TW: Gun
Chapter 10: The Rocket Guild
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...
"Hey, you two lovebirds! Wake up already! We have a long way to walk and probably a few reports to make when we get there!"
I slowly, and reluctantly opened my eyes halfway. It was a bright morning, and the morning sun was blinding.
"It's time to wake up already?" A voice next to me said, groggily.
"Guess so. I don't want to, though. It's too comfy like this" I said while closing my eyes again.
"Agreed. Just give us five more minutes"
"Have you checked how you two are sleeping? You say you are so confy that I guess you must have"
Sighing, I opened my eyes and discovered that Ember and I were hugging each other. Ember slowly opened her eyes and reached the same conclusion as me.
As quickly as possible, we straightened up and got out of the tent.
Kit was standing just outside it, with a mischievous grin that gave away that he had a few things to say about this very moment.
"A good night, huh?"
"Y-Yeah" Ember stuttered. Her cheeks were a whole different shade of red.
"It was...comfortable. And definitely not cold" Despite not being able to see them, I could also feel my own cheeks hotter than what they should be.
"Sure, pal"
"Hey! If you two are awake, start packing your things, and let's move!" Yelled Mismagious.
"Saved by the bell. For now at least. You are gonna have a looong walk back home" Added Kit, while grinning and walking away.
After some uncomfortable silence, Ember and me started undoing the tent.
"So, uhhh...You helped me sleep tonight, apparently. Thank you" I finally said.
"You're welcome" She said without looking at me.
"Sorry if I made it awkward. Now Kit won't leave us alone for the rest of the day. Shoulda just had some guts and slept like a guy my age"
This time, she stopped and looked at me. "What do you mean? I was the one that decided to do what I did, remember? And just so you know, you are kinda comfortable to sleep with"
"Woah! Better not let Kit hear that one"
"Shut up!"
Both of us were blushing, but we didn't speak anymore until we finished tidying up everything.
"Hey, we are done here!" I yelled.
"Then let's hit the road"
With that, we set off with the hopes of making it back into town before noon. It was then when I realized we forgot to share what we found yesterday.
"Didn't we say we would share what we found once we woke up?"
"Oh yeah!"
"I've got this..." Said Mismagious, while pulling some sort of metal cilinder.
"Huh. You took one of those things?" Said Ember.
"What is it?"
"Some sort of flashing device. Apparently, when you pull the pin, some type of countdown happens and this thing explodes, flashing and blinding anyone that is within its radius"
A what? This guy had just described a flashbang. "Where did you find it?"
"Apparently, we found an a room full of weird metal sticks. It had a sign with what looked like Unown text, but weirder. Thankfully, I could make out that it said 'Armory'"
Wait. If they found an armory that was full of weird metal sticks, that must mean that the weird thing Ember found and has on her bag must be...
I could feel my face go pale when I saw what Ember took from her satchel.
"And I have this! I still don't know what it is... Any ideas?"
It was a revolver.
"That looks a bit like a boomerang" Said Kit.
"But why would a boomerang be made out of metal?" Asked Kate.
"It doesn't sound practical" Added Nate.
"You are right... Maybe if I shake it, it will do something..."
I could not describe the terror I felt seeing Ember shake something as dangerous as that. Thankfully, she stopped not too long after, making me sigh from relief.
"Nothing"
"What if it's just broken? Those things have probably been down there for a long time" Commented Mismagious.
"Maybe. What do you think, Jake?"
"Huh?" The sudden mention of my name made me jump.
"I said if you had any idea of what this could be?"
"Maybe? Just let me see"
"You sound nervous. Do I need to pick it for you, so that you don't have to get too close to your little girlfriend~?" Teased Kit. A sharp look from me was enough to make him realize this was serious.
My hand was shaking when I grabbed the weapon. I never expected to see one of these things, much less have one on me.
The fact that I had three fingers now didn't help at all either.
The metal felt cold to the touch, but I had no time to think about that. The first thing I did was to check if the gun was loaded. Chances were that, since they found this revolver in a bunker prepared to endure a long period time, this gun was at least halfway, if not fully loaded.
Sure enough, the drum of the thing was completely loaded, confirming my suspicions. That only made me even more nervous.
"Jake, are you ok?" Asked Kit.
"You look like you are having a panic attack" Added Ember.
If only they knew...
"I'm fine, really"
I had to take the bullets out if I wanted to let them keep it. After all, I had no intention of letting them accidentally find a way to shoot themselves with it.
Since I had seen some movies before, I knew that unloading this gun was as easy as pushing the drum out and removing the bullets one by one. Having just three fingers, it was harder than how the movies pictured it.
