Chapter 31 – Turning Point

Chapter 31 – Turning Point

CHAPTER 31 - Turning Point

Teleportation wasn’t like they said it was in the movies. There was no distortion, no pain, no nausea, and no delay. One second you were somewhere, and the next, you were somewhere else before you could even blink.

“Your Pokeballs. Give them to us,” A man said.

I was so confused by this point that I didn’t even answer. I couldn’t comprehend what had just happened to me. The uniformed man whistled, and a Mightyena lazily approached us, baring its teeth.

“I won’t say it a second time,” He continued with a sinister glare.

Even if I had wanted to fight, there were too many of them to take on. With a trembling hand, I handed over Elekid’s Pokeball.

“And you?” He told Cecilia.

I glanced toward her, and she was completely still, with her hand hovering over her Pokeball. Multiple Pokemon inched their way toward her. A Muk lazily glided across the floor, emitting a nauseating smell, a Zangoose sharpened its claws and got in an attacking position, and a Raticate barred its huge teeth with a hiss. I discreetly pulled on Cecilia’s skirt, hoping she’d get the message. I didn’t want her to die.

“Don’t hurt her, she’s an Obel,” The woman who had taken us here said as she put on her uniform. “She’s more useful alive than dead.”

“We should make an example out of her,” Another member said. “Show the people what happens when they fight back.”

“Shut the fuck up, you moron. Take her Pokeball yourself. She’s a child, and you’re a grown man,” The woman said. “You,” She told me. “Sit down, don’t try anything, and you’ll live.”

I nodded and collapsed on the cold, hard floor. I was completely powerless. There was nothing I could do.

“Hypno, you can get back to Commander Charon, we have enough hostages and we found the Obel kid,” The woman said.

Hypno lazily nodded and disappeared into thin air. One of the criminals grabbed Cecilia from behind, putting her in a chokehold while the girl grabbed her Pokeball and took it away somewhere. Would I ever see Elekid again? Feeling tears stream down my cheeks, I hugged my knees and buried my face in them, making as little noise as I could. I didn’t want to attract attention. I didn’t want to annoy them. I didn’t want them to kill me. Cecilia sat down next to me and observed our kidnappers silently. Every time I looked at her, I couldn’t tell what she was thinking. Was she as terrified as I was?

“Daddy, I want to go home!” The child in the corner of the room sobbed. She couldn’t have been more than five. “I want to leave!”

“Shhh, we’re leaving soon. Don’t cry. Don’t cry,” Her father said, stroking her hair.

“Shut her up, or I will,” A girl leaning against the wall said. She had a Hoothoot on her shoulder. “Now.”

“I—I’m trying my best! Please, she’s just a child,” He shuddered, hugging his daughter tightly. “Shhh, quiet down, Hannah.

“Then maybe you should have raised your kid better,” The woman said. “Hoothoot—”

“Hey guys!”

My head whirled to the voice. A short woman with red, spiky hair skipped into the room. Literally skipped. All of the kidnappers turned toward her and offered a military salute.

“Come on, relax! It’s just little old Mars!” She laughed.

“Commander Mars! We have taken Cecilia Obel hostage. The plan can go as proceeded!” A grunt declared.

“Interesting! Which one is she?” Mars asked. When directed to Cecilia, she skipped toward us and crouched. “Ms. Obel! What a pleasure it is to meet you!” She said, in a clearly joking tone. She leaned in further, her face mere inches from Cecilia’s but Cecilia didn’t budge and stared the girl right in the eyes. “Hm, you’re no fun... I love making people squirm. What about you?” Mars continued, turning toward me. I jumped a little and recoiled. “Wow, you’re much better! I’d play with you for hours if I had the time... but alas, duty calls!”

The woman stood up.

“Listen up, grunts! “Charon is still busy in the control room, but he told me that he needed two more hours before we can vacate the power plant!”

“He’s currently taking us down with three Pokemon, ma’am!”

“Damn it... damn you!” She screeched, throwing the knife at him. The grunt barely dodged, yelped, and fell to the ground. “I guess that's what we get for putting the newbies by the entrance. You interrupted my fun, fine. Dusky, go take care of it.”

