The Sevii Islands were truly a wondrous place for people like him.

That was all Deacon could think as he stared at the several crates of Pokémon his underlings were stowing away on the side of the warehouse they had built. They ranged from wild Pokémon, stolen ones, to abandoned or unwanted ones, all having in common a quite hefty price on the black market, regardless of origin or method of capture.

Of all the regions Team Rocket could expand on, the Sevii Islands was among the most deceptively important ones. One would've thought bigger and more well-known ones like Unova would've improved their presence on the criminal underworld, but that would've forced them to contend with the local crime syndicates in ways they couldn't predict, potentially leading to a retreat and ultimately costing them more losses than gain. The potential advantage also came with too high a risk.

By contrast, nobody cared for the Sevii Islands, their inhabitants, and most importantly their Pokémon. Sure, everyone loved and admired Lorelei from Four Island, but being a member of the Elite Four meant that she had little time to knock on their door, so long as one didn't give her reason to.

Not to mention, Lorelei was the exception to the rule, as far as Sevii Island trainers went. Sure, the odd remarkable trainer always popped up, but for the most part, the archipelago had very little kids starting their journey each year, most of them never going anywhere but out of their little islands in the middle of nowhere for greener and more promising pastures to start their trainer careers in.

That left the islands mostly unguarded from meddling twerps or people nosy and powerful enough to ruin their plans, even moreso in their little hideout in the middle of one of the least populated and interesting areas in spite of recent expansion, where they didn't have to be fearful of an old lady on retirement or a bombshell with a thing for plushies deciding to ruin their day. The only real menace was the local Jenny constantly patrolling the place and attempting to find their warehouse, and that was nothing some stealth and caution couldn't deal with, and without any proof of their presence in the forest she couldn't call many of the aforementioned nosy and powerful individuals. Their chances of victory, under those circumstances, were pretty much one hundred percent.

The Team Rocket member adjusted his hat as he stood tall, striding closer to his colleagues to check their current work. "How has the latest shipment gone?"

"Pretty well, we even got a little stowaway Pokémon to add to our batch." One of them said. Her eyes fell on said Pokémon, and it backed away from them, eyes wide and trembling. "It was all fearful for some reason, so it was easy to subdue it."

Deacon didn't spare more than a glance at the extra Pokémon from their shipment, even if it did bring a smile on his face.

"Excellent news." The smile left as soon as it came, a frown replacing it. "Anything new from town?"

"It seems a trainer and a kid have come, Kantonians. Probably on break from his Gym challenge with his little sister or something."

The man crooked an eyebrow, intrigued. "Any Pokémon worth stealing?"

"It appears to be the case," his colleague said, bringing up several pictures of their newfound target: a tall, red-eyed and pale guy that looked sort of spooky, surrounded by such Pokémon as a Clefairy, a Lapras, a Charizard and many others. All Pokémon worth a pretty penny, with potential for more.

The man smiled again, several possibilities running through his mind. "Very well then. I guess a trainer and his sister chasing after a lost Pokémon and drowning at sea in a tragic accident is a believable cover story, right?"

"Definitely so."

"I expect results, in that case."

His colleague nodded, moving on to continue analyzing the shipments of Pokémon and instructing the remaining grunts about their current plans.

They only needed to play it cool and keep calm, just like they always had. It was far from their first time stealing Pokémon from stupid trainers, and it was through trickery and clever planning that he and his colleague attained the position of Admins of Team Rocket. And if worst came to worst and their targets managed to reach them, they had their ways to ensure that would be the last thing they'd ever do.

Deacon grinned, stretching his fingers as he sat back on his seat. Now there was nothing else to do but wait, and then reap the delicious profit of their job. Their plans had a zero percent chance of failure after all, for he would never accept anything more than that.

They were members of Team Rocket, and they would never disappoint their Boss.

"Red Tajiri, your check-up is over. You can come recover your team now."

Red was quick to raise from his seat and stride back towards the Pokémon Center's desk, where Nurse Joy and her Chansey were now returning with his teams. Pikachu, Clefairy, Slowbro, Sneasel and Charizard all walked alongside the two staffers, while Lapras laid above a stretcher. All Pokémon held a smile and waved at him as he approached, and their excitement managed to make even Red blush just a bit in embarassment.

"Your Pokémon are all fighting fit, you have nothing to worry about in that area," the nurse reassured, going through several pages on a clipboard.

Red nodded at that. "Thank you," he said, gesturing for his team to walk towards Yellow's seat at the Center's dining room. The team agreed, everyone moving on as Chansey brought Lapras' stretcher forward as well.

As his Pokémon walked away towards his travelling companion, Red took his time to observe his currently active team, for the most part composed of Pokémon he caught during his current adventure, and some he learned to know better in the same timeframe. Looking at each of them, even newer entries like Lapras and Sneasel, he could feel the connection between them, how they were all progressing towards the same goal together, maybe even understanding them better than ever before. He didn't know if it was just a sensation or he actually became more perceptive, but he couldn't deny that it felt nice to realize that.

His musings were interrupted by a hand over his shoulder, and when the Trainer turned around, he was met by Nurse Joy wearing an uncharacteristic grimace. "If you have a moment, there's something you should know."

"What is it?" Red turned fully towards her.

"Your Clefairy." The nurse's gaze turned to Red's Fairy-type briefly, before she went through the clipboard again. "I noticed he was behaving somewhat oddly, and as such I took the liberty to give him an extra check up. This is what I found out."

After a few second of going through parchments of data, she finally stopped at two similar-looking radiographies, which she then turned towards Red.

"This is what a Clefairy's brain usually looks like." She pointed to the left, her stare on the trainer as she pointed to the right. "This is what yours' looks like."

Red scrutinized the two similar pictures briefly. He was no scientist, but he could tell by the differing colors and shapes from the previous one that Clefairy's head had definitely something different.

His attention thus went back to the expert at hand. "What does this mean?"

"Your Clefairy has a heavy chemical imbalance in his brain, which is likely to cause him to act on his impulses without realizing they are wrong." The woman traced her finger over the analysis as she kept explaining. "It's nothing unsolvable, Pokémon have mental illnesses and problems just like all of us, Atrice Syndrome being one example. However, something like this will require you to put some extra care to ensure he has a grasp on the correct way to behave and doesn't cause problems like attacking a trainer or worse, potentially needing to take some medication. I took the liberty to prepare you a prescription for some useful ones, which you would be able to find in most PokéMarts."

The nurse passed Red a piece of paper with several medicines written on it, his gaze quickly moving from there to his Fairy-type, currently eating some ice cream Yellow gave him, making a mess on his face but enjoying himself thoroughly. The Trainer's lips curled up ever-so-slightly, and he turned back to the Joy as he pocketed the prescription.

"Thank you, but there's no need to worry about me. We've been through things together, and we'll make it in the end."

The nurse eyed Red's team with a smile of her own. "You love your Pokémon, do you?"

"I just do what I should."

"Well, good luck on that one. Have fun here on Five Island!"

Red acknowledged that with a nod, then quickly moved back to rejoin his team, Lapras now on the ground eating with everyone. His Pokémon all waved and smiled at him as he got closer, with the Viridian City boy taking his time to pet all of them briefly. His attention then shifted to Yellow, just about done with cleaning up the Egg he received in Four Island as she placed it back in its protective case with all the care she could muster.

"Here, your little Egg is still fine." She passed it back to Red, a bright smile on her face as she thumped her chest. "Mommy Yellow made sure to treat it well!"

Red frowned as she placed it again in his backpack."The Egg is my responsibility. You don't have to worry too much."

"Sure, sure, I know, Mr. Responsibility." She gestured away at him, a smirk on her face as she pumped her fists. "Guess I'll just go out and look for a Pokémon of my own now. My destined partner has to be around here somewhere!"

"I hope you'll find it." Red attempted a brief smile, but his attention quickly turned back to his team. "It's time to train a bit now."

His Pokémon all nodded and prepared themselves, and after recalling Lapras, they all walked out of the Pokémon Center to take a stroll and train together.

As they walked away, Red's eyes went to the sky, lost in his thoughts. They were still very far from finding the place those girls tried to led him towards, the one Yellow kept calling a trap, but every island of the archipelago had managed to give him something, one way or another. Even without any tangible progress in that area, he would never say that his trip had been a waste at that point.

He had already given some thought to the areas they could explore of Five Island. There was a place called the Water Labyrinth, where a man willing to hand out Eggs of rare Pokémon was rumored to live, which sounded like the perfect place to train Lapras in. There was also the Resort Gorgeous, where a rich lady held many parties which didn't seem to catch his interest, right next to the inexplicable Lost Cave which did so far more to test out his Victory Sight. He even heard of someone who built a Memorial Pillar for his deceased Onix, with Yellow suggesting they'd go there to pay their respects eventually. And those were all just some of the possibilities they had just on that island, assuming they couldn't find their goal as well.

The Sevii Islands were truly a wondrous place for people like him.

Once the little group reached a large and empty park they could make use of, the training efforts for the day began in earnest.

"Sneasel, Metal Claw! Clefairy, Moonblast!"

VicTORTyyyy Oss: 6&7-9!

Red shook his head slightly as he focused on his two Pokémon attacking Pokémon, all while Slowbro ensured to keep Victory Sight in check with a constant low emission of Psywave. All the way, Sneasel zoomed around the battlefield with quick precision and steel-powered claws on the ready, all while Clefairy twirled to avoid it and blasted a Moonblast point-blank, with Sneasel sliding on the ground to avoid it. Both Pokémon traded a grin, and then jumped a few feet back to resume their sparring, all while Red analyzed their performances and deduced what attack to order now, all while Yellow cheered them all on from the sidelines alongside Pikachu.

The training he was undertaking encompassed several different purposes in one: it served to test how Sneasel would fare in a battle, if Clefairy could hold back against an opponent on his own, and most importantly how well he could deduce and handle things without Victory Sight to tell him the odds. For the moment, everything was going as well as it could be: Sneasel was reconfirming his strong points in his speed and ability to quickly strike in precise spots for a quick and efficient victory, with Clefairy managing to match that by being completely unpredictable, yet showing enough restraint to not be dangerous even with the occasional slip. But most importantly, he was starting to appreciate the thrill of having to figure out what to do next without a guideline to map his future actions for him.

