#83--Twist
Sequel to #81--Save, and like it, written with the stellar flagellantket
Morty looked around frantically. This was his second real mission for Spectre, and he didn't want to fail them. His duties had taken him to Lavender, where the aura of ghosts lay thick in the air. But after the Spectre agents piled into the Tower, things had started to go wrong. Another Team, calling themselves Terra, had gone in after them, and his plans to capture ghost types had to be set aside. The Terra agents swarmed the Spectres, and Morty suspected that more than a few of his comerades had joined the spirits of the Tower.
Now he faced an agent with a Venusaur. Had this been a Gym battle, he would have been proud to hand over a badge, but here, he couldn't lose.
The Terra agent smirked at Morty. He pressed his attack, trying to further weaken the young man. "Venusaur, Razor Leaf," he commanded.
Gengar was hit by a few of the leaves, unable to turn immaterial in time. It flew backwards,and Morty knew it was hiding more severe injuries from previous battles. "Gengar, take it out with Night Shade!" Morty commanded.
Gengar spread its arms out and waggled its tongue, and the Venasaur was surrounded by a black fog.
Morty couldn't see the Venusaur faint, but he could see the red beam of light as the trainer called it back into a ball. The Terra agent quickly retreated.
Before Morty could regroup and check in Gengar, a flash of black and orange appeared out of the corner of his eye. He couldn't see what Pokemon the agent had, but the ground under his feet began to shift.
"Show yourself!" he shouted, backing against the wall.
Another agent, female this time, ran up on him. Unlike the previous he'd battled, she did not waste her time taunting him. "Donphan, Gyro Ball."
Gengar, although injured, was still fairly fast, so the slower Donphan's move drove in hard. Gengar staggered backwards, shaking its head and looking at Morty.
"Dark Pulse, now!" Usually he wouldn't have used such a psychologically damaging move, but his time with Spectre had taught him not to hold back for anything.
Gengar focused its thoughts on horrible things, and sent the aura out to
attack Donphan.
Donphan's eyes went blank, and it staggered under the force of the mental strike.
"Shake it off," the Terra agent said, her voice seeming to bring her Pokemon back. "Stone Edge".
A sharp stone spear appeared, hurtling towards Gengar. Just before it struck the ghost, a screen of light appeared. The stone bounced uselessly on the floor, and disappeared.
Finally, another agent for backup. "Thanks," Morty called, unable to see the newcomer in the dim light. "I'm afraid you caught me at a bad time..." he added under his breath. Gengar hardly had any energy left, and there was only one combination he could use that would take down that Donphan. "Gengar...use Destiny Bond.
"Donphan, Rock Slide." The Terra Agent watched impassively as boulders flew at Gengar. It seemed she was determined to take Gengar out, even at the expensive of her own Pokemon.
Gengar's attack seemed like nothing at first, just a flash of light that was quickly gone, but when combined with the second move Morty had planned, it couldn't fail. But could he really use it? He had never used it, but since joining Spectre, he had done a lot of things he thought before he wasn't capable of.
He shook his head. "Gengar--take it out with Expl--"
"Morty, stop!" Eusine's gloved hand closed on his friend's arm. "Alakazam, Psycho Cut!" he said in almost the same breath, yanking Morty back sharply.
"Eusine...?" Morty could hardly believe it. But it was destiny, he supposed; it had to be. He was reunited with his friend for a reason.
Across the room, the Terra agent laughed. "And now the second does something. Donphan, Giga Impact on that Alakazam!"
The Donphan reared up, letting loose a barrage of energy from its snout.
No longer under Protect, the attack slammed into Alakazam, staggering the psychic Pokemon. "Hit it with Drain Punch, quickly," Eusine commanded, then turned to Morty. "What are you doing here? Why are you with these people?"
"That's my business!" Morty snapped. "Gengar, get that Donphan with Shadow Ball!"
The attacks hit at the same time, and the Donphan was down. "I'll be back!" the trainer hissed, recalling it and running off.
Eusine barely noticed the victory. He was dumbstruck by his normally-mellow friend's hard tone. "Morty..." he shook his head. "No, Morty, we have to leave."
