- Time has come for the classical Sliph Company showdown. However, this battle will be one where there’s more than meets the eye. Twelfth in a series and Season 1 finale.
Pokemon and all related trademarks belong to Nintendo.
The story, its original contents and ideas, and any original characters belong
to the author and cannot be used or reprinted without the author's permission.
By Gregory Stephen nightdragon0@hotmail.com
“There!” Kris whispered, pointing to the guardhouse ahead.
“Rockets?” Asked Nightslice. The Scyther was crawling up beside her.
“Yeah, they’re not letting anyone in or out.” Kris muttered, still looking through her spyglass. “Looks like they’ve overtaken the city.”
“Wonder how they pulled it off so quickly?”
“Giovanni has his resources…not to mention the checkbook to go with them.” Kris replied, “I know. He’s really pushing it way over the top.”
“So it’s time to crash the party?” Nightslice asked.
“My sentiments exactly. Come on!”
Saffron City had four entrances from the North, South, East and West. All four with guardhouses that were most likely as packed as the one they’d just seen. Kris knew that they’d never be able to fight off that many guards at once, especially if some managed to call in reinforcements.
Stealth was the idea option and Kris was now following the river at the eastern area, looking for a more secluded spot where they could ‘jump the fence’.
“Kris, how about here?” Nightslice gestured to a wooden fence nearby. A pair of tall trees nearby would easily conceal them from anyone watching from the buildings above.
Kris nodded, and indicated she was going in first. She got off to a running start, but she suddenly stopped just in front of the fence.
“Why’d you stop?”
“I’m not exactly a psychic, but…” Kris picked a small stone up and threw it ahead of her. With a thud, it bounced off an invisible barrier.
“Eh? A Light Screen.” Nightslice reached up with a claw and gave a cry of pain as the invisible psychic energy shocked him.
“It’s probably surrounding the entire city.” Kris said sadly, “Looks like they really want to keep us out of their business. And they must’ve used it to cut off all outside communications too.”
“Which means we can’t contact the others.” Nightslice said.
“This could be a problem…”
On the Southern side, Jade and Firestorm weren’t having much luck either.
“Rraaaggghhhhhhh!” Firestorm fired another Fire Blast, but to no avail. If there were any form of scratches, they certainly weren’t visible.
“Better stop.” Jade ordered, “We’re not getting anywhere.”
“I wonder if Kris has found a way in yet?” Firestorm said softly.
“Even if she has, we have no way to contact her.” Jade pointed up, towards the invisible barrier. “This thing is jamming our cell phones and most of our other electronic equipment.”
“What would Kris do?” Firestorm wondered. He stood there, lost in thought.
Yeah, WHAT would Kris do? Jade thought. She has the amazing ability to solve practically everything. Right now, she’d probably head up and look for a weak point. Jade looked up towards the clear, midday sky. Except Firestorm can’t fly cause he hurt his wing.
While Jade was casually glancing around, his gaze happened to fall upon a small drain. He walked over to it and pulled the metal grills off. A steady stream of water was flowing through it, with a slight slope inclined in the direction of the city.
I wonder if their force field stops at ground level?
The drain was extremely small, however, less than half a meter. Far too small for any Pokemon they had, but something else just might be able to fit through….
“Hey Storm!” Jade waved him over, “Ready to live dangerously?”
“One would think that psychic problems should be solved by a psychic herself.”
“Sabrina?!” Kris spun around.
The gym leader stumbled up from the woods behind them. Her left shoulder was wrapped in a blood-soaked bandage.
“What happened?” Kris ran and caught her as the psychic mistress dropped to her knees.
“Long story.” She muttered, “But my negligence was the cause of most of it. About two days ago, a lot of the men dressed in black started showing up here.”
“Team Rocket.” Nightslice hissed.
“I thought so too, my friend,” Sabrina continued, “and when I found I didn’t read any danger from them, I carried out some investigations on my own. Turns out that they brought in the psychic damper earlier and that had been weakening my powers the whole time. By the time I reached that conclusion, it was too already late.”
“They overtook the entire city in a day?” Kris asked.
“More like a few hours actually. Apparently they had infiltrators in the Saffron Police force itself. All of a sudden, they set up that barrier you see now, cutting off all communications with the outside, and started taking hostages. I couldn’t do anything but run…”
“Sabrina…” Nightslice muttered.
“I believe they’ve re-rerouted all communications to themselves and are using an ‘investigation for a serial killer’ as a front for the curfew over the city.”
“Quite and effective cover-up, considering no one from the outside’s been alerted yet.” Kris said, “But do you know what their after? Cause this scandal won’t last for long.”
“Something to do with Silph Company. Most of the Rockets have converged around the building. If you can located Silph Company’s chairman within the building, you’ll most definitely find the answer I cannot provide.”
“But we won’t be able to do that if we can’t even get in.” Nightslice said.
At that, Sabrina pulled out a Pokeball and handed it to Kris. It was the normal red and white style, except it had an emblem of the Marsh Badge printed on it.
“Go ahead.”
Kris opened the Pokeball and released a Golduck.
“This is Riptide.” Sabrina introduced, “While primarily a water type, I’ve trained him to enhance his psychic abilities. He’s how I managed to escape and contact you. His mental powers will be able to get you through undetected and by not being a psychic type, he won’t be affected by the psychic dampers either. After that, I’m afraid it’s all up to you.”
“Thank you,” Kris replied, “but with that wound, will you be all right?”
“One of their Golbats managed to cut me. However, the bleeding’s stopped, so I’ll be fine.”
“Sabrina, I know all the rest of your Pokemon and psychic types, so…” Kris released Gyarados and tossed the Pokeball to Sabrina. “Hey Gyarados, I need you to stay and protect Sabrina.”
The sea serpent gave an almost disappointed growl.
“I know you wanna fight, but you’ve got the heaviest armor around here. I feel you’re the best mon for the job.”
“That’s very thoughtful of you, Kris.” Sabrina said softly. “We’ll consider this a trade then.”
Kris tapped the serpent and got him to lower his head.
“She’s your trainer now,” Kris whispered, although she was sure Sabrina could easily hear them, “so listen to her like you would for me…and guard her with your life, OK?”
Gyarados hesitated for a while, then gave a confirmation growl.
