Chapter Fifty One

Floating cities drifted by on the horizon as Wildcard Gamma moved swiftly through the inhabited areas of System Sky. Macro leant on the dashboard, struggling to keep his eyes open. He yawned widely and watched one of the cities draw closer to his ship. Which one it was, he had no idea at this distance. But it wasn't their destination, that much he knew.

The clatter of a mug appearing beside him snapped him out of his daze, and he looked down at a steaming mug of coffee.

"I really think you could use some sleep," DL told him as she released the handle.

He took the mug in both paws before it slid off the dashboard to meet an unfortunate fate on the cockpit floor.

"I'm not sleeping until we're back in civilization," he told her.

"We are." She placed her paws on her hips and frowned. "So get some sleep. You're of no use to anyone the state you're in now."

"Coffee and some fresh air and I'll be right as rain." He sipped at his coffee and immediately regretted it as it burnt his lips. He set it back down quickly and whisked a paw across his mouth. "Besides, I'm not going to sleep while Ultra Beasts are wreaking havoc in my home."

"It could take months to sort this out!" she gasped. "Get some rest."

He waved a paw at the windows and looked at her pointedly. "We'll get my ship somewhere safe, then I'll sleep. 'Kay?"

The pachirisu rolled her eyes and gazed out of the window. "Fine. But this macho attitude of yours isn't doing anyone any favours."

"Macho?" He narrowed his eyes as he took another - more cautious - sip of coffee.

"Yes. You think you're stronger than you are." She picked up a tray he'd failed to notice and made her way out of the cockpit. "You're just another pokemon like the rest of us. And, just like the rest of us, you need sleep."

Macro watched her go, still clutching the hot coffee in his paws. With a sigh, he turned back to the window and slowly sipped his drink.

The cockpit was oddly quiet. Anchor had gone for a lie down, and Matrix had decided to take a break and play some video games in his room.

Macro didn't like to leave the cockpit empty, but DL was right. He did need sleep.

He placed his mug carefully on the dashboard, then let his head fall onto his arms as he sprawled across it. As soon as he closed his eyes, all he could see were distorted monsters. Blurry shapes that manifested into otherworldly creatures. Then that screaming bamboo face filled his vision. Its unearthly voice wailing through his mind.

His eyes snapped open again and he found himself trying to catch his breath. That beast had got to him. It was enough to make him miss his fiery nightmares.

A light paw fell on his shoulder and he glanced to the side, meeting DL's gentle face. The warmth in her eyes chased away those frightening cobwebs and he lifted his head slightly to get a better look at her.

"I can take over in here," she said. "Go on. Bed."

"You know," he said as he pushed himself up. "That doesn't sound like a terrible idea."

"Glad to know I've got through to you."

She stood aside as he clambered off his chair, then immediately pulled herself up into it.

"I might only nap for an hour or so," he said. "I don't think we're too far from Cyan City."

"Take as long as you need."

She didn't even look back at him. Somehow, that stabbed at his chest. He shook it off and reached into his pouch for his computer. At least he could get some reading done and catch up on things before letting sleep take over. Clear his mind.

As he left the room, he looked down at the screen. It was already lit up, showing the main page of Meta City News. His breath flew out of his lungs and he staggered into the wall. Wide, frantic eyes lingered over the screen as he tried to take it in.

Strange, black and white creatures clambered over buildings and the mechanical trees. Their bodies discharged electricity, engulfing those unfortunate enough to get too close. The headlines claimed they sucked electricity out of anything that produced it. The mechanical trees were twisted and broken beyond repair, allowing putrid air to enter Meta City.

His computer clattered to the floor, landing with the screen face up. Still broadcasting the horrific news. He slid down the wall but before he hit the floor he found himself caught in DL's arms. She lowered him to the floor and sat down beside him, her entire body trembling. But somehow she managed to maintain her composure as she read over the nightmarish news.

"They're going to be everywhere, aren't they?" she said. "It makes me wonder how many there are, and how dangerous they really are."

Macro's eyes flitted towards her, but words failed to form. What did she mean? Surely those pictures alone showed how dangerous they are? Hadn't that jellyfish killed other pokemon? That strange bamboo monster almost took out Wildcard Gamma!

The antenna behind her ear began to flash sporadically and her eyes went distant. Macro felt his heart sink, but the blank look in her eyes was fleeting.

"I'm getting a message," she said.

"Ignore it."

His voice came out strained, and he stared at her, silently pleading. But she took no notice. She just stared down at his computer, not seeing it, as she retreated into her own head.

No. He wasn't having any of this BackDoor nonsense. Not on top of everything else.

His breath came in quick, shallow bursts and his eyes flickered towards the back of her head. He could stop it. He could stop BackDoor's interference with his life. All he had to do was flick that switch.

He raised a trembling paw towards the base of her skull.

"It's not off BackDoor." She released him and reached for the computer. "Where's the jack cable?"

Macro let his paw fall weakly onto his lap and he leant against the wall, watching DL as she scrambled around the cockpit. His head rolled back, stopped only by the cold wall, and he let out a strangled sob. Had he seriously tried to do that? To switch her off? She was a living pokemon, just like him. It was monstrous to even consider it.

