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"Here," Ash said, pushing a folder into James's hands. "The police reports-I've been trying to tell you, Jessie and Misty aren't the only ones who've gone missing."
"I know that-a lot of people from Team Rocket vanished five years ago, and they're probably involved in this...this android mess!"
Ash looked confused. "You mean all these people were part of Team Rocket?"
James opened the folder, it was manila colored and very thick. Starting on the first page and going on for another three was a list of names, most of which were people James had never heard of, and next to the names were the dates they were last seen on. "No, these aren't members--Team Rocket agents can't exactly report to the police when their partner goes missing."
"Did you say five years?" Ash asked. "You did, didn't you?"
"Yeah..." James said, taking another look at the folder. The first name was Akia Martina, and she'd been reported missing only two years ago. "I suppose they used Rocket members at first, so the police wouldn't know. They only moved on to civilians two years ago..."
"Maybe if we had a list of the missing Rocket's, the police-" Ash started, but James didn't let him finish.
"We are NOT going to the police with this!" he snapped. Ash had jumped back in surprise. "They'd take Jes-they'd take that android and arrest Morada and maybe me too," he shouted. "I can handle my own revenge. Besides, the Boss has the police in the palm of his hand."
Ash tilted his head to the side. "Why do you still call him 'Boss'?" he realized that he'd heard Jessie and James talk about their employer frequently, but he'd never really bothered to go deeper into it. Team Rocket was usually just Jessie and James to him...
James shrugged. "I don't know his real name, nobody but his most trusted employees do. I do know that he'd got quite a few personas and a colorful past-what that past is, I have no idea, but the Boss does a lot to hide it."
"Hmm..." Ash trailed off. Some nameless man had kidnapped Misty, and apparently the abductions were nothing new at all. "We still should get a list of the missing Team Rocket members. Do they all have partners we can talk to? Maybe we can form a resistance of some ki-hey! There's the truck!"
A resistance... James remembered that Botch had said something about a mutiny within Team Rocket..
"Thundershock it, twerp," James stated. "Have you learned nothing?"
"WELL?!" Cassidy asked, obviously growing impatient. "Have you thought of your questions YET!?"
Misty shook her head repeatedly, "I'm thinking, I'm thinking!" Honestly she had so many things she wanted to ask-choosing just two was the problem. "Uh...to start out with, where are we?"
Cassidy scowled. "Not sure, it would depend on who kidnapped us."
Misty was shocked. "You don't know?"
"Nope."
So Cassidy had been kidnapped too...
"We're probably either in Mahogany Town or Viridian City," the woman continued. "Next question."
Misty stared straight ahead and tried to think. "Why are you here-I mean, you did say you were kidnapped, but I know it was Team Rocket who took me, so what do they want from you if you're already a member?" She knew it probably wouldn't help her current situation, but she was just so curious...
Cassidy shrugged, but glared at Misty like she'd hit a sour spot. "That, my annoying cellmate, is personal."
Misty put her hands on her hips. "WELL! If you're not gonna answer me then I get to ask another question!" she announced like it was some big achievement.
Cassidy sat down and leaned against the wall, waving her hand. "Go head, it's not like I have anything better to do right now."
"Uh..." Misty crossed her arms as she thought of another question. It felt weird, usually togapi was in her hands right now... "What's gonna happen to my pokemon?"
Cassidy raised an eyebrow. "Well...probably they'll be sorted, taken to a training facility until they become vicious and ready to fight for their new masters-or they'll be taken to the labs for experiments. If you have any rare pokemon they'll be given to the Boss or to... well like I said earlier, it depends on who kidnapped us."
Misyt blinked. "Well if it's not Team Rocket, then who-"
"Sorry, twerp, you're out of questions."
"Were back!" Ash yelled as he and James entered the house.
"Morada!" James called, reaching the door to the basement. "Did you have any luck with the andro-" James opened the door and froze, completely speechless. In front of him stood the living mannequin shaped like his best friend-or perhaps she really was... he didn't know.
The android Jessie certainly looked a little more human. Her stare was blank, but not vacant, and here eyes looked slightly more lifelike as they scanned the room, taking in everything.
Ash could see that James was still in shock. He was rigid, staring into the blank, almost transparent blue eyes of the "girl" in front of him.
"So you're up and running-I mean out and about!" Ash started, getting kind of nervous. "Are you, er, feeling okay?"
"Jessie" turned to face him. "All systems functioning normally," she said as if it were the time of day. "Please identify yourself."
Ash put his hand behind his head. "Uh... I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town...hey James, I don't think she's the real thing. Wouldn't Jessie remember me?"
But James still stood motionless, eyes fixed forward.
"Prototype 01's memory files are located behind a firewall. They are inaccessible," said "Jessie" matter-o-factly.
Since James was no help, Ash turned to Pikachu. "What does that mean?"