Now that he had time, Morty was able to approach Gengar, giving it a potion. "I can't leave. I'm a part of something big now."
Eusine gestured around. "Are you kidding? Your 'friends' are getting crushed." He pressed the button on his ball, recalling Alakazam. "Why are you doing this?"
Morty laughed, but it was a soulless sound. "Eusine, I'm doing it for you and you know it." He turned around to face the other man. "Don't you remember?"
Eusine took a step back; he looked frightened. "Remember what? What the hell are you talking about?"
"How could you forget?" Morty extended an arm towards his friend. "It's dangerous out there, Eusine. You need someone to protect you."
Realization dawned in Eusine's eyes. "Morty...when I said you need to be stronger, I didn't mean join a stupid team and get yourself killed!"
"If being a Gym Leader wasn't strong enough for you, then what is? I need to be stronger than anyone to get you to listen to me!"
Sighing, Eusine dropped his hands on his friend's shoulders. "Morty...being with these guys isn't going to make you any stronger. Just...come with me. I'll take you back to Ecruteak."
"You don't understand..." Morty whispered. "Things can't just go back to how they were. I'm in this now, no matter what." He pulled his hood, which had fallen down during the battle, back over his head. "If I left now, what do you think they'd do to me?"
Eusine promptly knocked the hood back off. "Are you kidding? Trust me, I've met up with Spectre before. They're cowards--they'll just run and hide. They'd never try to take out someone as well-known as you."
"We're not cowards! If we were, I wouldn't be here!" Morty took a step back, extricating himself from Eusine's hold. "That's appreciation for you..."
Eusine sighed slowly. "Morty, it...really means a lot to me that you would go this far for me."
"I only just started. I'm not up to where I know I can be." Morty patted Gengar's head, who proceeded to float around him, looking for other opponents. Thankfully for the three of them, that floor seemed quiet.
"Morty," Eusine began, speaking slowly. "If you get deeper into this team...you won't be able to travel with me, when the time comes. You'll be too busy doing missions."
"But then I can retire...and then I'll join you. Eusine, I have to do this..."
Eusine crossed his arms and looking up at the ceiling. "Before you decide to go back...come back to Ecruteak with me, so we can talk. I'll...listen to you this time, I promise."
"Eusine..." Morty trailed off, unable and unwilling to say anything more. He turned away for a moment, Gengar looking back at the other man with reluctance.
"Please," Eusine added after a second. It sounded strained--Eusine rarely said "please" for anything. Or anyone.
"I'll still be with them, you know. I can't abandon them." Morty whispered, just loud enough for Eusine to hear.
"We'll talk about that too," Eusine promised, resting his hands on his friend's shoulders again.
Morty slowly turned back. It was impossible to tell in the dim light, but he was fighting back tears. "I have to protect you...but I can't forget about myself..."
He pulled Morty in close for a hug--something Eusine didn't often initiate. "I'm not asking you to, okay? I can protect myself...at least for a little while longer. I just don't want you to get hurt."
"I know..." Morty exhaled heavily as he wrapped his arms around Eusine's waist. "How did you find me, anyway?"
"I heard Suicune was heading this way, so I followed the trail. Once I got into town, I saw your team unloading, and...well, I thought I saw you," Eusine explained, his voice muffled by Morty's shoulder. "I wasn't sure until I heard you calling out attacks."
Another hooded agent called out to them "We're getting out of here! Spectre agents, head for the exits!"
Morty stood back. "I've got to go."
"I can get us out of here." Eusine retrieved his ball again. "Alakazam, Teleport."
Seconds later, they were both standing outside, Team Spectre visible in the distance as they loaded up for retreat.
"Thank you," Morty said, pulling his hood back up. "I've got to meet up with them...but I'll see you in Ecruteak. I've got time off on Tuesday..."
Eusine looked torn for a moment, then nodded. "I'll check the rumors here one more time, then I'll head back that way." As Morty started to head towards his team, he called, "I'll stay safe until then. You do the same, okay?"
"All right. See you later then," Morty called, walking away. His Gengar followed behind, but slower, looking back to watch Eusine get further behind them.
The last Morty saw of Eusine's face was a worried expression before he turned to head into town. For once, it didn't seem like Suicune was what was on his mind.