Tears stung his eyes, threatening to leak out, and he clasped both paws over his face to stifle them. Or hide them. He felt too weak to hold them in.

"I've found it," said DL. "I just have to download some data."

Her words barely registered. He raked his claws over his face and took in a few deep breaths, but nothing could shake that dark cloud. That horrible realisation he'd just tried to get rid of her. Switch her off like some machine. He didn't even know what damage that could do now she had her memories. Would she lose them? Revert back to a mindless computer? It didn't bare thinking about.

Silence filled the cockpit, the only sounds his frantic breathing. He cracked his claws and peered through them. DL sat beside him with the jack lead in the back of her skull. The other end was in the bottom of his pocket computer. Her antenna flickered rhythmically, but she appeared as alert as ever, watching the screen patiently. Then she lifted a paw and removed the jack lead.

Macro lowered his paws and stared at her with his mouth open. He took a few breaths to steady himself, and she looked up at him with a smile.

"Done," she said. "I think you might appreciate this."

"I thought you... I dunno... went dormant when you had a jack cable in?"

She shrugged and retrieved his computer. "You're usually downloading things to me at the time. I guess it's different when I'm downloading data to a computer."

He took another deep breath and pushed himself up, but he still felt weak. Guilty. Wretched.

"What did you do?" he asked.

"I got a message from Solgaleo," she explained. "He sent me a data file containing information on all the Ultra Beasts. He called it an UltraDex."

Macro sank back against the wall.

Solgaleo...

Solgaleo could send her data?

Of course he could. He'd been contacting Macro for days prior to reaching the Dead Glacier. Through dreams, sun-like images, and through a message on his computer no one else could see.

Macro grit his teeth together and screwed his eyes shut, letting out a strangled sob.

"Macro, are you okay?" DL asked.

He shook his head violently. "I... I thought it was BackDoor. I tried to switch you off..." His voice trailed off, but he dared not look at her. "You're not just some machine, DL. Especially not to me. I don't know what got into me. I... I'm terrified."

He heard her shift, every movement tearing at his heart as he pictured her leaving the room.

"I think everything's got on top of me," he choked out. "What's happening to my home?"

DL scooped an arm under his and gently lifted him to his feet. He opened his eyes and looked down at her, but she wasn't looking at him. It pained him. He'd done it again. He'd hurt her.

He closed his eyes again and leant against her as she walked him from the cockpit.

"I'm sorry," he choked. "I'm a real-"

"If you call yourself a jerk I'm gonna pour that coffee over your head." She shook her head and sighed. "It's understandable you'd be scared, Macro. I could easily have been assaulted by BackDoor, and if it did do anything... untoward... to me, then I'd want you to switch me off."

"I will never do that to you."

"If it was to save my life, or yours, or anyone on this ship, I'd want you to."

Macro stiffened and glanced at her. But she still wasn't looking at him. She stopped outside a door and he realised they'd reached his room. A quick flick of her paw opened the door and she steered him inside.

"Get yourself settled down," she said softly. "I'll be back shortly with a cocoa."

He watched her leave, then climbed onto his bed, sitting hunched on top of his duvet. He didn't want to climb under it. Didn't want to sleep. His mind was a swirling mess and guilt still gnawed at him.

He looked around for his computer, but it was nowhere to be found. Maybe DL still had it? He sighed and leant back on his paws, looking up at the bare ceiling. Those wiry monsters were still clear in his mind, dragging down the mechanical trees and causing havoc in Meta City. He hoped desperately the city would be okay. He might not care for Socket, those monsters were mainly her fault, but there were still innocent pokemon living there. Innocent pokemon having their lives ruined by rampaging Ultra Beasts. Creatures they knew nothing about. Creatures that couldn't be controlled or communicated with.

And it was all linked to BackDoor.

His mind went back to DL and he grimaced, trying to force the guilt away. But it was no use. It ate away at him.

The door hissed open and DL strolled in carrying two steaming mugs. A familiar, spicy smell filled his room as the door closed, trapping the steam inside.

"I made us occa cocoa." She gave him a small smile. "I thought it might help you sleep."

He took one of the mugs, not taking his eyes off her. She set the other one on his bedside unit then perched on the edge of his bed.

"Scooch," she said.

His mind whirled with a new kind of confusion but he obeyed, edging along enough to allow her to sit beside him. She adjusted his two pillows against the wall and leant back, reaching into her pouch and pulling out his computer.

"What are you doing?" he finally asked.

"We're going to look at this stuff Solgaleo sent us," she explained. "He said it might help us to put things into perspective. Especially as we'll be rounding those Ultra Beasts up."

She loaded up the file and a little animation played across the screen. Some kind of blue and silver ball spun in the centre of the screen before it split in two like doors opening. A list of names filled the screen, each one numbered from one to eleven. The top one was Nihilego, which Macro instantly recognised.

"Let's start with this one." DL tapped the creature's name and brought up a new display.

