left me was all she could think about as she ran. She could hear Meowth calling her. Jesse fought back the tears as she through herself down on the bed. I should never have reacted like that she thought as she sobbed bitterly. Now I've lost him and its all my own fault.
"Jesse?" she felt Meowth jump up onto the bed beside her. "He's left me" Jesse sobbed. Meowth sighed and got down and Jesse heard him opening their closet. "Jesse he hasn't left yous" Meowth said after a few minutes. "How do you know?" Jesse snapped. "Because all his stuff is still here," Meowth replied. Jesse sat up and wiped her eyes. Meowth was standing by the closet. All James' clothes were still in there along with her own. Meowth held up a Pokeball. "Weezing is here too. He'd never leave his Pokemon Jesse" "Then where is he?" Jesse asked. Meowth shrugged. Jesse had this bad feeling rising up in the pit of her stomach. James would have left them a note or something. He was always so considerate and would never leave them to worry like this. For the rest of the morning Jesse sat by the window hoping to see James coming back down the road but as the day wore on and there was no sign of her boyfriend Jesse started to panic again. She and Meowth went down into Saffron City and checked every hotel and bed and breakfast in the area asking the owners if James had stayed there over night. Soon it was evening and Jesse's panic had given way to despair. She and Meowth even checked the hospital but it was as if James had vanished. "What if he's lying hurt somewhere or worse," Jesse said as they stopped to think of a place to try next. "Jesse, Jim will be fine" Meowth tried to reassure her but he was worried himself now. "No" Jesse said remembering how pale James had looked yesterday. Purely by chance they had stopped outside the Saffron City police station. "There is something wrong" Jesse said. She started walking up the steps towards the station. She had made the mistake of not asking for police help before and she was not going to make that mistake again.
The Officer Jenny of Saffron City was a very busy woman at the moment. She had stacks of paper work and five murder cases and no clues as to who was doing this. Well ok this was not entirely true. They all knew who was behind this but the Darkness never left a clue behind to their whereabouts. This was all very disturbing and the press were starting to get wind of it. The last thing Jenny needed was them getting hold of this story and that the police had no idea how to stop the killings or where to find the perpetrators. She looked up when she heard yelling coming from outside her office. Jenny's deputy Jordan was shouting loudly and as Jenny stood up an angry young woman with long red hair burst into her office, a Meowth sitting on her shoulder. "I'm sorry Officer but they came barging in" Jordan said angrily "Do you want me to call security?" "We just need you're help" the woman with red hair snapped. "Is that too much trouble?" "What is the problem?" Jenny asked after telling Jordan to leave them and that the woman should take a seat in front of the desk. "My boyfriend's missing" the woman said tears forming in her eyes as she spoke. "I see" Jenny replied taking out a pen and paper. "How long has he been missing?" "Since last night we had a fight and I ran out. When I came back he had gone" was the reply. "Last night?" Jenny asked setting down her pen. "Miss you do know that a person has to be gone 24 hours before you can ask for police help in searching for them?" "Please" the woman begged. "Something bad has happened to him I just know it". Jenny didn't know why but there was something in those frightened and tearful blue eyes of the woman that made her want to do something. She supposed she could file a missing persons report anyway just to put the woman's mind at ease. "Ok then what's his name?" "James Morgan" That name sounded familiar to Jenny, she knew she had heard it before. "Ok I need you to fill out a couple of forms for me and we'll take it from there" "That's it?" the woman demanded. "I just fill out a few forms and you'll stuff them in a file with all the other missing people there are in the country. Aren't you going to send out a search party or something?" "Miss please calm down. Unless there is a real reason why we should be looking then I cannot send out a patrol to look for you're boyfriend" "I'll give you a damn reason then!" she shouted slamming her fist down on the desk. "Call you're cousin in Viridian City. Her badge numbers 34567 she'll give you the reason you need" Jenny sighed not knowing what else to do. She could get security to throw the woman out but she seemed concerned for her friend's well being and there had to be something seriously wrong if she was quoting an officers badge number and was panicking. "Ok I'll call her," Jenny agreed at last. "You can wait outside whilst I do that through". Jenny suspected that the young woman would cause a fuss about having to wait but she just got up and marched from the room. Jenny sighed again and picked up the phone. There had better be a good reason for this.
