Riker let the men run off after the defeat of their Pokemon. Patting Arlia on the shoulder, he sighed. "I was hoping for more of a fight..."
He waited another few minutes, after the lights cut back on, before Morice came running back, looking disheveled and worried.
"Where's Breccia?" Riker asked.
"I'm pretty sure those assholes got her." Morice said, heaving for a breath. "I heard her screaming from the bathroom-"
"And you didn't bust the door down?!" Riker snapped.
"You say that like I didn't try!"
Both men ran to the bathroom. The door had an obvious crevasse from where Morice tried to pry it from the hinge.
"Arlia."
Arlia didn't need the order, in one kick she tore the wood away.
There was obvious signs of a struggle, Breccia's lipstick rolled off into the sink and one of her shoes was kicked under a stall. Going through the back door, Morice walked a few feet before noticing her purse on the floor.
Both men saw the rubble a ways off, blocking their path. Arlia made an attempt to move it but was unsuccessful.
"The mansion wraps around." Riker motioned to Arlia. " Stay here and try to move the debris, in case Breccia circles back. There's probably more of those bastards running around, she isn't safe."
"This is ridiculous." Breccia complained. "All these doors and not a single one unlocked." There were plenty of windows, but she wasn't about to jump out of the second story and risk breaking a leg. Any doors she came across were sealed tight.
Still tired, Nibs was snoozing away on her shoulder, his tiny wings laying limp and his little snores echoing into Breccia's ear.
"When all of this is done-" Breccia complained. "I'm getting hammered. I deserve it."
Walking still, her barefeet cooled by the wood paneling, Breccia was deciding on what kind of liquor she preferred when she noticed two officers down the hall.
"Thank Arceus." She whispered, flagging the men down. "Have either of you seen Morice or Riker? The ceiling caved downstairs and I haven't been able to find them."
The officers, two men in matching black suits with walkies on their belts, approached her. One was built muscular with buzzed blond hair. The other was a bit smaller, still lean, with shaggy brown locks that swooped down to his ears.
"Don't worry ma'am." The Brunette said. "Dixon told us to keep an eye out for you." Instead of helping her or answering her questions, he ordered his blond friend to grab her.
"What are you-" The shorter of the two put a hand over her mouth as she fought and struggled with her captors.
"There's no point in screaming this time." He snickered. "We'll have our way by the time your little friends get to you."
Breccia didn't need to ask what was going on, she put it together instantly.
"I should've figured Dixon would pull this crap." She said. "Lemme guess, you take care of us and he'll turn the other cheek to your bullshit?"
"That among other things." Her persecutor stroked the back of his knuckles against Breccia's cheek, sinking lower to the base of her neck. "He told us to take out your two boyfriends...and do whatever we want with you." He tugged at one of the straps on her ball gown. "Now, if you're anything like that cute little technician, you won't put up much of a fight."
The sentence hit Breccia like a Butterfree striking the windshield of an oncoming truck.
Tess...
"You wish." Breccia snapped, kicking her leg and nailing him in the groin. She then kicked back and did the same to the man behind her.
Nibs, who was on her shoulder, bit down on the brunettes ear, receiving a sharp backhand into a wall.
Still weak from his explosive display earlier, Nibs fluttered to the ground and fell still.
"Stupid bitch!"
Breccia received the same treatment and was hit hard across the face. Before she could register the pain, a fist cracked into her nose, producing an instant stream of blood.
Two more strikes blackened one of her eyes.
Trying to fathom what just happened, Breccia was grabbed by the chin. Pulled closer, she could smell her attacker's rancid breath. "I was going to leave you alive for your boyfriends to find." He sneered, his nails leaving indents in her skin. "They'll be lucky if they find you in one piece!"
Breccia wasn't done fighting, stomping down on her holder's foot. That was enough to free her. The brunette tried to swing at her once more and she ducked. He knocked his buddy out instead.
Breccia lunged at the man in front of her, jumping and getting him down on the ground before taring at his face with her nails. She grabbed him by the side of the head and started smashing it into the floor. He flung his fist around and, once again, nailed her cheek, sending her senses into a spiral.
That split second of confusion was all it took for him to force her back onto the carpet, wrapping his large, veined hands around her throat. Straddled over her, he pressed his thumbs into the front of her neck, throttling the breath from her.
