Chapter 46: ...How Can I Go On...
"(Move it!)" The manectric yelled as he rushed down the corridor.
"(I'm trying! Not all of us are built for running!)" A clefairy wearing a scarf yelled from behind. She slowed down as she saw him come to a halt in the middle of an intersection between hallways.
Panting, she caught up with him as the Electric-type frantically looked around.
"(Tsk...now if you were the others, where do you think they'd go?)" He asked, mainly to himself.
"(I think...I think...gimme a minute...)" Clefairy panted before doubling over to breathe even more heavily.
"(C'mon, we don't have time for this!)" Manectric grumbled, looking down the hallway to his right as Clefairy continued to wheeze behind him. "(We gotta regroup...)"
"(Yeah...yeah I got that...)" Clefairy said, waving a paw in front of herself before she slowly started to stand up straight. "(They're probably in the observation deck with the bosses. I don't think anyone's left yet.)"
"(Okay, then we'll go-)" Manectric started to say before they both turned around in response to another voice.
"(Excuse me!)" Buneary called out as she walked down the hallway towards them, waving over at the two.
Clefairy raised an eyebrow. "(Eh? Who's that?)"
"(No idea.)" Manectric mumbled.
Buneary stopped a few feet away from them. "(Pardon me, I'm looking for Ozzy's group.)"
They blinked at her.
"(Ozzy's group?)" Manectric muttered.
"(Mhmm.)" Buneary replied, nodding for good measure.
The two Team Rocket Pokémon looked at each other before turning back to Buneary.
"(Last I saw, they were stationed near the escape pods.)" Clefairy replied.
"(Right...and where were those again?)" Buneary asked.
"(Uhh...down that hallway to the left.)" Clefairy said, somewhat perplexed as she raised her paw to point.
"(Escape pods that way...got it!)" Buneary said with a smile before she started to head down the hallway that the Fairy-type was pointing at.
"(Hey, wait!)" Manectric called out, causing the bunny to stop in place and look over at them.
"(Hmm? What's up?)" Buneary nonchalantly asked.
Down the hallway from where Buneary had initially come from, a pair of eyes was peeking at the group. Manectric and Clefairy's backs were to them.
"Come on Buneary...be careful." Pikachu thought as he made sure to press his body against the wall. While he was doing his best to remain hidden, he was prepared to rush in if things started unraveling.
"(I don't remember seeing you with Ozzy's group before.)" Manectric said, the distrust in his voice clear as a bell.
"(Yeah...and why are you asking for where the escape pods are? Shouldn't you know the layout of the ship already?)" Clefairy asked as she stepped forward with a frown.
Pikachu gave a silent gulp as his body tensed up.
The second he sees things get out of hand; he's stepping in!
Buneary merely glanced back at them before she fully turned to face the duo. Then she scoffed and shrugged.
"(Tsk, I was caught just the other day. Ozzy said that a Unova buneary is worth capturing.)" She said with a smirk.
The other two stared her down for a few seconds and all the while, Pikachu didn't so much as blink.
"(Ozzy said that...?)" Manectric quietly said.
"(Mhmm.)" Buneary replied, her paws on her hips.
Pikachu quietly got on all fours and crouched down. He just needed the excuse...
Clefairy huffed and turned her head. "(Ughh...sounds like him. Guy just can't help himself...)"
Dumbfounded, Pikachu's eyes darted between the two Team Rocket Pokémon and he saw Manectric ease up a little and Buneary's confidence swell.
"(The guy caught me on the mainland and I haven't had a whole lot of time to get used to things around here. We were on the cargo ship after all!)" Buneary said, twirling her wrist.
"(God...just like that hariyama from the last mission...)" Clefairy groaned as she put a paw up to her face in shame.
Manectric leaned back and shook his head. "(Freakin' Ozzy...)" He grumbled before he made a sweeping motion with his paw. "(Sorry about that. Now if you don't mind, we really need to get going.)"
Buneary smiled at them. "(No worries! Catch ya later!)" She said before turning and hopping down the hallway.
Pikachu watched as she disappeared from view, then he looked at the other two. He saw as Clefairy lightly slapped Manectric's shoulder.
"(Ozzy...man that guy's gonna get in some serious hot water if he keeps nabbing every Pokémon he sees!)" She laughed before motioning them down another hallway. "(C'mon, let's go.)"
"(Yeah, we've wasted enough time here.)" Manectric grumbled before turning away from Buneary's direction.
Pikachu quietly exhaled as he saw the two quickly run down another hallway before turning a corner. Then they were gone.
Once they had departed, Pikachu stepped out from his hiding spot and quietly walked into the intersection. He looked over to his left and saw Buneary peering out from another corner, ushering him to come along.
He smiled at her and got on all fours to run in her direction. Heh, that sneaky little bunny!
"Damn PLA...can't just be a simple job can it?" A black-haired man grumbled to himself as he inspected the tenth escape pod in a row, making sure that it was operational just in case. He wore a uniform that slightly differed from most of the others with a crest proudly displayed on his shoulder.
The man continued to quietly complain as he moved to the next pod but just as he was about to start his task, his head jerked up and he turned around only to see a little brown bunny with an orange vest staring him down.
"('Scuse me sir!)" Buneary courteously said with a wave and a warm smile.
The man merely looked at her. "Eh? Who're you with?" He asked before eyeing her a little more closely. "I don't remember a buneary with a vest..."
"(Oh...well you see...)" Buneary nervously replied, rubbing the back of her head. She made sure to put all of her responses into every one of her body movements, given the fact that the man couldn't actually understand what she was saying. "(I'm uhh...with that Shay girl and-)"
"Well...I definitely don't remember you...so in that case..." The man muttered with a smirk before reaching for something on his belt. He whipped out a Pokéball that immediately enlarged in his hand. "If you're a PLA Pokémon, then you can be captured!"
"(Eh?)" Buneary mumbled, stopping what she was doing to simply look at him.
"Ozzy always gets what he wants!" The man declared before reeling back to throw the item at her. "Go Pokéball!" He shouted as he flung the object at her.
She merely stood in place as the ball bounced off her chest and opened in midair which caused a red light to envelope her body.
The man named Ozzy leaned forward with an eager smile only for it to disappear as he saw the light dissipate and the ball fall to the floor. He looked at the item and then to her and saw that the bunny appeared rather smug.
"Wha...?" Ozzy muttered to himself before easing up. "...So...so I guess you belong to somebody else then huh?" He grumbled before folding his arms over his chest. "Those PLA guys don't capture their Pokémon so you must be one of ours."
Buneary proudly smiled at him and closed her eyes, her paws on her hips. "(Told ya!)" She declared.
The man turned and spat. "Tsk, well whaddya want then?"
Buneary's smile turned into a more stern expression and she pointed at the doors to the escape pods. Ozzy followed her pointing and gestured to the pods.
"What? The escape pods? I was just inspecting them to see if they're ready to use." He said, only to see the bunny give him an incredulous look. "I mean, they're all pretty much ready to go, the bosses just wanted me to give them a look."
Buneary's gaze drifted from the escape pods to the keychain that was hanging from the man's pants.
Bingo.
"Sirs, enemy forces are advancing on the bridges." A Team Rocket grunt said as he looked at his computer monitor which displayed a camera's view of countless humans and Pokémon fighting on the metal extensions between the two airships.
T-5 grumbled something to himself and turned away. Gamma-7 looked forward and stared out the large window into the open sky.
"How much time until the main cannon is ready?" Gamma-7 asked.
"We need a few more minutes." The grunt replied only for T-5 to quickly whip around at him.
"Well when it's ready, and I mean the second that it's ready, you fire! Got it?!" He yelled.
"Yes sir." The grunt said.
