I started to wake up, and the Hypno outside my cell turned to me, wielding his hypnosis pendulum surprisingly threateningly. I shut my eyes as I saw him move it, thinking over and over, Practice resisting, practice resisting. Then footsteps came from the door, not too far down from where my cell was. "Hypno, stop," came a quiet and authoritative voice. It was a woman, strangely enough. I hadn't seen--much less interacted with--any female Rocket members so far, not that the ones I knew from before this insanity were any better than the guys. "Crystal, you are once again requested to come and see Giovanni." She turned her head to where I suddenly saw Kevin's face. I had to keep myself from growling, seeing him in a cage like mine. "You too, Kevin."
Kevin and I locked eyes. He nodded to me while the grunt was unlocking my cell, and I returned the nod when she was undoing his cell's lock. The Hypno watched me, the stupid pendulum moving back and forth slightly. I opened my cell door when the Rocket opened Kevin's, and I went over to him and hugged him. He hugged me back. "I'm sorry, Kevin," I breathed, too quietly for the grunt to hear.
Who said she wasn't heartless? "Alright, let's go already. Hypno, you stay here." We let each other go and followed our escort, side by side. No one seemed concerned that only one person was sent to get us; as a matter of fact, they hardly even looked at us. A silence stretched out between us.
"What's your name?" I blurted out, the silence broken now.
"My name is Jess. Now. Shut. Up."
Jess led us through many confusing hallways. I was the only one who looked at absolutely everything, Kevin probably had been here before. All over this place, maybe. Finally we stopped at a door. "No," I said, standing in front of my brother. Time for another illusion, Kevin, I thought, connecting our minds again. I started glowing white, like when a Pokémon evolves, but after a few seconds, it faded, and there I stood, looking tired. What are you doing? Oh, making it seem like you are just unable to shift, with this good escape opertunity. Kevin held my arm firmly as I feinted light headedness.
Jess just stared, bored, then knocked on the door. "Enter," came Giovanni's voice. Jess opened the door, and Kevin led me through. The door closed, and I just barely heard the click of a lock in place. "Welcome back." Giovanni's voice wasn't even remotely friendly, as it was last time. "I hope you both have enjoyed your stay here."
Kevin's grip on my arm tightened for a moment as I tensed. The one thing I really wanted in that moment was to throw myself at Giovanni, to attack him when everyone else thought I was now powerless. Instead, and with Kevin's mute warning, I replied through gritted teeth, "We like it just fine, scumbag. Keeping us in cages is exactly how I want to spend the rest of my life."
"Good." Team Rocket leader pulled out a small device and pressed multiple buttons on it. It sounded quite a bit like a keyboard. "Now, this will be interesting, don't you think, Kevin?"
My brother's eyes widened when I looked at them, and it was his turn to stand in front of me. "No, I don't, and you can't anyway. I'm not in cement on Hunter J's airship; I'm not a weak, inexperienced trainer fresh out of Pallet Town. I know your machinary. You can't send us both in the simulation."
"He can try," I put in, ominously quiet. "He will try. But Giovanni, there's just one problem."
Giovanni looked mildly intrigued. "Oh? And what is that, Crystal?"
"This is what." Suddenly my bones started snapping, and I heard both men gasp. They must've heard my bones. Soon, however, I was an Onix. "Get on!" I ordered Kevin, watching Giovanni's every move. I was mentally going through what moves would be most helpful in getting out.
Then Kevin called out a move, "Rock Smash!" and I instinctively used it. This new discovery was startling, but when I realized I hit and smashed his desk--the thing that had a significant amount of technology--satisfaction suffocated the fear. "Onix," I rumbled, then rushed through a wall head first. It was an empty storage room, and I started heading upwards. The last floor I burst through was the maze one, and I turned back to myself. "Crystal!" came a shout from barely below me. I turned, and saw Kevin hanging from part of the hole in the floor.
