What can I get for you today?" The store clerk asked. Lilac dashed forward, slamming his fists on the counter, and the clerk let out a small shriek.
"I need all of your potions, revives, and attack-boosts," He snapped, eyes blazing. Behind him, James glowered, arms crossed, looking like the special ability intimidate in human form.
"That'll be 999,999,999 pokedollars, sir."
Lilac pulled out his wallet and did a double-take. He didn't have enough.
The store clerk had put every potion, revive, and boosts the entire store held on the counter. She waited patiently.
"Oh my god, is that a Celebi?!" He cried, pointing to the door. The store clerk spun around eagerly- and Lilac shoved all of the potions in his bag. James, not the one to commit crimes on innocents, slapped Lilac on the back of the head.
"I guess not! Gotta go! Thanks!" Lilac exclaimed, making a run for the door. James was right on his heels, shaking his head.
Lilac, not really the athletic type, stopped running after five yards and put his hands on his knees, gasping. James glowered down at him.
"We don't steal! That poor girl is probably going to lose her job."
Lilac glanced up at him. "Well-"
"Hold it right there! Loss prevention services, at your service! Put your bag on the ground, hands in the air, and come with me!"
Lilac and James shared a look.
"I'm not running anymore. I'm going to die," Lilac whined.
"Shut up and run!" James snapped, grabbing the man by the shirt and making a run for it.
Seo-yun awoke in bright, well-lighted room. It smelled faintly of berries. She was suspended upside down, her long hair brushing the tile floors, her nose leaking blood against the white floors.
Everything hurt. There was a strange lightness in the air, as if they were in high altitudes.
"Good morning, Young Seo," a feminine voice murmured with an accent thick like honey. Seo-yun tried to look down, but her limbs felt heavy, as if suspended in water. "Don't try to get up- it will only result in more pain. Now, why don't we recount the day's activities?"
Just outside of her field of vision, there was the sound of footsteps, heels clacking on hard floors. Seo-yun tried to find her voice- but her jaw felt as if it were wired shut.
"Ah, yes. I forgot you can't speak- the paralyzing poison of my creation- has still yet to wear off."
There was the clinging of chains, and Seo-yun hit the ground with a grunt. Unable to get to her feet, she glared up at her captor angrily.
The woman before her was striking, in her late teens. Not beautiful, but cold and cruel, eyes glinting with distaste. Her caramel-brown skin was layered with scars, her bronze curls falling in ringlets down to her shoulders. She had an oval face, narrowed grey eyes, framed by thick black lashes. Her cheekbones were sculpted, followed by a prominent jawline. Yes, she was attractive, but terrifying. At her side was a rather possessive looking bipedal Pokemon, with the likeness to a cat. It's belly was gray, and it's paws were an electric blue, matching it's eyes. It was also quite large, standing at its full height it reached her shoulder. It stood next to her, tail curled around her calf protectively.
Zeraora.
She smiled, exposing white teeth and sharpened incisors. Like the man who had attacked Seo, she wore tightly-fitted black clothes, although with a more modern approach. Black leggings, a tight corset lined with red lace. What was strange, though, was the wrapping of bandages around her wrists and fists.
"My name, darling, is Ebony Plague. It's a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance," she said. "Do you wish to know why you are here, in my home?"
Seo-yun glared up at the woman.
"I am here, because my commander wills it. I am his... What do you Unovians say? His steel-trap backbone, if you know what I mean. Beautiful though I am, I have claws- and I know how to use them."
"You have been sighted with two... Extraordinary men. James and Lilac- both of which are incredibly talented in their own ways. Why don't we start with Lilac, grandson of the famous Agatha? He's 22, male, and single. But that's not what caught our attention."
Ebony got to her feet, walking in lazy circles around the fallen female. "Do you know what a Silph. Scope is? It allows the unseen to be seen. And imagine our surprise when we notice a particularly powerful Pokemon hanging around Lilac's shadow. We hope to capture it."
Seo-yun struggled against the invisible binds, but to no avail. The woman chuckled.
"And your friend, James. Boy, does he have a secret! When he was younger, Red murdered his best friend in cold blood. Now, he seeks the famous hero out to get revenge, hopefully bringing down the government along the way."
Seo grit her teeth, trying to find the strength to speak. "You'll never defeat them both," she managed the spit out through clenched jaws.
The cat-like Pokemon snarled, electricity cackling from his maw. Ebony seemed amused, reaching down to rest her hand between his ears. Immediately, Zeraora calmed.
"Darling- I already have."
Lilac shielded his eyes from the sun, gazing off into the sky. There seemed to be a floating ship in the distance, emblazoned with a team plasma logo.
It looked as if the man who took Seo-yun was headed there- although Lilac wasn't sure how he'd make it up so high.
They had followed the man for a mere 30 seconds before lozing him; he seemed to vanish completely in thin air. Even Malachite's keen nose was no use in tracking him.
"Got any flying type Pokemon?" Lilac asked, glancing over. James gave a slight shake of his head. The two gazed off into the forest, lost in thought.
