Chapter 29
Rai's eyes slowly opened, finding himself resting in a hospital bed, with Pyre seated beside him.
"Rai, you're up?! I was so worried."
"My phone…i…I need my phone." Rai looked to Pyre, struggling to turn.
"No, you need to rest." Pyre spoke sincerely.
"Pyre, please." Rai coughed, and Pyre caved handing the raichu his phone.
Rai took it and using what little strength he had he dialed a number. After a few moments he set it beside his ear. "Hi babe," he listened for a moment. "I'm not doing too well at the moment…I just…wanted to hear your voice." Tears began to slip from his eyes. "I love you Russ. So, please don't freak out…but I, I almost died…" Silence filled the room for only a few moments. "I'm in the Icekey Hospital right now, I want to see you, but this place is too dangerous. I know that won't stop you…arceus I miss you." Rai listened for a few moments. "I'll see you soon, I love you."
He weakly ended the call. "Rai…you should go home when Russ gets here."
"What?!" Rai sat up, wincing in pain.
"You got hurt because of me, I couldn't live with myself if you got hurt any more on my account."
"Pyre! Ivy is my friend too! I was coming regardless. And as soon as I'm recovered, I'm helping you end this."
"Rai, please you're like a brother to me, please don't put yourself in that position again."
The raichu sighed. "Where's Blade?"
"With Codsworth, they're looking into Shadow's lead."
Rai only now noticed Pyre was dressed more casually, his costume gone. "What happened to.."
"We got rid of em. We were playing at being heroes, and you almost died."Pyre's signature smile fell. "It was childish. If we're gonna save Ivy, I have to do something I haven't done in years. I'm gonna get serious."
*With Blade*
Codsworth had managed to talk his way into finding the entrance of the bunker beneath the police station. Criminals, the homeless, anyone he could find, Codsworth questioned them all. And a few directed him to a rather strange Abra. The small psychic was upside down with a small device in his mouth, puffing smoke from it. Codsworth none too gently grabbed the Abra and made him upright.
"Heeeey! Chill man, you're harshin the buzz." Abra puffed smoke into the lucario's face.
"Listen, I need to meet your boss. The mindflayer."
"You want into big daddy Steins transcendent den? Why didn't you say so bruh?" Abra grabbed each by their arms, and swiftly teleported them into the bunker. "Here ya go dudes, this is…holy shit, what did I smoke?"
The walls were strewn with blood and entrails. The only body untouched was the alakazam, who was slumped against the wall face first.
"What on earth?" Codsworth couldn't believe what he saw.
"He's been here already." Blade said, only a slight hint of fear in his voice, more malice than anything else. He stood behind the alakazam. He took a deep breath, "How would Shadow do this."
"Well first," Codsworth held out a small pair of what appeared to be gloves for Blade. "Cover your claws, we want to disturb the scene as little as possible."
Blade slipped the gloves over his claws and stepped away, touching a small stain. "Well, this wasn't recent, blood is already dry, I think. Unless blood dries fast."
Codsworth observed the wooden shaft of the crossbow bolt protruding from the back of Stein's head. "Sloppy, leaving the ammunition in the victim, this can be traced. Or perhaps a message, a show of confidence." Codsworth noticed how focused Blade was, but he didn't like it, he could feel the anger seeping out of the sneasel.
Blade suddenly walked over, gently tapping the bolt. "Coward can't even use his own two hands to do his dirty work."
Stein's body suddenly fell to one side.
"Careful! I said we need to disturb the scene as little as possible." Codsworth opened his mouth to continue, but Blade cut him off.
"Room, six, nine, six, nine, spanks?" He leaned in, seeing the blood soaked words on the wall.
"A message, not from the killer, but from our victim." Codsworth pulled out a small pad and pen, writing it down. He felt something vile lingering in the room, they needed to leave before he gave away what he knew. "Excuse me, we are ready to leave." The lucario gestured at Abra.
"Alright man, this is some fucked up shit right here though." The psychic grabbed them returning them to where they had met. "I'm gonna call the cops, they need to know about this, just gotta hide my stash first."
"Do as you will, just do not go back to that room alone." Codsworth warned, leading Blade by the hand out of the building. "In the car, now!"
"Huh, why what's wrong?"