“You love battling right? Once this is done, you can battle at the gym all you want, probably more that if you stayed around with me.” Kris stroked his face affectionately. “Farewell my friend. We may not have known each other long, but I’ll come back and see you someday.”
Nightslice stood back, noticing that Sabrina was having a similar exchange with her Pokemon. He had to admit that he felt rather left out of the loop.
Kris looked up and Sabrina gave her an ‘affirmative’ nod.
“Nightslice! Riptide! Let’s…oh, wait a second! I’ve gotta put my gear on.” Kris grabbed her backpack and ran off into the woods behind.
When she reappeared a few minutes later, Nightslice couldn’t help but gasp.
Kris was dressed in a black, nearly skintight body suit. It was her modified version of a modern Ninja outfit, complete with multiple pockets for her shurikens (Ninja stars) and other equipment and a slot along the shoulder for her katana. A black cloth belt was tied around the waist. Every other part of her body was covered, except for her face whose mask she was still holding in her hand.
As far as Nightslice could recall, this was the first time he’d seen her in that outfit. The only other thing he could remember her wearing were the older completely white outfit and her current brown shirt/blue jeans with the black leather jacket.
When Kris put on the mask, Nightslice just had to admit that she looked much better than himself as the Knight Blazer did.
The young Ninja tucked all her shoulder length hair beneath it. A lighter colored section on the front indicated where her mouth and nose were. The only thing left exposed was a small slit for her eyes.
“What’s wrong Nightslice, you seem rather shocked.” Kris laughed, noticing his reaction.
“Only as shocked as you were when you saw the Knight Blazer.” The Scyther replied.
“Heh, so now we’re even.”
“Only if you have to save my life.” Nightslice grinned.
“Hey! That’s a low blow Nighty!” Kris frowned, the expression showing in her eyes.
“Dressed for the occasion, I see.” Sabrina added in.
“Well, enough stalling.” Kris decided, strapping her backpack on, “Let’s get this show on the road!”
“You want me to WHAT??!!!!!!!!” The Charizard screamed, outraged.
“Yep, you heard me right.” Jade replied.
“But what if it gets caught somewhere, and I wind up stuck in some Pokeball, in the middle of who-knows-what stinking sewer forever?!”
“You chicken?”
“What! Grrrrr…all right, I’ll do it.”
Firestorm got into his Pokeball and Jade tied a rope around it. He then let the Pokeball flow down the drain, uncoiling the rope and the ball went further and further.
Jade just prayed that he had enough rope to go all the way.
Riptide apparently knew his stuff well. The water type had simply put his webbed hands near the invisible field and instantly, a golden, glowing spot appeared. Weakening the enemy’s light screen with his Psychic technique and using his own Light Screen to nullify it. In effect, creating a small, neutral area that they’d crawled through.
Kris was thankful that Sabrina had really done a good job training her Golduck.
And nice Pokeball too! Kris thought as she recalled the blue colored duck.
Navigating the enemy grounds wasn’t too difficult for one trained in the Ninja stealth arts like herself and Nightslice was as good, if not better than any human Ninja. Even better now that evening was approaching.
“We’ll head to the Police station first and see if we can get some information from Officer Jenny.” Kris decided.
The Scyther nodded.
Plenty of crawling, running through the shadows and scrambling over walls and fences was required, but the pair finally reached the Police station.
Crawling up and pressing themselves against the wall, Kris peeked through one of the windows. However, all she saw was a bunch of Team Rocket guards.
“I’ll bet the real police are down in the holding cells.” Nightslice said.
"Yeah, I think so too.” Kris agreed, “Now, how do we get down there?”
“Air vent?” Nightslice suggested, pointing to a metal grill fixed to the wall.
“Good thinking.”
As quietly as she could, Kris ripped off the grills and crawled through the metal maze with Nightslice in tow.
“There!”
Sure enough, the Saffron Police were being held in the cells, guarded by just two Rockets. Peering out of the cramped air shaft, Kris was glad to find the security cameras still disabled. That would make her job a lot easier.
“Ivysaur,” she let her grass type out, “Sleep powder. Quietly please.”
“Saur!”
The gentle blue powder filled the room below, putting both prisoners and captors to sleep.
Kris gave him a thumbs-up, then jumped down to the room below. Fortunately, Jenny was lying close to one of the cell doors. The group quickly aroused her with a quick water sprinkle from Riptide.
"Huh...mmm…" She groaned, coming too.
"Shhh!" Kris put a finger to her mouthpiece. "There could be others." She indicated the sleeping guards.
"Who are you?" The officer asked, looking from the Ninja to the group of Pokemon behind her.
"My name…my name is not important, but I'm here to help." Kris reached for the door lock. "Here, let me get you out."
"Wait!" Jenny protested, "If they discover I'm missing, then the guards will surely sound an alarm."
"Hmmm....that's true." Kris stood up. "Then, do you trust me enough to tell me what you know?"
The officer hesitated for while.
"I don't know...but something inside tells me that you might be our only hope."
"Don't worry, I dealt quite a bit with Team Rocket." Kris said.
"Even so, I'm afraid I don't know very much. Other than the fact that they managed to infiltrate the force and knock us out with a handful to gas bombs."
"Any ideas about their objectives?"
"Something to do with Silph Company, definitely. A large majority of their force seems to be gathered around there. Whatever for is beyond me."
"That'll be enough for us to work on. Thank you." Kris pulled a bunch of keys off a sleeping guard and tossed them to Jenny. "You'd better keep those somewhere out of sight. I have a feeling you'll be needing those soon enough."
"Hold on!" Jenny called as Kris was turning to leave. "I...I may not know who you are, or your motives, but please look in the top drawer over there."
Kris did as instructed and pulled out a handgun.
"M92F?"
"Yes, a modified version we've been working on. It fires sleep inducing tranquilizer darts instead of actual bullets. A suppresser's been attached to filter out the noise. I want you to have it and those two 15 round clips next to it, you just might find a use for it."
"Thanks." Kris replied, accepting the gift.
The group then left as quietly as they'd entered.
"Good luck..." Jenny whispered after them.
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"Amazing, it actually worked." Firestorm muttered. "Too bad about the absolutely foul odor down here."