"It means she's as good as got amnesia," Morada informed him, coming up the stairs. She patted the android on the head like one would a Growlithe or a child. "One of three things has happened. One: this is who you all know as the real Jessica, and the Rocket's erased her memory or put it behind a firewall so it's inaccessible. Two: she's imcomplete-you stole her before her memory was installed. Or three: she's got here memory, but she knows something that we're not supposed to find out about." Morada stepped past James and the android. "That firewall needs a password to get through. Not even she can access what's in there."
James didn't know what to think. "She knows something," he growled, not sure why he felt so angry. "Something important." With that, he turned around and headed for the door.
"Where ya going, James?" Ash asked, but received no answer. James had his coat on already.
"James?" Morada asked. No answer, but she didn't like the feeling she was getting. "James wait!" he opened the door, but then turned back to take another wistful glance at the image of his friend before leaving. "JAMES!" the door slammed shut.
James was rushing deeper into the forest. He heard the screed door of the cabin open in a noisy creak, and Morada shouted after him, "Don't do anything stupid!"
But he had to know...For his sake, for their friendship's sake, and for his heart's sake he had to know.
"I got it!" Misty exclaimed as the bar finally came loose in her hands. Now there was finally enough room to squeeze out the window.
"About time!" Cassidy shouted. Suddenly the girls heard noises outside the door. "Put it back, quick!" Misty shoved the bar back into place, just as the door abruptly opened, knocking Cassidy to the ground.
Two men in black body suits and caps, plain except for the R across the chest entered the cell. In the doorway were two others-one, a man in Cassidy's type of uniform and another man in a lab coat. "The woman," said the man in the coat, "take her."
The two obviously lower Rockets each grabbed one of Cassidy's arms and forced her into a standing position. "But Domino wanted to use the kid," said the man in the black and white uniform.
"And the Boss wants to use Cassidy," the first man said. "Who are you going to listen too?"
"Easy for you to say, you don't have to face that-"
"HEY!" Misty interrupted. "Who are you guys and why am I here? And what are you gonna do with her?" she pointed to Cassidy, who was regarding the situation with as much dignity as possible-head held high and quiet.
"None of you're business, twerp," growled one of the agents, pushing her down.
"WHERE ARE MY POKEMON!?" Misty shouted after them, but the door slammed shut. Alone in the cell, she began to panic. What was going on here? Things seemed to be happening far beyond the petty hole traps of Jessie and James that had stopped so suddenly five years ago. And now she was involved in who knew what...
She removed the bar on the window once more. "I need to get help..." she thought out loud as she worked. "What could Butch possibly do?" she hopped up onto the sill, trying to figure out how to safely jump from the second story. "He must be able to do something if Cassidy was so eager to get to him, maybe I'd better do what I said I would and find him." Below her stood a tent of some sort. Misty jumped, and luckily it didn't cave but gave her a soft landing instead.
She got down and peeked inside the flap-nobody there. It seemed like somebody's portable office. There were bookshelves, a table, and some chairs that all seemed to be designed to disassemble. Luckily, there was also a video phone.
"I'd better call Ash before I look for Butch," she muttered to herself, stepping inside and sitting down at the screen. She dialed the number for the pokemon center they'd stayed at, and Nurse Joy promptly answered the phone.
"Hello, may I help you?" she said cheerily.
"Yeah," Misty nodded, the nurse was a sight for sore eyes. "I'm looking for a trainer named Ash Ketchum."
"Oh, he left a while ago, Miss," Nurse Joy said. Misty couldn't help but feel angry that he'd just leave without her, but then again Ash had never been the sit down type. He was probably out looking for her, and that moron probably didn't think that she might try and contact him-the nerve.
"Thanks," Misty said, trying to sound pleasant. "Sorry to bother you." She hung up and dialed another number.
"Brock's Breeding Center," came the familiar voice from the other end. Unfortunately it was audio only.
"Brock? Oh thank goodness!" Misty nearly shouted with relief, but she remembered she dodging Rockets now, and quieted herself. "I need your help! It's an emergency-I'm either in Mahogany or Viridian-please Brock, I really need your help! I-"
But she was cut off when somebody clamped a hand over her mouth.
On the other end of the line, Brock was getting worried. "Misty is that you? Misty? MISTY?" he switched from audio to video, but all he could see was an empty room.
Giovanni sat back in his chair, Persian curling up at his feet with a loud purr. It had been a long day, and tomorrow would surely be worse with what he had planned. He was ready to relax, but the intercom beeped at him. "WHAT IS IT?" he growled.
"Y-you have a call Sir," came the voice of his secretary, a bit staticy over the microphone.
"I thought I told you I didn't want to be disturbed!"
"But it's James, Sir."
Giovanni sneered. "Checkmate," he patted his Persian's head. "Put him through."
tbc