Prussian City, 0930
Marco and Chesra teleported in next to the pokécenter and narrowly avoided colliding with a patrolling OfficerJenny. "Sir, the blue zone is for police, military, and government teleportation only. Can I see your ID card?"
He didn't miss a beat, slowly taking out his wallet and presenting his Military ID "There you go. Sorry, we didn't expect anyone to be right there at this time of the morning."
The OfficerJenny nodded and read the card before handing it back. "No problem sir, we've had an increase in team activity and they have been utilizing various teleport points."
Chesra tilted her head to the side as she thought about what was said. "I would suggest a better place to watch. If you’re watching this area and someone else is watching you, you'll never catch them."
"That's what I said, but the Chief said I was here as a preventative measure. If there is someone constantly watching the area then they won't use it."
Marco scratched his head. "That or they’ll just teleport in and shoot you on sight. Orders are orders I guess but it's easy to say those things when you aren't the one standing there."
"I agree completely sir, I'll be sure to bring it up at the next roll call meeting."
Marco nodded and started walking, followed closely by Chesra. "You do that, have a good day and stay on your toes."
"Thank you sir, have a good day as well."
Much like most of the other anti-pokégirl rights areas Marco only had one girl out as he made it through the city. There was a light mist of rain and most of the people he saw were quickly making their way to their destinations. His pokédex was navigating the directions to the gym. Not that he could really miss the giant pyramid in the distance.
As he got closer he caught sight of a group of young tamers and their pokégirls. Three of the boys appeared to be arguing with the forth shorter boy, his orange Catgirl stood behind him, shaking in fear. Marco slowed his approach and listened in on the fighting.
"If you refuse to fight you either have to pay us or fork over your girl." Said the biggest boy.
"I only have one pokégirl and I don't have anything to give you. I just became a tamer so I have nothing of value besides Elmira, and I'm never going to give her up." Proclaimed the shorter tamer before putting his arm out to guard the Catgirl.
"Then I guess we have a problem here. I guess we'll just have to rough you up and take our payment out on that girl’s fine ass." Said another one of the bullies as he cracked his knuckles.
"I won't let you lay a single finger on her." The young tamer barked out. He looked around nervously at the bullies and their pokégirls, a Blade Bunny, a tiny Mareen, and a Drow Zee.
Chesra looked to Marco who shook his head in disgust. "Are you planning on stepping in?"
Marco's eyes flashed and he eyed the auras of the pokégirls. Every one of them was in a greenish blue aura except for the Cat Girl who was a much darker blue. She could more than likely take each girl individually but not if they teamed up on her. He moved forward and made his presence known. "Pardon me guys, it looks like there is a bit of a problem here. Should I get the OfficerJenny down the street to help sort this out?"
"Who the fuck are you, old guy?" Demanded the lead bully.
"Forget who he is, look, his girl’s kind of hot. We challenge you to a pokégirl battle for salvage. Accept or hand over your pokégirl." Said the third bully.
The second one pulled out his pokédex and scanned Marco's. "It says he's 3-0 for battles, a lucky rookie, his girl’s types are blocked but he has four, that's one for each of us."
Marco shook his head again. "Look kiddies, you're picking a fight that you can't win. I suggest that you leave and stop bothering people."
Chesra had finished scanning their pokédexs and tapped Marco on the shoulder. "Marco, they each have two girls, I think we should let it go." She was doing her best to come off as inexperienced and shy.
"You guys know that even if I agree to a challenge I don't have to fight all of you, I have a period of time after a battle before you can harass me again." Marco plainly stated.
"That's only of you win, if you lose you still have fresh pokégirls and another one of my guys can challenge you."
"Marco, are you sure you want to do this?" Asked Chesra in a shy tone.
"You let that bitch talk back to you like that? Once you're in my harem I'll put an end to that shit." The leader threatened.
"Sir, I think you should just go and get the police." Said the young tamer, though his tone sounded relived to have someone’s help.
Marco didn't even register what the young tamer said, he was more caught up on the leader disrespecting Chesra. "Well now you've pissed me off, since you made the challenge I will set the terms. We fight in the Prussian Arena, you three can use one pokégirl each but all at the same time, I will use one girl at a time, the first to three wins the girls that were used. Is that agreeable?"
