[X] My Assistant

[Kamaitachi]

Unsure as to how to go about waiting for Sera, Regan parked herself on a nearby bus-stop bench, flipping up the discarded newspaper to mostly conceal her face. She kept peeping over the top at the bar, then over at the Pokenav.

The little blip appeared on Regan's screen, which indicated that...Sera was in Noverus. Irritated, she flipped around the various applications on the Pokenav, not really finding much of use, until she got back to the tracking device that the Rebellion had installed. After fidgeting with it for a few moments, she realized that all she had to do was zoom in.

After a few taps on the screen, it pulled down to a street map, which then indicated that Sera was now on the move. Looking up, she saw the hat that indicated that Sera was disappearing. Cursing under her breath, she rolled the paper up and tucked it under her arm as she hustled towards Sera and the man she was tailing. Regan couldn't quite make out which man Sera was tailing...which was probably a good sign. It made it look less like she was following someone who was following someone.

The tailing seemed to be going well for a little bit, as Vincent showed absolutely no signs of knowing that two women were following him to his night shift. With any luck, it would remain that way until they figured out where the warehouse was.

Though Regan couldn't see it happen, Vincent stopped suddenly, looking over to his right, then his left. Taking a moment to look around furtively, he then ducked down an alleyway, heading directly into a back-alley.

When Sera would arrive at the intersection, he would be nowhere in sight.

[rt117]

For all the girl could tell, things were going along smoothly. The man she was trying to follow discreetly did not turn around to see that he was being followed by the woman, and with any luck she could actually succeed in the first part of their mission to recover Regan's Pokemon from Magma's clutches. That was, until with a sudden turn her target disappeared from sight. Following the movement, she found that the man, Vincent, was nowhere to be seen.

"Damn it."

Upon this realization, Sera stopped in her tracks, glancing about the alleyway with a small frown. It felt like a scene from some horror movie, where the protagonist walked forth through a creepy, seemingly abandoned alleyway, only to have some vicious attacker leap out from the shadows to grab at her. This wasn't a movie however, but the threat of having some attacker come out of nowhere was all too real. Especially if the man had wised up to being followed, and decided to deal with the 'problem', being her.

If only she had a Flying Pokemon, or even her Pichu to follow the man, then at least there would be more than one pair of eyes to keep watch of her target. Unfortunately her only option had been left with her new friend, for the girl had feared being caught awhile back, and losing her Pokemon with barely any attempt to fight for them.

However that was not the case, and the girl soon found herself by herself, or so she thought. Little had she realized that she was being tailed by her new friend, stalking the stalker. Slowly she began to proceed forward once again with a hastened pace, in hopes of perhaps catching up to Vincent before losing him all together.

[Kamaitachi]

Regan watched as the blip trembled on her map, indicating that Sera had taken time to pause. Not sure as to what it meant, the good Doctor bundled a little tighter and increased her pace.

As Sera picked up her own pace, a figure backed up in front of her, startled. Vincent Alto looked quite suprised as he zipped up his fly, evidently having relieved himself in the alley itself. Narrowly avoiding Sera, he managed to yelp:

"Hey, watch yourself!"

Taking a step back, he sized her up, gawking for a moment at her.

"Uh...what're you doing in this alleyway?"

At that moment, Regan rounded the corner, made a strangled 'meep' sort of noise before disappearing. Perhaps she'd given herself away, but she tucked herself next to a dumpster, out of Vincent's line of sight. She reached into her purse, drawing the Pokeball for Sera's Charmeleon and her own Skitty, prepping to summon them into the alley if Sera found herself in trouble.

"This here's a Magma shortcut. Ain't nobody uses this alleyway unless they're coming into our territory."

He scrutinzed her once more, before stepping back another pace.

"Kadabra!"

As Regan heard the name of a Pokemon, she muttered to the two pokeballs: "Charmeleon, Iofi. Go get him."

"Use Telekinesis!"

The Psychic Fox-looking pokemon raised her spoon to Sera, raising the young trainer into the air with her telekinetic prowess. A confident smirk appeared on Vincent's face as he watched his new prey lifted into the air before him. "See if you can't get any of her Pokemon off of her, Kada-oof!"

Regan's sparkling Skitty seemingly appeared from the shadows behind Alto, slamming her tail into the back of his knees, causing him to buckle instantly. Iofi had lived her entire life as an alley cat, and she knew the way to move about, and she knew the best way to take down a human.

As Kadabra turned her attention to her downed trainer, she left herself wide open to the unnoticed threat of Sera's Charmeleon behind her.

[rt117]

Quickly raising her hands, Sera immediately backed off, trying to fake the impression that she was lost. "Hey, take it easy! I just made a wrong turn is all!" she spoke, trying to convince the man that she had not been following him around the entire time. For a moment it appeared as if the girl were off the hook, the man perhaps not a seasoned veteran as the girl had feared. Her heart dropped however, as a command from the Magma grunt revealed a Kadabra from seemingly out of nowhere, an intense pressure running through her body as the girl was lifted by the psychic force. Sera winced at the strength of the force, which was clearly intended on keeping her from resisting the search for her Pokemon.

In a blur, the commanding trainer was knocked over by what appeared to be a small Skitty, which caused enough of a commotion for the Kadabra to glance over, forgetting about the suspended girl for a moment. A small fire caught Sera's attention from the corner of her eyes, and as she struggled to turn her head, saw her Charmeleon standing there, fangs visible from the Fire Pokemon's snarl upon seeing his trainer in distress.

"Cinder...use...Rock Smash..." Sera winced, finding even the act of speech a chore in the clutches of Telekinesis. The Charmeleon needed no excuse to rush toward the opposing Kadabra, right arm glowing white as outstretched and slammed the glowing fist into the turning Kadabra's abdomen.

Thrown back by the force of the attack, the Psychic Pokemon was forced to release Sera from her psychic grasp, dropping the girl to the ground underneath. Falling on her rear, Sera pushed herself up slowly, feeling a bit disoriented after having been lifted and then dropped. She recovered quickly however, arms crossed as she glared at the man who had called on the attack.

