Bad Moon Rising

Chapter 9

Numbness.

Darkness.

Coldness.

Those were the only things James was aware of. His eyes were closed tightly, fearing that, if he opened his eyes, he would see that dream again, the same dream he had had before, the same one that has been haunting his unconcsious state. But even his closed eyes couldn't shield him from the screams and the pain and the blood in the dream.

Trying to push it away, he forced his thoughts to Butch and Cassidy. Once good friends of James and Jessie, and even Meowth. But they became distant with each other after something in Pokemon Tech.

What had happened in that school? He couldn't remember...

...But why did Giovanni want to see him? What was so important that he sent Butch and Cassidy to get him, with orders to bring James to him, even if it required brute force? Something was dreadfully wrong, he could sense it...

Unsolved mysteries...

He would have laughed at the pun, since the phrase he had thought of was also the title of a television show, but he couldn't...

Jess...

Where was Jessie? She was at the cabin, wasn't she? Or did she run away...for good...?

No, she wouldn't do that...

He wondered what she would do when she found out that he was gone. Maybe she would be glad...?

No no no...

She was crying over him...She was trying to help him...

Everything was so confusing...

Jessie...

Whatever Giovanni wanted with him...it couldn't be good. He hated Jessie, James, and Meowth with a passion...Maybe he finally had enough...maybe he wanted ot to eliminate them one by-

Stop it! That can't be it!

Could it...?

James' consciousness was slowly regained, and the numbness began to dissipate, leaving only pain in its wake. He shuddered violently, and his eyes open wearily, immediantly shutting them and turning his head away, as a bright light was shining on him. He could feel something hard and cold along his back, and he could smell people around him...

When he opened his eyes again, he had his head turned away from the light, only to find himself staring at a dark corner of the room. In fact, the entire room was shrouded in darkness, except for the light above the thing he lay on. He began to move, but couldn't. His legs and arms were strapped down by metal cuff-like things on the table, which he discovered a second later. His face paled as he realized what he was on.

A gurney. Almost like a hospital gurney, but was only used in some laboratories. And the ones in the labs almost always had the cuffs...

And Giovanni owned a lab inside his new Team Rocket HQ...

He blinked, and saw movement at where he was staring at. James gulped, then slowly called out, panic-stricken.

"H-Hello?! Who's there? Where am I...?"

And, after a brief pause, an all too familiar man stepped out of the shadows. Brownish-black hair slicked back and greasy, cold black eyes and a bony face, wearing the same orange suit he usually wore.

"Welcome to my headquarters, my...pet."

**********

Meowth had recovered quite quickly, and was now watching a panic-stricken Jessie grab and pack her clothes and such in a small red and orange backpack, an item she kept to remember her years in Pokemon Tech. Mondo was still unconcious, but Jessie had carried him to the couch and layed him down there. Victreebel and Weezing's pokeballs were now attatched to Jessie's belt, beside the pokeballs containing Arbok and Wobbuffet.

"We have to find him," Jessie continued to whisper frequently, ramming the little yen she had inside the backpack and zipping up the pockets. "We'll leave Mondo here...it's too dangerous..."

"Are youse sure about dis, Jess?" Meowth asked in a concerned voice. "Ya know Giovanni musta had a damn good reason to bring Jim to him like dat..."

"Your point is?" Jessie asked, shooting a hard glare at Meowth.

"Somethin's up...," the cat replied, shaking his head. "I don' think da Boss just wants to see him cuz of somethin' our team did. He's call us all for dat...and if he wanted Botch and Cass to bring Jim to him, even if it meant knockin' him out cold, he was desperate for somethin'...and youse know he hates us...he hardly ever needs us for somethin'..."

Jessie froze, and a small thought crept into her mind, spawning millions of others. "But what...? And...," she gulped, "how did he know...where we were staying at?"

Meowth paused, also realizing that. How did Giovanni know? Jessie, James, and Meowth had constantly been moving around, always on the twerps' trail, and they rarely kept in touch with Giovanni.

But what about the countless times Meowth thought he heard something in the woods, watching them, leering at them dangerously, waiting...both before and after James' attack...?

The cat's eyes widened and he opened his mouth to say something, but found that Jessie was already gone. She had bolted through the door, not waiting for Meowth's response. She was too worried, and she could no longer stall, for she knew that every second she wasted took its toll on James' life.

Meowth nodded silently and took off after her, looking back at Mondo worriedly before locking the door behind him.

**********

"Your...pet...?"

James stared at Giovanni in disbelief. His body was shaking, and his eyes were wide, showing his fear clearly. He could see something...inhuman in his eyes...and the beast inside him stirred and shook under the man's glare.

"Yes, you are my pet...," Giovanni said with a smirk, walking up to the table with a grin. "My...creation. Well, part of you is..."

James froze. "You can't mean..."

"Yes, yes I do..."

Giovanni leaned against the table, a pleased look on his face as he watched the younger man writhe and squirm in his bindings, both in fear, to get away, and in instinct that was not his own. The boss smiled widely, showing his teeth...

...his fangs...

James' heart seemed to stop, and he began to pull at his bindings harder, wanting to get away, wanting to leave, wanting to run back to Jessie and Meowth and stay there, to believe this was just a dream gone wrong.

Yeah...that's it. I'll just wake up from this dream and everything will be fine...

James closed his eyes tightly, then opened them again, but his heart dropped. Everything was the same...he was in the same room, on the same gurney, blinded by the same light, and staring at the same Giovanni.

This was a nightmare come true...

Giovanni smirked and rubbed his chin, as if in thought. It was then that James noticed the hooked claws he had...

"Why...am I here...?" James whispered.

"You are the weakling of Team Rocket," the boss whispered loudly, turning away and smirking. "A likely victim...You couldn't fight back when I attacked..."

"Jessie...killed you, then..."

"No no no, she tried to kill me. Surely you've seen how we Werewolves heal very quickly? Only mortal flesh wounds will kill us..."

James fell silent. Giovanni cackled lightly, turning to face him with a venemous look in his eyes.

"You're a good fighter, although you don't show it. Well...you aren't, but that Lycanthrope inside you is...You will fight a good fight..."

"...Fight...?"

"For me, of course. You'll help me fulfill my wish..."

"What...wish?"

"Oh, nothing, I'll just be taking over Kanto pretty soon...with your help. Then Johto..." The man paused. "...For the sake of bringing the world to my mercy... All will obey me and me only. All who oppose, will be killed on the spot...by an inhuman force..."

James gulped. "I...I...I won't help you..."

"Oh, but you have no choice," Giovanni responded with a throaty growl. He placed one clawed finger against James' neck, drawing blood. The scent flew up to James' nose, and the hunger inside arose. "You see, I can make you do it..."

James gave a small squeak and closed his eyes, feeling a sudden wave of depression. He paused, then gulped.

I'm sorry, Jessie...

**********

Mondo stirred slowly, looking around the room he was in in a confused daze. He blinked a couple of times, and felt pain overwhelm him as he tried to move. Instead, he stayed on the couch, which he had no idea how he got on in the first place.

He was still in the cabin, and Ditto was sleeping beside his head, still out cold. Yet, Jessie and Meowth were nowhere in sight.

Where...?

Slowly, Mondo forced himself into a sitting position, looking around worriedly before he stood up and began to search the house, fighting the pain off, but there was nobody there...

But Mondo knew where they had gone...It was all too obvious...

The younger boy looked at the clock, amazed to see that it was only three in the morning. Yawning slightly, he shook his head and hurried to wake up Ditto.