Breccia kicked and flailed, still clawing and punching. No matter how much she fought, her assailant was steadfast, squeezing tighter and tighter as her world began to fade.
A ways off, Nibs came to. He could sense the drama, but was too weak to move. He was helpless as he lay there, listening to his trainer as the very breath was squeezed from her.
Breccia tried to take a few gasping inhales, her limbs growing weak and her vision going white as everything around her began to spin. Falling limp, her mind made peace with the end.
I'm sorry dad.
I never made it up to you.
She thought of what Morice and Riker would think when they found what was left of her.
Take care of Nibs for me.
Just before she lost consciousness, a blast blew the assailant away. It missed her but sent her attacker flying back, leaving him in a heap of limbs.
Finally able to breath, Breccia took in a deep gasp. Rolling over and placing her forehead to the ground, she coughed, trying not to vomit.
She wiped the tacky blood from her mouth, her nose throbbing and her left eye swollen shut. Her arms and legs were still weak, making it hard for her to move.
I'm alive...
Nibs...
"Nibs!" She noticed the lack of bat on her shoulder and desperately searched for him.
Glancing up from her place, she expected to see a small, green, winged creature passed out near by. Upon looking however, instead of seeing her tiny Zubat, there was a much larger Golbat standing in his place.
Thinking she was knocked crazy, Breccia rubbed her eyes before looking again. "Nibs?" She stumbled to her feet and went to him. Though he was still small for his breed, he was larger than he use to be. When she called his name, he flapped his wings in excitement, waddling over to her. "You..." She collapsed to her knees in front of him. "You're...you're so big." She reached out and hugged him. "I'm so proud of you."
Nibs licked her with his massive tongue, running it along her face and leaving a line of slobber.
"Breccia?!" Breccia didn't hear Riker and Morice coming behind her until they called her name. Glancing back, they were running up the hall at her.
Seeing the bodies, it didn't take long for the men to realize what happened. (Nor did it take long to realize when they got a look at Breccia's beaten, swollen face.)
Riker picked her up off the ground, a bit rough as he snagged her by the arm. He didn't pay attention to the chaos around her, wiping some of the leftover blood from her chin. "What happened?" He demanded.
"I'm fine-"
"What happened?!"
"Riker, I'm fine. They got a few punches in but Nibs took care of them."
Morice didn't care that their superior was in the way, the moment he saw Breccia's state, he shoved Riker to the side.
Breccia could see the fear in his eyes and tried to be reassuring for his sake. "I'm okay." She said, welcoming when Morice stroked her cheek. "I promise."
Glancing over, Morice got a good look of Nibs. "Geez, someone's been eating his protein."
"He saved me." Breccia mumbled, sudden fatigue and weariness overtaking her. She leaned against her friend, balancing her forehead on his shoulder.
A ways off, one of her attackers grumbled, rolling in his unconscious state.
"Dixon had his hands in things." Riker said, situating the small mic on his collar. "I haven't been able to find any real officers in the mansion. If I wagered a guess, he pulled them from the building and sent his phony ones in."
Remembering what had been said to her, Breccia swallowed a painful gulp, nausea looming. "Dixon told them to kill you...and do what they want with me." A realization came through the fog of her sickness. Looking at Morice, she added: "They hurt Tess. Both of them."
One of her attackers came to, crawling in an attempt to flee when Morice grabbed him by the collar and smashed his face into the nearby wall.
Riker didn't bother stopping him and instead turned his attention to his other subordinate. "I'm sorry. I thought the two of you would be safe. Stotlar and I had everything planned." There was some obvious guilt on his end. It was his job to keep them both safe. "Did they do...anything else?"
Breccia shook her head. "No, but they tried." As she said this, Nibs waddled up behind her, wrapping one of his wings around her legs. "The way back is blocked. Unless you want to jump out a window."
"Arlia was moving the debris when we left her. Things should be cleared." Riker folded his arms. "I'll be having a word with Kelly once this mess is through."
"And you don't think Sanchez will mind?"
"I'd love to see him try and stop me."
After laying waste to the two degenerates, now bruised and beaten on the floor, Morice left them where they lay and made his way over. "Taken care of." He didn't bother going back, stomping off with bloodied knuckles.
Riker adjusted his tie. "Remind me to promote him."