Just as Jade had predicted, the Pokeball had floated down with the current deep into the city sewers. It eventually hit a stone ledge and triggered the release switch.
The Charizard surveyed his surroundings, using his flaming tail to illuminate the dark sewer passageway. All around, small creatures scurried away, frightened by the sudden light.
"Well, I may be in the city, but Jade didn't think about part two: how to find Kris and the others..."
Above him, the abrupt clang of metal moving echoed through the tunnel. A manhole lid on the nearby ceiling was being moved.
Instinctively, the Charizard ducked round a corner and waited. Someone was coming down. No, some Pokemon! He could smell it. Maybe even two or three. However, taking the sewer's stanch into account as well, he couldn't identify what.
Heart pounding, Firestorm listened as the footsteps came closer and closer. A little more and they'd defiantly find him. Knowing he wasn't particularly good at sneaking, Firestorm concluded the only choice was to stand and fight.
Readying himself, Firestorm leapt out with a roar...and smacked Nightslice right the face!
"Ow! GGRrrrrraaaaaahhhh! HEY! What the F%&# are you doing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
"Nightslice?!"
"Thanks for noticing!" the Scyther muttered sarcastically, rubbing his sore snout.
"Storm!" Kris appeared, dressed in her full black Ninja gear. Beside her was a Golduck.
"Hey Kris." The Charizard casually waved, "Been a while, eh? Haven't seen your full gear for a bit too."
"We can save the pleasantries for later, Storm. No compromises this time," Kris told him, "we're taking Giovanni out for good this time round."
"I'm fully at your disposal Kris." Firestorm said, cracking his knuckles. "Jade and his team are still outside. They'll be able to give us some backup once we take that gigantic light screen down. So, what's the plan?"
"Well, to tell the truth, we're still working on it." Kris replied, slightly embarrassed, "I won't be able to decide on any particular course of action until we can assess the situation in Silph Company proper. For now, Riptide here is going to take us through the sewers below the Silph Company building. Right, boy?"
The Golduck gave a delighted squeal as Kris stroked the back of his head.
"Right, improvise as we go. My kind of plan!" Firestorm grinned.
"That's...basically it, I suppose." Kris said, "Well, any other impending questions before we head out, team?"
"I have one!" From his seated position, Nightslice waved a claw to get their attention.
"Yes?"
"Could you guys help me up? My foot's caught in this pipe here!"
(Everyone faints.)
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Somewhere in the basement levels of the huge building, one of the floor gratings rattled. Kris peered through and noticed one of the company's trademark banners above them. The huge machinery around the area indicated that they were in the generator room.
"OK, this is it!" Kris whispered. "Nightslice, quietly this time."
"Right on!"
The Scyther head bashed the metal panel open, which flew and landed on a nearby table, crushing it to splinters. Kris leapt up and made another check, then gave the Pokemon a confirmation gesture.
"Could you possibly be any quieter?" Firestorm asked as he emerged.
"Well, that WAS quiet compared to the 'little' remolding job you did on the city's sewer walls!" Nightslice growled in protest, "You're lucky Kris didn't tell Jenny who she was, or we'd be getting one humongous repair bill after this!"
"Can it you two." Kris said sharply, "Remember, Riptide detected the source of the barrier from here. And it's my guess that they'll be using some Pokemon in conjunction with one of their gadgets."
Riptide leapt up and replaced the floor grating. All of a sudden, he stared up with a fierce look in his eyes.
"What..." Kris begun to ask.
"It's here," Nightslice whispered, the tone of his voice darkening, "be careful."
The rectangular shaped room had two huge generators running down the middle, obstructing much of the view. They were currently standing behind the first one, with their backs to the wall.
"I can't seem to pinpoint the scent." Firestorm frowned. "Like it's coming from everywhere at once..."
"Spread out and advance to the center," Kris ordered, drawing her sword, "keep within range of each other.''
Firestorm and Nightslice moved to the right side of the first set of machinery, Kris and Riptide moved around the other. Nothing occurred until they reached the center of the room. A lone Alakazam stood on a platform, which was wired up to the two generators. It remained motionless even as they approached, like it was asleep.
Kris pointed her sword at it, indicating for Firestorm and Nightslice to attack.
Firestorm begun moving forward, but some shadow dashing past him made him stop dead on. Growling, he was looking around for the source of the mysterious shape when it barged into Nightslice in the rear, knocking the Scyther into him and sending both down in a heap.
Kris heard a light 'clank' behind her and barely had time to leapt away as a Psybeam hit the spot she'd been standing on. She sprang to her feet and saw Riptide firing his Water Gun at a dashing purple shape. An Esperon.
"Looks like the head honcho's got a couple of sidekicks!" Nightslice yelled from the other side.
The second shape had shown itself to be an Umberon. Nightslice slashed at it furiously. The dog-shaped Pokemon dodged skillfully dodged his attacks and forced the Scyther to retreat as it counterattacked.
Its eyes glowing, the Umberon seemed to flicker and vanish, then re-appear all of a sudden.
"Faint Attack!" Firestorm realized.
It barged between the two Pokemon, knocking them over.
Meanwhile, Kris wasn't having much better luck with her battle.
"Riptide, Psychic attack!"
The gem on the Golduck's forehead lit up, but he couldn't seem to get a lock on his target. The Esperon was dashing around far too quickly.
Their attack patterns are far too complicated for these Pokemon to carry out on their own, unless TR's been doing some major changes to their Pokemon training. Kris thought, They're being directed, but how? And from where?
Kris looked around for a while, and it suddenly came to her that the answer was so frighteningly obvious. Now, executing the plan would be the hard part.
"Regroup!" She yelled, "On the other side!"
Riptide shot a Psybeam into the ground in front of them, distracting the Esperon long enough for them to run round to the other side of the first generation. Firestorm employed a similar tactic with his Flamethrower, creating a wall of flames between the Umberon and his group.
"What Kris? We just had them right where we wanted em'!" Firestorm growled.
"Because that's their plan," Kris told them, "to wear us down. But I've got a message for them..."
The two Eeveolutions that made their way to their side of the machinery. Coming from opposite sides, it seemed pretty much like them had the Dragon Riders surrounded.
