"…and that's where Calem found us," Serena finished. "You know the rest."
As she finished the story, Lusamine shifted forward in her chair, the glare in her eyes startling. Truth be told, Seeker-Of-Endings was still a little wary of the former Aether Foundation President after her machinations had led directly to the Battle of Alola and the horrors that had been unleashed there. But he could also tell she was different now - her blonde hair was, though still long, much shorter now, and she seemed more relaxed, having been leaning back in the chair throughout Serena's story.
Not to mention the clearly willing presence of Gladion and Lillie, both of whom had stopped snacking entirely in favor of listening to Serena's tale. That was something the old Lusamine would never have allowed.
"I doubt," said Lusamine, "you want a lecture about how extremely irresponsible that was. So I will refrain from doing so." She looked over at Professor Sycamore; he had not left his own chair, while Calem had spent the entire story standing behind him, arms crossed and leaning on the chair's backrest. "Did you know anything about this?"
Professor Sycamore shook his head. "I had no idea. I just heard there was a fire over at Aether and sent Calem to go help if it was needed."
Lusamine bowed, putting her head in her hands. "To think Aether personnel would take part in such a thing," she muttered.
"I seem to recall them doing much the same once upon a time," Theo remarked.
Seeker-Of-Endings wouldn't deny that was clearly out of line - Theo's anger at leaving Connie behind was clearly still affecting his thoughts and words - but even so, he was surprised at just how quickly and fervently Gladion and especially Lillie rose to their mother's defense. "That was then," Gladion snapped.
"And believe me," Lillie added, just as ferociously, "she's paid for that a thousand times over. Now she's trying to help you, so don't you dare throw that in her face."
Theo swallowed, slumping. "Sorry."
"It's alright," Lusamine murmured. "Thank you, Lillie, Gladion." She raised her head back up to look at Theo. "I apologize if that brought back any painful memories. Rest assured, though, we will save your friend. I refuse to let something like this stand."
"If you're going to Aether, then we're coming too," said Serena.
"Are you sure?" Professor Sycamore asked. "If you come, Lusamine won't be able to maintain any semblance of neutrality in proceedings. They will know, pardon the saying, she's an enemy."
"I think the time for neutrality has long passed," said Lusamine. "These Aether personnel have participated in the possibly successful kidnapping of their friend. They will be on high alert, and I doubt they will let anyone, even me, into the building willingly. It is likely we will have to fight our way in, and if that is the case, I will need all the allies I can get."
"Well, then, count us in," said Lillie, standing from her seat.
"And Calem and myself." Professor Sycamore stood as well, shooting a quick glance at Calem for confirmation and receiving a nod in return. "My battling days may be mostly behind me, but my team's certainly up for a good scrap. Just ask Calem."
Calem nodded ruefully in a manner that suggested he'd found out just how 'up for a good scrap' the Professor's team was multiple times.
Gladion glanced around the room and chuckled. "Seven people storming an Aether facility. History certainly has a funny way of repeating itself."
"Gladion!" Lillie hissed frustratedly.
As the group fell to talking, discussing plans for approach and who would be leading the group, Seeker-Of-Endings abruptly heard a whisper in his head. It was a voice he recognized instantly as that of Finder-Of-Knowledge.
"Lumiose, alleyway between Vernal Avenue and Bleu Plaza. We need to talk."
Seeker-Of-Endings hadn't been aware that Finder-Of-Knowledge was capable of long-range telepathic communication; that was something only stronger and more experienced Heralds tended to be capable of. Maybe Bringer-Of-Visions herself is teaching her a few things…that would certainly explain why I saw them talking the other day, and why Finder-Of-Knowledge acted so strangely then.
Regardless of Finder-Of-Knowledge's skills, though, the fact remained that she had called, and it was Seeker-Of-Endings' duty to answer. So it was that he had made his excuses, slipped away from the room, and teleported out, and was now stepping into the alleyway between Vernal Avenue and Bleu Plaza. It was a good meeting place - near-deserted, piled with garbage, with multiple little driveways off to the side where a meeting could easily be held undisturbed.
"Finder?" Seeker-Of-Endings called.
"Here!" Finder-Of-Knowledge's voice answered from the nearest driveway. She sounded strained, and Seeker-Of-Endings' heart began to pound at the trembling in her words. He stepped forward quickly until he reached the edge of the driveway, peering around the side of the adjacent building. "Finder, are you-"
He stopped.
One of Betrayer-Of-Kin's eyes was locked on his position; she did not move in the slightest from her current position, which was on top of Finder-Of-Knowledge with the tip of her horn-blade pointed at the young Herald's throat. Finder-Of-Knowledge looked, understandably, terrified; from the wounds that parted her white fur and matted it with red, she'd tried to put up a fight, but now all the fight had gone out of her, and she was staring at Seeker-Of-Endings with terrified wide eyes, panting with fright.
Seeker-Of-Endings tried to steady his own breathing. He didn't want to look nearly as scared as he was. But at the same time, as he stared at Betrayer-Of-Kin, he couldn't keep his mind off their last encounter. He'd barely gotten out of that alive, and only because help had been nearby.
There would be no help this time should Betrayer-Of-Kin decide to finish the job.
"What are you doing here?" Seeker-Of-Endings managed.
Betrayer-Of-Kin adjusted her stance, raising her head and shifting her left front paw, claws extended, to Finder-Of-Knowledge's throat instead. Finder-Of-Knowledge shifted abruptly, trying to use the distraction to escape, but Betrayer-Of-Kin simply pressed down harder. Blood bubbled at Finder-Of-Knowledge's neck and she stopped just as abruptly, lying still once more.
"Technically, I'm here on business," said Betrayer-Of-Kin. "But that can wait a bit. It's been some time, hasn't it, Seeker?"
Seeker-Of-Endings swallowed. "Let her go, Betrayer-Of-Kin. It's me you want, isn't it?"
Betrayer-Of-Kin smiled. "Yes, it is. But I'd prefer not to be attacked, so I'll be keeping her close while we talk."
Seeker-Of-Endings took a step closer. "I said let her go."
Betrayer-Of-Kin shifted her claws, eliciting a pained, fearful gurgle from Finder-Of-Knowledge. "Are you threatening me, Seeker?"
Seeker-Of-Endings swallowed his fear once more, but did not move closer, not wanting to risk Finder-Of-Knowledge's life any more than he had. "I'll ask again. What do you want?"
"I know Bringer-Of-Visions is looking for a traitor in her ranks."
Seeker-Of-Endings' eyes widened. "How?"
"She seems to have forgotten," said Betrayer-Of-Kin, "that I can listen in on conversations within Oblivion. I do not know if it is her growing fixation on Medicham or her increasing desperation to catch this turncoat of hers, but she is no longer nearly as careful as she used to be." She smirked. "There is no traitor, Seeker. Believe me, if there was, I would have taken full advantage of it. But my replacement is convinced there is a traitor, and she will not rest until she finds one."
Seeker-Of-Endings felt a chill run through his blood. "Why tell me this?"
"Because," said Betrayer-Of-Kin, "when someone like Bringer-Of-Visions searches for a traitor and there is no traitor, then they stop searching for a traitor and start searching for a scapegoat. Because the only alternative is admitting that she was wrong…and I think you and I both know she'll never admit something like that."
Betrayer-Of-Kin smiled. "Which is why I'm here." Her other front paw opened up, revealing an Escape Rope dangling from a string that she swiftly tossed over to Seeker-Of-Endings.
"I trust you know what it does," Betrayer-Of-Kin continued. "It's keyed to a specific location, so you don't need to enter one yourself. Just press the button when you're next in danger."
Seeker-Of-Endings stared at the device as if it were diseased, then looked back up at Betrayer-Of-Kin. "And why in Distortion should I take something like this from you?"
"If I wanted to kill you," said Betrayer-Of-Kin, "or otherwise bring harm to you, I would just do it, right here and right now. You know perfectly well that I'm fully capable of such a thing. Besides, I have a strong suspicion the time you will be needing this will come fairly soon."
Slowly, gingerly, Seeker-Of-Endings reached out and touched the Escape Rope, then grasped it when it didn't do anything. Again he looked back up at Betrayer-Of-Kin. "Is that all?"
"That is, indeed, all," Betrayer-Of-Kin confirmed; finally, she released her claws and stepped back, allowing Finder-Of-Knowledge to scramble to her feet. She instantly scurried over to Seeker-Of-Endings, huddling close, shivering all over.