After sighing (and almost falling to the ground), I handed Ember the now safe gun, and put the bullets in my bag.
"Hey, you did something with it!" Exclaimed Kit.
"Unloaded it. Now there is no danger in having it" I answered.
I'm gonna have a lot of human items after this adventure, and it's only my second one!
"Wait, it wasn't safe before?" Questioned Mismagious.
"You picked it up from an armory, what did you expect? It's a weapon, and I simply disabled it"
"But how?" Asked Kate.
"You just took a few pieces out. I don't see how that disables anything" Added Nate.
Before I could answer that, Ember said something. "Hey guys! There is some sort of switch here! I'm gonna press it!"
"Wait, don't...!"
*Click*
"Huh"
It was at that point that I felt on my knees.
"Jake! What's wrong with you?!"
"Why did you have to do that?"
"Do what?"
"Pull the goddamn trigger!"
She tilted her head.
"I don't get what you mean..."
"Look, just...leave it for when we get back home, alright?"
"Okay?" She said while putting away the revolver.
Again, no one spoke for a while. We resumed walking silently for a long time.
"That thing was disappointing" Said Kit.
"You haven't checked what this thing can do, then" Commented Mismagious.
"I'll explain to you all later. Can we not talk about it for now, please?"
A few nods later and we were back to walking in silence. This time, no one said anything for the rest of the trip.
Some hours later, the familiar gates of the city were visible, with their usual guards beside them.
"Home, sweet home! We are finally back!" Yelled Ember
"And we still have half of the day to spare! A succesful expedition, if I've ever seen one!" Added Kit.
"Just wait until you have to handle all that paperwork. You'll be lucky if you finish by the end of the day."
"But we don't have a lot to share, do we?" I asked.
"Maybe you don't, but we found a whole armory, remember?"
"Fair enough"
Despite trying to sound calm, I was screaming internally, trying to think of a way to convince Mismagius not to report what they had found.
"Hey, Ember?"
"Yeah?"
"Can you come with me for a sec?"
"Sure"
"The little couple is already planning their first date? How cute~"
Ignoring Kit, we walked a bit back to have some privacy.
"What do you need?"
"I need you to not tell Blaze about what you found"
"What?! But it's an important discovery! Everyone will want to explore it!"
"That's the thing. You see, I have enough leads to think that place was built by humans. That place may contain secrets about myself, Ember. If we report the findings, we might not be able to go there anymore"
After pondering for a bit, she smiled softly, and nodded. "I get it. I knew those things were weird enough. If you think we can find something, I'm up to not say anything"
"Yes! Thank you, Ember!"
"But how are we going to convince Mismagious and his team?"
"Leave it to me"
Walking back towards the group, we headed straight for team Shadow, trying our best to ignore Kit.
"Mismagious"
"Hm?"
"Would you mind lying about what we found in that bunker?"
"Uhh, why? You know the trouble that could bring you?"
"You see..." Said Ember, pushing me while she gritted her teeth. She probably wasn't expecting me to be that direct. "We think that if we say the truth, everyone will want to go there and inspect everything, and we could lose important info. You know, like finding out what those metal sticks are? Or those machines? And also..."
"I'm down"
"What?" We said at the same time.
"Yeah, I also want to explore that place more in depth. And maybe we could use your team's help?" That last part sounded forced.
"Just like that? What about 'all the trouble that could bring us'?"
"Bah, it's nothing. If you don't make it obvious that you are lying, no one will notice. It's not like we haven't done it before"
"We have a deal then?"
"Sure. If we are not too busy, you can tell us and we'll go with ya. We are normally around town, so you shouldn't have problems finding us"
I sighed. "Thanks"
"No problem, kid. Didn't know that place was so important to you that you all would agree with keeping quiet. I'll just tell my team, and we'll keep going, sound cool?"
"Yeah"
He floated away, and began talking with his team. "That was too easy, don't you-AWW!"
Ember punched me on my shoulder, making me wince. "You didn't need to be so blunt about it, you know? It was so obvious that something is up!"
"You didn't need to hit me so hard..."
"Come on, you are supposed to be a steel type, not a little kid. I didn't even hit you too hard"
"You know that punching your boy won't make him love you more, right?" Said Kit from behind us.
"Will you shut up? We are not a couple, and he is not my boyfriend!" She said, as red as a tomato. Or would it be a tamato berry in this situation?
"Your face speaks louder than a Loudred, m'lady"
"S-Shut up already!"
