Hard Enough - Chapter 338 - Luckless Lawrence.

“I think we’re doing this wrong,” I lamented as I lay on the bed next to Sabrina.

“I think our support crew need to hurry up and become legitimate within the Orange Archipelago rather than relying on us to make captures and intervene with local law enforcement,” Sabrina replied. 

“Kirlia!” stated Kirlia as she twirled her way over to a remote control for the tv. 

“—just in, we have news of the large black smoke seen yesterday afternoon. It turns out that—” Kirlia changed the channel. 

“—sick and tired of your pokemon not performing like they should? Try a herbal extract! They might hate the taste but you’ll love the performance! Get jacked with Macham—” 

Another click. 

“Furret!” “Farfetch’d!” 

Kirlia lingered on this channel and I rolled to see which episode it was. I’d seen most of them thanks to sitting in with my siblings so often. 

“Oh the hotpot factory episode,” I commented as Samurai Furret chased Farfetch’d around a giant pot that happened to have a bunch of chopped-up vegetable signs with water in it that was visibly boiling. 

Kirlia whirled on me and growled, warning me off ruining the plot. 

I rolled my eyes as I laid back down. If there were kid cartoons on, then it was early enough in the evening for kids to still be awake. 

It was weird how mundane it was to go from fighting for your life to relaxing in front of a television. Then again with the everyday activity of pokemon battling I’d gotten rather used to it.

I fidgeted for a moment, only to force myself to relax.

I checked my transceiver and found a few messages from my family back in Pewter. Yolanda had sent through a picture of her wearing her upcoming ‘Journey outfit’ along with another of her training in the gym with Lola.

Crystal and Greta were also with her but they looked extremely uncomfortable with the stance they were being asked to hold. 

I messaged back and turned to Forrest’s messages. Him, Ash and Misty were going to finally be able to undergo Rudy’s battle challenge with the Pokecenter finalising care for Rudy’s pokemon.

“Huh, they either rebuilt the pokecenter with the cavern underneath stabilised, or they moved the pokecenter,” I commented. 

Sabrina hummed. “I suspect they moved the pokecenter. Easier to do and quicker. They can throw together a new building in a day with little effort but checking load tolerances and adding support beams takes a tad longer, but not too much.”

I shot her an incredulous look and she shrugged. “I enjoy spending time playing dolls with Janine and the houses she makes that are structurally correct.”

I continued to stare. 

“She’s created an entire street of houses and shops… I once moved a shop and she ranted about the mechanics needed and such for a while,” Sabrina revealed. 

I nodded, picturing Sabrina and Janine playing dolls together. 

“Farfetch’d!” screamed the villain of Samurai Furret as he was kicked back into the giant hotpot bowl only to sink beneath the bubbling depths. A stack of dynamite that he’d been waving around falling in after him, the timer still going. 

Samurai Furret of course swaggered away with his straw hat pulled low. “Fur…ret!” growled Samurai Furret stoically as he marched away, not looking at the explosion that went off behind him.

Outside the factory, a starving peasant group raised bowls to the sky only for them to miraculously be filled with Farfetch’d hotpot. One even had a drumstick land in the middle through a clever use of CGI. 

Farfetch’d the villain of course was fine and even made an appearance during the credits to stagger out of a ruined hotpot bowl while shaking a curled wing angrily in Samurai Furret’s general direction as music played.

“You hungry?” I asked, knowing that half the reason the show did what it did was to teach kids about healthy portions and eating habits. Most of the villains either ate too much, not enough or had other food-related health disorders along with having Samurai Furret fix them.

“I could eat,” Sabrina stated as she sat up. A quick wash off, from the day’s grime later saw us walking through the slowly forming festival grounds where several stalls were being made up. Sadly, none of them were operating just yet but it still allowed us to find a local restaurant which appeared to be where residents of shamouti congregated.

Elder Tobias had a seat at a long table where other elderly men and women had congregated. Each of them were roaring with laughter and throwing back their drinks like they weren’t going to be around to worry about the hangovers tomorrow. 

I eyed the younger workers who were sharing their own drinks. The poor simpletons hadn’t yet realised that a hung over Grandparent was going to be chasing them around all of tomorrow. 

That, or they’d be still drunk to avoid the hangover which… might prove to be entertaining to watch.

