Chapter Twenty-Five:
Break In
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon in any way, shape, or form. The only "ownership" I can claim are the personalities and my interpretation of how Pokémon look in a more realistic light, but other than that...yeah, I don't own anything on them. XD I do, however, own my original characters and writings, unless otherwise stated. In an exceptional case, a few special OCs belong to their respective owners, I'm merely borrowing them for the story that's to unfold. I'll point them out when their time to show up comes. :3
Note: Attention! Do not panic! I have changed my username to 'The Shay-Shay', formerly Captain Lupin Ferus! I am still me!
Ahem. Moving on. Ahhhh, FC, you made me feel all warm and fuzzy again with your review! So many puzzles, yes there are. XD I wish I could reveal more, but I can't, not without ruining other things to come, at least. But yes, I'll agree, poor Bullet is young and whatnot, so understandably, he'd be upset about a thing such as loss of memory. Everything else, you'll just have to wait and see how things pan out as they come along, but things shall be coming together piece-by-piece, that much I can promise. All in all, I'm very glad you're enjoying the story and you like my writing! I'm really trying here, and if at least one person likes it, that's enough for me. :) It must mean I'm doing something right!
And thank you to DarkHammer as well, I'm glad you are also enjoying the story, so I guess that makes two! I'm on a roll, hooray! XD
Although, I will add, I have art and personal headcanons on a Tumblr account solely dedicated to this story! The link is in my profile. Sneak peeks show up there often. You can even ask characters questions by submitting them to the ask box, so if you want to ask Riptide or Bullet or even Lupin a question, then send them out!
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"Now think real hard. You been bird-doggin' this township awhile now. They wouldn't mind a corpse of you. Now, you can luxuriate in a nice jail cell, but if your hand touches metal, I swear by my pretty floral bonnet, I will end you."
-Captain Malcolm Reynolds, "Firefly"
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"Wait, what do you mean the gym leader isn't here?"
The official stared down at Lupin, a twitch in his temple belying his annoyance. With forced patience and gritted teeth, he responded, "Gym Leader Bugsy isn't here. He's attending his other duties as a bug-type pokémon researcher in the Ilex Forest. You want to battle him so badly, then good luck finding him while stumbling around in there. Otherwise, I suggest you wait for him to get back, which will be in a few days. Your choice, ma'am."
The glowering giant continued to stare beadily down at the smaller woman before him, who looked just as irate. Lupin scowled and turned on her heel, uttering soft compliance that she'd wait. Riptide and Bullet followed closely on her heels. She didn't even correct the man that she wasn't there to battle, she was there for information. It probably wouldn't have made much of a difference to him, or he wouldn't believe her.
"That was utterly pointless," Riptide spat. He was almost looking forward to the thought of possibly battling. The distraction of Lupin's earlier news was keeping his thoughts from focusing on it completely. He tilted his head to glance up at the werewolf. She was still slightly paler than usual, but she looked better. "The station had no leads. The gym associates aren't going to cooperate until Bugsy gets back. There aren't very many places left."
"The Slowpoke Well. We're heading there next."
That threw him for a loop. Bullet seemed to have a better idea than he did, which irked him.
"We're going now? To stop the evil?"
"'Evil?" Riptide would have crinkled his snout in distaste if he could. Instead he clacked his jaws loudly to gain the other two's attention. "What's going on?"
"I think something is happening outside of Azalea. That old man I told you about—he was heading there. And last night, I think I found something when I was…out."
"Found what, exactly? An 'evil' entity, I presume?"
Lupin cast him an annoyed glare. "It's still jumbled, but I smelled blood. And fear. It wasn't the smell of a predator just taking down prey, it was…worse. Like a mindless slaughter. Remember that guy on Route Thirty-Two, the one who tried to sell us that Slowpoke Tail?"
The gears clicked into place almost instantly. "The supply must be coming from the Slowpoke of Azalea. From the Slowpoke Well. There's an abundance of them here, but why no one would make the connection—how could anyone overlook that? You'd think the police would notice, that people would complain, like the old man."