"How much time on the cannon Roger?" Valens asked as he sat in his chair and watched the many monitors displaying Team Rocket's ship. He watched as their forces and that of Team Rocket's were at a standstill on the bridges, no substantial progress being made whatsoever.
"Almost there sir. Their attack seriously damaged it so we may only have one shot!" The burly grunt named Roger replied, frantically typing on a keyboard.
"Then we'll have to make it a good one." Valens muttered, still not taking his eyes off of the monitors.
"But sir, we could hit our own!" Another grunt shouted, the panic in his voice palpable. "What if they can't get awa-?"
"I DON'T REMEMBER ASKING YOU A GODDMAN THING!" Valens roared, whipping his head at his subordinate.
Everyone in the room went quiet, completely startled at that outburst. Some looked at him rather perplexedly.
"Sir...are you okay?" A female grunt gently asked before her focus rested on another trickle of blood appearing on the side of Valens' head. "Your head..." She muttered before the leader merely looked at her.
"I am fine Alex..." Valens quietly hissed before he looked forward. "If we can get a shot off...DO IT! We don't have many options left for offense, so try to aim it away from the troops! What's important is that we land a shot!" He commanded before he wiped away the small stream of crimson liquid from his face.
Some of the others merely looked at each other.
Then slowly but surely, their main cannon begin to move towards the opposing airship.
Roger looked back at his leader before shaking his head and turning away to resume his duties.
On the Rocket ship, the two captains noticed that the PLA's airship had begun to move its main cannon at them.
"They're already getting started!" T-5 yelled, gritting his teeth to hold back his incredible fury.
"Shay! Gimme a time estimate!" Gamma-7 shouted, looking down at the female grunt who was standing up and typing something into another computer.
"We're ready sirs! But what about our own troops?!" Shay yelled.
"Aim for a vital section away from them! Activate it now!" T-5 commanded.
With that, Team Rocket's main cannon began to move towards the PLA airship.
MAIN CANNON ACTIVATED
Both Buneary and Ozzy looked up in response to the female computer voice that came on the intercom.
"Huh? Main cannon? Nobody told me we're about to fire..." Ozzy muttered as he stared up at the ceiling.
Buneary looked around. What's going on?
TARGET LOCKED
"What the...? Already?" Ozzy said to himself as he looked down the hallway.
FIRING MAIN CANNON
Suddenly, the ship gently rocked, causing the two to nearly lose their balance. Buneary gasped and flinched before things began to ease up a bit.
Huh...okay. Well that wasn't so-
All thoughts ceased when the entire ship lurched forward and shook violently, which was accompanied by a loud boom! Both Buneary and Ozzy fell over with a yelp.
Even Pikachu – who had been hiding around another corner the entire time – fell over with a gasp.
As they lay on the floor, the computer voice began to repeat the same statement.
ATTENTION: SHIP HAS SUSTAINED MASSIVE DAMAGE. REPEAT. SHIP HAS SUSTAINED MASSIVE DAMAGE.
Looking up from where she had fallen, Buneary saw how Ozzy had stumbled backwards and was slumped against the wall, rubbing the back of his head in pain. She blinked and leaned forward, seeing how the keychain that he held on his hip was clearly visible.
Quickly, she got up and ran over to him and patted him down.
"Oh, thanks." Ozzy muttered, rubbing his temples as he closed his eyes. "I'm okay, really. No need to check on me." He said before he heard the quiet jingling of something which was made difficult given the computerized voice constantly repeating itself. His eyes still closed, he felt the bunny's paws cease contact and he leaned forward to mutter something into his hands.
A few seconds later, he opened his eyes and to his surprise, he realized that he was alone. Confused, he looked left and right yet he didn't see the bunny anywhere...
"(And you're sure one of them is the right key?!)" Pikachu shouted to Buneary as they rushed down the hallway.
"(They said to grab the keychain off of one of the guys in charge so that's what I did!)" She yelled back, stuffing the keychain in her fluff.
They continued to run and all the while, Buneary tried her best to retrace her steps of where she had started. The hallway she had landed in when she came out of the air ducts...that's where they need to go!
Eventually, they came across an intersection that split off into two hallways. Looking to the left, they saw a sign hanging above the ceiling.
OBSERVATORY DECK
Buneary took in a deep breath. Okay, so based on where she had come from, if the observatory deck was over there...
She turned to the other hallway. "(Down that hallway! We're almost there!)" She declared, pointing towards their new direction.
"(Okay, lead the way!)" Pikachu replied and they started running side-by-side.
As they continued onwards, they occasionally ran past a panic-stricken human or Pokémon.
They came up at a four-way intersection and Buneary looked to her left and saw an air vent on the floor of the hallway.
Found it!
Not letting a second go to waste, Buneary grabbed Pikachu's paw and pulled him to where the open air duct was.
As they jumped into the air vent, they started stealthily crawling towards where the prisoners where.
"(Okay, we just need to free the prisoners and then take the escape pods out of here.)" Buneary firmly said.
Crawling behind her, Pikachu stopped in place and grimaced. "(Actually Bun...that's not all.)"
Buneary paused and – unable to fully turn around – she furrowed her brow as she looked forward.
"(What do you mean?)" She asked.
"(It's Team Rocket...they have something set up on the island.)" He quietly said.
Buneary grimaced and then lightly sighed. "(Crawl with, talk with me.)"
With that, they continued onwards and Pikachu began to explain what the PLA had told him.
"How much damage did we take Roger?" Valens asked, painfully holding his shoulder as he looked at the monitors with one eye.
Struggling to get back up, Roger looked at his computer screen. "Sir...the ship's done for. All main sections are in the red...we'll be going down in a few minutes!"
Gritting his teeth in sheer fury, Valens looked at a monitor that showed Team Rocket's emblazed airship, the dark smoke practically engulfing the entire vessel.
The white-haired PLA leader held back a grimace although his eye began to twitch. "Tell...tell everyone to evacuate to the emergency aircrafts."
"Got it!" Roger said as he began typing something into the keyboard.
Hunched over a control panel, Gamma-7 made a grating sound as he looked back up and saw that several of his coworkers were on the floor alongside T-5.
"Status report Shay..." He muttered.
"Major damage to the portside sir." Shay replied, her hair completely ruffled.
"And our main cannon?" Gamma-7 asked as he struggled to stand on his feet.
"Still operational but it needs time to reload." She firmly said.
Moaning in pain on the floor, T-5 held his side and he looked up at a slightly damaged monitor that hung on the wall.
"Hey...hey look!" The burnt-faced man shouted, pointing at the screen.
Everyone who was still conscious looked at what he was gesturing towards and saw the PLA ship appearing to sag to one side in midair.
"Looks like that last attack did it." Gamma-7 muttered.
"Heh, bye-bye hacks...!" T-5 snickered as he rolled over and began to get back up.
"Sirs, we're still operational but we need to land soon." Shay said, leaning back a little in her chair.
"Land?" Gamma-7 wondered aloud as the female grunt nodded affirmatively. The one-eyed man looked at her and then to everyone else who were still sprawled around the room.
He grimaced as he stared out at the descending PLA airship.
"(Okay, ready?)" Buneary whispered in the darkened air duct.
"(Ready.)" Pikachu replied under his breath.
Swiftly, the two tumbled out of the air vent and down into the large room below. They landed right in front of the many Pokémon containers which housed the prisoners, several of whom gasped and quietly muttered to themselves and to each other.
Pikachu and Buneary quickly looked around to see if there was anyone else nearby. Hopping over to a large container, Buneary opened the panel only to see a puddle of water instead of the grunt that she had left frozen inside hours ago.