He could see by now where Ash Ketchum could come from regarding his philosophy of never holding back, but that didn't mean he had intention to stop using his own natural abilities. At the same time, however, he also had no intention to rely on his powers so much that it would become a crutch: ever since he reached the Sevii Islands, he was able to see the limits of his ability, between his first complete loss against Ultima, to the experience in Berry Forest. He couldn't afford for his strategies to falter just because of a bad roll of chances.

And one of the keys to avoid that was to put trust in his own Pokémon. It was such a weird thing to think about, but after how he managed to befriend Lapras, and to a lesser extent even Sneasel and Slowbro, he knew that such a thing could come in handy if properly harnessed, far more than any Mega Evolution hoard would.

He gave the briefest of smiles as he shifted between his two dueling Pokémon and the rest of his team resting inside their Poké Balls. Even if their search for that place was still at a dead end, he was glad for everything he had gone through in the Sevii Islands, for sure.

He quickly shook his head and focused back on the two sparring partners, already going through several possible order. And then, a loud clapping of hands interrupted his train of thought.

"Wow, you sure are strong over here!"

Red, his three active Pokémon and Yellow all paused their training, their attention gravitating back to the friendly redhead in casual wear waving at them politely as he walked closer from a nearby road.

"Who are you?" Yellow asked, her eyes squinted. Red simply stood on wait, observing the newcomer.

The man rubbed his neck, a sheepish grin on his face. "Just a citizen of this little town. I was watching your training, and boy, you sure seem cool. Are you taking part in some League?"

"We're on a break before Indigo," was Red's quick answer.

"Oh, Indigo. A pretty competitive League." The man nodded, his attention shifting to Red's team. "I'm sure your Pokémon can make it, they look pretty strong. I'd love to see them more closely..."

He took a few steps closer to Red's Pokémon, his smile only growing wider as he did so. And then, Clefairy cried out and headbutted him in the chest without warning.

"Oof!" the man yelled, falling on the ground and holding the injury, all while Clefairy continued to glare in his direction. Both Red and Yellow froze in place, staring at the Fairy-type.

"Clefairy!" Red yelled, his mind blanking out with his still useless Victory Sight. Why did he attack that man? Was he wrong and Clefairy never changed his ways? No, that wasn't possible, he could tell that Clefairy was making a serious effort to change himself, he was helping through that path. Then, what was that for? It made no sense, unless-

The answer came quickly as he turned back to Sneasel and Slowbro, both looking quite queasy as they glared at the man that just arrived, with Pikachu already sparkling his cheeks with electricity. As Red and Yellow did the same, they both noticed his body language and expression shifting, the friendliness gone and replaced by a harsh glare.

"Umpf... Pokémon always ruin this kind of approach. Oh well." The man grinned, pulling out a Poké Ball and tossing it skyward. "Arbok, Glare!"

The Poison-type materialized in mid-air, its eyes quickly shifting towards Red and his Pokémon, shining brightly with power as it locked gazes with them.

Red froze in place, falling to his knees as his body stiffened all of a sudden. Red screamed, a surge of electricity travelling through his entire body and pining him in place. He tried to turn to his Pokémon, only to find them in the very same predicament, with Sneasel snarling and trying to claw at the air and Clefairy crying and thrashing about, only making him cry more. Red didn't need to think about it to understand they had all been paralyzed.

The only exception was Pikachu, who immediately leapt to Arbok with a Thunderpunch on the ready; however, the Poison-type proved faster, springing up towards it and coiling itself around its body. Pikachu tried to break free, only for the Arbok to make its fangs glow purple and bite into Pikachu with the power of Poison Fang. Red's trusty partner squirmed in pain, but the Arbok was clinical and efficient, only stopping as the Electric-type gained a visible purple tint, letting it go on the ground too poisoned to move. Red could only stare completely speechless as his oldest partner fell so quickly.

"Red! Pikachu!" Yellow called out, but before she could come closer to him, a strong pair of arms caught her at the waist and forced her away. "Ah!"

Red's eyes widened, unable to avert his eyes from the man, his grin only wider as he held the girl trapped in his arms, his Arbok joining him at his side.

"Sorry princess, but you're my insurance here." He clenched his grip on her tighter, and stared back at Red. "Now, give me all your Pokémon, or your friend goes down."

As if to punctuate the threat, Arbok showed its fangs, gleaning of a sick purple color once again. Red tried to spring back up to knock the man down, only for the paralysis to act up and force him back down again, wincing. All the while, Yellow continued to try to bite, stomp and hit at the man, causing only mild amusement from her captor.

Red bared his teeth, trying to think of a good course of action. His Victory Sight was still affected by Slowbro's Psywave, his active team was all paralyzed, and he himself could barely move. He tried to move his hand to his belt, only for another spark of paralysis to make him wince, all while Arbok stared through him again and his Pokémon were all in pain. Any of the easy options seemed precluded to him, one way or another.

He gulped, his eyes on Yellow. He couldn't hesitate nor take any wrong action, not with her life at stake, and definitely not at the cost of his own Pokémon. He needed a good plan, but which one?

Several possibilities ran through Red's brain, none too feasible, and none he'd risk Yellow's life on. And thus he remained there, unable to decide on a solid plan, even hoping for someone to come and see what was going on and help, anything to get out of that situation. And all the while, his friend tried to break free as his Pokémon whined in pain.

Red bared his teeth, feeling his anger building up, all while Arbok remained ready to act. He had to do something, so maybe-

And then, a loud series of beeps filled the park. The man crooked an eyebrow, taking out a little comunicator from his pocket.

"Hm?" He pressed a few buttons on it, reading something over the screen and nodding to himself. "Mhhhm... I see. Very well then."

The man placed the communicator aside, quickly shifting his attention back to Red and his team. His grin split his face, almost mocking as he stared down at his impeded opponents.

"Well, ain't you a lucky fellow, I need to return to base." He glanced back at his captive. "If you want your friend here back, take all of your Pokémon with you to a warehouse in Five Isle Meadow, simple as that. A very honest trade, I'd say."

Red only glared at the man's poor attempt at humor. For his part, the man also held Yellow closer to himself, narrowly avoding a kick and a bite from the girl.

His gaze then turned fierce, piercing through Red's own. "Of course, it goes without saying that if you try anything funny, we're gonna kill her on the spot."

For his part, Red's anger continued to build up, feeling the flames dance inside his throat.

"You...!" he narrowed his eyes, fists clenched, the paralysis doing little to dampen his rage.

"Let me go, now!" The girl tried to yell, with the man quickly taking care of that by tying a piece of cloth around her mouth, muffling her offenses and calls for help.

"Heh, so feisty." The man chuckled out, then turned away and calmly walked towards the town's exit. "See you later, pal."

And with that, the man left alongside his friend and his Arbok. Red tried to spring back on his feet and chase after him again, only for the paralysis to hit once more and making him fall back in the dirt, pain flaring all over his body. He still tried to get back up, but by then, he could find no trace of either the man nor his friend.

Red's mind was empty as he realized it, all of his thoughts focused on one thought. He'd let Yellow slip away from him again, and this time she didn't have Pikachu with her to help. All because he didn't act or plan anything in time, because he couldn't predict it, because-

The boy shook his head, trying to fight off the pain as he grabbed some Paralyze Heal from his bag, quickly spraying some on himself. The electric surge started to wane, until he finally could move again. He then quickly got back up and walked towards Pikachu, giving it an Antidote and all the required Potions he could use before he moved to his other three Pokémon.

He couldn't waste time thinking of what could've been, or how Victory Sight could've prevented all of that. The only person he could blame for what happened was that man, and himself for not being good enough. That meant there was only one course of action to take.

He sprayed the cure over the rest of his active team, noticing the determination and desire to help in each of their eyes. It felt weird to think about it, but Red felt united with them in their purpose, as if they all wanted the same thing. Red quickly took a deep breath to calm himself down, and then observed his now healed team.

"We're going to rescue Yellow, now." He held a fist up, clenching it. "Are you with me?"

In response, all four of them raised a fist and let out an affirmative, with Pikachu leaping back on his usual place on Red's shoulder. Red almost smiled, but quickly settled into a serious frown.

And with that, Red and his team prepared themselves for the pursuit.

Deacon was still working through several screens' worth of recordings and recent information of various kind when he heard the automatic doors of his makeshift office open. Grinning, the Team Rocket officer turned around, only grinning even wider as he saw one of their grunts in civilian clothes, bringing a girl gagged and bound at the wrists and ankles alongside him, just as expected and planned.

"Here, I'm back with the pipsqueak," the man said, holding the girl like she was some sort of trophy.

The Admin took a few seconds to run through all he had seen: her name was Yellow, an orphan with no living family left, but extremely close and irreplaceable for their target. Therefore, the most perfect bait they could ask for.

"Excellent work. This is going to help us out immensely." The Admin chuckled out lightly. Yellow tried to scream something at him, probably some sort of colorful offense, but only sending muffled sounds to them.

The grunt for his part just scratched his head, puzzled. "Care to explain why we had to bring her here, though? I mean, I could've just waited until he decided to surrender his Pokémon."

"And give him time to think up a countermeasure to defeat you? No, thanks. This is why I'm the only one giving orders here," the Admin said with an admonishing glare.

The grunt tilted his head, still far from convinced. "Isn't he gonna have even more time now?"

"Kids his age are prone to be irrational when their loved ones are targeted. Their first impulse wouldn't be to call up on the law enforcement, but rather rush right where we told him to come in a foolish attempt to play hero." The Admin folded his arms, gently letting his chair revolve as he smiled. "Not only that, but regardless of what he does, he's bound to use some of his most powerful Pokémon to help him out, meaning if we were to only steal six of them, they'd be the better Pokémon he could give us. I can live with losing a Rattata if I obtain a Charizard from it."

"We'd still need to fight them, however."