This one showed the creature in a little box, which changed at regular intervals to display it in different positions. Beside it's picture was it's typing. Rock and poison. Just like a pokemon, it had it's own type.

Macro leant over her shoulder to read the description.

'Nihilego, also known as 'Symbiont', is an Ultra Beast that resides in a dimension called Deep Sea. It produces a neurotoxin to control other creatures, making them do its will. It can also control inanimate objects. Creatures and objects under its control often react in a violent way, but this is believed to be the creature's way of defending itself. It will often resort to violence if it feels it's suffering.

'When it's not reacting in a volatile manner, it behaves in a very innocent manner. As it drifts around in its own environment it moves in an almost hypnotic fashion. It cannot survive for long outside of toxic air.'

"Sounds like it would be right at home in Proxy City," said Macro.

"It also might explain its volatile manner while it was flying around System Sky," said DL. "But it makes me wonder how long it can survive outside of toxic air, given it was in System for quite some time."

Macro shrugged. "Even though they cleaned up the air, we're still polluting it. Maybe it was enough to sustain it for a little while."

"Maybe." She sipped at her cocoa then tapped on another name. "Let's look at this one."

The next Ultra Beast looked like a large, muscular insect. The one following it was a lot more feminine. Macro wondered if they were from the same world, despite the different location names. When they got to the next one, Macro almost spilt his cocoa.

That electrical beast. The one he'd seen in the news report. Its name was Xurkitree. With a name, its existence seemed a lot more solid.

Xurkitree. An electric type, from a dimension called The Lightning Plantation.

'It energises itself with electricity, preying on anything that produces it. Although it prefers non-organic sources. As such it's a common sight around electrical plants in its home world.

'It stands like a tree, with all five limbs pressed into the ground as it searches for electricity. It often draws lightning to itself in this position. The inhabitants of The Lightning Plantation sometimes tame them to use them as lightning rods, diverting lightning away from vulnerable areas.'

"Tame them?" Macro gasped. "They didn't look like they could be tamed from those photos."

DL shrugged. "Do you look good in all your photos?"

"Well... I... erm..." He stuttered and sipped at his cocoa. "I like to think I do."

She chuckled and turned her head to look at him. "Shall we keep looking over this list? Or do you want to try and get some sleep?"

"I still don't think I can," he said, although a yawn betrayed him.

"Want me to read them to you?" she asked. "Then you can at least close your eyes."

He shrugged and shuffled down against his pillow. "Sure."

She opened up the next Ultra Beast, but the image made him sit up again. That bamboo creature... he'd only seen its head, but he recognised its face instantly. The rest of it was huge, sporting two cannons floating at its sides.

Steel and flying type. Apparently lived in a place called The Crater. It made him think of the moon, riddled with craters from meteor impacts. With those cannons, he wouldn't be surprised if it made them.

"Celesteela," said DL. "Despite being a steel and flying type, it draws nutrients from the soil like a plant. It can also create large roots, anchoring itself in place. Its cannons fire out various debris, from iron to fire. It's been known to burn down entire forests. It shoots a flammable gas from its cannons to propel itself through the air for high speed flight."

Macro clutched his mug tightly to stop his paws from trembling.

"C-can they... tame that one?" he asked.

DL placed a paw over the screen, blocking out the text and photo. "It doesn't say. But... there's no reason why not, is there?"

Macro looked away from her, fixing his attention on the door.

"Look, at least we know its weakness now," she said.

"Yeh. Steel flying type." He clutched his mug close to his lips. "I can't do anything to it."

"No, but Anchor can. And so can I."

He turned to look at her again, catching a reassuring smile.

"Tomorrow, we'll land somewhere and try out those Z-Moves," she said. "Meanwhile, get some rest or you won't be joining us."

He sighed and returned to his pillow, shuffling down so his shoulders were resting against it. He quickly downed the remains of his cocoa then handed the mug back to DL.

She slipped from the bed and gathered up her own mug. The bed suddenly felt really cold, despite the warmth lingering behind where she'd been sat.

"Do you want me to leave your computer?" she asked.

"Please." He diverted his eyes from hers. "I might need it."

She nodded and placed it carefully on the night stand. Then she turned to leave his room. The door opened, but she paused in the doorway and looked back at him.

"I'll be in the cockpit if you need me," she said.

He watched the door close, leaving him feeling very cold and alone. But at least she wasn't annoyed with him. That gnawing guilt had been swiftly expunged. With a sigh, he shuffled under his duvet and rearranged his pillows. A soft scent wafted up from the one DL had been leaning against. It smelled just like her. A soft sweetness hidden beneath the lavender from the ship's shower. It warmed him from the inside. Enough to make him want to run after her.

He bit back the urge and tucked the pillow beside him, turning his back on it. But it was still there. He stared at the wall, trying to ignore it. But he was convinced it was getting worse. It was oddly soothing...

As he closed his eyes, he found himself rolling over, snuggling into the pillow. Before he knew it, he was sound asleep.

...

Annie burst from the Moonlight Lounge, still clutching the dazed chatot in her claws. A loud laugh escaped her and she turned to shout over her shoulder.