"I hope we see each other again soon," said Betrayer-Of-Kin. "After all, I think you and I have a little more in common than either of us are willing to admit." With that, she turned and began to stride off as if nothing had happened, her tail flicking gently from side to side as she walked down the alleyway.
Seeker-Of-Endings stared after her for a moment, and then Finder-Of-Knowledge practically collapsed into his fur. "I'm sorry," she whimpered. "She forced me to call you…I thought I was dead, I couldn't-"
"Shh," Seeker-Of-Endings murmured. "It's okay, Finder. She's gone, and you're safe."
His fur began to wetten with Finder-Of-Knowledge's tears. Seeker-Of-Endings stayed still; he felt like he could have done something more to comfort her, but there was nothing he could think of besides standing there awkwardly and allowing her to cry into him. "I'm here," he managed at last. "Don't worry, Finder, I'm here."
"I love you."
Seeker-Of-Endings stiffened. Soundlessly, he turned to look at Finder-Of-Knowledge. The younger Herald raised her head, eyes still red. "I know it's wrong," she said. "You're my mentor, and I'm…" She trailed off. "I've been…" She stopped again, taking a step back.
Seeker-Of-Endings tried to say something and failed. All he could get out was a lame, awkward "Finder…"
"I'm sorry!" Finder-Of-Knowledge turned and ran, sprinting away as fast as she could manage.
"Finder, wait!" Seeker-Of-Endings' cry fell on deaf ears. He ran after her, but as he reached the end of the alleyway, a truck roared past and he was forced to stop short, pressing himself up against the wall on reflex.
By the time he managed to make it out of the alley, Finder-Of-Knowledge was long gone.
All Thievul could do for now was watch and wait.
The Team Rocket Grunts had taken his Pokeball, along with the rest of his teammates', through a series of winding hallways and into a huge darkened room, the walls of which were lined with full shelves containing box upon box full of medicinal items, technological devices, and more Pokeballs than Thievul had ever seen in one place. More shelves occupied the center of the room, and multiple carts were parked alongside them, ready to be loaded. Two Grunts were now placing the last of his teammates' Pokeballs onto the shelf alongside his. Thievul watched, and quietly sighed with relief as he counted six - Zweilous was here too.
"That's the last of them," one of the Grunts said, placing Tyranitar's Pokeball onto the shelf. "Man, I would not want to be that girl right now."
The other Grunt shuddered slightly. "You're telling me. That scientist gives me the creeps. But hey, she's got some strong Pokemon. I want the Tyranitar!"
"Everyone in the base wants the Tyranitar, you moron." The first Grunt lightly smacked his partner. "Except me - I want that Shiftry. A Pickpocket as developed as that…I'd kill for something that strong!"
"Literally," the second Grunt added, and the two chuckled as they turned and stepped out of the room.
As soon as they'd closed the door behind them, Thievul tapped into his Ability.
The Grunts had left the seal on his Pokeball, along with the Pokeballs of all his teammates. Normally, that would render escape impossible. But Thievul had Run Away. He could escape anything.
A sealed Pokeball was nothing to him.
In a flash, he was out. He looked up at the Pokeballs of his allies. "I'll be back, I promise," he whispered, and then he raced to the door.
It was locked, but again, that was no trouble. Another application of his Ability allowed him to 'escape' the room, and now he was out in the hallway beyond. Thievul looked around, but the only other beings he could see were the two Grunts, who were strolling away, thankfully not looking behind them.
Thievul headed off in the other direction, crouching low to the ground.
He had no idea where Connie was in this place, but he knew she had to be somewhere. So he simply kept walking, moving down hallways and passing room after room. Most of the rooms were small and filled with shelves, storage, or desks, though a few were larger and looked to be battle arenas; one of them even had a Starmie and a Raichu battling at the behest of two Grunts inside it, though fortunately they were too occupied with their battle to notice Thievul sneaking past. Twice Thievul had to dart into rooms to evade passing Grunts, though thankfully Run Away allowed him to 'escape' their notice.
Arceus, I can't believe I originally wished for Stakeout. I will never pine for a different Ability ever again.
He'd been searching for a while - around fifteen minutes, he was pretty sure, though he had no way of truly quantifying the amount - when his ears picked up the faint sound of a female voice. Even at that volume, he would've recognized Connie's voice any day of the week. Quickly and quietly, he crept towards it, keeping an eye out for any Grunts. Fortunately, none came this time, and in no time at all he was at a door, sitting at the very end of a long hallway.
A door through which Connie's voice was sounding.
Thievul heard footsteps behind him. Perfect. He tapped into Run Away, and in a flash he was through the locked door, away from the incoming Grunt's notice. Thievul promptly looked around, taking stock of his surroundings.
This room was fairly large and, unlike all the other rooms, almost entirely unoccupied by shelving or storage of any sort, only broken up by four square pillars evenly spaced around the room to hold up the ceiling. Thievul couldn't for the life of him imagine what this room was normally used for; perhaps an auditorium, judging by what looked to be a projector hanging from the ceiling and pointing towards one of the walls.
In the center of the room, Connie was bound to a chair, hands behind her back, with ropes around her waist and ankles securing her in place. One of the Team Rocket Grunts from before - the one with the Primeape, Thievul was fairly certain - was leaning against one of the four support pillars, keeping an eye on her. And in front of her, in another chair, sat a fairly portly-looking man wearing a large white scientist's coat with a bright red R emblazoned over the chest pocket. A pair of red goggles sat over the man's eyes, and his head was almost entirely free of hair. Most strangely, his skin was extremely pale, so pale that Thievul suspected he was suffering from some sort of medical condition.
"My dear," the man was saying, "it's a simple yes or no question. Do your friends know about Team Rocket?"
"Bite me," Connie snarled.
"I would not reduce myself to such a lowly action," the man replied. "My methods of persuasion take a more refined approach. Grunt! Bring me another sample of venom."
"Yes, Xerosic," the grunt muttered, turning on his heel. Thievul tensed, but the grunt headed towards the door on the other side of the room, away from him.
Xerosic. Thievul recalled the man's name; it had been all over the news for a while, around the same time Marcus had recruited Connie for his Gym. He'd been a scientist and Admin for Team Flare, and had apparently been the first to create a working Type: Full, using it to fight Drasna and Grimsley at the same time during the Battle of Geosenge. Arrested along with the rest of Team Flare, he'd mysteriously disappeared from the prison convoy headed to Iron Island and hadn't been seen since.
Guess this is where he's been.
Thievul decided against jumping in now. He was reasonably confident he'd be able to take on an Admin-level Pokemon, but not a full Admin-level team, and he could see six Pokeballs adorning Xerosic's belt. Better to wait until the scientist wasn't in the room. Thievul quickly scrambled behind the nearest pillar, peering out with one eye to watch the continuing exchange.
"I don't give a damn what so-called 'venom' you've got," Connie was saying. "I ain't tellin' you anything. Now where in Distortion is my team?"
Xerosic sighed. "My dear-"
"And quit calling me that!" Connie snarled, wrenching at her bindings. "I'm not your Arceus-damned 'dear'!"
"In a few hours," said Xerosic, rising from his chair as he spoke, "you'll be whoever I want you to be. That's the beauty of memory erasure. Your team is the property of Team Rocket now, but don't worry - when we're finished with you, you won't even remember you had a team. Your occupation, your friends, your own name…all gone in the blink of an eye."
Thievul held back a furious snarl. Connie's defiance gave way to horror; she shrank back in her own chair as Xerosic loomed over her, her breaths shaky and filled with a vain attempt at forced calm.
"You know," the scientist said, abruptly taking a step backwards, "people always talk about power. Who's stronger in battle, whose Pokemon are better. There's an entire tournament coming up where all the regions in the UPW compete to see who's the strongest one of all." He scoffed. "It's all so pointless."
Connie was tugging at her bindings again, but the ropes were holding firm. Thievul kept one eye on her. I think my Ability could get her out of them…maybe. I haven't really used it to help others escape before…
"They don't understand real power," Xerosic continued. "All the brute strength in the world is helpless before those that target the mind. It's one of the reasons Psychics are so respected and feared. Take Cynthia's Garchomp. One of the strongest and most well-known battlers in the entire world. And yet a single focused Psychic attack from a sufficiently powerful practitioner could lay her low instantly. Even kill her! And let's not forget moves like Hypnosis, Attract, Confuse Ray…you get the idea."
"What's your point?" Connie asked gruffly.