"People might be scared or have been intimidated into silence. And the dealers might be conducting business behind closed doors or well away from sight to avoid being scrutinized or watched. That one man—he must have been unlucky to end up on the roads trying to sell what he had left off. Or he was independent, trying to cash in on the bandwagon."
It was all speculation, but the theory seemed sound enough. Slowpokes had been a part of the Endangered Pokémon Species List, once upon a time. Slowpoke tails had been delicacies to the rich in Johto and Kanto and imported edible goods to other regions at one point in the past. The time period escaped him, but they began their comeback right here in Azalea and their distribution to other regions had spread out since then. He recalled Professor Elm once rattling off names of pokémon that had been at one point in history or another, in danger of dying out, only to make a comeback later on.
"Have you gathered any information on this Team Rocket group yet? You also mentioned the old man prattling about it before he took off."
Lupin considered for a moment, pausing in her trek down the sidewalk. A man behind her made a disgruntled noise at her sudden stop and shuffled around quickly, giving her an annoyed glare as he went. A pompous looking white dog followed after him, its fluffy white coat glistening in the sun, while its black-furred face was upturned with its nose in the air.
"Shit." She finally muttered, clenching her fists. "Fuck."
Immediately she fished out her pokégear and scrolled through the phone number selections on the screen. The list was short, suffice to say and a few seconds later, she was waiting for the professor to pick up. It rang and rang, but no answer was forthcoming. She hung up, tried another lab extension, but Phillip wasn't picking up either. Where are they?
She hung up, shaking her head at the other two waiting. Bullet's ears folded back, a whine building up at the back of his throat. Riptide issued forth a quiet hiss between parted jaws.
"No answer. So…here's our dilemma. Do we waste time trying to get information on them, or do we go charging in, all a-blaze and whatnot? Or something like that. Maybe not quite like that."
With a satisfying smack on his snout, Riptide groaned. Then he realized he could touch his own snout and felt all the more proud about it, if only for a few seconds. He filed away the useful information for later glee.
"Or we could just move on to Goldenrod City and allow the Azalea law enforcement to take care of their own problems. It's not our place to go meddling in the affairs of others. We've done enough."
Lupin stared, boggled at the Croconaw as though she didn't quite recognize him. Shock and hurt went across her face after the confusion passed and it lingered. He hated that look on her face. He wanted it gone. Even Bullet gave him a disappointed whimper. The sound peeved him.
"I'm not trying to be intentionally cruel by telling you off," he pressed, carefully choosing his next words. "There's law enforcement for a reason. They're the ones who should handle these types of things. If criminal activity is going on, then you should report it, not handle it yourself. It's the smart thing to do. We shouldn't be charging in like we had the other night. We were nearly killed. You aren't always going to have a powerful beast like that Charizard watching your back when danger comes around."
His red eyes flicked between the two, seeing that it was a losing battle. He hated losing almost as much as he hated the look of disappointment. Riptide took in a measured breath as he continued, taking advantage of the silence. "We should inform the authorities of possible criminal activity. But anonymously. So you don't reveal how you found out. We can't have them knowing…what you are."
There was a long silence that followed his words, and it felt like it was piercing at them all, sharp and unyielding. It made his scales itch uncomfortably. Bullet stared at the Croconaw for a lengthy time, feeling torn. He knew the other's logic seemed sound enough, but Riptide wasn't the trainer. He didn't make the decision. That fell squarely on Lupin and he yielded to her decisions. It was the way things were, wasn't it? She made the ultimate choices of where they went, complaints or not. But that didn't mean she didn't listen to them first.
Bullet looked between the Croconaw and the werewolf, much the same as what Riptide was doing himself, waiting.
After another minute of tense silence, Riptide issued a forced sigh of resignation.
"You still want to try, regardless, don't you?"
"The police won't respond quickly enough. If it's a tip of possible activities…" Lupin shook her head, looking doubtful. "If we send them out and they're redirected, things might continue to carry on the way they have been. I smelled blood, Riptide…I smelled suffering. I heard voices crying for help. I can't ignore that, and I can't just explain that away to the cops in an anonymous tip. They'll either think I'm crazy and ignore it, or they might…"
Her jaws clamped shut, the werewolf closing her eyes to compose herself and to allow a small crowd to pass them by. Barely anyone passed her anything beyond a sparing glance as they continued on with their own lives. After a moment's respite, her mismatched eyes opened again. Bullet whined and leaned against her leg.
