The maneuver like this will let me grab two Bunnelbies at once – I`ll be able to find Lori before Erika and maybe let her escape and then lead me right to the Team Rocket base. I`ll lock Erika inside her office, watch over her criminal student and then grab Bridget`s car and slowly get to the target. Sounds like a pretty good plan for now.
Well, there is still one thing that bothers me a little - the whole fact that I`m going to lock Erika inside her own office and steal car from Bridget. But no, this doesn`t bother me anymore – I do this for good purposes! I do this for saving a bunch of pokemon and, maybe, the whole region from the criminal assholes from Team Rocket. One crime more – one crime less – this won`t do a difference to me now.
I slowly moved to the bushes in front of the gym and looked to the right. Erika slowly crouched to the backdoor too, and watching over her in this dress is quite funny. But the dark-blue color may act as a good camouflage in the darkness. But this is nothing compared to my coal-black greatcoat, cap and glasses. Maybe I should buy myself a bandana to cover the rest of my face. This would be just great.
Suddenly the loud sounds of car engine reached me from the distance. Large black truck appeared over the corner and quickly approached the entrance of gym. It parked right near Lori`s car, and a group of people in Team Rocket uniform exited from the vehicle heading to the gym itself. One of them was carrying some sort of black case with another 'R' sign on it. I wonder what`s inside… And all of them looked a bit higher than me… So no one of them fits the description of a man in grey greatcoat poachers told me.
Damn it… I hate being right about something like this. They actually started to move the stolen pokemon from the gym to their hideout. Well, this may be much more of use to me. I can leave Lori`s fate to Erika and her revenge while following the truck. But I still want to uncover the identity of this girl. I want to understand who is A.E. and who is the guy that actually began the whole operation. I just need to interrogate that woman!
I crawled through the bushes to the side of gym, slowly approaching the entrance. Erika has already got to the backdoor to her office and looked inside through the window. Surprisingly, there were no one, so she took out the keys and began to open the door.
Meanwhile the crew of bandits from the truck reached the entrance and one of them knocked some times. This is quite a curious detail – he knocked the "TR" in Morse. Just after some seconds the doors opened and Lori herself appeared.
"Finally. I`m tired of waiting." She said impatiently.
"We can`t hurry too much in a deal like this." The bandit with the case replied to her and gave her the box. "This is for you."
Lori took the case and opened it. I couldn`t see clearly the insides of it from my point of view, but I didn`t need to.
"Finally, my own uniform! And a personal ID card!" She gladly shouted.
"Keep it quiet, woman! We need to show you to the boss. You can change later. Now let`s take the cargo into the truck!"
All of them followed inside the gym and carefully closed the doors behind them. Well, actually I expected them to leave it opened – they need to carry the boxes into the vehicle anyway. But, judging by the sound of opening pokeballs inside the building, they were going to make their own pokemon carry the crates. I still can`t understand why they carry the actual pokemon in the cages and not in pokeballs. And right now I can`t even imagine the reason for this. Maybe today I will find it out.
The grunts of Team Rocket didn`t hurry to come out for now, and that means I have to follow Erika in her office now. I signed and slowly headed over the corner to her. She had already opened the doors and entered inside. I entered it too and got into the small room divided from the rest of gym space just by glass walls. Just like lieutenant Surge, Erika had a special shelf for different prizes and rewards. The other furniture looked… less mannered than the gym itself.
"Wait a sec!" I whispered to Erika. She turned around and surprisingly looked at me.
"You were going to rush through the main door, weren`t you?"
"They closed it! A bunch of other Rockets came here on truck to take the pokemon they collected from Lavender town." I quickly explained the situation.
"You seem to know what`s happening." She replied confidently.
"No, I don`t. But I want to. Can we see them from here?" I gently pushed her away from the way and approached the glass window. The dense plants inside the gym field blocked the view, but I could hear the approaching steps.
"Damn it, hide!" I rushed to the table and covered myself under it. For some reason Erika decided to place herself with me. And when she slightly pushed me to the side I accidentally touched the wire with my right hand. This seems to be a phone line… This won`t do anything good for now, so I accurately tore it. The gym leader didn`t seem to notice this.