"My point," said Xerosic, "is that I have spent my entire life pursuing that real power." He tapped one of his Pokeballs, releasing a Crobat into the air alongside him. "Take Crobat here, for example. Normally, they only become actually useful in battle when a Trainer has established a close enough bond with them to trigger the evolution, usually via saving their Trainer from peril. But I don't have time for something as simpleminded as that. So I used a chemical concoction of my own design to change her mind a little bit. Then I simulated a danger for her to save me from, and…well, you see the result."
Xerosic ran his finger down the Crobat's spine; the Crobat reacted with the obvious pleasure that normally came from being stroked like that, but there was just something wrong about the whole thing. The Crobat's movements were just the slightest bit too forced, and as soon as the finger left the Crobat was back to normal, as if it were a rubber band snapped back into place.
Thievul suddenly felt sick.
"Of course, it's imperfect," said Xerosic, recalling the Crobat back into her Pokeball. "Yes, I can make her like me, but she still has annoying thoughts of her own. And the chemicals help with that…but it's not perfect. Not like this. Essentia, would you mind coming over here?"
A pause, and then the black-and-gold figure of Essentia stepped out from behind another pillar. Thievul was abruptly very glad he'd restrained himself from leaping out from behind his pillar and going for Xerosic's face.
Essentia stepped to Xerosic's side. "What do you need? Is this about the prisoner?"
"In a manner of speaking," said Xerosic. "Essentia, why don't you take your helmet off?"
Essentia shifted uncomfortably. "Xerosic, I don't think it would be-"
"Obey."
Essentia froze immediately. Thievul couldn't see even a shiver from her body; she was a statue, perfectly still in every way. Is that thing even human?
Xerosic smiled. "Now. Take your helmet off."
Without hesitation, moving robotically, Essentia reached up to her helmet and pulled it off her head. Even from where he was standing, Thievul could hear Connie's breath catch in her throat. He couldn't blame her.
The sight of the head of a member of the Elite Four under that helmet would have shocked anyone.
"Emma?" Connie gasped.
Emma stared blankly at Connie, not reacting in any way to her exclamation.
"But…" Connie sounded as if she was trying to deny what she was seeing, both to herself and to Xerosic. "But…the Mega Gengar…"
"Ah, yes, her Pokemon." Xerosic looked amused. "Those were mine, actually. Sending Essentia out with the Pokemon of the missing Elite Four member? That would have clued everyone in immediately, and I couldn't have that."
"But the Crobat…Serena said that was Faba's…"
Xerosic chuckled. "Right. Aether. I was there, as it happened, when you and your friends attacked. Of course, Faba didn't want my presence getting out, what with me being a convicted criminal and all. So he took my Pokemon into battle as well as his. And still lost, somehow, even with twelve Pokemon against a bunch of teenagers. Not the greatest performance, in my personal opinion."
"Faba's in on this?"
"Putting the pieces together, aren't we?" Xerosic asked. "Yes, indeed, Faba and I have been working together for the last three years. Pumping all of Aether's resources and money into the new and improved Team Rocket. And not a single person suspects a thing. Save for you, of course, but then again, you won't be remembering any of this either."
Connie grunted, renewing her struggles.
Xerosic clicked his tongue. "Essentia, stab. Nick the right shoulder."
A blade extended from the Expansion Suit's arm; a second later it was piercing a hole in Connie's chair, ripping through the shoulder of her shirt and into her skin. Connie's scream echoed around the room; Thievul nearly leaped at Xerosic right then and there, only barely restraining himself.
"Good girl," said Xerosic. "Now sit."
Emma stepped back and sat cross-legged on the ground, her blank expression unchanging. Connie was staring at the cut in her shoulder; it wasn't deep, but it was clearly painful. Her eyes were wide and she was no longer struggling.
"Good girl," Xerosic whispered, patting Emma's head. "You see? That is what real power looks like. Total control over another human's body…and a member of the Kalos Elite Four, at that. Isn't it beautiful?"
"You're insane," Connie growled.
"You're far from the first person to tell me that," Xerosic admitted.
"Yeah, well," Connie retorted, "that should tell you something, shouldn't it?"
"It tells me," said Xerosic, "that everyone else is too blind to recognize my true genius. Lusamine, Lysandre, they put limits on me. Restricted me. Bound me to their service because they felt threatened by my intelligence! And look where that got them. One dead, the other a pathetic shell of her former self…and look at me."
Emma turned to look at Xerosic.
Xerosic sighed. "Oh, for the love of…stop breathing."
Emma took in a breath and held it. Thievul couldn't tear his gaze away as Emma continued to hold her breath, even as her face began to turn red from the effort.
"Concentrated Nihilego venom," Xerosic murmured, "from the tendrils of the beast itself. The previous Expansion Suits increased strength and removed inhibitions, but I just couldn't find a way to properly achieve control with them. Which makes sense, considering the necessary ingredient was in another universe the whole time! That is the final component, the last piece of the puzzle. The Expansion Suit 3.0 - it pumps Nihilego venom straight into your bloodstream, completely removing all mental faculties from the wearer. Of course, there's a balance in there…too little, and the wearer can resist to an extent. Too much, and they become a statue, only following your commands with literally no mind for anything else. Which, of course, can be useful at times, hence why I've wired a voice-activated sensor to the device. When I say 'obey', it immediately increases the dosage. And when I say 'release'-"
Emma jerked as if struck and at once took in a huge gasping breath. She dropped to hands and knees, coughing loudly.
"-the dosage returns to normal," Xerosic finished. "Thank you, Essentia. You may leave now - head to the storage and begin gathering everything in there. We'll have to leave soon, I'm afraid."
And they'll take the rest of the team with them, Thievul realized. I have to work fast.
Emma nodded shortly. "Yes, Xerosic." She placed her helmet back on her head, whipped around, and strode out of the room, this time heading through the door Thievul had come through. Thievul pressed himself against the pillar as she passed by, but thankfully she did not see him.
At the same time, the Team Rocket Grunt stepped back through the other door. "Sorry, Xerosic, but I couldn't find the venom. It's a complete mess in there."
"It is not a mess!" Xerosic snapped. "It is perfectly well-organized if you just know where to look! Behind the loosely-piled up stack of boxes, and in the…oh, I'll just do it. Keep an eye on the girl. I won't be long."
Whirling, Xerosic stormed off towards the door. The Grunt once more leaned against a pillar, watching Connie, Despite everything he'd just witnessed, Thievul couldn't help but smirk. Looks like now's the best chance I'm going to get.
Tapping into Run Away, he dashed over to the next pillar, making it behind the column in the blink of an eye. A quiet rustling was all the noise he made. The Grunt jerked, whipping around towards the pillar Thievul had just left. "Hey, what was that?"
Thievul crept around the pillar as the Grunt strode towards where he'd heard the noise, making sure to keep out of the man's eyesight. As he did, he came into Connie's field of view. His Trainer's head shifted, and Thievul couldn't hold back a smile at the sheer relief in her eyes. Twisting slightly so as not to make any noise, Connie beckoned with her tied-together hands.
Another activation of Run Away brought Thievul over to the back of the chair in a flash. He concentrated, touching his forepaw to the ropes, but Connie's wrists failed to spring free of the bindings. Thievul sighed. Well, time for plan B. Bending over, he gnawed at the ropes with his sharpened teeth. After a few seconds that seemed to last minutes, Connie managed to pull herself free of the torn-up bindings.
Thievul glanced over at the left side of the room; thankfully, the Grunt was still occupied searching behind the pillar for the source of the rustling noise. Quickly, he severed the rope around Connie's waist, then bent down towards her ankles. As soon as they were free, Connie rose and began to slowly move across the floor towards the Grunt.
Thievul watched nervously. As Connie snuck up behind the man, he straightened up, shaking his head. "Stupid ears," he muttered, "playing stupid tricks on me…" He turned.
And took a punch straight to the face.
The man toppled to the ground, unconscious before he even had time to reach his Pokeballs. Thievul untensed. Thank Arceus that worked.
Connie knelt down, punched him again for good measure, and then looked back. "Thanks, Thievul," she said. "I really owe you one." She shuddered. "We gotta grab the team and get outta here - I ain't stayin' in this place any longer than necessary."
Thievul gestured towards the door Essentia had gone through.
Connie sighed. "Great. Into the mouth of the Raid Den we go, I guess. Lead on."
Thievul stepped swiftly through the door, with Connie waiting until he'd gone through to follow. She promptly and forcefully shut the door behind her; that was the only pause she took as she followed Thievul down the hallway.