"Fuck yeah it is, you're going to regret letting your temper get the best of you." The leader said as they started walking down the street. "I have the whole thing recorded so you can't weasel out of it when you lose."
"It's not going to help you sleep any better after this is over." Sighed Marco, he looked back and noticed the young tamer was standing still and waiting for them to leave. "Come on kid, you're a part of this too."
"I guess we’re stuck in this together, do you need me to fight too?"
"No not really, but you'll want to be around when they learn an important lesson about picking on people. I have to ask though, why are you so protective of your Catgirl."
"Elmira? She and I were childhood friends and school sweet hearts. We planned on doing our tamers journey together..."
"Then I went through threshold, I was devastated. Alec didn't care though and said we were still going to go through our tamers journey. And we are going to do it together."
"You plan on treating all of your pokégirls as well as you treat Elmira?" asked Chesra.
"Well every girl is different and has different needs, I would never be needlessly cruel to them though. Just like if I were to somehow lose Elmira I would want her to be well taken care of."
Marco nodded and started forming plans. "It's a dangerous world out there, and I'm not talking about feral pokégirls. We're here, just let me do the talking."
The lobby of Prussian Arena was lightly packed with tamers. Some were inside trying to get out of the rain while others were registering for various battles. The TV monitors were covering battles from the indoor arenas while the outdoor ones were clear. After a short wait one of the registration girls waved them over but paused and eyed the bullies.
"Welcome to Prussian Arena, is everything okay sir?" The young woman asked while motioning to the OfficerJenny in the corner.
'I guess these guys have made a habit of doing this, too bad they got caught today.' Marco put on his best smile and nodded. "Yes, we are doing a three on one salvage battle with the gentlemen over there and..."
"Did you say three on one salvage battle?"
"Yes, they can use their three girls at once while I can use three total."
"And you agreed to those terms?" She asked, trying to find the right expression to show her surprise.
Marco checked over his shoulder to there the bullies were waiting impatiently for him. He quickly slid his ID out of his pocket and showed it to her. "I set the terms. Somebody needs to teach these boys a lesson in fair play and I have some time to kill."
She looked the picture over slowly and got a broad smile on her face. "It would be my pleasure sir. I'll put you in arena two and have Jen keep an eye out." She replied cheerfully.
"Thank you miss, come on guys let’s get this over with. You have to register too to make this official." Marco motioned over to the bullies and Alec.
The stands in the arena were fairly empty of spectators as they made their way to their respective sides of the field. Chesra was stretching lightly in preparation for the battle and was rearing to go. That was until Marco released Carrie.
"I thought I was going to fight them?"
"You have to fight the gym leader, Carrie was the extra for today so she fights them first. Not like she's going to lose."
The Penance looked around to find the stadium mostly empty and smiled before she started signing. 'I thought I didn't have to fight today?'
"There was an incident that we came a cross and you are fighting those three by yourself. It’s a salvage battle so we can't afford to lose." Explained Chesra.
Carrie looked to the bullies and their pokégirls then tilted her head to the side before shrugging and reaching into her poképack to retrieve her sword. Chesra and Selena were still in the process of making a proper sheath for the blade before having it enchanted, so she kept it in the box for safety. Marco's hand reached out and stopped her just as she was popping the latch.
"Not today, I want you to train more before you start using that in battle." Marco explained. He chuckled at the cute pout she gave him before reaching into the pack and pulling out a pair of steel tonfas. "There, that should be enough for them."
Carrie nodded in agreement and looked herself up and down. She had decided to wear a light grey sundress and a pair of matching shoes. 'Can I go and change first?'
"Sorry child, there aren't any locker rooms available. I guess you'll just have to make it quick... or change right here."
Carrie still had issues with nudity in public and gave Marco an angry scowl before taking the offered weapons, kicking her shoes off, and stepping onto the field. 'They had better not ruin my dress." Thought the Penance as she eyed each girl.