"I can't just ignore that and walk away. That would have been like…like me leaving you to those Spinarak and the Ariados and saving myself, thinking you were a lost cause and not worth helping."
The Croconaw stared at her, jaw agape and eyes wide. Abruptly, he braced his jaws shut with a sharp clack after a full minute of staring. Quickly, he averted his gaze and gusted breath through flared nostrils.
"That was a low blow," he muttered with a low grumble. His head snapped back up at the scuffle of her boots coming closer and he found her kneeling down in front of him. She reached up and placed her hand on the crown of his head, her lips pursed and brows furrowed. Bullet peeled around her, coming closer.
"You don't have to come if you don't want to. I don't want to force either of you into something else that could be dangerous. But I'm going to help those Slowpokes down at the well. I can't not help them, I just…don't know how to explain it. I'd like it if you came with me, though."
He groaned and croaked low in his throat, his shoulders slumping forward in final defeat. He noticed Bullet's tongue lolling happily from his mouth at that. Riptide wanted to claw the look on the stupid fluffball's face. And that arrogant gleam in his eyes. Scared or not, Bullet would probably follow Lupin to the ends of the earth and back again.
"…fine. Fine. I'll go. But no more stupidity like the last few times."
"I have no idea what you're talking about."
She smiled sweetly, innocently.
Right.
Innocent, his ass.
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"There's only one guard. Last night there were two. It must be double the security measures at night in case of an attack."
From a distance, Lupin and her two pokémon observed the entrance to the Slowpoke Well. The guard had yet to notice he was being watched. That much was good. Everything was going smoothly…so far.
"I smell…and hear at least…half a dozen people down there…. And the guard ahead has only got two pokéballs on him."
"You can tell all of that? Just after a few minutes of watching?" Bullet gaped. Lupin shrugged.
"It's still kind of jumbled, but yeah. These ears of mine aren't for decoration. That much I've figured out. It's kind of annoying sometimes, though, when I can hear somebody two or three floors above or below us doing…erm…well, you don't need to know all that. That's grownup stuff. And…human-y stuff."
Bullet canted his head to the side, a question on his lips, but he bristled when Riptide abruptly snapped his jaws, sharp and loud.
"We should move out before we lose our element of surprise. I'd like to get this done and over with as fast as possible." Tilting his head a little, he offered a crooked smile to his trainer, his red eyes shining with a bit of glee. Perhaps this would be a fortuitous experience for him to gain from. "Unless you have any objections to that and wish to drag this out like the other night's escapades."
He eyed her pointedly, to which she had the grace to look somewhat embarrassed and avoid his gaze. He croaked out a laugh and motioned with a claw to move forward. Complying, the three moved out into the open, taking to the road amiably enough. It wasn't unusual for travelers to come and go from Azalea, and that's just the illusion they wanted to create. The sentry at the entrance to the well looked disinterested and bored, even from a distance. Even as they carried on closer, he didn't appear all too concerned. Instead, he had his attention buried in his pokégear, playing a game of some sort. It was only when they were within a few feet of him did he finally seem to register that he wasn't alone.
The man was taller than her, but only a few years younger, perhaps. Garbed in a uniform of long-sleeved black, the only sign of colour was the large crimson 'R' on the front of his shirt. It was unsettling. He looked clean, but her nose told her otherwise. She could smell the reeking stench of blood on him.
"H-Hey, stop, stop! You can't go into the Slowpoke Well."
She eyed him a moment longer before putting on a smile.
"Really? I heard it's a great tourist stop from some locals in Azalea. I missed it my first time in. Thought I'd drop by before I left for Goldenrod."
"There was a minor cave-in deeper inside. Some pokémon were trapped, we've got crews on site trying to clear the rubble and put up new support beams to protect this delicate environment. We're trying to keep a low profile and we'd appreciate it if we weren't disturbed all the time by nosy trainers."