Thievul was pretty sure he knew a fairly direct route from his wanderings, but with Essentia and multiple Team Rocket Grunts likely in this area and unaccounted for, his pace slowed significantly as he peered around every corner for enemies. With just him and Connie, discovery would likely mean recapture - they had to stay out of sight until Connie had the rest of her team back.
We're coming. Just hold on.
Past room after room the two walked. As they neared a hallway, Thievul heard footsteps coming from ahead. Instantly he and Connie slipped into the nearest room, pressing their backs against the wall. Thievul peered out to see a man dressed in an Aether Foundation uniform walking past, carrying a stack of supplies. Figures…I should've known they'd be in on this with how they reacted to our presence. What happened to Serena and Theo? Did they get out? I hope they did…
The man disappeared, and Thievul and Connie crept out of the room. As they reached the hallway, Thievul glanced from side to side, but all he could see was the retreating form of the Aether worker. Quickly, the two scurried across the hallway and resumed walking. Open room…open room…closed door…Thievul scanned each one as they passed, trying to remember when he and Connie needed to turn. I think it's the next hallway-
A muffled cry of alarm sounded from behind him, and Thievul turned just in time to see Connie disappear through a doorway that he was sure he'd checked. Heart pounding, forgoing subtlety entirely, Thievul twisted and lunged through the doorway after his Trainer, snarling a challenge.
"Quiet! You'll alert the whole base!"
Thievul stopped at the telepathic message, the words that had slipped into his mind despite his Dark typing. Quickly, he looked around; Connie had been pulled behind what looked like a filing cabinet by a floating Alakazam, while crouched behind a desk was a woman with long tied-back lilac hair, dressed in an Aether uniform, and an Espurr that Thievul vaguely recognized.
"Get behind the desk before anyone else shows up," the woman muttered; it was not the same voice that had spoken to him telepathically. Thievul glanced at Connie, who nodded; quickly, he obeyed, scurrying behind the piece of furniture.
"Who are you?" Connie asked.
"That's my question," said the woman. "You're jeopardizing an active International Police investigation. State your name and business here."
"Connie." Thievul's Trainer clearly recognized that resisting wouldn't help matters here. "I'm a Gym Trainer - my Zweilous was taken, and the rest of my Pokemon…you're International Police?"
The woman nodded, sliding a badge out of her pocket before stuffing it back in. "Chief Anabel, at your service." She seemed to untense slightly. "I apologize for my intensity, but I needed to know if you were friend or foe. Mimi, use Heal Pulse - that shoulder doesn't look too good."
The Espurr reached out towards the cut on Connie's shoulder, which at once began to close. "Well, I'm not with Team Rocket or Aether," said Connie as her wound disappeared. "Though from what I can tell, they're one and the same at this point."
"Not exactly," Anabel replied.
Connie's eyes suddenly went wide. "Wait! They have a member of the Kalos Elite Four! E-"
"Emma Matiere, yes, we know." Anabel looked down at the Espurr. "Mimi is Emma's partner. However, she is not on Emma's Elite Four team, and as such she was not with Emma when she was taken."
Now Thievul recognized the Espurr. He looked down at her, and found her staring right back at him. "You were the Espurr in the Pokemon sanctuary area," he murmured. "The one that Zweilous met before-"
"Yes, I am," Mimi replied, and Thievul realized she'd been the one who had spoken to him telepathically.
"But then why does the Kalos League keep saying Emma's sick?" Connie asked.
"Because that's a more palatable story than 'she's been kidnapped by an unknown, untraceable assailant'," Anabel replied. "Diantha contacted us the instant Mimi told her Emma was missing. The two of us have been following what little trail we could find for the past few weeks. Eventually, it led us here, and so we began infiltrating the place. We managed to get a good ways in, started figuring things out…"
She heaved a sigh. "And then you and what I assume are your fellow Gym Trainers decide to pull a Red, barge in, and set the place on fire. Now they're all so spooked that they've decided to pack up and run, meaning what was a fairly long timetable to investigate suddenly turned into mere hours."
Connie grimaced. "Oops."
Anabel shot a glare at her, but that quickly ebbed. "I understand," she said. "Your city was hit, and you wanted to track the perp down. Didn't know the full scope of the operation until it was too late. But it was still a monumentally stupid thing to do."
Connie nodded, reluctant but accepting. "But why do they want Emma?" she asked. "I mean, I know she's a member of the Elite Four, so she's powerful, but why her specifically?"
"Because she's not just a member of the Elite Four," Anabel pointed out. "She's also a former member of the International Police. And as such, she knows things that the rest of the public doesn't know, and that we don't want getting out. Especially not to criminals who could make use of them - such as, for example, Team Rocket."
"Yeah, and weren't they supposed to be finished ages ago?" Connie asked.
"On paper, yes," said Anabel, "but even after Red finished up dismantling their bases, there were known Grunts that were still at large. And…" Anabel sighed as if pondering what to say next. "And Giovanni himself was never caught."
For what felt like the umpteenth time today, a chill ran down Thievul's spine. Connie took in a terrified breath. "You don't mean-"
"I dearly hope it's not the case." Anabel looked at her Alakazam, then back at Connie. "But we have to prepare for the worst, and the evidence I've seen isn't looking too good. Currently, yes, I am operating under the assumption that Giovanni is, somehow, behind all of this."
Connie muttered a curse. "We really kicked the Beedrill's nest, didn't we?"
Anabel nodded. "And now," she said, "you're going to stay right here while I find Emma, get her out of this place, and arrest as many of these Grunts as possible in the process."
"No way." Connie glared at Anabel. "My team's still in here somewhere."
Anabel glared back at Connie. "Have you listened to a word I've said?" she asked angrily. "You've already screwed up this operation once, and you are not screwing it up again. I will do my best to find your team, but-"
"But nothing," Connie retorted. "I know I'm outta my depth here, but I will not abandon my team. If these monsters get their hands on my Pokemon, and I didn't do anything to stop them, I'd never forgive myself. So I'm goin' with you, whether you like it or not."
Anabel stood. "Listen to me-"
And then she stopped. Several seconds passed in silence before Anabel took a deep breath and sat back down. "Thank you, Akiko," she murmured. "Connie. You recognize that if you do this, I will not prioritize you over the mission. If it comes down to a choice between saving you and stopping Emma from escaping, I will choose Emma without hesitation. Do you still want to join me?"
Connie nodded.
Anabel sighed. "Fine. I doubt I can persuade you otherwise anyway. But I expect you to do exactly as I say, no matter what. Understand?"
"I do."
"Good." A small metallic device, multiple buttons clearly visible upon it, floated out of Anabel's pocket and over to Connie's hand. "Take this. It's an International Police standard-issue tracking device. Green button lets me track you, red button alerts me that you need help. Only use it if absolutely necessary."
Connie stared at the device. "You're a Psychic?"
"Yes, I'm a Psychic," said Anabel. "Now let's go. If we're going to rescue your Pokemon and stop Emma from escaping, we'd better move fast."
Raised voices could be heard down the corridor as the little group crept along the metallic hallway. Anabel was in the lead, Mimi at her side and Akiko floating just behind. Connie was at Akiko's back, and Thievul brought up the rear, looking out behind them just in case.
It felt very much like the calm before the storm. Thievul knew this was going to end in a fight, and he fervently hoped they would be strong enough to win it. He knew a Chief of the International Police had to be a powerful Trainer, but Xerosic's team was definitely strong as well, and that wasn't even taking into account Emma or the Grunts.
The voices were louder now, more defined. Anabel stopped and gestured ahead. "Thievul."
This time it definitely was her voice. It made sense - if she was a powerful enough Psychic to levitate objects, of course she would be capable of telepathy, even with Dark-types. Thievul looked towards where she was pointing and saw an open door through which it seemed the voices were floating. It was a door that, to his horror, he instantly recognized.
"Is that the storage room where your teammates are?" Anabel asked.
Slowly, Thievul nodded.
Anabel sighed and spoke again, this time out loud in a whisper. "Well, that's just fantastic. Everyone, follow my lead."
She crept up to the open door, everyone else moving behind, and peered through the doorway. Thievul shifted to a point where he could see as well. He instantly spotted Xerosic, standing amidst the shelves with Emma, her helmet back on, and half a dozen Team Rocket Grunts loading medicine and Pokeballs onto several large carts. One of the Grunts was the one Thievul had knocked out; his nose was clearly broken, and he was looking incredibly furious as he shoved items onto a cart with more vehemence than his fellows.