Her opponents were a pitiful sight as far as she was concerned. The Mareen didn't want to be there, the Drow Zee was gearing up for the fight, and then there was the Blade Bunny who was getting chewed out by the lead bully. Never the less, it was a salvage battle and Carrie was not going to risk being given to anybody.
The official walked up behind Marco and cleared her throat to get his attention. "Hi, I'm Jen I'll be the judge for your competition. Is there anything you would like to go over before we start?"
Marco instantly recognized her as the OfficerJenny from the lobby. She had changed uniforms and her hair style but it was her for sure. "Nope, we are all set to go here. You may want to check on them though."
"They know the deal; it's not the first time they've been here." She smiled and winked before making her way to the judge’s box.
Apparently word was traveling through the arena because a small crowd was forming in the stands. Carrie was starting to feel nervous with all the eyes focused on her. She shook her head to try and regain her concentration. From behind her she felt a hand gripping her shoulder.
She turned around to see Marco standing there holding her black hooded cloak. "Don't worry about them, we're right behind you."
She took her cloak and put it on before motioning over to Chesra and signing. 'What makes him so sure I can take them on and win?'
"You're a dark-type so he can't see your aura but he's seen the auras of the pokégirls you've fought and beaten. You haven't been fighting regular tamers; you've been fighting gym leader pokégirls. On top of that you were trained by some of the best in Indigo; his faith in you is not unfounded."
Marco had been listening to Chesra's speech and guessed at the question Carrie asked. "You have a type advantage on each one of them and their fighting aura is nothing compared to what Ruby was putting out. Just stay focused and take it to them. If it makes you feel better, they will have a good harem when you win." Her ran his fingers through her hair and kissed her on the lips before turning her back to face her opponents.
The Mareen's enhanced hearing was doing her breed proud. They had all heard the entire conversation Marco's side was having, but she felt a chill run down her spine when the Penance turned around and lowered her hood. Her master had scanned Carrie the second she came out gave everyone all the useful information there was. She'd seen the Penance's tamer run his fingers through her silver hair and that was a bad sign.
Jen blew the whistle and the fight stared. The Blade Bunny rushed forward first to meet Carrie in the middle and spun to the side whipping her tail out. Carrie arched backwards and narrowly avoided the sickle attached at the end of the tail. When she stood straight again the Drow Zee was nowhere to be found. The bunny ran and jumped high into the air, spinning forward and preparing to bring the blade down. At the same time the Drow Zee jumped out of the shadow the bunny had produced and lunged forward with a metal staff.
Carrie blocked the sickle with a tonfa while kicking the end of the staff into the dirt and thrusting the same foot into the Drow Zee's face. The bunny's tail was still suspended by Carrie and she found herself on the receiving end of a jab from Carrie's other tonfa. Before Carrie could recover from her attacks she took a water gun blast to the chest and rolled backwards.
The Mareen looked ready to run for cover when the Penance sprung back on her feet. Her two partners had taken minor damage and were getting their bearings when the Penance started to sprint at them. The bunny grabbed her tail and slung it in an arch towards Carries head. Before it connected she ducked down and tackled, knocking them both to the ground then rolling to the side tripping the Drow Zee. All three girls rolled back onto their feet and squared off. Sparks were flying as the metal weapons made contact.
Carrie had to admit that her master was right. She was hardly putting any effort into defending against the two girls. To her it felt like a cooled down sparing session with Avalanche. That was until another water gun hit her in the back, knocking her forward. The sickle gleamed in the air before it made contact, slicing through her dress and leaving a faint scratch on her torso.
'Ok, that's enough of that!'
Carrie summoned her Darkness power and her Dark Goggles. The entire arena went pitch black and Carrie went to work. She hit the Drow Zee several times with her tonfas and took the girl’s staff before taking off her hooded cloak, putting it on the dazed girl, throwing the hood up, and setting her weapons beside her. With the staff in hand she lightly threw it at the Blade Bunny, making contact with her face. On instinct the bunny took the staff and looked blindly trying to find her opponent. Carrie's last target was the Mareen who was absolutely terrified and had her arms out to feel around. Cheering was so loud she couldn't hear the Penance sneaking up behind her before dismissing her Darkness.