"I thought that might motivate you!"

The rest of her crew were mixed amid the riled rabble that pursued her down the street. Lasers fired left and right, widely missing her as the space pirates intended to slow her down more so than actually hit her. Something whizzed over her head, slicing through the air, and she ducked with a squeak. A silver disk bounced ahead of her, rolling down the street on its serrated edge. An arrow lay discarded behind it, the sharp point of its feather blunted where it had struck something solid.

She trampled over it and glanced back at the crowd. Waveform had caught up with her now, notching another feather onto his vine. Widget's brown tail bobbed up and down behind the decidueye as he ran in circles, throwing his weight around to knock the faster pirates back into the mob. Those less fortunate to land on their feet were trampled beneath those bigger than them, creating a trip hazard to slow the space pirates down.

"Not too far now," said Waveform. "Keep running."

Annie laughed and picked up her pace, speeding around a corner onto the docks. Adrenaline fired through her veins, and her lungs felt fit to burst. It was fabulous.

The colourful hulls of the ships filled the docks, as did the colourful forms of many more pirates. Bright eyes widened as the mob followed the maniacal archeops, fixing on the angered faces and the frantic feathers clutched in her claws. The irritating chatot decided to dig his hooked beak into her claws between desperate cries for help that were drowned out beneath the enraged voices that filled the street.

Annie made a beeline for her pyukumyuku ship, and her smile widened when she saw the pokemon waiting around it. Web and Zip stood behind N0ize, the incineroar's nonchalance contrasting wildly with the fear in the other two's eyes. He stood with his arms folded and flashed her a single canine in a playful grin. Another pokemon stood a few feet away from him, leaning on a bollard. A magmortar, his right arm decked out with a flashy cybernetic canon. His eyes were locked on Annie and Waveform, occasionally going to the bird flapping in her grip. Blue, white and yellow feathers drifted around her feet as she rushed towards her ship, but not without another glance over her shoulder.

"Y'all might wanna think about what I said!" she roared.

More lasers fired, more items were thrown, another arrow went whizzing over her head to impale another disk into the immaculate hull of a lanturn ship. Some pirate was going to be very upset about that.

Annie skidded to a halt before N0ize and lifted Hatter up high above her head. His beak aimed for her eye, reaching just shy of it. The archeops didn't so much as flinch.

"Alright, listen!" she snapped at the oncoming mob. "I'm gonna take off with this parrot, and y'all are gonna let me!"

The mob didn't stop running. Some of the bystanders abandoned their leisure to intervene, trying to hold some of the angry pirates back. Others decided to join in, rushing at her from the street only to be held back by a gunk shot from Web. Lasers and elemental attacks whizzed over the heads of the living barrier, skimming Annie's ship and narrowly missing her feathers.

Widget cut through the barrier of pirates, landed at her feet and turned his back on her. "Get on your dumb ship, human!"

"Come on, Annie." Web placed a paw on her shoulder and steered her to the door. "We're not wanted here."

"They just want to eat me," Zip said weakly.

Annie didn't budge. The goldeen's mechanical feet clambered up the tinny door into the ship behind her, and he paused at the doorway.

"Hurry, before they add archeops to the menu!" he cried.

"Flambeed parrot, anyone?" Annie waved Hatter at the crowd. "Because mark my words, I'll plunge him into one of your laser attacks!"

"What?!" Hatter screeched. "Are you crazy?!"

"Yes."

N0ize strode to her side and shoved her backwards. A stray laser nearly clipped his ear, singing the fur at the tip, but he didn't appear to notice or care.

"All right, I think we've had enough here, don't you?" he said.

The magmortar abandoned his post against the bollard and cut her off from view, aiming his cybernetic canon at the mob. A deep, pulsating noise filled the air, followed by a beam of electricity. It flew out of his canon with a deafening screech, causing those closest to him to cover their ears and flinch back. The mob was brought to a halt as the beam flew over their heads and punched a neat hole a billboard atop a casino. The beam blinked out as rapidly as it had started, plunging the docks into silence. The damaged billboard teetered backwards then crashed down onto the roof with an almighty clatter.

"I think we're all better'n this," N0ize rumbled. "Get yer fuzzy asses back to Moonlight Lounge, you drunkards."

"She's taking off with Hatter!" came a very squeaky voice from deep within the mob.

Other voices rose up to join in, each stating their concerns for the chatot. A majority of the concerns were more about needing him to run a few errands or pay their rewards, which Annie thought was a little unfair.

The magmortar raised his cannon again, and the voices all cut off simultaneously.

"Yeh?" N0ize spat towards the lanturn ship then fixed a leer on the crowd. "You ever thought she might have good reason?"

"Bounty hunter!" someone cried. "She's a bounty hunter!"

"Waltzing in here for that jackin' mayor!" said another.

"I don't work for no mayor!" Annie put her paws on her hips and flinched as Hatter dug his beak into her scaly leg. "I thought I made that clear in that... Mooney... Loungey place."

