The Messanger of Time

Chapter 14: Taking A Stand

"You really have an apt for following me around."

"You're not stopping me, are you?"

"I suppose I should've..."

Vincent and Larisa come to the port city of Vermilion and look around, the sun shining in the middle of the sky, signifying that it is around noon. They'd been traveling for days, and just passed through Diglett's Tunnel as a shortcut here. However, they weren't particularly alone on their travels.

Raven stops behind them as they enter the bounds of the city, panting lightly. "You're too fast..."

Vincent looks back at him and rolls his eyes. "That... tends to happen when you're trying to get away from someone. Why are you following me anyways?"

"I told you why. Whatever you're doing, you're not doing it by yourself. I don't give a crap what you say."

Vincent shakes his head. "Whatever... Get yourself killed, then."

Larisa looks at him and sighs. "Can you calm down..?"

He eyes her for a moment, then looks down. "Fine..."

After a moment, they go on, eventually finding their way to the Pokémon Center for a break. As they enter, it appears there is a fair number of people inside. Most of them are sitting at tables near a large, flat-screen television on the wall, where the news can be seen.

The three go to an open booth nearby and sit down, and Vincent puts his arms on the table.

"...It's been a while since I've been to a city like this."

Raven looks at him curiously. "What other city is there like this?"

He looks around for a moment, before sitting back in the seat. "Olivine..."

"You've been to Olivine?"

Vincent nods slowly. "About a month or so ago."

Raven squints his eyes at this. "Wait... So you left and traveled all the way across Johto? What for?"

"There was... someone I needed to meet. An old friend who needed help."

He is quiet for a short time, finding it odd that he chose to help someone else so soon after having experienced something as terrible as he had.

After a bit, he speaks up again. "...Did you get to help this someone?"

Vincent looks down at the table in silence, and Larisa looks at him, then puts her paw on his back. Raven, having realized what may have happened, decides to leave it alone.

"...I see."

Vincent sighs quietly and closes his eyes, and Raven stares at him with concern. "Hey, if you don't wanna talk about it..."

"It's fine. I've just been really tense lately and I've been taking it out on you."

Raven sits back in his seat, looking at him quietly. And he takes a deep breath, before looking up at him.

"...I'll tell you the whole story, since you insist on knowing. But don't jump on me when you don't believe it."

"Hey, I've known some crazy stuff."

"Not this crazy..."

"Hit me."

Vincent stares at him, then shakes his head. "Okay then..."

- - - - -

"...So, wait... You say you're some kind of spiritual being who came to this world to stop something?"

Vincent nods.

"And it's gonna happen soon. But you don't know what it is yet?"

He nods again. And Raven sits back in his chair, eyeing him. "...Alright, then."

"See?" Vincent gets up and starts off, and Raven calls out.

"Hey! I didn't say I didn't believe you!"

Vincent turns his head back and stares at him. And he sighs. "It's just... hard to really grasp. I don't get a lot of it. But that doesn't mean it isn't possible... Some of it did make some sense."

Vincent narrows his eyes and turns around to face him.

"Look... I don't really understand a lot of what you said. But that doesn't mean I don't want to try and help. You can't just blow me off because of that."

"...Why are you so insistent on it? Just because I lived in your hometown doesn't exactly add up to me. So are you going to try and help everyone in Pallet whenever something comes up, for that reason?"

Raven shrugs. "I could."

Vincent stares at him, clearly not buying it. "What's your real reason?"

"It's... my own reason. You don't need to know."

"Fine... Then don't expect me to go along with it. Follow me if you want, but I'm not gonna bail you out if you get into trouble. You're putting yourself in more danger than you could know."

"Good. I wouldn't have it any other way."

Vincent rolls his eyes and turns towards the television, curious to what everyone appears to be interested in.

The news is showing a large crowd of people standing outside a gate, which is being boarded off by several police officers in an attempt to keep the people from passing through. There seems to be a great deal of disturbance, as the news anchor speaks up.