"Who do you think you are, trying to steal MY Pokemon, or anyone's for that matter?" she demanded, making a determined stride straight at the fallen Magma Grunt, ignoring for the moment that his Kadabra was still active, or that Regan was even present. The very thought of having her Pokemon taken away by such a man had set the girl off, and she was not ready to let him simply walk away. Not until they got what they needed.

[Kamaitachi]

Vincent Alto sat back up after finding regaining his footing on the ground. Regan's colourful little Skitty pranced around him mockingly; most grown men did not take kindly to being grounded by tiny kittens.

"Who am I? Grunt Level II. Callsign: Punk." He remained on the floor, sneering up at Sera as she stood over him. "You know what that means?"

Behind Sera, Kadabra had regained her footing. Stretching out her arm, clasping the spoon tightly, she channeled her formidable psychic energy into her weapon of choice. With a flourish, a beam shot out, like a bolt from a magic wand. The psybeam lanced out like a laser, sending a continuous stream of psychic energy at Cinder, then slicing across the wall before aiming at Sera's back.

"It means you're in a world of hurt, little girl." the man growled as his Pokemon's attack swept the field, hoping to hit all enemies present.

"Iofi! Doubleslap!"

Regan's voice rang through the alleyway, even as she remained ducked behind the safety of the dumpster to avoid the potent psybeam. Her Skitty made a defiant 'nyan!' noise before leaping up to meet Vincent's face with her tail repeatedly. The doubleslap sent the man reeling back to the floor, furious. He grabbed out at Iofi a few times while the latter simply skipped around his fumbling grasp.

[rt117]

"I think you underestimate me." Sera frowned, trying to maintain some appearance of confidence, as deep down she couldn't help but shake a bit. Never before had she been this close to danger, apart from when she had been helping her friend against Magma before. But then she had never really put herself into harm's way, not when he had been the focus of attention. This time though, it would appear that the girl would have to be the more intimidating of the pair.

Barely avoiding the lancing Psybeam, Cinder only managed to look up in time to see the sweeping attack strike through at Sera's back. The girl winced, eyes widening before she fell forward, crumpling down to her knees. There was a visible patch of black on her back where the attack had struck, a feint waft of smoke rising from the injury.

The Fire Pokemon shook, watching his trainer fall. Never before had he seen her in pain, in such danger. The look on her face, the scorched mark against her back, all of it was too much for him.

Deep down, somewhere in his draconic lineage, something snapped. Eyes snapping open, the Charmeleon's entire form began to glow a violent red, matching the steadily changing colour of his eyes. In a heartbeat he stormed forward, claws lashing out to strike at the attacking Kadabra with a level of fury that Sera had never seen before. She watched with sheer surprise as the rampaging Charmeleon proceeded to slash, and then slam the Psychic Pokemon against the wall of the building, before turning on her owner, storming forward toward the grunt.

Despite her pain, Sera knew that she couldn't allow her own Pokemon to harm another, even though such a thing had just happened. As Cinder strode past her, she threw herself onto her Pokemon, trying to calm him down before he could cause more harm. Though she had never seen it before, she knew that her Charmeleon had a Dragon Pokemon for a father, which could mean that, for the first time, Cinder had experienced the infamous Outrage attack.

[Kamaitachi]

At this point, Regan could not afford to remain in hiding any further. She had proven useful to the Rebellion as a doctor, and now she would do her part by playing the role of Field Medic. Emerging from her hiding place, she pulled out Charmeleon's Pokeball, initiating the recall beam before moving quickly over to Sera as the girl fell to the ground again.

"Iofi, knock him out! Use sing!"

The Skitty gleefully let loose into a soothing, meowing melody. Vincent Alto's eyes clouded for a moment before he slumped back down to the ground, snoring gently.

Regan knelt next to her injured new comrade, pulling out a small first aid kit from her purse. Lifting the back of Sera's shirt, she examined the spot where the Psybeam had hit. Psychic scarring of the tissue was not dissimilar to cell necrosis. She instantly set about cleaning the wound, whipping out several of her materials in a flurry of precise movements. Regan's expertise as a doctor shone brightly as she worked without wasting a single movement. Within moments, the wounded area was clean, and Regan was applying an anti-bacterial salve to prevent the affected wound from becoming infected.

"There, there" she spoke softly as her quick treatment of Sera continued. "It'll sting a bit, but you'll be okay."

Iofi moved over, in the mean time, nuzzling up to Sera's face in a show of affectionate concern, her normally happy Skitty features radiating with worry.

"Nyaaa..."

Regan moved back into a kneeling position, handing Sera her pokeballs.

"Well...this part of the mission hasn't gone as planned. I suppose...we can wake him up and use one of my Pokemon to tail him as he retreats?" She seemed unsure of herself, not quite sure how to proceed with the mission, now that she'd gotten her partner injured.

[rt117]

Sera winced with pain every now and then, doing the best she could to remain still and allow her partner to help with her injuries. Fortunately Regan's Skitty proved to be helpful, as her affectionate rubs made Sera unable to help but smile, rubbing the Pokemon's cheek with her fingers to show that she would be okay.

"Hey now... I'll be alright. I'm glad to have a brave friend like you to help me." she told the Skitty with a hushed voice, offering a genuine smile. In her mind she was still a bit concerned about the state of her Charmeleon, but that would have to wait for now, when they didn't have an unconscious man to deal with.

She had not wanted anyone to get hurt in this mission. Even though the man was an agent of Magma, he was still a human being. And as much as she would have wanted him to pay for all the misdeeds he might have committed to Pokemon and their trainers, having her own Pokemon attack him physically wouldn't make her any better than him.

"Thanks...I'm really sorry about messing that up." Sera admitted, rubbing the back of her head. "I never expected Cinder to use Outrage... I've never seen him so worked up over anything..." Glancing back over to the unconscious Magma agent, she listened to Regan's suggestion before putting her Pokeballs away.