"Hurry up!" Xerosic was yelling. "We don't have much time! I will not lose these supplies because of the stupidity of a single Grunt!"
"What was I supposed to do?" the injured Grunt complained. "I turn around and there's a fist coming straight at my face! What would you do in that situation?"
"How about not leaving the girl unattended to begin with?" Xerosic retorted. "You had one job. One! Now quit whining and get moving!"
Grumbling, the Grunt continued to load items onto the cart. Anabel raised three fingers. "Akiko, on my signal, behind the nearest shelf." she murmured. "One…two…"
On 'three', Anabel thrust her hand outwards; the injured Grunt's cart suddenly overturned, and medicine and Pokeballs spilled out onto the floor. Everyone in the room whipped around save for Essentia, looking at the cart; Akiko's eyes flared with Mind, and in the next moment the whole group of five was standing behind the shelving unit closest to the door. "Clumsy oaf!" Thievul heard Xerosic shout.
"Good work, Akiko," Anabel whispered. "Get ready, everyone. Let's try and knock as many of them out as possible before they can release their Pokemon."
"Pick it up!" Xerosic snarled from the other side of the shelves. "You, help him! The rest of you, quit…Essentia! What are you doing?"
Thievul barely had time to stiffen at the sharp words before Emma crashed straight through the shelves, blade-arm unsheathed. Boxes of supplies flew everywhere as Emma's blade slashed towards Anabel-
And stopped in midair as Anabel held up a hand, holding the sword back through sheer Psychic power.
"Infrared vision," Anabel growled. "Of course."
She thrust out with both hands, and Emma was sent flying away. Her back slammed into a wall of shelves, collapsing the entire thing on top of her, yet she was completely unfazed. In a flash she tapped the half-dozen Pokeballs at her belt.
What emerged was half a dozen Fairy-types. Whimsicott, Mawile, Aromatisse, Florges, Wigglytuff, Granbull…Emma's Elite Four team, Thievul realized. Staring at them, with their blank eyes and battle-ready postures, Thievul knew in an instant that they were just as brainwashed as their Trainer.
Which means that Nihilego venom thing also extends to the wearer's Pokemon. Thievul gulped. This just got a lot more dangerous.
"Get them!" Thievul had momentarily forgotten about Xerosic, but at the shout he turned in time to see a Malamar, Kecleon, Smeargle, Jellicent, Crobat, and Gengar emerge from the scientist's Pokeballs. Xerosic didn't seem to be bothering with Mega Evolving his Gengar, at least not for now; he merely started barking orders as the Grunts released their own Pokemon to join his.
The Rocket Pokemon were a much more motley mixture composed mainly of Pokemon from Kanto-Johto, and looked significantly weaker than Xerosic or Emma's teams, but they numbered far more in total, and both Trainers and Pokemon were clearly thirsting for battle. The injured Grunt in particular was grinning madly as he released his Primeape onto the stone floor. "Remember me? It's payback time, bi-"
Akiko blasted him and his Primeape away with a Psychic; the Grunt hit another shelving unit hard enough to send the whole thing toppling over with him on top. As if that were a signal, the entire horde of enemies charged, roaring battle cries as blasts of energy soared towards Thievul, Akiko, Mimi, and even Connie and Anabel. Mimi snapped her fingers. "Full Deflection!" A huge barrier - Light Screen and Reflect, formed into a solid Mind-formed wall - sprang to life in front of the group of five, and though it flickered as the first wave of ranged attacks crashed into it, it was able to stave off the full force of the barrage.
Which gave Anabel time to release the rest of her Pokemon. With a practiced swipe of her hands across her Pokeballs, she sent out a Snorlax, Weavile, Mismagius, and Salamence to join Akiko. Strangely, though, she left one sphere - a Dive Ball, highly distinctive compared to the rest of the black-colored Ultra Balls attached to her waist - completely untouched.
Why? In a battle like this, don't we need to use everything we've got?
Anabel's Pokemon didn't even take a moment to pause before leaping into battle. "Thick Fat: Implacable Charge!" her Snorlax roared, its body seeming to swell to twice its size as it roared into the fray, tossing a pair of Rocket Pokemon aside through sheer bulk. A Rocket Machamp lunged for the oncoming Snorlax, fist drawn back, but Anabel's Salamence leaped right in front of the punch, taking it on the side without even a flinch. "Moxie: Calamitous Tail!" he snarled, an aura of energy flaring to life around him; the Machamp barely had time to look alarmed before Salamence's tail cracked it across the jaw, and the aura surrounding Salamence flared brighter as he threw himself into the battle right alongside Snorlax.
Emma's Whimsicott flitted towards Salamence, unleashing a burst of Life in his direction without a word, but the attack was near-instantaneously sliced to ribbons by a Poison Jab from Anabel's Weavile. "Mumargi!" he cried. "Mystical Fire, on me!"
Anabel's Mismagius, already floating above the ground, twisted. "On it, Manyula!" she hissed. "Levitate: Magic Flames!" A burst of Blaze shot from one upraised feeler, shooting forwards at a much higher speed than a normal attack as Mumargi flawlessly used Levitate to telekinetically control the blast.
Manyula darted around a Leech Seed thrown by Emma's Whimsicott and reached out with one claw. "Pickpocket: Relocation!" The Whimsicott disappeared from sight as Manyula pickpocketed his whole body; a second later Manyula twisted and released the Whimsicott right into the path of Mumargi's Mystical Fire. Whimsicott screamed as the flames ripped into him; Manyula sent him staggering away with a rapid Ice Punch, and he and Mumargi twisted and rushed to find more enemies.
It was all very impressive, but Thievul knew he couldn't afford to watch the battle. Glancing around wildly, he finally found what he was looking for; just above Anabel, thankfully still perched upon their shelf, a very specific set of Pokeballs.
"There!" he called, shoving Connie roughly and pointing with his tail. Connie glanced up and saw them; her eyes lit up. In a flash she was at the shelf, grasping them all; with a flick of her fingers she released Tyranitar, Scrafty, Shiftry, Skuntank, and Zweilous onto the floor next to Thievul. "Glad to see you all, hugs later, fight now!"
Skuntank looked nearly dead on his feet - of course, he's still recovering from Gas Grenade - but he charged into battle anyway alongside the rest of Connie's team, roaring in fury as they lunged to Anabel's support. Zweilous looked up at Thievul nervously. "But I'm too weak…I can't-"
"I don't care how weak you are," Thievul growled, "but we're not making it out of this if we don't all work together. You can do this, Zweilous! We all believe in you."
Taking a deep breath, Zweilous nodded, turned, and launched himself forwards with a battle cry, flinging a barrage of Dragon energy at a Grunt's twisting Dragonair and blasting it away.
Thievul, scanning the battle for a target, saw Xerosic's Jellicent rising into the air, and remembered with a jolt how Shiftry and Scrafty had once nearly died to this exact Pokemon. Would have died if Marcus's Trevenant hadn't unlocked his Ability. Well, that's not happening again.
"Run Away: Wrathful Swipe!" Thievul launched himself into the air, 'escaping' the ground with his Ability, and slammed a Dark energy-infused paw into Jellicent's side. The Water/Ghost-type was knocked out of the sky, tumbling to the floor with a pained gurgle. "Water Absorb: Water Blast!" he gurgled as he landed; Thievul promptly used Run Away again, launching himself back down to the floor as the Water Pulse shattered one of the room's fluorescent lights.
Jellicent rose, and Thievul glared into his eyes. "Whatever he's done to you," Thievul growled, "it's just chemicals! You can fight it!"
"Chemicals?" Jellicent asked. "Ah…that explains a lot. You were listening in, back in the interrogation room, weren't you?" The Water/Ghost-type smiled, a strangely chilling expression on the odd-looking Pokemon's face. "I'm afraid Crobat's the only one of us like that. The rest of us just don't mind what our Trainer does. In fact…some of us even enjoy it. Water Absorb: Energy Manipulation."
Two tendrils of Torrent snaked out from Jellicent's body, arcing towards Thievul. "Wrathful Snarl!" Thievul growled in response, blasting a wave of Dark energy-enhanced sound out from his jaws. The tentacles were ripped to shreds, but Jellicent simply raised a barrier of Torrent in response, deflecting what remained of the attack. "You're going to be difficult, I see," Jellicent admitted. "But everyone drowns eventually. Water Spout."
