| Pokemon Neo
Part 20: Ferio Crawford, 007 © 1999-2000 Willow McCall Aoife drummed her fingers restlessly on the table that she was sharing with Petra, Aidan, Chu-Chu, Sora, and their newest companion Ferio, who was, contrary to her typical character, talking animatedly to Sora. “So then I entered the Pokemon League competition,” Ferio explained. This held Aoife’s attention more than what they had been previously talking about. “Really?” almost everyone at the table asked. “Pika?” Chu-Chu said, almost dropping the ketchup-drenched fry it was holding. “I didn’t realize you were that good, Ferio,” Sora said, amazed. “Yeah, you must be a great trainer,” Petra gushed. “I suppose,” Ferio said. “But I was eliminated in the third round.” “But still…” Sora shook her head in disbelief. “The third round. That’s really good.” “Yeah, especially with only fighting Pokemon,” Aoife said patronizingly. “Since they have such a pronounced weakness to psychic Pokemon and all.” Ferio gave her a sour look. “So where’d you say you were from?” “Vermilion,” Ferio said. “I was just born there, though. Most of my life I’ve lived in Azure City.” “That explains it then,” Aoife whispered to Petra. “She must be related to Rei, that chick from the Vermilion Gym.” “Rei was pretty, I agree,” Petra said, with starry eyes still cast upon Ferio. “But come on, Aoife. Ferio’s not as mean as Rei.” “Yet,” Aoife muttered, fidgeting in her seat. “Um, guys? I was thinking of going out and getting my Marsh Badge today, so…” she left the statement open-ended. “Go for it, Aoife,” Sora said encouragingly before turning her attention back to Ferio. “So tell me about the Ice Field. Was it hard?” Aoife looked frustrated. “Isn’t anyone gonna come with me?” “I dunno.” Sora looked at Ferio. “I mean, we haven’t seen each other in six years…” “If Ferio’s staying, I’m staying,” Aidan said decisively. “Ditto,” Petra nodded. “Fine then, don’t support me, see if I care,” Aoife stormed out of the restaurant. “Come on, Chu-Chu.” “Pi,” Chu-Chu said, waving goodbye to the group before following Aoife out of the restaurant. “Pika, pikachu cha?” “Are you kidding?” Aoife sniffed. “I don’t want to wait there while they ‘catch up’. They’ve been catching up for long enough. I want to get my badge NOW and if they don’t want to come, fine.” “Chuu…” Chu-Chu sighed. When the small Pokemon spotted Sabrina’s gym, it cried out. “Pika!” “What is it, Chu-Chu?” Aoife asked, then she saw what Chu-Chu was pointing at. When they had first entered the city, a gang of Rockets was clustered around the entrance to the gym, and they were still there. From the looks of it, they weren’t going to be moving any time soon. “Darn,” Aoife snapped her fingers. “I might have to wait…or I could deal with the problem myself.” Rubbing her hands together eagerly, Aoife sneaked off into the bushes near the gym to spy on the Team Rocket members. “Pika!” Chu-Chu chased after its owner and dove into the bushes next to her. “Shh!” Aoife whispered. “Do you want them to hear us?” “Chu,” Chu-Chu shook its head. “Pi pikachu, pika pikacha!” “We’ll be fine,” Aoife assured Chu-Chu. “They won’t catch us.” “Pii…” Chu-Chu worried. “I’m getting tired of sitting out here,” Aoife heard one of the Rockets whine. “They have guards in there to keep Sabrina in, so why do we have to stay out here? She’s not gonna get away.” “We’re here so no one sneaks into the gym,” a short male Rocket with an unusually high voice said. “We have to control the flow of people, both in and out.” Through the leaves of the bush that was her hiding place, Aoife saw two teenage girls in Rocket uniforms approach the group. “Sam and Tanya, your shift’s over,” one of the girls said, jerking her thumb over her shoulder. “You’re supposed to report back to the Silph Building immediately.” Two Rockets, presumably Sam and Tanya, left the group and headed down the street towards the towering Silph Co. building. “See ya later, guys.” “Silph Building?” Aoife repeated silently. “Does that mean that