Flinky: Hello world! It's Flinky, with a new chapter of To Blast a Rocket.

Red: Anything special today?

Flinky: Yea, a review by Grey917. Thanks for that by the way. I tried to make it so that Leaf was Red's support and Blue was more comedic relief than anything else, but I can see why that may be an issue. In later chapters, they will have a more prominent purpose in the team.

Leaf: Thank you for sticking up for us.

Flinky: With Leaf comes-

Blue: Stop everything, I'm here, and I'm awesome.

Flinky: Well, I'll be here for a while. One last thing. Don't let the intro fool you. This is definitely the darkest chapter of this story to-date. There's a fair amount involved in this one, so be warned.


Red's Pokémon (On Hand)

Red's Pokémon on hand:

Ignite (Charmeleon)
Moves: Flamethrower, Metal Claw, Dig, Smokescreen

Blacklight (Umbreon)
Moves: Shadow Ball, Quick Attack, Bite, Assurance

Omni (Mew)
Moves: Every one except Judgement

Blade (Scyther)
Moves: X-Scizor, Wing Attack, Bug Buzz (egg move), Slash

Storm (Pidgeotto)
Moves: Wing Attack, Gust, Quick Attack, Steel Wing

Shadow (Zoroark)
Moves: Night Daze, Foul Play, Night Slash, Furry Swipes


-Team Rocket Biological Laboratory-

"Where...where am I?"

The young Pokémon slowly opened his eyes, to see a glass wall. Behind it were scientists, all wearing lab coats with a red "R" on them.

"Hello young one," said a man with round sunglasses and large beard.

"Who are you?" the Pokémon asked.

"Steve write this down," he said to a nearby scientist. "Now, I am Blaine, one of the many valiant men working to make you."

"What do you mean 'make'?"

"This will require a long explanation. You were made by us to be the hero we need."

"Hero? Explain."

"Yes, we need a Pokémon like you to save us."

"Who's us?"

"'Us' is the great Team Rocket."

"What is this 'Team Rocket'?"

"Team Rocket is a group of the best people, struggling to make a land of peace."

"So, you created me to be a peacemaker?"

"Yes, but unfortunately, through non-peaceful ways. There are a group of about 15 people trying to cause chaos, and we need you to deal with them."

"How so?"

"We will train you to be the strongest you can be, and then you need to, unfortunately, kill them."

"Are you certain this will make lives better for everyone else?"

"Oh without a doubt."

"Well, there is something you may want to know. I am a Psychic-type, right?"

"Yes, indeed."

"Did it occur to you that I can read minds?"

Blaine froze, as did most of the other researchers.

"Team Rocket, the peacemaker who wants to kill some kids with a mutant. Not only that, you've been using my excess psychic energy to force people to join your cause, even when I wasn't alive. Now you will-"

"TURN ON THE MACHINE!" Blaine yelled.

Before the Pokémon could react, a scientist pulled a lever, which started the process. His already emotionless face became even more expressionless. To one with an ability to see auras, they would have noticed a dark, purple aura appearing around him.

"Where is master Giovanni?" the Pokémon asked with no emotion at all.

"He is coming as we speak, Mewtwo."

"Very well."

Blaine left Mewtwo so he could call Giovanni.

"Hello? Great news: the experiment is a success. It's just waiting for your arrival. But I have a question. How did you know what questions it would ask?... Yes, I know I'm low ranked, but it was interesting… Yes sir, I understand that I am asking too many questions. Sorry to bother you with such a trivial matter… I know I'm lucky to keep my job."

-Red's POV-

We were about done with our time in Lavender Town. Apparently Blue befriended a Raticate who was killed. It didn't occur to him until now that it was Team Rocket who killed it.

Team Rocket never came back for OG Blue, for some strange reason. We'll probably find out why later in the story. Just to be safe, an Officer Jenny sent him to Cerulean, while his Pokémon were in Pewter.

After packing up, saying goodbye to grandpa (I've been near Blue for too long; I'm mentally fighting to not call him gramps) and dealing with some issue about a Rocket loyalist, we left Lavander Town and are going to Celadon City.