He sounded awfully convincing and sincere. But from the way his eyes flicked and the light sheen of sweat beading his brow, she didn't need her nose to tell her that he was nervous. It was a cloying scent, almost like sour sweat and chalk crumbling together. His hand dipped down to waist, fiddling with the pokéballs mounted on the magnets there. Lupin allowed a moment's respite to pass between them, before giving him a disappointed look.
"Are you sure there isn't anything I can do to help? I'm sure if there were more people…"
"No, we've got plenty of people working down there. The last thing we need is an untrained greenhorn running around underfoot. Now scram!"
Another feigned expression of dissatisfaction flashed across her face. She turned on her heel to go, but paused halfway in her pivot, a finger brought up to thoughtfully tap her lips.
"Oh, sorry, I did have one more question…"
He looked visibly annoyed, with his brows creased together tightly to the clench in his jaw and the flash of ire in his eyes.
"What?"
Boredom laced his voice just as much as the irritation did.
That meant he was probably complacent.
Complacency kills.
Lupin lashed out quicker than he could blink, her fist connecting squarely with his gut first in a sharp right hook, then another hit to his temple when he doubled over. The blow sent him flying like a rag doll, limbs flailing without control as he went. The body landed away and to the side of the well's depression, still and prone where it lay. Lupin flexed her fingers. There wasn't even a sting in her knuckles from the blows she landed. She glanced back over toward the out-cold man. She could hear breathing from where she stood. They were pained and stilted even with his unconscious state, but he was alive. She didn't sympathize about the headache he'd most definitely be sporting later on.
Quickly, she dropped to a knee and her pack on the ground at the same time, fishing out the length of rope she had bought. It cost her next to nothing, it was almost laughable. Throwing the pack back on, she scurried over to the man and trussed him up quick as a wink. After that, she dragged him out of sight and into the snarled underbrush on the side of the road. All the while, Bullet and Riptide waited, somewhat in a state of shock.
She hadn't even broken a sweat. Bullet wasn't sure if that was amazing or not. Riptide didn't know if he should be worried or not. Lupin seemed to move automatically and with a purpose, as though her body was remembering motions that her mind clearly didn't. When she came trotting back to them, he was the first to stir, looking between her and the place where she'd hidden the man.
She misinterpreted his look. "What? I didn't want to sic you guys on him. No more repeated shenanigans like last time." She gazed at him more so now. "Bullet told me about the poacher you bit. You should have gone after the pokémon instead, Riptide."
He ignored her jab. Like she was one to talk. He'd point it out later.
"You've done this before, haven't you?"
The Croconaw motioned with a flick of his snout toward the bushes. An earnestly lost look came over her then, as though she was suddenly realizing what she had done as well.
"I…I don't remember. I just…did it. It felt…" Lupin looked to her hands, discomfort and unrecognizability creeping in over her features as well. "I-I don't know anymore. It's gone. I wanted to say 'right' but…I don't think that's the accurate word for it."
She shuddered, but it was neither cold nor windy. Her hands dropped to her sides and she looked away, purposefully perhaps. Her focus returned to the well entrance proper below. "Let's go. We can worry about all that later."
"You can hear them too," Bullet queried softly, startling Riptide. The Growlithe hadn't said much the closer they had gotten to the well. In fact, he looked rather forlorn. His ears were folded back, his tail dragging on the ground, and his posture slumped and small. Lupin nodded as she motioned for them to follow.
"I can hear them crying."
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It was dark down inside, but there were some manners of light inside. Man-made touches had been implemented into the well's structure, giving it a slightly modern feel without taking away too much of the traditional feel. There were small lights imbedded in the walls or floors, lighting the way deeper along a designated path. The well had a cave structure deeper inside, filled with pools of cavern lake water and damp stone. Bullet tiptoed lightly across the wet rocks and gravel that made up the solitary path inside. Riptide felt right at home in the environment. It was wet and slightly cold, but not too uncomfortably so. But it was not a place he could actually call home; he'd much prefer a river over a cave dwelling any day.