Jesse paced up and down the narrow hallway whilst Jenny made the phone call. Meowth sat on the floor watching her in silence. "I can't stand this!" Jesse cried after a few more minutes. "We're wasting time. I should have known going to the police was a mistake but I said to myself they'd help us like they did before. I should have known better. Police aren't interested in helping people like James and me. They'd rather help people like that stupid twerp who have things going for them. What do we have? I thought I had everything but all I really had was James and now he's gone too" "Jesse!" Meowth shouted hating to hear her talk this way. "James is fine. Yous hafta believe it ok?" Jesse opened her mouth to reply when Jenny came out looking shocked. "I've spoken to my cousin in Viridian City. She explained everything to me. I am so sorry I didn't listen properly a minute ago." Jenny motioned for them to step back inside her office. Jesse sat back down and Meowth climbed into her lap. Jenny asked her if she would fill out the forms anyway and Jesse did so in silence. She handed them back to Jenny when they were done. "Right" Jenny said. "Now can you explain exactly what happened Jesse?" Jesse told her everything about James lying to her and them having the fight and James vanishing. "Well that's good" Jenny said after Jesse had finished. "Good?" Jesse screamed. "What is good about my James being missing?" Jenny waited until Meowth had calmed Jesse before explaining. "Look what I am going to say next is in the strictest of confidence. Any breaking of that confidence will result in a few years in prison understand?" Jesse and Meowth nodded wondering what could be so terrible. "James is not the first ex Team Rocket member to go missing. Over the last week or so several other ex members, all male, have been reported missing. Their bodies were recovered a few days after we were made aware of their disappearances". Jesse cried out and Meowth buried his face in her lap. "James" Jesse whispered. "He could be lying dead somewhere too?" "No" Jenny said putting a hand on Jesse's shoulder. "Yesterday a boy was training his Pokemon in the Viridian forest when he found a body. My cousin identified it of the doctor Lillian Jackson." "Someone killed Lillian?" Meowth repeated. "We suspect that a new gang who are calling themselves the Darkness were behind this but they are very clever and as of yet we have hardly any information about them". "I've heard of dem," Meowth said softly. "Da Boss mentioned dem once. Deys were Team Rocket's rival gang. He told me dat Madame Boss killed dare leader back when she was in charge. Dares been no mentioned or sign of dem since. Giovanni assumed dat dey disbanded after dare leader died". "What has this got to do with James?" Jesse demanded. "Shouldn't you be looking for him?" Jenny frowned and seemed very troubled and reluctant to tell Jesse what she was thinking. "As you know all Team Rocket's HQ's were destroyed and any files they had burnt. However the Darkness got hold of some papers from the police station in Viridian City were stolen. They were papers containing information about Team Rocket's scientific experiments." "What?" Jesse shouted. "So they know about James' future sight?" "Not exactly. The papers didn't mention any names mercifully but this has been terrible for those poor ex rockets the Darkness caught up with before they got to James. My cousin has a theory that they were taking those male's finding out that they were not the ones with future sight and killing them so they couldn't tell anyone. Lillian was taken from the Viridian prison and must have told them exactly whom James is. He is in no danger for the moment as he is the one we assume they were looking for" "No danger!" Jesse shrieked jumping up. "How can you say that? Giovanni forced him into doing viewings that nearly cost him his life and you say James is in no danger. You have no idea who these psychos are. Why didn't anyone tell us what was happening in the first place? If you had then James would be safe" "Jesse please" Jenny pleaded. "This isn't helping" Jesse ignored her she was livid and besides getting angry would keep her from breaking down. Whoever this gang were they could kill James. Jesse stood up and raced from the room pretending to not hear Jenny and Meowth calling her to come back. She was not going to get police help in looking for James. Jesse was going to find him herself just like she had done before.