Back in the bunker, the ditto dropped from the ceiling. "Say what you will of me Jack, but unlike you, my power grows with my victims." Naraku spoke as his body enveloped Stein's corpse. "Your psychic power will be a fine addition to my body!"
*Elsewhere*
The Lich circled the hole in the ground, a sickening green glow emanating from it.
"So, you're the one working on the veil?" Jack asked, stepping out of the shadows.
"Ssshhhh" The marowak held its finger to its jagged boned face.
"Not a talker? I like that. Better than the other one."
"Jack, you wound me with your words." At that moment, Naraku returned, having teleported back. "How is it?"
"The veil resists. Fights me at every turn. As if something anchors it in place." The lich reached into the hole, feeling power fill his body.
"Well, we must be missing something." Jack added.
A wall of shattered glass appeared between them, and the darkrai like figure spoke, it's cacophonous voice filling the small cavern. "The Veil is anchored by chaos and order. light and dark. By balance."
"Then you should have chosen some brighter disciples, or eeeegh" Jack fell to his knees, the mask upon his face cracking.
"Silence!" The choir of voices demanded. "A child of light and dark exists. Their existence binds the Veil. This child, is the key. One sacrifice to bring about this world's finality. Find this child, bring it here. Destroy it. Destroy the Veil."
The voices ceased.
"Not even a hint, how cruel." Naraku chuckled.
"Where would we even find a child of light and dark?" Jack inquired.
"You have both already seen it." The lich spoke, holding out it's hand, letting a green flame form revealing a single image. Blade.
*With Pyre*
Pyre sighed watching Rai rest, and Blade entered followed by Codsworth.
"Blade, hey I need to ask something, I've been worried about you.."
"Pyre, I'm fine, I'll be better when Shadow is back."
"No, it's not that," Pyre gestured toward Blade, noticing a faint pink aura in his belly. "I just noticed something in your…"
"Whatever it is, can wait, we have a lead." Codsworth interrupted. "Room six-nine-six-nine spanks. Do those words mean anything?"
"Tin told us about Spanks in the Banks so it's probably that. Blade, I need you to stay with Rai. Codsworth and I can handle this."
"I am afraid we cannot." Codsworth spoke. "I cannot leave young master Blade. His safety is of utmost priority to me."
"Then I'll go alone."
"Like hell you will!" Rai sat up, wincing. "If we can't help, call your brother, or your dad, someone!"
Pyre frowned "They'll just take us all back."
"Then maybe I can help." Gambit entered the room. "Sorry, I'd have gotten here a lot sooner, but I couldn't leave until Shadow was properly detained."
Blade wanted to slash the officer. But Codsworth stood between them.
"What can you do?" Pyre asked.
"I can set up a sting of sorts, if we can find where the actual sale of the kidnapped pokemon are the entire police force could take them in one fell swoop. We've hit their hideouts before, but the main one has always been hard to breach. It's apparently in the bdsm club Spanks in the Banks, but every time we've hit them it's just been the club itself, no secret passages or anything."
"Well, we have a room number, so maybe now you can."
"Oh, and I need that tape you got when you escaped the manor. If it can prove your friend is innocent, I need to submit it to evidence. So where is it?"
Blade opened his mouth, but Rai spoke first. "It's gone. I crushed it when I was shot after jumping through the window." Rai was lying, they all knew it, they simply didn't know why, but they didn't question it.
"A shame, well I hope everything works out." Gambit stepped out. "I'll get the strike set up, you come by the station later, and we'll hit the bastards hard."
Once the bisharp was out of earshot. "Why did you lie?"
"I don't trust him."
"But he saved you from Jack." Blade pointed out.
"And went down in one hit after that." Rai was plain with his words. "In case you forgot, I took more than one hit from Jack. So either that's the weakest cop ever, or he's a coward."
Pyre frowned. "He's all we've got."
*Evening, The Next Day*
Pyre sat outside the club beside Gambit and Max. Why the pichu was here he didn't know. "Care to explain that?"
"They don't know I'm a cop, so I'm gonna act like I'm bringing him in as merchandise." Gambit explained.
"Pyre, I'll be fine, I've been fucked by worse."
"Yeah, that's not reassuring." Pyre sighed.
"Room number, quick." Gambit said as they began walking toward the door. The cameras shut off suddenly, as several uniformed pokemon surrounded the building, covering the doors.