Lupin led the way, but the deeper they went, the stronger the blood-stench became. Even Riptide couldn't ignore it. With the amount that hung heavy in the air, he almost expected to find piles of bodies around this bend or that boulder. Instead, they found about half a dozen men and women in a more open area, herding several pink pokémon into a makeshift fenced-in corral. Some had sheathed knives strapped to their belts alongside their pokéballs and they wore the same uniform emblazoned with a large red 'R' on the fronts of their shirts. 'R' for 'Team Rocket', no doubt, Lupin reasoned.
There were other pink pokémon separated in another corral not from the first one. Riptide hissed softly. The ones being herded were whole and complete. The others in the adjacent pen weren't. Stumps where their tails had been were hastily wrapped up, but the attempts looked clumsy. Most with white linen bandages were wet and dark with blood. The normally dopey-looking expressions that Slowpoke was mostly well known for were completely replaced by grimaces of pain. Some were shaking and crying softly; others were completely still and quiet.
Bullet growled quietly, his hackles bristling and fur on end. Lupin looked much the same; her tail was puffed up all the way to its tip, making it appear larger than normal. Riptide promptly turned and gave it a good bite. It frazzled beneath him, before flattening out in surprise and pain, the werewolf's focus on him.
"Rip!" She called in a hushed voice, glaring at him.
He pulled a small clump of fur that came with him as he released her tail.
"Focus. Take out the trainers first. Then worry about the hurt pokémon. Not the other way."
The flash of anger in her mismatched eyes quelled, before she gave a grudging nod to him.
"Let's go, then."
She stepped out into the open and shuffled along toward the small party of men and women. Most paused, boggled, while only one stepped forward in a hurry. She noticed one near the back of the group pulling off a walkie-talkie from his belt and softly murmuring into it to radio in their guard outside. She almost smiled when she heard the telltale panic creeping into his voice when he received no responses the first few times. Lupin cut off the one that was approaching her.
"Don't bother with your fake story. I already clocked your guard upstairs and you're going down next."
Her words set them all on edge. Those that were still herding the Slowpoke hurriedly kicked the rest into the gate before locking it. Bullet snarled, startling them. The man closest to them transformed from somewhat suspicious to full-blown enraged. He plucked a pokéball from his belt, his expression a mixture of thunderous and smug.
"You're gonna regret coming down here, then, you little punk. I'm gonna make you wish you never left home, just like that old man from the other day."
Lupin glanced at Bullet. The Growlithe looked up at her and she gave him a small nod. He leapt forward, while Riptide settled beside the werewolf. She looked back up at the Rocket grunt with a cool expression.
"Bring it on, you little bitch. I'm gonna wipe the cave floors with you and your little cronies."
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This was certainly a surprise. Not to mention annoying. Work wasn't getting done. That meant sales weren't being conducted, either. Their stock of Slowpoke tails weren't going to sell themselves, what little they had to deliver. And they had quite a few buyers lined up, demanding a taste of the delicacies. What a pretty price they fetched for such a small and seemingly insignificant thing. But then again, Slowpoke had been placed on the Endangered Pokémon Species List for a reason, once upon a time.
The battles below were raging on, but the cave around them upheld itself admirably enough. It has been here for hundreds of years, weathered and carved up by battles alone, never mind the natural elements within. He had no worries of a cave-in, but he had certainly taken care of the locals to an extent, and any wandering or traveling trainers.
And yet…now he had this mess to deal with. His grunts weren't being beaten by some nobody traveler, he was convinced of that much. Geysers of flame and pillars of water took out all his workers until there was only one left standing, and it was the challenger. He flicked his gaze toward the Slowpoke and scowled. He hated it when plans crumbled apart before coming to full fruition. If it wasn't one thing, it was another one entirely.
They still needed some funding to complete the rest of their plans to rise back up. Team Rocket was down, but they certainly weren't going to stay that way. Not when they were so close.
