Love in the Time of Tomorrow

Chapter 8: A Strike

Perhaps a bit more boring than the last chapters, but with a setup for the future that will allow this story to continue on at a quick pace. Time for Chapter 8!

Chapter 8

A Strike

"Skuntank, Acid Spray! Debilitate the attacking ones," Tau called out. The trees and wind were whipping around them all from the flight of the airship and its liftoff. It almost felt like gravity pushing on them, threatening to topple their entire group in that moment, though each of them held fast, digging their heels into the ground. Skuntank held the best, alongside Alain's Charizard, the black dragon slamming its feet deeper into the ground than the others.

"Tank!" Skuntank acknowledged, leaning its head upwards, towards the Staravia that were streaking down with a powerful Brave Bird. Its mouth opened, and an orange globule formed near its jaw. Then it burst forward in stream. Skuntank turned its head quickly, whipping the spray around all over the place, and into the flock of Starling Pokémon. They careened off, landing on the ground with thuds. Tau strode further into the clearing, noticing the prone forms of the collapsed Team Rocket grunts.

"Sceptile, Frenzy Plant! Protect us!" yelled the voice of Sawyer, the green haired man clasping his hands together and then separating them. Sceptile cried out as the wild Pokémon all around them behaved frenetically. Tau dodged, nearly missing an assault from a Combee, and he turned his gaze under his shoulder to see Reggie hanging back, touching to a Bidoof and calming it down.

"Scept!" Sceptile roared, his hands plunging into the ground. The vines and roots whipped outward, circling and writhing like the all too familiar Countershield strategy that Tau had seen Ash and all his friends utilize at least once in old tournament footage. The vines beat around the area, the chaos of the Pokémon surrounding them making it near impossible to see, even in the wide-open clearing. Charizard pulled back to Alain's side, while Tau straightened to face Reggie.

"I don't see Dawn," the male spoke to Tau. The leader of Alpha Squad turned, glancing around the clearing. It was true: the bluenette seemed to be nowhere around the area. Tau sighed loudly, realizing just where the young woman had gone in the mess and chaos that had resulted in Zager's departure.

"No doubt far out of our reach," Tau commented to Reggie, the gale of the now departed airship ceasing. Said man cast him a confusing glance while the Frenzy Plant continued to whip around rapidly, beating away the Pokémon. In response, Tau pointed upward, which most certainly answered Reggie's question, owing to the dawning look of enlightenment on his face. "For now, the greater issue is all these Pokémon. Serena and I guessed that they were being controlled."

"Whatever it was that did it, that's no longer an issue," Reggie answered. A bright burst of light came from over the top of the trees, the sun finally fully rising to say hello to the air. Reggie finished what he was relaying to them. "I was able to calm down some Bidoof easily enough. We might want Nurse Joy to check them out, but I'd say they're all fine. The only issue is that now with that control gone, they're all panicking. It can be a real problem if they break into the city."

"Then, we hold them down," Tau indicated. Reggie nodded now, understanding just what Tau was asking of him. He was glad that he didn't have to go through all the motions of explaining every little thing to those that were there. Reggie already knew that he would be instrumental in calming down the rampaging Pokémon once they were secured. "Sawyer, stop beating them off. Hold them down!"

"You heard that, Sceptile!" Sawyer called out. Sceptile nodded from his position, still keeping his claws latched into the ground as he did so. The roots stopped their movements. It was just for a second in the middle of ending their writhing, but it seemed to be an advantage that the last remaining and conscious member of Team Rocket took advantage of.