Chapter Sixty-Five
A birds-eye view of the city sprawled over the table before Admin Celeste, portrayed by the Argus System that thrummed in the center of the operations headquarters. Rocket troops, represented by green dots, formed up in trenches and patrolled the city's streets. At the very edge of the table, a vast horde of writhing red blotches crept westward. The projection showed depth, with skyscrapers coming up to her eyes and a few red dots hovering near the ceiling. A few gray prisms had a white halo for the UV spotlights, and others had a green shroud for anti-air guns. Artillery and mortars were rows of hash marks, and aircraft were green wedges. Five golden circles marked her own position, the front lines, the north and south flanks, and Seven's position with Mewtwo at the rear.
She tapped two of the golden circles. "North flank forces, dig Trench C another half mile north and station one of the gatlings there. South flank, form the command in front of the mortars. Clear out the buildings in the vicinity so they have a clear shot."
Excavators, marked by green blocks, plowed through the ground, and green dots filled the space they left behind. To the south, gray prisms toppled over, and a glowing gold halo popped up in their place, matching three other locations across the map.
"South flank command station established," Admin Fisher said over the radio. The southern gold halo vibrated with his voice. "We have our supplies, units have been employed, and there's no sign of the enemy yet. Do we have any air support?"
"You have been assigned two dozen helicopters and fighters. They've been added to your comm. channel."
"Thanks. Fisher out."
Celeste ran a finger over the aircraft icons in the southern hangar and pinned them to the southern command post. Then she moved to the northern post and tapped the base. "How are you on supplies?"
"We're low on mortar ammunition," Commissioner Mason said. "We could also use some air support."
"We've given you what we have," Celeste told him. "You'll have to make do."
His voice sounded thin and wary over the radio. "Understood. I'm counting on you."
Celeste diverted another store of ammunition to the southern flank and moved a convoy of vans to their air base, both to bring fuel for the jets and to whisk Colson and Fisher out of there should the flank collapse.
"Front lines, reporting in," said a husky voice from the front lines. Blacksmith, Seven's second in command, had a ring of gatling guns and artillery around his position. "We have word that the Lucario are on their way. The enemy has readied their front line, and in ninety seconds, they will be within firing range."
"Hold fire for an additional thirty," Celeste ordered. "We can't afford to waste ammunition. And do not engage Bruno."
"Understood. I'll be listening for orders."
Celeste surveyed the table and found a dark patch behind their lines. As she watched, another city block went dead. More and more of the map vanished, until only the main lines and splotches of the interior remained.
The intervening darkness was punctuated by fuzzy green splotches representing their rear patrols. She swept her hand over them all and said, "They've taken out most of my eyes. Be ready for an enemy attack."
"This is Sweeper Squad Thirteen!" one voice shouted. "Ghosts are coming out of the ground, and they brought friends!" Gunfire cracked in the background, and a man screamed.
Celeste signaled the units atop skyscrapers. "UV lights, power up. They sent ghosts behind our lines. Make the first shot count. Anti-air, keep an eye out, they can slip through surveillance."
While she was distracted with defending the rear, two packs approached the flanks. Both sets of mortars had already started firing by the time Celeste contacted them.
"Forces at the flanks are larger than anticipated. I'll send the rear guard in as soon as they're done sweeping up."
"We need more than some extra guns!" Commissioner Mason shouted. "They got a Pokémon using aura here! Send us some Lucario!"
Celeste stared at the northern flank. In a flash, a whole row of green, huddled in one of the trenches, vanished, replaced within moments by a torrent of red.
"Is it Bruno?"
"No, it's some electric type! We're getting torn to pieces out here!"
She brought up video footage of the battle. Lightning crashed out of ashen clouds and swept along a trench, turning soldiers into blackened husks. Manectric and Jolteon sprinted through the lingering static and gnawed out the throats of the survivors. At the center of the rushing mass of Pokémon, an Eelektross channeled a maelstrom of aura around itself, blocking artillery rounds and bullets.
"This is Fisher," came a radio signal from the southern flank. "We're getting roasted alive. Lucario backup requested to deal with an aura-user."
Celeste examined the two battles. Then she tapped Seven's circle and gave the order to move north.
"Useless idiot," she muttered. "Then again, Fisher's got air support."
She turned to the Rocket Grunts and Lieutenants manning the computers around her. "Any idea where they came from?"
"They came from the White Knights, Admin."
"Wait, what?"
The Grunt brought up research data on his computer. It popped up over the display of her map. Celeste glossed through it and pursed her lips.
"I see. Sloppy of us to not follow through on this." She brushed the digital document aside and returned her attention to the battle. Commissioner Mason had given ground in leaps and bounds, and Seven made sluggish progress through the embattled city blocks. Replacement sensors had reassembled some pieces of her map, but many large gaps remained. A few groups pinged her requesting orders, and she sent them to Fisher.
"We got movement." The message came from the front lines. "Engaging in thirty seconds."
A blue dot appeared by the trenches. More emerged from the darkness behind it. They fanned out in a wedge, stopping just behind the trenches. At the far east side of the map, a tall crimson dot, marking Bruno's position, leapt through the teeming hordes of lesser Pokémon.