"That might be dangerous. It could be too easy to spot a following Pokemon, and if they get captured... Well... let's not think about that." It was then she remembered the Ledyba pin, which was still hidden on her person. She removed it from its hiding place, before examining the unconscious figure once more.

"We could plant this on him... At least that way we can maintain a greater distance, which should prevent a similar incident. Not to mention it'll look a lot less like we're following him if we don't have to take the same route."

This post has been edited by rt117: Aug 29 2013, 03:58 PM

[Kamaitachi]

As Regan settled back to her feet, she eyed her newish Skitty Companion for a moment. The sparkling little kitty offered something in the form of psychological comfort for the wounded. While she had been questioning the nature of the capture, as well as the utility on her team, she noted that Iofi was officially now a welcome member.

It was a shame she had to involve the little therapist in a war.

"There is nothing to apologize for. He would not have used such an attack if he didn't think it was the best means with which to protect you. As much as I dislike the tactic, his reasoning is understandable. You're lucky to have such a powerful and devoted guardian, especially in times like these."

As Tikal made the suggestion about the Ledyba pin, Regan found herself nodding earnestly at the girl's ingenuity. In the chaos of the battle, the doctor had completely forgotten the very existence of the Ledyba Pin, which would now serve as the lynchpin in the continuation of the operation.

"That's a brilliant plan." Regan neatly plucked the pin from Sera and gently placed it into Vincent's Pocket, deep down at the bottom so it wouldn't accidentally fall out.

"Let's retreat for now, and mark the location of the base. We'll want to go at a time when he's not there, so he won't recognize us outright. I'll contact my friends to see if they have any intel-...information regarding his schedule."

* * *

Finding a fairly inconspicuous bus-stop bench, Regan and Sera settled down for a moment. The former typed in slowly into her PokeNav in order to communicate with her clandestine 'friends'. Sadly, she typed fairly slowly. "Damn technology" could be just barely heard as the older woman attempted to send yet another message.

Finally, Regan perked up.

"They've located the warehouse from the pin; he was at that location for roughly half an hour before they sent him home, and he headed right back to the bar...so that must be our spot."

She stood, clutching her purse to her side as she looked resolutely at Sera.

"Are you feeling ready? I don't want you overexerting yourself, given your injury."

[rt117]

"Don't worry about me, I'll be all right." Sera replied, looking over at Regan with a nod. While the scarring on her back still burned when she moved around, it was far better than when the wound was fresh. The smell of the damaged tissue having caused her to gag a bit as it smelled like it was burnt. But it was time to put that behind her, for now they had an important task at hand.

She pulled out one of her Pokeballs, glancing at it in thought for a moment. Hopefully Cinder would have calmed down by now. After all, Outrage was known to take quite awhile to initiate before the Pokemon succumbed to Confusion. The trainer was just thankful that he had been recalled in time, before he hurt himself or someone else. She would have to dedicate some time later on to help the fire type become more accustomed to using that move, as while it was dangerous, it was quite powerful.

"I'm ready to go whenever you are." Sera smiled, putting her Pokeball away. "I'm assuming it's just going to be us two making the rescue, or will you have any friends helping out as well?" she questioned. After all, the woman had been on her PokeNav for quite some time. Surely it couldn't have just been because of her slow typing.

The girl wouldn't admit it, but the plan made her feel a bit nervous. They guy they had encountered in the alleyway wasn't a really big challenge, at least not as big as a few trainers she had battled before. However his willingness to have his Pokemon attack another person did make her a bit uneasy. After all, they could end up encountering more serious Magma trainers at the warehouse, with even more powerful Pokemon in there than she had seen.

She'd have to try though, for the sake of her friend's Cleffa.

[Kamaitachi]

"It is most unfortunate, but it's just us. None of the friends are available to help. Apparently, we're spread quite thin." Regan sighed, then caught herself. She had hoped to have been a bit more cryptic about the Rebellion, but her speech had probably been revealing the fact that these 'friends' weren't really friends, especially when referred to as "The" friends rather than "my" friends.

"I'm not much of a fighter, and I'm loathe to leave all of it up to you...we'll have to be a bit sneakier if we can help it. I fear the usual 'steal the uniform' bit really only works in fantasy, so we'll have to formulate a good plan when we get there."

* * *

After a brief constitutional, Regan and Sera arrived at the warehouse. There were no patrols in the area, which made things markedly easier getting around.

"According to my intel, there are 3 Grunt Level Magma and One Elite. I believe I've met this Elite before; he's the one who has my dear Cleffa."

She scanned the building, peering from their position, looking for any form of access or ingress that could be gained.

"There. The warehouse loading dock is probably the biggest door, and the loudest entry. There's a side door next to it, but I'm assuming one needs a password to enter, due to the little number pad next to it."

She glanced over at Sera, processing all of the information as she spoke it out loud. "I'm hesitant to have a decoy; we'll need all our combined strength to get in and out, especially since it is only we two. Any ideas, Sera?"

[rt117]

Unfamiliar with this sort of scenario, Sera scratched the back of her head, trying to think about their possibilities. She was right about having a decoy, and even then the last thing they wanted was to alert the others of their presence. Especially when it could result in more patrols, and more difficulty in the task at hand. They would have to advance as quietly as possible.

"Maybe if we fry the number pad that opens the door, it'll unlock the door and let us in." the girl suggested, not a hundred percent sure herself if this would work. It seemed like something that would only work in the movies. In real life, perhaps not. Still they didn't have many options present at the time.

"Let's go check it out. Maybe while we're there we could find another way in." Sera decided, quietly hurrying along, keeping to the wall and trying to avoid the windows. There were supposed to be four Magma members present, and without knowing where exactly they were, it would be dangerous to be out in the open for too long.

She dug out one of her Pokeballs, revealing her Dratini in a white silouette. The small dragon nuzzled against her leg, the trainer replying by placing a hand on the long serpentine Pokemon's head.