Morty looked around frantically. This was his second real mission for Spectre, and he didn't want to fail them. His duties had taken him to Lavender, where the aura of ghosts lay thick in the air. But after the Spectre agents piled into the Tower, things had started to go wrong. Another Team, calling themselves Terra, had gone in after them, and his plans to capture ghost types had to be set aside. The Terra agents swarmed the Spectres, and Morty suspected that more than a few of his comerades had joined the spirits of the Tower.
Now he faced an agent with a Venusaur. Had this been a Gym battle, he would have been proud to hand over a badge, but here, he couldn't lose.
The Terra agent smirked at Morty. He pressed his attack, trying to further weaken the young man. "Venusaur, Razor Leaf," he commanded.
Gengar was hit by a few of the leaves, unable to turn immaterial in time. It flew backwards,and Morty knew it was hiding more severe injuries from previous battles. "Gengar, take it out with Night Shade!" Morty commanded.
Gengar spread its arms out and waggled its tongue, and the Venasaur was surrounded by a black fog.
Morty couldn't see the Venusaur faint, but he could see the red beam of light as the trainer called it back into a ball. The Terra agent quickly retreated.
Before Morty could regroup and check in Gengar, a flash of black and orange appeared out of the corner of his eye. He couldn't see what Pokemon the agent had, but the ground under his feet began to shift.
"Show yourself!" he shouted, backing against the wall.
Another agent, female this time, ran up on him. Unlike the previous he'd battled, she did not waste her time taunting him. "Donphan, Gyro Ball."
Gengar, although injured, was still fairly fast, so the slower Donphan's move drove in hard. Gengar staggered backwards, shaking its head and looking at Morty.
"Dark Pulse, now!" Usually he wouldn't have used such a psychologically damaging move, but his time with Spectre had taught him not to hold back for anything.
Gengar focused its thoughts on horrible things, and sent the aura out to
attack Donphan.
Donphan's eyes went blank, and it staggered under the force of the mental strike.
"Shake it off," the Terra agent said, her voice seeming to bring her Pokemon back. "Stone Edge".
A sharp stone spear appeared, hurtling towards Gengar. Just before it struck the ghost, a screen of light appeared. The stone bounced uselessly on the floor, and disappeared.
Finally, another agent for backup. "Thanks," Morty called, unable to see the newcomer in the dim light. "I'm afraid you caught me at a bad time..." he added under his breath. Gengar hardly had any energy left, and there was only one combination he could use that would take down that Donphan. "Gengar...use Destiny Bond.
"Donphan, Rock Slide." The Terra Agent watched impassively as boulders flew at Gengar. It seemed she was determined to take Gengar out, even at the expensive of her own Pokemon.
Gengar's attack seemed like nothing at first, just a flash of light that was quickly gone, but when combined with the second move Morty had planned, it couldn't fail. But could he really use it? He had never used it, but since joining Spectre, he had done a lot of things he thought before he wasn't capable of.
He shook his head. "Gengar--take it out with Expl--"
"Morty, stop!" Eusine's gloved hand closed on his friend's arm. "Alakazam, Psycho Cut!" he said in almost the same breath, yanking Morty back sharply.
"Eusine...?" Morty could hardly believe it. But it was destiny, he supposed; it had to be. He was reunited with his friend for a reason.
Across the room, the Terra agent laughed. "And now the second does something. Donphan, Giga Impact on that Alakazam!"
The Donphan reared up, letting loose a barrage of energy from its snout.
No longer under Protect, the attack slammed into Alakazam, staggering the psychic Pokemon. "Hit it with Drain Punch, quickly," Eusine commanded, then turned to Morty. "What are you doing here? Why are you with these people?"
"That's my business!" Morty snapped. "Gengar, get that Donphan with Shadow Ball!"
The attacks hit at the same time, and the Donphan was down. "I'll be back!" the trainer hissed, recalling it and running off.
Eusine barely noticed the victory. He was dumbstruck by his normally-mellow friend's hard tone. "Morty..." he shook his head. "No, Morty, we have to leave."
Now that he had time, Morty was able to approach Gengar, giving it a potion. "I can't leave. I'm a part of something big now."
