Chapter Seventeen: Friends Like These



Gladion's POV



"Okay, Gary, let's get this one thing straight," I say. "I don't like you, and you don't like me. But we don't just don't like Team Rocket; we hate them. So you and I are going to work together, get whatever they're looking for in your house, and make sure they never so much as set eyes on it. Is that clear?"



The asshole smirks at me. "Tell me, Gladdy. Would you have acted any different than I did if our positions were reversed?"



"Despite my mother's best efforts, I grew up under the assumption that life is valuable and that friends don't leave friends to be eaten by monsters. So, no, no I wouldn't. But if you ever try anything like that on me again, or on any of my friends, I might just forget to care whether you live or die."



He doesn't bat an eye. "You have friends?"



"I..." I pause. "Okay, I have ONE friend. Who, incidentally, is going to have his Smeargle turn you inside out and upside down if anything happens to me on this mission. Capise?



"And who'd that be?" Gary asks, smirking. "Pinkie Pie?"



"His name is Ilima, and speaking of pink things, he has a flute that summons Mew and if you leave me behind to get roughed up, you're going to get much worse than an Oddish in your sock drawer. Much, much worse."



"Ilima's a dude? When did that happen? I thought he was your girlfriend!"



Now, that's just getting personal. "Don't even START about that! He's not my girlfriend, and he's not my boyfriend either!"



We glare at each other for a few seconds. I know Gary's just trying to get under my skin. I also know it's working. My hand starts to twitch, the kind of twitch that usually happens before that hand plows into someone else's face.



I have the feeling Gary can infer this.



"All right, all right," Gary says finally. "I'm sorry already. I already said I was sorry, like, a million times! What's gonna make you trust me?"



"Actions," I say flatly. "Actions speak louder than words, although your words are loud enough. Do you ever stop talking?"



We glare at each other a few seconds more.



"Just hurry up," Gary says, pointing between the trees of Sida Forest. "We're almost to Pallet Town. Better hope Team Rocket didn't beat us there."



He leads, I follow. He's lived his whole life in Pallet, and if there's any danger up ahead, he'll know where to go for safety. And more importantly, if there's any danger up ahead, he won't be able to shove me into it.



We exit the woods.



...



...



...



Nothing happens.



"Well, that was anticlimatic," Gary says. "The place still looks deserted. I'd expect someone called the police by now."



"And you didn't?" Gladion asks.



"They dropped me in the drink, doofus. My cell phone's been shorted out ever since. I tried to recharge it, but it made funny noises and started smoking when I plugged it in."



"Then use the phone at your house. Call the police. Call someone that gives a shit."



"Good idea. Glad I thought of it."



"Are you actively trying to piss me off?"



"Don't need to try," Gary laughs. "No matter what I say, you get pissed off. You've got skin thinner than a Butterfree's wings."



"At least I know how to pretend to be civil. Which house is yours?"



Gary points to a two-story house close by to what I presume is Professor Oak's lab. "Over there. Wipe your feet before you come in. Gramps is kind of particular."



I wipe my feet. "Will he be particular about the way the door's been blasted off its hinges?"



He shrugs. "It was blasted off by Rayquaza. He'll be glad it didn't blast away the whole damn house."



"Rayquaza, eh?" I consider this. "Ilima told me that Rayquaza lives in the ozone layer and rarely comes down to Pokearth. What was it doing blasting your door off?"



"It was under Team Rocket's control. I'm not sure how they got their hands on it, but they did. Terra said that Team Rocket's using an army of something called Mewtwo to round up a bunch of legendaries."



"Mewtwo... Mew Two," I say, stepping into Gary's house. "A clone army, modified from one of the rarest Pokemon in the world. So why didn't Team Rocket show up with a Mewtwo as well?"



Gary shrugs. "Beats me. Glad they didn't. So, if they're looking for something that's specifically inside this house, I'm guessing it's..."



He opens a doorway in the living room and points down a staircase. "In there. Watch your step and don't mind the smell."



I'm happy to let him lead because it means he's where I can see him. The concrete steps lead down to a hidden garage, full of tools and machine parts and grease spots all over the floor. A few metal lockers, a workbench with a ton of mechanical odds and ends set on it, and a big sheet in the corner that clearly used to be white, spread out on top of something large and round.



Gary grins. "It's still here! They didn't find it after all."



"What's still here?" I ask.



With a flourish, Gary pulls away the dirty cloth and reveals a three-wheeled contraption. "Only the coolest vehicle ever known to man, the Zero-One! It needs no steering because it automatically adjusts its trajectory to conform to the user's chosen travel path. Its chassis adapts to all terrain to travel across land, sea, and sky. It's sheer brilliance!"



I blink. "It looks like the Eggmobile."



"So what if it does? The important thing is, we have it, and Team Rocket doesn't. And I want to keep it that way."



"And how the hell are you gonna drive it out of this place?" I ask. "I'm not seeing any doors to this garage."



Gary points to a large, square panel on the floor, made from plastic so shiny I can see my face in it. "See that? When activated, it'll become a warp panel that warps us outside. Gramps doesn't keep it on all the time because it's murder on our power bill. Just give me some time to charge it up, and we'll be right in business."



"What charges it?"



"Oh, a little burst of energy from our... Electabuzz..." Gary's voice trails off, audibly deflated.



There's a pause.



"Let me guess," I say as evenly as possible. "That Electabuzz isn't available at this time because Team Rocket stole it, didn't they?"



Gary nods sheepishly.



I facepalm. "Fan-freaking-tastic. So we can't get this thing out of this room, because the only one of us with an Electric-type Pokemon is currently a week in the past. What do we do now?"



Gary considers this. "Well, we can't let Team Rocket get their hands on it, whatever they want with it. And it's the only thing of value I can think of that's at my house and not in Oak's lab. So we've got to make sure Team Rocket doesn't get it."



"Seriously?" I ask. "What's so important about this thing, anyway? It's a go-kart! If what you've said is true, it's a technologically impressive go-kart, but it's still just a go-kart! Why care if Team Rocket gets a hold on it?"



"Because they've taken enough from me already!" Gary bursts out, close to tears.



Silence.



"Look," Gary says straight out. "I know you don't like me, and I admit I've been a jerk to you. But my family means more to me than you could possibly imagine. Pallet Town might be a small town, but it's my home, and watching Team Rocket take everything away from me while I'm helpless to stop it, that cuts me to the bone. And I will not let Team Rocket take this away from me as well. You understand, Gladdy?"



I pause. My name is Gladion dies on my lips.



"Yeah," I say slowly. "I understand. More than you know."



Gary takes a deep breath. "Whoosh. Didn't expect that to come out all angsty. Anyways, that's why I've gotta survive. To kick Team Rocket's butt."



"A marvelous end goal," a voice says behind us, with slow, sarcastic applause. "A pity you won't live to see it happen."



We whirl around and see, rising from the reflective sheen of the still-dormant warp panel:



Giratina.



GIRATINA?



And someone on its back. A man dressed in navy blue, with a bright crimson shock of hair.