I couldn't help but laugh at her display of embarassment. "Not you too! I swear I'll punch you even harder!"
"Alright, I already told my team. At least most of it..."
"You have another teammate?"
"Yep. She is not too fond of going on explorations though, so she usually just hangs out in our room, doing things that don't requiere going outside"
"Sounds like a shy girl to me" Commented Kit.
"Oh, the irony"
"What?"
"Nothing!"
"Can we go on, please?" Said Kate.
"We would like to get this over with" Added Nate.
"Sure, lets go"
The town hall. I've been here countless times, but somehow, it still amazes me. Its imposing structure and beautiful colors were a spectacular sight to behold.
Looking at the bulletin board was the familiar Quilava. "Blaze! We are back!" I yelled.
He looked away from the board and saw us walking towards him, so he began waving at us.
"Team Indigo! And team Shadow too! Welcome back!"
"Hey, B! Long time no see, huh?"
After everyone greeted the fire type, he gestured us to follow him into his office.
The room wasn't as big as the mayor's, but that was to be expected. It had a wooden floor and walls, which contrasted with the owner.
The walls were also full of notices and diplomas, and the table at the center was full to the brim with papers.
After he sat at the other side, he searched in the big pile of paper and took out a quill.
"So. What did you guys find?"
Alright, Jake. Make it sound convincing.
"You are going to be sad, but we didn't find anything noteworthy"
Blaze's ears visibly drooped. "What?! Nothing at all?"
"Well, we found the room, and we found that it had a basement, but it wasn't anything special, just a place full of moldy food and rusty equipment. We think it is just a very old bunker. We even explored the surrounding area to see if there was something else, but nothing"
Yeah, that'll do.
"Really? That sucks. Is it true, Mismagious?"
I looked at him and he did the same for a short time before looking back at Blaze.
"Indeed. Just as Jake described, there was just what looked like a really old and useless bunker"
"Oh well. I guess it was just a waste of your time, wasn't it? I'll report the results to the Expedition Society as soon as I can. Meanwhile, why don't you enjoy your day off and a half?"
"Wait, day off?" Asked Kit.
"When explorers are sent to a mission that requieres going too far and takes more than a day, it is a rule to leave the day they come back and the next one for them to relax and take a rest. Which means, that we have a day and a half of nothing to do" Explained Mismagious.
"You mean I have a Tuesday afternoon and a whole Wednesday to do nothing at all?" Ember exclaimed.
"Yep"
"Well then, team Indigo and team Shadow. You are free to go. I will send this report to the ES immediately. Mismagious, tell Jessica about everything that happened"
"Jessica?"
"The other member that doesn't like to do field work, remember?"
"I forgot you were new to this. Jessica is the fourth member of team Shadow. Though, it is not often that we see her around here" Explained Blaze.
A silence fell over the group.
"So, we are free?"
"Yep. But don't relax too much, just in case there is an emergency"
"Okay, then. Lets go team!"
Exiting the office, and then the building, we began talking about what we would do for today and tomorrow.
"I can't believe we just got away so easily"
"Relax, Jake. Remember the important point: We have a day and a half of free time! And it's our second expedition!"
"Yeah. My stomach is craving some food though" Added Kit.
"Well, then. How about we eat at my place? We can leave all we found there, and maybe Jake can explain some things..."
"Sure"
"It's settled then!"
Kit and I were sitting while Ember was cooking. Kit tried to volunteer to cook himself, but Ember didn't let him. Apparently, he didn't really cook too well.
I had left the laptop on top of the sofa on the living room, and I was examining one of the bullets I had taken out of the gun before, while Kit took his time into examining the gun itself.
Before long, lunch was ready, and three plates full of rice were put in front of us.
"Alright, little cubs. Time to eat!" Said Ember.
"Thanks, mom" I answered, rolling my eyes.
"Alright, Jake" Said Kit while tossing the gun to me. "What the hell is that thing?"
I barely managed to catch it before giving Kit an angry look. "Be more careful with it!"
"Why? You still haven't told us what it is!"
"That's a gun" I finally said. "It's a weapon used by humans to..."
"Yeah?"
"Kill other humans"
Silence fell over all three of us.
"Oh, I get it now"
"Wait. Does that mean that all of those metal sticks that we found..."
"They were probably all guns"
More silence.
"And...how does it work?" Asked Ember after a long pause.
"Remember that 'switch' you pressed before?"
She nodded.
"That's called the trigger. If I hadn't unloaded it, you would have shot what's called a 'bullet' at aproximately 340 meters per second" I said while showing them the small metal piece.