"Can you use Thunder Wave on the keypad to try and open the door?" she asked the Pokemon quietly. With a small nod, the Dratini slithered over to the lock, wrapping her tail around the device as best as she could. Her body became encased in a blue glow, as electricity coursed through her form, pouring into the small pad.

[Kamaitachi]

Sera's plan sounded like something straight out of a spy movie. The Doubting Thomas permantly inhabiting part of Regan's mind sounded out fiercely against the plan. Sighing, she took a moment to remind herself that she lived in a world where gigantic creatures could fit in little capsules inside her purse. She, herself, had no expertise in electronic lockpicking, so the tiny serpentine dragon had roughly equal chance of success.

To her surprise, the lock beeped, indicating that the door had been unlocked. However, the lock made an awful shorting noise before powering down, forcing Regan to clamp her mouth shut to keep from letting out a shrill cry of surprise. She peered into the door, noting that no one had noticed their entry; either this warehouse was not one that was broken into often, or the people manning the station were incredibly dense.

She signalled for Sera to enter after her, and the two took a crouching position behind one of the counters. Looking over at the supposed four operatives, Regan only noted three. They were grunt level scientists it appeared. Much like Regan, they were probably not too strong in Pokemon battling.

All around the room, several shelves lined with Pokeballs, most likely of stolen pokemon sat imposingly. The scientists were hard at work on the computers, most likely decoding the encryptions for trainer ids, allowing new trainers to be assigned.

"Ok...we need to incapacitate the three scientists without damaging the equipment. Two of my Pokemon know Sing, so I'll use that to knock them out for a spell. When that happens, the Elite should come running. I'll leave it to you to engage him while I use the computer to locate my Pokemon.

If we can take them all out, I can call for backup: we can retake all of the stolen Pokemon and return them to their trainers. I would like very much if we were able to do that; I can't abide the thought that other people's Pokemon are in their nasty clutches.

The Elite in question...I've faced him before. Last I faced him, he had a Sneasel, a Persian, an Ursaring...and some pokemon that could use Ghost attacks; I didn't get quite a good enough look."

Regan looked to Sera for approval, but knew that there time in that one spot was growing more dangerous by the moment. Regan reached into her purse, procuring two pokeballs. Not deft enough with her hands to summon both in one, she clumsily enlarged them one in each hand.

"Uri. Iofi. Use Sing as soon as you emerge." She whispered to the pokeballs before rolling them over towards the scientists.

One scientist looked down at the pokeballs confused, glancing over at the shelves to see if any had fallen off. The three were caught entirely by surprise as Regan's Minccino and Skitty appeared, bursting into a song with joyful looks on their faces. Two slumped to the ground, but one clamped his hands over his ears, yelling for back up.

Immediately, the Magma Elite ran into the room, spotting the two Pokemon by the scientists. He brushed a hand through his dark red hair before pulling up his hood. His other hand snapped to his Pokeball belt, throwing two pokeballs out.

"Ria, J'zargo. Get them out of there!"

Blasting out of their portable homes, the Elite's Sneasel and Persian sped out like twin blurs, easily batting aside Regan's two smaller Pokemon.

"It's up to you." Regan grimaced "Draw his attention...I'll take on the other scientist."

Go ahead and run your battle with the Elite. His pokemon are Ria (Sneasel), J'zargo (Persian), Volstag (Ursaring), and Illia (Yamask).

[rt117]

"Three versus four? Great..." Sera sighed to herself, before pushing away from her hiding spot to confront the Elite, already holding a pair of Pokeballs in hand. The man was an Elite for a reason, so if she wanted to have even a chance at winning, she would have to pull off every strategy she could think of, specifically using group attacks to pick off one at a time.

"Cinder, Ryu, let's go!"

Tossing forth her capsules, her Charmeleon and Dratini appeared in bright flashes of light to 'greet' their opponents. Cinder had apparently recovered from the confusion brought on by his Outrage, and was once more battle ready. The Elite simply smiled, before tossing his hand out in a commanding fashion:

"Ria, J'zargo, get rid of these pests. Use Quick Attack!"

As fast as they appeared on the scene, they quickly dashed forth into the fray with blinding speed, quick to get up close and personal with their opponents. Never before had Sera seen Pokemon move so fast. Not even Spark, the fastest of her party, could hope to keep up with their pace. They would have to be slowed down if she hoped to land a hit.

"Ryu, use Thunder Wave and stop them in their tracks, but try not to hit the machines!" Sera called, As both her Pokemon were struck by the simultaneous Quick Attacks, the girl's Dratini began to glow a light blue, powered by her electrical energy. Bolts arced out from her form, the Pokemon trying to control them to prevent damaging the machines. While the Persian was struck and paralyzed, the attack's reduced area allowed for the Sneasel to slip by, claws exposed as it swiped viciously at Ryu.

"Cinder, use Mud Slap and blind the Sneasel!" Sera added, her fire Pokemon running in to help his ally. A ball of mud formed in one of his claws, which he launched forth at the Sneasel, and landing a direct hit. Stumbling back, the Sneasel was quick to recover, somehow capable of fighting despite having a face full of mud. Seeing the girl's confusion, the Elite simply laughed.

"That's Ria's ability, Keen Eye. It prevents her from being blinded by Pokemon attacks." he explained, a smug look on his face. "Now, Faint Attack!" During the confusion of the lack of accuracy loss, the Elite's Sneasel had somehow snuck in behind Sera's Charmeleon, and without warning landed a powerful swipe at the back of the Charmeleon's head. The girl gritted her teeth at the dirty move, and as her Pokemon attempted to swing back, the Sneasel simply darted out of the way, before striking again. It was too fast for her Dratini to paralyze it, but perhaps there was another option.

"Ryu, trap that Sneasel with Whirlpool!" A vortex of water arose from the Dragon Pokemon as she lifted up her tail, the source of the Whirlpool, before launching it forward. As the Sneasel dove in to make another strike at Sera's Charmeleon, it became caught in the Whirlpool, which tossed it around in around within the rushing water, dizzying it.

