Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, its world or characters. Only the story and original characters herein.

Chapter Three

Drops fell from the sky in torrents, like the clouds had taken offense to her attempts to stay dry. The coat she wore dripped water in a constant stream, unable to hold anymore on its surface, while droplets splashed down over her face to drench the bits of hair peeking out from her hood, sticking it to her forehead regardless of her attempts to push them aside. It was hard enough to see through the curtain of rain without tendrils of hair dipping into her eyes.

Lyss growled as she trudged across the muddy ground. The trees around her did nothing to block the downpour, serving only to provide roots for her to stumble over. The forest was not somewhere she'd hoped to be after nightfall. Unfortunately, her sense of direction wasn't good enough to keep her from getting lost once she'd wandered from the trail.

Sharp points snagged her leg and she winced as the fabric yanked free of the thorns. She glared at the tear in her pants. Her guardian would probably point it out first thing when Lyss got back. Never mind that she'd been out missing long past curfew. No, it'd be, 'I expect you to sew that up before you go to bed, Lyss.'

Pesky woman.

Light flashed though the leaves overhead and she cringed as thunder crashed around her. How did a storm even come up out of nowhere? Sure, it'd been a cloudy day, but this? It was ridiculous.

Another lightning strike reminded her to keep moving. Wet or not, the middle of a forest was not somewhere she wanted to be with a storm right overhead.

A soft whimper escaped her backpack even as it rustled around. She sighed. Miserable as she was, her Flareon had it worse. This kind of weather was the worst for them, and while the bag kept most of the water out, the dampness couldn't be comfortable. She trudged on for his sake more then her own. If she'd known the day was going to go this way she'd have left him hidden away at home. No point dwelling on what was done though.

All the lightning had one positive at least. The flashes of light cut through the obscuring rain, and at last she spotted what she knew was out there somewhere – Mt. Moon. With its size, she had to run across it eventually, and she hurried toward a cave opening as soon as she saw it. Mt. Moon wasn't the safest place to be, but it couldn't be worse then staying out there.

She took the thought back, regretting it even as she jogged into the relative dryness of the rock opening. Things could always get worse.

Her Flareon, Smoke, leapt out of the bag before she even got it onto the floor. In the dark of the cave he lit up like a beacon, and Lyss moaned in relief as the warmth rolled off him, his inner fire burning bright now that he wasn't confined to the flammable bag. She leaned against the wall and slid down to the floor, and he curled up beside her.

Lyss trailed her fingers through his fur. "You, Smoke, are a godsend." Smoke rumbled, the sound pleased and content, and she smiled. It wasn't quite a purr, but she long ago learned it meant much the same. With a sigh, she leaned her head back to look around their new shelter. Not that she could see very far, but far enough to know their little cove wasn't the extent of the cave. A tunnel led away from the back, winding away to... somewhere. She had no way of knowing where, so the question was did she want to find out?

At the moment, she didn't even want to move, so whatever was down there could stay there. Since Smoke lay there, eyes closed and head between his paws, he must agree. That was good enough.

She shifted, laying her backpack out to use as a pillow as she lay down beside her friend. Maybe she'd just wait out the storm. She could use a nap.

#

Lyss awoke to a warm nose nudging her. Fatigue hung around her like a blanket and for a moment she wondered why her bed was so hard. Smoke's growl cut through her fog - he didn't make that sound often. Darkness still surrounded her as she blinked off sleep and pushed to her feet, learning against the wall for balance. The storm had let up somewhat, but water still rained from the sky.

Smoke's growl came again, echoing off the rock around them. Worse, he faced the tunnel going deeper into the cave, which meant going back into the rain was the only way to get away from whatever had disturbed him. Looking at their options, the unknown danger seemed more appealing. All things considered, she didn't think Smoke would disagree.

Lyss put a hand to his fur, quieting him as she stepped further into the cave. It was slow going. The rock floor was slick with water and covered in holes to twist an ankle and bumps to trip over. Only Smoke's light let her move on at all, and it was dimmer then she'd like. He didn't have the convenience of a Charmander's tail after all.

Then his light wasn't the only source. A different glow in the distance lit up a bend in the tunnel, and if she wasn't already moving at a Slowpoke's pace she would've slowed down. She strained her ears instead, hoping to pick up something, some hint of what was waiting for them. Stumbling into the lair of lava pokemon, while unlikely, wasn't an appealing thought. Her Flareon's hearing was far better then hers, but so was his sense of smell. Anything could've set him off.

As sounds floated to her ears, Smoke rumbled, his fur standing on end. She pressed against the wall as they came to the bend. This must be the place. At a painful crawl, she slipped forward and peeked around the rock wall, her mouth falling open at the sight - Team Rocket, there with their modified pokemon. And it looked like they were intent on adding to their numbers.