Sabrina smirked. “Don’t even think about it, you know Elder Tobias will wrangle you into helping out. After we both partook in the festival, he pretty much thinks of us as honorary Shamouti residents.”

“Considering the room we’re staying in you could have fooled me,” I replied as I claimed a table. 

Sabrina made a face as she adopted a stern looking visage. “This and that are separate things! Also you could have slept on my couch!” she declared in a pretty good imitation of Elder Tobias’ voice.

Behind Sabrina, a pair of girls started giggling. One turned and I recognised Carol. “You do a pretty good Elder impression!” she laughed only to blink. “Oh! Hey I recognise you two! Long time no see!” she said as she grabbed her chair and added it to our table without so much as asking. 

She then dragged her sister with her. “Brock, Sabrina! Meet my little sister Melody!”

Melody stiffened as her eyes locked onto Sabrina. “G-g-gym Leader Sabrina?” she stuttered. 

Sabrina nodded and drew out a pen. “That’s me.”

Melody whipped out a pokemon trading card but before she could even ask Sabrina was signing it with a practised flourish. 

“Can you…” Melody trailed off. “Oh, did you read my mind?” she gushed like that would be the most amazing thing ever instead of an invasion of privacy. 

“No, you were announcing it rather loudly,” Sabrina replied.

Melody blinked at that before launching into a tirade of questions, and it turned out that she had a lot of them.

I turned to Carol. “So how have you been?” I asked. 

Carol beamed. “Great actually! I got accepted into Celadon University for my Breeding Degree! I’m starting once Summer rolls around!”

“Oh? Really?” I replied, surprised at her chosen course of study. “What made you choose Celadon over some of the local universities like Kumquat or…”

“We only really have the three Brock, the others are Troviopolis, and Mandarin North.” she leaned in like she was telling a secret. “Mandarin South University exists but everyone knows it’s just an upjumped trade school for people wanting to be mechanics or builders.”

She leaned back with a softer smile, “But Celadon has the prestige and it might offer more doors for me.” She winked. “I’m looking to get established and then in maybe ten or so years I’ll create a specialised facility on one of the islands around here.” 

That earned her a confused look. “You’ll just get an island for yourself?” I asked as my eyes flicked up and down over her form. She wasn’t wearing cheap clothes but there weren’t any signs that she was rich either. 

Sabrina and I could joke about owning an island for ourselves but that was mostly Sabrina with her absurd wealth. 

Carol shrugged. “There’s lots of space if you know the right people.” She smirked. “There’s also who you know and I happen to know a good number of the right sorts that would be interested in what I can bring to the Orange Archipelago. If I do it right? I might even be able to set up a breeding line or three that would serve as proper starters for local kids. The trick will be finding something right for them. Water type is a shoe-in of course but…” 

She shook her head. “It’s a dream of mine anyway.” 

“Good for you,” I replied. For a moment I considered giving her a slot as an intern at my up and coming facility, but I decided to stay my hand. For now at least. I’d make a note of her name to Bianca for when it came time for that, but as yet not even a first year, Carol would be behind on a lot of knowledge. 

I’d leave it to the professionals in this case. “So, you taking up the role of Maiden once more?” I asked.

“Nope! My little sis is this year!” she said, clapping Melody on the shoulder.

I nodded along like I didn’t know that and listened to Carol brag about how great her little sister was going to be in the role. 

Melody scoffed. “Stop making it out like it’s such a big deal, it’s just a thing our island does,” Melody said with the airs of a young girl about to enter her teenage years.

Sabrina hummed. “I recall rather enjoying my time as Festival Maiden.”

I had to give Sabrina props. She’d timed it perfectly while airing the ‘reveal’ as nothing more than a whimsical comment.

Hook.

It had Melody snapping her head around however. “Really?! You were once Festival Maiden?” 

Line.

Sabrina nodded, drawing out her transceiver and showing off an old image where she was staring at the person taking the photo with a neutral expression. In the next, her head was turned and she was looking back at the water with a small thoughtful frown.

I of course was next to her but Melody only had eyes for her idol.

“Sinker,” I muttered, causing Carol to giggle and nod. The rest of the evening passed quite easily with me learning more about the study that would be required of Carol before she could be considered a Breeding specialist. 

The first year was all theoretical with knowledge about Egg Groups and which pokemon belonged where, with a course titled Breeding one-oh-one. 