When all fell silent, only then did he stir. Carefully, he dusted imaginary lint off of himself and stepped closer toward the small woman. She wasn't anything extraordinary. She was in well-worn clothing: a faded tank top, an equally worn out pair of cargo pants, hiking boots that had seen better days, and ditto went for the long coat and hat she sported. The only thing remarkably noticeable about her was the scar on her face, but that was about it. As soon as he finished her off, he'd most likely soon forget her and this whole encounter completely.
The rest of his grunts were a completely different story, however. They were strewn about the place, knocked out or lying off to the sides, nursing their bruised egos and bodies. Once defeated, his grunts had charged her in hopes of taking her out physically, but she merely swatted them aside. Perhaps that was one other thing that marked her as a tad different. She was strong and quick, like a little Machop. She was more than just a simple trainer, she seemed to be a fighter to boot.
Funny. She didn't look it.
She noticed him almost off the bat as he came closer. Her Croconaw and Growlithe focused on him as well, tense and waiting. They were still fit enough for another round, perhaps, but he doubted they'd last long. They were starting to wear down after several consecutive battles in a row.
"I do hate a mess as much as the next gent and you have clearly made quite a big one. I think I'm going to have to break out the heavy duty stuff to clean your grime up off my cave floor. There won't be a piece of you left once I've finished up. It wouldn't do to have a loose end such as yourself meddling in the affairs of Team Rocket."
The Croconaw hissed like the brute it was, red eyes gleaming with challenge. The Growlithe's muzzle had pulled into an ugly snarl, blue eyes bright and beckoning for another round.
"I highly doubt that, dude. If anything, it's gonna be you on the cave floor by the time I'm done. And then the cops are gonna clean you up and cart you off to jail."
Carefully, he tugged a pokéball from his belt and studied it as she spoke. The red-and-white finish was smooth and polished, and just above the release button, he noted the small engraving. Tiny bat wings spread as though ready to take flight. He smiled and flicked his eyes to the irksome female.
"Doubtful. Now, let's carry on, shall we, and see who has the real weight to throw around and back up their claims. Echo, let's start off with a supersonic attack. Confuse our opponents."
He threw the pokéball, engaging in the battle first. His Zubat formed and was out in a wink, already pumping its wings and charging up its attack. The air distorted and his ears rang from the sudden screech that filled the air. The woman covered her head, her jaw clenched tightly. The other two didn't fare as well either.
Proton continued to smile, but it twitched for a moment, when the Growlithe stepped forward and let out a mighty flood of flame and embers to spit from his maw.
"Echo, dive down and avoid that attack, quickly now!"
His Zubat dove, but it was a second too late. Fire raked across the bat pokémon's backside. He could see the scorched and blackened flesh. He could see it sizzling even in this dimness. The Zubat screeched and whined in pain, barely able to keep pumping its wings.
"Bite attack, Bullet!"
Too quickly, the Growlithe was airborne, taking a great leap to pounce on his pokémon. Echo went down with barely a moment's notice, taking into the jaws of the slobbering dog. There was a final scream before a rapid hush rang. The Growlithe backed away quickly enough to allow Proton the good grace to retrieve his pokémon. How kind.
The puppy pokémon switched out with the Croconaw as though on silent cue. The big brute was over half the woman's height and he looked…well, now that Proton was watching them all a little more closely, the Croconaw was rather large to be sure. He must have been a breeder's pride. Wild pokémon never seemed to grow quite as large as a trained pokémon, especially when raised by breeders.
Those red reptilian eyes looked smug. He didn't like it when another opposing pokémon looked at him like that. He was going to make this little woman and her pokémon pay dearly for their insolence.
"Let's finish this, Arsenic. Flood this cave with a smokescreen!"
The air was clear until his Koffing came into the ring. Immediately, the poison gas pokémon did as it was bid and flooded the open space with a thick, porous and oily black smoke. Even the soft glow of the path lights were muted until they disappeared in the haze. He took a few measured steps away from the creature and the roiling smokescreen, but was satisfied to hear coughing from the other side. Arsenic floated closer toward him, still trailing wisps of smoke as it finished. It's perpetually smiling visage turned toward him, perhaps looking for approval. He merely motioned back toward the smoke-covered battlefield.
