The Secret of MissingNo

Chapter 10: Good Rockets, Evil Pokemon?

"So, anyway, where are we going to sleep?" asked Eric, anxious to get away from potentially dangerous Rocket members. "We don't have our own room yet, do we?"

"I need to track down an old buddy of mine," replied Rose. "He's notorious for throwing huge parties every night, so I'm sure a few more guests won't be an issue." With Entei and the Stone brothers in tow, she left the common room and walked into the empty hallway. Passing the gaudy lights of a Game Corner training area, the Rocket girl approached a nearby elevator and pressed the up button. "His room's up on the third floor… I used to live across the hall from him before I got promoted to Class B."

"His room?" asked Entei, a touch of jealousy in his voice.

Rose laughed. "Don't worry, he's not my type."

The group wandered through the halls of the third floor until Rose stopped at one particular door.

"You can't be serious…" began Eric. A brightly-colored beaded curtain hung over the entryway. The door itself was covered with graffiti written in a sticky substance. Loud music blared inside the room, and a strange herbal odor wafted through the hallway.

"Trust me on this," Rose said, rapping on the door. Moments later, it was flung open by a tall, lanky teenager with spiky blue hair, glasses, lip and eyebrow piercings, and a bewildered look on his face. He was wearing a rumpled minion shirt and oversized tropical-print shorts. When he saw Rose, his face broke into a large grin.

"Hey, everybody! Rose is here!" he shouted over the din. Rose poked her head inside and waved. "Hi, Rosie-person!" several girls yelled.
Jeremy peered inside cautiously. The small apartment was filled with people: several guys sprawled on the floor, playing video games; a mixed group on the ratty sofa puffed contently on cigarettes; a blonde girl skillfully styled another girl's hair into tiny braids.

"Josh, these are some friends of mine, Eric, Jeremy, and Entei." The Stone brothers waved tentatively. "Guys, this is Josh MacIntyre. We used to hang out a lot when we were both minions."

"Good times, good times," said Josh, smiling. "The Collective will live on forever!" Eric and Jeremy exchanged a confused look.

"Hey, you still training that Mudkip?" Rose asked. "You got it right before I moved out."

"Yeah, Dude, it evolved! Come on out, Pothead!" Josh tossed a scuffed Poke Ball into the hallway and a mellow-looking Marshtomp appeared.

"You named it… Pothead?" Eric asked incredulously.

"Hell yeah!"

"That ain't right," muttered Entei, shaking his head. "That just ain't right."

"Where did you get that?" asked Jeremy. "I thought you couldn't find those anywhere but Hoenn."

"Five-finger discount, man. Newbie trainers are a Rocket's best friend." A horrified look came over Jeremy's face.

"Hey, got a favor to ask you," interrupted Rose. "These guys are new here. Would it be okay if they crashed with you tonight? They don't have a room assignment yet."

"Hell yeah! I always get people passed out on my floor anyway. Come on in!" Josh proffered a bowl of unidentifiable salty niblets. "Snack? There's beer in the fridge too."

"I've already got my coffee," murmured Eric.

"Uh, no thanks," answered Jeremy. What am I getting myself into now? he wondered.

"That's cool, we're doing shots later if you wanna join us. Hey, Rose, you stayin'?"

"Sorry, I gotta get some stuff in order upstairs. I may drop by later, though."

"Cool. Bring your game controller if you do. I'll take care of your friends for ya. Hey, guys, did Rose ever tell you about Zombie Combusken? She didn't? No way! Ok, it was New Year's Eve, and…"

"Do you think they'll be all right?" asked Entei as they left the chaotic apartment and headed for her room.

"I know they'll be fine. Josh may be a little out there, but he's got a heart of gold."

*****

The next morning, Rose collected the Stone brothers from Josh's apartment and took them to the Rocket Executive Lounge. A guard stopped them at the door, but Desiree shooed him away and led her daughter and friends to a round table near the back of the Lounge.

"Anyone need coffee besides me?" asked Rose, walking toward the café counter. Eric and Entei grunted in half-awake agreement.

"Well, aren't you a lively group of morning people," commented Desiree with a grin.

"You wouldn't be so perky if you were with us last night," replied Jeremy, rubbing his eyes.