A huge geyser of Torrent blasted outwards from Jellicent's body, streaking towards Thievul. The Dark-type promptly exploded into motion once more. "Run Away: Shattering Swipe!" he growled; the Water Spout crashed down onto the ground as Thievul blurred towards Jellicent, a Knock Off at the ready.
But this time his attack was met by a tendril of Torrent, and in the next moment Jellicent was on him, lashing out with tentacle after watery tentacle. Thievul backpedaled, dodging some with Run Away and knocking away others with well-timed swipes of his paws. "Frozen Water Shot!" Jellicent gurgled; Thievul barely managed to dive away from the Ice Beam as it froze the section of the floor he'd been standing on.
Another tendril lashed towards his face; Thievul spun and reared up to slash through it, but unexpectedly Jellicent fired a Water Pulse from the tip straight at him. There was no time to evade; Thievul took the blast straight to the face and staggered, spluttering, as the water soaked him from head to toe.
"Water Absorb: Bubble Prison."
The water around him abruptly hardened, and suddenly Thievul was trapped, immobilized by the now-solid water. Jellicent smirked. "I figured your friends would have told you about my Ability," he said. "With Water Absorb, I can manipulate Water energy as I please. And now that you're entrapped by my Bubble Prison, it's as if-"
"Run Away: Wrathful Swipe!"
Thievul's Lash Out rammed home right between Jellicent's eyes. The Water/Ghost-type was blasted into the shelving unit that the injured Grunt had already knocked over and disappeared in a cloud of dust. Thievul landed smoothly back on the ground. "I've got Run Away," he muttered. "I'm never entrapped."
Quickly, he glanced around to see how the rest of the battle was going. The fight had descended into a wild melee, with very little rhyme or reason to the combat; Anabel's team fought alongside Connie's, fending off the horde of Pokemon coming at them from all directions, but numbers combined with the clear strength of Xerosic and Emma's Pokemon were telling. As Thievul watched, Anabel's Snorlax was struck and sent reeling by a Superpower from Xerosic's Malamar, while Shiftry, occupied fending off spirited attacks from three Team Rocket Pokemon, couldn't turn in time to Pickpocket a Dazzling Gleam from Emma's Wigglytuff and was thrown to the floor by the powerful blast. Zweilous, firing attacks from the backline in support, was jumped from behind by a Grunt's Poliwrath and tumbled to the floor, screaming in pain as the Poliwrath rammed fist after brutal fist into Zweilous's body.
Connie was shouting orders, but Anabel was occupied fighting Emma herself hand-to-hand. Thievul had never seen a Psychic human in action before, and it was a spectacle to watch as Anabel caught Emma's blade swipes in Psychic holds, blasted her backwards with Psychic bursts, and even telekinetically picked up boxes and smaller items to throw at her. But Emma came on, the Expansion Suit spurring her onwards, and though impressive to watch none of Anabel's attacks actually seemed to be doing lasting damage, whereas the International Police Chief was being forced to backpedal, inching closer and closer to the wall behind her as Emma lashed out with punches, kicks, and slashes alike.
A snarl arose from Thievul's side, and he turned just in time to see Jellicent flying at him, looking furious. "Water Absorb: Energy Manipulation!"
Thievul barely managed to bring up a paw in time to block Jellicent's tendril; he gritted his teeth, straining to hold as Jellicent tried to overcome his defense through raw strength. "So your Ability lets you escape my prisons, hmm?" Jellicent growled. "That's annoying, I'll admit. But I've got more in my pocket than just that. Water Absorb: Condensation Crush."
A sphere of Water energy slammed into Thievul's back from out of nowhere. Thievul crumpled to the ground; in the blink of an eye, a watery tendril snaked around his neck. Jellicent twisted, still holding Thievul, and threw him into a cart of supplies. Thievul bounced off and fell to the floor as the cart toppled over, the crash audible around the room even amidst the ongoing fighting.
"Water Absorb also allows me to manipulate the water in the air," Jellicent boasted. "I only figured that one out last year. Still working on it, to be honest. But with proper training, I will be able to form even that water into Bubble Prisons. Materializing a near-inescapable sphere of water out of literally nowhere…now that will be fun to play with. Maybe I'll try that out on your friends…if they're still alive at that point, that is. Which, let's be honest, is looking more unlikely by the second."
Thievul heard a cry of pain and turned in time to see Anabel stumble, a new gash parting her stomach. "Anabel!" Akiko cried, reaching out with a spoon towards Emma, but then Emma's Mawile lunged in from nowhere and slammed a Sucker Punch into the Alakazam's side. Akiko crumpled, falling to the ground, and Mawile leaped onto the prone Alakazam, snapping with her powerful jaws.
We can't win this. The realization hit Thievul in that moment. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Tyranitar stumble and fall, overwhelmed by Emma's Granbull and the now-recovered Whimsicott, while next to him Mumargi, blinded by some sort of black substance over her eyes, was knocked to the ground by a Shadow Sneak from Xerosic's Kecleon. Emma advanced on Anabel, sword upraised, preparing to stab it down into the International Police Chief's stomach.
And then a roar.
Thievul's eyes shot to a spot on the floor, where blue light was shining from under the Team Rocket Poliwrath that had pinned Zweilous. It can't be…A grin split Thievul's face in spite of the circumstances as not Zweilous, but a fully-evolved Hydreigon, exploded upwards, flinging the Poliwrath aside like it was nothing. "Get back!" he roared. "Tri-Head Dragon Blast!"
Three Dragon Pulses exploded outwards; Xerosic's Kecleon and two Team Rocket Pokemon were blasted away, limbs flailing, and Hydreigon whirled, unleashing yet more beams of Dragon, Dark, and even Fire energy at assailant after assailant, not even discriminating between Pokemon or humans but merely between friend or foe. Emma's Pokemon stepped back, raising Protects in defense, while Xerosic, the Grunts, and their Pokemon scattered to evade the wildly fired attacks. Jellicent was forced to dive backwards, raising a Water Barrier to deflect a Dark Pulse aimed at him.
And, crucially, Emma had to break away to avoid a Dragon Pulse flying right at her. She landed in a crouch near Xerosic as the attack exploded against a wall; swiftly, she whirled towards Hydreigon and pointed with her blade-arm up at the Dark/Dragon-type.
"Wicked, Hydreigon!" Connie cried with a grin - and then an explosion of Life went off right next to the newly-evolved Pokemon and sent him flying across the room. Emma's Aromatisse lowered her hand as Hydreigon tumbled to the floor, rolling a few times before coming to a stop. He didn't get back up.
Xerosic chuckled as he stepped to Emma's side; the suited woman had already turned her head back towards Anabel. "Well, that was fun while it lasted," he said. "But this little fight of ours is over. You all clearly know far too much…so I'm afraid none of you are leaving this room alive. Essentia, finish that agent off!"
But Anabel was now rising, reaching towards her last Pokeball - the Dive Ball that, until now, had gone untapped. "That's Chief, not Agent," she retorted. "And your plans stop right here, Xerosic." She slammed her finger down upon the Dive Ball's release function. "Suicune! I need you!"
A short pause - just long enough for Thievul to realize just what name Anabel had called out - and then water began to drip out of the Dive Ball.
Everyone in the room froze, staring at the water as it drip, drip, dripped onto the cold stone floor. The dripping grew faster and faster, until it wasn't a drip but instead a stream, and then a waterfall. The puddle of water on the floor began to rise, twisting and morphing until it wasn't a puddle, but a shape. A four-legged shape with a long mane and twin ribbons of pure Torrent twining around its body.
The shape of Suicune, the Beast of the Sea.
Xerosic was the first to react. "COVER ME!" he shouted, pure panic in his voice. He didn't even bother to give Emma a command; he simply broke into a full sprint, grabbing her arm and heading straight for the door of the room. The Grunts did likewise, ignoring the few still-upright carts of medicine and Pokeballs, while the enemy Pokemon turned as one towards the now fully-materialized Suicune.
The Beast of the Sea turned her head. "Water Absorb: Bloodbend."
And with that single word, Xerosic, Essentia, and every single one of the Grunts froze in place, without even a hint of the Psychic power that would normally take. She's controlling the water in their blood, Thievul realized, shivering reflexively at the thought of such a power. She could freeze everyone in this room if she wanted.
Roars emanated from the enemy Pokemon as they launched a flurry of attacks at Suicune, multiple mingling shouts rising up in the suddenly otherwise-silent room. A Shadow Ball from Gengar, a Thunderbolt from Kecleon, a Surf from Jellicent, and others that were lost in the shuffle. But Suicune's eyes shifted towards Jellicent's Surf, and she spoke again. "That was unwise. Water Absorb: Water Sphere Shield."