"Why do we have to hide? Let me grab my pokemon and I`ll kick these bastards out!" Erika just resented.
"No, because I need to find out where they will head after!" I silently shouted at her.
"To hell with this! I`m going to…"
But I closed her mouth with my hand right at the moment the doors to office opened and someone entered. The steps approached our table and soon we heard something placed on.
"Finally I will see Giovanny himself…" The voice definitely belonged to Lori. She seemed to enjoy the present from Team Rocket. But the name she said… Giovanni… why does it sound familiar? Is this the boss grunts were talking about? I`m pretty sure I have never faced Team Rocket boss before.
Erika finally stopped mumbling and resisting me and listened to her student too.
"Yes… I will rule this gym… And I will rule the whole Celadon City at least!"
Oh, so that`s why she works with Team Rocket. Lori just wants to kick Erika out of the gym and take her place. And this girl doesn`t want to stop on just that…
"He-he… I just want to see Erika`s ugly face when I`ll throw her into the dirt…" Lori complacently dreamed.
"…`ll…kll…hr!" Erika angrily mumbled in my grip. And, of course, her student heard this.
"What`s that?" She was disturbed from her great dreams and slowly made some quiet steps back. Stupid Erika just spoiled my entire stealth plan. Lori will find us and… Well, neither her nor I am going to see the Boss then.
It`s time to make things even worse. With the help of Bill`s alarm system second mode.
I pressed the small brown button on the wrist controller and loud sounds of explosions sounded from outside. Erika was too shocked to do something, but Lori immediately ran away to see what`s happening.
So I let Erika free from my grip and got out of the table. The case was still there, opened. I just couldn`t resist to make a small look inside.
Despite the regular Team Rocket uniform there was small ID card that supposedly belongs to Lori. There was her photo on it, but the name was different.
Adriana Ellingston.
Her real name is Adriana! And this is who actually is A.E., not Erika Anderson.
Meanwhile Erika Anderson herself slowly got from under the table and grabbed my shoulder.
"What did you do?" She angrily shouted at me.
I just turned my head to her and guiltily looked in the eyes.
"I`m sorry…"
"What did you do?" Erika let me free and looked at the ID card.
"Sorry for blaming you. A.E. is actually her." I explained. Erika switched her look to me and then to the card.
"I don`t care." She moved me and rushed to the window where she could see the fire from the distance. "What did you do to my gym?"
"Oh, that thing…" I actually didn`t understand her. "Call the firemen, Blastoise Squad or someone like that." I noticed the shiny box on central shelf, and that box had six slots for pokeballs. But only three were present.
"Erika, is this place for you battling team, right?" I asked Erika while taking the box from the shelf.
"Yes… But where are the rest?" Woman shockingly questioned and took the box from me.
"Looks like your… Lori took them. For… something."
"I don`t even know if this is her real name anymore…" Erika said disappointedly and turned her head away.
"Hey!" I grabbed her shoulders and shook a little. "No time for emotions! You have the gym to save and I have bandits to pursue."
I released Erika and headed back to the street, outside of the gym. Maybe I have just nearly a couple of minutes to steal Bridget`s car and follow the Rockets. The leader won`t mess with my plan now – she will be really busy saving her gym, and because of the broken phone line she has to do this away from the office. That`s how I`ll make sure she won`t meet Adriana right now.
This worked out pretty well – Erika quickly rushed to her phone in an attempt to call for help but this didn`t work. She angrily swore and ran outside, overtaking even me. The gym leader headed to the nearest phone box, where she won`t be a problem for me.
As for Team Rocket, they hurried to finish their job here. The main entrance was on fire and they had to break through the wall to escape. A couple of Machops easily made a new path, and the rest of pokemon – mostly Raticates and Sandshrews – awkwardly began to carry the cages with grass pokemon to the truck. Smaller pokemon like Rattatas and Zubats were just running around, maybe, guarding the carriers. Grunts themselves carried the cages too.
And they actually had to hurry as the fire slowly approaches them. Some grunts stopped moving and commanded their Zubats to keep the fire away with Gust attacks, and the pokemon began to execute that. Pretty smart move, I have to say.
