Forces of Darkness
Chapter 17: Never Again
(Scene: The Vineyard of the Manor) 2100 hours...
A group of nuns stood watch near the entrance to the vineyard, heeding Chloe's warning of a suspicious vehicle nearby.
It was then that one of the nuns spotted a figure appearing from the dark path. The moon casting its light on a black cloth-like tarp.
"Who goes there?" one of the nuns asked the unknown person.
The figure stopped in silence and stared at the nuns. From what he was told by Otaku was that the best form of nocturnal and candlelight camouflage was a black tarp that was found in the trunk of the Jeep and that any other color (even the red R of the Rocket uniform) and any form of movement would make him an easy target. Still, he didn't really mind about being spotted by a seemingly peaceful bunch.
"I'll ask again." the same nun said. "Who are you and what is your purpose for being here?"
"I am the one that carries the sword known as Tadlos." the voice of Daisuke finally replied. "I have come to return this sword to its rightful owner: Mistress Altena."
"The Mistress is unable to talk to anyone at the moment." another nun stated. "But, we will be able to give her the sword if you'd like."
Daisuke clearly remembered from what Otaku said that he must personally hand Tadlos over to Altena, else it would not count towards his chance for freedom. (Also, if he brought along Charizard, the chance that he would damage the holy grounds of the Manor would be high, and, again, make Daisuke lose his chance to be free.) "I'm sorry." he said. "I must be the one to give Altena this sword."
"And we've told you that she is busy!" the nun retorted as she took a step forward. "Now, if you'd please-" Before she could finish her sentence, her foot fell through the ground. She blinked in shock before the rest of her body fell through a deep pit in the ground.
The four other nuns, taking this as a sneak attack from Daisuke, charged at the cloaked young man, golden guns and silver daggers drawn...
...Not even realizing that there was four more pitfalls in front of the intruder waiting to be tripped...
Daisuke closed his eyes shamefully, almost sweatdropping at the fact that no one can outwit a Team Rocket pitfall...
The sound of three cackles broke the short lapse of silence. Appearing from behind a row of grapes were the disappointed Butch and Cassidy and the cheerful Jessie, James and Meowth.
"See?" James said. "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again!"
"Now you can never say that we're a good-for-nothing team that did nothing to help you." Jessie added, directing her remark towards Cassidy.
"You still haven't..." Cassidy replied smugly.
"Why you..." Jessie stepped forward, ready to kick Cassidy's a-
"This is a very bad time for another fight to break out..." Daisuke informed, eyes still close, folding his arms inside the cloak.
"So... what happens now?" Meowth asked.
The cloaked teen opened his eyes and looked at his teammates one last time in a somber crimson-eyed stare. He then looked towards the faintly lit Manor, narrowing his eyes at what was to come... "I'm going to go in and find Altena, and give her back this sword." he finally said. He knelt down and picked up a discarded gold gun, once held by one of the nuns, now trapped. "If this is somehow a trick that Chloe used to lure me here, I'll be ready to counter..."
"And, what about us?" Butch asked as Daisuke slipped the gun through his belt.
"You guys have to improvise. The plans that you wish to carry out weren't made because you constantly fought with each other over these seven hours..."
The Rockets bowed their heads sadly.
"If there was one I'd like to see happen before the end," he continued. "is to see you guys get along during one mission."
"Wait..." Jessie said. "What do you mean by... 'the end?'"
Daisuke smiled slightly. "That this is a difficult mission for anyone to take up. I can see now why Wild Bill had troubles making it through one week of a wild goose chase."
"But, it's almost over!" James stated. "We'll be able to leave once you hand the sword over to Athena."
"ALTENA!" everyone, including the trapped nuns, corrected.
"Sorry..."
"But don't you remember what General said about what happened to Wild Bill in the end?" Daisuke asked.
"Dat'll never happen!" Meowth stated. "It's gonna be Chloe dat sees th' end an' not you!"
"WOB-BUFFET!" the annoying blue Pokemon added.
"I'd... really like to think that way..." Daisuke bowed his head. "But, Chloe is far stronger than I'll ever be. To be honest, I envy her prowess. I guess you can say that I'm lucky for surviving through this week... If luck wasn't on my side, I'd be dead while we're still in Viridian."
"Daisuke, quit saying such stupid things!" Cassidy belted.
Daisuke rose his hand out in front of his sister to calm her down. "...Just to be safe..." he quietly said. "...If this is the last time that we see each other, never utter my name to others ever again."
The other members fell into a silent shock as Daisuke hopped over one of the pitfalls and made his way through the vineyard...
"That's it." he continued. "You never heard of the Black Hat Bandit. There's no evidence or record that proves of his existence... As for the Yamamoto family..."
Butch and Cassidy's eyes widened as they braced themselves for the worst.
"...there is only three siblings: Butch, Cassidy and Mondo." With that finally off his chest, the cloaked teen slowly sauntered to the Manor.
"Don't you ever say that to me!" Cassidy snapped to her oblivious brother. "Those are nothing but a bunch of lies, and you know it! We'll see each other again when the day is done -- on this I swear!"
(Scene: A cliff overlooking the Manor.)
Mondo, sitting in the comfort of the Jeep, watched through the binoculars as Daisuke slowly advanced to the very final place of this taxing journey.
"Good luck..." he quietly said, cheering his brother on... not knowing how far he has fallen past the border of sanity...
To be continued...