Egg Handling One-oh-one, was also expected of her with other courses featuring accounting, and business skills for her first year before getting into the two-oh subjects of her second year.

“I’m sort of toying with the idea of taking on some of the extra electives but I’m not sure. There’s also my social life to consider, you know?” Carol commented. “University isn’t just about study but also making connections.”

“Ah, a good place to start would be signing on with Erika at the Celadon Gym if you can,” I suggested. 

Carol blinked. “Huh? Oh I guess, I was more thinking of parties and boys but that could work as well.”

I merely nodded, mentally adjusting Carol’s maturity measure in my mind at her comments. It wasn’t wrong for her to want these things but I was giving her some pretty strong hints. You couldn’t have better connections in Celadon than knowing Erika after all.

Then again Erika had an idea of almost every social scene in Kanto…

“Just check it out,” I suggested once more before leaving it in Carol’s hands. 

Elder Tobias eventually noticed our group and he staggered over only to attempt to drag me into helping out. 

I was quick to duck the extra work by telling him I was actually already full up with other tasks that I had to handle. He’d stared at me for a moment, then looked at the ladies sitting at the table with me before scoffing. 

“You’re not fooling anyone young man!” he glanced at Sabrina before wagging a finger at me. “But I shan’t deny you your fun neither!” he shouted for all to hear. Then he staggered off for another round after giving me a very large and obvious wink.

Sabrina gave a single small heh at his antics but otherwise ignored him. 

I pointedly didn’t comment that if there was anyone that could help out with the work around Shamouti, it would be Sabrina. 

We’d volunteered enough lately, it was time for someone else to pull their weight.

Just as we were exiting the restaurant a very specific chime sounded out on both our wrists.

Sabrina and I shared a look. With resigned spirits we Teleported to our room before answering the call that had been sent out to all Guardians.

Janine, Koga, Karen, and Agatha were there but Lucy hadn’t yet answered but from how Janine was vibrating in place I doubted she was going to wait to announce whatever it was she’d found.

“We’ve encountered a primary target!” she announced, proving my suspicions a moment later. 

“The group that was travelling along the suspected route that Team Aqua were fleeing came upon a small chain of islands that upon inspection had an airfield base on it!” Janine gushed. 

Koga raised an eyebrow. “How fortunate… I suspect Team Aqua has offered up another’s neck to the chopping block in their stead.” At his words, Janine’s shoulders curled in on themselves slightly.

Agatha grunted. “It fits their typical operations.” She flicked her eyes towards Sabrina and I. “Good to see you’ve been listening and implementing the lessons we’ve been working on. You held out well and drove them back despite being in a terrible situation!”

I held back a snort. That was almost a compliment to us, but I noted how she’d put the emphasis on our training with her, thereby reflecting the glory upon herself. 

Koga nodded. “Were either you or your pokemon injured?” he asked. 

“No Koga,” I replied seriously as Sabrina merely shook her head. 

“Good work,” he remarked, and the quiet praise he offered felt like I’d just earned another Gym Badge from him. Koga turned towards his daughter. “What was the Primary target you alluded to? Team Aqua may have had a hand in our discovering the airbase, but that does not detract from the success.”

Janine straightened at that. “Yes! The target ended up being a supply base for one Lawrence the Third! He had several pokemon that are either restricted such as Pupitar and even Chansey to a shiny Bulbasaur!” 

Karen whistled. “Well it sounds like you hit the jackpot then little Janine!” she teased. “Got yourself a handy pokemon there.”

Janine bristled indignantly. “I would never steal another person’s pokemon!” she declared. 

Karen smirked. “So was it anyone’s pokemon?”

Janine shifted. “It was not… yet. I have arranged for the breeding centre to be contacted so that Bulbasaur might be returned to them.”

“Laaaaaame!” replied Karen only for Janine to twitch at something on her side of the communication and Karen’s next words to fall silent. 

Janine sniffed victoriously, and for a second I thought I saw Koga’s lips twitch. Agatha cackled which caused Karen to realise what had happened. From what I could lip-read she wasn’t saying anything polite.

Janine continued the meeting from there. “We have flight logs for Lawrence along with maps of other facilities that we will be able to raid soon but there is a clear indicator that he will be returning to this base imminently!” 

That caused the others to straighten. 

Agatha turned to Sabrina and I. “You should get into—”

Sabrina and I didn’t need to share a look to communicate without words. We both knew what the other was thinking at that moment.