The first thing the Blade Bunny saw when the lights came back on was the hood facing away from her. Not wasting a thought she swung for the fences, striking the girl in the head, knocking her flat, and bending the staff. She then struck a second time, hitting her in the back. Neither girl thought anything of the Drow Zee not being around, she was always disappearing using shadow teleport. The Mareen let out a sigh of relief. That was until she heard her tamer screaming to turn around. Slowly she turned to see the furry driven glowing eyes and large black wings of the Penance.
She tried to scream but was stalled by the hand gripping her throat. Carrie pointed to her ruined dress with her free hand then hardened her body, turning her fingers into blades. The torturous slow speed she was dragging her finger along the edge of the mouse girl's ear was driving her into an orgasmic frenzy. A special parting gift before being thrown out of the boundary of the ring.
"She's out of bounds and out of the match!" Yelled Jen from her judge's chair. The sound of her whistle had stopped the match and she made her way onto the floor where the Drow Zee was still lying motionless. She knelt down and rolled the girl over onto her back. It was at that time that the Blade Bunny realized what had happened and started to panic. "She's alive but out cold and out of the match. We will reset and let the remaining two girls fight."
"Dude! What the fuck was that? That bitch of yours knocked my girl out, and the Mareen was completely useless." Yelled the second bully as he recalled the Drow Zee.
"You wanted her to support you from a far and that's just what she did. We all knew she was a horrible battler. Still she's getting a good beating and more training after this is over." Said the third bully. He looked over at his shoulder at the Mareen who was curled up sitting against the wall. She caught sight of the look in his eyes and desperately hoped that the Blade Bunny lost.
"You guys shut up, I need to concentrate if we're going to win this. Then we can take out our frustration on all of them, including the new girls."
Marco overheard their conversation and it sickened him. It wasn't the pokégirl's fault that they got thrown into a match that they couldn't win. "Hey, forfeit the match! There is no way she can win against Carrie!"
"Mind your own damn business old man!"
"That was your final warning! Carrie, don't be gentle on her."
The Blade Bunny nervously locked eyes on Carrie. Even if she did manage to beat her there were two more girls she would have to go through. The sound of the whistle jarred her out of her trance. 'This is a lost cause, there is no reason to take a beating when I know I'll be in a new harem soon... screw this!' She put her hands in front of her in an X pattern and backed away shaking her head.
Carrie was already on the approach when Marco's voice brought her to a halt. "Carrie stop! Are you refusing to fight?"
The bunny couldn't speak properly but nodded her head in reply. The lead bully was furious. "I said she's fighting and she's going to fight! Now get your lazy ass in gear and get me a win." She turned back to her master with fear in her eyes and shook her head again.
Jen blew her whistle again. "The Blade Bunny refuses to fight, the win goes to Carrie."
"That is bullshit! I didn't give her permission to quit! She's going to fight!"
"I don't give the better part of a damn. She is unwilling to battle and would just lose anyway. You all lost." Stated Jen as she climbed out her chair.
The lead bully charged up to the bunny. His face fury red and his breathing heavy as he pulled his fist back.
"Carrie, Break Defense." The Penance stepped around the Blade Bunny and blocked the hit while throwing extra force into the tonfa. The resulting snap and scream could be heard clear as day.
"She broke my arm, that bitch broke my arm, I want her punished!"
Marco walked over casually and took a look at the damage. "Yep that's a perfect example of a compound fracture. See how the bone is sticking out? Good job Carrie."
"I want him arrested!" Screamed the bully as he went down to his knees in pain.
"You attempted to strike my pokégirl without my permission, not that you would ever get it. So I had Carrie defend her harem sister." He stared scratching the ear of the bunny while he was talking. "That was perfectly legal."
"But she's my pokégirl!"
Jen had called the NurseJoy over and stood by patiently. "No she's not, you lost the battle. By the terms you all agreed to the Blade Bunny, Drow Zee, and Mareen all belong to tamer Marco. Now stop squirming, you're getting blood all over the place."
"And you have it recorded too, so you can't weasel out of it. Hand your pokédex over to Jen, all of you." Marco already had his out and was waiting for the others to respond.