"I reckon ya'll are gonna need a hand," a voice declared boldly from behind them. Lilac spun around on his heels, surprised.
Before him was a short girl with skin skin dark as freshly-tilled fertile soil. She looked up at the two, arms crossed, two Masterballs tied tightly to her belt. Her afro was dark and loosely curled, framing her heart-shaped face. Her overalls were cut into shorts, covered in mud. "Ebony Plague is a madder than a wet hen, and when she's mad, she don't tend to use her head."
Lilac glanced over at James. "What did she just say?"
"Do I gots to dumb it down for ya?" The girl asked, tilting her head.
"My name is Ivory Blossom," she said very seriously, as if reciting from a script. She still had a faint western accent, but it was understandable. "And Ebony Plague is my sister. I can get you to the ship, for a price."
James stared down at the girl with narrowed eyes. "And why should we trust you?"
"Because even if I love my sister, it's about time she got snake-bit by an Arbok. She's been on her high-horse for too long, and it grinds my gears," Ivory finished. She stepped forward, shrugging her shoulders.
Lilac frowned. "What kind of names are 'Ebony Plague' and 'Ivory Blossom?"
"That's not our real names, stupid. We just use 'em when we work," Ivory snapped. "Do you want my help or not? I reckon you should come to a decision soon, 'cause Ebony likes to feed prisoners to her Pokemon."
Seo-yun slowly got the feeling back in her limbs, although she feigned paralysis. It had been hours. There was the sound of feet slamming against tiles, and the man who had kidnapped her burst through the door.
"Team Plasma has been infiltrated. Shall we put into place Plan EXC-W9?" He asked, breathless. Ebony smiled.
"No. Allow them to fight their way to me. I have plans for those two."
James grunted with pain as he stumbled down the hallway, favoring his left leg. Luna whimpered and walked in stride with him, many tails swaying with every step.
He and Luna had fought several battles, all of them ending with them as the winner. Although James had found it somewhat difficult in some cases, he still felt like they were being duped- as if their enemies had taken it easy on them, allowed them to win.
The latest battle was a testimony to that- one of the grunts had a Nidoking, who even James doubted that Luna alone could take down. Instead of attacking, it took to using rest for half the duration of the battle. The other half it just raised it's evasiveness.
Lilac was nowhere to be seen, which was good. The fucker had ran down the hall, barreled into James, who bumped into Malachite- who was so surprised that she spun around and sunk her fangs into James' upper thigh. Luna descended upon Malachite with a savagery, and it was a mess.
In order to keep the two angry 'mon apart, they separated- and James needed space. He was tired of the human presence.
"Are we getting close, Luna?" He asked, looking down at the blood seeping down his pants. God, did it hurt.
His beloved partner nodded her head, picking up the pace. They followed the hallway to the end, and it lead to a password encoded door.
Ivory had given them the passcode upon arriving on the ship on her Hawlucha, before promptly vanishing with the likeness to a ninja. He now knew half of her team- and wondered what lay in the unused Masterball.
"Are you ready?" He asked with a smile, reaching down to pet her behind the ears. "Whatever's behind this door- we can't lose. Seo-yun's life depends on it."
The fire-type nodded in understanding, before turning to face the door. But just as he reached to punch in the numbers, the door opened.
"Welcome, James."
Lilac walked down the hall, Malachite tightly concealed in her ball. He didn't feel too comfortable with her roaming the halls right now- twice she had tried to run back and attack Luna in her frenzy, and Lilac had the dangerous task of reigning her in with his bare hands. She had bitten him quite a few times.
But he understood her well. He knew why she was often absorbed in a sort of rage, inconsolable, even at the best of times. It was hard, having your old trainer's death on your hands- especially when it was Lilac's mother. He didn't blame her. It wasn't her fault.
"You look like you've got a lot on your mind," A man said. He was so quiet James hadn't even seen him.
The man was tall and slim, with a dark hue to his skin. His hair was short and black, falling in thick waves to his ears. His white shirt was baggy, spilling over his khaki pants, and his leather jacket was rumpled. At his side was Feraligatr.
Lilac immediately reached for the Pokeballs in his satchel, wary. "Who are you?"
"The name's John Manson."
"Why are you here?"
"For my own reasons," he said, seeming slightly irritated.
"Are you strong?"
John Manson's face quickly changed to anger. "Stop asking me so many questions, or my Feraligatr will crush you."
Lilac's grin widened as the Pokeball in his bag shook- most likely Malachite trying to jump into the fight.
"We'll see about that, won't we?"
James sucked in a breath as he took in the scene. A young woman, hardly out of her teens, standing over Seo-Yun. For a second, for one terrifying second, he thought she was dead. That is, until, he caught eyes with her. She offered him the smallest of smiles.
What do you want with my-" James couldn't bring himself to call her a friend. It would be acknowledging something powerful, easy to lose, like- No. He would not think of Baurus right now. "With Seo?"
At his side, Luna bristled with rage at the sight of Seo-yun's bruised form. It was quite obvious she was sick- her skin was paler, blood dribbling from her mouth. She looked like she was in pain.