"Which isn't a problem. We are making him come right in our base, where we'd have the home field advantage and larger numbers. That's assuming we don't defeat him before he even figures out this warehouse's password." The Admin turned back to some of the screens, all showing security camera footage from the exterior of the warehouse. "There are several ways to defeat him all carefully laid out. The question is just which of them will work."

The grunt didn't reply, seemingly acknowledging the Admin's point. All the while, however, Yellow continued to thrash and scream incoherent noises into her gag. Almost amused, the Admin gave a quick nod to the grunt, whom quickly removed the cloth and allowed the girl to speak again.

"Red won't be defeated by such stupid plans! No matter how many of them you set up!" she snarled, an angry scowl directed towards the criminals.

In response, the Admin didn't give her more than a bemused chuckle. It wasn't enough to have the girl lose her defiant glare, but enough to shake it ever-so-slightly.

"Is that so? Intriguing." The man stroke his chin, thoughtful. "I'm more than ready to accept the challenge, if he's going to be hard to deal with."

He spun the chair around, gesturing to his side. "Put her right next to the cages."

The grunt obliged, grabbing Yellow and dragging her right next to several cages containing wild Pokémon, all of which rushed to the other end and snarled to the girl once her back hit the bars. The girl whined in pain, turning towards the Pokémon around her in confusion.

The Admin grinned, understanding what she was likely thinking. "Those Pokémon are all problematic ones to ship away soon, the ones that turned hostile and unwilling to listen to us after we were done with them. No way they'd help you out, if you wanted to try that."

Yellow gave pause at that, caught off guard by his remarks. That elicited yet another chuckle from the man, as he spun his chair back in its original position.

"Now, let's work out some other plans for her little knight in shining armor, here."

"What are we gonna do with her if we defeat the kid, though?"

He chanced another brief glance towards her, his grin ever present. "I've got a few ideas already. Team Rocket might not deal in human trafficking, but there are quick and easy ways for her to be useful."

The Admin chuckled out as he saw the girl trembling, quickly going back to his several screens and information. Their target would be there soon, and he needed to prepare the best welcome they could give him.

Holding still to his Lapras' neck, Red carefully analyzed the warehouse right in the middle of Five Isle Meadow from a safe distance from the island's coast. It was hardly ideal, but it was far better than dropping too close and play into his enemy's hands. He wanted to rescue Yellow, but every time he tried to rush into things, something bad happened. He had to keep a cool head, if he didn't want to turn that rescue into another Berry Forest.

He shook his head to banish the memories from Three Island, gesturing to Lapras to move a bit closer to get a better view. That was when he could finally start to make up the shape of the various men and women hiding behind or ontop of trees, all wearing an unmistakable black uniform and what he was sure was an 'R' emblazoned on the shirts.

Members of Team Rocket, of course. He didn't expect to find them active in the Sevii Islands, but their M.O was a match for that man in town.

Red frowned, his memory going back to the last time he met one of those criminals, just before he embarked on his current quest. It really felt like a lifetime ago, back when he didn't care that much to know his Pokémon better, or trying to understand them in any way. If Yellow didn't point out Clefairy dragged the unconscious grunt away to 'play' with him, Red would've probably not cared what happened to them both. Even in regards to a criminal, that was hardly how a Trainer should've acted for their Pokémon, their responsibilities.

He sighed; that was no time to dwell on the past. And with so many criminals surrounding the place and expecting his arrival, he also doubted Clefairy's Sing could swiftly solve his problems this time.

No, he needed to play things just right, even if at such a distance Victory Sight was all but worthless. And thus, he tapped his chin in thought, grabbing a few of his Poké Balls.

"Charizard," Red whispered, tossing a Poké Ball up and materializing his faithful Fire/Flying-type. "Let's fly up. Don't make too much noise."

Charizard nodded, and after hopping on him and recalling Lapras, Red quickly led his Pokémon around the meadow and right over the warehouse, making sure to not come too close or to alert any of the grunts of his presence. Charizard remained above the building, allowing Red to plan out something.

None of the grunts seemed to have noticed him, probably expecting him to walk towards them. None of them had their Pokémon out, but all had Poké Balls ready to be used. Red clenched his fists; with so little information and only one easily defeated Team Rocket grunt he ever met, his Victory Sight data just begged to be proved wrong. And that didn't account for what could be inside the warehouse, either.

He couldn't gamble and he had no certainties to fall back to. Thus, he had to rely on what he knew could work.

Red grabbed two of his Poké Balls, calling Sneasel and Slowbro at his side. He remained silent, but a quick glance and pointing at the grunts was all his Pokémon needed to understand the plan.

Charizard flew just a bit further, enough to stand right above the entrance. Red gave a quick sign to his two Pokémon and pointed down, and without further wait, Slowbro leapt down, landing on the soft grass on a crouch right between the grunts. As he got back up, all the criminals' attention gravitated towards him.

"A Slowbro? Where did that-"

Slowbro's eyes shone brightly, and a multicolored beam radiated from him straight to each of the humans surrounding him.

"Ah! My head!" one yelled, kneeling down.

Another glared at Slowbro, clearly pained. "What is that thing doing-"

A carefully aimed slash was enough to knock him down, as Sneasel leapt off him and on the ground with grace and elegance. The Ice/Dark-type didn't waste time to speed towards the rest of the grunts, slicing and knocking them out with quick and precise Metal Claws. One, two, three, four seconds later, and Sneasel stood back next to Slowbro, wearing a pleased grin and raising his claws to Red above.

Red didn't answer immediately, giving a thorough look at the meadow first. Only when his odds guaranteed him a one hundred percent of safety did he ask Charizard to land, dismounting from his flyer and patting Sneasel and Slowbro's heads.

"Great work, you two," he said with a quick smile, before his attention moved back to the warehouse's entrance. More specifically, the reinforced doors blocking it.

Red stared at Sneasel, only for the black Pokémon to shake his head, confirming that a Metal Claw wasn't going to solve that. The possibility discarded, Red moved towards the door's keypad, analyzing the buttons at his disposal. There was definitely some kind of password to input, and he knew exactly how to find out which was it.

He started typing several possible passwords: Team Missile Bomb, Rocket For Supremacy, Rocket Gang, and many others. With each failed attempt, his Victory Sight got closer to be able to give him odds on which letters to use, and in less than two minutes and with some luck, he quickly figured out the password: Goldeen need log. Yes, nah, Chansey.

And with that, the door started to open, with Slowbro, Sneasel and Charizard all reaching Red at his side. For his part, the trainer stared at the opening door, and took his first steps inside. The easy part was done, and the hard one was just ahead.

And as he saw a dozen of Rocket grunts all standing in wait for him, he realized just how hard that would be.

"He's here, we must-" one of the grunts started to say, before she paused in confusion. "Wait, how did you get here unharmed?"

Red didn't reply, simply palming his own remaining Poké Ball while his active team prepared for battle. The grunts were all doing the same, until Red's eyes caught a very familiar face among them, and bared his teeth towards him.

"I see you decided to play hero, in the end." The man who kidnapped Yellow grinned at that, tossing his Poké Ball up and down with nonchalance. "You realize that this means your little friend's done for, right?"

Red didn't reply, his stare piercing through his opponent. Even without any command given, all of his Pokémon remained alert, some even starting to charge their own attacks. The kidnapper just chuckled out at that.

"Acting all stoic, heh. Very well then." He clasped the Ball and readied a throw. "Arbok, use-"

"Psywave."

The multicolored beam zoomed right at him, and the man doubled down.

"Aaaah!" he screamed, hands on his head as Arbok's Ball harmlessly bounced on the ground. Sneasel made a beeline for it, quickly grabbing the Poké Ball and holding it close. Red nodded at him: with what that Arbok could do, they couldn't afford another attack from it.

Sneasel then had to duck down to avoid a sudden Hyper Fang, quickly kicking the Ball away before his Metal Claw met the newly arrived Raticate's fangs, Dark-type and Normal-type trading blows with no pause.

Red's body tensed up as he gave a cursory glance to the grunts scattered about, all tossing Poké Balls: sure enough, he and his team were surrounded by anything from Raticate, to Arbok, to Golbat, to even the odd Houndoom and many other Pokémon he couldn't recognize at a glance. Without waiting, all the Pokémon went on the offensive, forcing Red to dodge a barrage of attacks coming his way and roll over behind a steel crate.

And from there, he said only one thing. "Everyone, fight."

All of his Pokémon went on the offensive, several Ice Beams, Flamethrowers, Moonblasts, Thunderbolts, Metal Claws and Psywaves flying to and from everywhere as all the Team Rocket Pokémon replied in kind. The battle quickly devolved into absolute chaos, with several grunts trying to circle each of Red's Pokémon and try to defeat them with superior numbers.

But all of Red's Pokémon were smart and well-trained, and even with their trainer on the side, they quickly mounted a counterattack of their own: Lapras made up for its lack of mobility by blasting Ice and Water attacks from his position, all while Pikachu took advantage of the drenched opponents to knock them out with a few well-placed Thunder Punches. All the while, Charizard and Slowbro formed an unlikely partnership as the Psychic-type disrupted their opponents' concentration, leaving ground for Charizard to soar above them and inflicting harsh damage from above, scattering any attempt to gang up on the two.

But what caught Red's attention the most was the most unexpected pair, with Clefairy and Sneasel switching opponents on the fly and making sure no one could reach the other, with Clefairy acting far more dependable than Red had ever seen him.

Red found quite interesting to see how each of his Pokémon could do if he wasn't the one giving them orders, considering how often he tried to rely on pre-planned strategy, but even if it provided him with some food for thought, standing there in wait wouldn't have brought him any closer to Yellow. He needed to make his way to the other end of the room and further into the warehouse, but as he spied the path ahead, all he could see with a horde of assaulting Pokémon that his team was trying to keep at bay, even with all of their efforts.

They would've needed to split their forces, but the question was how. He could possibly bring Sneasel with him for his speed, but as he looked back at his team-up with Clefairy, he wasn't sure on if that was the best option.