Meanwhile, Pikachu slowly drifted his gaze over the numerous imprisoned Pokémon. As he did, his mouth hung agape.
Jeez, he knew that there were prisoners, but he had no idea that there this many!
Still staring into the empty crate, Buneary's ears extended in response to the imprisoned Pokémon who were becoming increasingly unruly, many of whom were urging to be freed.
Panicking, she quickly hopped over to Pikachu's side and motioned for them to quiet down.
"(Okay, okay! I'm sorry for keeping you waiting! We'll get you out now!)" She urged, before reaching into her fluff to pull out the keychain. Upon seeing the item, many in the containers gave sighs of relief.
A few minutes later, the entire room was filled with the clamoring of the once-imprisoned Pokémon, most of whom were stretching their muscles, overjoyed to be let out.
"(There!)" Buneary declared as she turned the key in the lock to release the sawsbuck from his large container. "(You're out!)"
"(Much obliged!)" He happily replied as he stepped out.
"(Okay, is that everyone?)" Pikachu asked as he looked over the crowd.
"(Yeah, I think so.)" Minccino replied, looking over the now empty containers.
"(Okay good, so we can-)" Buneary managed to say before she felt someone hug her side. She looked down and saw the young lillipup press his body against hers.
"(I can't wait to go home! Thank you, I...!)" He said before quickly taking a step back and bowing his head to her. "(...Thank you.)"
The duo looked over at everyone else and saw equally-grateful smiles. Some of them appeared to be on the verge of tears.
Steeling her nerves to keep up a strong appearance, Buneary took a step forward. "(You can thank us when you get back to your loved ones!)"
Pikachu looked over at her and smiled. She's really taken charge on this whole thing hasn't she? Tsk, guess he really shouldn't be surprised given that she's saved his hide from Team Rocket before...
"(Okay everyone, we just need to stay together.)" Buneary said as she motioned towards the exit. "(We're all going to move as fast as we can to the escape pods and then-)"
ATTENTION! ALL STAFF ARE TO REPORT TO THEIR CABINS AND WAIT UNTIL THEIR SQUAD LEADERS ARRIVE. ALL MEMBERS RANKED LIEUTENANT OR ABOVE ARE TO MEET IN THE OBSERVATORY DECK.
Everyone looked up at the ceiling in response to that. Then they looked at each other.
"Alright, everyone strapped in?" A male grunt asked, glancing over his teammates who affirmatively nodded in the escape pod. "Okay, let's-"
He suddenly stopped and turned around to hear something rather strange coming from down the hallway. The man squinted and leaned forward...
...Only to see a stampede of Pokémon coming towards them!
The grunt didn't give a reaction, he merely blinked at the sight before quickly turning around and got inside the small container.
"Oh hell no, I'm not dealing with this..." He muttered before he leaned over to type something into the small control panel on the side. The door to the escape pod made a hissing sound as it closed, the man strapping himself alongside his teammates.
ESCAPE POD NUMBER ONE READY FOR DEPLOYMENT. POD DOOR NOW LOCKED. ESCAPE POD NUMBER ONE DISENGAGING BEGINS IN TEN, NINE, EIGHT...
Leading the charge, Pikachu and Buneary started to slow down as they reached the long wall of escape pod doors. By the time they had reached their destination, one of the doors made another strange sound.
Fully coming to a halt, the entire group watched as one of the escape pods released itself from the ship. A few seconds later, its thrusters activated, propelling it away and out of sight.
"(Damn, lost one of the pods already!)" Pikachu muttered with a grimace.
"(It's okay, there's still plenty left.)" Buneary calmly replied, eyeing the other pod doors. She took in a deep breath and turned to face the others. "(Okay everyone, we're about to leave. Try to squeeze in.)"
Everyone else nodded their heads, some affirmatively muttered in response.
Not wanting to waste another moment, Buneary quickly walked over to the escape pod doors and looked at them.
Huh...actually...
She noticed that for each pod door, there appeared to be some sort of keypad with a small desk in front of it. Each wall-bound device was equipped with a slit to swipe something against. Tilting her head at it, she jumped onto the table of one of the keypads and punched a few of the keys. After a couple of seconds, the screen on the keypad changed to display a map with the text "Enter landing destination" with crosshairs hovering over the screen.
Buneary looked at it. Well...the mainland would be their best bet right? Everyone here came from different places on the mainland so that was probably where they should go.
She typed in their destination back to Unova soil only for the text "Swipe keycard on the right" to appear.
Buneary blinked at that. Keycard? Oh...GREAT!
Pikachu looked at the escape pods. He noticed how they all had strange little windows near the bottom of the doors. Perhaps it was for the smaller Pokémon to get a good view?
Suddenly, he looked up in response to Buneary's frustrated mutterings.
"(What's wrong?)" He asked as she jumped down and landed next to him. She didn't look too pleased.
"(We need a keycard.)" She grumbled.
"(Keycard? From who?)" He asked.
"(Anyone I guess.)" She replied with a shrug.
Pikachu let out an exasperated exhale and looked at the floor.
"(M'kay...)" He muttered with a frown. "(So we can just find a crew member and then-)"
"(The prisoners! They've escaped!)" A hitmonlee shouted from down the hallway, pointing at the group.
Everyone turned to see the Fighting-type's furious gaze. His announcement was immediately followed by several other accompanying Pokémon. They were all staring the group down.
"(Get back to your cages!)" A muk commanded.
"(Yeah, and get away from the pods!)" A ninjask followed.
"(Crap...)" Pikachu muttered, taking a step forward, sparks emanating from his cheeks.
"(Get back to your cages...or we'll make you go back!)" A toxicroak yelled, obvious anger in his eyes.
Several of the former prisoners glared at them and got into offensive positions.
"(No way! I'm going back to my trainer!)" Minccino shouted.
"(And I'm going back to my kids!)" Sawsbuck growled, staring their opponents down.
"(Well...then...)" Toxicroak muttered as the fingers on his hand began to glow bright purple.
"C'mon! We can still make it!" A female grunt yelled to her teammates who were running behind her.
"Okay, okay! You don't have to keep saying that!" A male colleague shouted.
As they approached the end of the hallway to turn, they all heard some rather peculiar sounds. It almost sounded like...a fight?
When they rounded the corner, their entire group stopped in place to witness utter bedlam!
A hitmonlee trying to land a kick on a sawsbuck, a pikachu throwing an Electro Ball at a toxicroak, a buneary using Ice Punch to propel a croconaw across the room...it was unbelievable!
On the far side of the room, they could see several smaller Pokémon cowering in the corner, all of whom were being guarded by a purrloin.
"What the hell is going on?!" A male grunt shouted as they stepped a few feet back until they were all against the wall.
"Who knows...?" The female member replied as she started inching her way to the escape pods. "Just keep moving. They don't see us; we don't see them..."
They all got a few feet away from the nearest available pod when one of them pointed at the battle, all the while shuffling his feet.
"Hey, aren't those the Pokémon we rounded up?" The man asked.
"Yeah, they're Unova Pokémon so I think you're right..." Another member replied.
"Doesn't matter, I'm getting off this stinkin' ship." The female grunt said before she quickly took a big step towards a keypad along the wall.
As Buneary performed Bounce to take down a beedrill, her incredible hearing picked up on the sounds of buttons being punched followed by a high-pitched beep. Whipping around, she saw several Team Rocket goons standing alongside the wall with one female member swiping her card on a wall keypad, followed by a few more keys being hit before the door to the escape pod opened. With that, the humans piled into the tiny vessel.
"(Wait, no!)" Buneary shouted to herself as she desperately started hopping to the nearest grunt, reaching out for their keycard.
She jumped forward and just when she was about to grab it off the now-startled criminal, she was kicked away courtesy of Hitmonlee.
