From: "Chet Weaver - Chicks Dig Giant Robots" <zeroohki@netscape.net> Subject: [PW] Mute Point, Plan B Date: Friday, June 04, 2004 2:21 AM Magma Grunt Mason "Mace" Adams unfurled a blueprint on a small table. A single overhead lamp illuminated the diagram and cast dark shadows over everything else. Nearby, Cad Avers, a Team Magma sniper, chalked up a pool cue as he examined the blueprint coldly. "All right, what's the plan?" Mason inquired, looking around at his fellow grunts in their standard Magma Grunt uniforms. "Did it suddenly get louder in here?" asked Penny Trate, a Team Magma infiltration specialist. "Focus Penny!" demanded Team Magma pickpocket/con artist Cher Raud, rapping an annoyed fist against the table. "Oh, right," Penny said as her attention snapped back to the task at hand. "What are we doing again?" "We're breaking into Lute's house since Cher failed to snag his flute. Twice," Mason recapped firmly, as if speaking to a child. "This flute, which that mute trainer uses to command his Pokemon, could very well be important to my mission here in Hoenn if it is part of the mythical Legend Siren as our researchers claim." Cad Avers struck a cue ball on a nearby billiard table, scattering multi-colored spheres across it's surface. "No problem," Penny cheerfully accepted. "I've broken into way more secure places than this. I might even get out undetected this time." The billiard balls continued to ricochet across the table, colliding with each other in seemingly random fashion. "This time?" Cher inquired. The balls began rolling into the holes on the sides of the table a few at a time. "Yeah, let's not have a repeat of the time you needed to be rescued by the fire department," Mason goaded. Once the billiard table had been cleared, Cad set up the balls again and set up another shot. "Like it was my fault that chimneys are narrower at the bottom than the top," Penny shot out defensively. With confidence she added, "You guys just keep the engine running. I'll be in and out before you know it." "We get a gettaway vehicle?" a confused Mason asked. "I don't think we do," Cher replied. "Then forget about it," Penny dismissed. "Hey, is that pool? I think Cad just sank all the balls in one shot!" "Hey!" Cher interrupted. "I need to ask you: Can you do this without you emotions getting in the way?" "My emotions?" Penny inquired, confounded. "You did seem pretty sweet on the guy from where I was standing," Mason added mirthfully. "You got his e-mail address, too, right?" "You think I can't act like I'm interested in a guy without actually being interested?" Penny growled. "I don't have any romantic notions about him whatsoever. Sure, he's cute, handsome, has firey red hair and deep, blue eyes that you could just drown in forever," she swooned, melting onto the table. "Dude, you're drooling on the blueprints," Mason warned, yanking the diagram out from under Penny. "Um... Just kidding?" Penny offered with a self-conscious chuckle. ------------------------------------------------------------------- The would be flute-filchers trudged yet again through the ash-covered path of Route 113, the movements of hidden Ninja Boys just within Mason's range of perception. He had a gut feeling he'd have to fight one sooner or later. They would all leap from the shadows, surrounding them, and Mason would say something like, "Crap! Shirt ninjas!" Mason chuckled at that thought. "Heh, shirt ninjas," he muttered to himself. Mason caught a glimpse of a girl walking out of a house carrying a Pretty Chair made of glass. He stopped in his tracks. "Hey, is that the glass-blower's place?" Mason asked, grabbing Cher's arm and pointing to the dwelling. "Yeah, that's the one," Cher replied. "What about it?" "I just remembered that I need to do some shopping," Mason said dryly. "I'll meet you guys later." "Oh! Oh! Can I come?" Penny asked excitedly. "Please please please please please?" "You've got a job to do," Mason replied as he approached the house. "What about you?" Cher indignantly inquired. "We'll need you there if things go wrong." "Then things better not go wrong," Mason flatly answered. Opening the door, he added, "I'll be real quick, promise." The aging glass-blower looked up from his furnace when he heard the door closing behind him. He nearly choked on his rod when he saw a Magma Grunt standing there. The glass-blower spun around, wielding his tool as a weapon while coughing out barely understandable threats between excited wheezings. "Whoa, keep those lungs where I can't see them," Mason quipped. "We're all brothers in the whole fire philosophy thing, right?" Mason could tell by his continued Dom DeLuise-like wheezings that he had yet to reassure the craftsman. "Relax, I'm just shopping around for some quality home furnishings for my glass house," Mason joked. Composed but still breathing heavily, the old man said, "That's gonna take a lot of ash," and wheezed rather audibly again. "Yeah, I bet you get a lot of ash in this job," Mason remarked, looking around at various glass items. "Those are reserved," the glass-blower wheezed. "You make these for free, right?" Mason