"Surprised? Don't worry, she isn't dead. I've poisoned her with a mixture of Tentacruel venom and Shroomish spores. She's so paralyzed, she can't feel a thing," Ebony Plague said with a smile. As if to prove the fact, she raised her leg and kicked the woman in the face, knocking her head back.
Seo-yun bit back a cry of pain.
James's eyes sparked with a kindled rage, and he clenched his fists. The sight of Seo-yun, writhing in pain on the floor, yet unable to scream made his blood boil.
"And what do I want with her? I want Lilac's little friend, and your battling experience- on my team."
James let out a laugh. "Yeah, sure. I'll join your sadistic team of criminals," he said, voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Perhaps I'll have to convince you otherwise," Ebony murmured, shaking her head and clucking her tongue. "How disappointing. I wanted you and your Pokemon in one piece. Very well- I will show you my power."
The woman clapped her hands, and Zerarora jumped forward, fur bristling as it glared down at Luna. Suddenly, James was petrified. He'd seen that look of distaste on a human face only once before- and it ended with Baurus, dead.
"Luna, return!" He commanded, and Luna yelped with shock as she was pulled into a ball. He didn't want any of his Pokemon to die, but he couldn't handle losing Luna. Losing Luna would mean losing his mind.
He released his Aggron, Reuben. The massive Pokemon was so heavy that the tile floor cracked beneath the strain of his weight.
"Zeraora, use Plasma fists!" Ebony snapped, eyes blazing. The mystical electric type clenched his paws, blue electricity snapping from his claws. Quickly now, the creature jumped forward, fists raised.
"Reuben, use Earthquake!" James countered, jumping to the side to get a better view. The ground began to rumble, the very ship shaking and groaning from the move.
"Are you fucking insane?" She cried, but James wasn't listening. Zeraora jumped to the roof, suspended upside down by it's claws, snarling.
"Magnet rise! Follow it with Close Combat!" Ebony commanded, still shaky from the ground-breaking move. Zeraora landed back down in a crouch, electric blue eyes trained on Reuben. And then, seemingly out of nowhere, he rose, suspended from the ground. Even faster now, he charged through the air, ready to pummel the rock and steel type.
"Reuben, wait for it..." James murmured as the electric type crossed the room, growing closer. Reuben growled nervously. "NOW! Dragon tail!" He yelled, and the Aggron spun around, slamming the brunt of his tail into Zeraora. The combined force and momentum from the two powerful Pokemon let loose a powerful crash, and the lighter Pokemon was tossed back, slamming into the wall.
"Go, Rowlet!" Lilac yelled, pumping his fist in the air. John let out a laugh.
"Are you serious? You want to use that little thing, against my starter?"
Lilac's gaze darkened, and the bird pokemon puffed up angrily, squaking. It spun it's head all the way around, facing Lilac with a steely glare.
"For fucks's sake, just turn around and fight!"
The bird Pokemon hissed angrily, spinning around and attacking Lilac's face with sharp talons. John watched on in disbelief.
"Not me, dammit! It's about time you did something around here- oh, you know what? Fuck it. Go, Malachite!" Lilac yelled, picking up the stupid Rowlet and chucking it down the hall like a baseball, past John.
Malachite popped out of her ball, glaring at the water-type. She didn't even wait for a command- she leapt for Feraligatr, claws outstretched.
"No fair! You're supposed to wait! You shit!" John yelled, as Malachite sunk her electricity-coated fangs on the weaker foe. And then, from behind, Rowlet flew speedily down the hall, making for Lilac.
But instead, found John's head instead.
"Did you really think you could defeat me?" Ebony snarled, gazing down at James with a look of disgust. Five of his pokemon lay fainted, and Luna lay down wounded beside him, whimpering. He reached out, smoothed back her raised hairs, struggled to hold her.
The battle had taken a turn of the worst. Zeraora had taken out Aggron, followed by the rest of his team. It landed a rib-shattering punch to his torso, and every time he tried to move it felt like his whole chest erupted in flames.
But he wasn't concerned about that now- he was concerned about Luna. Luna, sweet Luna who helped him sort out his demons and keep them at bay. Who kept him warm at night, who fought when he couldn't.
It would NOT end this way. He might deserve it, but Luna didn't.
James reached into his pocket, groaning. Ebony slammed her foot down on his wrist, pinning it to the ground. "Don't even think about it."
Just then, Seo-yun rose from the ground, swaying unsteadily on her feet. She was so silent, Ebony didn't hear it. That is, until Seo-yun's nails dug into her scalp, pulling at her hair, and slamming her into the ground.
James didn't waist time. He pulled out his last revive, glanced at Aggron. It was his only option, really. In the end, Ebony still had a full team of Pokemon. He'd only lose.
Unless...
He crawled over to Reuben, forced the revive into the creature's mouth. Slowly, it came back from the edge of death and opened it's eyes.
"Reuben... Take this ship down. Use Earthquake," he whispered.