Jellicent's Surf shot forwards, faster than all of the other attacks, as Suicune effortlessly usurped control, Jellicent's own Water Absorb Ability useless against the Legendary's stronger version. As it reached Suicune, it morphed, spreading into a rapidly-forming sphere of Torrent all around the Legendary, encasing her in its mass. The rest of the massive barrage of attacks slammed into the newly-formed shield, engulfing it in an explosion of multiple energy types.
Several of the other enemy Pokemon shot glares at Jellicent. The Water/Ghost-type gulped. "…upon further consideration, I believe I have made a terrible mistake."
Suicune's voice arose once more in answer as the remaining energy dissipated. "Water Absorb: Water Cloak."
In an instant, the watery shield surrounding her shifted again, compressing to form what looked like a suit of Torrent-formed armor around her; from the sides emerged two massive tendrils, huge versions of the ribbons that normally twined around her form. "Do not struggle further," Suicune advised. "It will only make this more painful."
And then she activated Extreme Speed.
Cries of alarm and pain flew from the Team Rocket Pokemon as Suicune blurred into their midst, her twin tentacles lashing. Thievul could have sworn the tips were wreathed in hardened Aurora as they whirled, sending enemy Pokemon flying with mere flicks. Xerosic's Malamar and Emma's Aromatisse were already on the ground, as were several of the Grunts' Pokemon. More attacks were fired by the enemy Pokemon, but most of them broke against Suicune's watery armor or were intercepted by the wildly lashing tendrils. A murmur of "Water Absorb: Condensation Shots" sounded; a second later Emma's Whimsicott and a Grunt's Vileplume fell, pierced by a flurry of watery bullets that had materialized practically out of thin air. And even as Suicune dismantled a group of Pokemon that had been on the verge of overwhelming an International Police Chief, a Gym Trainer, and an Elite Four-level Espurr, the enemy Trainers remained frozen in place by Bloodbend, unable to even twitch.
All except Emma.
Thievul had to do a double-take to be sure of what he was seeing; sure enough, Emma was moving glacially slow but moving nonetheless. One hand was reaching towards Xerosic, her other finger inching towards the pocket of her Expansion Suit. But how…
"The venom," Thievul realized. He raised his voice. "Suicune, the Nihilego venom in her blood - it's interfering with Bloodbend!"
Suicune smacked away Xerosic's Crobat, sending it flying into a cart of supplies so hard the entire thing collapsed on top of a Team Rocket Hypno who had been taking Psychic potshots from behind it, and twisted towards the humans. Her eyes narrowed. "Water Absorb: Water Ball!" she snarled; from her watery cloak emerged a tendril of Torrent that flew across the room towards Emma at a ridiculously fast speed, Aurora snaking up it almost as fast as it formed, the tendril opening up as it neared Emma to engulf her in a prison of frozen water.
But Suicune wasn't fast enough.
Even as the tendril reached her, Emma's hand found its target, and both she and Xerosic disappeared with the telltale flash of light of an Escape Rope. The sphere of ice formed around nothing. "NO!" Mimi cried from where she was leaning against a wall, one arm useless at her side and the other reaching out towards where Emma had been standing. Anabel snarled a frustrated curse.
The few remaining enemy Pokemon attempted to take advantage of Suicune's distraction, but the Legendary's Extreme Speed, though it hadn't been enough to catch Emma and Xerosic, was more than capable of handling these last few enemies. Clear anger present in her movements now, the Beast of the Sea swatted their assault away with her tendrils and lunged for them, cutting down her last few opponents in seconds.
As Suicune felled one of the last remaining Team Rocket Pokemon, Connie sidled up to Anabel, who was glaring furiously at the still-frozen Grunts. "I'm sorry."
"It wasn't your fault," Anabel replied. "Yes, I'm frustrated, but not with you this time, okay?"
"Okay," said Connie. "So, uh…Suicune?"
A hint of a smile came to Anabel's face. "It's a long story, and not one for this time. You should go to your team…and congratulations on your evolution."
Seeker-Of-Endings watched from inside Serena's Pokeball as the group of seven Trainers stepped through the doors of the Lumiose Aether Outreach Center. Lusamine and Professor Sycamore were in the lead, with Calem, Serena, Theo, Lillie, and Gladion just behind, all with hands on their Pokeballs and ready for a fight.
And all of them stopped short. For the entire place was completely deserted save for a pair of Trainers walking through the Pokemon Sanctuary towards the entrance; a lilac-haired woman dressed in an International Police uniform, and Connie, looking disheveled but unmarked.
"Connie!" Serena was on her in an instant, wrapping her in a hug that nearly bowled the older girl over.
Theo promptly hugged them both. "I'm so sorry we left you behind," he murmured.
"Don't worry about it," Connie replied. "I'm fine."
"What happened?" Serena asked. "How did…wait, is that International Police Chief Anabel?"
Connie grinned. "Yeah, I've got a bit of a story to tell you two. Let's wait until we're outta here, though, okay?"
"Fine by me," said Theo, and the three hugged each other even tighter.
Seeker-Of-Endings, though, was watching the adults talking to one another. "…a dozen Grunts," Anabel was reporting, "and several Aether workers. However, most of the Aether personnel escaped, along with Xerosic and Emma - though they did all leave behind their teams, so at the very least we've got twelve very powerful Pokemon that they can no longer utilize."
"Xerosic?" Lusamine looked horrified.
"Emma?" Professor Sycamore's eyes widened.
"We should talk elsewhere," said Anabel. "Professor Sycamore, is Sycamore Labs currently open?"
"Er…yes."
"Good." Anabel nodded. "I've called in reinforcements to secure the captured Grunts, deliver the recovered medicine to the Pokemon Centers they were stolen from, and arrange for the redistribution of the Pokemon found within. Apparently the facility was taking Pokemon given to them for sanctuary and giving them straight to the Grunts."
Lusamine's fists clenched.
"I will come to Sycamore Labs as soon as I can," Anabel finished. "I would appreciate it if you all left as soon as possible - as of this moment, the Lumiose Aether Outreach Center is a crime scene, and it would really ruin the moment if I had to arrest any of you for interfering with an active investigation."
As Lusamine and Professor Sycamore nodded in response, Lillie looked around, seeming slightly crestfallen. "I wanted to storm the facility!"
Gladion chuckled. "You'll get your turn someday, Lillie. Someday."
Seeker-Of-Endings wanted nothing more, at this point, to listen to Connie's story. But, of course, on the way back to Sycamore Labs, Finder-Of-Knowledge's voice had come into his mind again, asking him to meet her in the same alleyway they had last time - between Vernal Avenue and Bleu Plaza. And so Seeker-Of-Endings had come, teleporting out of Serena's Pokeball and heading over as fast as possible, fervently hoping that Betrayer-Of-Kin wouldn't be here this time.
His pulse quickened as he remembered the Escape Rope Betrayer-Of-Kin given him. It was now looped around his neck, hidden beneath his fur. He didn't ever want to use it, and he had half a mind to just throw it away, but he'd put it on nonetheless. After all, it wasn't like it could activate unless he pressed it…and he had to admit, in a choice between certain death and that Escape Rope, he'd take the Escape Rope.
But why would she give it to me? She doesn't usually play games like this…normally when she wants something done she just kills to get it. What is she planning?
As Seeker-Of-Endings neared the alleyway, he saw Finder-Of-Knowledge standing at the very edge of the alley and sighed with relief. He stopped short as he remembered how they'd parted last time, then swallowed and resumed walking, feeling a slight twinge of guilt as Finder-Of-Knowledge glanced away from him.
"Are you alright?" he asked as he approached.
"I'm fine," Finder-Of-Knowledge replied. Her voice was flat, nearly devoid of emotion. "I just wanted to talk."
"I can understand why," said Seeker-Of-Endings as he stepped into the alley.
Finder-Of-Knowledge promptly fell into step alongside him. "You should forget what I said before," she told him.
"I should," Seeker-Of-Endings agreed. "But sadly, I can't erase my own memory."
It was meant as a joke, but he regretted it immediately as Finder-Of-Knowledge looked down. They were now almost at the driveway where they'd met last time - where Finder-Of-Knowledge had nearly died to Betrayer-Of-Kin's claws.