"All right! Now Cinder, use Rock Smash, and follow up with Ember!" As the Whirlpool faded and dropped the Sneasel (who stumbled about, disoriented), Cinder stepped forward, one of his claws glowing a bright white, before bringing it down onto the Sneasel's head, in retaliation for the earlier Faint Attack. While not a powerful move normally, the foe's typing allow for the attack's damage to be quadrupled, becoming much more potent. Gripping its head in agony, the Sneasel stumbled back, only to receive a finishing Ember to the face, knocking it out on the spot. Recalling his Sneasel, the Elite frowned at the young trainer before him.

"All right missy, no more playing games. Go get them Volstag!" Replacing the small sneaky Sneasel was a massive tank of an Ursaring, glaring down at the young trainer and her Pokemon. Letting out a small snort, the bear-like Pokemon brandished its long sharp claws, awaiting its trainer's instruction.

"J'zargo, break through your paralysis and use Hyper Voice, Volstag use Double Edge!" the Elite commanded. The still paralyzed Persian, which had been been stuck in its condition since the start of the fight, suddenly opened its mouth to let out a horrendous screech, causing Ryu to cringe, and both Sera and Cinder to hold their heads in pain. The powerful Ursaring charged forward, seeming to ignore it's partner's attack, before smashing into Ryu, sending her slamming straight into Sera. The pair crashed against the counter behind them, before falling to the ground. The Dratini turned to look at her trainer in worry. Sera winced, but managed to smile in assurance at her Dragon companion. They both then looked at the Ursaring, more determined now than before. It seemed as if the carelessness of attacking trainers ran in the group, though in this case it was an indirect strike.

Allowing the Dratini to slide off her lap, Sera slowly stood back up, noticing her Charmeleon had turned to look at his trainer as well, the same look of concern in his eyes that he held during the fight against the Kadabra. Though rather than fly off into Outrage, he simply watched, uncertain what to do. Back on her feet, she smiled at Cinder, before giving him a thumbs up.

"We're not going down that easily. Ryu, Wrap up the Ursaring! Cinder, use Metal Claw and deal with Persian!" Ryu slithered forward, using her serpentine body to dodge the oncoming swipes from the big angry bear, before wrapping her entire form around him in an attempt to bind him. Meanwhile Cinder and J'zargo fought in hand to hand combat, the Persian having some difficulty in deflecting the attacks with Fury Swipes due to the paralysis.

"J'zargo, get away from that Charmeleon and finish off the Dratini with Icy Wind!" the Elite called out, seeing that despite the power of his Ursaring, he was unable to break free from the Wrap. Swiping one last time at Cinder, the large cat jumped back, before releasing a blast of cold wind at the entangled pair, hitting both target and ally. Ryu, who had already been weakened by the powerful Double Edge attack, dropped off of Volstag almost immediately, rendered unconscious by the super effective attack. Recalling her Pokemon, Sera was quick to call upon Spark, who at the sight of the Ursaring, was about ready to tremble with fear.

"You can do this Spark, I have faith in you." Sera whispered quietly to her Pokemon, in hopes that he would hear her words. The small electrical mouse stared back up at her with his big wide eyes, before responding with a nod of determination, turning to face the foe that was many times his own size.

"Now Spark, Cinder, finish off Persian! Thundershock and Ember!" Upon her command, both Pokemon struck with all the force they possessed, aiming the Electric and Fire attacks at the Persian, who was still stunned by the paralysis. Having been exhausted by the status condition since the start of the fight, it didn't take much for the cat to become knocked out like its predecessor. Once more the Elite moved fluently, recalling his unconscious Pokemon and replacing it with his next team member, the last in his lineup. Replacing the Persian was a ghostly figure, hovering above the ground as it carried a mask in its tail-like appendage.

"Illia, use Curse to weaken that Charmeleon, then follow it up with Ominous Wind!" The Elite commanded, paying no attention to the puny Pichu that attempted to fight. The Yamask's eyes began to glow intensely, a sharp red light surrounding her Charmeleon. The Pokemon suddenly began to write in pain, causing the trainer to call out in panic. "Cinder! What's wrong!"

Before the Pokemon could react, it was hit by the opponent's Ominous Wind, knocking him to the ground. The girl reached for his Pokeball, which she stopped to see her Charmeleon slowly get back onto his feet, determined not to give up. He wiped his lower lip with the back of his claw, before spitting a torrent of embers at the Yamask. The Ghost Pokemon deftly dodged the attack, before dancing forward and striking with Night Shade. Cinder barely sidestepped the attack, the flames on his tail growing quite large and aggressive. Sera remembered seeing that before, back in the alleyway, before her Pokemon went into Outrage.

"Cinder...please... dont hurt yourself." Sera frowned, the effects of Curse still whittling away his health. As Illia drifted in close enough to deliver another attack, Cinder suddenly burst forth, jaws snapping at the startled Pokemon. He managed to clamp down on the tail appendage of the Ghost, delivering a powerful Bite attack in his anger. He then began to shake his head like a vicious Croconaw, shaking the smaller Pokemon around before tossing it away, following the attack with an Ember, boosted from his low health. The Yamask wobbled back, unprepared for the final strike by the enraged fire lizard. Running forward, the Charmeleon released from his mouth a bright blue ball of flame, strangely shaped like a dragon, jaws snapping at the Yamask. The Pokemon was briefly engulfed by the flame, before dropping to the floor, knocked out. Cinder stood for only a few seconds longer, before collapsing, the attack taking the last of his strength.

"Cinder!" Sera called out, running over toward her fallen Pokemon. He laid on his stomach, the flame on his tail having died down as he fainted. She placed her hand gingerly on his forehead, before pulling out his capsule and recalling him. "Rest well..."