Wild pokemon pressed against the walls, backed as far from the intruders as they could get. Some refused to stand down, their postures aggressive and punctuated with growls of warning, while others huddled together behind them, shivering. The Team Rocket members paid then no attention as they talked among themselves. Their pokemon stood like statues at guard. Lyss felt cold just looking at the things - half pokemon, half mechanical monstrosities.

"This next batch should be perfect," one of the Rocket's was saying. "These rock types take to the augments better then most."

Another Rocket laughed. "Remember when they used water types? Now there was a show!" The others joined in and Lyss found her hands clenching, her nails biting into her skin.

A growl from Smoke mirrored her thoughts. These people were monsters. Others always warned her to stay away from Team Rocket, just do what they said and stay out of their way. They were dangerous. They were also in charge.

But this was too much.

She laid a hand on Smoke's head. "We've gotta get those pokemon out of here." He gave a soft yip and nudged her hand. "Right, you know what to do then. Be careful."

Smoke went right to it, blowing out a cloud of smog to fill the room. The response was instant as the Rocket's began to shout over the sudden change. Their lights spun through the black cloud, doing little more then reflecting the beams in useless directions.

Then they started to move and Smoke started on step two as he dug into the ground beneath them. Lyss crossed the tunnel once the smoke filled it and pressed herself into the inner corner. She squatted there, eyes closed and air mask pressed to her mouth. After Team Rocket covered the land in their factories such masks became a necessity for many travelers. Lyss carried it for a different reason.

She tucked herself out of the way as much as possible and waited. Any moment the Rocket's would file down the tunnel, out of the smoke cloud and into open air. They'd come back, but by then the pokemon would be gone.

No stampede of steps came though, and she began to worry. All she heard was an odd humming sound.

"Well, what have we here?" Lyss startled at the voice and froze. She opened her eyes, just a crack - the smoke was gone. She spun, putting her back to the wall. The whole group of Rocket members stood looking at her, while the man in front leered down at her in a way that made her skin crawl. "Just passing through maybe?"

She nodded. "I-"

"Through a cave that doesn't go anywhere? Bull." He grabbed her collar and yanked her to her feet. "And I don't think that was a smoke bomb either, so how about you tell us where it is?"

She swallowed. "What-"

He slammed her up against the wall. Pain lanced through her as she hit the uneven rocks. "Don't play dumb," he growled after her head cleared. "The pokemon that tried to smoke us out. Pretty dumb move too, like we wouldn't be able to handle a basic tactic like that."

"How-" His arm jerked her and she flinched, wrapping her arms around her head.

The chuckle that followed was not a happy sound. "Now we're starting to understand each other. So where is it?"

She didn't get a chance to answer. In the following silence came the sound of shifting dirt, and the Rocket's turned toward the trapped pokemon even as the hole appeared in the ground before them and a furry head popped out. Panic flooded her. Without the smog to cover his arrival, Smoke didn't have a chance.

She lashed out with a kick and was rewarded as the large Rocket grunted in pain. "Heat Wave!"

Smoke's ears perked at her voice and he jumped out of the hole to face them. His fur glowed a vivid orange, brightening as it heated up. Then he released it and the wave rolled over them all. Screams rose as those closest were hit with the full effect, their moves frantic as they dove for cover or were burned out in the open. Lyss found herself grateful to be in her position, held up by the large Rocket as the wave hit them and his body blocked the worst of it. She still covered her face as best she could - it was like sticking her head in front of an oven.

There wasn't much time though. Twisting her neck, she bit down hard on the hand holding her, scratched at any skin she could reach, and flailed her feet at the man. She probably looked crazy, but it worked - he dropped her. Pushing past the man, she caught sight of Smoke. "Get out of here!" The pokemon tensed at her yell, but hesitated. "Go! GO!" He fled then, dashing into the tunnels and roaring at any lingering pokemon, sending then scattering. Watching him go, Lyss breathed a sigh of relief.

A hand grabbed the back of her neck, trapping the breath in her chest as she lifted clear of the ground. Its owner pulled her back until she could see him, the same man who had her before. He looked even more menacing then before. "You made your last mistake, girl." His fingers tightened around her throat, preventing any response. It didn't seem to make sense that he could squeeze the life from her one handed. Fear sank into her mind as her lungs screamed for air.

"Hey, Jake, lay off her." The man, Jake she guessed, glared at the speaker. They held up their hands. "Whoa, I'm just saying, did you see that pokemon she was ordering around? It was a Flareon," he enunciated the word, drawing it out. "You know the boss would kill for one of those."

Black spots floated into her vision as he ignored her continued struggling. She couldn't see his face anymore, couldn't see parts of the cave. It was like someone was turning out the lights, one by one. Her limbs didn't listen to her, barely slapping at the arm that held her.

Then a hot breath blew on her face. "You're gonna wish I'd killed you," the man whispered. Or, it sounded like a whisper. Everything was so far away.

So dark.