Jen pulled her badge out of her back pocket and waved it at them. "Not that you have a choice in the matter. Now hand 'em over."
The NurseJoy made her way onto the field and started checking the boy over. "It's a clean break, no splintering from the looks of things. Give me a second and I should be able to have you healed right up. Now take a deep breath, cause this is really going to hurt."
Marco had no sympathy for him, as far as he was concerned it was karmic justice. The three pokégirls had assembled before him and looked around nervously while the transfer was being done. Chesra was already in the process of healing them when Alec and Elmira approached.
"Man that was incredible, if I wasn't watching, I never would have believed it. It didn't even look like she was breaking a sweat."
"It isn't just the hair that makes her special, Carrie is incredibly powerful and I’m lucky to have her in my harem." Praised Marco. "If you treat your girls’ right they will always give you everything they have. Take this Blade Bunny for instance, if she had been in my harem she never would have given up, even if it was a fight she knew she couldn't win. I could beat, punish, and threaten all I want, but for my harem the last thing they want to hear is that they disappointed me. Oh, let me see your pokédex."
Alec handed his pokédex over to the older tamer and thought about his words. "I guess that makes sense, it reminds me of dealing with my parents. Nothing ever cut as deep as hearing, 'I'm disappointed in you.' As a tamer and harem we are putting our lives and trust in each other’s hands." Marco had finished with the pokédex and handed it back to him. "What did you just do?"
"I transferred ownership of these three to you."
"What? Why?"
"Call it a windfall. Being in the wrong place at the right time, can have its advantages. My numbers are high enough as it is and I don't really have the time to spare for additional training."
Chesra had completely missed the fact that he was lying and spoke without thinking. "I thought that you would keep one as a replacement for Henrietta." She could feel a sudden burst of his anger lance into her mind and recoiled as of he'd just hit her.
Marco's tone was even and cold as he spoke. "You should know better than anyone else, there is no replacement for her, for you, Ashley, Carrie, Jean, any of you. Never suggest that I can just lose one of you and then have someone else take your place. Am I understood?"
For the first time since she'd known him he was truly made at her. It wasn't a matter of his tone or what he said, no, she could feel his emotions directed at her. Her initial response was to flee, to just get away as quickly as possible. But the look in his eyes locked her in place.
Slowly she went down to one knee and lowered her head. "My apologies Marco, I never meant to imply such a thing. I beg your forgiveness."
Carrie's gentle touch brought Marco back to his proper state of mind and he shook his head clear. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to snap like that. Still working through a few things."
"I'm not even going to ask, I'm just going to say thank you. I can only hope that I never have to face you down the road." Said Alec, he'd received the pokéballs for the girls and recalled them, leaving Elmira out.
"Thank you Master Marco, good luck." Elmira waved as she followed Alec out.
The three bullies were starting to leave when Jen stopped them. "I hope you learned a few lessons from this. You challenged the wrong person, YOU got your arm broken for attempting to hit another tamers pokégirl, and you are all on my radar now. If I ever hear of another person being threatened into a fight I will come looking for you."
The lead bully was still rubbing his arm from where it was healed and turned back to face Marco. "This isn't over yet, we'll be seeing you later."
"I really hope that wasn't a threat." Warned Jen.
"No one was talking to you."
Marco’s stone gaze traveled over the three boys. “Look here kid, I’m not one to fool around with. This area is very liberal in the way they treat their pokégirls, so fair warning. If you want to continue being a tamer, you will stay out of my way.”
“Now that was definitely was a threat, tamer Marco, please go on your way. You three, do as he said and don’t bother with him.” Warned Jen.
Marco and Chesra were on their way again. The rain had started to pick up but he didn't seem to be in a hurry. Chesra had kept her distance since they left the gym. Even though he apologized, that emotional onslaught was still fresh and the anger was lingering.
"Did you think any of that was strange?"
"What do you mean by strange sir?"
"Most of the people knew who those guys were, and from the looks of things they've been at this for a while."
Chesra thought about it for a moment. "And yet, they only had two pokégirls a piece? Where are the rest of the girls going then?"