Standing back up, she looked down to her Pichu, who stood by her side, cheeks crackling with electricity. "Alright Spark... it's up to you. Let's show them what you've got with Thunder Wave!" Spark crouched down, releasing a blast of electricity at the large imposing form of Volstag. While the attack did hit, the Pokemon simply grunted, scratching his chest as if barely feeling the attack.

"Our turn! Volstag, use Fury Swipes!" Stomping forward, the Ursaring reached out with its claws, in an attempt to grab and crush the small Pichu.

"Spark, using Substitute to evade, and follow with Charm!"

The Ursaring grabbed the Pichu with his long claws, proceeding to squeeze him. It was only then did the Pokemon glance at the small figure in confusion, as it vanished in his grasp with a puff of smoke. He then felt something moving around his feet, and as he glanced down, saw the petite form of Pichu, pressing up against his fur and staring into his eyes with a large saddened expression. The great bear was taken back by the sudden change, almost reconsidering striking the small Pokemon.

"Volstag! What are you doing? Get that Pichu!" The Elite called, impatient with his Pokemon.

"Great job Spark, now follow up with Tickle!"

Digging around in his fur, the small Pichu proceeded to poke and prod various parts of the Ursaring's body with his tail, causing the bear to fall to the ground, letting out rumbling roars of laughter. Upon falling to the ground, the Pichu quickly jumped off the larger Pokemon, frying it with a Thundershock. This snapped the Ursaring out of its laughter, and as it finally rose back up, the Elite commanded it to use a Take Down.

Both Spark and Sera had to jump out of the way to avoid the attack, the Pokemon smashing into the table that she had previously been tossed into. Seeing the Pokemon wince as it collided with the furniture, something popped into her mind. "Spark, try using Encore!"

Clapping his hands together, a small white ball of light formed in the Pichu's stubby hands, which he sent forth at the Ursaring. The target was suddenly sparkling with white light, and every time it tried to attack, the Pokemon was forced to use a Take Down, which the Pichu could easily dodge because of his speed. The Pokemon would continue this several times, each time crashing into a pillar or table, as Sera kept an eye on her partner's progress. After the final Take Down, the large bear began to wobble, the numerous collisions having taken its toll on the powerful Pokemon.

"Spark, let's wrap this up! Thundershock!"

Channeling all of his focus into the attack, the Pichu let out a powerful Thundershock, zapping the rest of the energy out of the Ursaring, and putting it in its place.

"Volstag!" The Elite called out, seeing his strongest Pokemon collapse. Forced to recall his Pokemon, he glared at the Pichu and his trainer, a snarl on his face. "No matter... I'll take care of you two without Pokemon then!" With that, he pulled out what appeared to be a long silver baton, sparks of electricity jumping from the edge as he advanced on the two, intent on subduing the intruders on his own.

"Spark, stop him with Thunder Wave!" she called, quickly running to protect her Pokemon. With a quick zap of electricity, the Magma Elite was paralyzed by the jolt of lightning, meant to keep him in place until the other members of Regan's group to arrive. Hugging her small Pokemon, Sera couldn't help but smile. "I knew you could do it! See what a little practice can do?"

The Pichu grinned and nuzzled against his trainer, but the small celebration was short lived, as a scent caught the young Pokemon's attention. Nose in the air, he jumped from his trainer's arms, running to the shelf of Pokeballs that lined the one wall, fortunately undisturbed from the fight. He poked his head from Pokeball to Pokeball, stopping at a small cluster. He took a whiff of them, before letting out panicked cries, waving his hands over at his trainer. Following behind him, Sera knelt down to look at the Pokeballs, each one having the same small 'V' scratched into their tops.

"Could it be?" she wondered, picking them up, before turning to Regan. "Hey... can you use that machine to find out who these belong to?" she asked, wondering if the Pichu had found his long lost friends.

[Kamaitachi]

"Uh, Uh, Uh."

The scientist stammered as Sera burst from her cover, engaging the Elite, who appeared to be the only real guard, given that "Punk" had been sent home early. He fumbled about for his pair of pokeballs, quickly summoning a Magnemite and a Whismur.

"Sing." Regan rose from behind the counter, drawing the scientist's attention as she did so. As he turned, Uri and Iofi both burst into song once more. The Magnemite, clearly affected, fell to the ground with a dull thud.

Whismur, on the otherhand, seemed quite unperturbed. Regan summized that the attack had missed, which in a sense was correct. While she quickly opted to take it on with force, the Scientist clearly had other plans.

"Whismur, Uproar!"

The raucous screech emitted from the tiny little puffball of a Pokemon seemed to radiate out it sonic waves. Bowling her two Pokemon over, an errant blast of sound seemed to have also struck the sleeping Magnemite, causing it to rise back up into the air. The little one-eyed magnet man sparked dangerously before flying forward, slamming into Regan's Pokemon hard. The two fell to the ground, struggling for a moment. It appeared that the Scientist's Pokemon were probably of a higher level than hers.

"Tail Slap! Doubleslap!" Regan called for the attacks, aiming at the Whismur, who appeared to be able to counteract the sleep-inducting with Uproar.

But, as they got close, the Uproar blasts from Whismur smacked them head on, stopping them dead in their tracks. Within that moment of hesitation, the Magnemite sped in once more, sparks flying from his metallic body. Regan's pokemon cried out in pain as they fell to the ground, the contact electricity running along their bodies.

Regan bit her lip in consternation, watching as her Pokemon fell to the floor once more.

The scientist in question watched Regan's Pokemon earnestly, before sizing up his opponent. A small smirk crossed his face as he adjusted his collar. Oddly, though, he politely waited for Regan to issue her next command.

"Uri, Wake Up Slap Magnemite! Iofi! Copycat!"

The dogged pair nodded in unison, with Uri rushing forward first. The agile little beast slipping through the incoming blasts of the Uproar. Her tail glowing with a fierce fighting energy, she smacked it hard into the Magnemite, who easily suffered the super effective attack. As the shrill cry subsided, and the Magnemite rose back up again. However, before it could even get back to the battle position, a flipping Skitty spun through the air, slamming her heavy tail down with the same glowing fighting energy that her partner had used. The Magnemite fell to the ground with a heavy thunk, only very slowly rising.