Team Rocket has taken over Silph Co.?” “Pi…pika,” Chu-Chu poked Aoife, spotting a Weedle in the bushes, aiming its stinger at Aoife’s leg. “Shh, Chu-Chu,” Aoife whispered. “They’ll hear us.” “Pika,” Chu-Chu said more insistently. “Pi-ka-chu!” “Not now,” Aoife brushed Chu-Chu aside as the Weedle took aim. Chu-Chu attempted to tackle the Weedle, but missed as the bug jumped out of Chu-Chu’s way and stuck its stinger into Aoife. “YOOOOOOOOOW!” Aoife howled, jumping up and examining her sting. “Oh man, that hurt!” She then realized, a little too late, that that sting had just exposed her hiding place to the Rockets she had been spying on. “Uhoh.” “Hey, looks like we’ve been bugged,” the short, high-voiced man said. “Anyone got a flyswatter?” “Eheh,” Aoife sweatdropped. “RUUUUUN!” She and Chu-Chu hightailed it back to the restaurant, but the Rockets were quicker and more numerous. One of them tackled her, then pressed a cloth to the fallen Aoife’s forehead. “Ether?” Aoife wondered before passing out. “Now fer the Pikachu,” the man, apparently the ringleader, approached Chu-Chu. “PIIIII!” Chu-Chu shocked the Rockets (and Aoife as well), distracting them long enough to run away back to the restaurant where Aoife’s friends were. “Pika pika!” Chu-Chu cried, running into the restaurant and jumping up on the table where the group still was. “Kachu! Pikachu pi pika, pika cha!” “Hey, calm down, Chu-Chu,” Sora said, reaching across to pet the mouse. “Where’s Aoife?” “Pika pikachu!” Chu-Chu said urgently, jumping off the table and motioning for them to follow her as she ran out the door. “Kachu!” “We better go with Chu-Chu,” Petra said. “I have a bad feeling about this.” They followed Chu-Chu through a maze of streets as Chu-Chu followed Aoife’s scent trail. “Chu,” Chu-Chu announced, stopping in front of the Silph Building. A guard wearing a black Rocket uniform was outside. “Inside the Silph Building?” Petra wondered. “What’s she doing in there?” “Hey, you,” the guard noticed them. “Password?” “We don’t have time for this,” Aidan said, grabbing a Pokeball. “Go, Gengar!” “Gengar gen,” Gengar said, glaring at the guard. “Hypnosis, Gengar!” Aidan said, as the guard reached for one of his own Pokeballs. “Quick!” “Gaaaaaar!” Gengar growled, eyes glowing, hypnotizing the guard, who slumped against the wall. “Good work, Aidan,” Sora said, charging up to the glass doors. “Let’s go!” “Hold it.” Petra held her back by the back of her shirt collar. “We shouldn’t just dash in there. There might be tons of Rockets inside just waiting to attack.” She stepped up to the doors and peeked inside. “It looks safe, though. But just look before you leap.” “Yes, mother,” Sora muttered, pushing open the door. Inside it looked like a normal office building, with spotless tiles and a glass fountain in the middle depicting Lugia, the legendary bird. “Like Raven’s ring,” Sora remembered the twin sister that she left behind in Azure City, fingering her own gold ring. “Traveling with Aoife is really fun, but I miss her.” “Looks like there are some other non-Rockets in here,” Petra said, noticing some people wearing normal clothes without Team Rocket’s trademark R on the front. Ferio rolled her eyes. “They’re probably Rockets in plain clothes. They can’t wear their uniforms all the time, ‘cause sooner or later they’d get arrested.” “Uh…right,” Petra said sheepishly. “Yeah. I knew that.” “That’s probably what they think we are,” Aidan realized. “Rockets in plain clothes.” “That makes it easier,” Ferio said. “Just act like you own the place and we’ll never get caught.” “Well, never say never,” Sora said pessimistically as they walked inconspicuously towards the lifts. “But we hope not, huh?” They got into the lifts. “Which floor?” the operator asked. Ferio didn’t say anything, just reached over and pressed the button marked 9. “Floor 9?” the operator stared at the glowing button. “But that’s the advanced clearance level! Only the upper echelons of Team Rocket are allowed to go up