"Seeker," Finder-Of-Knowledge said sadly, "I wanted to thank you. You're an amazing mentor, you saved my life, and…and I do love you. I thought it was just awe, like, you know, meeting your heroes and all that, but…" She shook her head, letting out a quiet breath. "Thank you for everything."
Seeker-Of-Endings chuckled as he stepped into the driveway. "You sound like you're saying goodbye."
Finder-Of-Knowledge took a step back. "I am."
And at that moment, the entire driveway erupted in darkness.
"Hello, Seeker-Of-Endings." Bringer-Of-Visions' voice sounded as she materialized directly in front of him. Seeker-Of-Endings whirled, startled, as twenty other Heralds appeared all around him, encircling him. The entirety of the Kalosian Heralds? What is going on?
"Bringer." Seeker-Of-Endings bowed his head. "It is-"
"Get up."
The sharp, cold tone of Bringer-Of-Visions' voice brought Seeker-Of-Endings' head up instantly; he locked eyes with Bringer-Of-Visions and saw nothing but anger. "I told you," she said, "to give yourself up. I tried to let you take the easy way out. But you were just too much of a coward."
She spat the last word; Seeker-Of-Endings flinched away. "Bringer, what are you talking about?" he demanded. "I don't understand!"
"Oh, I think you understand perfectly," Bringer-Of-Visions growled. "After all, you knew I was looking for a traitor in our ranks. Did you really think you'd escape my notice, Seeker-Of-Endings? Did you think I didn't know it was you from the moment I sent Finder-Of-Knowledge to spy on you?"
Seeker-Of-Endings' eyes went wide; his heart thrummed with terror as he spun towards Finder-Of-Knowledge. She looked away, not meeting his gaze.
"After the Swarm," Bringer-Of-Visions continued, seemingly oblivious to Seeker-Of-Endings' shock. "Was that when it all started? When you spoke out against me. Claimed I was no better than Betrayer-Of-Kin, just because I taught Spirit a well-deserved lesson. That was your motivation, wasn't it? To protect your precious Spirit?"
Seeker-Of-Endings turned back towards Bringer-Of-Visions. "Bringer, I'm not-"
"And that's why I saw you talking with Teller-Of-Tales and Watcher-Of-Time after the Battle of Alola." Bringer-Of-Visions glared at him forcefully. "You must have conspired with them. You knew about the renegades, didn't you? You knew they were plotting against me from the start, and you kept their secret, didn't you?"
Seeker-Of-Endings swallowed - that, at least, was true. "Please, let me explain-"
"And then there's what you said to Finder-Of-Knowledge here." Bringer-Of-Visions looked over at Finder-Of-Knowledge, who seemed to be trying to make herself look as small as possible. "She accomplished her role to perfection. Everything you told her, she passed right on to me. Especially what you said about me. How I was wrong. You remember that, don't you?"
I did say that, Seeker-Of-Endings remembered. Arceus, she actually has evidence for this…at least enough to convince herself of my treason.
"I am loyal!" he protested, finally raising his voice above Bringer-Of-Visions' tirade. "I have been protecting Marcus for years! If I were a traitor, would I not have killed him?"
"Protecting Marcus?" Bringer-Of-Visions spat. "Please. When Betrayer-Of-Kin nearly killed him outside Coumarine, you weren't there - in fact, it was your drawing of Marcus' Fearow into Oblivion that led her there in the first place!"
"I…I acted in haste, I apologized-"
"And then, when the Swarm took Spirit and the Marked One, you didn't report it. I remember that well…I assumed you were just being foolish, but now I see the truth, you wanted them to die!"
"No, I would never-"
"And then, during the Battle of Alola, you were gallivanting off in the Dream World while Marcus nearly died to Betrayer-Of-Kin again! It's all connected, Seeker-Of-Endings! Don't try and deny it! You've been against me from the start, haven't you?"
"Traitor!" Other voices rose in support of Bringer-Of-Visions, and not a single one was raised in his defense. "Traitor! Traitor!"
Seeker-Of-Endings took a horrified step backwards. "No, that's not…those weren't…I didn't…" A thousand denials rose in his mind, and yet not a single one came out, for deep inside he knew none of them would make any difference.
Bringer-Of-Visions had already made her decision. And in the minds of the other Heralds, her word was law.
"But now it's over." Bringer-Of-Visions' eyes gleamed with triumph. "The turncoat in our ranks has been caught. You are guilty of treason, Seeker-Of-Endings, and your penalty is death. Heralds! Cleanse this apostate from our midst!"
Low snarls echoed from all around as the circle of Heralds began to close in. Some remained frozen in place - Finder-Of-Knowledge one of them - but there were still far too many for Seeker-Of-Endings to evade. He looked frantically around, but the circle left no gaps, and there was no pity in a single pair of encroaching eyes. Bringer-Of-Visions smirked triumphantly.
When someone like Bringer-Of-Visions searches for a traitor and there is no traitor, then they stop searching for a traitor and start searching for a scapegoat.
Just press the button when you're next in danger.
Besides, I have a strong suspicion the time you will be needing this will come fairly soon.
Had Betrayer-Of-Kin known this was coming? But how? How could she have…
There was no time to ponder. No time for anything but action. Seeker-Of-Endings, as much as it rankled him to do so, knew there was no other option if he wanted to live. Raising his front paw to his throat, he ripped the Escape Rope from the fur around his neck, moving so quickly that some of the ruff was actually torn away, and slammed one claw down on the button.
Bringer-Of-Visions howled with rage, and snarls arose as Heralds sprang for him, but the noise was gone in an instant as the Escape Rope pulled him away. There was a flash of light, and then he was standing on grass, surrounded by trees and greenery. He had no idea where he was, but he was pretty sure it wasn't Lumiose.
Seeker-Of-Endings raised his head, trying to calm himself, but his heart would not stop pounding despite the fact that he was out of danger. They all still think I'm a traitor, he realized with mounting horror. I can never go back. I'm an exile…a renegade…a…
A rustle of leaves caused Seeker-Of-Endings to whirl, claws outstretched. They did not recede at the sight of Betrayer-Of-Kin stepping through a pair of bushes, eyes gleaming, mouth shifted into a calm smile.
"Well," she said, "that took longer than I expected."
"You knew," Seeker-Of-Endings accused. "You knew they would go after me."
Betrayer-Of-Kin shrugged. "I suspected. You were the one closest to Medicham, and quite frankly, the one who had made the most mistakes in recent memory. Of course, if I guessed wrong…" She smirked. "One less Herald to worry about."
"What do you want with me?" Seeker-Of-Endings snarled.
"An ally."
Seeker-Of-Endings glared at her. "And why would I ever align with you?"
"Well," said Betrayer-Of-Kin, "your Psychic blocking isn't nearly strong enough to guard your location against Bringer-Of-Visions' Future Sight, whereas mine is. When it comes down to it, Seeker-Of-Endings, right now I'm the only thing keeping you alive. So if I were you…let's just say I'd stay close."
"Finder-Of-Knowledge." Bringer-Of-Visions barely managed to restrain her fury as she addressed the younger Herald. "Why did you not report that he had an Escape Rope?"
"I…" Finder-Of-Knowledge swallowed, seeming twice as small as usual. "I'm sorry, I didn't know, I promise!"
Bringer-Of-Visions stared at Finder-Of-Knowledge for a moment, then dipped her head. "Of course. We should have suspected that he'd have a backup plan in case he was found out. You did well, Finder. Especially making him think you loved him…truly excellent. You are a credit to the Heralds."
"Thank you," Finder-Of-Knowledge murmured, her voice oddly flat.
Bringer-Of-Visions raised her head to look at the rest of the Kalosian Heralds, glaring at each and every one of them, especially the ones that had hesitated to follow her order. "As of this moment," she said coldly, "Seeker-Of-Endings is no longer a member of the Heralds. I want each and every one of you to hunt him down. If you see him, kill him. I don't care how many see it, how many memory wipes we have to perform. I want him dead."
She fixed her gaze on the spot Seeker-Of-Endings had occupied. "And if even a single one of you helps him in any way…then you can die right alongside him."
Yeah, I kinda figured this one would be longer the instant I realized just how much needed to go into it. Should this have been divided into two chapters? Probably.
Did I not figure that out until I was almost done writing it anyway? Also probably.
Anyway, as always, please drop a review if you have the time. I enjoy reading them! I will be taking my customary two-week break after this one, so I will see you in four weeks' time for the start of the next arc, otherwise known as the 'Wanted Arc'!