The scientist watched Regan carefully, placing a hand on his chin bemused. Regan met his stare imperiously. This was another man of science, and the two were locked into battle, the kind of which didn't often enter battle like this. Regan's blood boiled as she watched her opponent smirking at her. He had every right to underestimate her, and he had every right to assume that he'd win.

"Keep up the attack!"

"Magnet Bomb."

Sparkling dangerously, Magnemite summoned and launched several metal spheres, which attached themselves to Uri as she ran forward. Surprised, she stopped to a halt, only to feel the blast of Uproar blast her, setting off all of the bombs that had latched on to her. Regan let out a pained cry as her friend fell to the ground, utterly defeated.

"Uri, return. Sophie, help me please!"

The scientist let out an arrogant snort as the little Togepi appeared on the field. His Magnemite and Whismur had gone untouched, and without her partner to copy, Iofi looked questioningly at Regan.

"Use Copycat on Magnet Bomb. Get it on Whismur! Sophie! Extransensory!"

Regan could, at least, use the combo against him. The Whismur found herself wrapped up in the tiny metal bombs, only to feel the harsh sting of the Extransensory set all of the explosives off. The powerful combo attack left the Whismur severely injured, but not out. Now, Regan was in a better position: Both Magnemite and Whismur were damaged, and she had Sophie fresh on the field. Hopefully, her enemy didn't have any more Pokemon; Regan certainly didn't.

"Stomp. Spark."

The Whismur and Magnemite flew through the air, both aimed at Regan's beleaguered Skitty. Her enemy had immediately written her Togepi off, even with the display of power she'd shown from her entrance. Either that, or he wanted to make it 2 to 1.

"Piiiiiiii!"

As the attacks sent Regan's Skitty flying away, all attention in the match turned to Sophie, who had begun to glow with a tremendous light. Even Regan averted her eyes, catching the glimpse of shadows in her periphery. After the momentary flash, the air seemed to retain a gentle, melodic hum, as the newly evolved Togetic floated in the air. Chirping happily, she flew over to Regan, who began to protest.

"The bat-"

She looked over, and the Whismur had been defeated soundly, laying on the ground surrounded by a pile of rocks that had ripped clear up from the floor.

"Magnemite! Spark!"

With Sophie's wings, Regan reasoned, there was a chance that she had gained the flying type? It was a possibility, but she wasn't entirely sure. As the Togetic turned to face the attack, she stopped it mid-air with another blast of Extransensory. The attack had seriously powered up from before, and the Magnemite seemed stunned in mid-flight.

"Nyaaaah!"

Regan snapped her head at the battle-cry, guiltily searching for her fallen Skitty. However, as the sparkling blur shot past her vision, Regan turned her attention back to the enemy just in time to see her Skitty stop in front of the Steel type and launch the same attack it had just seen. Even resisting the attack, the Magnemite had decided that it'd had enough and fell to the ground.

The scientist calmly recalled his Pokemon and raised his hands to the air, defeated, but still watching Regan with his penetrating stare.

"You need to forget some of this." Regan sighed. Maybe a little confusion would addle his brain? Even as a Doctor, Regan knew very little of the effects of Pokemon attacks on people, or if they even functioned the same way. "Sophie, use Lovely Kiss. Iofi. Sing."

The Togetic floated over, smiling cheerily at the scientist before planting a kiss on his forehead. Surprised, the man's eyes glazed over for a moment before the gentle lullaby from Iofi gently rubbed up against him. He hit the ground, snoozing in a decidely uncomfortable position.

Now that her battle had finished, she made her way over to the computer terminal, tapping away madly with her long, slender fingers. A trance-like look came over her face. Luckily for her, the surprise attack had not let the science workers log out; there had been no need for hacking whatsoever (Something she was wholly unqualified to do anyways.)

A voice floated over her shoulder; Sera had posed a question. The good Doctor had barely even recognized the words coming out of her mouth, so in response, she muttered a quick: "one minute please." Seeing the number in question, she swept from the terminal, her Pokemon following close behind her as she moved to one of the Pokeball shelves. Scanning them quickly, her eyes settled on one, plucking it from the shelf. Moving back over to the terminal, she placed it in the Pokeball slot, watching as electrical waves ran over the ball. It would take a few minutes for the trainer ID override to finish, and she turned to Sera, finally registering her words.

"Ah, yes..." she returned to the terminal, distractedly pulling up the database for Sera. "Find your friend's name on here."

She scrolled down the list...

Regan's evolved into

[rt117]

As her companion pressed on with her work on the computer, Sera took a moment to look at her Pokemon, Sophie and Iofi, as well as her own battered Pichu. She faintly recalled having some Oran berries on hand, and remembering this she proceeded to dig through her small bag, which contained a number of different things belonging to the girl. What she was looking for eventually came to the girl, in a small sealed tupperware container, keeping the collected berries fresh.

"Here you go. It's not much, but it'll have to do for now until we return to the Pokemon Center." Sera smiled, offering a berry to the two Normal Pokemon, then her own companion. The Pichu barely needed to sniff the berry, quickly devouring it like a little glutton. Stifling a small giggle, her attention was called away as Regan paused her operations on the machine, asking her to find her friend's name on the computer.

She made her way over to the terminal, scrolling through an extensive list of names, which seemed to include both Team Magma members, and bystanders who had been unfortunate to lose their Pokemon to the thieves. Somewhere halfway through the list however, one of the names passed by her eyes, causing her to stop and scroll back up to double check her finding. Sure enough, it was the girl, the one that had been friends with her friend Richie before having supposedly vanished, and the original owner of her Pichu.

