Author's Note:
Time to answer the reviews (like anyone cares anymore). Sorry for the incredibly late chapter. School has started, and chatting with my friends, homework, school time, and Ragnarok Online has taken up a lot of my time!
M1DN1GHT: Yeah for tall guys with biceps! Yeah, unlike the role-play, which is dead. Isn't it closed yet? Everyone left. And you shall see their plans. Well, actually, something rather freaky.
Fjord Cannon: Yep. Even more. I am so uncreative. /gonk/
WildTotodile: …I really don't know either why the hell it did. Kind of a bad sign…
And this title is rather…explanatory of what is to happen.
Chapter Nine: Hostage"You make it sound as if we are going to die," Kyte accused, grinning even though a bit putout.
"We might," Des said rather gruffly, getting annoyed at Kyte's cockiness. "You never know what could happen when we come face to face with a murderer."
"More like a damn massacre from what he did at that dance," Ashley murmured, giving her head a bang on the café table before regaining her posture to leaning her head on her palm.
"Yeah. I still get the jitters just thinking about it," Amphie whispered, shuddering as she stuffed her arms into her pant pockets, frowning as she laid her head down sideways on the table.
"Don't worry honey. It's going to be all right," Lexus cooed with a smile, patting Amphie's hat, after a moment of looking around as to where Amphie's head was with a look that meant 'that hat is way too big'.
"And what if it isn't Lexus? What if something bad happens?"
"Then we'll deal with it. Together."
"This sounds like a video game…" Kyte piped in.
"What, you want a medal (a line from my mother)?" Ashley hissed, standing up and jumping down from the stool. "Now, let's get along with this. Basically, if he—"
"Wait Ashley! There's something on the television!" Des interrupted, pointing at a massive flat-screen in the shape of a Goldeen on the wall. Groups of people were huddled around the bottom of it, staring up, but mostly, everyone was watching from their own seats. The news was currently on, and a new situation had just broken loose.
"This is Rebecca Jones, reporting to you from Devon Corp, where we have just heard that a hostage has taken place. The hostages are not known, but a video tape was left just outside the massive company, and has been checked for bomb threats or any disease carrying bacteria."
"I swear, this region is completely over it," Ashley murmured, before returning her attention to the television by a few annoyed peoples' shut ups and hushes.
"And now, with the permission of Mr. Stone, the president of Devon Corp, we are allowed to show this video live." A click was heard, as suddenly, a glitch screen appeared, fuzzy and faded. A man was clearly seen, trying to speak, but no sound came from his lips.
"It's the murderer!" Des yelped in a hush, Ashley and Amphie nodding in agreement.
"You've got to be kidding me! He's only a few years older than I am!" Lexus squealed.
"And he's not much older than I am either. I thought we were dealing with an adult, not some rebellious teenager," Kyte agreed, shaking his head. "This will be way too easy."
"Just you wait until you see his Pokemon."
"Well, what's he got?"
"A discolored Metagross is all we know for now, although Abigail acts very oddly around him."
"Abigail?"
"My Absol."
"Ooh. Cute name." Lexus grinned, giving her a thumbs-up. Expecting one back, she continued to do this for a few moments, but at last gave up, as Ashley only watched her flatly, before slowly turning her head towards the television again.
"Too bad we can't hear him," Des mumbled. "Then we'd know his voice."
"I think knowing what he looks like is better than his voice, right?" Amphie asked hopefully, sitting up as tall as she could in her chair.
"Well, not entirely, if he disguises himself. But then, we could tell from his voice. No one can entirely mask their voice."
"That guy in South Park can. Umm, the guy that's missing an arm," Lexus points out, obviously trying to figure out what the man's name was," he can."
"That guy uses a microphone. He HAS to. He smoked for a long time, stupid," Ashley mutters, shaking her head.
"Oh."
The group then gave up on the sixteen-year-old teen and glanced back at the television, still of the man speaking, no sound as usual.
"But if only we could figure out what he was saying, then we'd have a clue!" Kyte yelled, shaking his head. "If only…"
"Figure that out yourself Kyte?" Des asked sarcastically, using his tail to give his seat a slight spin (as it was a spiny chair), therefore changing his position to face Kyte, a plain smirk on his face, fangs baring.