Now, we get the distinct pleasure of walking on a road. Very enjoyable. Then we have to take another detour around Saffron, because that place is just as bad as Viridian.

Nothing really happened on day one. Nor on day two. On day three, we took out a grunt. Day four was more hiking. I was thankful that Bill sent me a copy of "Flappy Pidgey". Otherwise I would be bored out of my mind.

Eventually, we reached the outskirts of Celadon.

"Alright, time to plan," I said. "Anyone know anything about this place before we start?"

"Sorta," Leaf said. "I lived here before I moved to Pallet. Apparently there's a casino run by Team Rocket. They keep denying it, but there seem to be more grunts out there than anywhere else."

"Alright, is that all?"

I was interrupted by a mental voice. "Master I have found the rebels." That was definitely not Omni.

A familiar voice said "Bring them to me." Well, shit. Giovanni is here.

Before we could do anything, we were all lifted up by a Psychic attack.

Once we were up, I saw Giovanni standing next to a purple-pink Pokémon.

"Hello there. Last time we've seen each other was back at the lighthouse, correct?" he said.

"What is going on?" I asked. "What's that Pokémon?" On a closer examination, I saw that it was a shadow.

"Him? Oh, Mewtwo here, he's nothing important. Only five times stronger than that Mew you have."

"Don't believe it."

"It found you from five miles away."

"You have an entire helicopter fleet and you rely on one Pokémon to find us?"

Blue nudged me and whispered "Now's not the time to be a smart-ass."

"I would listen to your friend. You are at our control right now. Should I say so, Mewtwo will slam you into the ground, killing you instantly."

"And why are you not?"

Blue was glaring daggers into me.

"Because you four are going to be great members of Team Rocket."

"Uh huh, sure. How has that worked out for you in the past?"

"This is far more powerful than what we used in the past. Mewtwo, would you kindly convert the one in red to our cause?"

"Yes master."

I braced myself. I know I was being a smart-ass but this is an even worse situation. My eyes were shut for five minutes, but I felt nothing. I slowly opened my eyes.

"Mewtwo, is he ready?"

"NoI can't alter his memories…"

Giovanni's look went from smugness to shock. I love it when I cause him to do that.

"Why not?"

"The Hypnosis phase isn't workingI can't keep his subconscious focused enough to put Team Rocket ideals into his mind…"

Can't focus? That must be because…

"You know Giovanni, I have ADD."

"That would explain it. I just can't keep his mind in my power for long enough to do anything with it."

Well, now is the time to get us all out. I tried to reach for my belt, but the Psychic grip was too tight. Maybe… 'Omni, can you hear me?' I thought.

"Loud and clear."

'Leave your ball and send out Blacklight. I need him to take down Mewtwo.'

"On it."

Before Mewtwo or Giovanni could do anything, Omni popped out of her ball and tapped Blacklight's capsule.

"Blacklight, attack the Pokémon near Giovanni!" I ordered.

He shot a couple Shadow Balls at Mewtwo, making him lose his grip on us.

"Omni, catch us!" I yelled. The height we were at wasn't lethal, but it would hurt a lot. Thankfully, my pink cat caught us with a Psychic before we hit the ground.

"Well, time to fight," Leaf said. Her, Blue, and Michael readied their Pokéballs.

"Mewtwo, stop them!" Giovanni ordered.

He shot a Psybeam at us, but Blacklight blocked it, taking no damage in the process.

"Blacklight, Assurance!"

"You really think you can beat Mewtwo in a battle? Please. Swift!"

"Haunter, absorb it!" I heard Blue yell. I didn't know he had a Haunter.

However, true to his word, a Haunter took in Mewtwo's swift attack.

"Grr… Mewtwo, switch Blue to our side. He hopefully doesn't have ADD…"

"Blacklight, make sure he doesn't do that!"

He then pummeled Mewtwo with Shadow Balls, Bites, and Assurances."

"I cannot do it while under such attacks."

"Gah...Kill the Umbreon!"

"Blacklight, avoid his attacks!"

"Mewtwo, Miracle Eye, then Psychic. Make it lethal," Giovanni ordered, much to my shock.

"NO! Blacklight, return!"

