In the weeks that followed, we were drilled extensively. Jessee excelled at all of it; she ate, breathed, and slept her training. Her competitive nature gave her a fire that couldn't be quelled except through success. I on the other hand, while not trying to fail by any means, was simply trying to keep us alive, so while Jessee would wake up at the crack of dawn so she could get an extra few hours at the gym before breakfast, I was staying up late into the night reading up on our new boss and studying the schematics of this compound we were now trapped in. Trying to keep Pikachu hidden was a whole challenge in itself as well.
Nine weeks after we came to this place, Viper stood up in front of our squadron. "It's been over two months now, Recruits," he said. "You are now finished with your basic training, it is now time to start your field training. It is at this point that you will be assigned a partner. This will be your partner for the entirety of your employment here with Team Rocket, so it is imperative that you and your partner get along and learn to work together." Jessee and I managed to exchange quick glances as Viper continued, saying that we had all been given a time to meet with him in his office where he would assign us each to a partner in confidence. "Be sure to check what time you're meeting is, and don't be late for it. Dismissed." Viper's booming voice came over the training field. The entire squadron gave a uniform salute, then we turned and marched off in unison.
The meeting times were all assigned in alphabetical order by last name. But since Jessee's and my first and last names were exactly the same, it was a little challenging. However, I got to go first because I guess my middle name comes first. The next morning at 9:00am sharp, I walked into Viper's office and stood in front of his desk. It was a clean but unimpressive room. A couple of plaques, a few poke-balls, and a certificate of excellence adorned the walls and shelves, but other than that it was unexciting. Viper sat writing things on a large grid in front of him and tapping his pen against the table for a long time before acknowledging me. Finally he pulled a piece of paper out of a folder and slid it across the desk toward me. He explained as I stepped forward to pick it up. "This will be your first partner set. Each cadet is assigned to one human and one pokemon partner. These pokemon are different than any pokemon you might carry with you for fighting in battles. They are specifically trained for use in multiple types of scenarios, as well as trained to stay out of a poke-ball, so they will be much more useful to you than you're fighting pokemon. Should something happen, say you and your partners cannot work well together, you might be able to opt to be put up on the roster for a new partner. However I strongly would advise against doing this, as, should YOU prove to be a problem, we will not hesitate to terminate you. Is that understood?"
Something about how he said the word terminate made chills run up my spine, but I took a quick inhale and affirmed, "Yes, sir." I picked up the paper to see the picture of the person that was supposed to be my partner, but was mortified to see that it wasn't my sister. Instead, it was some kid with a long chin and seafoam green hair. I recognized him. He was that super lanky and really annoying kid that stood near the back of formation and was always trying to crack jokes and would not SHUT UP…! HE was supposed to be my PARTNER?!
"I'm sorry, Sir, but I believe there has been some sort of mistake." I stated, sliding the picture back toward the drill sergeant. Viper raised an eyebrow at me, folding his hands in slight irritation. "And what might that be…" He asked.
"My sister and I should be partnered together," I explained. "We work well as a team, and we are family, so we should stick together."
"We have a policy against pairing siblings with one another." Viper said calmly, going back to his paperwork.
"Why?" I snapped. "You yourself said that partners have to have a family-like connection with each other, as well as impeccable teamwork. What displays those qualities more than ACTUAL family?!"
"Putting family members in teams together creates conflict of interest." Viper shot back. "If I were to put you and your sister on the same team, who is to say if one of you got in trouble, the other wouldn't put Team Rocket's confidential hard work on the line to save them."
I slammed my fists against the desk, getting so close to Viper now, I could smell the coffee on his breath. "I demand that you put my sister and I together on a team, or there shall be some dire consequences." I growled.
"There will BE some DIRE CONSEQUENCES if you do not get out of my office right now, and meet up with your partners to begin team training exercises! Viper yelled back, standing up so fast his chair fell backward. "You are DISMISSED, Miss Jessica Newken!"
I gritted my teeth and snatched up the paper, crumpling the middle in my fist, as I stalked out of the room and down to the training hall to meet up with this loser.
I plopped my butt down on one of the aluminum benches surrounding the training field. I then pried the crumpled paper from my own fist, and smoothed it out to get a better look at it. This dork's name was Damian Willis, but honestly, who gives a care. Damian Willis…what a stupid name…I looked next to his image to what would be our partner Pokemon. "Please at least be something cool…!" I begged. "Something to make up for this major disappointment in a partner….!" I dared to open my eyes and look at the picture. Nope. Just some generic looking Machop. I growled. Fighting types were in no way my cup of tea… Oh, well. At least it would be strong enough, I guess…
About this time, Jessee came stomping onto the field as well. She stalked over to me and plopped down right next to me on the bench. "Who does he think he is…?" She complained. "Pairing me up with…THIS Loser…!" She clenched her piece of paper showing her partners in her hands.
"Tell me about it…" I replied, looking back down at my own paper.
"Clearly, the two of us are the only sensible choice for each other!" Jessee raged on. "What makes him think he can just split us up like that! What benefit is there in it…?!" I opened my mouth to reply, but she quickly held up her hand, "Don't. I don't even care…" She stared down at the paper in her hands for a while longer. "Well, I don't know about you, but I'm not just going lie down and take this. If someone wants to be paired up with me, they're going to have to go through quite a bit of trouble to get it."
"I don't really know if that's a good idea, Jessee…" I warned. "The way Drill Sergeant Viper was talking, if we were to prove to be too difficult to pair, there would be 'consequences'."
"Well, I'm not just going to sit around and be force to work with some lame-o who I don't even know or care about!" Jessee snapped back. "And if there is even a chance that we could manipulate this system to our will, you better believe I'm going to take that opportunity." She stood up. "Well, guess I've got to find this twerp and see if he really is as dumb as he looks. I'll see you tonight." With a final unenthusiastic wave, she walked away and I was again left alone. Not for long though, as I soon heard the familiar voice come up behind me. "So. You're gonna be my partner huh?"
I turned to see this Damian guy, in all his nerdtastic glory stretching and obviously trying to look tough and impressive. He flexed his biceps, creating a slight bulge if you had a magnifying glass. "Now don't be too intimidated," He said in his falsetto-laced voice. "I know I'm a sight to behold, but if you ask nicely, I'll let you feel them."
I rolled my eyes and let my head fall into my hand. This was going to be a long couple weeks….