"Oh, don't fight, please!" Lexus pleaded, giving a bit of a sniffle, smiling innocently and giving the famous puppy dog eyes. The boys twitched, and gave a snort at each other before returning their attention to the screen. Lexus gave a sigh of relief, before she herself did the same.
"Well, where is it taking place?" Ashley asked impatiently, now returning to her seat in hopes of the reporter telling where it was.
"I think Devon Corp. Yeah, it was," Amphie surely said, nodding her head a few times.
"I hope your Grandpa is okay," Des said, concerned.
"He'll be fine," Ashley muttered, chin on her chest as she crossed her arms. "He always is."
"I say we head over there and check out what's going on. Maybe we can catch the guy in the act," Des said, nodding in his agreement.
"Yeah, I'll lead," Kyte announced, standing up from his chair.
"You don't even know where it is," Des retorted, standing up after him. "I'll lead."
Kyte mumbled gruffly, but stepped aside, allowing Des by to lead. Des then glanced behind his shoulder at Lexus, Ashley, and Amphie. "Coming ladies?"
"Yep!" Lexus jumped up quickly, almost falling over her platform shoes as she regained her balance quickly, flailing her arms out to the sides as she gave a sigh of relief, standing up fully. She laughed nervously, pink hair bouncing.
/…/
"Boy it sure is crowded!" Kyte exclaimed, as the group reached the back of the massive crowd outside Devon Corp. "How do we get through?" He turned to the others, waiting for suggestions.
"We could fly," Lexus suggested, cocking her head to the side and placing her index finger on her chin. "I can hover."
"Not all of us CAN fly," Ashley reminded Lexus with a smack in the back of the head, causing Lexus to squeal and hold the back of her head with both hands, cowering a bit.
"That's no reason to hit her Ashley. She was only making a suggestion," Des snorted, shaking his head. He looked down at Lexus. "You okay?"
Lexus glanced up, and nodded, grinning as she removed her hands from behind her head. "Err…nice hit?" she said more as a question over a compliment to Ashley. Ashley shook her head, and then gave a glance around.
"Wait. We can use the back door. I'm sure no one is there anyway. Never are. It's a bit of an emergency exit sort of thing. And I guess this would count as an emergency, right?" The others nodded in agreement. "Right. So, let's go then!" Ashley began walking around the throng of people, who pushed forward to get a good view. Policemen had set up barriers to hold them back, so it was useless to try and press forward.
Ashley, Des, Amphie, Kyte, and Lexus all made their way around the massive building, and towards the back of it. Lexus immediately spotted the door, and ran forward ahead of the others, eager to get in all of a sudden. "This could be my chance to become something big other than a dancer!" she squealed to herself, opening the door and taking a step in. Kyte pulled her back protectively, and Lexus gave a sort of a yelp at herself suddenly being pulled back.
"It's dangerous. I'll go in first," Kyte said to Lexus, gently pushing her towards the side of the door, so he could be allowed in.
"No way. I'll lead. You've never been in Devon Corp. anyway," Des retorted, in a bit of a growl.
"I want to lead!" Amphie cried, doing her best to go into the doorway. But then again, Ashley grabbed onto her shoulder, thrusted her back away from the door, and allowed herself in. The others watched a bit flatly.
"Are you coming or not?" Ashley asked impatiently, tapping her foot to show just how annoyed she was. The others nodded, and filed in after her, as Ashley gave a single nod and began to climb her way up the fire stairs, and onto the second level of the famous Devon Corp.
"Sure is big," Lexus commented, setting foot on solid ground, and making sure it was solid by hopping up and down. "And solid."
"Well, yeah." Des shrugged, and then glanced around down the hallway. "Thought I felt something. Higher up."
Kyte's ears swiveled, having also apparently heard the sound. He took a sniff of the surrounding area, and then nodded to himself. "Yep. Something up on one of the higher levels." He smirked. "Since when can dragon boy hear something higher up?"
"Felt I said," Des barked defensively. "As in I didn't hear it, nor smell it, mutt. I can sense things through this," Des's tail gave a smack on the ground, much like a beaver's only the pound was much, much louder, and seemed to make the ground crack a bit," My tail can feel floor vibrations."