And so, he turned to his Victory Sight, trying to analyze his opponents and his Pokémon's chances.

Victory Odds: 50%

Red sighed. A perfect split chance, to be expected with not much data to go on. The boy frowned and turned back to Clefairy and Sneasel: his two Pokémon were back-to-back, with Clefairy alternating Moonblast and Sing in equal measure from afar and Sneasel making quick work of anyone who got too close, either tossing them into Clefairy's attack area or going for quick, precise strikes before joining his comrade's back, both Pokémon trading grins and almost challenging each other on who would do better.

Their teamwork could use work and seemed pretty basic, but they still put all of themselves in the fight. Sneasel's speed was his strong point, but Clefairy was making sure to cover for his weak ones, too.

And so, Red smiled and took his decision.

"Do your best to keep them busy, you two," he said, receiving quick nods in return from the Fairy-type and the Dark-type. He then glanced at Lapras. "Stay here and help them."

Lapras agreed, going back to fire Ice Beams skyward to block the colony of Golbat gunning for them, all while Sneasel tossed Clefairy high enough to blast several notes of Sing to the pack of Raticate below, plunging them into sleep. Red didn't linger more than necessary as he raised from his safe place, gesturing at Charizard, Pikachu and Slowbro to come with him.

All of his Pokémon quickly blasted their opponents enough to rejoin their trainer, all while Slowbro fired his Psywave to anything that wasn't a Dark-type to clear the path to the door. And with that, Red and half of his team continued their rush inside the Warehouse, all ready to rescue Yellow.

If she weren't restrained and surrounded by some rather fight-ready criminals, Yellow would've probably cheered for Red as the screen showed him and his team making their way through the several grunts and Pokémon on their part, both outside and inside of the warehouse. She knew they wouldn't stand a chance against him, and it was great to see she was right.

Even as she barely suppressed the urge to grin, however, the girl couldn't help but notice that the Deacon guy, or the 'Admin' as everyone called him, didn't seem worried at all. He was just stroking his chin in thought, almost smirking as he shifted between studying all the screens and typing something at his computer, completely impassible and calm.

"What should we do? The kid will reach us here," one of the grunts said, frowning.

The Admin took a few seconds to study the screens and smirk to himself before he turned his chair back to his colleague.

"Worry not, the rest of the grunts are already in their position in the main storage room. He dealt with our first line of defense better than I expected, but sometimes you need to sacrifice a few pawns to judge the worth of your adversary." He hopped off his chair, grabbing quite a few Poké Balls from the desk. "I guess we should prepare, too. It's better to not underestimate him further."

"Yes sir."

All the grunts in the room rushed to grab their Poké Balls, quickly but efficiently preparing in less than a few seconds. Deacon gave them an approving nod, and his attention went back to Yellow. The girl paled as the man grinned again at her.

"You have fun here in the meantime, little girl. Don't try to pull anything funny, if you value your life," he said, his tone sharply dropping as he glared daggers at her.

Yellow only gulped in response, enough for the man to chuckle and go on his way with his underlings, closing the door behind him and leaving Yellow alone in the middle of the room, right next to the Pokémon's crates.

The girl remained still and silent until she couldn't hear the grunts' steps anymore. Once she was sure that the criminals had finally left in full, the girl took a deep breath and stared right at her binds. She took a deep breath, gritted her teeth, and tried to push her wrists and ankles away from each other, the rope digging into her skin on both ends but not stretching in the slightest. Yellow continued to try, putting more and more effort as she thrashed about, only to end up in a pool of sweat as she caught up her breath, the rope still firm and undamaged.

"Crud," she said as she panted and caught her breath. No matter how much strength she put in, the binds were too tight to break. She definitely needed something to help there.

She glanced around, trying to search for anything useful scattered around her, only to find nothing. She grimaced briefly at that, until she happened to look at the cage right next to her, where a Pokémon stood waiting on end.

Yellow took a second to observe her little neighbor: it was nothing more than a Rattata, perhaps even a bit younger than the ones she usually saw, sizing her up even if he was almost shaking. Yellow could relate to what he was probably feeling, but still grinned once she realized how that little guy could help her out.

"Hey, you! You there! Can you come close?" she whispered with a big smile.

The Rattata froze and stared at Yellow, quickly rushing to the other end of the cage and continuing to stare at the girl, showing its fangs and squeaking at her with hostility. Yellow blinked in response, only to remember what the Admin had said. Whatever Team Rocket did to the Pokémon around her, they would be unwilling to help or even trust her. The girl's smile dropped as she observed the little Rattata, managing to spot quite a few bruises hidden beneath his fur. Trying to imagine what those criminals did to him and other Pokémon around her made Yellow's stomach turn.

She shook her head and put those thoughts aside, focusing back on the fearful and cornered Rattata once more. Feeling a kinship with the little guy, she managed to smile at him again with a light chuckle.

"Sorry, I guess you don't trust humans that much, do you? If they treated you like they're treating me, I can see why." She shifted a bit closer, turning her binds towards the cage. "I'm not gonna bite, though. I just need your help here."

The Rattata seemed to lower his guard at that, sniffing and staring at the binds with interest. He seemed just a tad bit less fearful, but still refused to move and continued to size up the girl with caution. Yellow really wished to have some treats or something to prove that she wasn't gonna hurt him. And at that, she remembered what she had to show about herself.

She breathed in and out slowly, channeling her energy in her hands, which started to glow white. It was her Bloodline, Heal Pulse, capable to give back vigor and strength to the Pokémon around her, which made for a nice contrast to her other, super empowering Bloodline. It was probably not that impressive compared to other powers a Bloodliner could have, but she always liked to have got a kind power with whom she could help others.

The Rattata went wide-eyed at the healing power radiating from the girl's hands, its guard dropping even more as curiosity glimmered in its eyes. Yellow continued to emanate the power, waiting for Rattata to act on its own accord. Tentatively, the rodent Pokémon pawed closer, sniffing at the air and then at the energy, before he finally took enough steps to bask in it. At that point, Yellow redirected the power properly, and she could see Rattata's bruises and injuries slowly disappearing. As Rattata smiled and relaxed, Yellow was happy to continue bringing the guy back to top shape after who knew how much time.

"Glad you're liking it!" She said, stopping the influx of healing as Rattata stood healthier than ever. She showed her binds again. "Can you bite this? I can heal yours and everyone else's injuries if you free me here. It's a job only you can do."

The Rattata observed the rope, and quickly nodded at the girl; his fangs glistened with power, and with one quick bite Yellow's binds were undone, finally allowing her to move her hands again and undo the binds on her hands. The rodent Pokémon then rushed near Yellow's ankles, making short work of the restraints there as well.

"Whew." Yellow took a second to stretch her limbs out as she stood again, before she faced the little Pokémon again and gave him a thumbs up. "Great job, pal!"

Rattata squeaked back happily, most of the initial wariness all but gone now. Yellow and the Pokémon traded a short-lived grin, and then the girl turned around to keep her end of the bargain.

"Let's see..." Yellow frowned, examining the room and hoping to find some keys or something to unlock the cage. There weren't any, probably due to the Admin taking them, but the girl found a suitable replacement right on the other side of the room, where a crowbar laid right ontop of an open cage. The girl grinned again, quickly rushing to grab it before she returned back to Rattata's cage.

"Move aside," she said, taking her aim and squinting her eyes. The Rattata run to the other end of his prison, and after a brief wait, Yellow started to bash the crowbar into the metal bars.

KLANG! KLANG! KLANG! The noise filled the entire room, scaring most of the other Pokémon on the back of her cages. Yellow would've definitely needed to apologize for the hassle later, but right now she had a promise to keep.

Even if Yellow wasn't the strongest person around, she could see the bars bending slightly with each hit, and after about a minute of whacking at them, they finally curved just enough for the Pokémon to squeeze through them and finally leave the cage.

"Sorry for the noise, I'm not that good at this," Yellow said with a sheepish grin, rubbing her neck. Rattata didn't seem annoyed, and in fact leapt right onto her arms and started nuzzling her affectionately. "H-hey! Don't do that, it tickles!" She giggled, hugging the little Pokémon close to herself.

"Thanks for the help," Yellow said as she let the Rattata climb up on her shoulder, just like Red's Pikachu would. She then turned to the surrounding Pokémon in the surrounding cages, counting twenty or more all around her. Far too many for her to free them all alone. She needed some more help for that, and to do so, she had to go and give some help of her own against the criminals there.

She smirked back at her newfound friend. "You don't mind if I ask you for another hand, right?"

The rodent raised a paw and grinned back at her, making Yellow's smile grow wider. Before they could move out, however, a new voice interrupted them.

"What was that noise? What's going on here?"

The girl and the Pokémon darted their eyes towards the door, where a grunt entered and stared right at them. He immediately frowned.

"How did you...?" He shook his head, his stare now fiercer as he pointed ahead. "Nevermind. Go back, now."

Yellow squinted her eyes in defiance. "Make me."

The grunt paused and sized up the girl, but was quick to calm a Poké Ball in response.

"You asked for it, twerp," he said as he readied his throw.

For their part, Yellow and Rattata traded a nod, their intentions matching. And with that, Rattata leapt off of Yellow's shoulder and on the ground to stare at their opponent. Their newfound friendship was ready for their trial by fire.

Red took measured steps as he, Pikachu, Charizard and Slowbro entered what appeared to be the deepest level of the warehouse. After all the battling they had to cut through to reach it, their footsteps echoing along as the only sound managed to be as relaxing as it was unsettling. All around them laid several cages, all holding Pokémon inside them, mostly Kantonian ones with the odd Johtonian species here and there. A lot of them seemed asleep, but all the awake ones stared straight at them, making no sound.

Red tried to ignore that as he shook his head, focusing on the path. Even if that room was the center of Team Rocket's operations, his main concern was still rescuing Yellow. He couldn't let playing good samaritan distract him from his main objective.

The boy clenched his fists, eyes darting left and right. Unlike any regular storage backroom, that one seemed structured a bit like a small labyrinth. Red couldn't tell if it was a deliberate choice or just a result of their line of work, and he frankly didn't care. All he knew was that it was making hard to find out where the right path to the next room was. He could've tried flying over Charizard to the other side, but he had the feeling that wasn't a good idea.