"Nightslice, you take Espy on the left. Riptide, you take the other. Storm, you're sending me up." Kris hastily whispered.
All three Pokemon nodded.
As their the opponents begun their advance, the group took action.
With their respective battle cries, Nightslice and Riptide charged into their opponents, starting a furious claw and scratching match.
"Kris!" Firestorm cupped his claws and steadied himself. Having practiced their maneuver before, he knew exactly what his friend had in mind.
"Hargh!" With a yell, Kris leapt, one foot landing in the Charizard's claws. In turn, the dragon flipped her upwards, over the generator.
The Ninja grasped onto one of the steel pipes hanging from the ceiling and used the swinging momentum to propel herself forward. Beneath her was her target, the Alakazam.
Still in mid leap, Kris let a couple of shurikens fly. The psychic Pokemon reacted instantaneously, teleporting out of the way. However, she hadn't been aiming at the Pokemon, but at a section of its platform instead.
The small weapons hit their mark, piercing its power supply and causing it to detonate. Even with the blinding flash of the explosion, Kris managed to land perfectly on top of the generator.
"Ugh...not bad, Kris. You saw through that guise." The image of the Alakazam faded to reveal a tall woman standing in its place. She wore a recognizable Team Rocket uniform with the red 'R' on front, except her entire costume was purple instead of black. Her face was entirely covered by a soldier's mask and a black visor across the eyes.
"I realized that they wouldn't leave such an important Pokemon out in the open like that." Kris said, jumping down to the ground. "Now, where's the real one, Dahlia? Or do I have to go over and force it out of you?"
"Ha! I am one of the Rocket's Elites! I fear nothing, especially not a kid like you!"
Dahlia released a Nidoking and indicated for it to attack.
"Rrrrrroooaarrrrrrrrr!" Firestorm smashed right through the machinery, tackling the Nidoking and sending it flying through the other generator as well. The Charizard wasted no time in pursuing his opponent.
"Now, that it's just you and me...let's tango." Kris grinned.
"So be it then." Dahlia lifted a hand and snapped her fingers. A steel pipe immediately flew off the rear wall and headed straight for Kris.
Reacting swiftly, Kris twisted her body and sliced it in two.
"Damn! I forgot! You're a psychic!" the Ninja cursed.
Kris soon found herself dodging and chopping up bits of junk from all directions.
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With a series of growls, Nightslice slashed again and again at the Esperon. Due to its weaker defensive levels, Nightslice knew he had the advantage at a melee battle.
Finally, it collapsed, unconscious.
Ha, finally mastered my Fury Cutter. He grinned silently, in spite of his heavy breathing.
The Scyther looked up just in time to witness Firestorm slamming the Nidoking down with a WWF style pile-driver throw.
<If you're free, then go help Kris! > Riptide sent him a telepathic message. The Golduck was still busy wrestling his opponent. <But be careful! That other human has strong psychic energies. Don't let her see you! >
"Don't let her see me..." Nightslice muttered.
He flew to the top of the first generator and crouched low so he could see the humans fighting below without being spotted himself. Currently, Kris was doing well evading all the flying materials, but she was quickly tiring out. Dahlia's telekinetic abilities would give her the victory in the long run.
"But how do I help without being seen?" he growled, frustrated, "I'm not psychic myself or anything like...wait a minute, that's it!"
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"You're very good Kris," Dahlia muttered as she watched the Ninja continuously dodge her attacks, "more than I expected."
"Come on, that all you're giving me?!" Kris yelled.
"Humph, I can read your movements before you even execute them. Watch."
Drawing on her inner powers, the psychic probed Kris' mind...and abruptly came up against a brick wall.
"Impossible..." she gasped, focusing harder. She made sure to send out attack commands to her Pokemon and keep the Ninja distracted. No one is able to resist my powers, absolutely no one!
Unbeknown to her, Kris was grinning beneath her mask. Persisting in evading the flying materials, Kris slowly made her way closer and closer towards the Rocket Elite. A steel bar with a sharpened end came flying towards her. Kris leapt out of the way at the absolute last second, but the pre-occupied Dahlia didn't take note of it until it was too late.
"Aaaaaiiirrrrrreeeeeee!" the evil villain shrieked as the sharp bar pierced through her body.
The telekinetic movement of all other objects stopped instantly. With their master defeated, the Umberon and Nidoking were easily finished off by the others. Kris could hear Firestorm smashing their heads together to knock them out.
The party then approached the fallen Rocket, now lying in a pool of blood.
"Why?" she breathed, "Why can't I read your mind?"
"That WAS your mistake." Kris replied, sheathing her katana, "That you were only trying to read mine. You never even thought about going for my Pokemon." she looked over to Nightslice. "They have minds too, you know. He shielded me with a Light Screen...and he did it on his own account. Pokemon are our allies, our friends, not slaves. That's something you Rockets never learnt."
"So, it was then." Dahlia's voice was growing weaker, "I acknowledge your victory, but we will be triumphant in the end. Team Rocket will rule..."
With that, she fell silent and lay still. Dead.
Kris breathed a sigh of relief.
"Thanks everyone. Especially you Nightslice, that was some quick thinking."
"Hey, we all did want to do something about that bitch." Nightslice answered with a laugh. "So, who was she?"
"One of the three members of what's called 'The Elites'." Kris told him, "They're among Team Rocket's top operatives. It'll be no surprise if they're in charged here."
"Over here guys!" Firestorm was ripping out a section of the generator, revealing a hidden section. Inside was an exhausted-looking Alakazam standing over a control panel. It promptly collapsed into the Charizard's arms.
"Looks like he's been seriously overworked." Nightslice said. "Don't think he'll be of much help."
"We'd best leave him here, for the police later on." Kris nodded.
"And about that control panel?" Firestorm asked while he lay the unconscious psychic Pokemon down.
Riptide simply walked up towards it and drove a webbed hand into it, rendering it useless.
As if on cue, Kris' cell phone rang.
"Kris," Jade's voice was full of excitement, "great job! The barrier's down for good."
"That's good to hear. Where are you?"
"I'm up a tree with Dracia, just outside where the barrier once was." came the reply, "We'll be able to join you shortly."
"It'll be far too difficult to get past all those guards." Kris protested.
"Not really. See, practically all of them are currently headed towards your position in the basement."