But enough of that, I need a car to steal. Bridget has definitely noticed the turmoil near the gym and now runs down from her observation point to the epicenter. I can`t let her interfere with the Rockets escape. They should hurry otherwise my evil plan will have some problems.
But if Bill executed his part as I needed him to, right now the service crew must appear…
And the crazy inventor didn`t fail me again. Exactly at this moment the loud siren sounded from the distance as the firemen team was approaching the gym. It`s so great that Bill had the notifying signal from my bracelet too. When I exploded the alarm, he was notified and so called the firemen. They appeared right when I needed to scare Team Rocket off and make them escape right now.
This plan had some risk – whether bandits will just leave the rest of pokemon burn in fire or start battling and shooting the firemen until the cargo will be loaded into the truck. When in the first option firemen will save all the pokemon anyway, the second option is NOT what I need to happen. But it`s still very possible…
And, judging by the sounds of shots, it actually happened. I was not going to kill the firemen in my plan! I wasn`t going to kill anyone. The risk is a risk… But what can I do to save both sides? I wish I had Dumpling with me now… But it`s Harry only now.
Well, I have to take even more risk and play a new role.
So I rushed to the battlers, carefully choosing the path near the places of cover. If something will go wrong – at least I will have some place to hide.
And when I approached Team Rocket grunts close enough for them to notice me, I pulled my cap down on my eyes and shouted to them:
"Go away, you idiots! The cops are here, the whole reinforcement!"
They were shocked by the sudden appearance of some stranger warning them they even stopped the shooting.
"You can`t fight them, so just run! I`ll hold them!" I yelled at them and sent out my only pokemon – Harry. He was pretty surprised to fight on Team Rocket`s side and very confused. But the couple of Wartortles from the opposing firemen squad shooting at him made him choose quickly.
The grunts knew they can`t withstand the onslaught of well-trained pokemon, so they actually listened to me and ran to their truck.
"Use Flash!" I commanded to Harry, and he literally exploded in a bright light of Flash. Firemen and their pokemon were blinded by this, while bandits were already in their vehicle and safe. I closed my eyes too and waited for five seconds, after that returned Harry back and ran away from the battlefield.
I found Erika near the corner of her own gym, immobilized by the shock. I gently touched her cheek to calm woman down a bit.
"This would have happened anyway, my dear."
Maybe, this wasn`t the best of my calming speeches, but I had no time to find a better one.
Team Rocket`s truck was already on the move, and my only chance of getting them is still here. Sorry, Bridget, but I do this for a good purpose. I jumped inside her cabriolet and quickly started the engine. Heh, starting another`s engine without a key is the first thing you learn in your childhood. Well, at least, I did, don`t know about the others.
What a pretty nice car she has here. Too bad I`m not going to steal it forever – I`m not that good. But now I`m going to chase the damn truck across the whole city hoping that they actually won`t notice a pursuit. What a naïve idea – the thought in my mind said to me. But I don`t have a better one for now. I have four worse ones.
Suddenly a pink car appeared before me and blocked the way. This was the car we noticed before in front of the gym, and it`s driver was none other than Lori herself. Or Adriana – I`ll call her this way now. And now she was wearing a classic brutal black Team Rocket`s uniform, just like the other grunts do. She showed me the middle finger and stopped the car. If I want to move her away – I have to ram her car with mine. Bridget`s, I wanted to say. Excuse me, Bridget, once more, but I can`t let them get away now.
I rushed from my place and hit the car with such strength it was almost thrown away. Adriana was too surprised to do anything as I moved her some more from my way and accelerated forward, onto the street where the truck had gone.
This could mean even more problems. And problems are a thing I don`t need at all.
"Harry, help me once more!" I grabbed the pokeball with my free arm and opened it to release Weepinbell on the trunk. "Use Flash!"
In a second before he shined again to blind Adriana, I noticed her covering her eyes with her hand. That didn`t work well, but angered her some more.
"Damn it… Well, at least we can spoil the painting on her car. Wine Whip it, Harry!" I commanded to him and gained speed. Adriana started her car too and followed me.