Waveform backed towards her, keeping his arrow notched. Tracer came from the other side, watching the mob over his shoulder with his paw clutched over his stick, which was partially buried in his tail. He ducked his head as someone let out an electric attack, and the sparks bounced off an innocent bollard, shattering it on impact. He looked over at Annie, wide-eyed, and opened his mouth to speak, but a loud shout from the crowd cut him off.

Trojan bolted from amid the group, eyes filled with fire. Tracer seemed to relax momentarily and he looked up at the scrafty.

"Where did you get-"

"Get on the ship!" Trojan's roar had been aimed at Annie.

He bolted past her, knocking the detective off balance, and clattered up onto the ship, causing it to rock precariously. Tracer stumbled backwards, steadying himself against the lanturn ship.

"Come on, Annie." Waveform placed a paw on her shoulder and backed towards the pyukumyuku. "We're leaving."

Annie didn't even look up at him. Her attention was still fixed on the angry mob.

"I have you know I don't work for the mayor!" she said. "I'm trying to stir all you pirates up into a frenzy! One day, that mayor will be gone and we'll have ourselves to thank!"

She thudded her chest with her claws, Hatter swaying unceremoniously. His face had turned a little pale beneath his black plumage.

"Lies!" one of the pirates shouted.

This was enough to stir up the others. They pushed back against the barrier of pirates, not so much as flinching as the magmortar raised his railgun cannon once more.

The pyukumyuku flared to life, its tinny hull rattling like a can of coins.

"Annie!" Web poked her head out of the door. "Come on! We're leaving!"

N0ize chuckled and shook his head, while Tracer fidgeted his paws together. He brandished his stick and aimed it into the crowd.

"Time's running out." He sent out a flamethrower, singing the fur of a purugly. "I hope you've got a backup plan other than spouting another monologue!"

Web looked back into the ship, stepping aside to let Waveform on. Trojan had sat himself down at the steering controls, muttering curses as he stared at Annie's back.

"Do we have a backup plan?" Web asked. "She won't move."

"I'm on it! Don't nag me." Trojan lifted a paw and struck The Big Red Button.

A white, sticky mass shot out of the pyukumyuku's nose, stretching out like a set of claws. Annie was on a ramble about mayors and fishes, much to the confusion of the space pirates since it had stopped making any coherent sense. The gooey claws fastened around her waist, plucking her from the docks.

A small yelp left her throat as the stretchy mass shot back towards the pyukumyuku's nose, dragging her deep within its confines. The last thing the crowd heard as it snatched her on board was:

"This is mutiny!"

Trojan grimaced and looked back at Web and Waveform. The pyukumyuku rose from the docks, sending the two off balance. Zip's metal claws screeched over the surface as he slid backwards into the skuntank's arms. She made sure the goldeen was securely locked in place then settled herself into her seat.

"I don't think she liked that," said Zip weakly.

"I have to agree," said Waveform. "I feel it was a little discourteous."

"I don't really care," said Trojan, rubbing the back of his neck with a grimace. "She was causing a jackin' ruckus. We coulda been killed."

"Murder is illegal, even in Pulse City," said Web. "The worst that could have happened-"

"Is monslaughter," said Trojan. "I reckon some got trampled to death in that mob and it's all her fault. I have every right mind to keep her in the cargo bay until we reach... I dunno..."

"Wave City," said Zip. "She told me we'd go to Wave City and talk to the water types."

Trojan leant on his paw and frowned at the blackness ahead. "Right now, I couldn't care less."

Banging came from beneath them, shaking the seats. The scrafty grit his teeth together and fought back the urge to stamp his foot in response.

"Anyway, she can stay there for a while," he grumbled. "I need to cool off."

"Can't she get out?" Web asked.

"'Course not," said Trojan. "What kinda jackass leaves a cargo bay door unlocked? That's just askin' for trouble."

"Then someone should go and get her."

Waveform glanced back down the ship then made his way towards the captain's seat. Before he could lower himself into it, Trojan looked up at him and froze him in place with a glare.

"Then I vouch you do it," he said. "'Cos if I see her, I'm gonna pluck her feathers out."

Waveform's face paled and his eyes flit left and right. He cleared his throat and lowered his scarf from his metallic beak.

"I speak for all avians when I say please... don't do that."

"She ain't avian. She's human." Trojan waved a paw, brushing off Waveform's crimson leer. "Go get her. Then use your scarf to gag her."

"What's got your gogoat?" Web snapped.

Trojan scoffed and snapped his head around to face her, flinching with the momentum. "I got trampled! Trampled! I ain't ever been so freakin' humiliated!"

Web's jaw dropped and she rose to her feet.

"Sit down!" Trojan snapped, watching as she slumped back into her seat. "Worst thing was that shamus saw everything. That look of concern on his wretched face, fighting back as he got swept away. Like I wanted his help..." The scrafty yawned and leant back in his seat, spotting Waveform still watching him. "You gettin' her or what?"