He turned to Pikachu. "Can you smell Yellow?"

Even if not without uncertainty, Pikachu nodded and sniffed at the air. He dashed ahead, with Red and the other two Pokémon rushing after him. They took a couple lefts, all while Red tried to keep track of the path they were going. And then, a voice echoed around him.

"Assault, everyone!"

Red and his Pokémon stopped suddenly at a split in the road, with a couple of Team Rocket grunts coming at them from the left path. Two Electabuzz sprung forward, twin Thunderbolts travelling towards Red and his team.

Red, and his team ducked to the side as the electricity flew next to them, with Red's Fire-type blasting a full-force Flamethrower towards the newcomers. Then, a Houndoom leapt forward, absorbing the attack like it was nothing. Red stared in confusion, before quickly filing it as Flash Fire in action. A suspicion confirmed when the Houndoom launched a far wider and more powerful Flamethrower back to them; Slowbro tried to keep it at bay with a Water Pulse, but the Flamethrower cut through the Water-type move and blasted through Slowbro. Red's Psychic-type shrieked in pain, and Pikachu leapt to the side and readied a Brick Break to take the Houndoom out, only for a quick Mega Punch from one of the Electabuzz to send him flying towards a cage, all while Charizard was kept at a distance by a storm of Thunderbolts.

In the middle of the ensuing battle, Red continued to study his opponents. In spite of the situation, Victory Sight was giving him a positive feedback edging in the high nineties, but only with a battle that would require time and effort. And he couldn't afford to waste any of either.

"We don't have time for this. Let's go," was Red's quick order. His Pokémon responded immediately, abandoning their fights and rushing ahead with him, with Pikachu firing a Thunderbolt to force the grunts behind before he reclaimed his role as the guide for the path ahead.

Red's plan seemed to work well enough until the next fork of the road, where another couple of grunts suddenly rushed from the right, another Electabuzz and an Arbok with them.

"Destroy them, Arbok! Sludge Bomb!" a grunt yelled, hand outstretched.

The poisonous sludge dropped right where Red's team was, forcing him and his Pokémon to step back and reorganize. And the grunts took their chance.

"Now, Thunderbolt!"

A searing bolt traveled through the air from behind them, nailing Charizard on one of the cages. The mighty Fire-type roared in pain, and as Red stared on, a familiar Houndoom came out and trapped Pikachu in a blast of Flamethrower. Red paled and turned around, finding the grunts from before now caught up to them, with their Pokémon ready for round two.

The three Electabuzz, the Houndoom, the Arbok all closed in around them. Red frowned at their foes old and new, and Slowbro did likewise. The situation was tricky, but it was still far from hopeless.

"Blast them away!" Red yelled; Slowbro obliged quickly, firing a blast of Psywave all around them; the three Pokémon and their trainers all lowered their heads in pain at the Psychic-type attack, lowering their guard enough for Charizard to knock them down with a slice of Dragon Claw. Red and his Pokémon didn't wait for them to recover, heading further down the only path they could go through.

And just like before, at the first split of the road, another duo of Team Rocket grunts and their Pokémon awaited them, forcing Red and his Pokémon on the opposite direction as they narrowly avoided their attacks and quickly replied in turn.

As Red and his three Pokémon continued to make their way further through the makeshift labyrinth of cages, more and more Team Rocket members continued to come out from some of the paths around them, their ambushes and attacks growing more difficult to avoid at each turn as his Pokémon continued to get hit, all while the other grunts continued to pursue him from a distance, ensuring that Red and his Pokémon couldn't just go back.

Even without Victory Sight, Red could tell what their plan was: to push him and his team in a corner, where they could defeat him with superior numbers. It was simple but effective, as proved by how Charizard, Pikachu and Slowbro all got significant damage after so many continuous ambushes. Sure, they could've tried to fight back, but Red had no idea how grueling that could be, and it would risk keeping him exposed to further attacks. Red balled his fists, trying to think of some way to defeat his opponents before it was too late.

The boy turned left and right, finding nothing but cages around him- until he spotted a small opening over one of the stacks, big enough to allow for some passage. He nudged his Pokémon in that direction, and Charizard allowed his trainer and his comrades to hop on to fly through it and land on the other side. As Charizard let his passengers hop off, Red could faintly hear several steps in the distance, and sighed in relief. They would still catch up in due time, but at least he had some room to plan out before a Golbat came in and blasted a Confuse Ray on him and his team.

Red turned all around, and his eyes fell back on the several cages at his sides, and more specifically their occupants: just like at the entrance there were several Pokémon, from the common to the rare, evolved and unevolved both.

Most importantly, they were plentiful, and if they were to run around, they could've been the perfect distraction. Red squinted his eyes, letting Victory Sight do its job.

Victory Odds: 65%

A pretty good chance of success. That confirmed, Red pointed at the cages and turned to his team. "Take care of those bars."

All three of his Pokémon put their talents to work: Charizard melted a path through with Flamethrower, Pikachu chipped away at the bars with Brick Break, and Slowbro bent an opening with Psywave. In less than a few seconds, all the trapped Pokémon had a path to escape.

Red waited for the Pokémon to leave, only for none of them to do so. They all stuck on the opposite end of the cages, staring at Red and his Pokémon in fear. Red stared back in confusion, until he understood that no, none of those Pokémon were willing to leave their cages. The Trainer clenched his fists, tense. And then, some voices were heard from the distance.

"You heard that noise?"

"He must be on the other side! Quick!"

Red tensed up, hearing the steps of what he assumed to be several Rocket grunts and their Pokémon heading for his direction. His lips pursed into a frown: he would have to fight now, but with his Pokémon fatigued and no knowledge on what lied ahead, he had no way to know if he would win. He was completely at a loss now.

And as he tried to think of what to do, a voice echoed through his mind.

"Y-you're here again? P-Please, don't hurt me!"

Red paused, the psychic voice sounding remarkably familiar. He glanced to Pikachu and Slowbro, both of them wide-eyed and shocked. They and Charizard turned around to one of the cages, finding a bruised Hypno staring at them and shaking in fear. Red frowned, and glancing at the side he could see Slowbro stepping back in unease.

That confirmed it: the Hypno before them was the same one from Berry Forest.

Red was at a loss for words as he stared at the Pokémon, all while the Psychic-type stared back at him expecting to be attacked at any second. Right after their adventure in Berry Forest ended, Red had far more pressing things to think about to wonder where he ended up, but he did hear something about a Hypno stowing away on some ships during his latest trips. That was probably how he ended up in Team Rocket's clutches.

Red clenched his fists, observing the various light bruises over the Pokémon's body. He had noticed them over the other Pokémon too, but the Hypno didn't have to end up there. He was the reason he ended up in that cage, and there was no way he could make up for what happened.

As the steps and cries in the distance grew louder, however, Red clenched his fists and frowned. That was no time for self-pity and reminiscences, he needed a plan to deal with Team Rocket, and quickly.

And that was when his eyes fell back on Hypno. The same Hypno that was able to keep several kids and Pokémon under his mental control, and that could definitely put his opponents to sleep, and likely an even larger array of psychic powers than he could think of.

The same Hypno that was still quaking in fear, injured, and that only wanted him to be gone and to not be hurt.

Red's fists tightened, but even if he already knew the answer, he still checked Victory Sight for his odds of success.

Victory Odds: 13%

As expected. There were next to no possibilities Hypno would ever listen to him after what happened.

With his only viable plan gone, Red's mind went blank. His situation would only turn worse for every second he wasted, and no matter how much he thought about it, no other idea came to him. Hypno was his best possibility, but also his riskiest gamble.

And that was when his mind went back to the Icefall cave, and the last advice Siebold left him with.

Sometimes the best approach is 'Feel, don't think'.

Red's eyes went once again to the afraid Hypno. Maybe that was one of those occasions, one where he had to rely on his own feelings instead of trying to think logically. If nothing else, it was worth a try.

He took a step closer in the open cage, enough to send the Hypno scampering back, whining in fear. Red took a deep breath, and kneeled at Hypno's height.

"What you did in the Berry Forest was wrong. You hurt many people with your actions." He paused, Hypno's dejected look making him hesitate. He placed a hand over his heart, and gathered the courage to continue. "But I was wrong, too. I shouldn't have attacked you, back then. How you ended up here is partly my fault."

Hypno's resigned expression turned into one of confusion. Red made a clumsy attempt at a smile. "I want to help you out, but I need your powers to do so. Let's escape this warehouse, together."

It was an even worse speech than the one he gave Charmeleon back in the Fuchsia Tag Tournament finals, but he knew that wasn't important. No matter how hard it was to say so through words, he had to put a patch on at least one of his mistakes.

For his part, Hypno seemed thoughtful at Red's words. Before he could reach an answer, however, the alarmed cries of his three Pokémon snapped Red back to attention.

"He's here! We found him!"

Red stepped out of the cage and back to the corridor, where a score of Rocket grunts and their Pokémon were all ready to attack him. He didn't need to turn around to know he was completely trapped now.

But Red didn't bemoan his situation. He traded some quick glances with Pikachu, Charizard and Slowbro, and his three battered Pokémon all took a stance ahead of him. No matter how hard it would've been, they would win the battle one way or another.

The boy squinted his eyes, thoughtful. "Let's go, everyone."

His team nodded along, all while the Rockets ordered several attacks to their own army of Pokémon. Red adjusted his hat, ready to order his own counterattacks.

And then, slowly, each and every grunt and Pokémon dropped down on the floor, asleep. Some tried to understand what happened or even escape, but they all eventually collapsed on the ground.

Red blinked, until he and his team turned to look behind them. There stood Hypno, panting heavily and waving his pendulum, still shaking but with a far more determined stare than before. The stare of a fighter that wanted to lend a hand, in spite of his own fears.

And to that, Red managed the briefest of smiles. "Thank you."