"So that's why you took those things out?"
"Yes"
"So you mean I could have...killed someone?"
Both of us turned to look at Ember. That question was full of fear of what could have happened.
"Hey, Ember. Relax. Shooting a gun doesn't automatically mean killing someone. You would have to actually aim at them. And considering that the closest one to you was Mismagious, I doubt something truly bad would have happened. Worst case, the recoil would have hurt your wrist"
"But what if I did?"
"Ember, please. Have you listened? The gun is safe now. You pressed the trigger and literally nothing happened"
After breathing for a bit, she seemed to calm down. "Alright, fine. Lets eat before it gets cold"
The rice was delicious. And took my mind off the question that Ember had made before.
What if I had killed someone?
"I suppose the cilinder Mismagious had is no different?" Asked Kit.
"What did it do, Ember?"
"It flashed us and blinded us for a bit"
"Yeah, that's called a flashbang. You are supposed to throw it after pulling the pin"
"How do you know about all of that?" Questioned Ember.
"I have seen a lot of movies and played a lot of video games"
"Movies?" Said Ember.
"Video games?" Added Kit.
"I forgot you have no idea about anything of that sort..." I said while rubbing the back of my head and chuckling awkwardly.
"Movies are...umm...like a book? Yeah, it's like a comic, but instead of being in paper, it's being represented by people. And then you can watch it as many times as you want. Does that make sense?"
"Sort of"
"Alright. So a video game is a bit harder to explain. Imagine two Pokémon fighting. A video game is where, for example, you control one of the Pokémon while the other fights for itself. And there are no consequences if you lose. Did you get it?"
"Not really..."
"It's hard, you know? You would at least have to be slightly familiar with the concept of human technology"
"Well, no worries then. After that music player you showed us last time, I think I have enough dose of human technology for now. I can still feel that guitar solo playing in my head..." Joked Kit.
"Speaking of..."
"Nope. Sparky told me once that he always has the afternoons full of work. I think he would just tell us to stick the...laptop? Right up our asses"
"Maybe tomorrow morning?"
"Sure. We can check"
"Guys, the food is gonna get cold..." Ember warned.
"Oops! Too caught up in unraveling the misteries of that laptop"
The table fell silent for the rest of the lunch. It wasn't too long though, as the food Ember prepared was delicious!"
"That was amazing!" I said.
"You truly improve your cooking skills every day, don't ya?"
"Try cooking a meal for two Pokémon and then let's see how good you become at cooking!"
"Glad to see that I was useful, even when I wasn't helping" I retorted.
Kit stood up from his chair. "So what do we do now? Any ideas?"
"Well, I wanted to check up that laptop a bit more thoroughly. Maybe you can help me out and make sure I don't break anything?"
"Sure!"
"We'll gladly help!"
"Thanks guys. You are the best!"
"I think you said that like...ten thousand times already?" Said Ember while rolling her eyes.
"It's true though!" I said while chuckling.
Walking towards my bag, I took the laptop out, and checked the underside. This looked like one of those laptops that had the option to remove the battery.
Now that I looked at it, I noticed that the battery was a bit puffed, which meant that if the laptop had actually switched on, we would have had a problem.
"Alright, so I have some bad news"
"Firstly, we are lucky that the laptop didn't switch on" I removed the battery from the device. "You see this? Notice how it isn't flat at all? That means that if the laptop switched on, it would most likely have exploded, not only injuring us heavily in the best case, but also destroying the laptop completely"
"Good news, however, is that laptops can operate without the need of an external battery. This leads us to the other piece of bad news, though. Laptops that have their battery removed requiere a constant input of energy, which means that we need Spark not to shock it once and leave, but to be constantly using his electrical power on it"
"That's a big drawback..."
"We could test our luck with trying to use the laptop with its battery in place, but knowing that Raichu can store up to 100,000 volts, I don't want to risk causing an explosion in the middle of the street"
"We'll have to bring him some Elixir's..." Pondered Ember.
"I can get them for tomorrow" Answered Kit.
"I suppose those are the equivalent to energy drinks from my world?"
"Maybe..."
"Anyway, time to look at the inside of this thing. It may be a dumb question, but does anyone of you have a screwdriver?"
"Let me check..." Said Ember while going to look inside the drawers in the kitchen. A few moments later, she came back with one in her paws.
"How about this one?"
I picked it up and took a look at it before comparing it with the screws of the laptop.
"Hmm...it may just barely work..."
Trying my best and still not used to having two fingers less, I removed all of the screws and I took out the cover.
