Chapter 11

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr> <td valign="top" colspan=2 height=100 BGCOLOR="#CCCCFF" TEXT="#080000" bgproperties="fixed" background="14800640egdysm.jpg"> <div> <A HREF="mim1.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 1"><U>Chapter 1</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim2.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 2"><U>Chapter 2</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim3.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 3"><U>Chapter 3</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim4.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 4"><U>Chapter 4</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim5.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 5"><U>Chapter 5</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim6.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 6"><U>Chapter 6</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim7.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 7"><U>Chapter 7</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim8.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 8"><U>Chapter 8</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim9.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 9"><U>Chapter 9</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim10.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 10"><U>Chapter 10</U></A>   |   <B>Chapter 11</B>   |   <A HREF="mim12.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 12"><U>Chapter 12</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim13.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 13"><U>Chapter 13</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim14.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 14"><U>Chapter 14</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim15.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 15"><U>Chapter 15</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim16.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 16"><U>Chapter 16</U></A>   |   <A HREF="mim17.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Chapter 17"><U>Chapter 17</U></A></div> <div> </div> </td> </tr><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#000066" TEXT="#F7F7FF"> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Home</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/oldnews.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Old News</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/zrfic/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>My Fanfics</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/zrart/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>My Fanart</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/a-j/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Authors A-J</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/k-z/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Authors K-Z</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/art/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Fanart List</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/ffsubmit.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Submit a Fanfic</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/fanart_submit.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Submit Fanart</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://pub46.ezboard.com/beeveesmb" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://pub46.ezboard.com/beeveesmb"><U><B>Message Board</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethraltier/links.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.fortunecity.com/zethralti"><U><B>Links</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> <td valign="top" height=380 BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000"> <div> <I>Chapter 11</I></div> <div> <B>A Master in the Making: Chapter 11: Wins and Losses</B></div> <div> Zeth stood on the edge of the field that the Peridot Gym used as its battleground. After his arrival at Peridot Town the day before, he and his pokémon had taken the rest of the day off to relax from the stress of their previous adventure. Officer Jenny had been kind enough to buy Zeth a ticket to go see the new movie, "Pokémon in Love." The movie was unique, because it starred only pokémon, but Zeth found the actual storyline to be a little unoriginal. Still, it was nice to take the time to enjoy a movie after all his traveling.</div> <div> Today, however, he was looking forward to this next battle and the chance of winning another badge. His opponent, the gym leader Cindel, was waiting on the other end of the field. She had an air of cool confidence that Zeth found to be a little annoying. <I>Still, if she's confident because she wins often, then I'll have to be very careful.</I> "Ok, Zeth." she called, "Three pokémon each. No time limit. Are you ready?"