“We trust Janine to handle this,” I stated firmly. “And honestly, as much as it would be nice to be there for the airship… it felt like overkill and probably even more risky for everyone if we were there. 

Also part of me was flinching away from engaging again after how the last fight had gone. I’ve never personally been responsible for that many pokemon dying. I had no illusions that I hadn’t caused it in the past, especially with the various raids and fights with criminals I’d engaged with last year. 

Yesterday though had been upfront and impossible to ignore.

Even then, the only reason we would need to be there would be for Sabrina, which could be arranged at a moment’s notice.

So I decided to try and let someone else take command.

Agatha blinked. Koga kept a blank mask up. Karen scoffed and tossed her hair while Janine stiffened and stared at us. 

Sabrina nodded, taking over. “Janine would be best suited to handle this. We can act as support at a moment’s notice, but it might be best for a… more stealthy approach.”

Koga nodded. “Very well, Janine, you are in charge of this operation. If you need them Brock and Sabrina are yours to call up.”

“Yes!” she shouted only to cough. “I mean. That is excellent news. I will be sure to live up to your expectations!” she declared.

With that done, the meeting quickly ended with everyone signing off. Janine stayed with us on the line and gave us a look that all but conveyed that she would remember this ‘favour’ we were giving her. 

When the call disconnected Sabrina and I shared a look. “What’s the chances we need to help out?”

Sabrina glanced to the east and her eyes glowed brightly for a few moments before she smiled. “Low,” she said with a pleased air. “Let’s turn our alarms off and sleep in tomorrow.” 

I nodded only to pause as we made our way to bed. “Are we bad for exploiting Janine like that?”

Sabrina thought about it for a moment. “Want to wear our Team Rocket disguises to bed?” she asked with a smirk.

[hr][/hr] 

Janine had to take several breaths to contain her delight. 

She’d been given lead on the operation to take down an International Criminal! Sabrina and Brock, who her father often praised, were instead turning to her for this task!

She vowed then and there that she would run at least three security checks of the castle that they would be hosting their wedding in! No rock would go unturned! No threat unaddressed!

She held her fist tightly but otherwise gave no outward sign of her vow. 

Around her other shinobi that had undergone loyalty tests were arrayed. 

“Troops! We have been given the task of capturing and detaining Lawrence! We are to assume that the facility has no less than twelve state-of-the-art security measures so be vigilant! I don’t want Lawrence to have even the slightest idea that we’re ready for him!” 

The others nodded their heads in agreement and Janine slashed her hand. While the others took off running she marshalled her aura and exploded past them, moving like a shadowy leaf in the night.

Her movements disturbed no branches and she left no sign of her passing.

When she reached the facility she lingered at the edge of the teeline, noting several cameras and a thermal detection array, along with some laser grids that would trip if someone were to approach from overhead. 

Janine dropped to the ground after moving back, releasing one of her lesser known pokemon.

“Pory?” questioned the little cyber duck pokemon. 

Janine signed for it to be silent and it nodded seriously. Janine smiled at it. Most wouldn’t expect that sort of pokemon from her, but she hadn’t spent so long training at Pewter without picking up several tricks while also noticing the utility of certain pokemon.

She’d been very impressed by Brock’s Izumi certainly, a Geodude capable of dealing critical strikes whenever it desired. 

One day she would have pokemon like that. Perhaps an entire team of them! She could see it now, a Koffing, Ekans, or even a Venonat! All ready to intercept any that would attempt to harm her gym!

But a pokemon that could sidestep much of the digital dangers that a shinobi could encounter? That pokemon suddenly became a must have.

“Porygon, we’re doing the tuck and reposition routine.” she said quietly. 

Porygon disassembled itself and then reformed itself upside down in glee.

Janine ignored its antics as she knew when it was time Porygon would be a true ninja striking without leaving a byte out of place. 

She sketched out the facility, highlighting the cameras she needed looped along with which laser grids needed to be turned off.

One of the things she’d noticed was that most people didn’t account for pokemon being deployed within the facility. You didn’t need to send out a pokeball at its fully expanded size, you could use other methods.

In the past she’d used a minimized Grimer to much the same effect but she’d found a greater success with less signs afterwards with Porygon, especially as more and more people shifted to technological solutions to their security.