Waveform shook his head with a sigh and turned towards the cargo bay. The little hatch was built into the floor, right at the back of the ship. He pulled it open and leant his head inside, waiting until his eyes adjusted to the darkness. Something small crashed back and forth, bouncing off the walls and squawking insults. It turned and shot towards Waveform, startling the decidueye back onto the ship. A loud hoot escaped his beak, much to his dismay, and he watched the chatot bolt from the hatch and crash into the ceiling. He fell back through the hatch like a stunned chick.

Waveform clambered down, scooping Hatter up under one wing. He spotted Annie lying in a tangled sprawl a few feet away. She writhed beneath the sticky mass, fixing her eyes on him.

"A little help here?" she asked.

Waveform deposited Hatter and scrambled over to her. The pyukumyuku's 'innards' were still fastened around her small frame. He grabbed at them in his paws and tugged them free. They weren't so much sticky as they were gooey and difficult to latch onto. Once he'd prised them free, Annie staggered to her feet and shook out her dishevelled feathers. A few yellow ones fell free, joining a goopy mass of them on the floor. Waveform shook a couple from his paws then wiped them down on his chest.

"Thank you," she said. "Now I need to speak to the designer behind this ridiculous yet genius idea and request they never use it on me again."

He gave her a curt nod and gathered up the stunned chatot. Fortunately Trojan had installed a ladder, making climbing out of the cargo bay relatively easy. Once they were back on board, Annie marched to her seat and flopped back into it, kicking her talons up onto the dashboard.

Trojan fired her a sideways glare and smirked. "You're the one who requested a pyukumyuku."

"Yeh, that was genius." She scratched some goop off her shoulder and grinned at him. "Do that to me again and you're fired."

"Where do you want our hostage?" Waveform asked.

She turned to look at him and frowned at the parrot cradled in his right wing.

"Do we have a cage?" she asked.

Waveform's beak fell open and both Web and Zip gaped at her wordlessly.

"What?" Annie shrugged. "Back in my world, we sometimes keep birdies in cages."

"Well we're not in your world," said Trojan. "A cage is a prison cell."

"Then... set him in a corner somewhere until he wakes up." Annie yawned and leant her head back in her seat. "I'll give him my request later. Then we can discuss how much we can pay him."

"Pay him?" Trojan scoffed.

"We don't really have much money, dear," said Web. "We can't pay him."

"Then we make money." Annie reached into her pouch and pulled out the poster she'd claimed from Hatter's stall. "There are a couple of guys we can round up. They're worth a pretty penny."

Waveform took the poster from her and unravelled it. "Hunter? His bounty's gone up again."

"You know this mawile?" Annie pointed a claw at the wanted poster.

"Not personally. But there's not a pokemon in System who's managed to get so much as close to arresting him. You think we can catch him, you're living a pipe dream."

"What about the other one then?" She tapped the sheet.

He turned it over, revealing the second target. "Surge? What did she do?"

"Sounds like you know her then."

"We've done a job or two together," he said. "Split the reward, although she always left with more so I stopped bothering. Sounds like she's got her paws dirty in government secrets." He looked up at Annie and cleared his throat. "Much like us, I guess."

She waved a wing at him and turned away. "I ain't no government secret."

Purple streaked across the sky like a dart and she leant forward, straining to make it out. She wasn't alone. Trojan stared at it too, frowning at the anomaly.

"Is that a shooting star?" she gasped. "Didn't think they were purple."

"That ain't no star, we ain't high enough," said Trojan.

"What is it then?" Annie nudged him. "You got a telescope?"

He beat her claws away and urged the ship forward. "No I ain't got no telescope. Shut up while I try to get us closer."

"You seriously think we can catch it in this..." Web waved at the ship's walls. "This... hunk of-"

Trojan and Annie both glared over their shoulders.

The skuntank cleared her throat and smiled. "Hunk of fantastic design?"

"The engine I bought might not be the latest model." Waveform sat in his seat and secured himself in. "But I can assure you we can at least catch up with that creature."

"Creature?" Annie looked back at him. "You think that's a creature?"

"Is your vision not as good as mine?" Waveform asked. "I can make that out clearly. It's nothing I've ever seen before."

Annie squinted at it. "It just looks like a purple blob to me."

"Wait for it," said Trojan. "We're getting up to five hundred and fifty miles per hour here. If I were to guess, that thing is flying closer to four hundred."

She clapped her claws together and bounced in her seat. "Oh! This is getting exciting!"

"I'd like to ask what you expect," said Trojan. "But given random creatures have been showing up, I'm gonna hazard a guess this is one of them."

"I think you might be right," said Waveform.

"Well, we're gaining on it quickly," said Trojan. "And it appears to be slowing down."

"What do you plan to-" Waveform's voice cut off with a grunt and he keeled forward in his seat.

Hatter shot over to Annie and landed on her shoulder, screeching in her ear.

"You crazy moron! What do you think you-" He trailed off and looked out of the window. His tiny eyes widened like saucers and he clutched her head with both wings. "What on earth is that?!"

"Hang on a sec..." Annie grinned widely, brushing the chatot aside. "It looks like an onion!"