"Geez, doesn't that just beat all?" Kris groaned, "Hey, how exactly do you know that?"
"Cause I'm tracking them on the GPS here on my laptop."
"Global Positioning Satellite." Kris said, "Impressive, but where'd you get access?"
"Well...I...erm..." Jade staggered.
"He hacked into a military satellite." Dracia's voice came over the phone.
"Hey! I though I told you not to tell anyone that?!"
"Sorry, slipped my mind." the Dragonair giggled, "Anyways, you're a pretty poor liar, Jade. You can't even say 'Peas came falling out of the sky yesterday'!"
"Look, that's cute people, but we have a situation here!" Nightslice shouted, bringing the pair back to reality.
"Oh yeah, here's something," Jade continued, "seems the big boss is actually supervising this one himself."
"Giovanni..." Kris muttered. "Where?"
"The obvious. Top floor, President's office. It'll be a long trip, but don't start the party without me!"
"Just be careful cause I don't need your death on my conscience."
"Don't worry, I'll be fine. Over and out."
"Let's move!" Kris declared, stashing the phone.
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The Dragon Riders cleared the first few floors with relative speed and ease. Most of the guards were posted higher up and the rest were probably down below searching the basement levels.
The few that were left were taken out the by handy tranquilizer gun.
The problem came only when Kris approached the fifth floor stairway.
"Damnit!" she cursed, noticing the card reader beside the locked door, "We need a keycard for this one."
"Can't we just smash the door?" Firestorm suggested.
"Not unless we want to alert them to our current location." Nightslice replied.
"Looks like we'll have to backtrack..." Kris begun when she noticed a shadowy blur rushing past her. Kris immediately jumped away and drew her weapon.
The figure landed neatly in front of the group, revealing itself to be another Ninja. His suit was very similar to Kris', except his was a dark blue with a red scarf tied around his neck. His mask too looked more like a traditional Japanese one, decorated with Japanese writings, spikes at the forehead and a cloth piece over the mouth and nose.
"What the?!" Kris gasped, "Who are you?!"
"I am like you, I have no name." the mysterious Ninja said calmly.
"Koga, quit with the 'Metal Gear Solid' act and take off the mask, cause I know it's you!"
"Hmmm....not bad," the Fuchsia City gym leader smiled, pulling his mask off, "and you passed that test with flying colors too."
"So, what are you doing here then?"
"I came to give you this." Koga tossed her a silver colored keycard. "You're not alone in this fight."
"Sabrina?"
"Yes. And additionally, Sensei Wang Long was always telling me to look out for you from time to time." Koga out a hand on her shoulder, "As a man of honor, I'm obliged to keep my word."
"Thanks, though I'm sure it hasn't been easy."
"Also, Team Rocket owes me a little something for having a couple of their agents trying to rob my gym. Speaking of that, take this too. I believe you are more than deserving of it."
He tossed her a shiny object.
"Soul Badge." Kris gasped.
"Watch out!" Koga suddenly shoved Kris aside and deflected a shuriken with a swing of his blade.
"Sorry to break up the reunion." the attacker stepped out of the shadows, "But I've got orders."
This man was Alken, second member of the Elites. He too was a Ninja, dressed in a traditional gray outfit and wielding a pair of Nunchuckus. His mask was completely covered his face, revealing nothing but his fierce, eagle-like eyes.
"Go!" Koga ordered, holding out his blade, "I'll take care of him."
Kris nodded and gave a quick bow before unlocking the door with the keycard and bolting up the stairs with her Pokemon.
"So, you're the famous Ninja master," Alken taunted, "it will be such an honor to defeat you."
"You visions are highly deluded indeed." Koga calmly replied. "Come then, let's see your technique!"
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"Raarghh!" Firestorm torched the last of the guards, who stumbled down the stairs, screaming. Next to him, Nightslice leapt up and stomped a pair of Beedrills into the floor.
"Not good." Kris muttered. The whole place was on alert and the fights were not only beginning to become unavoidable, but more difficult was well. "This way, quickly!"
Kris led the group into a nearby room and slammed its steel door shut.
"Why am I getting a strong sense of déjà vu here?" Firestorm panted.
"Seems like this surreptitious mission has taken a turn for the worst." Nightslice agreed.
Kris nodded. At least they'd been saved the trouble of fighting through the whole city, but now they needed to resort to a little more vehement means. Though both Firestorm and Nightslice only had several cuts and bruises, their stamina was running low.
"This building is like a maze," Firestorm said, "Even if I could just fly to the top floor, locating the office would be another problem."
That's true. Kris thought, glancing around the room. Then something caught her eye.
"Hey, notice how we've been seeing several of these around?" she asked, walking up to a differently decorated floor panel. The 5' by 5' foot tiles stood out rather easily. "There's a control panel here too," she mused, running a gloved hand across it, "but it's un-powered, so...Jolteon! Give this one a charge."
The electric Pokemon materialized and responded immediately, sending out an electric burst. The odd looking floor panel then begun to glow.
"Thought so." Kris cried happily.
"What is it?" Nightslice asked.
"What they call Warp Panels." she replied, "Something Sliph Company's been working on. They're supposed to transport you instantly to a new location, however their range is limited."
"So, you're thinking..."
"Yeah, I'm sure at least one will lead to the President's office. We just need to input the right coordinates." Kris still frowned, fiddling with the buttons. It could take a while, even if they got Nightslice to use his golden armor and tap into the system. Time was the thing they didn't have.
Bangs and thuds on the steel door were becoming louder and louder. Jolteon sent a Thunderbolt towards it, electrifying it and shocking anyone touching it outside. The dog-like Pokemon growled with satisfaction.
"Hey, it's Jade!" Firestorm yelled, peering out the window. Their companion was on the ground level down below, with his Pokemon fighting off many more from the Rockets surrounding him.
"Jade? Damn!" Kris took a look for herself. "Looks like he's outnumbered."
"I'd better go help him." Firestorm growled, spreading his wings. "Ow! Grrrr! I can't fly with this injury, but I can glide."
"Take Jolteon with you." Kris insisted. Jolteon leapt up onto the Charizard's shoulder. "We'll just jump onto this Warp Panel for now, so get Jade to do something about it!"