there!” “Exactly,” Ferio said, glaring at the operator. “You’re not questioning our authority, are you?” The man withered under her cold look. “Uh, no, of course not.” The doors opened on the ninth floor with a ding, and they stepped out. Rocket guards peppered the lobby, but by acting casual the group sneaked past. “But how are we going to know where Aoife is?” Aidan asked. “I’m sure Ferio has a plan,” Petra said. “Don’t you?” “Hmm.” Apparently Ferio didn’t. “Guess we could just ask someone if they knew anything about a young girl being kidnapped and taken here today.” The other three looked horrified. “Well, I assume that’s what happened to her. I don’t think she would have just decided to waltz into the Silph Building at her own accord. She’s not that stupid.” “Guess that’s right,” Petra said, looking around at the dark offices with a sense of dread. A muffled noise from inside one of the offices caught their attention. “Help! Lemme out!” the voice cried, while pounding noises came from inside. “That could be Aoife!” Sora flung the door open…but no Aoife. Inside was a middle-aged woman tied to a chair. Sora released the woman’s gag. “What happened to you?” “Wait a minute…” the woman looked at them suspiciously. “Are you from Team Rocket?” Sora shook her head. “Our friend got kidnapped, we think,” she said, lowering her voice. “We came in to save her. What about you?” “I work at Silph Co.” the woman explained. “All the workers here, they tied us up when they took over.” “Team Rocket has taken over?” Ferio asked. “Well, that would make sense, actually. Silph is the most powerful company in the Pokemon world.” “Exactly,” the woman said. “They think they can get away with this, that they can control all the Pokemon in the world using Silph.” She looked up at them pleadingly. “You’ll stop them, won’t you?” “We’ll do what we can,” Ferio said. “In the meantime, we have to put this gag back on.” “But—” the woman said, but was cut off by Ferio replacing the gag. “Sorry,” Ferio said. “But if any real Rockets come in here and see that their prisoner has her gag off, they’ll suspect things.” “Guess you’re right about that,” Sora agreed. As they left the room, she waved back at the woman. “We’ll try our best to rescue you, okay?” Once they got into the hall, Ferio turned to the group. “Does anyone know the phone number of the police in any neighboring city?” “What for?” Petra asked. “Couldn’t we just call the Saffron City police?” Ferio shook her head. “Team Rocket might have infiltrated the SCPD.” “I could call Lavender Town’s police,” Aidan offered. “I used to live there, so I know the number. Should I use one of the phones in here, or go outside?” “Outside, of course,” Ferio said. “They might have some sort of switchboard system in here, some way to monitor all incoming and outgoing calls. Better leave, but just temporarily.” “Right,” Aidan nodded, eager to carry out Ferio’s orders, and left to call the police. They started down the corridor, and had only gone a few meters before Ferio stopped in front of a door with a sign saying, “Employee Coffee Lounge” on it. “Coffee lounge?” Sora asked. “Why are we going in here?” “You’ll see,” Ferio said, pushing open the door. “Just act natural. Act like you belong here.” “Okay…” Sora agreed, getting herself a cup of hot chocolate from the machine. Ferio struck up a conversation with one of the Rockets, who was sipping a hot beverage. “Hey,” she said, sitting down with a cup of tea. “Did you hear about the girl who got kidnapped outside of Sabrina’s gym today?” “Outside of Sabrina’s gym?” Petra thought. “Well yeah, that’s where she was going last time we saw her, so I guess…” “It’s not Sabrina’s gym anymore, remember?” the man said. “It’s ours. We have control over it now.” “Right,” Ferio said. “Freudian slip. Well?” “I talked to Julie, ‘cause she was there when the girl got kidnapped,” the man went on. “She said the girl was spying on them, so they’s had to take care of her.” “Take care of her how?” Petra jumped