Off to the side, the younger Pokémon in the corner flinched and cried.
As Buneary landed on the floor a few feet away, she could only silently curse at their situation. When she started to get up, she saw the escape pod disengage and begin to fly away.
Okay...two escape pods gone...but they still have a fighting chance! She just needs to grab a keycard and then everything will-
"(I can't take it anymore!)" Lillipup cried out, causing Buneary to look over at him. She saw how all of the younger Pokémon – who were still being protected by Purrloin – were cowering against the far wall, to the point that the feline was attempting her best to hold them still. Buneary saw the distressed Lillipup wriggle his way out of Purrloin's embrace and scamper away.
"(Hey! Come back, it's not safe!)" Buneary yelled as she saw the pup run down another hallway.
"(It's too scary! I don't wanna get hurt!)" Lillipup cried as he rounded a corner.
"(Buneary! Go grab him!)" Pikachu shouted as he lay on his back, wrestling Ninjask to the floor.
Buneary briefly looked back at him before turning to rush after the youth.
A minute went by, and Buneary was already getting worried. He couldn't have gone far, but this place was like a maze! And it wasn't like she knew this ship very well, just a few sections that she had already seen.
When she came across her third intersection, Buneary stopped in place. Getting her breathing under control, she closed her eyes and extended both ears to carefully listen.
It was difficult. She could hear the panicked yelling of countless different people and Pokémon, including their own group who were still battling not too far away. She just needed to focus on Lillipup's voice and-
"(No please! I don't wanna go back in my cage!)" Lillipup cried out from down the hallway to her left.
Instinctively looking in the direction of the pup's voice, Buneary rushed towards it.
"(Alright, quit playing games kid. Back you go.)" A delibird said, staring down at the youth.
"(P-Please...I just want to go home...)" Lillipup whimpered, his body crouched to the ground, making him appear even smaller.
"(I want to get this whole thing over with too, and that doesn't happen until you go back to your cage.)" The breloom standing in front of him said.
"(B-But...)" Lillipup squeaked as the other Pokémon started advancing towards him.
"(Look kid, either you go back to your cage on your own...)" A drapion growled as he took a few steps forward, all the while glaring at him. "(Or we stuff you in an even smaller one!)"
"(You better listen to him kid, he ain't playing around.)" A haunter floating nearby said.
Unable to take it anymore, Lillipup began to cry and cover his eyes with his paws.
"(N-No! Please don't-!)" He cried before another voice rang out from behind him.
"(Excuse me!)" Buneary shouted from down the hallway, waving the group over.
"(Huh? Who's that?)" Delibird muttered.
"(No idea.)" Breloom grumbled before taking a step forward. "(Who're you?)"
Still walking towards them, Buneary put on a wide, if not nervous, smile.
"(Who? Me?)" Buneary said, trying to keep the shakiness in her voice down. "(Well I'm with Ozzy's group and I've been told to bring this guy back to his cage!)" She laughed, rubbing the back of her head.
They all looked rather confused.
"(Ozzy's group?)" Delibird wondered aloud, looking at his teammates.
Buneary silently gulped as a bead of sweat appeared on the side of her head. "(Yup! Ozzy's group!)"
Lillipup looked at her, then back to the others and then back to her again. Then he quickly shuffled over to her side.
"(I-I'll go with her!)" He managed to say from behind her back.
"(Yeah, so I'll take him off your hands!)" Buneary confidently said as she began to turn around with the pup who never broke contact with her fluff. "(Now if you don't mind, we'll be-)"
Her words were cut off when she saw the man named Ozzy run into everyone's view, skidding to a halt as he looked at the other Pokémon.
"Guys! There you are! C'mon, the bosses want us at the observatory deck to...to...uhh..." He said before his expression turned curious upon seeing Buneary and Lillipup. "Wait...what's going on?"
The four Pokémon turned back towards the duo; their gazes rather unamused.
"(Ozzy's group huh?)" Breloom muttered incredulously.
"(We don't remember you...)" Delibird growled.
"(Sounds like some sort of trick to me!)" Haunter exclaimed.
"(Thought you could fool us eh?!)" Drapion shouted as all of them began to get into attack positions.
Inwardly freaking out, Buneary felt her heart beating out of her chest. Drat! Of all the luck!
Her cover completely blown, Buneary let out another nervous chuckle as she and Lillipup began backing away.
"(N-No! You got it all wrong! Er...Ozzy caught me at the last second! Yeah...!)" She stammered as the others began to move forward.
"(I don't know who you are, but you're not going anywhere...imposter!)" Drapion growled, the tips of his pincers clicking a few times.
"(I-I...you see...)" Buneary stuttered before she stopped in place. A moment later, she sighed, her smile completely fading. "(Oh screw it...)" She muttered before her gaze turned determined and faster than the others could register, she reeled back and unleashed a widespread Ice Beam!
Ozzy and his team screamed as they were engulfed in the bright blue attack. For a moment, Lillipup flinched but when he looked back, he saw how all of them had been completely frozen before falling over.
The pup looked on with widened eyes. "(Woah...)" He said under his breath as Buneary quickly walked over and inspected Ozzy.
"(C'mon, don't let this have been for nothing...)" She muttered to herself, eyeing the man before her gaze came across something rather useful. "(Ah-ha! Found it!)" Buneary shouted before the tips of her ear fluff turned a rainbow color and she leaned forward to break a piece of ice off of the man.
Lillipup tiled his head at the sight. "(Found what?)" He asked before seeing Buneary smile and proudly wave a keycard around.
"(This! Now we can get out of here!)" She happily proclaimed.
Lillipup smiled back at her...
...But just as she started walking over to him, they both heard humans yelling from down from the hallway. They looked over at their frozen enemies and with that, they headed off in the opposite direction.
The two spent the next few minutes running through the ship, rounding corners whenever they could. When they finally stopped, they were fairly certain that they had made good distance from Ozzy's group.
Trying to catch her breath, Buneary briefly looked up and then back down before her mind registered something. Looking up again, she saw a sign next to a door.
OBSERVATORY DECK
Blinking, she heard footsteps coming from one direction and she ushered Lillipup to hide behind a corner. When he did, they saw humans wearing uniforms similar to Ozzy's rush into the room, accompanied by some of their own Pokémon. Her curiosity truly piqued, Buneary peered inside.
She saw several humans gathered around the room, all displaying a crest-like symbol on their shoulders. In the center of the observatory deck, she saw the captains known as Gamma-7 and T-5.
So the leaders were having some sort of meeting here eh...?
"You're insane!" A man shouted from the side of the room.
"We can't let this ship fall into enemy hands, even if it lands in the middle of the ocean. They might already be on board." Gamma-7 calmly replied.
"But to blow up the ship?! What about the Pokémon in cages?" A female member yelled.
"It's a pity, but we can continue the mission without them." T-5 said.
Buneary's eyes widened. Unbelievable! These lowlifes were really just going to let them die?!
Gamma-7 scoffed and looked away. "The simple truth is that the ship has taken too much damage to get to the island and any chance at remaining inconspicuous has been compromised. We can't let the PLA get any intel that we have on this ship and there's no time left to perform a full data purge."
"And that's not all either..." T-5 muttered; his arms folded over his chest as he solemnly looked down at the floor. "We've already given the order for the troops on the island to evacuate their camps."
"What? Why?" A man nearby asked.
"We can't let the PLA get anything from our camps either and there's no time to clear everything out." T-5 replied before giving them all a rather serious look. "...So we're going to obliterate the camps using the main cannon."
Everyone in the room gasped in disbelief. Even Buneary, who was still peering in, hung her mouth open in shock.
They're going to...blow up the island?