Sadly Brock’s claim that she would have difficulty sneaking into his Gym had proven true. After he’d taunted her she had run some… training exercises against his Gym and discovered that she needed to adjust her arsenal. 

She also needed multiple ways to handle dog pokemon as Houndour and Growlithe had different palates and methods of patrolling an area.

As the other shinobi fell in around her, Janine returned her pokemon and moved to the edge of the treeline once more.

With a careful inspection once more she wound up and flicked Porygon’s pokeball, now little more than a pebble onto the roof, avoiding the alignment of lasers and causing Porygon’s ball to begin rolling towards the edge of the rooftop.

Before it could fall off where it might trigger several movement alarms on the ground, Porygon enlarged and released itself from the pokeball. 

It then used Psychic to catch its own pokeball. It deftly minimized it before sending it back to Janine. 

From there Porygon vanished in a burst of digital bytes having found an electrical outlet.

Janine signed for the others to wait. 

It didn’t take long before a small but noticeable shift occurred causing everyone to perk up.

“Less electrical energy in the air?” murmured one.

Janine turned and gave that shinobi a furious look, marking them down for later retraining. It was extremely sloppy to be talking this close to a potential target, even if she’d already deployed her pokemon!

The ninja ducked her head but it was too late, the shame of her actions had already occurred.

A small squawk, much like a music deck being scratched, sounded out.

Janine rose and signalled her team to follow her. They were in.

They scaled the walls and jimmied windows without fear of alarms and soon they found themselves in a gargantuan hangar. Janine took note of the structural integrity of it as she ran along another walkway towards what appeared to be an office. Her Porygon soon joined her.

A door to a secure room presented no challenge to her as within a few moments she had it popped open. Janine stepped in to find a server room that thrummed with small chirps and small lights. 

Once more, the room was immaculately set out with each wire in an assigned space that flowed without creating clutter.

Janine didn’t think the League or many other organisations would have such a dedicated server room.

If Team Aqua hadn’t been the ones to lead them to this site she would have advocated for simply co-opting the facility for the Guardians’ needs. A room like this alone was worth millions, especially with there being very few people aware of its existence.

It would be a matter to decide after everything had been secured. Janine swept through the servers, Porygon flying into and then out of them each time with a gleeful warble as it went. 

It was hard not to become infected by Porygon’s upbeat attitude but Janine managed it. “Focus Porygon!” she chided quietly as she reached a bank of computers that were listing weather conditions, planes and their travel vectors and even flying type pokemon. In a far off section, inching its way towards the island that Janine was on, a large blip was closing.

Its call sign was Flying Palace, and it was by the system’s estimate at least thirty minutes out.

More than enough time to set up multiple ambush points along with scope out the facility.

Janine moved away from the computer, allowing another to take over as she began sweeping the giant hangar and workspace. 

She was vigilant for any explosives, air gapped computer systems, or even a sleepy guard that had been missed in the original sweep.

She found nothing beyond a garish bedroom with multiple collectors stands with various relics, fossils, and even what appeared to be a stolen crown that was labelled as belonging to Queen Shiera from the Kingdom of Rota.

While these were all fascinating and in the Crown’s case political capital, they weren’t what she was looking for. She did another sweep and found a hidden remote, tucked underneath the bed but still within reach of the occupant. 

Janine hummed, its positioning was all wrong… was this perhaps a remote to trigger an escape hatch?

“Porygon? What does this link up to?” she asked and Porygon nuzzled at the remote for a few moments before quacking repeatedly in a manner that let Janine know he found whatever they’d found to be particularly funny. 

“Porygon?” she asked.

Porygon, without warning, moved up into the ceiling and triggered something.

Janine braced, prepared for an alarm only for a banner and some confetti to pop out of the roof.

Janine stared at the banner as a small victory chime rang out.

“Congratulations on making it with a woman?” she read aloud in disbelief.

Janine gave the room, and its various trophies another look, her perception of them changing with this new reveal. “You sad, sad lonely man,” she muttered to herself.

She felt a little sick. “Clean this up and rejoin me Porygon,” she ordered as she beat a hasty retreat. Her assessment of Lawrence had dropped severely. 

She assumed a position near a ramp, hidden from view with others, waiting for their target.

The airship gave nothing away as it closed. It appeared at first to all outward observers to merely be a cloud floating in the sky. 

Then it descended and the observers began to notice that the clouds were in fact man made. Machines on the side of the airship created constant smoke that kept the airship camouflage when in the air. 