in, worried about what might have happened to Aoife. “Jus’ keep her locked up fer awhile,” the man explained. “Then they’ll probably get a Slowbro, have it do its Amnesia attack on her. That’ll take care o’ her, ‘case she’d heard anything.” “You know, that’s not a bad plan, actually,” Ferio mused, draining her cup. “Where do you suppose she is?” “Prisoners’ bay on the eighth floor,” the man said. “Like all the other people our guards have had to take in here, o’ course.” Ferio lobbed her empty cup into the trash can. “Nice talking to you,” she said, standing up and leaving the room, with Petra and Sora trailing behind. “See ya around, okay?” “You’re brilliant at espionage, Ferio!” Petra gushed. “I mean, the way you got the information out of that guy…” “Save it,” Ferio said, taking off in the direction of the stairs. “Eighth floor, prisoners’ bay. We’ll find it, no problem.” It turned out to be easier said than done. The eighth floor was a maze of directional tiles, warp tiles, and obstacles. “To prevent the prisoners from escaping,” Ferio thought. But they were able to sense the general direction of the prisoners’ bay by the sound of cries for help and banging on the walls. “We must be getting close,” Petra said. “The cries are getting louder.” “Pika!” Chu-Chu said, leaping out of its position on Petra’s backpack and darting off down the hall. “Chu-Chu!” Sora chased after Aoife’s Pokemon. “It must have picked up her scent.” “Pikapi!” Chu-Chu said as it led them down a hallway with barred cells on either side. Ferio, Sora, and Petra had to try not to look into the cells as they walked down, so that the prisoners wouldn’t distract them with their pleas. “The police are coming soon,” Ferio assured them as they walked on. “We’ve called the police. You’ll be released in a matter of hours, okay?” “She’s handling this really well,” Petra thought admiringly, watching Ferio’s steady, confident pace down the corridor. “Seems like she can really get inside the criminal mind.” “Pika!” Chu-Chu cried, running over to one of the cells. “Chu-Chu!” the occupant of the cell called back. The girls looked and, of course, it was Aoife. “Sora! Petra! And…Ferio.” Aoife’s face fell as she caught sight of the third girl. “How’d you guys get in here?” “With Ferio’s mastery of deduction,” Petra grinned, “how could we not?” “Good,” Aoife said. “But uh…how are you guys gonna get me out?” “Good question,” Petra sweatdropped, but Ferio was prepared. She fished around in her backpack until she found a safety pin, and used this to pick the lock and free Aoife. “Thanks, Ferio,” Aoife said reluctantly. “What about everyone else?” “Leave it up to the LTPD,” Sora said. Aoife replied with a blank look. “Lavender Town Police Department,” she explained. “Aidan’s calling them right now. They’ll take care of everyone else.” Sure enough, as they sneaked out of a building, a barrage of Officer Fionas came running through the lobby. “This is the police!” they yelled. “We’re seizing the building, and you’re all under arrest for Team Rocket activity.” “Yup, those ones are from Lavender Town, all right,” Petra said. “The Fionas from Lavender Town wear their hair parted on the left.” “Hey, guys!” Aidan joined the group. “Glad to have you back, Aoife.” “Aidan saves the day!” Sora grinned. “Yeah,” Aidan blushed modestly. “It was no big deal, I mean, how much effort does it take to dial the police? They’re the ones who really saved the day.” “At least it’s over, anyway,” Aoife said, relieved. “Now, about that badge…” Author's Notes Wow, one continuous scene with no breaks. That's different. I've had a weird writing pattern when it comes to Neo: a month and a half ago I churned out a whole slew of new episodes, then none at all, and now this. I was also thinking of changing the title of Pokemon Neo, because that phrase is already being used to refer to Pokemon Gold and Silver (although I came up with that name for my fic first). I've already thought of one, and I might start using it next time. back |