Special Chapter 3 – Friendship! The Real Test! (Pt II)

Keith and Buizel, riding on the back of a powerful-looking Staraptor, flew across the ocean. The clear blue skies allowed the sun to shine on the surface of the sea, creating a simply majestic look for the water. Buizel, who sat in front of his partner, looked up at Keith worriedly.
“Bui-bui?” Buizel asked.
“I’ll be fine,” Keith answered. He was looking ahead of him, across the horizon, with stern eagerness about his face. Gradually, the offshore base came into view. “Besides, everyone else was still reluctant… We’re Alex’s only hope.”

Meanwhile…

Kincaid walked along one of the hideout’s many corridors. Heath and Lavana coincidentally approached him.
“Mr Kincaid sir! What brings you out here?” Lavana asked in confusion.
“Just making sure there aren’t any other Rangers here,” Kincaid answered. “Have either of you found anything?”
“No, sir,” Lavana replied.
“Stupid, Rangers must be, to try coming, yes? For Alexa, I think,” Heath laughed.
“That is why I said I’d hurt her if I saw another Ranger here,” Kincaid sighed. “I can’t be bothered to waste my energy on her, but I will if I see another Ranger. Heath, Lavana, you go out to the top deck and keep an eye out for in-coming Rangers; if you see any, stop them.”
“Yes sir,” Lavana nodded.
“In the ocean, they will fall, yes? Fun, this will be,” Heath laughed, accompanying Lavana into an elevator leading upwards. Kincaid sighed as he made his way down the corridor he had just walked down.

Elsewhere…

Ice sat at the metal table in the wooden chair Kincaid had sat in to make the ransom call to the Ranger Union. His right arm was resting on the top of the table, while his left arm rested on his lap. He closed his eyes gently and chuckled.
“I was just thinking about when Blake Hall was in charge of Team Dim Sun,” he explained to Alex; she was still tied to the chair she sat in.
“Mmm-mm-mm-mmm-mmmph!” Alex tried to yell at Ice, but she still had the gag he tied over her mouth.
“I know you don’t want to be reminded of that, but I find it hilarious,” Ice laughed. Alex glared at him furiously as he stood up from the chair and approached her. “Why would he have wanted someone like you?”
“Mmmph…!” Alex jeered at Ice. Ice positioned his right finger underneath Alex’s chin and carefully tilted her head up. Ice then looked into her eyes; she looked rather uncomfortable with Ice having tilted her head up.
“There’s nothing that special about you. I don’t know what Blake Hall saw in you,” Ice sighed.
“Mmph!” Alex sharply moved her head away from Ice and avoided looking at him directly.
“Though you did surprise me, Alexa,” Ice added as he crouched down to meet Alex’s eye at her level.
“Mmph?” Alex looked at him in confusion.
“You took a lot of pain during your rebellion at Altru Tower. I actually thought you’d be easy to obtain for Blake Hall back then,” Ice explained. “And to think you managed to survive an attack like Focus Blast. And from a powerful Pokémon such as Darkrai, no less.”
“Mmph!” Alex looked away from Ice again, out of frustration, but Ice used his right hand to move her head to face him again.
“I’m willing to bet that you’re wondering how I knew that’s what happened to you,” he smirked. “Let’s just say that the press are a bunch of nosy fools.”

FSSSEH!!

Ice heard the door opening; he stood up properly and looked towards the door. Kincaid walked into the room, looking casual. Alex quickly became timid once again.
“How did your patrol go?” Ice asked curiously.
“Apparently, nobody else is around,” Kincaid responded. “But I’ve sent Lavana and Heath to the upper deck, where they can spot incoming Rangers and stop them before they land here. How’s she been?”
“I don’t think she likes me,” Ice chuckled. “Though I assume that’s to be expected; I was the one who brought her here, I suppose.”
“True, but let’s hope none of the other Rangers show up,” Kincaid sighed. “I can’t be bothered to deal with them at the moment.”
“Mmmph…” Alex sighed as she looked away from Kincaid and Ice, with a guilty look in her eyes.

Outside…

“Urgh, this breeze is doing nothing for my hair!” Lavana complained. “Still, at least a helicopter isn’t landing in the helipad.”
“Rangers, do you think, are coming?” Heath asked curiously.
“If a Ranger does come, I’ll bet it’s Keith,” Lavana laughed. “I swear, Kincaid doesn’t stop talking about how seeing them makes him sick to his stomach.” she chuckled.