"Kevin!" I gasped, grabbing his arm. He was slipping, and suddenly, a burning fury was inside me. Giovanni captured my Pokémon, sent a Pokémon hunter after us, where is J, anyway? tried to turn my own brother against me, captured Kevin, and tortured my mind in the simulations. I had had enough. A growl escaped me, but unlike the previous time in the cave, it didn't sound like my own voice. Then my bones started shifting, my skin turning orange, two things started growing from my back, and a cyan membrane started coming from them. I knew what I was becoming, but it didn't hurt nearly as much as I thought it would. Kevin watched me, eyes wide, but no fear was found there. Pulling him up, I half pull, half toss him onto my back, and let out a ferocious roar. "Charizard!"
A voice came over the intercom. "Stop the Onix and the traitor on floor B2!" This wasn't anyone we knew. She sounded unlike the grunts here, and more educated than a normal Rocket would be, even.
"Crystal, we've got to go now, before they catch us."
Unable to communicate verbally since this form is new, I nodded, blasted a hole in the next two ceilings, and bolted into the game corner. A Charizard's wings were so much more powerful than a Staraptors; and, surprisingly, Charizard was easier to shift into.
I broke through the stairway that led into the Rocket Game Corner, which was still empty, and through the double doors. Once outside, I took to the sky, reveling in the feeling of freedom, wind under my wings, and being safe with my brother. I knew this freedom would never last, and I turned around, hovering in the air. Team Rocket members, grunts and other staff alike, came pouring out of the game corner. "Crystal, what are you doing? We have to go right now."
I shook my head. My own logic told me this would be getting repetative; and soon, I was sure, other groups would come for me as well. I had to end this problem before another one showed up. Kevin grumbled a curse and pulled out his own Charizard's Pokéball, and called him out. Before the red glow faded, I used a light Flamethrower attack only a few feet in front of the grunts and other staff. I cut them off, and eventually kept them in a circle of flames as they called out the few water types they had to quench the flames and attack myself and Charizard. Kevin's Charizard and mine were both the strongest they could get, almost identical, with the exception of a few moves.
As if the thought summoned him, my Charizard, with Lucario on his back, was flying toward us. I saw this, but then had to dodge a water attack from a Kingdra. Knowing fully what a Heat Wave attack would do to my energy, I used it, then flew to Charizard and Lucario. "I missed you guys so much!" I exclaimed to them when I was in range. Kevin and his Charizard were distracting the Rockets as I hugged Charizard.
Lucario's eyes widened. "You're a Charizard! You shouldn't have been able to do that for quite a while."
"More on that later, bud," I said, looking over my shoulder. I huffed out a plum of fire at what I saw.
Kevin was ordering Charizard to do so many things, I couldn't keep up. Nets and cages flew around, and I flew back to them, burning a net before it could hit Kevin's Charizard and himself. They were dodging a cage. "Charizard!" I roared, to my Charizard, "to me!"
My Charizard, Kevin's, and myself were all back to back. Our tails were close together, then our tail-flames merged. Power ran through my veins, and judging from the grunts the other two Charizard let out, it ran through their veins, too.
"Blast Burn!" Kevin called, and the three of us attacked the Pokémon who were fighting us. A massive fire erupted in front of the Game Corner, though those people were still alive. I couldn't bring myself to kill them, even though they've hurt me repeatedly. I landed. With a mighty flap of my wings, I used Gust, putting out the fire. Standing straight up, I looked regal, or so I imagined.
In a deep voice, I called out. "Team Rocket. I could have destroyed your old base, and I could have annihilated you who are outside with our flames. You cannot keep me or hold me, but if you think you can, I am prepared to battle one trainer. You may have six Pokémon in your party, any type and with any experience you desire. There will be one battle, you verses me. If you win... well, I assume you know. If I win however, you will leave myself and my Pokémon alone.
"Now, who among you think you can defeat me?" My gaze raked across the people in front of me, and I saw Giovanni start to step forward. "Giovanni?"
"No, Crystal. I am the one who challenges you," another voice called out. A Salamance stood nearby.
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Extra chapter because I think this book is coming to a close :p
That cliffhanger though :3 Can anyone figure out who Crystal's challenger is?