"Exeggcute, come on out!" Adriana sent out her pokemon too and placed him on a hood. The speed pushed her pokemon to the glass and the eggs kept safe. And just then I realized the actual difference between us – my Harry on a trunk can easily slip from the car and fall under the wheels of chaser.
"Grab my hand with one wine!" I shouted to Harry. At least now he will not fall down, not without me, at least. "Break the hood with your wine!"
"Use Confusion, Exeggcute!" Adriana commanded to her pokemon.
Another enlightenment came upon me. Her half-psychic pokemon has the deadly advantage over my half-poison type. Despite we were faster to strike at the car and damaging it quite a lot, the Exeggcute exploded mind of my Harry, damaging him even more.
"It`s no good…" I couldn`t watch over the road and control the battle behind me at the same time. Turning my head back and forward became painful too soon. And then suddenly I remembered one thing: the PokeDex states that Weepinbell`s acid melts everything. Well, let`s check it out.
"Let`s spit the Acid at it!"
"Finish him with another Confusion!" Adriana repeated the command.
And just when two pokemon were ready to attack, another pokemon – large flower pokemon – literally crushed into the space between them, taking damage from both sides and then jumping up again. In the air he was beamed inside a pokeball and the figure on the top of him gently landed right on the trunk of my car kicking Harry down into the backseat. Obviously, it was Erika.
Damaging the back part of my car didn`t do much to it, but the engine of Adriana`s vehicle was smashed into pieces under the weight of Vileplume, and so her car slowly stopped the chase.
One problem was solved – two more appeared. I didn`t think too much about it, so I began to wobble the car to throw her away, but she jumped on the front seat near me like it was nothing.
"Are you drunk? Drive straightly, you nearly killed me…" She said with very calm voice. I could swear at that moment she didn`t sound like going to kill me for destruction of her gym and stealing a car from her student.
"What do you need?" I carefully asked her.
"Ha! He`s even asking…" Erika slapped my head slightly. "You involved me in this! And I can`t let you go there alone."
"Go where?"
"You tell me." Erika pointed at the truck coming in front of us. I wonder how long it will be until they notice us following behind.
When I was pulling all my thoughts together, Erika took out a potion from her dress and gently sprayed it on my Harry. He definitely wasn`t fond of being crushed by large Vileplume of hers, but he didn`t resist her actions. Seems like being a grass-type gym leader means much more than I think. I wouldn`t actually dare to pet Harry like she does now. He is… too serious for that.
I tried my best to stay concentrated on a road and the vehicle moving before us. But the worst feeling of them all troubled me.
I reached my inner pocket with left hand and took out a chocolate bar to give it to Erika.
"Why thanks…" She confusedly accepted it.
"Be useful. Open it, I'm hungry" I replied to her strictly. Erika just snorted, by obeyed me, opened the chocolate bar and handed it over back to me. I furiously bit the thing and chewed it loudly while looking at the car in front of us. I`m surprised they still seemed not to notice us.
Better make sure they actually don`t know about us…
"Do you know this city well enough?" I questioned the gym leader.
"Yeah… Why are you asking?"
"Great."
And so I turned on to another road, losing them behind the buildings.
"Where are you going?" Erika worryingly shouted at me.
"Stay calm… And look at the next crossing road." I replied to her again, straight and strict. Erika understood that I have some sort of plan, and looked to the right where the Rocket`s truck went.
After some seconds we reached the next crossing road where I stopped the car for some moments, and Erika saw a completely empty street.
"They`ve gone!" She exclaimed with anger.
"Exactly." I replied her confidently.
"Why… You have lost them!" Woman accused me badly but I just waved away.
"No, I did not. On the contrary, now I know which direction they are heading, and they definitely don`t know that we are following them." I turned right and accelerated again.
"I… I don`t understand."
"Just keep looking to the right and tell me when you see them." I commanded to her again. She didn`t argue and watched over the right side. The buildings were moving along the road quickly, covering the bandits from our view, but soon the truck appeared again.
"Here they are!" The gym leader pointed at them.
"Great." We have actually found them and made them think we have lost the trail… If they were thinking at all. "Keep watching. We`re far enough not to be spotted, so do your best because I can`t see shit from here."