Nodding, Firestorm let out a thunderous roar and smashed through the window, sending bits of shattered glass flying everywhere.
"Here goes nothing." muttered Nightslice, stepping onto the Warp Panel. Taking a deep breath, Kris followed suit.
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On the level below, Koga and Alken were still engaged in their furious Ninja duel. Koga rolled to dodge more shurikens, then deflected Alken's Nunchuck swing with his blade and kicked the Rocket in the chest.
As he stumbled back, one of his Nunchucks went flying. Right into a control console for the teleporter system.
And that just happened to be the moment Kris and Nightslice jumped onto it.
Fate intervened....
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"Aarrgghhh!"
"Ssssarrghgg!"
Kris and Nightslice stumbled off the Warp Panel. Kris was clutching her chest and breathing heavily. It had only been a second, but it seemed like a massive electrical current had gone through her body. The Scyther grimaced, having gone through a similar experience.
"Leave that to prototypes." he cursed.
"Took you long enough to get here." a deep voice growled.
"Alugard!" Nightslice gasped.
"Now, is that any way to greet your father?"
"What are you doing here?!" Kris asked, drawing her Katana.
The cyborg Scyther didn't answer directly, but rather pointed his human-like robotic right hand towards a staircase.
"This stairway will lead you to the President's office. Two floors up, but don't worry about encountering any resistance. My fighters have taken care of that, but they've got orders to let you pass. Just you, Kris."
His stand seemed reasonable. Their rival harbored a deep hatred for Team Rocket. And what better way than to have one's enemies destroy each other?
"And Nightslice?" Kris asked.
"He wants a rematch." Nightslice growled, "And I'm gonna give him one. Trust me, Kris."
Kris was hesitant, but finally agreed.
"Be careful." She whispered.
"You too."
They gave each other high five's, well a claw to a hand, and the young Ninja continued up the stairs.
"On guard." Alugard growled.
"Ready when you are..." Nightslice glared into the eye of his most formidable opponent.
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"Incoming!"
With a roar, fireballs and thunderbolts rained down from the sky. Jade's Electabuzz and Magmar took advantage of the distraction and unleashed attacks of their own. The remaining guards and Pokemon were either burnt, shocked or sent running for their lives.
"Hey!" Jade waved to them.
"Nice timing you guys!" Dracia agreed.
"No time to waste people." Firestorm said as they landed, "Kris needs us!"
Recalling his two secondary fighters, Jade followed the other Pokemon as they entered through the main entrance. Like in any company, it was a large with a receptionist desk, couches for waiting and various products on display.
Jolteon immediately begun barking and ran over to the receptionist desk.
"What is it?" Jade asked.
The electric Pokemon was pulling on something with his teeth. No, someone. An elderly gentleman dressed in a business suit was bound and gagged.
"Hey, it's him." Jade gasped, recognizing him from the picture on the wall, "Silph Company's president."
Jade ran over and ripped the sticky tape off his mouth.
"Ooooowwwwww!"
"Oh, sorry. You all right, sir?"
"Yes, thank you," he coughed, "I'm a still little stunned from the gas they threw, but I'll be all right."
"Dracia, you and Jolteon had better get him out of here." Jade said as he untied the ropes.
"They had some other hostages in the building," the President said, "but I don't know if they're still there."
Jade's phone beeped. Sabrina had sent him a message, which read 'Don't worry about the hostages, I'm taking care of them.'
"Good old Sabrina." Jade smiled.
He was about to send a reply when the phone beeped again.
'I'm a telepath, remember? I'll guide the Dragonair and Jolteon as they escort the president. There's a safe zone we've set up outside the city.'
"We?"
'Erika actually. I managed to contact Koga and her and get them to help me out. I'm a few floors above you. You can use that Warp Panel over there to get up here quickly.'
"Warp Panels, eh?" Jade said softly.
"Yes, they were in the development." the President said, "Team Rocket must've activated them, even though they haven't been fully tested yet. Actually, Sabrina has already ordered a whole dozen of them for her gym."
The phone beeped. 'I had to do something to give trainers an extra challenge. Now, stop wasting time and get moving!'
Jade nodded. Dracia and Jolteon moved towards the door with the President in tow.
"Here goes..." he sighed stepping onto the Warp Panel.
"Kris went through the same thing." Firestorm assured him.
Together, they moved. For a while, there was nothing. Then...
"Aarrggghh!"
"Raagrhh!"
The two ended up in a pile in front of Sabrina.
"Are you two all right?" she asked, reaching down.
"Why didn't you tell me it was gonna hurt?" Jade moaned.
"Jade, before you start complaining, get the F*%$ off my tail!" Firestorm growled.
"Sorry!"
Behind Sabrina, her Haunter was levitating the last of the hostages through the window and down to the ground floor.
"Because it wasn't supposed to." Sabrina muttered, "It should've worked. I wonder what went wrong?"
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"Congratulations," Koga taunted, "you've managed to break every breakable object in this hallway without hitting me at all."
"Gargh!" Alken cursed. He was both exhausted and bleeding badly from the slash wound on his right arm. "I will not forget this Koga! I will defeat you in good time!"
The Rocket Ninja pulled out a Pokeball.
"Weezing, Smokescreen attack!"
Koga coughed as the thick smoke filled the room, and pulled out his own Pokeball.
"Crobat, Whirlwind!"
When the smoke finally cleared out, no trace was left of the Rocket Ninja or his Pokemon.
"What the?!"
With some loud screeching sounds, a swarm of Aridos appeared at the closest window. Koga had to roll away as they fired poisonous stingers at him.
"Go Venomoth! Psybeam!"
The psychic attack shoved the spiders out the window and down the side of the building. However, more were beginning to appear at the other windows.
"What is this?!" Koga wondered. "But my work here is done. I should leave."
Koga recalled his Pokemon and tossed a set of smoke bombs, shrouding his escape with the trademark Ninja trick.
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Clang! Clang! Clang! Their sword-like claws clashed over and over again.
Alugard leapt over him and swung his claw. Nightslice was swift enough to guard against the blow from behind, and shove Alugard away with his foot.
Alugard came back almost immediately and Nightslice met him head on, their claws locking together as each one pushed to gain control.