"It has been four days now, since this sudden outbreak has occurred, and officials are continuing their efforts to keep the countless upset visitors at bay. It is still unclear as to what is occurring inside the gates of Saffron, and those who are working outside have refused to disclose any information. At this time, it appears to be an endless struggle to find out who is actually responsible for these events."

Raven gets up and looks at Vincent. "...You wondering about it too?"

Vincent nods. "This is much too fishy... These officials are clearly hiding something that the public needs to know."

"Think we should see what's going on?"

"Might as well..."

The three soon take off from the Pokémon Center, and head north to leave the city. Though it is unclear what they will run into once they get to Saffron... they are prepared for anything.

- - - - -

~ Celadon Café ~

Christina and Melissa have been sitting at a table, taking a break from their wandering and eating a small lunch. It's been nearly a week since their arrival at Celadon, and since then they've learned of the suspicious activities that have gone on in the city, as well as the lockdown of Saffron. They have spent much of their time here trying to learn about what has really been happening, but have had little luck.

The two look around the café at the other people who are there. It seems as though everyone is going about their day, entirely oblivious to what has been happening. And they begin to wonder if the rumors of such activities are really even true, or merely a rouse to start commotion.

Still, it's not something they want to simply dismiss until they've checked into everything they can. They go back to talking amongst themselves, ignoring the three men in dark grey jackets and fedoras walking into the café.

"So what do you think, Melissa? Think it really is true? That whatever's happening here has some connection to what's in Saffron?"

Melissa sits back in her chair and sighs. "I'd like to think so. But lately we haven't even come across anything remotely interesting. It's bothering me, really. I mean, the city just ten miles away is completely locked down and no one's able to get inside. Yet everyone here's acting like nothing's happening..."

Christina nods. "Does seem suspicious. But this has been going on for days. Perhaps the only way we can find out what's really going on is..."

"...by going to Saffron?"

She nods again. And Melissa sighs. "I've kind of been thinking the same thing. We may have to go there."

Christina takes a drink of her iced tea and glances around, before noticing the three people sitting at the bar. They seem to be talking amongst themselves, rather secretively, making her stare at them in curiosity. And Melissa turns back to look at them as well, before turning back to her.

"Something the matter..?"

Christina shakes her head and takes another drink, looking at Melissa. "I don't know... Something's... odd."

"You're telling me... I feel like it just became ten degrees cooler in here."

She puts her cup down and looks over at Umbros, who's been sitting in another chair at the table, and looks back at her curiously. She shakes her head and sits back in the chair, glancing back at the three men.

It can soon be seen that one of them is reaching into his jacket pocket, and Christina shifts her gaze at Umbros, who is staring at her. He seems to be growing concerned at what she's doing.

It doesn't take long, before the man pulls out a pokeball, then jumps out of his chair and tosses it, releasing an Alakazam and causing everyone to jump in surprise and stare at it. The other two spring up and release their own pokemon as well, an Arbok and a Crobat.

The waiter at the counter comes over and shouts to them, "Hey! What's going on here?"

The first man glances back at him, and the Alakazam lifts its hands, using Psychic to toss the person backwards, and making several other people gasp in shock.

Christina clenches her fists, and Melissa looks at her, then at the three men who are starting a ruckus. She doesn't want to speak up and make herself stick out from the other people, so she keeps quiet and waits to see what'll happen.

Umbros, however, is staring at the three intently, seeming to grow annoyed from the commotion.

"Alright, everyone! This is how it's gonna be! I don't want anyone interfering with us. As of now, this place is ours, and everyone who stands up to us will receive the maximum punishment. So I suggest you make yourselves comfortable until we decide what to do with you."

Melissa mutters, "Who are they to try and pull this crap..?"

Umbros growls and, without hesitation, vanishes. And they suddenly see the Alakazam get shot off into the wall with great force. Everyone looks where it once was, seeing Umbros standing there, his rings flickering as he turns his gaze to the Arbok right next to him.

The snake pokemon's owner glares back at him. "What is this!? Arbok, poison sti-"

Umbros reacts before he can finish his command, and his eyes glow, before the Arbok is tossed through the window. He then looks at the Crobat, who releases a soundwave from its mouth, causing Umbros to yelp and shake his head.