Now, I was no computer expert, but the wiring and the components didn't look rusty or wet. The only sign of old age was the big amount of dust.
"I think everything's good around he-" When I looked upwards, I saw that both of my friends had beyond astonished expressions. "Something wrong, or...?"
"What even is that?" Ember asked.
"It's full of...human technology!" Added Kit.
"If you think this is amazing, you haven't seen a real computer..."
"This thing is full of wires! And what are those plastic pieces? And why does that one have metal legs?" Questioned Kit.
"If only I knew...I may know how to operate a computer, but how it works is a completely alien thing to me"
"The human world truly must be amazing!"
"Hey, if we found out how I got here, maybe there is a way to go pay a visit? I dunno, it would be fun, I guess..."
Silence once again fell over us. This time, it was only interrupted by the sound of me putting the laptop's cover back on.
"So what are we going to do this afternoon?" Asked Kit.
"Maybe we could go to a cafe and have something?" I suggested.
"That sounds great!" Answered Ember.
"Yeah, the perfect setting for a date" Teased Kit.
"Team Indigo, are you there? I repeat, team Indigo, are you there? "
"Or that's going to have to wait for tomorrow..." I said while taking my badge out and pressing the small button.
"Yeah, Blaze. I hear you loud and clear. What's up?"
"Jake, we need you and your team to come to the town hall as soon as possible "
"Ok, sure. What's the matter?"
"We'll explain once you get here. See you soon! Over " And with that, the call was over.
"Guess your little date is going to have to wait, huh?"
"Shut up and let's go. And please, leave the damn gun alone"
Sprinting towards our destination, we saw Blaze talking to a Magnezone, who was wearing a small cap, like Spark's.
Next to them, there was what looked like a Typhlosion, but instead of the usual flames sprouting from the back of their head, what looked like ethereal flames were coming out. They also were wearing what looked like a purple and red collar.
As far as my human knowledge was concerned, those types of Typhlosion, native to Hisui, were long extinct.
"Team Indigo! Sorry to interrupt your day off so suddenly, but officer Magnezone has requested to speak to you"
"Umm sure! But, who is...?" I said while looking at the Typhlosion.
"Oh! You haven't met her yet, have you? This is Jessica, the fourth member of team Shadow. She was coming to see her team when officer Magnezone came to tell me he wanted to see you" He said, making her nod.
"Wait, she is Jessica? The Jessica?"
"Yeah. She is not very keen on talking, so don't expect her to speak too much"
After a small pause, he added. "Anyway, we are leaving you with the officer. Good luck!"
Both of them turned away from us, and began walking away. I could swear I saw the Typhlosion glaring at Kit with a killer look, which sent shivers down my spine.
"BZZT! Team Indigo, the police department needs your help! BZZT!" The officer said in a mechanical voice.
"Uh...sure. What do you need exactly?"
"I hope you remember the two criminals you arrested a few days ago? BZZT!"
"The Mawile and the Lycanroc?"
"BZZT! Indeed. Despite our best efforts, we haven't been able to make them tell us anything, so we thought that maybe the three that captured them could do something! BZZT! BZZT!"
"Wait, you need us to do an interrogation?" Asked Ember.
"Affirmative. BZZT!"
"But we don't know anything about interrogating Pokémon!"
"Speak for yourself. I know a thing or two about exerting my pressure on other 'mons" Added Kit with a smirk.
"BZZT! We thank you for helping us! Now, please, follow me! BZZT! BZZT!"
"Does he have to do the buzzing thing? " I whispered to Ember.
"It's a natural thing, I think. Just try your best to ignore it " She whispered back.
It didn't take too long to arrive to the Police Station. The building was painted with the stereotypical light blue and white, and had a big metal plate depicting the symbol that was in all of the police Pokémon's caps.
The inside was not much different. The same color of walls was present, and the reception consisted of a few seats for visitors to sit and plants to decorate.
We walked through the back door and down some stairs, leading to the prison cells and the interrogation room.
Before entering, Magnezone told us that he had to discuss some things with us.
"BZZT! Alright, team Indigo. Inside of this room, both of the criminals are present. They have already been interrogated a few times and they don't show signs of budging. We hope you will be able to get something out of them. Both of them are handcuffed, so they won't be able to use any attacks, and even if they do, officers will enter and cover you, understood? BZZT?"
"Clearly, sir!"
A nod later, and the Magnezone left us alone.
"Well, are you ready?" I said, a bit nervously.
"I guess...Do you think that we'll achieve something? If qualified professionals haven't been able to, do you think we have a chance?" Asked Ember.