"You idiot!" the leader screamed at the trembling girl at her feet. "I told you to make sure she wasn't found!" "I'm sorry Amber I just." Rita trailed off as a gasp let up from the scientist at Amber's side. No one spoke Amber's name. "Madame forgive me" Rita begged, "I did not mean to." Amber smiled and knelt down beside the girl. "Rita you and I have been friends for many years. Do you really think that I would kill you? I forgive you. Go back to you're quarters and I will make sure that this little mess does not go any further" "Oh thank you" Rita whispered standing tears streaming down her cheeks. "Thank you" Amber watched as she left the room smiling patiently as a single shot rang out. "It has been done Madame," the guard said holding up Rita's dead body. Foolish girl Amber thought to herself. True I could not kill my childhood friend but that does not mean that I could not get someone else to do it for me. "You" she turned to the scientist "My men have collected our agent. I want you to prepare things downstairs." "Yes Madame" "Listen to me Garret because I will only say this once. I want the results back as soon as possible. I don't want you're excuses this time. We have been slowed down enough by you're incompetence. My master does not like to be kept waiting anymore than I do. And also remember that if you harm a hair on that agents head then you will pay with you're life. Understand?" Garret nodded fled the room terrified of Amber's wrath. The body of Lillian Jackson being discovered was only a minor problem. Rita need not have died for not hiding the body properly but Amber and her master needed to be strong. They could not tolerate weakness. Team Rocket had been a fantasy made up by a man driven crazy by lust for power. The Darkness was a force brought together by someone much worse. A sane man with the desire to accomplish what Giovanni could not.
"Butch where the hell did you go?" Cassidy demanded when she saw him coming. Tears of relief flooded into her eyes as she threw her arms round him holding him close. Butch seemed startled by her sudden show of affection but hugged her back all the same. "Where have you been?" Cassidy repeated as they went inside. "I stepped out for a bit I guess" Butch said not remembering doing so himself. "I had to get some aspirin for my headache" "Butch you have to get this sorted" Cassidy said. "I worry about you" "There's no need Cassie" Butch said softly "I feel fine now" "If you're sure," Cassidy said. "But I still want you to take it easy ok?" "I will" Butch replied but he was more worried than he was letting on. What was happening to him?
Jesse yawned and opened her eyes. Outside she could hear the Pidgeys chirping and calling to each other. The sun streamed in through the gap in the curtains and fell on the space beside her in the bed. It was empty. "James?" she called thinking he was in the shower or something but then yesterday's memories came flooding back to her. The fight and the fact that James had lied to her about the future sight and he had done a viewing at the beach. Jesse jumped up and dressed hurriedly into a skirt and blouse before going downstairs. "James!" she called hoping he was in the kitchen. Meowth had been snoozing on the sofa and woke when he heard Jesse calling. "He didn't come back," the cat said softly. Panic gripped Jesse as she raced back up the stairs. He's left me was all she could think about as she ran. She could hear Meowth calling her. Jesse fought back the tears as she through herself down on the bed. I should never have reacted like that she thought as she sobbed bitterly. Now I've lost him and its all my own fault.
"Jesse?" she felt Meowth jump up onto the bed beside her. "He's left me" Jesse sobbed. Meowth sighed and got down and Jesse heard him opening their closet. "Jesse he hasn't left yous" Meowth said after a few minutes. "How do you know?" Jesse snapped. "Because all his stuff is still here," Meowth replied. Jesse sat up and wiped her eyes. Meowth was standing by the closet. All James' clothes were still in there along with her own. Meowth held up a Pokeball. "Weezing is here too. He'd never leave his Pokemon Jesse" "Then where is he?" Jesse asked. Meowth shrugged. Jesse had this bad feeling rising up in the pit of her stomach. James would have left them a note or something. He was always so considerate and would never leave them to worry like this. For the rest of the morning Jesse sat by the window hoping to see James coming back down the road but as the day wore on and there was no sign of her boyfriend Jesse started to panic again. She and Meowth went down into Saffron City and checked every hotel and bed and breakfast in the area asking the owners if James had stayed there over night. Soon it was evening and Jesse's panic had given way to despair. She and Meowth even checked the hospital but it was as if James had vanished. "What if he's lying hurt somewhere or worse," Jesse said as they stopped to think of a place to try next. "Jesse, Jim will be fine" Meowth tried to reassure her but he was worried himself now. "No" Jesse said remembering how pale James had looked yesterday. Purely by chance they had stopped outside the Saffron City police station. "There is something wrong" Jesse said. She started walking up the steps towards the station. She had made the mistake of not asking for police help before and she was not going to make that mistake again.