"That's ridiculous!" A member shouted. "You could kill our troops!"
"The troops have already departed the area. Plus...our scouts have reported that they've seen wild Pokémon on the island." Gamma-7 said, looking out the window.
There was a moment of silence. Then, everyone else in the room began to quietly mutter to themselves.
"Wild Pokémon? Wouldn't that mean we shouldn't fire on the island then?" A woman asked.
Gamma-7 glared at her, his serious face causing her to back away. "Do you remember our intel? The primary target emerges when others are in great peril. If we were to fire upon the island..."
"The target will show itself and we can capture it..." Another member muttered. The others started whispering to each other.
"Half of the island...gone." A lieutenant pondered aloud.
Buneary grit her teeth. They were really going to consider killing so many innocent Pokémon? And for what? To capture some...other target?
T-5 grumbled something and pinched the bridge of his nose. "We were hoping to complete this mission in secrecy, but an explosion big enough to take out half of the island would attract the locals."
"Right, that's why we have to act quickly." Gamma-7 followed as he pointed at everyone else. "We're taking a vote right now. Yay or nay to fire upon the island. I say 'yay'." He said before raising his hand.
"Yay for me." T-5 said, doing the same.
Buneary watched in awe as the other Team Rocket leaders began to vote on this terrible decision as one of the captains wrote on a notepad.
"Yay."
"Nay."
"Yay."
"Yes."
"No."
About a minute later, the group finished and T-5 tallied up the votes.
"Let's see...that's seventeen votes in favor, fifteen against. It's decided then: we fire on the island." He said, tossing the notepad away.
"Tsk, sounds off. Where the hell is Ozzy?" A man grumbled off to the side.
Gamma-7 nodded his head. "Alright, here's what we do: we're all getting in the emergency aircraft. One of us has to stay behind to fire the cannon and then...activate the self-destruct command."
The room went quiet as a few of the others nervously looked at each other.
"Don't look at me." Another man muttered.
"I'm not risking my life." A woman followed.
T-5 scoffed and shook his head. "Well it's gotta be someone..." He said before looking up with a smirk. "...Might as well be a grunt."
Right as he said that, everyone suddenly started eagerly agreeing.
Buneary rolled her eyes. Cowards.
"I think I know who to get." Gamma-7 said before leaning over to grab a walkie-talkie. He pressed the button and put the device up against the side of his head. "Cassidy, can you and Butch come to the observatory deck? It's top priority."
"Yes sir, right away!" A woman on the other end replied.
T-5 turned to the other leaders and folded his arms over his chest. "Everyone else should head to their cabins and inform their crews about what's happening. Assuming of course that people aren't deserting already."
Several of the members in the room muttered in agreement.
Buneary didn't even have time to breathe before she heard dramatically fast footsteps come down the hallway and run past her and into the room.
Heavily panting, a familiar-looking green-haired man next to a blonde woman struggled to stand straight.
"We're here sir!" Butch declared, saluting Gamma-7.
"At ease you two." The one-eyed captain said before the other leaders started shuffling out of the room.
Buneary quickly rounded the corner next to Lillipup. She pressed her body against the wall, making sure that nobody saw them.
"(What's going on-?)" Lillipup asked before Buneary gently put her paw over his mouth.
She leaned in a little to overhear what the humans in the observatory deck were saying.
"Whaa...?! You're really going to fire on the island?!" Cassidy exclaimed in disbelief.
"And then blow up the ship?!" Butch followed.
"Actually, you two are going to do that part." Gamma-7 calmly replied.
"Huh? Us?" Cassidy muttered.
"Yes, you know how to work the controls. We need you to enter a command to fire the main cannon on the north side of the island. After that, enter an irreversible command for the ship to self-destruct."
"But sir..." Butch mumbled before going quiet as Gamma-7 gently reached out to place his hand on his shoulder.
"Give yourselves enough time to get to the escape pods. By my estimate, if you run, it takes about fifteen minutes to make the trip from here, so make it twenty minutes."
"I-I..." Cassidy muttered.
"Do you have doubts?" Gamma-7 sternly remarked.
Buneary could hear the other two frightenedly squeal in response.
"N-No! Not at all!" Butch nervously laughed.
"Fire the main cannon at the island then blow up the ship...got it!" Cassidy bashfully chuckled.
"And give yourself enough time to get to the escape pods." Gamma-7 remarked.
"Right..." They both said.
Buneary heard T-5 say something under his breath before speaking more clearly.
"And don't worry about anyone else. We've already given the order to evacuate." He said.
"Any questions?" Gamma-7 asked.
"No sir!" Butch quickly replied.
"You can count on us!" Cassidy declared.
"Good. When you see the emergency aircraft depart, give it ten minutes before entering the command. Then meet us on the south side of the island, understood?" Gamma-7 said.
"Right!" The two grunts replied.
"Yes sir." Cassidy confidently said before she used one hand to count her fingers. "Wait until you leave, give it ten minutes, then program the cannon to fire twenty minutes after that."
"And then the ship blows." Butch followed.
"Good and remember: fire on the north side of the island. We need to destroy our encampments there; the blast should be wide enough to eradicate everything." Gamma-7 sternly said as he and T-5 started to walk out of the room.
From where she was hiding, Buneary saw T-5 smirk at the grunts.
"Alright, we're off. We're counting on you two. Got it?" He said with a smile.
"Yes sirs!" They both said, saluting the captains who nodded affirmatively before walking down a hallway and rounding the corner.
Buneary and Lillipup watched as Butch and Cassidy started making rather dramatic motions.
"Can you believe this?!" Cassidy squealed.
"I know! It's crazy!" Butch shouted. "I mean, blowing up the ship? That's a pretty wild idea!"
"Not that!" Cassidy said, bonking him on the head. "I meant that the captains trust us with this important task! We're really moving up in the world!" She proclaimed, starry eyed and all.
Buneary rolled her eyes. Ridiculous...
She looked around and saw several other Rocket members and their Pokémon still crowding around the nearby vicinity. Damn, if it was just those two idiots, she could knock them out and stop this whole thing. As is...there were simply too many of them...
With little choice, they waited until Butch and Cassidy returned to the observation deck, all the while talking about what they're going to do with their inevitable pay raises. When the grunts' backs were turned, the two Pokémon ran down the way they came.
A few minutes later, the two were about halfway back to the escape pods when Buneary's leg gave out and she collapsed onto the floor with a yelp and a loud thud. Surprised, Lillipup stopped and looked back at her.
"(Are you okay?!)" He asked, watching as Buneary struggled to get back up.
"(Y-Yeah...just gimme a sec.)" She muttered, as she shifted her weight onto her other leg. Damn, looks like she hadn't fully recovered since that golem smashed into her. She'd been able to suppress the occasional twangs of pang since then but all of this battling and running wasn't doing her any favors. Clearly, it was starting to come back with a vengeance.
"(C'mon...)" Lillipup said as he ran up to give her some support. "(Only a little further.)"
"(Right...let's go.)" Buneary said under her breath and with that, they continued to the escape pods.
As they went on their way, they passed by a series of windows and out of the corner of her eye, Buneary saw the smoking husk that was once the PLA airship as it began to descend towards the earth, dipping below the clouds until it was nearly out of view.
After minutes went by of rushing back to the escape pods, Buneary and Lillipup rounded a corner only to skid to a halt. They were in such a panic that they hadn't noticed how quiet the area was. It was only upon seeing the scene for themselves did it finally dawn on them what had happened.
All of the Team Rocket Pokémon were laying in a big, unconscious pile, one stacked on top of the other in the center of the room. Nearby were Pikachu and the others, lounging around and nonchalantly talking, some even making jokes. On one side of the room, there was a small fire that somehow continued to burn along the floor.