It was ingenious. 

As the frankly gargantuan airship came in to land the doors of the vast hangar opened. 

It would have been silent except for the huge air pressure shift as not just the front, but also the top of the hangar split open, peeling back in layers to reveal the airship itself. 

The giant propellers caused a whoosh of air as they passed over Janine’s head and she had to hunker down further and dig her fingers into the metal grate lest she be blown away.

Janine’s ears popped and she had to furiously work her jaw to stay able to hear what was going on around her.

Warning klaxons sounded as struts rose to gently catch the airship at set structural points that helped protect the huge propellers that spanned off the red metal framework. The central tower swung through a small canyon that had been built into the facility.

Another part of the floor of the hangar opened as a section of the tower opened. A large pipe extended  out and connected a fuel line as parts of the airship’s shell peeled themselves back, revealing small ports as other pipelines connected 

Janine noted all of this while giving the small spikes that looked like sensor nodes extending out the bottom of the tower complex. That, and the many cannon-like mounts that swept the area. Janine continued to hold herself perfectly still.

When the airship finally came to rest there was a loud thoom that rang through the hangar and caused the ground to tremble.

Janine eyed the airship. 

It was remarkably stealthy for something that size. Janine had done her research and found that there was scarcely any indication of this facility, or indeed the airship. Nothing had given it away.

Until Sabrina had had her premonition about one Lawrence the Third.

A former noble of Kanto only for the reforms to cause him and his family to be stripped of their nobility. 

But not their money or holdings, which had resulted in them falling quiet for a time.

It would seem they’d gone into criminal acquisitions.

A ramp extended itself down to the ground, locking into the preexisting ramp where a small chime sounded out as a voice activated. “Welcome home master Lawrence,” announced a sultry sounding woman’s voice.

Janine felt a shiver run up her spine from that.

Lawrence the Third marched down the ramp with all the pomp of a man certain of what today would bring. He was tugging at his gloves lightly and had an air about him like he was untouchable.

Janine immediately noticed that he was not wearing a pokebelt, nor did he have any sign of a necklace.

The man had no pokeballs on him!

He had a stun gun certainly, and what looked like mechanical gloves that would be dangerous in a straight fight, but in a world of pokemon, machines just weren’t going to cut it.

Janine moved, throwing herself out of her vantage point to land lightly behind him.

Lawrence didn’t so much as twitch as she rose behind him and chopped both hands into his neck, imbuing just the smallest amount of poison energy into the strike.

Lawrence crumbled like a tissue.

Janine spun around, arms raised, ready for a ghost pokemon to emerge and attack her, or an ultra-speedy pokemon. 

She was ready for them!

Nothing occurred, apart from Lawrence starting to snore quietly as the poisons eased him into a gentle sleep.

Janine felt her brow twitch as she turned and gave her captive a long look. “Was that it? You’re just a rich thief with no combat training?” she asked.

A few of the other ninja moved up to inspect Lawrence. One knelt and checked his pulse.

Janine flicked her hand. “Take him away! We’ll have a lot of questions for him!” she announced as she turned her attention to the open doorway of the airship. There was a small chirp occurring within, like an alarm going off…

“Follow me! We need to secure this airship!” she ordered, charging into what hopefully would be a much less disappointing raid. 

It did end up being more interesting, if only for the collection of stolen goods along with priceless artifacts that had been uncovered. Also of note was the Airship’s weaponry. It had enough to do a wartime battleship proud.

There was a strange system that used electrical rings rather than pokeballs to capture pokemon with spaces assigned to house and control the pokemon. 

The three areas prepared and charged with electrical, fire, and ice energy within them using evolutionary stones was rather telling.

He must have known about Shamouti and the nearby islands that housed nesting areas for the Legendary birds.

Janine stared at the rings. Surely these wouldn’t be enough… not against pokemon that she had heard stories about from her father…

Janine shook her head. Lawrence was rich, powerful, and arrogant, a dangerous combination.

In her mind it was all the better that he’d been captured when he had. Janine didn’t like to think what he would have done if left unchecked.

“Intruder alert! Intruder alert! Activating countermeasures!” chimed a mechanised voice that stiffened Janine. 

Something had been observing them!

From the wall several small mechanical four-legged machines tracked down with singular orbs for eyes.