noted casually. "That's doesn't sound like a good business plan. Tell me about Lute's flute. That one's one of yours, correct?" "Wouldn't surprise me," the glass-blower replied whilst huffing and puffing. "You don't remember?" Mason said in half-shock. "I would think you'd remember a special case like that." The glass-blower huffed and puffed and said, "The items I make with ash collected by trainers are a courtesy." He took a few more shallow breaths. "My son and I collect a lot of ash ourselves." The craftsman sounded like had just run a marathon. "We sell most of our stuff at a boutique in town. He probably bought it there." "I see," Mason noted with a hint of disapproval. "He uses a red one, right? Just snaps Pokemon out of an attracted state?" The glass-blower nodded between heavy breaths. "Are you okay?" asked a concerned Mason. "Maybe you should get that looked at." "I'm fine," the older gentleman breathed. "I'm like this all the time." "Right," Mason warily accepted. "I'll just leave you to your work and heavy, disconcerting breathing, then." ------------------------------------------------------------------- Later that night, a new moon was in the sky, hidden by it's own shadow. Were it not for the night-vision glasses they wore, Mason and his squad probably would not have been able to see a thing. Just the same, they stuck to the bushes outside a single-story residence in Fallarbor. "I think we've waited long enough," Mason said encouragingly. "That dumb kid, pardon the pun, should be sound asleep by now." "I know I'd like to be," Cher remarked, trying not to yawn too loudly. "Are you up to it, Penny?" "I'm always ready to spend the night in some guy's bedroom," Penny said enthusiastically. "Wow. That did not sound anywhere near as cool as I thought it would." "Just go," Mason groaned. As Penny scampered over and slid into a soon-to-be open window, Cher turned to Mason and asked, "You think she can pull it off?" "I have no doubt that Penny and seperate Lute from his flute," Mason replied. "Even if she can't sneak out successfully, he will be powerless without that instrument." "I think she has feelings for him," Cher said, shaking her head. "She got weak-kneed just thinking about him." "I think she was just joshing you," Mason informed. "And if she could fool you into thinking she likes him, then a yutz like Lute is definitely gonna fall for it. That could be an advantage." "Ya think?" Cher inquired. "Emotion can be a powerful thing," Mason explained thoughtfully. "They can be your best friend and your worst foe. They could power you up or drag you down. You gotta know when to ride with them and when to disregard them. That's the key to true power. You know what I mean, right?" "Of course I do," Cher replied. "You can't be a top con artist without knowing how to play on a mark's emotions. But Penny's no con artist, and if she'll need to play on Lute's emotions in this scenario then she's not going to cut it as an infiltration specialist, either." "There is that," Mason admitted. "Of course, if she cares for him, she may be extra careful in making sure he won't find out she stole it." "If she cares that much about him, she may not be able to steal the flute at all," Cher argued. "And while she's hesitating, whatever causes her to be unable to sneak out of what she breaks into kicks in, she botches the whole mission, and we're back to square one." "Have a little faith," Mason chided. "I'm sure she's fine." With the crashing of breaking glass, Penny came flying out of the bedroom window, landing in a heap with an unconscious Poochyena in her lap. "Are you okay?" a concerned Cher asked as she and Mason helped their fellow Magma Grunt to her feet. "Just knocked the wind out of me, that's all," Penny replied weakly as she recalled her Poochyena into it's PokeBall. "What happened?" Mason demanded. "I say, Violyn, that was totally uncalled for," came a voice from the window. Mason looked over and saw Lute's sign-language translating Jigglypuff scolding a Sandslash. "On guard duty, your job is to defend, not to defenestrate! Honestly, must something break EVERY time you're out of your PokeBall?" "Sand slash," Violyn the Sandslash said with a dismissive wave of the claw. "Don't you 'Sand slash' me, you..." The Jigglypuff's lecture was cut short when he noticed who was standing outside with large, darkness-ready eyes. "Oh my. Magmas." The lights in the house, as well as flood lights in the yard, turned on as Lute himself came to the window in a t-shirt and boxer shorts. Mason grinned with a self-satisfied smile as he stepped forward. "What are you doing?" Cher demanded. "We can still run away and regroup!" "Nah, he's seen me now," Mason replied, sounding quite pleased with this turn of events. "That means it's time to rumble." To Lute, he called out, "All right, kid! We want that flute of yours! Now, we can do this the hard way or the disappointingly boring way. I think you know what I'm getting at." Lute scowled at Mason, then grabbed his PokeBelt and flute from his nightstand as Violyn opened the window and Jigglypuff swept bits of glass off the sill. Mason grinned a bit more as Lute climbed out the window with Violyn in tow. #He's got three more Pokemon on him,# Artemis the Ralts telepathically warned from her ball. #They're all fully evolved except for the Jigglypuff, but I doubt he'll be interested in fighting.