Hypno turned away all flustered, and silence fell again before the two. Red rubbed his neck, unsure of what else to tell him, but a loud clapping of hands was enough to grab theirs and the other Pokémon's attention.

"I really have to give credits where it's due, you proved far more of a pest than I expected you to be. I tried to prepare ahead as much as possible, and yet you still managed to almost reach the last room here."

Red tried to look around, but he couldn't see the speaker anywhere around them. Pikachu was the first to take action, sniffing the air and rushing to the path ahead. Red, Charizard and Slowbro quickly followed behind him, with even Hypno following along. They took a couple of turns between many stacked cages, until he and his Pokémon finally reached a slightly larger area, big enough for several people to stand.

And just as he stepped in, a large Sludge Bomb flew his way. Pikachu was quick to act, leaping up and blasting a Thunderbolt straight through it, exploding the poison into a small and mostly harmless rain ahead.

Red frowned, and his attention turned ahead. Several feet from him and his team stood another Team Rocket member, dressed the same as the previous grunts but exuding far more confidence, perhaps even more than the grunt Red faced on the entrance. Ahead of him stood a Golbat, a Weezing, a Muk, an Houndoom, an Arbok and a Vileplume, all ready to strike again.

The boy tensed up, his trio of Pokémon all preparing to attack as well. Whoever that guy was, he clearly wasn't a mere grunt. "Who are you?"

"Why, I'm Deacon, the local Admin. The one calling all the shots and overseeing every operation." The man shrugged, scanning the kid and his Pokémon as he walked closer.

"I did my homework, Red Tajiri. One of the many promising rookies of this Indigo League season, with exceptional results in both the Battle Dome Tournament and the Fuchsia Tag Team Tournament. A golden boy through and through." The man smirked, almost amused as he extended a hand. "Team Rocket could use some people like you. What would you think about-"

"Thunderbolt!"

Deacon's Houndoom rushed forward, his own tongue of fire meeting the searing lighting bolt and cancelling it in a brief explosion. The Admin didn't seem worried, and just looked at Red with a faux offended expression. "Wow, even if my offer was as cliché as they come, I expected you to at least let me finish it before you refused it."

"Where's Yellow?" Red bared his teeth, feeling fire swelling in his throat.

"Your little friend is fine, don't worry." Deacon smirked again, sizing up Red's Pokémon. "But since you refused my little offer, our conditions are still the same: hand over your Pokémon, or you won't see your friend again."

Red didn't even bother thinking about it, and Pikachu, Charizard and Slowbro only stepped closer to him. Even Hypno joined closer, all ready to fight as one. The Admin laughed at the scene.

"Very well then. This shall be interesting." He glanced at his team and waved at them. "You know what to do, guys."

Deacon's Pokémon all nodded back, and then lunged towards Red and his team. After a couple of seconds of observing and planning, Red turned to his Pokémon.

"Slowbro, Rain Dance, then keep the Poison-types at bay. Charizard, stay outside Slowbro's area, and deal with the Vileplume. Pikachu, the Houndoom is yours." Red's team cried an affirmative, and all went to take their respective positions.

Slowbro started first, quickly amassing several localized rainclouds over him and the Poison-types and nowhere else, forcing Muk's muddy body on the ground and stopping it from the attack. Arbok lunged at him with a Bite, only for Slowbro to leap out of the way and seal the move with a quick Disable, leaving it open for an attack. He quickly raised a hand, a large sphere of Water Pulse forming from the raindrops that he swiftly fired against Arbok, knocking it right into Muk. Slowbro quickly fired a large Psywave, knocking both Pokémon down on the floor.

All the while, an attempt by Vileplume to send a Razor Leaf through the rain failed as soon as a Flamethrower burst them into cinder. The Grass-type's attention moved to Red's Charizard, and it quickly covered itself by blasting several spore moves at once all around itself. Charizard stopped its flight just in time, soaring around the spores and avoiding them all until he spotted an opening to get closer, exhuding a Heatwave at close range to send Vileplume crying in pain.

Houndoom tried to take its chance to fire a Dark Pulse at Charizard, only for Pikachu to zoom at its side and hitting it with a full-force Brick Break. Before the Houndoom could retaliate, Pikachu quickly charged Thunderpunch in his left hand while he continued to channel Brick Break on the right, then quickly started to pummel the Fire/Dark-type down with the alternate energies, forcing Houndoom on the defensive and to constantly step back, right until he ended into Slowbro's raincloud. The Houndoom winced for the pain, giving Charizard the opening to slice at him with Dragon Claw, quickly joining the two Poison-types in defeat.

All the while, Weezing and Golbat checked out the situation from above, charging what appeared to be a combination of Smokescreen and Air Cutter, until a faint blue outline enveloped them and dragged the two Pokémon groundward. Before they could react, Hypno stepped closer and swung his pendulum, quickly sending the Pokémon to sleep. Now unable to respond, Hypno and Slowbro made short work of them with a combined blast of Psychic and Psywave, knocking the last of the Admin's Pokémon down.

It had been easy, almost too much, but the last Rocket member was now out of Pokémon. As he observed the efforts of his team, Red gave them a quick nod, glad for Hypno's help.

His gaze then turned harsh as he faced the now defenseless Deacon. "Give Yellow back, now."

"Sure, I will. As soon as you actually defeat me." The Admin folded his arms, his stare mocking as he looked up. "Hyper Beam."

Red tilted his head. And then, the barrage rained down.

Three Hyper Beams, powerful and wide, hit the ground between Deacon and Red. The roar of impact blasted through the entire room, slamming everyone against the empty cages lining up the area. Red could feel his bones crack on impact, only barely avoiding to scream. As soon as his vision cleared, Red turned around, seeing his Pokémon all slumped on the floor, writhing in pain and barely managing to stand.

His gaze turned up, and Red went pale. Ontop of the stacked cages were more than a dozen of Pokémon, all decently evolved and fierce-looking, all staring down at him and his team. Among them he noticed a Rhydon, a Nidoking and a Nidoqueen in particular, all panting heavily but with a challenging grin on their faces, as they readied another salvo of Hyper Beam if needed.

Red said nothing, his attention going back to Deacon. He and his Pokémon were also blown back against some crates and cages, but that didn't stop the man from standing up again, smiling down at the kid and his team.

"What, did you seriously expect me to only have six Pokémon with me? I installed a Poké Ball limit jammer specifically to take people by surprise. You'd be shocked to know how many people expect criminals to play by the rules."

Deacon seemed ready to burst into laughter as he walked closer. Red tried to stand, only to fall back right after. The Admin appeared mildly amused as he watched his struggles.

"If you want to survive in this world, you have to prove smarter than anyone else and prepare for every single eventuality. Logic, planning and ingenuity will always make you win in the end, no matter how strong the opponent is." He stopped mere inches from Red's face, staring right into his eyes. "That's how you fight too, isn't it? I expected you to be prepared for something like this. Looks like I overestimated your abilities."

Red glared back at Deacon, almost willing to blast a breath of fire on his face. Sharp pain on his back prevented him from doing so.

The Admin chuckled. "Well, nothing to worry about. Your Pokémon will soon be in better hands, anyway."

He grasped for Red's Poké Balls, and the boy stared him down, his own hands over them. Even if Victory Sight had his chances close to zero, he wasn't going to surrender like that.

And just as Deacon was about to pull them away, a purple blur zoomed past the crates and tackled into the Rocket member, bringing him on the ground.

"Aaaaaah!" the Admin yelled, placing a hand over his leg in agony. As he turned there, Red managed to see a Rattata holding onto it, his fangs sunk inside the man's flesh.

Red blinked in bewilderment, all while Deacon tried to get the rodent off his body. The Rattata removed the teeth on his own, then gave the man a grin of audacity.

That only managed to make the Admin glare at him further, as he then turned to the active Pokémon above. "Destroy this thing, now!"

Right on cue, a barrage of rays of every kind blasted over the battlefield; Hyper Beams, Ice Beams, Flamethrowers, Thunderbolts, Water Pulses, Dark Pulses and several others, all aiming where the Rattata was. The little Normal-type didn't seem worried, leaping off of the Admin's body and scurrying all over the place, always just a bit faster than any attack trying to hit him. The worst the attacks did was injuring Deacon's already defeated team further, and the Admin himself had to jump away to avoid his stronger team's attacks.

The Admin glared to the Pokémon above, almost baring his teeth. "That's not how I trained you! Aim only at it! Nowhere else!"

Red could see all of the Pokémon freezing at once, their attention quickly going back to the Rattata as their rain of blasts resumed. Rattata continued to prove himself a tough customer, blurring fast enough to outspeed anything they could throw at him. The display of speed left Deacon speechless, and even Red had no idea what to say.

And then, he felt a gentle and reinvigorating sensation washing over his body. The boy turned to the side, and he went wide-eyed.

Right next to him stood Yellow, perfectly fine barring some scratches, grinning happily and giving him a much needed dose of Heal Pulse. As he spied to the side and saw his Pokémon and even Hypno standing up and grinning, Red assumed she already went to fix them too.

Red opened his mouth, only for Yellow to raise a finger and shhh him softly. She then continued to heal her friend, never losing her cheeky grin.

"We can't make that noise, can't we?" Her gaze went back to the Rattata dodging everything ahead, a prideful expression on her face. "That little guy is something else. He helped me knock down a grunt and reach you all the way here! We're gonna save the day for sure, trust us!"

The boy blinked, all the information falling into place. He was in the middle of a plan Yellow hatched. A plan that was working, after she likely freed herself on her own.

The Trainer stared back at all the crazy stunts the Rattata was doing, now far more impressed and far calmer than he was before. It was then that Deacon's attention turned back to them; Red wasn't sure if he saw Yellow's Bloodline in action, but the simple fact he saw him and Yellow together seemed enough to stare through them in anger.

The Admin jabbed at them, his gaze sharp and unforgiving. "Forget about the Rattata! Just blast those-"

Rattata jumped back to his face, forcing him on the ground and keeping his mouth shut, forcing the man to wrestle it away. Red expected the new Pokémon to at least try and fight the rest of them, only to find them all fidgeting and staring down in confusion, almost at a loss for what to do.

