Part XIV: Just Making Things Worse

The sound of my heart pounding filled every inch of my body with dread. Blood rushed in my ears as I stood there, panting for breath. My knees felt as if they were nothing but marshmallows below me, shivering and shaking as if they would let me drop to the floor. The hallway, once so full of activity was silent with a deadly chill.

Crobat was gone. The men were gone.

My rival was gone.

I struggled to breathe as panic surged through my systems. I had failed. Instead of relying on my Pokémon, I used my own strength. Because of that foolish move, the grunts had escaped. To make matters worse, they had stolen both my precious rival and his Pokémon.

No! I snapped into a growl as I fought to reignite some flame of bravery. I won't let them take him! Those pathetic fools! They will pay for their sins against mankind and Pokémon! My breaths came out rough and violent as my voice merged with one I held far too familiar. Those insolent scourges will pay with their lives! No evil shall escape my wrath! No one shall escape their righteous punishment!

My feet took off before the rest of my body could even react, sending me racing down the hall. Remains of the Blizzard lingered in the corners as white dust, coating the pale tiles. My breath became a cloud of smoke trailing behind me as I blindly raced down the long stretch.

No, I wasn't blindly running around. Something else was guiding me through these chilled halls. My mind was fogged with rage, something far too dangerous for myself to handle. But, I couldn't back out now. If this rage engulfed me, then so be it! All that mattered was finding my rival before those disgusting fools did something irreversible.

I snapped my attention up from the floor and found the two men standing around in front of a closet. I narrowed my eyes to focus on the larger of the grunts, the one that had held my rival hostage beforehand. He would be the first to taste my fury.

"Boss!" My target noticed me running towards them with a jolt. The thinner man spun around with a cringe before glaring at me. I wasn't going to hold back this time. I was going to make them pay.

"No matter!" The man reached for his belt as I gained ever closer. "I'll take care of you just like that little friend of yours!" Before I could even register the shock from his comment, he hurled a Pokéball into the air.

A Sneasel once again landed in the narrow pathway, trying to block me with its claws. I didn't even so much as reach for my belt as I continued to run ahead. In fact, I didn't even so much as give it a glance as I jumped over its head and kept running for the two men.

"U-Uh, Boss!" The thicker man jumped before turning to his leader. In a matter of seconds, I would reach them. I wasn't about to stop just to engage in some petty battle. They had lost that honor when they stole my rival. "She's not stopping!"

"Then do something, you—" The thin man was cut off by my jaw connecting with his chin. The man staggered back and shot me a glare of defiance. His partner just stared at me with wide eyes, unable to comprehend this turn of events. I focused on the two men and then did the only thing left for such monsters.

With a loud yell, I launched myself at the ringleader.

A fury overwhelmed my systems alright, just as it always did when I went up against the monsters that made up Team Rocket's ranks. However, instead of the blindness and feelings of being directed, I only felt the raw hatred and the desire to strike them where they stood. My left hand burned with a slightly less powerful heat than my usual attacks, making some lingering corner of my mind question why I hadn't entered my previous mode of rage.

After a few more hits connected with pale skin, I was thrown back by a slam from the larger man. I growled as I nearly lost my footing on the still cooled floors. I snapped up just in time to see the leader stepping forward with a black rod.

"I tried to play nicely, little mouse." He snapped his wrist and suddenly the rod extended outwards. "Truly, I did. But when a pesky rodent keeps bothering ya', you gotta call an exterminator!"

Before I could get out of the way, the man thrust the rod into my stomach. I let out a scream of pain as a surge of electricity raced through my body. A few seconds later and I found myself crumpled on the floor, my arms and legs shivering with small shockwaves of agonizing pain. My breath struggled to get up or down my throat as I laid on my side and looked up at the disgusting creature before me. The man shot me a grin as he folded the strange device back to a more portable size.

"Well then," He let out a snort of satisfaction as I fought to breathe and to stop the spasms in my limbs. "That takes care of our rodent problem." The thicker man slowly walked up to his leader with eyes wide. A mixture of both wonder and horror shimmered in soulless black orbs as he looked down at me. I wanted more than anything to spit in their faces, to stomp on their feet or to kick them in a place that I could really make them feel pain.

However, lying on the floor like a discarded doll makes those options quite a bit difficult.

"Matt!" The thinner man turned to his subordinate with a glare. "Wrap this pesky thing up and dispose of her! I'll go find that ditz in charge and figure out where she's keeping all of the Pokémon people send to that darn computer system." He looked over his shoulder as he passed his black-haired cohort.

"But sir," The man with black hair turned to give him a look of worry. "What about her Pokémon?"

"Pfft," Horror raced up my spine as I realized that my Pokémon where now left at their mercy. Their nonexistent mercy. "Take 'em like we took the boy's. We'll send them off later with the rest of the haul." I fought to do something, anything as the man leaned down and took my white belt off my waist.

"Sorry about this," The man let out a bit of a whisper as he flung my precious partners over his shoulder like some sort of prize. "But you shouldn't have gotten in the way." The man didn't speak another word as he sat me up and pulled out some sort of fabric from his back pocket. Once my feet and hands stopped twitching, he used the cloth to tie my wrists together.

Let me go! Give me back my Pokémon! An infinite amount of insults raced to my motionless mouth as I found myself being picked up by the man. I swear, when I get the feeling back in...well, everything, I'm going to tear you apart! You'll be a mess on the floor when I'm done with you! The man ignored my mental threats as he unlocked the nearby closet, slowly pulled the door open and let out a sigh.

"Well, looks like you'll be staying here for now on." I numbly stared at the man's shoes as he took a deep breath. "Man, I hate this part." He then suddenly spun me around until I was pointed straight towards the closet, my body flat as a board in the middle of the air. "Well, hope you don't bust your head open or something."

Before I could mentally question the meaning of such a statement, I was flung inside of the dark pit in the wall and sent crashing into something. The last thing I heard was a shuffling of feet and a slamming of the door before the man left me in the all-consuming darkness. I fought to catch my breath as the sound of the locking of a door rang out in the small space.

Ho-oh help me now.

Author's Note: And that, my dear readers, is why we carry our Pokémon. We must rely on them in times of great distress, instead of trying to use your brute strength to your advantage. After all, we are partners in this strange world. When you need help, your Pokémon are always there to help you.

Anyways, it seems things are going downhill very quickly. Lyra, how many times do I have to tell you not to be so impulsive? Ugh, heroes these days are just so stubborn! (Oh wait...)

Would you look at that. More mentions of blinding rage and pounding people. Dang Lyra, what the heck is up with you today? You would think that if a girl woke up in her crush's arms, she would have a good day. Apparently, that's not the case here. These kids certainly know how to attract trouble.

These certainly aren't the type of grunts she's faced before. Those grunts run away screaming whenever they get even so much as a single slap to the face, let alone a barrage of punches to your face and gut. These thugs apparently are a different breed of Rocket! Will Silver and Lyra be able to get their Pokémon back? Will they survive? You'll just have to wait and see!

[Viewers of the Pokémon Origins anime might recognize the 'black rod of doom' that was used against Marowak in Episode Two. I believe it is some more violent form of a taser. In other words, it really stinkin' stings.]