I felt a sudden chill run down my spine as the temperature of the room dropped significantly. Smoke began to materialize out of nothing right behind Mars, slowly forming into a coherent shape. Color drained from the world itself, the white walls, the floor, and the blackboard turning into a sinister gray. A low ring could be heard, steadily getting louder and louder as my ears slowly filled up with pressure. The creature that formed behind her had a completely dark body, along with light gray extremities. A golden motif adorned its body, going around its abdomen, its arms, and its head, and a singular, shining red eye looked into mine. It was a Dusknoir— something I had only seen as an illustration, and Arceus, it looked different.

How was this possible? How did this woman find the secret to evolving a Dusclops? I could only stay frozen in fear as the smoke-like being exited the room and passed through a wall like it hadn’t been there. The temperature and color returned to the world, and I started to breathe again.

Mars rolled her eyes. “Arceus, this job is such a drag. Now, where were we—”

“Mars. Hypno informed me that you released that monster into the world again. Recall it,” Someone else said.

“Arceus, damn it, just let me have my fun!” She yelled.

I glanced toward the voice, and an old balding man with rose-tinted glasses that had dyed the rest of his hair purple slowly walked into the room. He walked with a pronounced limp, and Hypno followed closely behind.

“I won’t repeat myself. Cyrus will be furious if he knows what you have done. That thing is not under your control. It will possibly kill every hostage we have to sustain itself.”

“Shut up, Charon! Dusky isn’t under my control because he’s family! I just hate to keep him in his Pokeball, since he doesn’t like it. Plus, that way, he’s always next to me!” The woman whined.

“Let this child go. I’ve had enough of you fooling around. We are here for a reason and one reason only, do not derail the plan. I will deal with our unexpected guest myself,” Charon declared, as he walked toward the hostage room.

Mars pouted. “You’re no fun. If Cyrus wasn’t our leader, I would have left already!”

“And we might be better off for it,” Charon said.

“Juju would be depressed without me!” She yelled out. He didn’t turn back.

Mars looked at me with sad eyes and untied me. “I’ll take you back, but only because I don’t want Cyrus to be mad at me. That’d be a total disaster! Don’t worry though, we’ll meet again. I’ll have my eye on you from now on. Forever. Oh, I almost forgot!” She said, closing her eyes. She kept them closed for a few seconds, and then returned to her default, smiling face. “There you go! Dusky should be gone now.”

She took me back to the hostage room, and I sat back down at my spot. I didn’t have the energy for anything. I just stared blankly at the floor, hoping this would all be over soon. A few minutes later, I could hear yells outside of the room.

“...fuck off! You couldn’t take me in a fair fight, so you had to gang up on me! Fucking losers, can’t take down a single kid alone!”

Chase Karlson was pushed to the ground into the middle of the room, and with a groan, he rolled onto his back. He swore a couple of times before pushing himself against one of the many generators. His face was bleeding and swollen. I guessed that he was the one that had busted in. There was nothing any of us could do, and so for the next two hours, we sat in silence. My cheek was burning, and I wasn’t sure I would even be able to function after this. I was just exhausted.

After what seemed like an eternity, Charon limped into the room once more.

“Attention! All of the relevant data has been collected. We can leave with Hypno—”

Suddenly, I heard a disturbance on the roof, and then a tear. Charon frowned, looking up, and his stern face turned to horror as a Garchomp burst through the ceiling, creating a mini earthquake as it landed on the floor. A tall, blonde woman in all black clothes slowly climbed off of its back and looked around with a calm smile.

Chase chuckled. “I called the police before breaking in here, but I never expected them to send the Arceus damned Champion. What now, you fucking Galactic goons?” He asked with a bloody grin.

TEAM:

Togetic - Pound, Sweet Kiss, Growl, Headbutt, Fairy Wind, Ancient Power, Extrasensory

Frillish - Bubblebeam, Night Shade, Absorb, Water Sport, Water Pulse

Elekid - Thundershock, Swift, Thunder Punch, Charge, Lee