"I'm not a mutt. ARCANINE. As in the fire canine that can easily whoop your ass, dragon boy," Kyte returned, growling and baring his fangs in retort. "And besides," he smirked," my dog ears and sense of smell can detect things better than any old tail."
"Why you little—"
"Quiet down, please!" Lexus and Amphie cried in plead. Luckily, the two boys gave a glare before backing away from each other by taking a step back, and only giving up the fight for now. The two girls sighed in relief before glancing towards Ashley for instructions, as she seemed to have made herself the leader.
"All right, if that little cat fight—"
"DOG FIGHT," Kyte mused.
"…Cat fight is over with, we can get on with our lives and go find out what's going on. But we'll need to figure out which floor the murderer is on." Ashley turned to Des and Kyte. "You. Mutt boy."
Kyte opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by a quick dash of Ashley, pushing his chest as he fell backwards. "Ow!"
"Sniff out the trail to him. Come on mutt boy. Do it!" Ashley hissed, giving him a kick in the shin to get him moving.
"…Quit it! You mean, I have to crawl around on the floor like a dog? No way. I'll look retarded."
"But don't you already now?" Des muttered, shaking his head.
"You can do it that way, or morph into a freaking Arcanine and get it done. I think the former one is much more amusing, but the latter might be more efficient. So, turn into a dog, boy. Do it."
"…How?"
"Think real hard about being what you want to become," Des instructed. "But only start with one part at a time. Like your face, becoming a snout, and a muzzle. Your flesh being covered with coarse fur. That way."
"Oh. Well, I'll try." Kyte closed his eyes reluctantly, and began to strain himself, this obviously seen from him clutching the carpet with his hands, and his face beginning to tighten, especially around his eyes. He also began to sweat a bit.
Okay, I can do this. Let's start with the face, like that guy said. Begin with the nose. Yes, that way. Make a picture of what I'm going to become in mind. The nose begins to lengthen, yes, and whiskers too. The muzzle forms. Now for the eyes. They enlarge, and the head becomes a bit larger and straighter. That looks so odd, my body with an Arcanine head. Ugh. But anyway, now for the neck. Become muscled, just like the head. Yes, lengthen too. And the chest, yep. Deepens out, flesh and bone become tougher and thicker. The flesh gains fur too. Orange and black. The legs grow tense and tough, and paw and claws form. The body grows longer, and of course, the tail. Fluffy and large. I guess it's used for balance too. Can't forget the mane either! There! Looks just like an Arcanine!
"And it worked!"
Kyte opened his eyes drowsily, and then glanced around at the others. "Woof!" Kyte then widened his eyes a considerable amount, before noticing that he had indeed, morphed into a canine. He jumped about six feet in the air at this, and made a complete flip, landing firmly on four feet.
"Well, it worked!" Amphie squealed. "Now, doggie, go find the scent!"
Kyte gave a growl, before lowering his muzzle to the ground reluctantly, sniffing a few times. He then froze, and lifted his head, looking towards the others and tossing his head sideways, indicating for them to follow. The others nodded, and followed after the canine, and down the hallway, and into the elevator. Ashley, Des, Amphie, and Lexus stepped inside the opened elevator, while Kyte looked towards the stairs leading up, and began to race up them with a blaze of speed, making him appear to be a blur flame. He easily reached the top in a second it seemed, and appeared impatient that he had to wait for the others to appear out of the elevator.
"Whoa. Talk about fast!" Lexus exclaimed as she exited the elevator, seeing Kyte sitting a few yards away, snapping his jaws to pass the seconds that seemed like hours to him for them to come. Seeing as they had come, Kyte stood on all fours, and began to walk down another hallway, the scent stronger than ever now. All five knew they were close now, but Kyte could tell even more, from his sense of smell, scenting the murderer, which may or may not come in handy later on, and hearing footsteps in a nearby room.
Lexus's ears pulsed, as she cringed a bit. Apparently, her ears were just as keen as Kyte's, if not better. "Over there," she said, pointing down the long hallway to a room at the very, very end.
"Now we'll meet that guy, face to face, and who he's kidnapped. Come on," Ashley urged, waving her hand for them to follow. Kyte set off at a slow trot down the corridor, seeming restless and jittery as he sidestepped a few times. Ashley gave him a kick in the hide, and he yelped, racing forward before looking back and glaring, fangs bared, teeth threatening her, yet again.
