Chapter Fifty-Nine: Prepare For Trouble



Bill's POV



After some discussion, it's decided that I will meet up with my potential boarders -- at least those of the criminal element -- in a hotel room in Cerulean. I hear the Rockets are experts in disguise, so they shouldn't strike up any alerts for Agatha's ghostly occupiers.



I begin with the two Rockets, who insist on being interviewed together, along with their Meowth. A talking Pokemon is of considerable interest to me. I've always believed that Pokemon intelligence is much higher than many trainers give them credit for, and actually being able to talk to one is very interesting indeed.



"So what should I call you?" I ask them.



"Jessie!"



"James!"



"Meowth's da name!"



I shake my head. It sounds like they're reciting a motto. "I didn't ask you what your names were. Erika already told me. I'm asking what I should call you. You're going undercover, so you're going to have to have aliases."



They consider this a moment. "Jessilie?"



"Jameson?"



I sigh. "That's not even the slightest bit subtle. You'll have to come up with something better. But I didn't call you here to discuss aliases. I called you here to ask you why you think I should open my house to career criminals."



"Does the name Jessiebelle mean anything to you?" James asks.



I've heard of her, actually. One of the many catches to the life of the rich and famous is being invited to parties held by the other rich and famous. Not all of which are enjoyable. "I have. Unfortunately."



"There's your reason. The leader of Team Rocket wants me to m-m-m... m-m-m-m-m..."



"Marry her," Jessie says quickly, glancing sympathetically at James. "That woman has a Houndoom's temper if she's not obeyed. And James here is too kind-hearted to accept Team Rocket's offer to stage a convenient accident afterwards."



"Indeed," I say, considering. So he may have been bad, but he does have a moral code. "And what do you think of this, Jessie?"



"I think someone's got to keep an eye on James here so he doesn't get himself into trouble. The guy's totally gullible. Did I ever tell you about the time he bought a Magikarp from a salesman because he thought he could get rich off it?"



"Jessie!" James exclaims, turning red from embarrassment.



"Seeing as we've just met... no, no you haven't," I say carefully. "I suggest we save this story for another time. What do you two know about Team Rocket's goals?"



"Oh, we knows plenny about DAT," Meowth says. "Motto time?"



"To protect the world from devastation!"



"To unite all people within our nation!"



"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"



"To extend our reach to the stars above!"



"That won't be necessary," I say quickly. "Although that's quite a different motto from the one I heard with my time with Team Rocket."



"You were with Team Rocket?" the three of them ask.



"Not of my own free will," I say carefully. "My wife and I were kidnapped to work on the Mewtwo project. After my first transporter accident, the government asked me to continue to replicate those 'accidents' to attempt to create an army of human-Pokemon hybrids for use in top-secret assignments. Somehow Giovanni found out about it and kidnapped us to New Island for our knowledge in creating the ultimate Pokemon."



"And you survived?" Jessie asks.



"I heard that everyone on New Island was killed in the explosion when Mewtwo broke free," James says.



"You only know half the story," I answer. "Yes, Mewtwo broke free with the intention of killing everyone in the cloning lab. But there was another genetic Pokemon created at New Island, one that Team Rocket has been looking for ever since." I lean in close. "Does the name Masakou mean anything to you?"



They blink. "Um..." Jessie says, "haven't I heard that a couple of times before? Some Raikou clone, right?"



"The mysterious Pokemon that Mewtwo battled with at New Island?" James asks.



"Da one dat Mewtwo knocked silly?" Meowth suggests.



"Yes... to a point. Masakou protected me during the explosion that destroyed the lab. Sadly, I was too far away from my wife to save her." The memories pain me. "Mewtwo did indeed manage to defeat Masakou, but it managed to save my life regardless."



"Wait, ya KNOW Masakou?" Meowth asks. "Where'd it disappear off ta?"



"You could say that we've met. I couldn't say where it is now, but if you behave yourselves and don't return to Team Rocket, it should pose no danger to you. It has no more love for the Rockets than I do, but it doesn't just attack people for no reason."



"So a genetically enhanced Pokemon that hates Team Rocket is running around loose," Jessie says. "How long do you guess it'll be before Team Rocket catches it? They've got legendary Pokemon of their own."



"Hopefully never. They haven't caught it yet, though. It's too cunning to leave itself open to attack, and it appears to have some form of shield against the psychic abilities of Mewtwo and Deoxys."



"Good for it, but what about us?" James asks.



"I've already taken measures to protect myself and my allies." I pull out three small devices on chains from my coat pocket. "These are aura scramblers. They'll alter your perceivable aura field so that the Mewtwo can't read your minds. Your thoughts will feel like white noise to them. Make sure they stay on you at all times, and don't try to reverse engineer them or take them apart in any way, or you'll make yourselves vulnerable."



The former Rockets examine the aura scramblers, carefully attaching them around their necks. "Seems pretty compact," Jessie says. "You're sure it works?"



"Team Rocket hasn't come calling on me for as long as I've had mine working," I explain, "so I'd say it works. Team Rocket may still think I'm dead for all I know. I've had Celio officially working on the PC System in my perceived absence, to keep up appearances. This is actually the first time I've stepped outside the lighthouse for a long while."



"That explains the green wig," Jessie says.



"That's a wig?" James asks. "I thought his hair went moldy."



"Shaddup Jimmy!" Meowth hisses, taking swipes at James.



"It's not a wig, and it's not dye," I explain. "It's an unfortunate side effect of several genetic accidents. Now, if you seek sanctuary in my home, you're going to have to follow a few rules. First of all: no capturing or stealing any Pokemon you encounter. If it wants to battle, you can battle it, but otherwise, leave it alone."



"What kind of Pokemon do you have at the lighthouse?" Jessie asks.



"All sorts of Pokemon. I'm a bit of a collector. Second, you may not pass through any doors marked 'Keep Out.' I expect that should be obvious."



"What's behind dose doors?" Meowth asks.



"Mostly highly breakable technology that I'd prefer not to have your hands on. Finally, you are expected to keep your hands off my valuables, although that ought to be obvious as well. If anything is missing, I will have to investigate. And if I have discovered that you've stolen anything from me, then out you go. Is that clear?"



All three of them nod quickly. Completely in sync with each other. I have no idea how they do it, but they do.



"Well then. I'll hold you to that promise," I say. "Now, where's this Wes fellow?"



Almost before I'm finished talking, alarm bells go off inside the hotel. A voice yells over the loudspeaker, "STOP, THIEF!"



Oh dear.



---



"So," I say to Officer Jenny. "You're saying he took the entire bowl of Rare Candies?"



"They wuz complementary!" Wes argues from inside his holding cell.



"Not when you take the bowl as well!" Jenny shouts at him. "That was a family heirloom!"



I sigh. "Very well, I have his bail money. The bowl's been returned, with most of the candies, and it won't happen again." I glare sharply at our little miscreant. "Because there's no way I'm letting this little twerp out of my sight again."



"I said I wuz sorry!" Wes argues.



"And by sight, I mean the sight of the myriad anti-theft cameras I've installed inside my lighthouse, which you will not be leaving unsupervised. I will expect your friends to keep an eye on you and keep you out of trouble if you don't want me leaving you to the tender mercies of the Cerulean police system. Honestly, the only reason I'm not coming down harder on you is because you hate Team Rocket as much as I do. I could use a man of your skills... as long as those skills aren't used against me."



Officer Jenny gives Wes a glare. Wes tries to look innocent.



What have I gotten myself into, I wonder?