Red quirked an eyebrow at that, until he realized why. If Deacon was as inflexible and organized as he appeared to be, was it possible that he raised them to obey every single one of his orders to the letter to avoid the possibility they could commit mistake, at the cost of their autonomy?

Red shook his head, deciding to not look at the gift Ponyta in the mouth. Their hesitation was a chance, one he and Yellow were going to seize.

And with that, both kids turned to their Pokémon, pointing at once.

"Try to round up all of those Pokémon, take advantage of the moment."

"You keep going, Ratty! Hyper Fang! Quick Attack! Kick everyone's butt!"

'Ratty' was the first to act, quickly using Deacon's face as a springboard to leap high towards a Rhydon, sinking his fangs in its hide. It barely did anything, but it did grab the Pokémon's attention enough for Slowbro to aim a Water Pulse at it, knocking it down the cages and onto the floor. At the same time, Charizard allowed Pikachu to hop over him and work together to blast down some Nidoking, Tyranitar, Raticate and several other Pokémon, all while Ratty continued to zoom all around and keep them busy. Some Pokémon made some efforts of self-defense, only for Red and Yellow's Pokémon to quickly break past them.

All the while, the Admin continued to try and fail to get back into the fight's momentum, only for Red's team to constantly force him to switch his attention away, making him more and more livid.

For his part, Red just stared at the man coldly. "You said one has to prepare for every single eventuality, right? It doesn't look like you followed your own advice."

Deacon didn't reply, his glare settling back on Red. He gave one last glance at the ongoing battle, and then faced the other Trainer again.

"A good strategist always tries to defeat his opponent in as little time as possible." He placed a hand on his belt, and pulled off a sly grin. "And they also never reveal all their hand at once."

The Admin palmed another Ball and tossed it high, and an angry Crobat materialized from it. Before Red or Yellow could act, the man snapped his fingers. "Mean Look."

The Crobat's eyes glowed, and a powerful aura exuded from it, washing over the entire area. And just like that, Red could feel his entire body freeze in place. He tried to move, only for his body to not repond, all while the sound of battling quieted down all around them. As he managed to shift his gaze around, he frowned: all of his Pokémon and Ratty were now unable to move in spite of their efforts, and neither could Yellow. All while the Deacon's Pokémon were still able to move and regroup in spite of their damage and the Admin himself stared down at Red once more, his smirk of superiority back on his face.

"Do you like this? I spent a lot of time training this Crobat just right so his Mean Look could freeze several opponents at once." He gave another glance to the Poison/Flying-type, its eyes still glowing. His attention then shifted back to the two Bloodliners, smirk widening. "When all else fails, he's the best option to leave enemies poisoned to death and get things over with."

His attention went back to his first four Poison-types, his smirk gone. "You all, prepare a Sludge Bomb."

Muk, Arbok, Weezing and Vileplume all managed to stand up, charging their poison energy and aiming for Red and Yellow. Boy and girl continued to try to break free, but the hold of Mean Look pinned them in place, all while the Sludge Bombs continued to charge. All while Deacon seemed just about to burst into a laugh of triumph.

Red and Yellow's gazes met, at a loss of ideas but with no desire to let the man win, all while the Sludge Bombs were almost ready to fire.

And then, the way to victory arrived.

"Fairy! Clef-Clefairy!"

A Moonblast flew right at Deacon and his Pokémon, sending them flying and disrupting the Sludge Bombs right in time. Before they could fall down, an Ice Beam coated the ground below with slippery frost, and the four Poison-types all slid on the ground harmlessly. The Crobat lost its concentration as it observed its comrades, the Mean Look immediately fading. And before it could resume, a black blur leapt straight at it, grouding it with a slice before it took care of the Poison-types with just as quick jabs of Metal Claw.

Now freed, Red's glance went to Yellow and his Pokémon, glad to see them all fine and slowly getting back into the fight. His gaze then went to the black blur, just as he slowed down and revealed himself a rather cocky-looking Sneasel grinning back at him. At the same time, another Ice Beam built a frozen path next to it, with Lapras sliding through it with a giggling Clefairy right on his head, pointing forward and ordering him around.

"Looks like our cavalry has arrived!" Yellow said, pumping her fists.

Deacon's face lost all color as he saw Red's other Pokémon coming to the rescue, especially as they all stared back at him and his Pokémon.

"No way." He bared his teeth, sweat forming on his face. "Why? How did they even reach this place?"

Red couldn't say for sure on the how beyond 'defeat everything ahead of them', but he definitely knew about why. They were stubborn and strong Pokémon, always ready to help out. Even if they didn't know each other that long, their desire to fight as one was easy to see. The confident grins of all of his other Pokémon only made that clearer.

Knowing that, Red gave one cursory glance of the situation, with Crobat and a few of the previous wave of Pokémon still standing, and the first six almost completely defeated. Without further ado, Red adjusted his hat and frowned.

"Lapras, stay on the distance. Clefairy, Sneasel, on the frontlines. Everyone else, continue to do what you do best."

All of the Pokémon cried at once, their assault resuming. Crobat was quick to go back in the air and ready another Mean Look, only for Clefairy to jump off of Lapras' head and right ontop of it, forcing the Poison/Flying-type towards the ground as he pulled at its wings. The Crobat thrashed around, only managing to toss Clefairy off it when they crashed down the floor, only to find the Fairy-type charging another Moonblast. It tried to cancel it out with Sludge Bomb, only for Clefairy to quickly stop the attack on his own and rush forward for a Wake-Up Slap instead.

The Crobat cried in pain, but finally managed to swat away Red's Pokémon with a wing, quickly charging a Confuse Ray. Before it could, however, Sneasel blurred in to help with a Metal Claw on the back, sending the Poison-type straight towards Clefairy. Both Pokémon traded a grin, rushing towards Crobat at once and hitting it with a Wake-Up Slap and a Metal Claw at once. The Crobat gave a shrill cry, and quickly fell down defeated. Clefairy and Sneasel grinned together, sharing a fistbump before they rushed to fight another Pokémon.

Red's attention turned elsewhere, seeing Lapras forcing quite a few Golbat and Rhydon down with well-aimed Ice Beams and preventing them from coming too close, all while Ratty continued to be a general nuisance for Deacon's Pokémon and give Red's own Pokémon a chance to attack, faster and stronger than usual. Red's attention quickly went to Yellow cheering and yelling at the Pokémon to win, with her eyes almost gleaming as she did so. Red wondered if she realized she had activated her Bloodline or not, but it definitely came in handy to finish the battle faster.

Red then turned to the Admin. All of the confidence he exhuded before was gone, almost shaking as he stood there without ordering anything, finally and surely with no plans left to use.

"No, no, no, no!" Deacon yelled, hands over his head as he stared at the ongoing chaos. "This is impossible! I was ready for everything!"

"Except us, it seems!" Yellow grinned, thumping on her chest.

The Admin didn't reply her, too focused in seeing how Red's Pokémon left even his last ditch plan crumble into nothingness. The man clenched his fists, almost ready to roar at the girl. He then shot a glare to his downed Weezing, harsher than before. "Smokescreen, now!"

The exhausted Poison-type clumsily coffed out some smoke in response, far from enough to obscure him, but enough to force Red and Yellow to close their eyes and cover their mouths. As Red peeked through the smoke, he could see Deacon hightailing it and running towards the warehouse's exit, without even bringing one Pokémon with him.

Red was about to order Pikachu to paralyze him with Thunderbolt, but as the Admin was tripped down by a yellow leg, he saw there was no need to.

"What the-" Deacon turned his head up, and as he recognized the yellow, big-nosed Psychic-type in front of him, he grimaced. "Oh, no."

Hypno's stare turned severe as he held his pedulum high. "I believe it's time for you to sleep. And please, for your fate do not weep."

The pendulum moved as Hypno's eyes glowed blue, and Deacon was mesmerized by it before he could try to run again. It didn't took long for the Admin's eyelids to close, and for the man to fall down asleep, finally defeated.

Yellow cheered in joy, while Red's attention went back to the fight. As he saw Rattata helping to knock a Nidoking on his back all of his Pokémon sending one combined attack to blast him on the ground unconscious alongside more than a score of other Pokémon, Red could safely say that they finally won the battle.

All of Red's team cried in victory at that, with Ratty bolting towards Yellow and tackling the girl into a hug. She cheered at him and hugged him tightly, while Red closed his eyes and finally felt all the fatigue of the day, a hand on his chest as his heart kept beating fast. They went through too many emotions for one day.

Red then turned to their unexpected ally, nodding at him. "Thanks, Hypno."

Hypno turned away without a word, but the blush over his face was enough to show how he felt. The Psychic-type continued to look that way, in the same direction they came from. Red understood what he meant, and as his entire team joined his side, they all seemed to have the same thought in mind. Red nodded, eyes also on the way back.

"I think it's better to leave before they or the grunts wake up. We've fought enough for today." Red let out a heavy sigh as he faced Yellow again. "Once we're out of this we can think of anything else."

The girl nodded as well, and without further dithering the little gang of humans and Pokémon rushed back out of the warehouse, quickly taking care of any still awake or awakening grunt along the way as they rushed outside, ready to leave that building and any danger behind them.

"That was totally awesome!" Yellow said, giggling to herself alongside her Rattata as they, Red and his Pokémon rested near the town's outskirts.

They had decided to take a few minutes to catch their breath and relax after they put more than enough distance from the Rocket Warehouse, and through it all Red couldn't help but wonder how his traveling companion could still have so much energy left after their ordeal. All the while, all of Red's Pokémon were taking a well-earned rest under the shadow of a tree, with Lapras swimming freely inside a nearby little lake just a short distance away from Five Island's town entrance.

Red shook his head as he glanced over to the distant warehouse, thoughtful. "That's not how I'd describe it."

"Yeah yeah, we were in danger, but we got out of it like pros! We've become good at this kind of thing!" Yellow pumped her fists, grinning proudly before she petted the Rattata on her shoulder. "And Ratty here was extra helpful, too!"