"Get back in there and finish them off. Use whatever means necessary. Poison, explosion, I don't care which way you choose."
The Koffing only bobbed in the air before propelling itself forward, gliding silently back into the fray. The coughing on the other side ceased, but he heard nothing else. Perhaps he heard a few orders issued, but everything said was bouncing every which way now with the disturbance between them. Surely the woman would be stupid enough to try something? Most trainers would, especially when it concerned poison-types like Koffing. There was a sudden roar, the sounds of thrashing, a few vaguely familiar groans from Arsenic, a wild spray of water dazzling the air, and then nothing.
The silence continued to fall upon him, battering his ears and clanging about in his mind until he felt he'd go mad. The smokescreen continued to linger, but it was beginning to dissipate. They weren't meant to last very long. He could just vaguely make out the woman and her Growlithe on the other side, but oddly enough, the Croconaw was missing. So was Arsenic.
An abrupt explosion ripped through the air, rippling forward and tearing at him from the sidelines. It was just the concussive wave, nothing harmful enough beyond ruffling him. It had come from farther away, thankfully, but it had also come from the cavern lake, well away from the cave floor's makeshift battlefield. Immediately he rushed over, searching the water's surface. It was too dark here, beyond the little glowing lights and the path. All he saw was black glass rippling beyond. The smokescreen was gone now and the woman came to the water's edge on her side of the field.
"Riptide?"
Water shattered upwards at her mere inquiring, admitting that brutish Croconaw onto land. He hissed low in his throat, Arsenic trapped in his jaws. The Koffing was out cold. Water poured from spouts where gasses should have been eking from. Proton felt his blood run cold at the sight.
The Croconaw spat his Koffing out with an almost dismissive toss of his broad skull. With a shaking hand, he returned Arsenic to his pokéball.
"Boss…"
He turned on his heel toward the voice. One of his men was picking himself up and moving to another one coming to. The others were doing much the same, or picking up their unconscious partners and sagging beneath their weight.
"I think we should get outta here. This—we're done here. Punk's put us out on our asses. No way we can keep this operation going."
He disliked it when an underling was correct, but he'd be an idiot if he suggested otherwise. He gave a curt nod. The woman moved quickly back onto the path, blocking it with her team.
"I don't think so. I told you before. You're leaving all right, but it's gonna be in cuffs and in the back of a squad car. You're not walking away from this scot-free."
She seemed annoyingly determined to see that through. Proton narrowed his eyes.
"I don't believe you understand what is going to happen. You're going to let us leave, or we'll make you, by force."
She laughed at that.
The sound grated on his nerves.
"Gentlemen…ladies. I believe now's the moment we should take our leave. Ready yourselves."
Those who were awake dug into pockets and produced eye-protection augments and fit them squarely onto their faces. Proton did the same, and pulled out an additional item. It was a simple canister with a pull-pin and lever at the top. He pulled the pin and let it drop, keeping his fingers pressed down on the lever.
"Goodbye, miss. It hasn't been much of a pleasure, but trust me when I say, that if we meet again in the future, you won't be shown the mercy of our retreat."
He released the lever and threw the canister at her. At first, he was dignified with her confusion. He closed his eyes on reflex, and several seconds later the boom of the canister exploding went off. The flash bang would be enough to cover their escape for the next few minutes. They'd have to hump it on foot to their vehicle almost a quarter of a mile away, but no matter. This head start would be enough.
Quickly, the others made for the exit. One of them took a wailing swing at the woman and for all her scrappy attitude, she still went down. He doubted it was from the actual hit, however, and more the wobbly affect from the flash bang still searing in her eyes and the ringing in her ears. The woman hit the ground all the same, surprised groan and all. The grunt looked ready to take another swing, but Proton moved in quickly enough to stop him.
"We don't have time for petty revenge, as much as I'd like to myself. We only have a few minutes and no combat-ready pokémon, so move it."
He almost wanted to snatch up the Croconaw and the Growlithe both, but they weren't immobilized properly. And a thrashing, confused pokémon could hurt someone else as much as they can hurt themselves. He continued along, stepping around the whining Growlithe and made for the exit after his underlings.
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