Separated but Connected

Captured

Greninja's whole body felt like it was on fire. He slowly opened his eyes. He saw that he wasn't in the forest anymore. He was in a small cage in what appeared to be a human car, as he could see trees pass by him through a small window.

Rage flared in his chest as he prepared to use Cut on the iron bars. Except, he couldn't.

His arms were tied behind his back by a chain that connected to the metal band that was still around his waist.

He growled. He needed to get out and make sure Ash was alright. "Ash..." He muttered.

There was no reply.

Panic surged through him. He began calling out, in case Ash was somewhere nearby.

Unfortunately, his calls seemed to draw the attention of the grunts watching him.

"Be quiet!" One of them snapped, before the other grabbed a long gray stick, which appeared to be electrified. The grunt then jabbed it through the cage bars and into his arm. What followed was searing pain as Greninja flinched, desperate to get away from the electrical device.

The grunt had a stupid smug on her face. "This will happen every time you don't behave. Got it! When we tell you to be quiet, you be quiet!" She barked.

Greninja was breathing heavily from the pain in his arm. He could see a small burn mark had been engraved into his skin. He gave both grunts dagger filled glares, before training his eyes to the floor.

He needed a plan.

He searched deep in his mind for Ash's presence, but he found it completely empty. The assault they experienced must've blocked their connection, at least for the moment.

Due to him and Ash knowing very little about their power, Greninja wasn't sure how to call upon it without Ash being by his side.

For now, he'll just have to sit tight and wait for Ash to rescue him. Or, until he can escape himself.

'What if he's been captured?' A dark voice echoed in his mind.

Greninja scolded himself for even thinking that. He needed to keep his wits, otherwise he'd never escape.

Suddenly, the cage he was in jolted forward as the car skidded to a halt.

The back of the car flew open, revealing non-other than Lucien. "Did it cause any trouble?" He asked the grunts.

The grunt, who was still holding the electric stick, replied. "It did, but we taught it a lesson it'll never forget." She sneered. Greninja wanted to smack that sneer right off her face with Aerial Ace. He could feel his hands shaking behind his back with unholy rage. He balled them into fists.

"I see you are still acting quite defiantly", Lucien remarked. Greninja turned his head towards him, studying his face. He looked relaxed, an easy grin on his pale lips. "I wouldn't have thought otherwise. You and your trainer seemed very strong. He must have trained you well."

Greninja narrowed his eyes. 'How dare he mention Ash!' He thought angrily.

Greninja angrily turned his head away from the smiling man.

Lucien smirked. "Put it to sleep."

Greninja saw a grunt step closer to him with what appeared to be a syringe in hand.

Greninja tried to scoot deeper in the cage and away from the grunt. Unfortunately, the cage's tight and cramped design didn't allow him to.

The grunt smiled as he not-so-gentle injected Greninja with something. Greninja yelped as the grunt sneered. "Sleep tight."

Greninja started gasping for air, his rising panic overwhelming his normally calm and collected composure. And since when did his eyes feel so...heavy?

Greninja immediately knew what was in that syringe: a sedative.

Before Greninja lost consciousness, he heard Lucien mention a lab, but before he could put more thought into what that actually meant, the sedatives did their job and he fell into a dreamless sleep.