Ratty squeaked in approval of both nickname and affections, moving closer to nuzzle back at the girl, who replied in kind by hugging the rodent.

Red continued to observe the two, focusing on the Rattata in particular. "Are you gonna keep him?"

"So long as he wants to stay with me." Yellow grabbed Ratty again, beaming at him. "I'm sure we'll be great partners!"

Ratty grinned back, rising both forepaws to the sky in agreement. Yellow more than appreciated that, quickly placing Ratty down as she started to talk of him of all the adventures that awaited them and how much fun they'll have together, all while the rodent Pokémon eagerly listened. Red smiled just a bit; Yellow was definitely on the path to be a great Pokémon Trainer in a few years or so. Maybe he should've stopped to always worry so much about her safety, after how she dealt with things in the warehouse.

Red turned back to the Team Rocket headquarters again, his mind filled with all kinds of thoughts. It wasn't just Yellow that was growing: throughout the battle, he had to continuously forsake relying just on logic and accept to use his feelings or tactics with low chances of success, and even if he still wasn't comfortable with that kind of battling he couldn't deny how well it could cover his usual weaknesses, and how it wasn't that bad to gamble on unusual tactics after carefully preparing his own.

His thoughts went back to the Team Rocket Admin, Deacon. He claimed to be completely and utterly logical, to always have a plan ready and to always be able to win, but once he was faced with enough unknown variables, he couldn't do anything more than scramble for a solution and try to escape when all else failed. If that was the final extreme of trying to prepare for everything and becoming overconfident as a result, then that was just one more reason why he needed to not employ that mindset anymore.

Red almost laughed. In the end, he always found new lessons to take from his recent adventures. He was growing just like Yellow was.

As he thought about that, he glanced at the side, where the Hypno they rescued stood on the grass, staring at the sea. Ever since they left the warehouse, he didn't say or do anything, preferring to keep his distance from them. Red could probably understand why.

Yellow noticed where Red was looking to, turning to the Psychic-type herself. She frowned. "It's that Hypno, right?"

"Yes."

Yellow folded her arms, her frown morphing into a sad smile. "He still looks pretty lonely."

Red didn't stop watching over the wild Pokémon. He was hardly blameless: even with all the explanations of the world, what he did in the Berry Forest was still inexcusable and caused way too much grief to the inhabitants of Three Island. He would've always left the forest, one way or another.

But he was at least trying to be happy back then, now, he seemed to have sworn that off too, and Red felt that ringed a bit too close home.

As he continued to observe the Hypno, he couldn't help but think back to what happened in the warehouse. Maybe, just maybe, there could be something he could do to make up for what happened.

And so, he stood back up and walked closer to Hypno, gently poking at his shoulder. "Hey."

The Hypno turned around, head tilted in curiosity. He didn't say anything, and Red could see how everyone's attention was on him and the wild Pokémon.

"You can stay with us, if you wish." Red stared straight in the Hypno's eyes, offering him a hand.

Hypno stared back at him wide-eyed, before he turned his head down. "Hypno can? But... I only cause problems to everyone..."

"You just don't wanna be lonely, right?" Yellow chimed in, smiling and still hugging Ratty as she gave him a thumbs up. "You can be sure that's not gonna happen with us. No brainwashing required."

Hypno's eyes wandered around, with all the other Pokémon nodding along to encourage him. Even Clefairy stepped in and raised a hand with a big smile as he pointed to Red and talked with the Psychic-type. Red assumed it was a speech about how he could help him even if he did something, or close to it, especially when he started to point at himself so.

Hypno's gaze turned back to Red, thoughtful. Understanding, Red nodded at him. That was enough for tears to form on the corner of the Psychic-type's eyes.

The Pokémon wiped the tears away, his expression brightening up. "Hypno's happy for the chance. So, now, let us dance!"

The fact Hypno didn't seem just about to dance made Red wonder if he just went for the first rhyme he could think of, but regardless of that, the fact Hypno came closer and slapped Red's hand in a sort of playful high five made him understand the sentiment, as did his far sunnier demeanor.

Red smiled very briefly as he patted his new Pokémon's head, while the rest of his team all rushed closer to the Hypno to give a proper welcome to their new teammate.

Yellow strode closer, grinning over to the older boy as she glanced back at Hypno. "You sure are ammassing a little army in these islands, huh."

"Looks like it," Red said as he noticed all the Pokémon around him, almost all newcomers from their recent adventures.

His team of Pokémon continued to grow slowly but steadily, which was just one more reason to work harder to find the place those girls were trying to point him to so all his Pokémon could be happy and active. As his responsibilities, he owed that to them. And if it truly ended up being a trap like Yellow kept claiming, then he didn't need Victory Sight to be sure they could make it.

With that resolve, Red, Yellow and all of their Pokémon old and new headed back into Five Island's main town, all ready to see what that part of the Sevii Islands had in store for them now.

As Deacon slowly came back to his senses, he felt all the pain of the attacks he received from those stupid kids flaring back again. He frowned as he sat, rubbing his forehead and growling to himself.

All the bruises and pain he felt only hammered down one thing: he and his underlings had been completely, utterly defeated by two little kids. Even after preparing several ways to defeat them, even after studying them carefully, they still managed to come out ontop in the most unexpected of ways. And he thought the reports of kids helping to stop the Golden Age of Crime were an exaggeration...

"Damn it." He clenched his fists, barely keeping himself from snarling. He couldn't allow that slight to go unpunished, he needed to find those kids again, and make sure to get the job done. He was an Admin of Team Rocket for a reason, and he would not let two no names trample all over his achievements like that.

He took a deep breath and calmed himself down as he got back on his feet, quickly heading back to his office. That was no time to get angry like that: he needed to play it cool and plan all his next moves carefully, just like he always did. Logic and preparation would always triumph, and for now, the best option was to regroup with his underlings, move away, and-

"Where do you think you're going?"

At the unknown voice, Deacon froze in place, dread crawling over his skin. He gulped and turned around towards the storage room's entrance, where two Jennies and their respective Growlithe stood, the one from Five Island and probably one of her close relatives. Right between them stood a blond, tall man dressed in an elegant white attire, staring straight at him. A man the Admin had read about before.

And when he realized who the man was, he froze in place. "Wait, you're-"

"Siebold, member of the Kalos Elite Four." The white-garbed man folded his arms. "I was hired to prepare dishes for a party at Resort Gorgeous and I was on my way back when I heard someone left a tip about this warehouse's location and that a Team Rocket cell was operating here. Since I was free, I thought the local Jenny could use a hand."

Deacon gulped, eyes going back to all his team of Pokémon scattered around: all defeated, only some weakly rising back up. He almost thought he could chance a surprise attack and move away, only to notice a bulky, powerful-looking Blastoise making his way inside the room, handing a couple of unconscious grunts to one of the Jennies, who proceeded to cuff them swiftly. Said Pokémon then turned back to him, and the Admin could feel his heartbeat increase at that.

Siebold stepped closer, his frown growing fiercer. "Now, what about you come with us without protest? We already rounded up your subordinates. You'd just be the cherry on the cake."

The Admin's eyes fell back on the Blastoise, more specifically the Blastoisinite it held in its forehead, and then on what was obviously a Keystone on Siebold's cravat, with the master trainer already fingering it in wait. The criminal sweated cold at that: he was confident in his ability and his skills, and on normal situations he could've probably found a way to defeat even someone of Siebold's caliber. But that wasn't a normal situation, and there were too many variables in place.

And so, he gave a disgruntled sigh and raised his hands in defeat, staring in anger at the trainer and policewomen.

"This won't be the end for Team Rocket, you know," he said, allowing himself a mocking grin. Siebold didn't appear impressed.

"But it will be the end for you." The chef smiled, while one of the Jennies came closer to cuff Deacon. "Five Island will be a far more peaceful place now."

The criminal didn't answer at that, his lips downturned in rage. They then brought him back out of the warehouse, while several other cops were freeing the Pokémon, rounding up his underlings, and making sure to destroy all of his hard work.

"Thanks for your assistance, Mr. Siebold," he heard one of the Jennies say. The Kalosian just shook his head at that.

"All thanks must go to that Red kid." His gaze turned to the distance. "He's an interesting one. Wherever his path in life leads him, I'm sure he's gonna do great things in the future."

Deacon remained silent, simply letting his rage build up inside him. It didn't matter how much time it would take, he would get back at that boy one day. For he was an Admin of Team Rocket, and there was no way he'd ever forgive that slight.

OMAKE (canon):

Sneasel was territorial by nature, it had always been that way.

His trainer was an interesting human; he could feel there was something special about him, and he liked that. He had no problem with being on the same team as his other Pokémon, as long as they let him do what he liked, and have his share of snacks as promised when he was caught.

However, there was one thing he wouldn't stand for.

The female Persian was resting on a rock, sunbathing without a care for anything or anyone. She hadn't noticed him yet, and he didn't like that one bit. He had to make clear who was the boss there.

Thus, he stood in front of her, and she opened an eye to glance at him.

"Do you mind? You're blocking the sun."

"I don't like being ignored, little miss," he said.

Persian rose and looked him into the eyes. "Are you trying to pick a fight with me? Because I'm not in the mood right now."

"Too bad, because I am." Sneasel showed off his claws. "Care to test who's got the sharpest claws here?"

The female cat smirked and glared at him. "Don't push me, new guy. Believe me, you wouldn't like me when I'm angry."

Who did she think she was? Poor kitty, she had no idea. He could beat Pokémon four times her size with a single claw. She needed to be taught a lesson.

"You think I'm scared, pretty kitty? Bring it."

…

How he ended up lying on the grass floor, arms spread open and full of scratches all over his body, he had no idea. One minute, he was ready to slash at that Persian's pretty face. The next one, she jumped behind him and before he realized, she was walking back to her rock to rest, as if nothing had happened.

He had always been number one among his kin back at the Icefall Cave, so nobody dared to intrude into his turf.

And now he had been beaten. By a female, no less. And she didn't even have to use moves, just her normal claws. How had she gotten that strong? Was it just her, or were all Persian females like that?

"I think… I'm in love…"