The odd, purple creature turned its bulbous head back towards them. When it spotted the ship, it flicked its long tail and tried to speed up.

"Are you jackin' serious?" Trojan leered at her. "What kind of freak-ass onions did you used to eat?"

"The ones that came on my plate," said Annie. "Can this hunk of fantastic design go any faster?"

He muttered under his breath and pressed the ship onward. It gained fractionally in speed, drawing them closer to the fleeing creature.

"What do you expect us to do when we get close to it?" Web asked, somewhat apprehensively.

"Simple." Annie kicked her feet up again and leant back, almost sending Hatter to the floor. "We catch it with that goop thing you used on me."

"I have to say," said Waveform. "This creature doesn't look much like the celebi I've seen in drawings."

"Neither does Annie's archeops form," said Zip.

"Exactly," said Annie. "So let's hurry up and catch that Time Onion."

Web pointed a claw at the blob. "You actually want to catch this?"

"Yep."

"Without knowing for certain that this is a celebi?"

"Yep."

"And hold it in this ship?"

"Yep."

Web shook her head and let it fall into her open paws.

"I got a question." Trojan turned fully in his seat to face her. "Are you crazy?"

"I've already answered that question once today." She yawned again and glanced down at The Big Red Button. "I guess that's the one you use to set it off? Or... it deposits the ship's engine like in those daft films I watched as a kid."

Trojan leant defensively over the button. "I'm not having some unknown creature on this ship."

Annie looked back out of the window. The creature was in plain view. A violet body with a long, reptilian tail. Its bulbous head had some kind of needle-like appendage sticking out of it, yet its arms and legs made its appearance oddly cute. It looked quite like a pokemon, except one she'd never seen. Although that was hardly a feat given she'd not seen all that many. Nevertheless, it did look onion-like in an odd not-quite-an-onion kind of way.

Maybe it was a red onion?

She scratched her nose and looked back down at what she could see of The Big Red Button. She hadn't seen how far Innards Out could reach. And with Trojan guarding the button like a mighteyena with a bone, she only had one chance to get it right.

Her eyes flew to Hatter, cowering on her shoulder, his beak hanging open as he stared at the blob's purple bottom.

"Hmm..." She ran a claw under her chin and glanced up at the ceiling.

"She's plotting something," whispered Zip.

Closer now. Still out of her own physical reach, but the creature's head kept turning back and its bright eyes kept widening whenever it saw them.

Annie reached up and grabbed Hatter, eliciting a squeak from him. Then she tossed him at Trojan's face. Flapping wings and scrambling talons sent the scrafty reeling back in his seat, roaring profanities. She leapt across the dashboard and struck The Big Red Button. The white goopy mass lurched out of the ship's nose much faster than the ship could physically fly. It engulfed the creature full on, swallowing it up in the stretchy, claw-like tendrils. It then retracted back into the ship with just as much speed as it left.

A grin split Annie's face and she leant back into her seat, kicking her talons back up onto the dashboard.

The ship fell silent. All eyes were on her. Hatter perched on the back of Trojan's chair, clutching the scrafty's cheek in both wings. Trojan didn't seem to care. His expression went from terrified to angry in the blink of an eye, and he exploded from his seat, sending Hatter flapping over to Web.

"I told you not to press it!" he roared.

Annie wagged a claw at him. "You never, ever tell someone not to press a red button. It makes it even more tempting!"

"But now we have a strange, potentially dangerous creature on the ship!"

"No we don't." She rose to her feet and strolled towards the hatch. "It's Annie's Time Onion. By the way, it's dark down there. Does anyone have a torch?"

...

Tracer and Widget watched the pyukumyuku ship surge into the horizon, its movements ungainly and sporadic. The mob had died down now. Pokemon returned to their previous endeavours, or boarded their ships to leave Pulse City. Tracer had held back perchance any had tried to pursue the human, but so far the only ships that had left the dock had gone off in other directions.

"We're not going after her?" Widget asked.

"Oh, we are." Tracer stubbed out his cigar on the remains of the shattered bollard and thrust his paws into his trench coat pockets. "I just don't want her to think we're giving chase."

"She gets much further out, we're gonna lose her."

"I wouldn't worry about that." N0ize's voice startled the two detectives.

Tracer looked over at the incineroar, leaning against the hull of their alomomola. The magmortar was still with him, feverishly polishing his railgun appendage.

The incineroar flashed a grin. "My ship could track her no problem. Got sensors that can pick up ships hundreds of miles away."

Tracer choked on his own spittle while Widget almost fell over on his haunches. Tracer strove to regain his composure and tried to mask his surprise behind clearing his throat.

"I'd like to ask how you got your paws on such equipment," he began, "given the distance most top government ships can reach is only a couple of hundred miles."

N0ize maintained his grin for a painfully long, silent moment, causing Tracer to sweat under his coat.

"That's classified," said the space pirate.

Tracer's ears sank and he nodded sullenly. "Well, we hate to disappoint you, but-"

"We've got our own ship," said Widget.

"What?" N0ize nodded behind him at the alomomola. "This pink thing? Little girly, ain't it?"