Buneary blinked as she looked over and saw Pikachu doing some stretches off to the side before ending it with cracking his back.
She looked at all of them rather dumbfoundedly before giving the mouse a grin and she started walking towards him.
"(Well...you really cleaned house!)" She giggled, her bright voice causing Pikachu's ears to prick up and he looked over at her.
"(Oh hey! Yeah, I guess so.)" He laughed, rubbing the back of his head. "(Well to be fair, everyone else helped.)"
"(Hee~!)" She snickered, causing the mouse to nervously clear his throat.
"(S-So, you found Lillipup then?)" He asked.
Snapping out of her thoughts of admiration, Buneary looked around and saw the pup being embraced by the others, especially Purrloin.
"(Yup, sure did! Yeah...I-)" Buneary said before reality came crashing back to her. Suddenly, she loudly gasped. "(Oh, that's right! Everyone, your attention!)" She shouted, causing the rest to look at her.
Pikachu tilted his head at that. "(Buneary? What's wrong?)" He asked, obvious concern in his voice only to see her whip back to lock gazes with him.
"(They're going to blow up the ship!)" She yelled, which caused many of the others to gasp and whisper among themselves. "(And not only that, they're going to fire their cannon on the island!)"
Pikachu jerked his head back, horrified at what she had just said. "(What...?! Why?!)"
"(Because they're crazy!)" Buneary shouted before she reached into her fluff and pulled out a keycard for all to see. "(But it's okay, I got a keycard so you can all be returned to the mainland!)"
Some in the crowd gave obvious sighs of relief while others muttered amongst themselves.
"(What about the island?)" Blitzle asked.
"(Can't we stop them?)" A cottonee followed.
The murmuring in the crowd only grew louder and more restless before Buneary took another step forward.
"(We don't have a lot of time, so let's start putting some of you in the escape pods first. Whoever is the strongest or fastest can stay behind to help us.)"
Almost immediately, many in the crowd started muttering in agreement before some started raising their arms.
"(I'll stay!)" Sawsbuck declared.
"(Me too!)" Simipour followed.
"(I'm fast, I'll help!)" A galvantula proclaimed.
Looking between them, Buneary gave a determined nod. "(Good. Now let's get some of you home!)"
Several of the others began to cheer and all the while, Buneary was so focused on them that she hadn't even noticed Pikachu giving her a rather proud smile.
"(Okay, I think that's it!)" Buneary declared as she ushered a tranquill into the escape pod. The bird briefly turned back to give her a rather grateful look. Amongst the Pokémon in the tiny vessel was Lillipup who was strapped in between Purrloin and a gothita. Struggling a bit, the pup leaned forward to get a good look at Buneary and he saw Pikachu step into view from the side of the pod door.
"(Are all the seats filled?)" The mouse asked.
"(Yup.)" Buneary said with a nod before turning back to the others in the pod. "(Okay, we're gonna send this thing back to the mainland. You guys try to get back to your loved ones alright?)"
Most of them looked back at her with determination in their eyes, fully understanding.
Meanwhile, a certain pup looked a bit scared.
Buneary noticed him and tilted her head a bit. Her eyes drifted down to something along his body.
"(Hey, you're not strapped in all the way. Here, lemme help.)" She said before stepping into the pod, walking up to Lillipup and leaned over to help him with his seatbelt.
"(I-I've never been in a rocket ship before.)" The pup squeaked as Buneary played with his seatbelt, signifying its adjustment with an audible click.
"(Bet you've never been in an airship before either.)" She chuckled before giving him a gentle smile. "(And it's an escape pod, not a rocket ship. Trust me, I've been in one before.)"
"(I-I...)" Lillipup muttered, shifting in his seat a little before Buneary leaned down to gently pat him on the top of his head with one of her ears. All the while, Pikachu watched them from the doorway.
"(Hey, it's gonna be okay. Just get back to your family alright?)" She said, her voice warm and inviting. Lillipup looked up at her with rather big, nervous eyes. Buneary smiled at him and crouched a little to get down to his eye level. "(Can you do that for me? Be a big boy and be brave?)"
The young pup looked at her for a moment before shaking his head a little and returning her gaze with a more confident look.
"(I-I'll be brave!)" He declared.
Smiling at him, Buneary patted his head again. "(Good...)"
With that, she stood back up and walked out of the pod and paused outside the doorway. She looked back and everyone nodded at her and Pikachu.
"(Safe travels everyone!)" Pikachu said.
"(Thank you...)" Purrloin nearly whispered, looking between them. "(Thank you both...)"
The duo merely smiled at them before Buneary went over to a keypad and started typing before swiping the keycard. A few moments later, the door to the escape pod closed and locked, the computerized voice announcing its departure before counting down from ten.
When it was over, the escape pod disengaged and started taking off. A few seconds later, it was out of sight.
Pikachu looked back at the others. Alright, one pod down, a few more to go.
Minutes went by of Pikachu and Buneary ushering the other Pokémon into other escape pods, trying to fit as many as they could. All the while, the Team Rocket Pokémon continued to lay unconscious in the middle of the room.
The idea that Pikachu stays behind to load the Pokémon into the pods while Buneary went out with some others to stop Team Rocket was briefly discussed, but the truth of the matter was that there was no way they could quickly get everyone out of here without working together, especially with some of the younger ones.
"(You see anything Pika?)" Buneary asked, typing the commands into a keypad so that another pod would begin disengaging. Across the room, standing against a window, Pikachu peered out into the sky.
"(No, not yet!)" He replied, his eyes darting every which way. Doing what Buneary had told him, the moment he sees the aircraft, the Team Rocket leaders have left and thus the command would be given to blow up the island and then the ship.
"(Just keep checking, we're almost done!)" She shouted back before entering the last few commands. When she was finished, the escape pod containing ten more Pokémon was set to fly off.
Now it was just her, Pikachu and the select few who had volunteered to stay behind to help. They had all been instrumental in getting the others into the pods much quicker and were eager to put this whole thing behind them.
"(Okay...that's-)" Buneary muttered to herself before she caught a glimpse of Team Rocket's Pokémon, still laying in a pile.
In response to her abrupt pause, Pikachu looked back at her before following her gaze.
"(What about them?)" He asked.
Sawsbuck scoffed and turned his head. "(What about them?)" He sarcastically repeated.
Pikachu and Buneary looked at each other before simultaneously sighing.
After loading the unconscious Team Rocket Pokémon into a pod and setting it to disengage, it was down to the last few who were willingly staying aboard a little longer.
"(Alright!)" Pikachu declared; a fist raised in the air. "(Let's go stop Team Rocket!)"
The others enthusiastically cheered in agreement but just as they did, they heard other voices from down the hallway.
"(Oi!)" Breloom shouted, causing everyone to look at the Grass-type and his group. "(You're not taking the last escape pods outta here!)"
Buneary nearly gasped upon seeing Ozzy and his Pokémon crew staring them all down.
"(Get away from there!)" Delibird yelled before they all started to rush forward!
"(Oh great...!)" Pikachu muttered and braced for the clash.
Drapion and Sawsbuck collided with each other while Simipour and Delibird exchanged Aqua Tail and Brick Break, respectively.
As Breloom and Galvantula tried landing hits on each other, Ozzy made a beeline for the escape pods. His progress was suddenly halted by both Pikachu and Buneary who jumped in front of him, causing the man to skid to a halt, a look of surprise on his face.
"(Not so fast!)" Pikachu declared, sparks appearing from his cheeks.
Ozzy grunted and muttered something under his breath before all three of them stopped in response to something rather loud coming from down the hallway. Everyone stopped what they were doing to look up only to see a large crowd of Team Rocket members and Pokémon running towards them!