"Six-nine-six-nine." Pyre whispered as they walked up to a bar inside the club, surrounded by pokemon in various states of distress and restriction. Dragon types bound and gagged, dark types restraining pokemon of all types.
"What can I get…aren't these two a bit young to be here?" The bartender, a gardevoir asked cleaning a glass.
"They're not here for that, I just have a package delivery for room six-nine-six-nine." Gambit maintained a calm expression.
The bartender glanced at a sableye. "He'll take ya to the room."
The three approached the sableye and he hopped off a bar stool, walking toward the back of the club, into a private room. It looked like a normal room, but the ghost type stepped straight through a small part of a wall. And a few moments later, the entire floor slid out of the way as a small platform came up.
Sableye stepped out of the wall. "Step on the elevator."
They did as they were told, and then without warning, Pyre sucker punched the ghost, knocking him out instantly.
"Greenlight, sweep the place now." Gambit spoke into an earpiece. Pyre pushed sableye aside and punched the wall, thick but still hollow. "We'll get someone to break open the wall, give us a minute."
"No time." But Pyre didn't wait. His fists laced in flames he let loose a flurry of punches cracking the wall and melting other parts of it. His punches continued until his fist broke through, pulling back made the rest of it crumble leaving a small sableye sized square hole. He slammed the only button on the panel within. And the platform began to go down. He quickly stepped back on, grabbing Max and tossing him out the door. "Sorry Max, can't put you in danger."
The floor closed behind them as they descended. It wasn't a long ride, the platform stopped moving and a large door opened to a room filled with bound pokemon, primarily males, more specifically students.
"Sick fucks. I'll get started cutting them down…" Gambit hadn't noticed Pyre had already run off.
The charmander rushed down winding hallways, guided by a single familiar feeling, Ivy. He could feel the snivy, he was in pain. He needed him.
Several pokemon patrolled the corridors, dark and psychic types mostly, drowzee and krokorok primarily. Pyre didn't waste time, each one he passed was struck. A single punch to a drowzee's nose sending them to the floor, sweeping krokorok legs with his tail as he rushed down each hallway.
He could feel it, the immense pain growing as he approached. Finally he found it, a door emanating Ivy's pain. The charmander felt his tail flare up as he kicked in the door.
There he was, tears cascading down his bruised face, each limb pulled tight in every direction, and his butt filled by dual cocks. Not just any dual cocks, those of a serperior. But not just any serperior.
"Finally, a use for a disappointment like you."
"Mr. Grasnake?!"
The serperior coiled around Ivy. "Oh great, his little hero. You know he hasn't shut up about you, I was promised a broken in toy, but the brat still has a mind of his own."
Pyre couldn't believe what he had just seen. "Let him go! He's your son!"
"No, he's a fleshlight. And at least now he's useful."
Pyre felt heat rising in him, rage bubbling to the surface.
"I wouldn't, what if you hurt poor little Ivy."
The flame on Pyre's tail flickered a dark black flame. He stomped forward.
"Stay back or I'll squeeze the life out of him."
Pyre hesitated but kept moving. "Ya know, they always make threats like that in movies. But the thing is," Pyre grabbed the snake by his face. "That threat only works as long as they stay unharmed. And I'm guessing you know if you hurt him, that threat is null and void."
It was a bluff, they both knew it, but the serperior couldn't move, something about Pyre had him frozen with fear. The charmander's left eye glowed a deep crimson, and it seemed as if a black cloak of smoke covered his arms, as well as white smoke billowing from his head.
The faint outline of Shadow hung over the charmander's body, and it froze him in place. His body instinctively uncoiled from Ivy's. Pyre raised a fist punching the serperior in the face hard enough to slam his head into the ground and bounce it back up. Then he did it again, and again, and again, punching the serperior until his face was bloodied and bruised almost beyond recognition.
"There, now you're as ugly as your aura." The charmander quickly slashed Ivy's restraints catching him as he fell. Pyre hugged him tight. "Sorry I was late."
The snivy didn't speak, he just hugged Pyre tight. And the fire type carried him carefully out the door and toward the elevator platform, passing officers as they detained the guards and criminals. The walk was silent, Pyre simply held tight to the snivy, even as they ascended the platform, and exited the building.