"Not sure, there is a chance that it has something to do with the increased team activity in the area." Marco pulled out his pokédex and contacted the office.
On the other end of the line Rebecca picked up. "Colonel, what can I do for you?"
"Morning, I need you to go to the Ops Con room and pull information from the police stations in Prussian City. I need you to single out pokégirl abductions and criminal team related incidents."
"Right away sir, I'm going to transfer you to the room and take the call from there..." The phone clicked over and started playing and instrumental version of the Indigo national anthem. A minute had gone by then the phone clicked again. "Sorry sir, had trouble remembering the new codes. Prussian, P,r,u, double s... there we go, Prussian City... The police database says that there has been an increase in pokégirl thefts, and Team Rocket activity. There are three suspects, but there aren't any witnesses willing to speak up."
"No surprise there, if Team Rocket is involved then most people will look the other way. Do you have any locations of interest?"
"Well, most of the investigations in the city start running cold the closer they get to Prussian Roulette. The local police have made a number of attempts to do search and seizures but get stone walled every time. Then the owners got some high priced lawyers who sued the police station and barred them from ever setting foot on the property unless they were called there."
"So you mean even if they are doing something illegal they can't get inside to make an arrest?" asked Chesra.
"That's right, but that's only the police. SII, IGS, ILM, and SLOI can still enter without any problems as long as they have a very specific warrant. That's really not the main focal point though. A new business opened up in the city, specializing in pokégirl sales and training as well as offering the ability to procure even the most difficult breeds and evolutions. All for a fraction of the regular selling price. There is a high possibility that they are also Team Rocket owned and operated."
"I want you to call them and ask about getting a... hum... Dire Wolf, also change my information to having a Dire Wolf. With any luck that should bring someone looking for me. Tell Kelly about what's going on here then assemble your team and set up around the business."
"Yes sir, where will you be?"
"I'm going to the gym to get my badge, I'll contact you after I'm done." He hung up and continued through the rain.
"So that are you thinking sir?"
"I'm thinking that those boys may be helping to steal pokégirls from tamers then giving them to the store to be sold. I'm not sure how one would go about ensuring particular pokégirl evolutions though. I mean evo stones are easy enough to come by but you can't fake a delta bond for evolutions."
The last thing he said halted Chesra were she stood. "Marco... I think we might be delta bonding."
He stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face her. "Excuse me?"
Chesra could feel the anger he had before disappear as if it were never there. "I said I think I might be delta bonded to you. It would make sense of the feelings I get when I'm around you and the emotional feedback."
Marco was stunned, he never thought that he would bond with any of his girls that quickly. On the other hand he and Chesra had been together for years. "When did you start to get these feelings?"
"The first night you and I were together, that's when it started. But can we discuss it later, we have a bunch of different things to take care of." She felt a pleasing shiver course through her body as one of his thoughts entered her mind.
Creepy was the only word to describe the smile he wore. "Oh yeah, we are going to discuss this in great detail."
____
Marco was a little disappointed when he reached the gym and didn't see any of Brock's statues. Not to say that this gym was any less impressive than the other two he had gone to. It was just something he had come to expect. Much like the nonexistent line for registration.
"Morning sir, registering for a battle today?"
"Yes I am, the place seems kind of quiet today. Is it always like this?"
"Yep, this is one of the tougher gyms in Indigo. A lot of the tamers are pretty lazy and would rather not come to this place."
Marco took out his pokédex and handed it to the young man behind the desk. "That's kind of sad, here ya go. I was just at the Cerulesbian gym last week."
"I thought you looked familiar, you did the PSN match against Kasumi. Man that was wild, I won 5,000 slc betting on it."
"Oh... great, when can I get a match scheduled?"
The young guy typed at the computer for a few moments then looked back up. From a brief moment the screen flickered then went back to normal. "Mr. Jindai is doing a tour right now but should be back at 1100. If you don't mind the wait I can set you up for when he gets back in." He stated, handing the pokédex back.
"That will be just fine, thank you for your help sir. We'll be in the locker room getting ready and going over plans."
"No problem Mr. Readman, we will send someone to get you when Mr. Jindai gets back."