"Look at you, still acting like a pet to the humans." Alugard grunted, "Haven't reconsidered yet, have you?"
"Enough with the anti-humans speech Alugard!" Nightslice snapped back.
"But now, with your true powers awakened, you'll pose a threat, even to those you care about. Your powers were never meant for 'good' use. They only harbor great weapons of hatred, destruction, all within you. Some day, you simply won't be able to control it anymore. It's destiny, my son."
"I don't care what you say, no one is gonna tell me how to live my life!"
"She is doing that, isn't she? Get up to reality, I'm sure even she know that. She just won't tell you because she's afraid to lose you."
"Shut the F&$% up!" Nightslice yelled, "I care about her, and that's something you'll never understand!"
In his sudden burst of anger, Nightslice kicked his opponent backwards and leapt up, raising a claw above his head like a sword. However, he left his chest exposed and the old warrior was fast enough to fire a Hyper Beam into his chest.
"RRRaaggrrhhh!" Nightslice flew back and smashed through a wall. Debris and pieces of furniture ended up on top of him.
Damn you! You'll pay for that! AArrgghhhh!
With a malicious roar and a flash of purple energy, Nightslice reemerged...in his Knight Blazer form.
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"Just what's going on here?" Jade shouted over the din of the commotion, "This place is a mad house!"
"That's not too far from the truth." Sabrina agreed.
"Rrrrrooaarr!" Firestorm sent a fireball into the pair of Houndour blocking their path. "But it's to our advantage!"
All around, the Rocket agents were being attacked, both by their own Pokemon and some wild ones that had suddenly come charging into the building. It was total chaos, if one wanted to put it that way.
"I do feel some dark powers at work here," Sabrina muttered, "but not anything to do with Nightslice."
"Must be Alugard then," Firestorm said softly, "he's the only other one with these sort of powers who could pull this one off. One of his powers was to manipulate the minds of other Pokemon, especially wild ones like these."
A series of gunshots forced the group to scatter.
"Sabrina!" a Rocket in a military-like uniform shouted, "I should've finished you off when I had the chance."
"He's the Tagon, last of the Elites." Sabrina whispered to Firestorm. "Too bad you didn't though!" She taunted.
"I'll sure to get...argh!"
A Houndoom had suddenly hurled itself at him and locked its jaws onto his free hand.
Firestorm rushed forward. The Elite, despite his struggle, managed to fire his handgun. Firestorm roared in pain as two bullet wounds appeared along his right thigh.
"Why You!" Jade charged and connected a flying kick before the Rocket could fire again. The Houndoom choose this time to release its grasp and quickly scurry away.
"Aaarrrggggghhhh!" Tagon stumbled backward from the impact and broke through a glass wall, falling 20 stories to his death.
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The corridor was so quiet that Kris could actually hear the soft thuds of her boots. Panting, she pulled her mask off and stashed it. Stealth no longer mattered.
She rounded the corner and came face-to-beak with a Fearow and Pidgeot, Stormwind and Firefly, two of Alugard's 'generals'. Kris drew her weapon and braced for an attack, but Stormwind simply pointed a wing towards a nearby door, as if to say 'go there'. Then, both spread their wings and flew the coop, leaving her alone in the empty corridor.
Holding her breath, Kris pushed the door open and stepped inside. In there, alone at a table, sat Giovanni.
"So, you've finally come then." he said calmly, standing up.
"I've come to take of you once and for all this time round." Kris said.
"You make it sound so simple. Just like your father, who was always looking for the simplest way."
"What would you know about my father?!" Kris growled.
"I knew Professor Invorce very well, my dear. You see, he worked for me, after all."
"No...." Kris muttered, "then the lab..."
"Was all funded by me, yes. But don't worry, your father had good intentions."
"What good intentions could come out of working for scum like you?!"
"Let me tell you a bit more about our history, Kris. It didn't start when you so conveniently came to me, it was way back before that. You see, your mother was unable to conceive. And Professor Invorce tried everything. All the doctors said that there was no hope at all."
He paused and came walking to the front of the desk.
"So when I approached him offering him a position to head a certain genetics project, he agreed immediately. That was all back around the 60s where genetic engineering was a brad new field. And as technology in that field wasn't really very good back then, it had to be tested first, on Pokemon, so as to create an organism with genes strong enough to survive an artificial fertilization process. And you know what was the first Pokemon to survive?"
Kris was speechless, although she already knew.
"Your good friend, the Scyther. Yes, in 1978. And from him that's where your genes came from, five years later. All that research and progress supplied me with much of the information I used in projects up to today."
"You're sick." Kris swore.
"And you, why do you think you got to my top ranks so easily?" Giovanni continued, "I knew it was you, Kris Invorce, and I knew all about you. I couldn't acquire you as a legal niece, but you came to me yourself."
"Then answer this, what about Firestorm, the Charmeleon back then?"
"Oh, that one. How lucky for you I did some reading on that report. We shot the parents and took him as an egg from the nest. He did cause quite a bit of problems when he and the Scyther broke out of one of our labs in 1983. You're lucky you weren't with your parents at that time. We did recapture the pest and simply wiped his memory clean, turning him into a merciless fighting machine. Too bad you were able to break through that."
"And the Scyther was never recaptured..."
"The rest you know." the Team Rocket leader grinned evilly, "So, look at yourself now. A group experimental failures on a hopeless crusade. You could've had everything and yet...."
"SHUT UP!"
Unable to control herself at the last statement, Kris attacked and drove Katana through his chest. Giovanni simply crackled, and sparks flew from the 'wound'. She'd been talking to a robot all along! Outraged, Kris pulled the weapon lengthwise, slicing the machine in two.
It took Kris a while to calm down.
"It doesn't matter how we came into being." She whispered to no one, "We're alive, all of us. And we can choose. I'm make my own destiny and write my own story, and you won't convince me otherwise."
She paused, and then a smile crept across her face.
"No, I already have."
"I'll admit your will is a lot stronger than I thought." The real Giovanni's voice came from one of the speakers nearby, "I may have underestimated you this time."
"But it changes nothing between us." Kris finished.
"Indeed."
Kris then heard the soft beeping and noticed the flashing red light at the Giovanni robot's chest area.
"Oh SHIT!!!!!!!"