"We'll have to try" Answered Kit.
I nodded and took a deep breath. Finally I grabbed the handle and opened the door.
The inside was like the typical room you'd find in any movie. A room with a table, a few chairs and a one way glass.
In the other side of the room, sitting on a chair each, were the familiar Mawile and Lycanroc.
"So we meet again" Calmly said the Lycanroc. Despite that, his voice sounded a bit nervous.
The Mawile, however, looked like she was trying her best not to say something unruly.
"You think we'll tell you anything? You'll have to kill us first!" She finally said.
I sighed. This wasn't going to be easy.
Without any warning, Kit suddenly slammed both of his claws on the table, making everyone in the room jump.
"Listen here, squirt. You think you are tough? Well, we are tougher. Not only that, but we also have the law on our side. So any little stupidity, and you are not seeing the light of the sun in a long time, got it?" He almost snarled.
The Mawile just scoffed.
"Oookay! Anyway, so you do know that if you cooperate, it will be easier for both sides. Maybe we can even shorten your stay at prison" Said Ember, clapping her paws.
"We w-won't say shit! We may be rookies, but we are loyal to the organization!" Yelled the Lycanroc, a small sweat drop falling from his forehead.
"Organization, huh?"
"YOU IDIOT!" Exclaimed Mawile.
The Lycanroc winced.
"I think we need to push that Lycanroc all we can. I think he is the one that's going to fall first " Kit whispered to us.
Both of us nodded.
"So what organization?"
"Hey! This rookie dumbass may have said something he shouldn't, but he is not going to commit the same mistake twice! Right? " She answered, while looking at her partner with a look that clearly said 'Fuck up again, and I'll kill you myself'.
He rapidly nodded.
"Whatever. Let's just continue. Why did you try kidnapping that kid?"
"Because we needed money, duh! Why else would we want to go after a random kid?" She answered, sounding almost offended.
"See, now we're getting somewhere!" I looked at the Lycanroc, who was trying to look as small as possible so he wouldn't get noticed. "They told us that they already interviewed you. What exactly did that talk about? That way, we can avoid repeating innecessary questions"
"Th-They asked about why we did what we did, and if we worked for someone else. They also asked us if we thought about harming the kid, or...k-killing him" He gulped.
"Ember and I will push him, you finish him, okay? " I whispered to Kit.
"Got it "
"And you didn't, did you?" Ember asked.
"N-No! Of course not! We just wanted money in exchange of him! We would never think of killing him!"
"We are criminals, not monsters!" His partner yelled.
"Well, that's good to know"
"Why go after him specifically?" I kept pressuring.
"I don't know! We just saw a kid alone in the forest and thought it was easy prey!" The Lycanroc was sounding more nervous by the second.
"Who sent you?"
"I-I..." He looked at the Mawile, who was looking at him fiercely. "I...can't answer that"
"You know that if they find proof of you working for an organized criminal band, you could spend almost 30 years in prison?"
The Lycanroc widened his eyes. "Yeah, think about it. Thirty years of your life, rotting in a moldy cell, regretting everything you've done, just because you don't want to answer a simple question. So what's it going to be?"
"I-..." The Lycanroc was looking more and more nervous by the second. I smirked.
Perfect.
"Now, we'll leave you a few minutes to discuss what you are going to do. Use them wisely" With that, I signaled both of my friends to get out of the room.
"Better than I expected. Did you learn how to do it from one of those 'movies'?" Kit said as soon as I closed the door.
"Sort of. And also from when I went to high school and someone did something, so the teachers went full policeman mode"
"Is that normal?" Ember asked.
"It depends on the classroom. For mine? Yeah, pretty normal. But I think we are going off topic. Remember, that Lycanroc is about to spill everything, so we need a final push. Kit, you ready?"
"Always"
"Then let's wait about five minutes and hope we are lucky"
We entered the room again, and looked at its two occupants.
The Mawile was as stoic as a statue. Not a hint of emotion in her face, not even anger. I could only sense a bit of nervousness coming from her.
The Lycanroc, however, looked afraid and was almost quivering.
After we shared a look, we nodded and Kit began walking around the table, ocassionally stopping to look at one of them.
Finally, he stopped besides the Lycanroc and again, slammed one of his claws onto the table.
"28 minutes in that cave!" He shouted. "You thought that wouldn't give us a chance, huh?"
"Did you feel cool? Above everyone else?"
The Lycanroc had his eyes closed, and had began to shiver slightly.
"That kid was scared, begging you for mercy! But you chased him, again, and again, AND AGAIN!"