# #Giving me fair warning, Artemis?# Mason mentally replied. #And here I thought you didn't care.# #I'm just letting you know you're about to get your ass handed to you,# Artemis returned cattily. #Break a leg. Preferably your own.# "Four on four Pokemon match," Mason declared. "Winner gets the flute. Are you up to the challenge?" Lute put his flute to his lips and played a recognizable battle theme as Violyn stepped up. Taking this as acceptance, Mason wipped out a PokeBall. "Go, Zubat!" he declared. "Air Cutter attack, now!" Zubat pulled her wings back, gathering air beneath them before bringing them together. The breeze formed an invisible blade, detectable only by the grass clippings caught up in its wake. Violyn braced against the impact, then retalliated with one of its own, raking a claw against the chest of the poisonous Flying-type. Mason noted the veracity of his opponent's Slash attack. The frenzied flapping of his Zubat was beginning to look more difficult. Comparitively, Violyn the Sandslash hardly bore even a scratch. #Artemis, how am I doing on control?# Mason mentally inquired. #Don't be so paranoid,# Artemis responded. #Someone like Lute is too much of a goody-two-shoes to stoop to that level. Unlike certain Magmas I know.# "Zubat, Poison Fang attack!" Mason commanded. Zubat dove for her opponent, only to get a face-full of sand for her troubles. #How do I know he's not making you say that?# Mason interrogated. #Maybe he's taken control of you, too.# #Pfft. Like you had any control over me in the first place,# Artemis countered. "Bite attack, Zubat, now!" Mason commanded. Zubat clamped her jaws around Violyn's arm, which promptly put Zubat's head between itself and the ground. When Zubat didn't hop right back up, Mason recalled her into her PokeBall. "Mickey, Double Team!" Mason commanded while tossing out his next PokeBall. His Poochyena materialized onto the field, quickly followed by several other illusions. Violyn dove at them and they scattered across the yard. The Sandslash wasn't quite aiming for any of them, however, and quickly dug into the ground. "Keep moving, Mickey," Mason urged. "Keep 'em guessing!" The Poochyena and his shadows playfully scampered and romped all over the yard. A few even hopped around Mason's ankles, excitedly yipping at him. The Magma Grunt, meanwhile, kept scanning the field, watching for tell-tale signs of underground movement, trying to predict when- "Mickey, jump up!" Mason called out. The Poochyena popped into the air like a toy dog as Violyn burst from the ground and slashed at the empty space Mickey was occupying. "Now, Toxic!" Mason commanded. Still sailing over his opponent, Mickey opened wide and vomitted vile, purple fluid all over the Sandslash. Violyn sputtered and coughed while pulling itself from the hole it dug. "And Crunch attack!" Mason ordered. Mickey bounced off the ground and clamped his jaws over Violyn's head. The Sandslash responded by leaping into the air and curling into a ball with the Poochyena still gnawing away. "Return, Mickey!" Mason called. Violyn's attempt to land on its head was met by Mickey landing on his legs. With a suprising amount of strength, Mickey lept into the air again, taking Violyn with him. He spun at the height of his jump, throwing the Sandslash hard against the side of the house. Violyn ricocheted off the wall, bounced off a tree, and landed in a heap. "I dare say that was quite impressive," the Jigglypuff said as Lute recalled Violyn. "But I very much doubt you will fair so well against Chello." Without missing a beat, Lute tossed out a Pokemon that was as big as a bear but bore a head more like a cat's. Mason marvelled at the creature's large claws and red streaks across its white fur. It returned Mason's evil-looking smirk and scratched it's nose. "That's some Pokemon," Mason noted as the illusionary Poochyenas continued to frolic across the battlefield. "That's a Zangoose," Cher replied. "They hunt Sevipers and are immune to Poison." "Thanks for the head's up," Mason said. "Mickey, roll to ten!" Mickey rolled to his left, dodging Chello's massive claw, and popped back up behind the Zangoose. "Now, Crunch!" Mason commanded. Mickey pounced on Chello, only to be met with a claw that sent him rolling across the yard. #You're going to lose, you know,# Artemis chimed in telepathically. #Mickey's about to go down for the count and he hasn't even scratched that Zangoose yet.# #Good, I'm more likely to win when the odds are against me,# Mason mentally responded. #That makes no sense,# Artemis argued. #Wanna know who else that makes no sense to? Cad Avers.# Mason suddenly realized he had no idea where Cad Avers was. He had disappeared some hours earlier after they arrived at the house. #He's thinking the same thing I'm thinking,# Artemis continued. #He's thinking that the "Great" Mace Adams doesn't stand a chance against the pied piper of Fallarbor. You know what he'll do if he thinks you can't do your job, right?