"I can't understand those people we stayed with," Eric said around a yawn. He took a quick sip from the double espresso that Rose handed him. "That group didn't stop partying until they had all passed out."

"They were up playing video games all night long!" Jeremy added, more enthusiastically than his brother. "None of them seemed to care about getting up in the morning. Oh! And this crazy old guy staggered up to their room around 2AM, I think he was completely plastered! He even brought a bottle of vodka up with him! The guy started rambling on about something until he passed out 15 minutes later."

"Yep, that would be Merv," replied Rose. "That guy gives me the creeps. He's been a minion for 25 years, and shows no desire to get promoted."

Jeremy laughed. "You sure know some weird people. Thanks for introducing me." These Team Rocket people are nicer than I expected, he thought. Maybe it wouldn't be such a bad way to make a living… wait, what am I thinking?

"Will you be staying another night?" asked Desiree. "I can see about getting you boys your own room…"

The group looked at each other. "What do you guys think?" asked Rose.

Jeremy shrugged. "I don't know."

Eric shook his head slowly. "I'd love to stay, but I think we should get moving. Those Glitches are loose in the world, and it's my fault. Maybe if we can study them further we can discover a way to stop them before it's too late."

"Aren't you worried about the cops catching up with us?" asked Rose. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I have no desire to go back to jail."

"I think we'll be fine if we keep away from big cities for awhile," commented Entei, draining his coffee cup. "I know a great donut shop on one of the Seafoam Islands where we can regroup. It's out of the way, but there're always people passing through. We might hear something about the Glitches."

"Sorry, Mom. I think we'd better be on our way," said Rose, gathering up her belongings from the floor.

"I'm sorry to see you go, Rose," Desiree said, rising from her chair and giving her daughter a hug. "We're still on for lunch next week, right?"

"As far as I know. Of course, things have been a tad chaotic lately…"

"Before I forget, I've got something for you." Desiree rummaged in her purse and pulled out a folded piece of paper. "Proof that you're really on your way to becoming a respected Team Rocket member. I'm sure you'll want this for your room."

Rose unfolded the paper hesitantly. She smiled wryly. "Gee, thanks, Mom. Just what I always wanted." She held it up for the others to see. "A bad picture of me on a wanted poster."

"What do you mean, bad picture? I think you look lovely!" insisted Desiree.

"No, she's right. It is a bad picture," added Entei.

"Who asked you?" retorted Rose.

"At least nobody's gonna recognize you from that picture," grinned Jeremy. "The cops'll never track you down if they're looking for that."

Rose growled something under her breath and stashed the poster in her backpack.

"Desiree, I want to sincerely thank you for your help," began Eric. "Now that we've been able to rest and regroup, I'm feeling more like my old self again."

"Don't mention it, Eric," said Desiree, smiling. "Just keep me in mind the next time you've got any powerful Pokemon you need… permanently stored some place."

*****

"So how exactly are we all going to arrive at Seafoam? We only have two Flying Pokemon, and there are… well… four of us," asked Eric as they walked out the front door of TRHQ. The group had changed back into their traveling clothes, but kept the TR uniforms and ID cards at Desiree's insistence. You never know when you might need them, she had warned.

"Maybe we could trade off," suggested Rose. "Two of us Fly to the destination, then we send the birds back for the others."

"Hmm… I don't like it," replied Eric. "It leaves two members of our group too exposed to danger. And I don't think Entei can use a Flying Pokemon…"

"Well, I've got an idea, but I'm not sure if it'll work," began Jeremy. "Entei, I've heard that you Legendaries are the fastest Pokemon anywhere. Is this true?"

"I don't know about that, but I'm a much better runner in this body than I ever used to be."

"Do you think you could carry one of us on your back? There's a bridge to the main islands of Seafoam that you could cross…"

"One condition," said Entei with a mischievous glint in his eyes. "I'll only do it if Rose rides me." The huge Pokemon grinned broadly.

Rose blushed and smacked Entei upside the head. Eric and Jeremy gasped, but Entei just chuckled. "What?" he asked in a mock-innocent tone.

"Rose, are you okay with that?" asked Jeremy.

"Yeah, I guess. I suppose Eric can borrow Sapphire for awhile." She handed the retrieved Poke Ball to the Professor.