The Officer Jenny of Saffron City was a very busy woman at the moment. She had stacks of paper work and five murder cases and no clues as to who was doing this. Well ok this was not entirely true. They all knew who was behind this but the Darkness never left a clue behind to their whereabouts. This was all very disturbing and the press were starting to get wind of it. The last thing Jenny needed was them getting hold of this story and that the police had no idea how to stop the killings or where to find the perpetrators. She looked up when she heard yelling coming from outside her office. Jenny's deputy Jordan was shouting loudly and as Jenny stood up an angry young woman with long red hair burst into her office, a Meowth sitting on her shoulder. "I'm sorry Officer but they came barging in" Jordan said angrily "Do you want me to call security?" "We just need you're help" the woman with red hair snapped. "Is that too much trouble?" "What is the problem?" Jenny asked after telling Jordan to leave them and that the woman should take a seat in front of the desk. "My boyfriend's missing" the woman said tears forming in her eyes as she spoke. "I see" Jenny replied taking out a pen and paper. "How long has he been missing?" "Since last night we had a fight and I ran out. When I came back he had gone" was the reply. "Last night?" Jenny asked setting down her pen. "Miss you do know that a person has to be gone 24 hours before you can ask for police help in searching for them?" "Please" the woman begged. "Something bad has happened to him I just know it". Jenny didn't know why but there was something in those frightened and tearful blue eyes of the woman that made her want to do something. She supposed she could file a missing persons report anyway just to put the woman's mind at ease. "Ok then what's his name?" "James Morgan" That name sounded familiar to Jenny, she knew she had heard it before. "Ok I need you to fill out a couple of forms for me and we'll take it from there" "That's it?" the woman demanded. "I just fill out a few forms and you'll stuff them in a file with all the other missing people there are in the country. Aren't you going to send out a search party or something?" "Miss please calm down. Unless there is a real reason why we should be looking then I cannot send out a patrol to look for you're boyfriend" "I'll give you a damn reason then!" she shouted slamming her fist down on the desk. "Call you're cousin in Viridian City. Her badge numbers 34567 she'll give you the reason you need" Jenny sighed not knowing what else to do. She could get security to throw the woman out but she seemed concerned for her friend's well being and there had to be something seriously wrong if she was quoting an officers badge number and was panicking. "Ok I'll call her," Jenny agreed at last. "You can wait outside whilst I do that through". Jenny suspected that the young woman would cause a fuss about having to wait but she just got up and marched from the room. Jenny sighed again and picked up the phone. There had better be a good reason for this.
Jesse paced up and down the narrow hallway whilst Jenny made the phone call. Meowth sat on the floor watching her in silence. "I can't stand this!" Jesse cried after a few more minutes. "We're wasting time. I should have known going to the police was a mistake but I said to myself they'd help us like they did before. I should have known better. Police aren't interested in helping people like James and me. They'd rather help people like that stupid twerp who have things going for them. What do we have? I thought I had everything but all I really had was James and now he's gone too" "Jesse!" Meowth shouted hating to hear her talk this way. "James is fine. Yous hafta believe it ok?" Jesse opened her mouth to reply when Jenny came out looking shocked. "I've spoken to my cousin in Viridian City. She explained everything to me. I am so sorry I didn't listen properly a minute ago." Jenny motioned for them to step back inside her office. Jesse sat back down and Meowth climbed into her lap. Jenny asked her if she would fill out the forms anyway and Jesse did so in silence. She handed them back to Jenny when they were done. "Right" Jenny said. "Now can you explain exactly what happened Jesse?" Jesse told her everything about James lying to her and them having the fight and James vanishing. "Well that's good" Jenny said after Jesse had finished. "Good?" Jesse screamed. "What is good about my James being missing?" Jenny waited until Meowth had calmed Jesse before explaining. "Look what I am going to say next is in the strictest of confidence. Any breaking of that confidence will result in a few years in prison understand?" Jesse and