____
Shadow League Organization HQ, Medical/ Psyche Ward
Philip, Clair, and Delilah sat patiently in the waiting area. Being a Megami-sama, Clair was successfully able to reanimate the dead CalamityJane. Problems had arisen though. Temperamental was a gross understatement for her attitude. None of them had taken into account just how violent and powerful she would be when she came around and the resulting fight had done a lot of damage. Eventually she was subdued and taken to the psyche ward in the Shadow League.
The door to the waiting room few open and in walked a smoldering Night Nurse. Her uniform was cut, singed, and bloody in several places and she was pissed.
"Phil! I should break your neck for bringing her to me! I know I'm good and all but that's a bit much. How do you expect me to treat a violent and mentally unstable patient, covered in flames, with the ability to shoot at me?! Why in the hell didn't you tame her first?!"
Phillip shrugged and looked her up and down. "The same reasons you were having issues with her. I don't want to tame her anyway, but for different reasons. How is she doing?"
"Healthy, we had to knock her out and that was a chore in itself. Who the fuck is that anyway?"
Delilah still had the file in her hand. "Master Sargent Henrietta of the Avalanche unit, Beta of the Echo team. Formerly a Calamityjane, and has always been a handful from what her file says. It's my fault that she's like this, sorry for the trouble."
"Yeah Dee, you really own us for this. She shot me twice before you took her down." Said Clair while she rubbed her knee in memory. "Not sure how we let you talk us into it."
"I said please."
The Night Nurse clapped her hands together. "Hey! Quiet! I want her gone, that room is only so flame retardant, I don't want her burning down the building trying to escape."
Phillip raised his hands and stood up. "Cindy relax, it's only been a few days. Let me talk to her and see if we can come to an agreement." He opened the door to the hallway and stopped.
"I'm not your girl anymore Phil, take care of this soon. The staff has enough problems without that rampaging Ghostrider."
"Hey Cindy, is that doorknob always red like that?"
"Fuck, not again!" The Night Nurse ran behind her desk and practically dove into the fresh box of mini fire extinguishers. She pulled the pin and sprayed the door down focusing on the center of the door and the knob. Then she pulled a lever on the wall, turning on the CO2 extinguishers in the room. "I can't take this anymore." Phillip reached for the door handle but was stopped by Cindy. "Clair, can we get some ice or water on this door?"
Ice shot from the Sama's hand and hit the door with a loud hiss. Cindy tapped the door with her finger a few times before she pushed Phillip to the side and pulled it open. She was expecting the normal hail of gunfire and ducked behind the door. When none came she poked her head around the corner and checked inside.
Henrietta was sitting on the floor facing away from them. "Where am I?"
Phillip eased his way inside, Clair and Delilah took positions in front of him just in case she turned violent again. "You are in a medical facility owned by the Shadow League."
"There is someone far away that I need to kill. Why are you holding me here?"
"You mentioned earlier that you needed to kill someone, how much do you remember?"
Henrietta shifted slightly then settled down again. "I keep getting flashes, I see people, my family I think. I know I am powerful and that I should be able to leave this place but I can't. Why are you keeping me here?"
Phillip figured that she was referring to teleport blockers. "Your name is Henrietta, and you are indeed a very powerful pokégirl. You attacked us when we brought you back from the dead so we had to subdue you until you calmed down."
Delilah edged closer to her but stopped when a flame licked up to her boot. "Against our better judgment we can make you stronger. I can give you an Infernal blessing and Clair can give you a Celestial one."
"If I am as strong as you claim why do I need them?"
'She has a point.' Thought Phillip. Not that his girls were afraid of the Ghostrider, but she could be through them and gone in a matter of seconds. "Because the ones responsible for killing you are still hunting your master. I'm sure that you'll want all the power you can get to find them first."
Everyone backed away when Henrietta stood up and turned to face them. "You have a fair point, I'll accept any power you’re willing to give me."
Phillip nodded and Clair stepped forward. Her hand glowed white and she placed it on Henrietta's forehead. Briefly she got a flash of images and times spent with this unknown man. "I must warn you ahead of time, the power I give you is to be used only for good purposes. When you use it I will know and if you use it inappropriately or for a reason I don't deem worthy I will rescind this ability. Do..."