Name: Hunter, Violet - Association: Rebellion - Status: Captured - Pokemon Collected: Rhyhorn, Dratini, Charmander, Pichu (Status Unknown)

"That's her..." she trailed off, studying the name on the screen for a few moments, in particular the 'association' given to her in the program's cell structure. She was apparently a part of something called 'the Rebellion'. It certainly wasn't Magma or Aqua, which made the girl wonder if that was the reason for her capture.

Returning to reality, she glanced over at the Pokeball that had been placed in the terminal slot, the screen having popped up with additional information as the sphere was set in its place. The particular Pokeball that had been set there showed as belonging to a Pichu, but in red bold text, stated that there was no Pokemon within it. The girl couldn't help but look over at her small friend.

"Spark... this is your's isnt it? Thats why you recognized it so quickly..."

The Pichu's ears drooped, giving the Pokeball another look, before letting out a rather sad noise.

[Kamaitachi]

Regan gently lifted the Pokeball for her Cleffa, now that it had been re-registered to her. Perhaps she was imagining it, but the curve of the pokeball felt familiar. What that meant, exactly, she had no idea. A part of her screamed desperately to open the Pokeball and greet her old friend, but the more rational part of her brain told her to wait. There was still a mission to complete. If she saw Sari now, she would simply burst into tears and cease to be functional. That part could wait until later.

Looking around, she noted that the other scientists were asleep, and the Elite appeared to be twitching in paralysis.

It appeared that Sera was preoccupied at the moment with the Pichu, so Regan, with the aid of her two Pokemon, set about tying up the enemies together, making sure the restraints were nice and tight. Even through the paralysis, the Elite with the red hair and stubble glared up at her defiantly. The older doctor sighed gently as she watched him through the pain of the little electric shocks running through his body.

"Iofi, Heal Bell."

The gentle chiming of the Skitty Bell washed over the Elite, who looked genuinely confused at her gesture.

"I will remember that I remain a member of society, with special obligations to all my fellow human beings, those sound of mind and body as well as the infirm."

"That's-"

"An oath I'm no longer obligated to keep, thanks to you and your ilk, Magma." Regan's eyes hardened "You can take away my license and my practice, but you can never deny the fact that I'm a doctor, and these rules will always apply to me. Iofi. Sing."

The Skitty once more launched into her haunting little lullaby, putting the Elite out after just a few bars. The man snoozed against his sleeping comrades peacefully, no longer in the throes of the Thunder Wave.

"This is Agent Columbine." Regan spoke solemnly into her Pokenav "Enemy operatives are neutralized, Target is secured. Requesting the Sweep Team and Requisitions Teams at our Area of Operations." Once the reply had been confirmed, the good Doctor turned to Sera, who was at the computer.

"I've no doubt in my mind you've put a thing or two together by this point." She adjusted her glasses slightly, watching Sera closely. "No point in hiding any further" She extended her slender hand slowly towards Sera. "I'm an agent of the Rebellion. Now that this part of the mission is complete, I can tell you the second part: I've been tasked with scouting you out. Since you seem more then capable, I'm offering you the chance to join our ranks, to fight Magma, and to find your friend."

[rt117]

Sera wasn't quite sure how to feel, as the revelation that part of their mission had been to test her capabilities was dumped onto her rather quickly. Perhaps she should have felt a little uncomfortable with the idea, but had it not been for the encounter and the mission, she wouldn't have been able to help reunite two friends, and find more information about another.

"I was glad to assist." Sera finally replied, extending her own hand to shake her companions. "I will admit, I'm not sure if I can accept the offer right away. I'm not familiar with the organization, as Magma and Aqua are the only one's I've ever heard of." Richie's dedication to keeping the girl in the dark in the past had assured that she would be clueless about the organization, but it would appear that fate would lead her to it anyways.

A sudden tug on her shirt caused the girl to turn, looking down at Spark, who stood on the desk next to her, determination in his eyes. She looked between him and the computer, remembering that his former trainer had been part of this organization. She couldn't help but think that somehow he wanted her to be part of the same organization, possibly to help track down the girl named Violet.

"...Do you want me to join the group?" the girl asked the Pichu, who stood confidently beside her.

"Pi! Pi-chau!" the Pokemon replied, before quickly jumping up into the girl's arms. The girl held the small Pokemon, looking down upon him with a weak smile, before turning to Regan.

"You know what... if it means being able to help other trainers be reunited with their Pokemon too, then consider the offer accepted." Sera replied, the small Pichu sticking his head out from her grasp, looking overjoyed with her response.

[Kamaitachi]

"I, admittedly, had not expected such a quick response." Regan smiled, leaning in to pet the Pichu. "You're quite the warrior, little one."

Regan turned back to the computer, Sophie floating over her shoulder. Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a flash-drive, beginning to move through the data.

"Of course, the Rebellion is a clandestine organization, with all sorts of little locations. I'll be taking you to the main headquarters, where I also happen to currently live, as I have no where else to stay." She looked up over at Sera, even as she tapped away on the computer. "Once the teams move in, we'll see you back to the base, where we can at least get your paperwork in. Our fight is against Magma, and it is not one that will end overnight. In the mean time, I intend to find the rest of my Pokemon, and I intend to help you find your friend, Miss Hunter. Please count on my aid from here on out."

Before long, the Rebel Teams arrived, securing the prisoners and requisitioning the remainder of the Pokemon on the shelves.

"Agent Columbine." One nodded to her, "We'll escort you back to headquarters. Will she be coming with us?"

"Newest recruit." Regan nodded curtly, folding her hands in her lap. She looked over to her two pokemon before reaching into her purse and pulling out their pokeballs, returning her two Pokemon to their homes. "Sorry, I've been neglecting you. You were both wonderful, let's rest up, okay?"

She turned to Sera once more, standing from the seat. "I'm sorry to rush this, but let's get you settled in quickly. We could use all the help we can get."

Finally, after their hushed introductions and series of battles, Dr. Regan Chamuel formally extended her hand to Sera, but this time without the paper tucked into her palm.

"Welcome to the Rebellion."