</div> <div> "I'm ready! Let's start this battle!"</div> <div> Cindel pulled a pokéball from her belt. "Go, Pinsir!" The dangerous-looking beetle pokémon appeared with a bright flash.</div> <div> "That bug isn't going to last long! Talon, I choose you!" As the Spearow appeared, Zeth gave him a quick set of instructions. "Ok, Talon, stay high so he can't get you. Use Double Team, then Sky Attack!" </div> <div> splitting into what appeared to be three separate pokémon, Talon shot towards the bug, launching a trio of red beams at it.</div> <div> "Pinsir, Mimic." Cindel said calmly. The Pinsir glowed for a second, then launched another set of beams back at the "three" birds. The six beams intersected, creating an explosion that destroyed the copies and knocked Talon to the ground. The Spearow scrambled to take off again, but the bug managed to grab him before he could get high enough. "Good, now use Guillotine."</div> <div> "Talon!" Zeth called in alarm. Guillotine was infamous for the injuries it could do to another pokémon, and Zeth had no wish to see the Spearow get crushed by the spiked pincers that had given the bug its name. "Don't let it crunch you! Use Drill Peck!"</div> <div> The Pinsir squeezed the bird mercilessly, but Talon pecked at the back of its head repeatedly, forcing it to let go before it could do serious damage. As the Pinsir staggered back, the Spearow attacked furiously, pecking and scratching until the bug finally fell.</div> <div> "Return, Pinsir!" Cindel ordered, beginning to look a little annoyed. "Go, Parasect! Use Spore on that Spearow!" The Parasect released a sparkling cloud at the Spearow, hiding him from view. When the cloud cleared, Talon was fast asleep in the grass. Zeth quickly returned him to his pokéball.</div> <div> "Good move, but that won't work twice! Go, Blaze! Flame that bug!" The Growlithe shot a stream of fire that scorched the Parasect's side as it tried to dodge. The mushroom bug tried to use Spore again, but the flames just ignited the cloud, knocking both of them back in the resulting blast of fire and smoke.</div> <div> Cindel used the moment's confusion to her advantage. "Parasect, Dig now!" The smoke cleared, leaving behind a large hole in the ground. Blaze ran to the hole and peered down, wondering where his opponent had gone. Suddenly, the ground beneath him cracked and shook. Unable to react in time, the little Growlithe was launched into the air as the ground around him seemed to erupt. The Parasect wasted no time -- as the dog landed in a heap, it was already attacking again, slashing at the dazed puppy.</div> <div> Yelping in pain, Blaze shot a stream of fire directly into the bug, burning it badly. It staggered back and then fell over, obviously out of the match. Blaze was not in good condition either, so Zeth called him back as Cindel released her final pokémon. "Not bad. Now it's one on one. Let's see if you can handle this one! Go Butterfree!"</div> <div> Zeth grinned. "No problem, I'll use Sting!" The Beedrill shot out of the pokéball and hovered a few meters away from the butterfly. Zeth knew from experience that Sting would analyze every move her opponent made, and look for any weaknesses it might have. "Okay, Sting, Pin Missile!" The bee fired off a volley of needle sharp projectiles at the fluttering Butterfree, which managed to dodge half of them.</div> <div> "Butterfree, Psychic." Sting suddenly glowed blue and slammed into the ground. The Beedrill tried to get back up, but the Butterfree simply shoved her back down with another blast of psychic energy. Sting buzzed angrily, the rolled onto her back, and shot three poisonous streams from her stingers. The dark purple liquid splashed all over the surprised butterfly, which fell to the ground because of the unexpected weight that its soaked wings could not handle. It tried to fly, but ended up falling on its side instead, as the poison took effect.</div> <div> "Return, Butterfree." Cindel smiled slightly. "Good job, Zeth. You have trained your pokémon well. You are definitely worthy of the Metamorphosis Badge." She walked over and handed him a beautiful butterfly pin with green jeweled eyes and shimmering wings.</div> <div> Zeth grinned, "Thanks, Cindel, that was a great battle." Glancing past her, he waved to the waiting Beedrill, "Come on, Sting, let's get back to the pokémon center. I think we could all use a rest." The Beedrill nodded, then disappeared in a flash of red light as Zeth recalled her. <I>Well, it's turned out to be a great day.</I></div> <bR> <bR> <div> <I>What a lousy day! </I>Kat glared at the report that she had just been given. "Four of our best Rockets arrested in one day! How could this happen!"</div> <div> The aide shrank back from her, looking miserable. "It gets worse, ma'am." She glared at him as he nervously continued his report. "We have reports of another gang operating in this area. We believe that they might be responsible...."