"D'AAH! What the...?!" Ozzy screamed.
"Out of the way!" A female grunt shouted.
"We gotta get off this thing!" A man running next to her followed.
Nobody had any time to react as they were all nearly trampled or shoved out of the way as many others forced themselves into the remaining escape pods. In the midst of the commotion, Pikachu saw Buneary flinching, her paws over her head. Without giving it a second thought, he rushed over and embraced her, shielding her body with his until the excitement died down.
In the ensuing panic, one of the Pokémon sent out a bolt of lightning that connected with a control panel which sparked an electrical fire. The flames soon merged with the small fire that was already on the floor from the previous skirmish.
All at once, everything went quiet and everyone opened their eyes to see that only two escape pods remained, the others having been taken by the rest of the ship's crew in their frantic escape.
Buneary blinked at what had just happened. "(Well that's just-)"
"(Look out!)" Pikachu screamed as he pushed her out of the way of Drapion's Fire Fang. Thanks to the mouse's quick thinking, the attack only made contact with the bunny's vest. Stumbling out of the way, Buneary looked back to see Pikachu already giving the scorpion an Iron Tail to the face.
When he landed a few feet back, Pikachu briefly looked over at her and gasped. "(Buneary! Your vest is on fire!)"
Blinking at him, she looked over to her side and saw that indeed her beautiful vest from Dawn's mother was set ablaze! Screaming, she immediately took it off and without even thinking, threw it to the side and it landed in one of the escape pods that was left open.
Inspecting herself, Buneary realized that she was alright. Panting, she paused and turned around to see how the others had resumed their fighting only for something to catch her eye off to the side. She looked over and saw a smaller aircraft with the Team Rocket logo flying away.
Oh...crap...
"(Guys!)" Buneary declared, leaning forward to project her voice. "(It's starting!)"
Pikachu turned his gaze on her. "(Well we-)"
His words were interrupted by a smack to the chest courtesy of Delibird's Ice Ball.
"(Pikachu!)" Buneary gasped before she quickly hopped forward and used Dizzy Punch on the bird, knocking him further towards the escape pods. She looked up only to see Ozzy typing into the keypad and opening the door to one of the pods, somehow having procured another grunt's keycard.
"Heh, you're too late!" He declared.
Buneary grimaced at him. Damn...he was right. If they bolt out of there right now, maybe they can still stop the cannon from being fired!
Before she could reply to the man's remark, she heard frantic footsteps coming towards them. She looked over and saw none other than Butch and Cassidy waving at them.
"Hey, wait up!" Butch cried out.
"We gave the command ahead of time! The cannon is gonna fire in fifteen!" Cassidy shouted as they ran up to the entrance of the escape pod.
Buneary angrily tightened a fist.
"(Heads up!)" Galvantula shouted as he and Breloom rolled past her, both covered in a thick web courtesy of String Shot.
"Huh? What's going on?" Cassidy muttered to herself as they looked over to see the two Pokémon barreling towards them. Likewise, Ozzy did the same.
The three humans squealed as the two battlers collided into them, forcing them all into the escape pod.
"(Woah...)" Pikachu muttered, looking on.
"(Hey! A little help here!)" Simipour yelled as he wrestled with Delibird who was constantly trying to get a shot in using Brick Break.
"(No problem!)" Sawsbuck yelled as he got down low and rushed forward, pushing the two towards the pods.
Drapion, who was just now getting back up from Pikachu's Iron Tail, groaned and shook his head. "(Hey, what's happening?)" He grumbled, a claw up to his forehead, only to look over in time for the other battlers to crash into him!
With that, all four Pokémon tumbled into the escape pod alongside the humans with a loud boom.
Pikachu and Buneary, now the only ones outside of the pod, looked at each other before they saw Drapion trying to get out.
"(Oh no you don't!)" Buneary shouted as she rushed forward and used Bounce to knock the scorpion back in. As she did, she felt a jolt of pain immediately rush up from her foot to her leg. She let out a pained gasp as she bounced off her enemy and fell backwards onto the floor.
Pikachu looked between them and bolted to Buneary. He helped her up and quickly grabbed the keycard before running to the keypad. Jumping up to it, he started typing in some commands and swiped the item. The doors to the escape pod closed and the computerized voice declared its imminent departure.
"Hey, get your foot out of my face!" Cassidy yelled.
"You get yours outta mine!" Butch snapped back.
"Will both of you shut up?!" Ozzy shouted.
All three humans stopped their squabbling as they took notice of Sawsbuck, Simipour and Galvantula glaring at them from inches away.
"Oh crud..." Butch muttered as the escape pod disengaged from the airship and began to fly away.
The duo couldn't say for sure but they swore that they could see the three Pokémon start to whale on the three humans as they flew off.
With its departure, Pikachu and Buneary were the only ones left. Pikachu looked to the side and saw one last escape pod which also contained Buneary's burnt vest.
For the first time, all was truly quiet...
...That was until the computerized female voice came over the intercom.
MAIN CANNON ACTIVATED. ESTIMATED TIME OF FIRE IS FIFTEEN MINUTES
Pikachu concernedly looked at Buneary. "(Any way we can stop this?)"
Struggling to take another step forward, Buneary hissed in pain as she grabbed her injured leg.
"(No...)" She managed to say; one eye closed from the pain. "(...I don't think so.)"
Pikachu shook his head before his paws flew up to his temples. "(I can't believe it...those poor Pokémon...)" He sadly whispered; his voice nearly breaking.
She looked at him before staring at the escape pod.
This was awful. Truly, undoubtedly awful...
They failed. That island is going to be blown up and all of those innocent Pokémon...they'll...
"(We can still head back and contact the authorities...)" Pikachu muttered, disappointment in his voice.
Buneary slowly looked to the side and out the window.
It was over...right? There wasn't anything they could do to stop this. It's not like they knew a command to override the-
Buneary's eyes widened as she remembered something.
The passcode...the master passcode! The one she had overheard the captains tell Cassidy to override any command. The self-destruct command might be irreversible but maybe something can be done about that cannon...
It could work right? If she used an emergency command override?
"(We can still save a lot of lives. We'll just come back with Officer Jenny and Ash and we can save whoever is left on the island.)" Pikachu said to himself, clearly trying to calm his own nerves.
Buneary merely stared off into space. She unconsciously rubbed her injured leg.
Was there...really no other choice?
Her lip quivering, the bunny took in a deep breath and closed her eyes to steady her nerves.
Deep down, she felt an immense panic quickly rise from her stomach and up to her chest yet she did her best to keep it at bay. She wanted to be sick.
There...wasn't a choice. And there wasn't any time to dwell on it either...
She had to do it. If not now, then never.
Pikachu continued to walk back and forth, rambling to himself the entire time. "(So let's just head back to the mainland and then we-)"
"(Pikachu.)" Buneary calmly said, interrupting the mouse's mutterings. Pikachu looked over and saw her give a gentle smile. "(I think I know how to fix this. Hand me the keycard please.)"
Looking down in his own paw, Pikachu realized that he was indeed still holding it. He paused, then he walked forward and held it out. "(Er...here...)"
She took it in her paws and looked at it. "(Thanks. Now, can...can you get my vest?)"
Pikachu blinked at her and tilted his head. "(Huh? Your vest? Why-?)"
"(Just...get it for me...please?)" She asked, her face rather tranquil yet her eyes were...what was it? Sad maybe?
Utterly confused, Pikachu looked at her. "(Uhh...yeah, sure Bun.)" He said before he quickly turned and walked into the pod where her burnt vest lay on the floor in a smoldering heap.
Well this was strange. Did she have some sort of remote control in her vest to stop the cannon or someth-?