"P-Please, s-stop..." He whimpered.
Kit put his face in front of the scared Lycanroc's, at just mere inches from touching it.
"I know you did it. Everyone knows you two did it!
"Please, s-stop it!"
Kit then slammed his claws on the table again.
"You just have to say 'We work for someone'! Is it that hard to say?!"
"That's enough! Leave him alone!" Yelled the Mawile with no anger in her voice, but genuine concern, but Kit didn't particularly seem to care.
Instead, he proceeded to pick the Lycanroc from the fur of his chest and lift him up a bit. Small tears could be seen in his eyes.
"JUST SAY WHO YOU WORK FOR! SAY IT NOW, FOR FUCK'S SAKE!"
"Alright, alright! I'll talk, I'll talk!" He desperately yelled. The Mawile tried to free herself from the handcuffs, but it was useless.
Kit dropped him onto the chair.
"We were sent by our boss here. The guild needed some money, so everyone had to help. It was our first mission, and they didn't bother in giving us any equipment. We...we failed the mission miserably"
"Answer my question" Kit snapped.
After a long pause, and a few gestures of the Mawile trying to tell him to stop, he spoke again.
"We work for the Rocket Guild"
A tense silence fell over the room. Ember's face seemed to go pale, and even if I couldn't see them, I could swear that something similar was happening to the policemen behind the glass. Aura sense, I supposed.
The confusion on my face was apparent, but Kit appeared not only confused, but also afraid and angry. Very angry.
"You're lying. Those guys have been gone for years now. TELL THE FUCKING TRUTH!"
"I-I'm not lying, I swear! That's what everyone believes, but it has been secretly operating for a few years now under the orders of a new boss!"
"Who is that new boss? Tell me! Or I swear I'll...!"
"I don't know! We are rookies; we don't know anything! P-Please! That's all I know!" And he began to cry. If those two hadn't tried kidnapping a kid, I would have been feeling sorry.
"Is it true?" Kit said while looking at the Mawile, who just sighed in defeat and nodded.
"We are done here" He said, opening the door and leaving.
"What the...?"
Ember still hadn't moved an inch.
"Ember? Come on, we are done! Lets go!"
She gulped and nodded, exiting the room. Before leaving, I took one last look at the room and eyed the crying Lycanroc, who was looking at me.
I muttered the word 'sorry' and closed the door behind me.
The tension in the hallway could be cut with a knife.
All of us were leaned against the wall, each with a different emotion in our faces.
Ember was scared. Ever since the Lycanroc said who they worked for, she wore a worried looked, as if she couldn't believe what she heard.
I was confused. Of course, why wouldn't I be? This was obviously important, but I had no idea about who that 'Rocket Guild' was. Or did I...?
Kit had a mixture of both. He seemed confused as me, as if he couldn't believe it, but he also was scared. Scared of what those words meant.
Finally, after what felt like hours, the door from the room next to the one we were just in opened, and three policemen came from it, among them, officer Magnezone.
"Team Indigo, thank you for your help. The Police Department thanks you three for helping with this investigation. Now, we will take everything that was said and put it together to see if they lied or not" He said.
I noticed how he didn't do any buzzing, which oddly terrified me. He then proceeded to float away.
"What if...what if they are not lying?" said Ember before he went away.
"Then, may Arceus have mercy on us"
And with that, he disappeared behind a corner.
"Team Indigo, I'll escort you out, follow me" Said a Furret, wearing the same cap as the officer. He was another officer that was behind the glass, and sounded stressed.
Without any more words, we followed him outside.
Despite not being later than six PM, Kit had already headed home, and Ember and I were both sitting on her sofa.
No one had spoken a word since we exited the Police Station, making me feel a bit awkward.
Finally, I tried breaking the silence. "Umm...may I ask...what's going on? Why are all of you so depressed and scared?"
"They are back" She plainly stated.
"Who?"
"Them. The Rocket Guild"
"Back? What do you mean?"
"Of course! You haven't heard about them, have you?"
I shook my head.
"They are criminals, Jake. The worst criminals to ever exist. They kidnap, kill, torture,... you name it! Why do you think this place is called 'New Hope Town'? It was renamed in honor of the guild being disbanded a few years ago. But now...they are back. I didn't think of this before, but this must be why there has been this much crime lately. They...they are back, stronger than ever"
"Woah. How was it disbanded?"