Meowth nodded wondering what could be so terrible. "James is not the first ex Team Rocket member to go missing. Over the last week or so several other ex members, all male, have been reported missing. Their bodies were recovered a few days after we were made aware of their disappearances". Jesse cried out and Meowth buried his face in her lap. "James" Jesse whispered. "He could be lying dead somewhere too?" "No" Jenny said putting a hand on Jesse's shoulder. "Yesterday a boy was training his Pokemon in the Viridian forest when he found a body. My cousin identified it of the doctor Lillian Jackson." "Someone killed Lillian?" Meowth repeated. "We suspect that a new gang who are calling themselves the Darkness were behind this but they are very clever and as of yet we have hardly any information about them". "I've heard of dem," Meowth said softly. "Da Boss mentioned dem once. Deys were Team Rocket's rival gang. He told me dat Madame Boss killed dare leader back when she was in charge. Dares been no mentioned or sign of dem since. Giovanni assumed dat dey disbanded after dare leader died". "What has this got to do with James?" Jesse demanded. "Shouldn't you be looking for him?" Jenny frowned and seemed very troubled and reluctant to tell Jesse what she was thinking. "As you know all Team Rocket's HQ's were destroyed and any files they had burnt. However the Darkness got hold of some papers from the police station in Viridian City were stolen. They were papers containing information about Team Rocket's scientific experiments." "What?" Jesse shouted. "So they know about James' future sight?" "Not exactly. The papers didn't mention any names mercifully but this has been terrible for those poor ex rockets the Darkness caught up with before they got to James. My cousin has a theory that they were taking those male's finding out that they were not the ones with future sight and killing them so they couldn't tell anyone. Lillian was taken from the Viridian prison and must have told them exactly whom James is. He is in no danger for the moment as he is the one we assume they were looking for" "No danger!" Jesse shrieked jumping up. "How can you say that? Giovanni forced him into doing viewings that nearly cost him his life and you say James is in no danger. You have no idea who these psychos are. Why didn't anyone tell us what was happening in the first place? If you had then James would be safe" "Jesse please" Jenny pleaded. "This isn't helping" Jesse ignored her she was livid and besides getting angry would keep her from breaking down. Whoever this gang were they could kill James. Jesse stood up and raced from the room pretending to not hear Jenny and Meowth calling her to come back. She was not going to get police help in looking for James. Jesse was going to find him herself just like she had done before.
"You idiot!" the leader screamed at the trembling girl at her feet. "I told you to make sure she wasn't found!" "I'm sorry Amber I just." Rita trailed off as a gasp let up from the scientist at Amber's side. No one spoke Amber's name. "Madame forgive me" Rita begged, "I did not mean to." Amber smiled and knelt down beside the girl. "Rita you and I have been friends for many years. Do you really think that I would kill you? I forgive you. Go back to you're quarters and I will make sure that this little mess does not go any further" "Oh thank you" Rita whispered standing tears streaming down her cheeks. "Thank you" Amber watched as she left the room smiling patiently as a single shot rang out. "It has been done Madame," the guard said holding up Rita's dead body. Foolish girl Amber thought to herself. True I could not kill my childhood friend but that does not mean that I could not get someone else to do it for me. "You" she turned to the scientist "My men have collected our agent. I want you to prepare things downstairs." "Yes Madame" "Listen to me Garret because I will only say this once. I want the results back as soon as possible. I don't want you're excuses this time. We have been slowed down enough by you're incompetence. My master does not like to be kept waiting anymore than I do. And also remember that if you harm a hair on that agents head then you will pay with you're life. Understand?" Garret nodded fled the room terrified of Amber's wrath. The body of Lillian Jackson being discovered was only a minor problem. Rita need not have died for not hiding the body properly but Amber and her master needed to be strong. They could not tolerate weakness. Team Rocket had been a fantasy made up by a man driven crazy by lust for power. The Darkness was a force brought together by someone much worse. A sane man with the desire to accomplish what Giovanni could not.