The Mask Maker

The Aftermath

This isn't anger...What is it? I feel so...energized. So filled with energy I can't control it. Like I could tear everything apart. But I'm not angry. 

"Well, well, well, The Mask Maker has finally been unmasked. It's a shame I wasn't the one to do it!" the grunt said. 

Morai was trying to calm herself, but she couldn't. She had felt something similar to this before. It was what had driven her to create her second identity in the first place. But this was different. It was as if that feeling had been amplified far beyond anything she'd ever experienced. She was physically shaking from trying to hold herself together. She looked up at the one who had forced her into this state. 

"Wait a second...I remember you! You're the one that tried to take my mask off! You're Kevin!"

Now I'm angry. 

Gritting her teeth, Morai jumped up and kicked the other trainer faster than he could respond. She grabbed him and threw punches as hard as she could, grunting and growling with each action to amplify the power of her attacks. She did it all without a second thought. Something else had taken over. She felt no need to think about her actions, and all she cared about was getting rid of the extreme energy and emotion she felt. No one went to help their teammate. Giovanni had arrived, and he had ordered them not to. 

I never wanted this cursed power. I never wanted to become separated from everyone else. I never wanted to end up second guessing every action I took, flip flopping from one feeling to the other. The headaches, the sickness...cursed with it all and I can't control it. 

By this point Morai's opponent was on the ground and she was sitting over him. He had drawn his electric baton and successfully hit her a few times, but she didn't respond. He managed to push her to the side and grab one of his Pokéballs, but she turned around, took hold of his collar, and stared him in the eyes. 

He froze, and his grip loosened. The Mask Maker began to attack him again, and he had stopped fighting back. Suddenly, a hand grabbed her wrist and stopped her from hitting him again. Full of deep energy and the thirst for violence, she turned around and looked at whoever dared to stop her. 

"Please, stop it! No matter what you look like, this isn't who you are!"

It was Ingo, and Emmet wasn't far behind. To her, they didn't register as friends anymore. Nothing or anyone around her seemed familiar.  She turned around to attack, and they stepped back. The grunt she left behind hadn't gotten up, but his teammates finally rushed to help him. 

"What should we do, brother?" Emmet asked. "She's already injured, and—Ingo?"

As soon as Ingo looked Morai in the eyes he fell into a stupor, creating the perfect opening for her. Emmet realized this and grabbed her by the arm and gently pulled her away, trying not to hurt what was already injured. She started to try and hit him with everything she had, but she was losing the strength to, and she couldn't figure out why. 

"Are you not hurting? Do you not recognize me? It's Emmet! We've battled again and again for a long time now," the Subway Boss said. 

Morai was past the point of words now. The thing she had been repressing for over a year had been forced to show its ugly face. All she could do was mindlessly fight. But now, her body was becoming tired despite her mind wanting to continue. She threw a punch, but Emmet easily caught it. He held onto her hand, not having to avoid her eyes because her head was beginning to hang. 

"You're so tired and hurt. Just rest now, okay?"

Those words seemed to be all Morai needed to close her eyes and rest. She fell forward, completely unconscious. Ingo awoke and pieced together what had happened in his absence. The Team Rocket grunt had already been taken to the hospital wing.