Henrietta reached up and grabbed her by the wrist then pushed her hand away. "EON, no deal. The same goes for you too."
Both Clair and Delilah shared puzzled looks then turned to Phillip who was laughing. "EON… I’ve heard that term before, stands for Everything or Nothing. To put it bluntly she's saying you either give her powers with no stipulations or she doesn't want them."
"But that's how it works, she can't just let her go around abusing celestial powers." Argued Delilah.
"You don't have the right to judge how a person uses an ability. If you give someone power then it is up to them whether they use it properly or not. What's right is subjective." Henrietta plainly stated.
"I agree with her, the things we do wouldn't be seen as right by every body’s standards. If we go and kill a bunch of feral pokégirls there are people out there who would believe we committed an act of pure evil. Besides Delilah, you should be the last person to comment on the deeds of those who get power from another."
Delilah swallowed hard, it was in part her fault that Henrietta was dead. Before she got the chance to speak Henrietta cut in. "I don't care, just let me be on my way. Someone out there needs a bullet in the head."
"Look Henrietta, I know you want to leave but we just can't allow that. You're going to have to stay here until we can figure out what our next move will be."
The flames picked up around her and everyone started to head for the door. "No need to run, I could have killed each of you by now, so no rush. You can walk out but I will be gone soon and off to find my killer. Now you can either let me leave peacefully or pick up the pieces of what's left in my wake."
"That's quite the ultimatum. We've managed to keep you here this long, so I don't see you escaping any time soon." said Cindy.
"Oh I will, and when I do it's going to be your fault. But leave me to think, if I am still here when you come back we can talk some more."
The four of them walked out of the room. On the way out Phillip took the file that Delilah was holding and dropped it on the bed. "Can you promise me one thing?" Henrietta tilted her head to the side and waited. "If you do escape before we get back can you try not to kill anyone?"
Henrietta sighed and plopped down onto the bed. "The only thing I remember about my master was that he kept every promise he made to me. I can't guarantee such a thing unless you can make sure that no one stands in my way when I leave this room."
"Fair enough, if you make it out then no one will bother you. Read that and learn about who you are."
Cindy shut the door and locked it. They walked back to the waiting room and collapsed into the chairs, not realizing until then just how tense that was.
"I like her, no wonder Readman made her a Beta."
"Phil, you're insane. She's violent and crazy. Then there's the fact that she said she could have killed us and left. What a presumptuous bitch." Vented Cindy.
"She could have." All eyes turned to Phillip from his statement and he sat patiently rubbing his temples.
"There is no way she could have killed all of us." Stated Delilah.
"Maybe not but I know the order it was going to happen in." The eyes were still focused on him. "Clair got way too close to her and then she had her arm. From there she would take her down, then Cindy would jump in to save her and go down next, Delilah would either... nope forgot about the teleport blocker. Delilah would try and get me out before she fought her. If her goal was just to escape then we would be fine. Otherwise, yeah we wouldn't make it too far." The others thought about it logically and he was right.
Back in the room Henrietta had the file and was reading over its contents. Her name, her age, her position in the unit, the unit itself, it was all familiar but wouldn't come together. There were a few pictures in the file as well. The large photo of Avalanche and the single photo of Marco. They even had a list of her abilities, and it was a long list. She saw an important one that was going to cut the time it would take to escape in half.
"Perfect."
|
Alpha- Kelly- Duelist |
|
Delta |
Echo |
Indigo |
|
Beta- Chesra- Warrior nun |
KIA- Henrietta- CalamityJane |
Beta- Mina- Kunoichi |
|
Emaline- FireMaiden |
Field Beta Selena- Caphoochie |
Renae- IceMaiden |
|
Arianna- War Hound |
Alexis- Cherub |
Isabella- Mecha Musume |
|
Kim- Bombshell |
Rebecca- Smokey |
Zianna- Lupina |
|
Nikki- SexSlash |
Lily- Gloomy |
Leona- Lamia |
Harem
Chesra- Alpha
Carrie- Penance
Ashley- Peekabu
Jean- Nogitsune