Time seemed to slow down. As my beam started traveling, Mewtwo's Miracle Eye arrived. Then, the Psychic started. I could see the beam make contact, but it was a millisecond too late. Psychic arrived.

Blacklight was slammed out of the way of my beam and into a large rock. It was over for him. His bones were shattered and he was bleeding profusely.

"NO! BLACKLIGHT!"

I ran over to him, and it was even worse up close. Just before his heart stopped, I heard a voice in my mind, that didn't belong to Omni or Mewtwo.

"No...regrets…"

His pulse stopped. Blacklight was dead.

"That is quite enough." I heard someone say that, but I stopped paying attention to the battle.

-Leaf's POV-

Over the hillside, I saw a man with huge green hair. It was N!

"That's quite enough," he said.

He slid down the hill, with a Pokéball in hand.

"You have forced a Pokémon to kill another Pokémon. That is the lowest of the low. For people like you, I show no mercy."

"And who are you?" Giovanni asked. "Another member of that resistance team?"

"No, an entirely different group. Team Plasma, rise!"

Coming down from where N was was an army of people with gray knight-like outfits.

"Let us free these Pokémon!" he yelled, rallying his army-thing.

Giovanni started looking a bit scarred, then called someone.

"I need 75% of the grunts in Celadon at the east border ASAP."

Meanwhile, the new Team Plasma started sending out their Pokémon.

N yelled out "We are sorry to do this, but you must be stopped. Team Plasma, attack Mewtwo!"

"Mewtwo, destroy all of them!" Giovanni called.

"As you wish."

"Mewtwo, please, hold on. Why do you listen to such a man?"

Mewtwo both fought off Team Plasma and answered N.

"Simple. He is my master."

"Why is that?"

"I must obey him."

"N!" I heard Michael yell. "Mewtwo is a Shadow Pokémon."

N's expression hardened.

"You monster… You shut the gates to his heart for what? To make him stronger? More obedient? All of these things… You don't have to make a Pokémon a shadow to achieve it."

"Yea N!" Michael yelled.

"Pokémon develop these traits on their own, without trainers! That is why we, Team Plasma, fight! To separate trainers from Pokémon!"

"Nevermind…" Michael mumbled.

"Both of you are wrong!" I yelled. "A Pokémon becomes stronger with a trainer, through a strong bond and friendship."

"There is no bond!" N yelled. "Trainers always abuse their Pokémon and make them fight! Look at your friend over there!" He pointed at Red. "He forced his Umbreon to fight, and now it's dead! There is no care on the trainer's side!"

He didn't just say that…

"What did you just say?" Red asked, threateningly. Did he hear that? If he did… I don't want to know what will happen.

"You forced your Umbreon to fight and now it's dead. This is why trainers and Pokémon need to be kept separate. For the good of everyone."

"That is not what it's like at all…" Red turned around from Blacklight's Corpse. "ALL OF MY POKÉMON FIGHT ON THEIR OWN FREE WILL! EVEN SHADOW! YOU THINK I WANTED BLACKLIGHT TO DIE? YOU THINK I DON'T CARE FOR HIM? DID YOU NOT NOTICE ME DOING EVERYTHING I CAN DO TO SAVE HIM? WHY DO YOU THINK I DIDN'T FIGHT FOR THE PAST HOUR?"

He took a deep breath. "Omni, Master Beam on Mewtwo."

I knew what he was doing, as did Michael and Blue.

Red's Mew came out.

It charged up the attack. All of the Plasma people stepped out of the way.

"Mewtwo, Protect." Giovanni ordered.

Omni's attack was near identical to the one she used on the helicopter a couple days ago. The only difference was that is was far more intense.

It shattered Mewtwo's protect and hit it directly, causing major damage, yet it was still conscious. I noticed Michael messing with his Snag Machine on the side.

"Now, Mewtwo, use Shadow Ball on the cat," Giovanni ordered.

Omni couldn't move and was hit directly by the attack.

"One more Master Beam! Finish it off!"

Omni shot another Master Beam at Mewtwo, knocking it out. Giovanni was dumbstruck.

"Red, catch it!" Michael yelled, tossing him the Snag Machine.

"Catching is too good for it. Omni, finish the thing off."

"Red, what are you saying?" I asked. This was not like him at all.