The first man reaches into his other pocket to pull out a second pokeball, and Christina immediately grabs a salt shaker off the table and tosses it at him, smacking him in the face and making him fall to the floor. Melissa blinks at her sudden action, as she gets up from her chair and runs to the fallen man.

Umbros is soon able to recuperate himself and growls at the pokemon flying above, who flaps its wings and sends two blades of air at him, which are easily dodged. He then jumps up and flips forward, smacking the Crobat down with an Iron Tail and knocking it out quickly.

The other two men quickly call their pokemon back and make a run out the window the Arbok was thrown out of, before they are stopped by a roar and immediately jump back in, frightened.

Melissa looks to see Aerthos and Sierra outside, growling at the two, and smiles, running over. "Thanks, you two!"

Christina kneels down over the person, who has a nice red mark over his cheek bone where the glass shaker hit him. She speaks up in an aggrivated tone. "Who are you, and what do you want here?"

The man grunts and chuckles lightly. "Look at the little girl acting all high and mighty, and- hey, hey!"

She digs through his pockets and pulls a wallet out, opening it up to look inside. And what she sees is something she could never have expected...

"...You're from Team Rocket? A little ahead of your time, aren't you?" She glares down at him, and he tries to reach up to grab his wallet. But she jerks it away and then smacks him across the face with it. "I've seen enough..."

She reaches into the same pocket she pulled the wallet from, and pulls out a keychain, before throwing the wallet at him and standing up. He looks up at her and tries to make a move, before she stomps her foot down on his knee, making him yelp.

She then looks at the people behind the counter. "What are you waiting for? Are you gonna call someone or not?"

One of them blinks, then nods and goes to the phone. And Christina looks through the keys, finding a remote attached to them. "...Tell them these freaks are from Team Rocket. See if they believe that story." She looks at the other two people, who glare at her. "And you two? Consider yourselves lucky I give you the same treatment as your friend here..." She goes over to the door, followed by Umbros, and looks at Melissa.

"You ready?"

She blinks, then runs over to her. "Umm... right, yeah."

"Hey, wait! Who's gonna pay for the window?"

Christina glances back at the waiter, then at the two men. "I'm sure these nice gentlemen can cough up some money if you ask them nicely. You should watch and make sure they don't get away though..." She walks out, along with the others, and Melissa looks at her.

"Christina? You can be really scary sometimes..."

She takes the remote and starts pressing a button on it as she walks through the parking lot. "I don't deal with idiots... Especially those ones. The pathetic lot wasn't even worth fussing over, yet they acted so tough..."

Melissa stares at her and sighs, and they soon hear a beep come from one of the cars. They then walk over, seeing a silver car which looks similar to that of a Kia GT, with seemingly no damage.

"Seems they take care of their car, at least..." Christina clicks the remote, unlocking the car, and then looks up at the two dragons flying just above. "Can you two follow us?"

They nod, and she gets into the driver's seat. Melissa climbs in the front passenger's side, and Umbros gets in after her, jumping to the back seat.

"...Where are we even going, Christina?"

"Where else? To Saffron. If these guys are related to the ones there... if Team Rocket's really back, and is in Saffron, we can expect to be dealing with a load of trouble when we get there."

She looks at her as she starts the car up and checks the gas, seeing that it's nearly full.

"Are you sure you can even drive this? You only learned a few months ago..."

"Don't worry... It'll be fine."

Melissa shifts a bit, and pulls the seatbelt over herself. "Yeah, and then we'll crash into a pole, or fly ourselves off an overpass..."

"You worry too much." She pulls out of the lot and into the street, then drives off towards the east.

- - - - -

~ Saffron Southern Gate ~

Vincent, Raven and Larisa look over the bushes at the huge crowd outside the gate. It seems as though there are even more people here than what they saw on the news.

"Well, here we are."

Vincent looks over all the people, and then at the guards in front of the gate. "Wonder how we'll get around."