"Apparently, the leader decided that he didn't want to do that anymore, and destroyed it from the inside. No one knew who the leader was. They were known to parttake in their operations, but no one knew who they were"
"After everything happened though, no one knows where they are now. Some say they died. Others say they simply live a normal life. No one knows for sure, but one thing is clear: If It wasn't for them, things wouldn't be as they are now"
"That's...pretty heroic, in my opinion"
"Yeah, but their past outweights the good actions"
"And there wasn't any attempt at finding the leader?"
"They tried, but a few days after the search party was formed, a letter appeared in the police station. It was from the leader. It stated that whoever sent it was terribly sorry for everything they'd done, and that they had disappeared forever, so there weren't too many attempts to search for them after that"
"I hope that wherever they are, they are living in peace"
"Yeah, until now at least"
Meanwhile, Kit was in his room frantically searching for something. If his house wasn't already messy enough, the search would have done it.
"Fuck, where are you? The only time I need you and you're nowhere to be found!" He said, mostly to himself.
Finally, from the pile of unfolded scarves he just picked up, a small piece of paper fell. He stood some time looking at it, dreading to even come close to it.
After a sigh, he walked to it and picked it up from the ground.
"I expected a betrayal from the lowest rank members. I expected a betrayal from our counselors. But this? This is beyond imaginable. My own family, my own partner, betrayed not only me, but also the whole guild. Now, here comes my question:
You think that will stop us?
When you least expect it, when you think there is nothing to worry about, we'll rise again from the ashes. And this time, no one will stop us. I hope you live the rest of your miserable life regretting your decissions. -L"
Kit set the paper down on top of one of the tables, and sat down on his bed, clutching his head.
"T-They are back"
"Bad news!" Said Mismagious while barging into his team's room.
All three occupants jumped.
"Hey!" Snapped the twins.
"Haven't you ever heard of knocking on the door?" Sighed Jessica.
"There's no time for that! This is bad! Oh, so bad!" The ghost continued while floating from one side of the room to another nervously.
"Hey! Calm down, ok? What's wrong?" The Typhlosion inquired.
"Shitshithshit, alright!"
After a couple of deep breaths, Mismagious calmed down. "Remember those rookies that failed the mission and got arrested?"
"The Lycanroc and the Mawile?"
"The fucking little mutt just told the police and the interrogators everything!"
Silence fell in the room, and the book Jessica was holding fell onto the ground.
"What?"
"And that's not the end of it!"
"No way" Said Kate.
"Even more?" Added Nate.
"You'll never guess who the interrogators were!"
"Don't tell me..."
"The little human and his team!"
Even more silence.
"Well, it's not thaaat bad, is it?" Tried to reason Kate.
"Do I have to remind you of who is in that team?" Growled Jessica.
"Well, the Lucario, that Braixen and...oh"
"This is bad! The police is going to be on the lookout for any suspicious activity! We can't send any of the teams or they'll get arrested and interrogated! And we don't know who will be the snitch!"
Jessica pondered it for a bit, before finally grumbling. "It appears there is nothing else we can do..."
"You don't mean..."
"Initiate plan Z" She said while standing up.
"Jess! You can't be serious! We still haven't even-"
"Hush. Tomorrow evening, I want every team in their respective positions. We are going to take this little town down before anything spreads out, and also take a little trio of Pokémon with us on the way. I want every single inhabitant incapacitated, unconscious or dead before anyone tries to go to get those three, GOT IT?!"
The three of them nodded, a little fear in their face.
"Good" She said while walking out of the room. Before she disappeared, she added one more thing.
"I already told you not to call me by that name if it isn't necessary" And she disappeared.
Shakily, Mismagious picked his badge and pressed the button on top.
"Uhhh...to all stations, initiate Plan Z, I repeat, initiate Plan Z. L wants everything done before tomorrow evening, you copy?"
"Copy that "
"Roger "
"Got it "
"Alright. Keep in mind, don't let anyone see you too much, and remember the plan: we need those three, alive. That goes for you, Archer"
"Whatever" He added.
"The rest of the town, you can do whatever you want. You know my preference. Over"
Mismagious left hid badge back in his bag and looked at the twins, who hadn't even moved since the ghostly Typhlosion had left.
"What are you waiting for? Pack your things. This is the last time we are in this room, so don't leave anything behind"
He looked towards the door and closed his eyes. "We have a team to catch"
END OF CHAPTER 10
Who understood the reference in this chapter?
Seems like I had time for another chapter before my trip, and maybe even for another one if I don't procrastinate.
I personally had fun writting this one, since in case you didn't notice, the intro arc is coming to its end.
I'll try my best to write it as good as I can!
After all, a date is still pending~...
Sorry, Kit grabbed my phone.
Have a great day/night and summer!