"It's not girly!" Widget yapped.

"It is a little girly," Tracer told him.

"All right, fine." Widget rolled his eyes. "It's girly. But it flies, and it has two bedrooms."

"Not really enough room for little you if your boss and I each get a room, is there?" N0ize folded his arms and smirked.

Widget's tail went limp and his jaw went slack. He looked between the incineroar and Tracer, fixing the latter with pleading puppy eyes.

"I'm not so sure what makes you think were taking you with us," said Tracer. "Don't get me wrong, I appreciate your help-"

"He helped?" Widget asked.

"-But I think we're okay from here," Tracer finished, blatantly ignoring his small companion.

"You're kiddin' me, right?" N0ize scratched inside his ear and flicked away what Tracer desperately hoped wasn't a flea. "You get me all involved with this human of yours and you expect me to just go away quietly? I got questions, fuzz. Besides, I really wanna see how this all plays out. She caused quite a stir here. I reckon she'll cause even bigger stirs down on System Ground."

The incineroar's face split into an even bigger grin, flashing one of his sharp canines. The magmortar looked up from his railgun and frowned between the space pirate and detectives.

"So... where's she goin' next?" N0ize asked.

Tracer shrugged. "No idea. But she appears to be heading in the direction of Meta City."

"She lands there, she's got a death wish." N0ize nodded to the other fire type who returned to his polishing. "She's gonna need a little backup."

Tracer's heart sank. So both pirates were wanting to squeeze themselves onto his ship? Things were starting to feel a little cozy. And somewhat dangerous.

"Thank you, gentlemon," he said. "But we'll be taking our leave now."

N0ize laughed while the magmortar rolled his eyes.

"You hear that, Cyph3r?" N0ize nudged the magmortar with his elbow. "They think they're just gonna leave us behind!" He fixed Tracer in a leer decorated with a grin to make it even more menacing. "I think not, fuzz. You need backup. This has gone too deep even for you. With Socket, and with Pulse City. You turn away from us, you'll leave yourselves vulnerable to a whole host of enemies waiting to tear you limb from limb. Those pokemon you cheezed off in Moonlight Lounge? They'll recognise you, and they'll come for you. It also won't be long until Socket realises you've turned tail on her, helpin' the human raise a rebellion against her, against meat eaters, and whatever else sparks her fancy. 'Cos let's face it, she's a tickin' time bomb of disaster waitin' to happen. And I wanna see it! So get your two fuzzy tails onto my sharpedo and we'll head on out to tail that human you're so fixated with."

Tracer stared at him, open mouthed. Widget gave a pained whimper beside him, his brown eyes fixed on the alomomola. Tracer counted off his list of crimes. Failing to apprehend Annie, more and more willingly with each fail. Selling a government ship. Assisting in causing a scene. Partnering with space pirates. Now he was going to abandon his ill-gotten ship to hot tail it across System with a pair of space pirates who only wanted to see the mayor fall off her high horse and all of System to go into an uproar.

All for the sake of fun.

Fun or not, two large pokemon backing him wouldn't be a terrible thing.

"Okay. We'll go with you." He pointed a claw at N0ize's chest. "But I'm in charge."

The incineroar threw his head back and laughed heartily. "Of course. This is your little mission after all. We're just hired paws."

N0ize met Tracer's confused gape with yet another grin and moved away around the other side of the alomomola. Tracer followed after him with Widget in tow.

"I've got a bad feeling about this," the eevee muttered.

Tracer said nothing. But oh how he wanted to agree.

Sat in the docks, dwarfed by the alomamola, was the stout form of a sharpedo. Painted along the side of it was a word Tracer never wished to repeat. N0ize stood beside its jaws and beckoned him on board.

"We board through its mouth?" Widget's voice didn't hide his disgust.

"I guess so," Tracer muttered.

"Goin' off the size of it, you and I will be bunking in the cargo hold," the eevee snorted.

As they stepped forwards, the ground lurched. Voices rose into an uproar, and Tracer turned slowly with a sinking feeling deep within his gut. Surely the human hadn't actually left a 'ticking time bomb of disaster' somewhere deep within Pulse City?

"Tracer..." Widget's voice wavered.

The delphox followed his friend's eyes towards the tall buildings in the distance. Towering over them was a creature he'd never seen before. Tall, slender at the top and wide towards its shoulders. The rest of it vanished beyond the buildings. Then there was the scream. An unearthly scream coming from that very monster. Two canons sat at either side of it, and it lifted one, aiming it towards the heart of Pulse City. Towards them.

"Get on the ship!" Widget yapped.

He turned tail and Tracer followed after him. They dived after N0ize, and the shark-shaped ship's jaws snapped shut behind them.

Cyph3r was already at the controls, pulling the ship out of the docks. Tracer stared from the window, his eyes locked on the glowing cannon.

"What is that thing?" N0ize asked, his voice wavering uncharacteristically.

Tracer shook his head slowly. "I regret to say I've no idea."

A flash split the sky as the cannon fired into Pulse City. Then a sound like thunder. An explosion of green and ruin.