"Well, if we're all in agreement then," began Eric, hurling the Poke Ball into the air, "let's be on our way."

"Get that perverted look off your face!" Rose scolded Entei as she climbed aboard.

Moments later, the party of Glitch-hunters was sitting around a small table in the Seafoam Donut Shop, eating a tasty (although unhealthy) breakfast before continuing their search. On the floor beside their table, Entei was rapidly demolishing half a dozen sour cream donuts, bits of glaze sticking to the fur on his chest. He purred contentedly, licking crumbs from his massive paws.

"I've gotta ask. Why'd you join up with Team Rocket in the first place?" Jeremy asked Rose around a mouthful of chocolate glazed donut.

"I tried to get a legitimate job at a Pokemon Research Center, but nobody took me seriously," she explained, taking a sip from her steaming hazelnut coffee. "People hear 'specialist in Pokemon mysteries' and automatically think I'm chasing down Clefairy in flying saucers. Team Rocket had decent hours, the pay wasn't bad, plus they have this wonderful free cappuccino machine in the Deli…" Rose suddenly got a happy, far-off look in her eyes.

"They do? Maybe I should have joined up after all," murmured Professor Stone dreamily, pleasant thoughts of free coffee drinks dancing through his mind as he drank deeply from his second double espresso of the morning. "I wonder if it's too late…"

"COFFEE?" yelled Jeremy in disbelief. "You joined up with a dangerous international crime ring for their COFFEE?"

"Not coffee, cappuccino," said Rose loftily. "There IS a difference."

Jeremy looked from Rose to his brother, shaking his head. "I will never understand you guys."

At a nearby table, three old men were talking loudly about mysterious Pokemon encounters. Entei watched them with amusement.

"I used to stop here pretty often when I was making my PC checkup rounds, and those three old fogies were always in here, bragging about their supposed exploits as trainers. I think they're full of sh*t, but sometimes they tell good stories," the legendary Pokemon commented. "Who knows, maybe they know something about these Glitches." The Glitch-hunters eavesdropped as the old men boasted.

"I'll never forget the night I stayed in Lavender Tower," bragged one toothless old man. "Even though I was attacked by a giant Haunter, my Pokemon pulled through for me!"

"You big liar!" accused an old man wearing a baseball cap. "That was me! You were too big a scaredy-cat to even visit Lavender Tower! I captured a wild Misdreavus that night, too!"

"Who's lying now?" demanded the toothless man. "Everyone knows only Gastly, Haunter, and Gengar live in Lavender Tower! There's no Misdreavus in there!"

"That's nothing compared to what I saw the other night," interrupted the third old man. "After that big power failure, I saw two glowing ghostly shapes floating away from Cinnabar Island…"

"You're making that up, you old geezer," remarked the baseball-capped man.

"Who are you calling old? I'm two years younger than you!"

Suddenly, Eric Stone appeared at their table, anxiously questioning the third man. "Where did those two ghostly shapes go? In what direction were they headed?"

"Don't listen to that old crackpot, Sonny," chuckled the toothless man. "He's just talkin' outta his…"

"No, really," Eric persisted. "Please tell me what you saw last night."

The old man scratched his head. "Well, let me think… I had just finished beating these two geezers at poker when…"

"That's not true!" shouted the other two old men.

Eric sighed. "Just tell me about the ghostly shapes."

"All righty. I saw these two ghostly shapes drifting away from Cinnabar Island, looked like they were glowin' or somethin'. One was floatin' along the water, an' the other was kinda flyin' alongside. I didn't see where they went, just past Seafoam. Mayhap to Fuschia…"

"Aah, whadda you know?" scoffed one of his friends. "Yer half-blind anyway!"

"Shut yer trap, you…"

Eric quickly retreated as the men began arguing once again. He shrugged to Rose and Jeremy. "Well, we've got a lead… I think."

"Then we should stay at Trainers' Lodge tonight," suggested Rose, unfolding a well-used map. "Some of my coworkers have mentioned that it's a pretty nice place, and the hotel staff don't ask too many questions."

The Rocket girl squinted at some hand-written notes on the map. "According to this, it's not far from here, so we should definitely make it there before dark. It'll put us right on the road to Fuchsia City, so we can get a fresh start tomorrow. There's a free continental breakfast included, and a nice-sized room for all of us is only 5000 Poke Dollars per night."