"Oh quit it you mutt. Just get going. I keep running into you," Des murmured, beginning to walk forward once more, Lexus and Amphie trailing behind him, Ashley, and Kyte. It seems they were either frightened, or trying out something. Apparently, it was the second of the two. Lexus was fluttering her small Clefable wings, holding Amphie by the waist, and attempting to hover, but not going anywhere from the extra weight.
"Would you quit experimenting and get on with it? We're not getting any younger!"
"Aww. Seems I can't left you Amphie. Maybe I can train, and my wings will grow larger and stronger, and then I can lift you!"
"Maybe! We'll have to see sometime!"
"NOW LADIES."
"Okay Ashley. Just, be calm."
"I am being calm! Get your asses over here right now!"
Lexus and Amphie followed orders, and remained a few feet behind the others as they opened the door at the very, very end of the hallway. Ashley turned the doorknob, seemingly not frightened in any way as she slammed the door open, letting it knock a hole in the wall beside it (which happened in Band class and is possible).
"Boy Ashley. Someone's pissed," Kyte murmured.
"Oh. Naughty Ashley. You'll have to pay for that later," came a male voice in the room. Ashley and the others jerked their heads to the area in which the voice came from, and spotted lurking in the shadows, a pair of yellow, lurking eyes.
"Later? We'll see if later ever comes for you, kid. Now, come on out!" Kyte commanded, hissing as his tail whipped forward, a thick and rather pointy bit pointing for the man in the shadows threateningly. "Show any signs of threat, and I'll freaking…fork you."
"Fork you? Why don't you say spear you?" Kyte asked sarkily, chuckling smugly.
"Because spear sounds like sparing, which we aren't going to do!"
"Very well. I'll come out, unarmed, as you want me to." He chuckled somewhat evilly, stepping forth, and yet to reveal his face from the dark hood over his head, bangs still shading his eyes except for an occasional glitter of his golden eyes. He raised his hands, and turned them to his palms and knuckles, showing no weapons, even though his hands weren't very visible from the overly long sleeves.
"So, who is it that you're exactly taking hostage?"
"I smell…STEVEN! WHERE HE IS? OH MY GOD WHERE?" Amphie began to search the entire room, sniffing out where he was, or attempting to, and using the glow on her tail to light dark places and cramped corners. "OH MY IT IS YOU! MINE!" Amphie clutched onto Steven in a death hold.
"Miss, please let go. You're constricting me…"
"You took Steven hostage? Why?"
"Because he's Mr. Stone's son, obviously. And he was visiting, for once in a few years. He's perfect," Des explained.
"Oh, it's that guy on the television I see so much. He collects rocks and stones. Some hobby."
"Who remembers Kyte turning into a human anyway? I didn't even notice. And I kind of wish I hadn't noticed now either." Des glared at Kyte, and knew he would be in for a thrashing by Steven for calling his precious treasures mere rocks and stones.
"…Rocks and stones? You call them rocks and stones? They are much more than that! They are great treasures of the earth! Beautiful gems and jewels! So much more than what you speak of them!" Steven yelled, trying to break free from Amphie's fierce grip upon him. And his legs and arms tied up by tough rope didn't exactly help matters much.
"Told you. Always get told off by him if you call them that."
"Like I care what he says. Let's just grab him and get going already!" Des moaned, making a move forward.
"Kyte get back here! You'll get hurt and then we'll have to rush you to the hospital and you'll die of poison and blood loss and ebola!" Lexus screamed.
"Ebola?" Amphie asked. "Talk about random." Lexus giggled nervously, but then turned her gaze back to Kyte.
"Please?"
Kyte mumbled, shaking his head as he took a step back. The murderer snickered, tossing his head to one side, allowing his long bangs to graze over his eyes and land completely on the other. His eyes then became truly visible, or one anyway. They know had a reasonable description of him.
"Can't we at least know your name?" Ashley asked, almost in plead.
"My name, is Sinal." He laughed. "But you won't leave with that information alive! Metagross, go!"
The miscoloured Metagross made its appearance in a flash, giving a robotic groan, its legs beginning to spin around threateningly.