</div> <div> "Then we'll just have to DESTROY them, won't we?" The aide nodded weakly.</div> <div> "Are you sure that's such a good idea?" Duke stepped through the doorway, a copy of the terrible report in his hands. "It might be better to see if we can convince them to join us. That way, we'll be stronger than we were before." </div> <div> Kat stared at him for a minute, then nodded. "You're right, we'll try talking to them first. And if that doesn't work, then we'll just go ahead and destroy them." She turned back to the aide. "Go now. Arrange a meeting with the leader of this gang. Duke and I have a rescue to plan."</div> <div> "Yes ma'am."</div> <bR> <bR> <div> Two days later, everything was ready. The jailbreak was scheduled for that afternoon, right after the meeting with the representative from "The Dragons." Kat had agreed to let Duke do most of the talking, since she was more likely to start a gang war than convince them to join.</div> <div> They had taken great pains to insure the protection of their secret facility. The representative would be blindfolded and driven to the hideout in a limousine with painted windows. Kat had insisted on the blindfold, even though Duke was convinced that the painted windows would be enough. As she had said, "You can never be too careful."</div> <div> Kat's aide opened the door to the meeting room, where the two Rockets awaited their "guest." "He is here, ma'am."</div> <div> "Good, send him in, Loran." The aide nodded and hurried back out, reappearing a moment later with a young man, easily recognizable by a nasty scar across his cheek. Loran slipped out, closing the door behind him.</div> <div> "I don't believe it." Duke scowled. "Jag Colson... I should have known that you'd be with a gang like the Dragons."</div> <div> The scarred man laughed. "With them? I'm more than just with them, Edward. I'm second-in-command of the entire group!"</div> <div> "Don't call me that," Duke growled, "You know I hate that name!"</div> <div> "Which is exactly the reason I call you that, Ed." The man grinned evilly, and sat down in the nearest chair. "So, what is it that you were so desperate to talk to us about? I hope you aren't ready to surrender and leave already, cause that would be a little disappointing." Kat barely managed to hold her tongue at that statement, fighting an intense desire to feed the man his shoes.<I> </I>She hoped Duke could convince this pest of their superiority, before she ended up throwing him through the wall.</div> <div> Apparently not. "Listen, Jag, we have no intention of moving out just because your wimpy little gang doesn't like us. We're here to stay, and unless you'd like to spend the rest of your pathetic life behind bars or <B>worse</B>, you'll stay out of our way!"</div> <div> Jag leaned back, and propped his feet up on the table. "Is that it? When will you realize that your threats don't scare us? Our goal has always been to have as much influence in this region as you Rockets have in your area. We've succeeded quite nicely -- you'd be amazed at how strong we really are!"</div> <div> Kat's control snapped, "Listen, you! I don't care if you own half the planet! If you mess with me, I'll rip apart every single one of you with my bare hands!!"</div> <div> "Go ahead and try. It won't do you any good, but it'll be amusing." Jag stood up and headed for the door. "I suppose we're through here. I'll go now."</div> <div> Kat glared at the Dragon agent. "What makes you think we're going to let you leave, now that you've told us that you have no intention of working with us?"</div> <div> Jag pulled the door open. "The fact that if I don't report back in, you're going to lose five more agents in your rescue attempt. My people have been instructed to tip off the police if I don't come back. However, if you let me go, we will permit you to retrieve your captured members. It's your choice."</div> <div> Kat smacked the intercom button angrily, "Loran, escort Mr. Colson back to the limo." She gave the scarred man a look that could have frozen the sun. "Get out, <B>now</B>. You had better hope that we never meet again, cause if we do, I'll grind you into dust, and scatter you from one end of the continent to the other!" Jag just smiled as he left with Kat's aide.</div> <div> The room was filled with silence for a minute, then Duke glanced over at Kat. "That could have gone better."</div> <div> "That's an understatement. Do you think we should call off the rescue?"</div> <div> Duke shook his head. "No, Jag may be slime, but I've never known him to bluff. If he says that they'll let us rescue our agents, then they will. I'm more worried about the fact that he believes that the Dragons can stand up to us. He seems to know enough about our operations to make a good comparison of our strength with theirs. If so, then we may have more trouble than we bargained for."</div> <div> "I was hoping you wouldn't say that."</div> <bR> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>