Kris didn't waste a second more, and ran. Even as she made it to the stairs, the force of the bomb's explosion threw her off her feet.
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"I...I...didn't mean to do that." Jade staggered.
"Killing someone isn't easy, I know." Firestorm said, trying to comfort him.
"Sometimes, it's just necessary." Sabrina added in.
"No, but I..."
BOOM!
Firestorm pushed the two humans aside as a section of the ceiling abruptly blew up. The flaming debris separated him from Jade and Sabrina.
All around, both humans and Pokemon were beginning to panic and were running for their lives.
"This place is coming to pieces!" Sabrina yelled, "We have to get out, now!"
"Take Jade with you," Firestorm ordered, "I'm not leaving without Kris and Nightslice!" His face cringed as the pain in his leg came back, but he did his best to ignore it.
"Storm!" Jade shouted, panicked as another explosion forced him back.
"We have to believe in him," Sabrina pulled Jade's arm as they watched the Charizard disappearing up the stairs, "Hurry, there's an emergency exit this way!"
Jade wiped his eyes.
"Yes, you're right." he whispered over the noise of the commotion. "Let's hurry before we're cut off."
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Far away, alone in his office, Giovanni pondered this defeat.
Everything will be corrected in time. He assured himself. His plans had just taken a minor setback, that's all.
And besides, he looked over at one of his screens, showing a strange humanoid figure clad in a set of silver armor. I still have my ultimate weapon.
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Alugard felt the explosions. He even saw the fires beginning to spread around the room. However, he was too preoccupied with fighting off the berserked Knight Blazer to even think about fleeing.
"Aarggh!"
Now that he had hands, the Knight Blazer grasped Alugard by his neck and drove him against the wall. The older Scyther was gagging and about to run out of breath when Kris came running down the stairs.
"Nightslice!"
Alugard felt his opponent's grip relax a little. Using the opportunity, he shoved against the Knight Blazer with his feet and freed himself from his deadly grasp.
Knowing that discretion was the better part of valor, Alugard wasted no time in activating his jets and smashing through the window, fleeing into the distance.
"Nightslice!" Kris called again.
The Knight Blazer turned towards her and roared.
"Nightslice it's me!"
Whether he heard it or not, he didn't show. The Knight Blazer simply raised his blades and begun to approach.
"Nightslice!" Kris cried desperately, "Control yourself!" She gasped a hand on the hilt of her Katana, "I don't want to fight you! Please!"
Then, the attack came. Kris had no time to do anything but block blow after blow whilst backing up. Finally, unable to keep pace, she stumbled.
Time seemed to slow as she fell, having only one choice but to hold her Katana out in front of her face, to ward off the impending attack.
Nightslice brought his claw down...and shattered Kris' sword with a strangely silent crash.
Then, all of a sudden, Kris found herself on her back with the Nightslice poised above her, ready to strike. She didn't even have the courage to scream as the wrist mounted blade came down...and struck the ground centimeters from her neck.
"Kris..." Nightslice's voice sounded both haggard and weary, "Kris...I...I couldn't...."
Gently, Kris sat up and pulled the Knight Blazer's mask off, revealing Nightslice's face beneath. He was crying.
"I couldn't control it." He sniffed, "I almost..."
"It's OK, calm down." she reached up and hugged him.
"He's right. I am a threat, to everyone."
"Nightslice..." Kris couldn't come up with anything to finish her sentence. No way to comfort him.
"Kris, I have to write my own story now," Nightslice whispered between tears, "so don't worry about me."
"You know that I'll always love you!" Kris was sobbing herself, "No matter what you become!"
"I love you too, sis..."
Nightslice reached forward and kissed her on the lips. It was a moment he'd wished would last forever. So much each one wanted to say, so much each one didn't know.
Then, it was over.
"Goodbye, don't forget me!" with a roar of agony, Nightslice got up and ran, disappearing into the flames.
"NIGHTSLICE!"
But there was no time left. The biggest explosion yet forced her sprint and jump out the only escape route available, a 26 story high window. Even as she did, Kris opened a Pokeball.
"Ivysaur, grab anything!" she yelled, holding onto the grass type for dear life.
Ivysaur reached for a flagpole, but the fires forced him to pull his vines away. He tried again with similar results on a ledge.
Kris was beginning to lose hope when Firestorm burst through a window. Even with his injured wing, his desperation urged him on. Still, he looked like he wasn't going to reach her in time.
"Damn you, blasted wing!" he cursed, "Work dammit! WORK!"
In that final act, he managed to spread his wing fully. He closed the gap enough to reach Ivysaur's vines and grasp them firmly.
With his friends finally secured, the Charizard altered his course and soared away from the burning building.
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1st July 1998
It's been two months since that grand battle.
And still no trace of Nigthslice. Our group's been the same as always with
Firestorm, Jade, the other Pokemon and me.
Although we have spent some time traveling
with Ash and company. I admit, those three and the Pikachu have a habit of
getting into awfully 'interesting' situations. And as always, the kid's talking
about the Pokemon league and badges. I do enjoy competition, but sometimes I
wish I were that carefree.
Currently, our two parties have split up
again.
Now that it's just us, we can get back to
searching. We've come to the Fuchsia region, where a mysterious Pokemon has
supposedly been sighted. I do respect Nightslice's wishes, but I worry for him
too.
Finding him is my only concern now.
Ow, that's there's the ache in hands again. Ever since that battle, my hands tend to stiffen up from time to time and my fingers ache when I try to move them. Just some after effects of the battle, I assume.
Kris powered down her laptop and placed in back into her backpack. Beside her, Jade and Firestorm were already fast asleep and the campfire was still burning strong.
She needed to get to sleep too. There was a long day ahead of them. Kris fingered the Master Ball, which was what the Rockets had apparently been after the whole time. She'd been given the first working model as a way of thanks.
Kris then took a moment longer to look up at the stars.
"Nightslice..."
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Author's note: Thank
you all for reading and I hope you've enjoyed it! But this isn't over yet, not
by a long shot. I'm done with my first 'Season' and a second will obviously
follow up. The Dragon Riders will be back and hopefully I'll be better too.
Coming soon....
'Dragon
Riders Chronicles 02: Kaze no Kaeru'
(Winds
of Change)