Eusine gestured around. "Are you kidding? Your 'friends' are getting crushed." He pressed the button on his ball, recalling Alakazam. "Why are you doing this?"
Morty laughed, but it was a soulless sound. "Eusine, I'm doing it for you and you know it." He turned around to face the other man. "Don't you remember?"
Eusine took a step back; he looked frightened. "Remember what? What the hell are you talking about?"
"How could you forget?" Morty extended an arm towards his friend. "It's dangerous out there, Eusine. You need someone to protect you."
Realization dawned in Eusine's eyes. "Morty...when I said you need to be stronger, I didn't mean join a stupid team and get yourself killed!"
"If being a Gym Leader wasn't strong enough for you, then what is? I need to be stronger than anyone to get you to listen to me!"
Sighing, Eusine dropped his hands on his friend's shoulders. "Morty...being with these guys isn't going to make you any stronger. Just...come with me. I'll take you back to Ecruteak."
"You don't understand..." Morty whispered. "Things can't just go back to how they were. I'm in this now, no matter what." He pulled his hood, which had fallen down during the battle, back over his head. "If I left now, what do you think they'd do to me?"
Eusine promptly knocked the hood back off. "Are you kidding? Trust me, I've met up with Spectre before. They're cowards--they'll just run and hide. They'd never try to take out someone as well-known as you."
"We're not cowards! If we were, I wouldn't be here!" Morty took a step back, extricating himself from Eusine's hold. "That's appreciation for you..."
Eusine sighed slowly. "Morty, it...really means a lot to me that you would go this far for me."
"I only just started. I'm not up to where I know I can be." Morty patted Gengar's head, who proceeded to float around him, looking for other opponents. Thankfully for the three of them, that floor seemed quiet.
"Morty," Eusine began, speaking slowly. "If you get deeper into this team...you won't be able to travel with me, when the time comes. You'll be too busy doing missions."
"But then I can retire...and then I'll join you. Eusine, I have to do this..."
Eusine crossed his arms and looking up at the ceiling. "Before you decide to go back...come back to Ecruteak with me, so we can talk. I'll...listen to you this time, I promise."
"Eusine..." Morty trailed off, unable and unwilling to say anything more. He turned away for a moment, Gengar looking back at the other man with reluctance.
"Please," Eusine added after a second. It sounded strained--Eusine rarely said "please" for anything. Or anyone.
"I'll still be with them, you know. I can't abandon them." Morty whispered, just loud enough for Eusine to hear.
"We'll talk about that too," Eusine promised, resting his hands on his friend's shoulders again.
Morty slowly turned back. It was impossible to tell in the dim light, but he was fighting back tears. "I have to protect you...but I can't forget about myself..."
He pulled Morty in close for a hug--something Eusine didn't often initiate. "I'm not asking you to, okay? I can protect myself...at least for a little while longer. I just don't want you to get hurt."
"I know..." Morty exhaled heavily as he wrapped his arms around Eusine's waist. "How did you find me, anyway?"
"I heard Suicune was heading this way, so I followed the trail. Once I got into town, I saw your team unloading, and...well, I thought I saw you," Eusine explained, his voice muffled by Morty's shoulder. "I wasn't sure until I heard you calling out attacks."
Another hooded agent called out to them "We're getting out of here! Spectre agents, head for the exits!"
Morty stood back. "I've got to go."
"I can get us out of here." Eusine retrieved his ball again. "Alakazam, Teleport."
Seconds later, they were both standing outside, Team Spectre visible in the distance as they loaded up for retreat.
"Thank you," Morty said, pulling his hood back up. "I've got to meet up with them...but I'll see you in Ecruteak. I've got time off on Tuesday..."
Eusine looked torn for a moment, then nodded. "I'll check the rumors here one more time, then I'll head back that way." As Morty started to head towards his team, he called, "I'll stay safe until then. You do the same, okay?"
"All right. See you later then," Morty called, walking away. His Gengar followed behind, but slower, looking back to watch Eusine get further behind them.
The last Morty saw of Eusine's face was a worried expression before he turned to head into town. For once, it didn't seem like Suicune was what was on his mind.