"How rude…"
A couple of minutes we were following the truck through the darkness. Erika guided me while I tried to keep far enough from our prey. We NEED them to reach their base, otherwise everything is useless. I even turned the flash lights off so they can`t even see us at all. And finally we appeared on a large road that I actually noticed to be familiar.
I carefully parked the car on one side of the road and came out. Too bad the only thing that could fit for covering behind on the whole street was the couple of trash cans, so I rushed to them and hid myself. Erika left the car too and placed herself right near me. I looked over the cans to see truck moving across the street heading to one large building.
"Couldn`t you find a place more… hygienic than this one?" Erika complained to me.
"Why? What if a lonely Grimer is sitting right in it, ready for a hug with a pretty lady?" I sarcastically joked.
"Eeewww! That`s gross!"
"And I would really like to catch one. But I won`t. I have already too much poison-type pokemon in my team, now I need just at least some balance."
I looked over our cover again and found no truck here anymore. Just the gates closing near the most notable building over here. Finally, the road sign stated that my worst and the most obvious theory was actually correct.
"Yes! I knew it. I just knew it…" I slowly turned to Erika and looked at her with huge grin on my face.
"What? What is it?" She asked spontaneously.
"Don`t you see? That building over here?" I pointed at the large glowing structure on the opposite side of street. The place we have already visited today.
"What? That`s a Game Corner… Why did we returned back?" She still didn`t understand.
"The Game Corner, exactly, my dear! THIS is where Team Rocket is hiding!"
This time Erika cautiously looked over the trash cans at the opposite building. Judging by the look on her face, she was totally confused.
"This… this is so strange…"
"No, not at all. Trust my experience – every casino has a mafia-like organization behind it. This is just perfect for them to hide somewhere here. Also… this is a great money source!"
Erika was shocked by that and thus turned away in deep thoughts. I guess she always thought her city to be something pure and righteous, and in a mere second I broke her world view. Well, someone would do this anyway.
"Tell me… You chose the Game Corner for our date for a reason?" She suddenly asked me.
"Yep. I needed to check if I`m correct. As you can see, I am!" I noticed the Erika`s displeased look on me. "What? You thought I did this just to impress you? Pfft, you think too much of yourself, lady."
"Ugh, just shut up for now." Erika carefully looked over the can again. "What`s our plan?"
"Plan? It`s simple. You`re returning back to your – I remind you – BURNING gym and give all help you can. Meanwhile I find the bandits inside the Game Corner, do some bad things to them, save some poor souls and get some information about my car."
"Your… car?"
"Ah, never mind. You got me."
"No, I didn`t get you!" Erika exclaimed seriously. "You won`t leave me just like that! I`m going too."
"Hey-hey, woman, calm down! How many criminals did you beat in your life? I guess, nearly zero. Leave this to the man that KNOWS how to do it!"
She didn`t listen to me anymore. The gym leader, confident in her own strength, left our small and stinky hideout and headed to the casino. Just now I noticed how scratched and torn her dress is. This woman seems not to scare of dirt work, but with the attitude like that she`s gonna be killed. Nothing less.
My suit was destroyed too, but I didn`t care. I touched the only pokeball on my shoulder belt and remembered that Harry is my only partner here. I know he will fight furiously against Team Rocket giving all he`s got, but still he is just one Weepinbell. Do I have time to get the rest from Pokemon Center? I absolutely don`t know.
And just then… A miracle happened. One very strange and awfully suspicious but still very convenient miracle.
"I think, you`ll need these…" High woman voice suddenly sounded behind me.
I turned around and saw Jane standing right behind. She had a small transparent bag with my pokeballs. For some moment I was speechless.
"If you`ll stand here, someone will shoot her. So hurry up!" The nurse from Viridian City shook the bag before me. I carefully stretched my hand to it and took the bag.
"Hope this won`t be counted into my debt…" I quietly said to her.
"Haha… don`t worry, it will not. But it`s good you remember about it. Someday… I will need it." Jane laughed and turned away.
"You know, I didn`t use your card at all. You can take it back!" I called out to her.
"This won`t work, my dear!" She replied to me while walking away into the dark alley.
For a second she stopped and gave me the last look.
"Now go. Save the Kanto region!"