# Cad Avers' expertise was in assassination and joined the team as a sniper. Mason knew that on some roof nearby, invisible possibly even to his night-vision glasses, Cad had a shot all lined up and ready to go. All he needed was the inclination, and the species Mutus pokemon trainerus would be extinct. Mason watched Mickey leap about the field, barely dodging Chello's attacks. Mason couldn't let Cad take the shot, but if he gave away the sniper's position there was going to be hell to pay and Lute will probably still be dead. And all over some stupid flute that probably wasn't even magical. The flute. "Got it!" Mason exclaimed. "Mickey, twelve low!" At the command, the Poochyena dove right between Chello's legs and kept running. "Hard to two!" Mason commanded. Mickey veered towards Lute. "Aaaaand FETCH!" Mickey sprung into the air. Before Lute could respond, the Poochyena had snatched the flute from his hands and was triumphantly scurrying over to Mason with it in his jaws. If Lute could talk, he would have been speechless. "Now see here!" the Jigglypuff exclaimed, swelling to twice its original size. "That's dirty pool!" "Maybe," Mason said, prying the flute from Mickey's jaws. "I call it taking the advantage." "Excellent!" Cher exclaimed. "Now that we have his flute, you can finish him of no problem!" "I dunno," Mason replied. He turned towards Cher as he wiped the flute off on his sweatshirt. "It doesn't quite feel right, taking on a defenseless..." A sharp whistle later and Mickey zoomed right by Mason's head on his way to the nearest tree. Glancing over at Lute, he found that the silent trainer had a pair of fingers in his mouth, ready to whistle again. Chello rubbed his face again and bounced back and fourth on its heels in anticipation of the next attack. "I figured as much," Mason said with a little smirk. He recalled Mickey. "It's the variations in the song, isn't it? You played that tune pretty well, but there were some well-timed slip-ups that coincided with your Pokemon's attacks. I wouldn't be surprised if you could pull that off with a set of bag pipes." "What?" Cher exclaimed. "You're not saying that flute isn't magical, are you?" "A *magic* flute?" the Jigglypuff scoffed. "You can't be serious! We bought that in a boutique in town years ago. It's no more magical than my aunt petunia's Petaya muffins." "I guess we'll just have to see about that, now, won't we?" Mason challenged. Mason put the flute to his lips and blew. Everyone cringed as he played what was probably meant to be the theme to 'Star Wars' but came off more like a parakeet being strangled to death by a whistling tea kettle. Elsewhere in the neighborhood, dogs were barking and lights were turning on as former slumberers wondered what the Hell was making all that damn racket. "Wow," Mason remarked, mercifully ending his recital. "If that won't turn you off, nothing will." Mason tossed the flute back to Lute and recalled his Pokemon. He gave Chello the Zangoose an "I gotta get me one of those" look before taking off down the street. Cher grabbed his arm before he could get very far, however. "What are you doing?" she demanded. "You can't just give him back his flute and walk off! We're in the middle of a mission here! In the middle of a battle, even!" "The mission's over," Mason explained. "And the battle's a forgone conclusion. The flute's just a flute, so there's no point in getting it. Without the point, the battle means nothing." "But you can't just walk out in the middle of a battle with another trainer!" Cher argued. "I'm sure he won't mind," Mason countered. To Lute he called out, "Hey, you don't mind, do ya?" Lute just shrugged as his Zangoose stared down Penny. "See?" Mason noted. "He just wants to get some shut-eye. On that point, so do I. We can Teleport right into the base, right?" "More like just outside," Cher replied. "But we can't just let him get away with..." "Not my problem," Mason said, brushing off Cher. He plucked a PokeBall off his belt and said, "Goodnight," before Teleporting away. "But you can't just..." Cher said to the empty air. "There's still... Dammit! C'mon, Penny, let's get out of here..." ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- As Mason materialized above, and subsequently landed on, a familiar pile of ash, an odd feeling came over him. It was a sort of resonance, as if something important had just come into being. He disregarded it as a side effect of the teleport as he got into the elevator. To be continued...? [NS: Okay, that took me long enough. Now I need some sleep.] -- Chet "Tech" Weaver AIM: PanGatomon MSN: Nichirasu@hotmail.com eMail: zeroohki at netscape dot net Yahoo! Messenger: tech_weaver ICQ: 122744531 Webcomic: http://desperadocoyote.keenspace.com My Adventure Quest character: http://www.battleon.com/aq-chardetail.asp?temp=131213 You can play Adventure Quest at http://www.battleon.com Sometimes, I notice someone has posted a reply to one of my messages and I think, "Oh, great, what did I say this time?"