Steel type pokemon? Or actual machines? She suspected the latter, but just in case she decided against using any poison attacks. 

Her transceiver chirped. “Janine? We’ve got small robots or something coming out of the walls!” barked another group that had peeled off to investigate the engine system.

“Release pokemon and fight them back!” Janine commanded. “Go Weezing, Arbok and Crobat! Take those out!” she said with a chopping motion. As her pokemon appeared around her.

Weezing swept forward and performed a Double Hit that crushed the machine, revealing wiring and metal rather than it being an actual pokemon. Arbok and Crobat took out the other machines.

“Threat level raised! Deploying guard units! And activating capture system!” chimed the robotic voice.

The rings on a few small control boards began to light up. 

Janine did not like the look of that at all. 

Janine released Porygon. “Get into the system and block it off! Whoever’s observing us needs to be blinded so we can control this airship!” she ordered. 

Or, if the situation got worse for them, stop them from activating any self-destruct functions.

Porygon swept into a nearby computer and the screen glitched out.

The voice spoke up once more. “Digital entity detected. Running Virus software…” the voice glitched. “Updating… updating… error! Error!” 

Janine blinked and slowly rose from the crouch she’d fallen into. “Porygon? What’s going on?” she asked.

“Porygon!” chirped the speakers loudly and from the computer an image of her duck dancing around was shown before lines of code began to stream down the screen with some being stripped and adjusted.

“New parameters accepted…” chimed the voice. “Welcome home Janine!” chirped the voice warmly. 

Janine stared at the speakers. “Was that… Artificial Intelligence?” she asked incredulously. 

Around her other Guardians shrugged, equally perplexed.

Janine threw herself at the computer station. “Computer? What are you called?” 

“I am Flying Palace, is there something you require Janine?” asked the voice.

“... I need a rundown on your systems for a… hardware update.”

“Very well, please move towards the command deck.”

Janine nodded and turned to do that only to cough sheepishly. “Where is that?” she asked.

The system detailed how to reach the command deck, and before long, Janine found herself in an elevator rising up the central tower. She stared at the numerous buttons on the side indicating the various levels.

Lawrence had an entire floor of this airship dedicated to his dining room, a library, and even a movie theater. 

Janine shook her head at the opulence. 

Janine sent off a quick report to the other Guardians’ of her success as the doors opened to the command deck which was at the top of the airship allowing her an unobstructed view of everything around her. 

The Captain’s chair sat on a raised platform that had numerous displays around it along with a data port. 

Janine sat in the chair, mindful that at any moment things might revert. 

“Computer?” I am here; please provide a data port!” she commanded. A moment later, a small pot opened on her chair, allowing for easy file transfer. 

Janine stared at the display. This… this was an unmitigated success. Certainly the reveal of the Artificial Intelligence had been a surprise but she’d had the tools to manage it.

“Porygon, come out,” she asked and Porygon obliged her. She offered it its favourite snacks and it squawked happily, guzzling the snacks down before backflipping away from her and back into the network where it swam from screen to screen.

Janine pouted, she’d rather been hoping to have her pokemon sit in her lap… still, she shifted and nodded to herself.

It felt right sitting there. So right that she decided then and there that she was claiming this ship… for the Guardians of course. 

But if she got to fly it around as a secret ninja base?

All the better.

Janine felt a giggle bubble up from her chest. With the servers she had access to, along with the ability to fly over any city, she’d be able to strike terror into the hearts of all wrongdoers!

Janine liked the sound of that quite a bit. 

Janine shifted about guiltily, only to then tap on another pokemon that she’d acquired recently.

A shiny Bulbasaur appeared with a small shake of its head. It glanced around in confusion only to spot Janine.

Its eyes lit up, and it grinned like everything was perfect just with her being there.

Janine opened her arms, knowing that it wasn’t wise to become attached to a pokemon she would have to return, but that smile… that damn goofy loveable smile.

With a shiny Bulbasaur in her lap purring contentedly, she felt like everything was right in the world for once, and one Captain Janine of Fuchsia felt elated as she began to flick through the various systems she had access to with her new airship.

[hr][/hr]

A.N. Thanks go to my patreons for your continued support!

Guardians’ secret airship acquired! For some reason I want to do an artwork of Janine cosplaying as Mr Bison from Street Fighter now… 

Thanks also goes to Twmmy for proofreading this chapter!