On a video monitor, mines and artillery shattered the ground around Bruno and glanced off his shield. The other Lucario marched forward, forming a wedge behind Elder Bayron. He held the Mega Stone aloft in his right hand, and a blue glow suffused him, dancing like wildfire. Blasts of aura shot out from both sides and collided in roaring founts. The earth trembled, and both men and Pokémon stumbled back from the shockwave.
Power poured through the wedge of Lucario, and the aura flames rose. Blast after blast swept across the field of churned concrete. Buildings rolled like tumbleweeds over the ranks of Pokémon, and the crumbling pavement peeled away in strips. Yet, Bruno stood untouched by the churning aura, swathed in his own shield.
The two Lucario traded blow for blow with their auras. Bruno used precise whips, lashing the front of Bayron's shield over and over, while the Elder flung hammer-blows across Bruno's aura. Bruno's face twisted under the strain of the sustained assault, and he stumbled back. The Elder, though leading the offense, stumbled through each forward step, he breathed deep and fast, and his shoulders slumped forward. His eyes were unfocused and glazed over.
Celeste bit her lip behind a hand. She looked for Seven's signal and saw it at the northern flank. With one eye, she watched Mewtwo battle the Eelektross, and in the other, Bruno's relentless counterstroke. He pulled apart the Elder's aura. A jagged hole appeared, and a lance of aura surged towards it. Inches from the Elder's chest, a smaller wall rose in its path, and the aura spear shattered. Sharp fragments bounced around the inside of the Elder's shield and tore at Bayron.
Blood dripped from dozens of wounds, but the Elder remained on his feet. In answer, the Elder formed a sphere the size of a truck over Bruno's head, a ragged ball with rough, curved edges all over its surface. It spun, slowly at first, then fast enough to stir the ashes and dust on the streets. It fell into Bruno's shield, shearing away ribbons of aura. Bruno ducked and formed another lance of aura. With a mighty heave, Bruno drove the lance through the sphere, and it split like a dying star.
Elder Bayron's aura faded from a radiant sun, to a modest bonfire, to a trembling spark. The other Lucario funneled more power into him, but the Elder swallowed it up, imploding like a black hole. Bayron fell to his knees, clutching his head and vomiting blood.
He hit the ground, and the aura faded.
The other Lucario reformed the wedge in front of the Elder's fallen body, but Bruno batted them aside like leaves. Their spines bent back until they snapped, and their heads twisted around until they stared backwards. Within seconds, the Lucario had been slaughtered.
Celeste searched the Argus for Seven's signal, but it was lost in the tumult of red and green dots clashing in the northern trenches. Fisher messaged her, requesting backup from Mewtwo, and she hastily told him it had been cancelled.
A flash of gold caught her eye. Seven was already on her way to the front lines, judging by the eastward route she took. Celeste clenched her hands as she saw holes torn through the main defense like tissue paper. Whole swaths of defenders were wiped out with a single wave of Bruno's aura, and his mindless marauders charged in to flank the remaining troops.
Pillboxes bristled with machine guns, but they were either swarmed over with sheer numbers or blown apart by a larger Pokémon. Machine guns were dive-bombed by flyers, either torn to shreds with talons or crushed by the weight of their corpses. Air support that tried to clear the skies were swatted away by Bruno's aura. The artillery lines faced return fire from a pair of Blastoise launching Magnemite and Geodude miles behind the trenches. Knots of cannoneers fought them off with grenades and flamethrowers, but the artillery fell silent as the Pokémon army advanced.
She directed Blacksmith's defensive withdrawal, pulling troops back one platoon at a time through the narrow trench channels. When one layer of trenches was overrun, she had the channels linking it to the ones further back sealed off with explosive charges or sandbags. Any that tried to clamber through that route were met with flamethrowers and machine guns. They gave ground mile by mile, leaving behind Elder Bayron's body and countless others.
Within moments of Mewtwo's arrival, the ceiling rattled overhead. The sound scratched its way to a vent on the other side of the room. Celeste and every Rocket in the room drew their guns. With a screech, the screws on a vent cover snapped. Venipede and Weedle poured out. A torrent of bullets flew at them. Most were shot to pulp, but a few scuttled forward, over the Argus unit. Before Celeste could stop them, the Grunts shot up the delicate equipment. The hologram cracked, and the eastern half of the map disappeared. More bullets tore through the circuit boards and tangles of wires. A dozen bugs twitched feebly on the broken glass as their internal fluids seeped into the snapped circuitry. Smoke rose from the shorted circuits.
And still the bugs came, about twenty left. Celeste fired as fast as her shaking fingers allowed. Her first shot took a Weedle through the head, but the other shots flew too high. Her subordinates fired wildly into the throng, and a bullet took her in the foot. She screamed and fell back. She reached for her gun, but a Venipede darted past her outstretched hand, raised its stinger over its head, and plunged it down into her neck.
The poison felt like liquid ice, freezing its way through her veins and numbing her thoughts when it reached her brain. A Rocket officer kicked the Venipede off her and shot it, but by then, all she could do was gape at him, mouth working silently as she struggled in vain to beg for an antidote. She closed her eyes, and cold, white snow buried her.
Changelog
12/28/18 – minor edits