"And how are we going to afford that?" asked Eric skeptically. "There's no way we have that kind of money."

"Jeremy, I want a Pokemon battle with you, right now," said Rose, reaching for a Poke Ball at her belt. "Come on, outside!"

"Didn't you hear what I just said?" asked Eric. "I said, there's…"

"Don't worry, I've got this covered," Rose interrupted. "But Jeremy needs to have a battle with me first."

"Whatever." The Professor shrugged. Rose tossed a few coins on the table as a tip and the party walked outside into the Donut Shop's parking lot.

Jeremy grabbed a Poke Ball and tossed it in front of him. "Go, Graveler!"

But when the creature materialized, it wasn't a Graveler any more.

"Golem," grumbled the massive Rock Pokemon.

"Oh yeah! I completely forgot that I traded with Rose a couple days ago. Seems like forever since I practiced Surfing, huh?"

Meanwhile, Rose had tossed her own Poke Ball into the air, and her small Meowth appeared in front of her. "Please go easy on my Kitty," she asked.

"Ready when you are," said Jeremy.

"Kitty, use Pay Day!" she commanded. The small cat tossed its golden charm forward and a shower of coins pelted Golem.

"Oh, I see what you're up to. Golem, use Defense Curl!"

Golem looked at its trainer skeptically. It was giving him a look that said Yeah, right.

"I know you could easily KO that Meowth in one shot with Earthquake, but we're only battling to make some extra money. Just hold tough, it'll be over soon."

The huge Rock Pokemon shrugged and curled its body together protectively.

"Keep hitting it with Pay Day!" Rose cheered as Kitty playfully tossed another salvo of coins at Golem. Golem looked less than pleased, but remained motionless.

After a few minutes of attacks, the ground was littered with shiny coins. Rose called her Meowth back. "I think we've got enough now, Jeremy. You can recall your Golem."

"Neat trick," commented Eric. "What a useful Pokemon."

"You're buying lunch," added Entei.

"Now you know one of the reasons why Kitty is my favorite." Rose grinned, shoving handfuls of coins into her pockets. The Meowth leapt onto her shoulder and nuzzled against her face. "Not only is he the cutest little Pokemon ever, but he's practically a money machine."

"I hate to admit how much sense that makes," commented Jeremy, feeding his Golem a can of Soda Pop.

*****

"This isn't good," grumbled MissingNo as the two Glitches drifted across the ocean. "We shouldn't have let that professor get away."

"What cause have we for worry?" drawled 'M, his pixel pattern shifting slowly. "The world lies before us as an open box of candy, just waiting for us to select which piece we should devour first."

"But he did create us… obviously he must possess some intelligence. Suppose he thinks up a way to defeat us as well?"

"Hmm, I suppose you do have a point," mused 'M, his pixels dully glowing. "Knowing how we were created, he could possibly discover some flaw we've overlooked. That wouldn't do at all."

"So we should search him out and destroy him at once!" boomed MissingNo.

"That would be the fool's response. And I know you are not a fool."

"But we are much stronger than he is! We should crush him before he has the chance to hunt us down. And while we're at it, we should destroy that cursed laboratory where we were created. What if there's something still there that could be turned against us…?"

"The professor is surrounded by a unified team of Pokemon trainers with at least several strong creatures each. And don't forget that beastly Entei. Victory would be time-consuming at best."

"They tried and failed to defeat us once. If we strike now, before they can formulate a strategy…"

"They tried and failed to capture us, brother, not defeat us," 'M interrupted calmly. "And Cinnabar Island is the very last place I wish to visit... or didn't you get enough of Cinnabar while we were imprisoned there for so long? No, I have this situation well under control. Your worries are unnecessary."

"So I trust you've come up with a plan to deal with those trainers, then?" MissingNo asked, a hint of sarcasm in his voice.

"But of course I have," 'M's smooth voice continued. "Sow the seeds of dissent amongst this cozy little group of friends. Divide and conquer, driving them apart in anger. Once the professor is alone, we can easily move in and destroy him."

"I suppose you've even figured out how to do that," snapped MissingNo.

"This is my area of expertise, MissingNo. Your superior strength and power will be necessary later, once we have isolated the professor from his little companions. But until then, let me handle the details."

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