Chapter 2

The Chase

She left her clothes. If she didn't get them later, she had more at the cave just outside of the city.

That man was after her. Her instincts told her more than well enough that a man in black watching her was a bad sign. If her guess was right, that flash had been some kind of watching device by some friends of his. And if there were two, there may be more.

But if she could get out of the city and into the forest, she would be able to hide easily. IF she could get there.

Within a minute, she ran through Grand Park's south gate. A ring of men was waiting for her. They all wore black outfits with a large red R across the chest. Each one held a tube-like device with a handle and trigger. They looked eerily similar to guns.

One straight ahead pulled the trigger. The gun released a puff of smoke and something flew from the darkness. Sam instinctively ducked to the side as a small bluish orb flew past her head. "A Pokeball." They were trying to capture her.

"Open fire."

But she was already on the move. She broke right, just avoiding a stream of orbs that crashed together. She jumped between two of the assailants and kept running.

But another group of them came around a corner in front of her and fired. She turned and moved down an alley. Behind her, she heard several gasps of pain. They had hit their own men. If she weren't running for her life, she would have laughed.

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Braun was practically beside himself with aggravation. The pick-up teams had failed miserably. What little chance of surprise they had at the gate was now completely gone. And now that she was outside of their company circle, the probability of a successful capture was down to near zero.

But he wasn't willing to give up yet. Back in his days as a Hunter, he took targets down single-handedly. Of course, he had better equipment then. At the moment, the only real offensive tool he had was a pistol, which would not work at bringing the target in unharmed. But a real Hunter could do any job, regardless of gear.

"The lower equipped, the higher the challenge."

He was nearing the next wide street. A three-foot gap between buildings was to his left, where the target was running now. Ahead, about thirty yards and closing, was a fifty-yard jump to the next building on the other side.

He slid to a stop at the building edge and looked down. The brown clump of fur ran straight across, dodging pedestrians. That direction led to the banking district of the city.

Rule one of hunting: know your target. Even though she was the Shaiya, she would rather run and hide than fight. Months of observation had taught them that. The first chance she had, she would run down an alley or into a building.

Rule two: know the hunting zone. A map instantly popped into his head. Directly across was a maze of alleys. She would only get herself trapped.

"Squads on me. South towards Sector 6." He didn't really need them. In fact, it would have been more fun to risk going it alone. But he knew Roth wouldn't approve.

He took two steps back before leaning forward and shoving off. He placed one foot on the lip of the building and pushed off and up.

Any man would think him an idiot. No one sane would jump from a three-story building. But Braun knew something any other man didn't. His boots had special pads. This jump was simple. Dr. Roth may be crazy, but he did make some high-grade equipment.

He flew through the air, hands by his side. The street passed by below. People probably looked up in awe, but he wasn't watching. As he approached the next building, he moved his legs forward for the impact. As he touched, he tucked forward and fell to his shoulder, the momentum taking him into a roll. Without breaking time, he rose to his feet and kept running.

She would be entering the alley now. He'd have to lead her down the right one and trap her. His hand slipped back as they pumped and pulled out five small orbs from his belt. One went into his other hand as he approached a turn-off from the alley. He gave it a quick squeeze and dropped it in as he jumped over. A second later, he heard a bang and a yelp. The "bangers" weren't lethal, but they worked for scare tactics.

He jumped across to the other side. This alley went to a corner, another turn-off that was a dead-end, and later more branches. By jumping corners, he could outrun her, plant the bangers in the branches, and scare her back to the trap.

Simple yet brilliant.

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She was running blind. She had never been to this part of the city and didn't know where she was going. But the shots from that alley told her to just keep running.

She ran into a trashcan making the ninety-degree turn, startling a Meowth inside. He screamed at her. She kept running.

Another branch came up on her left and she took it. She glanced back. No one was catching up to her. Maybe they didn't see her take this alley.

Her eyes turned back forward just in time. A massive brick wall loomed before her. She forced her paws into the asphalt, nearly shredding them, and slid to a stop just in front of it. It had to be at least 9 feet high, way too high for her to jump.

That's fine. She'd just go back and keep going down the same alley again.

Another shot, this time from back and left, the path she was about to take. They had her completely surrounded now. There were no trashcans, no doorways, nothing for her to hide behind. She was trapped.

"Let's go!" Footsteps. They were getting closer.

Someone suddenly slipped down next to her. She jumped momentarily, her claws ready to strike, but she froze when she got a look at him. He wasn't wearing the uniform of the others. He wore a black shirt and blue vest.

It was the same guy from earlier.

He stepped forward, standing in the middle of the alley and facing her. "Whatever happens, stay close to me."

She didn't answer; she was too afraid and startled. But she became amazed at what he did next.

He placed his palms together. As he did, blue fur sprang from his hands and traveled along his body. The backs of his hands grew small silver nubs. His face lengthened, creating a short muzzle. His hair clumped and grew into two bluish ponytail-like pieces. And within a second, he had taken on a form somewhere between a human and a Riolu.

Sam watched, her mouth open in silent fear and amazement as his hands and eyes began to glow blue. His hands came apart, moved in a circle before his chest, and then flew apart until they were stretched to each side.

"Dimension Sphere!"

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He returned to the building, his bangers still going off. The rest of the pick-up teams were running through the alley while the Recon came along the rooftops. But he would be there first.

Braun came to a stop in front of the alley, a grin starting to form. She was trapped like an animal.

But his grin quickly shattered.

All he saw was a sphere of blue light. And a split second later, even that vanished, leaving only an empty alley.

A/N: Now that you've read the chapter, would you be so kind as to leave a review? It really helps an author when the reader shares their thoughts. Did you enjoy it? Hate it? Have any questions? Anything will do.