Larisa looks at him curiously as he stands up from the bush. He goes over to the crowd, soon followed by the others.

"I'd assume talking to them won't get anywhere. I doubt they know any more than anyone else."

Raven nods and looks over to the guards. "...I don't suppose you plan on trying to break through, do you?"

"If things go wrong, we may have to..." Vincent walks around the crowd, coming to a spot where he's able to make it through to the front. A few people glance at him as he passes, but no one says anything and seem too preoccupied with their bickering amongst each other and with the guards. At this point, it appears that the guards have stopped trying to reason with them, and have taken to merely making sure no one enters the city. He makes an attempt to talk to one of them himself.

"Excuse me... sir? What's going on here? Why is the city blocked off?"

The guard looks at him and seems to grunt out of annoyance. "Look, we've explained this to everyone already. There's been an incident in the city, and we've been told to lock it down until further notice."

Vincent eyes him suspiciously at his tone. Something is clearly off... but he can't tell what it is. "...What incident?"

"I don't have authorization to give you that information. Why don't you just go back where you came from? It's difficult enough already to deal with all these other-"

The guard looks at Larisa as she makes it through the crowd to Vincent's side, and she blinks, staring curiously back at him.

"-...people."

Vincent looks at Larisa, then back at him, and between them again. "What?"

The guard stares at Larisa for a moment, and she hovers back uncomfortably, before he shakes his head. "Nothing. Just do me a favor, go home."

He turns to walk off, and Vincent reaches over to grab his shoulder. "Hey, wait! Why were you looking at her like..."

He grunts and releases his grip before falling to the ground... a surge going through his mind.

In a vast mountain range, a large plant with a red R at the top can be seen. As the scene goes into the building, a stretch of hallways is seen, which eventually lead to a large room. Inside, there are several different machines running, and people dressed in labcoats.

But as the scene progresses further into the room, two large tables can be seen encased in glass tubes, where two familiar pokemon can be seen... Larisa and Lasuno. And they appear to be greatly injured.

A woman with long, black hair can be seen, overlooking the room from a balcony, wearing a red button-up jacket over a small, black shirt. Her eyes, piercing black, are staring at the two with intent.

The vision, almost as quickly as it came, disappears, causing Vincent to cringe as he comes back to reality. Raven comes through the crowd and looks down at him, then kneels down to his side.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Larisa comes down to him, concerned, and places her paw on his shoulder. "Vincent..."

"It's them..."

Raven stares at him curiously. "Who?"

Vincent gets back up to his feet and stares at the guard, who is looking back at him in confusion. "...You're the ones who did this to her..."

"I'm sorry, I don't quite under-"

Vincent quickly jumps forward and throws his hand at him, hitting him in the chest with his palm and launching him back with a burst of energy. The man, unsuspecting the attack and unable to do anything about it, yelps and skids across the ground, causing an uproar in the crowd and the other guards turn to look. Raven gets up and looks at him.

"Hey, what are you doing!?"

Vincent runs to the guard and grabs his collar, and the others rush over to try and stop him. But he holds his hand out to them, his eyes glowing as he glares at them. They all stop, and he turns back to face the one on the ground. "Didn't think you could hide your identity forever, did you?"

He jerks the man to his feet and turns to the crowd. "Everyone! I'd like to formally introduce you all... to a member of a certain organization you've all believed to be gone."

The other guards glare at him, having learned that their cover was just blown. And he grabs the person's coat, ripping it off him and revealing a vest with a badge having the distinguishable red letter R on it.

Everyone, once seeing this, immediately starts shouting indistinctly at the guards, now shown to be members of Team Rocket themselves. And the others behind him start running towards him. He then takes hold of the man's arm, and swings around, throwing him towards them and knocking them to the ground.

Raven goes over to him, looking at them and then back at him. "How did you know..?"

"Long story... Either way, we should go before they start coming after us."

Raven slowly nods, and the three rush past them, through the gate. Their passage into Saffron has been cleared, and what awaits them is unknown... They are now entering enemy territory.