Pikachu's ears pricked up as he heard the sound of something behind him. He turned around just in time to catch a glimpse of the escape pod's metal door slide into place, signaled by a high-pitched compressed sound.
He blinked. "(Hey! The door accidentally closed!)" He yelled as he waited to see Buneary's figure through the glass window near the bottom of the floor. After a few moments, she reappeared. "(The door! It closed; can you please unlock it?)" He asked as he took a step forward. His expression changed into one of confusion as he noticed her give a sad little smile. He blinked again.
She suddenly jumped out of sight and Pikachu could hear buttons being pressed. Immediately, the computer's voice came on again.
POD NUMBER SEVENTEEN: ACTIVATED TO DISENGAGE
Pikachu looked up and gasped. "(Buneary! What's happening?!)" He shouted as he saw her come back into his view.
"(Pikachu...)" She softly said, just barely audible over everything else. Behind her, the fire had started to envelope the immediate area.
"(C'mon, open the door!)" He yelled as he took another step forward. His eyes widened as she silently shook her head. "(What...?)"
"(This is how it has to be.)" She finally said.
"(Stop it.)" He sternly replied as he began inching closer to the window on the bottom of the door.
"(I'm sorry Pikachu. You're gonna have to do the next part on your own.)"
"(But...)"
"(I'm the only one who knows the passcode to stop the cannon and my leg is injured. You'd never make the trip in time...)"
"(Enough! This isn't funny!)" He screamed only to look on in horror as she gently placed her paws against the window, the flames around her glowing ever brighter.
"(Pikachu...it's gonna be okay. You're gonna be okay.)" She said with a comforting smile.
"(No...)" He whimpered before suddenly rushing forward. "(NO! Buneary...!)"
She continued to sadly stare at him with that famous smile of hers as the computer spoke up again.
ALL ESCAPE POD PASSENGERS ARE TO STRAP IN NOW
"(Please...)" Pikachu said, his voice breaking amid choked tears. "(Please don't do this. I...I can't...not with you.)" He sobbed as he began to futilely slam his paw against the glass.
"(Pika...you're going to go out there and be the best...I just know it.)" She said, her voice clearly breaking too.
"(I can't go on...I can't do this without you!)" He shouted as he desperately punched the glass window.
"(Pika...)" She finally said, the firm tone in her voice causing him to look up at her. He stared into her eyes, which were clouded by tears of her own. "(Thank you...)"
His eyes widened in surprise as he tried to say something back but he couldn't find it in himself to do so. "(I-I...I...)"
"(Thank you...for loving me. Thank you...for giving me a chance.)" She managed to say, her voice becoming more and more strained. "(You're the best guy I've ever known a-and being with you and with Dawn and the others...they were best moments of my life.)"
"(Bun...)" Pikachu muttered. He continued to stare into her face, her figure remaining still amongst the dancing flames and he suddenly got a flashback to that day when she jumped into that bubble vortex followed by that fever dream of her falling into the abyss. "(Bun! Don't do this! Please!)" He screamed before the computer spoke again.
ESCAPE POD NUMBER SEVENTEEN DISENGAGING IN TEN, NINE, EIGHT...
Her look became more determined and she gave him a more confident smile.
SEVEN, SIX, FIVE...
"(Live your life Pikachu...)"
FOUR, THREE, TWO...
"(For the both of us.)"
...ONE.
"(BUNEARY!)" Pikachu shrieked as the escape pod unlatched itself from the ship and briefly floated in the air before its thrusters propelled it away. Horrified, he watched as her figure became smaller and smaller. Unable to maintain his balance, Pikachu fell backwards.
In what felt like an instant, the escape pod was already a good distance away from the ship in midair. As it continued its journey, Pikachu was violently thrown around its cabin, the computer's urging to strap in clearly not just being a suggestion.
As Pikachu tumbled to and fro, he occasionally got a glimpse of the airship, registering how absolutely massive it truly was. He grabbed onto a railing next to the seat and with great effort, lifted himself to the window. From there, he could see the ship still floating in place, its gigantic cannon pointing at the island like a sword raised to an enemy.
Minutes passed as the escape pod began to slowly descend down towards the island. After what felt like hours, he could see that same cannon suddenly move to the side and point directly at the ocean. As soon as it did, a great flash of light erupted from the muzzle as a beam of energy collided with the body of water, creating a small tsunami further inward. Pikachu had to shield his eyes, the light from the cannon overwhelming the sky for a brief moment. Oddly for such a large beam of energy, the mouse couldn't really hear much aside from a muffled, faraway boom.
She did it. She actually did it. She saved everyone on the island.
He looked on in awe as the cannon powered down, the floating fortress continuing to stay in place. Suddenly, the escape pod began to change directions midflight. The abrupt shift caused Pikachu to lose his grip on the railing and once again tumble around inside. He landed on his left arm, causing a flash of pain. He grit his teeth, trying to toughen the pain out. And yet...in that moment for all he cared...he could have bruised every inch of his body and it wouldn't compare to what was going through his mind and heart.
As he flailed about, another computerized voice came on.
ALL PASSENGERS BRACE FOR LANDING IN FIVE MINUTES
Pikachu caught and grabbed onto the seat as the pod began to angle itself to land on the south side of the island. Once again, he lifted himself up to the window. He could see the vast, clear sky, its rich blue going on forever. He could see a cloud pass over the airship, briefly shrouding it in a shadow before the sunlight shone on it again...
...And he could see the airship begin to ignite, flames overtaking the hull. He could only gasp as the sky was once again enveloped in a blinding light as the explosion turned the airship into a flaming titan, its appearance soon becoming akin to an artificial sun. Suddenly, the flames projected outward and the escape pod rocked from the explosion.
He wanted to scream but strangely, he couldn't find the breath to summon from his lungs. As he was about to open his mouth again, the pod skidded along something solid, causing him to lose his grip and crash against the vessel's wall and he fell forward with a loud thud.
As he lay there groaning on the floor, his left arm throbbing, his ears pricked up as he heard the high-pitched sound of the pod's door opening as it began to slide out. No sooner did the door open up did Pikachu scramble to his feet and bolt out. Immediately, he could see the fireball in the sky. Never taking his eyes off it, he continued forward and in his haste, he kept stumbling and tripping over whatever was in his way, occasionally falling over into the dirt. He didn't care, he just kept running towards the horrible sight above, knowing that he was approaching the shore.
At long last, he reached a rather small coastal bluff that overlooked the beach and he stopped at its edge. Panting, he continued to look up at the sky, the great hellish color of orange contrasting the serene blue, its size so much larger than the airship that it had originated from.
He couldn't take his eyes off it, even if the brightness was starting to hurt his retinas. His back legs gave out, causing his front legs to be the only things prepping him up on the grass.
He didn't want to believe it. He couldn't accept it.
She was fine. Any moment now, she'll reappear next to him, smiling and laughing like she had done this morning. Like she had always done before.
His eyes darted around the explosion, expecting something...anything to give an indication that she was fine. She would...sh-she would come out of the smoke hitching a ride on some Flying-type that stayed behind for some reason. She would be on the back of a mantine, inexplicably safe from the explosion. She would somehow be flying through the air herself, having suddenly sprouted wings.
She was going to come back to him because...because it's her...
He stayed there for a long time, creating scenario after scenario of how she would make it out and be by his side again.
...
But as the moments passed, he could only see how the debris from the explosion began to make its way towards the ocean. As he saw the remnants of the ship fall through the air and break apart into indistinguishable pieces, he felt his hope dissipate into nothingness.
His fingers gripped the grass in anguish as he slowly leaned forward and plowed his face into the ground, his sobs muffled by the dirt.
He had no choice. He had to accept the awful truth that...
...She would never return.