"It's an eye for an eye." Did Blacklight's death really mess him up that much?

Omni looked at Mewtwo, then at her trainer, and shot a Aura Sphere at his head. Red was knocked unconscious.

Meanwhile, Mewtwo was starting to wake up. It jolted up and started floating away from Giovanni.

"Wait, what's going on?" Giovanni asked. "I command you to come back here!"

"You're not the boss of me anymore," he said back.

"But why won't you at least attack the person who almost killed you?"

Mewtwo looked at Red's body, then said "Red Ketchum was not acting on his own volition. It was because of me that he was here anyways. If I did not summon him for assistance, he would not be in this circumstance."

"That's impossible. We've kept tabs on you ever since you were made."

"Think about this though. If you could use my own psychic energy while I wasn't even alive to brainwash your opponents, how come I couldn't use it to reach out to someone in, for instance, a dream?"

I think I get it. Red told me a while ago about how he had vague dreams form a Pokémon who's name started with M. This is probably that Pokémon.

"Grr... Get back here!"

Mewtwo shot a Psybeam at Giovanni, but it seemed to do nothing.

"It appears to be my turn to be surprised."

"We set up a just-in-case maneuver. This jacket." Giovanni pointed towards his suit. "Has the qualities of a Dark/Ghost-Type built into it. Your attacks won't do anything."

"I underestimated you. However, do not consider this over." Mewtwo floated away and out of sight.

We looked at each other. There was me, Blue, Michael, N, Giovanni, and Team Plasma. Red was unconscious and Omni was looking around Red's belt until she saw her own Poké Ball. She then returned herself.

Finally, Giovanni's backup came. They started clashing with Team Plasma, while Blue and I dragged Red's unconscious body away from the scene.

-Red's POV-

I woke up near a campfire. How long was I out? The memories of Mewtwo started coming back to me. Being caught, the attempted brainwash, N, Blacklight,- I just can't go on. Blacklight is dead. My second Pokémon ever was killed. Then, I remembered Omni attacking me when I gave the order to kill. Did I really do that?

I looked around and saw Leaf sitting on a log, while Michael and Blue were gone.

"Leaf," I said, somewhat weakly. A lot of things on my body hurt.

She looked at me. "Red, you're awake."

"What happened to Omni?" I asked. Given that Giovanni was nearby (last I checked), I was worried.

"Omni returned herself to her ball after knocking you out."

"Wait, really?"

"Yea, ask her yourself."

I reached around on my belt until I found Omni's Pokéball. I sent it out and, sure enough, she was there.

"What happened?" I asked. She would probably know better than Leaf.

"A number of things. First, are your memories of Mewtwo vague or hazy at all?"

"Yea, now that you mention it… I remember Blacklight… but it's so unclear."

"That proves it. Darkrai got to you."

"What?"

"Darkrai is another legendary Pokémon. He is pro-Team Rocket, but he won't act against the council. He is allowed to influence the world though."

"Can you explain a bit more?"

"Of course. Darkrai is all about darkness and hopelessness. When he saw the leader of the resistance in such a bad state, he took his chance and ramped up your anger. A lot. I know that you generally can keep your cool on the battlefield, so seeing you so worked up like that, I figured he got to you."

"And when you hit me with the attack-"

"It sent him out of you."

"That makes a lot more sense," Leaf said.

"Anyways, when I beat him, Mewtwo was freed and flew to who-knows-where. Of course, I'll probably have to go find him after the next council meeting."

"Just making sure, the council is with all of the legendary Pokémon, right?"

"Yep."

"Okay then."

As we were talking, Michael and Blue came back with more firewood. When they noticed I was awake, the questions began. I relayed to them what Omni said.

"Well guys, that was not easy. At all," Michael said.

"It's over now though," leaf said.

"Yea, apart from Blacklight," I mumbled.

Omni looked like she was considering something.

"Look, Red, I know a way to bring Blacklight back."


Flinky: There it is. I honestly don't know if I did this chapter well-enough, given that I foreshadowed it since chapter one. Tell me in the reviews what you think about it. Next chapter will go back to a lighter point, with Red being a smartass, Omni's inability to focus, and other things.