STARRRR!!!

“What the!?” Lavana and Heath looked across the horizon and found a Staraptor headed their way. Keith and Buizel jumped off of the Staraptor’s back and landed on the metal floor beneath them. Keith recoiled in pain; his knees hadn’t made a full recovery. Lavana laughed hysterically.
“Is this to be Alexa’s saviour?! He can’t handle a simple landing!” she taunted. Keith faced her angrily.
“Blame your hallway running hater of a boss for that shortcoming!” he scolded. “Where is Alex?!”
“Bui-bui!” Buizel exclaimed furiously.
“Alexa, with boss and Ice, she is,” Heath answered. “But going there, you will not. Letting you save her, we won’t.”
“Try and stop us! Smarmy dumb-talking wiseacre!” Keith insulted Heath out of fury. Buizel stuck his tongue out at Heath.
“Oh we’ll stop you alright,” Lavana smirked. Keith looked towards Lavana, also smirking.
“What, like you did when you had Magmortar send us flying?” he asked tauntingly.
“Uh…!” Lavana gasped in shock before she glared at him angrily.
“Look at the bright side; at least you get to keep your hair!” Keith added disdainfully.
“Bui-bui-bui!” Buizel laughed.
“Oh for the love of…! Heath, let’s get rid of him!” Lavana exclaimed, setting up a Miniremo unit in front of her. Keith glanced at the Miniremo.
“So Ryder was right after all,” he said to himself. He watched Heath setting up his own Miniremo unit.
As he and Lavana typed into their respective units, Keith and Buizel looked around cautiously.
“TOOOOOOOR!!” A hypnotised Feraligatr leapt out of the ocean and made its way towards Keith.
“RHHEEEEEEEEEHH!!!” A hypnotised Gyarados surfaced from the ocean and stared angrily at Keith.

“Bui!” Buizel became startled by the appearance of both Feraligatr and Gyarados, and hid behind Keith’s left leg. Keith looked between the Gyarados and the Feraligatr, looking stressed.
“What’s wrong, hotshot? Where’s the hero now?” Lavana asked tauntingly.
“Getting Alexa, you will not be, not now,” Heath said tauntingly. “Gyarados and Feraligatr, for you, they too much, yes?”
“Nrrgh…!” Keith clenched his fists and lowered his head out of frustration. Buizel looked up at him with concern.
“Bui-bui?” Buizel asked.
“I’m…I’m not as good as she is…” Keith admitted.
“Uh huh, that sounds about right,” Lavana shrugged.
“Huh?!” Keith lifted his head up with a horrified look about his face.
“She’s better than you? I’d say that’s about right,” Lavana repeated herself casually. “At least she apparently had guts when she fought Heath for your sake. But now that she’s in distress, you can’t even lift a finger for her. What an ungrateful little child you are, Keith.”
“Shut up…” Keith threatened quietly; he clenched his fists tightly and resisted the urge to lose his temper.
“I mean, come on! Alexa fought the strongest of the Sinis Trio and risked her neck to save you! But when it comes to you striving to save her, you wince like a coward!” Lavana added scornfully.
“Shut up,” Keith threatened again; his voice steadily became louder. Buizel looked up at him in confusion; he heard Keith’s threat.
“And to think she stood up for you back at the Altru Tower two weeks ago,” Lavana sighed. “Let me ask you a question, Keith. If we succeeded in handing Alexa over to Mr Hall, what would you have done?”
“Shut up!” Keith hissed angrily.
“Can’t answer my question?” Lavana derided. “And you call yourself her friend? If I had a spineless coward for a friend, I’d certainly be ashamed of myself.”
“I said shut up!!” Keith shouted angrily.
“And I’m absolutely certain that Alexa is ashamed of you,” Lavana jeered insultingly. “Especially when your failure at the Hippowdon Temple could have easily been avoided if you actually fought back.”
“SHUT UP!!” Keith furiously bellowed at the top of his voice, sprinting over to Lavana.

CRASH!!

“Aah!!” Keith kicked Lavana’s Miniremo into her chest. Keith kicked the Miniremo with such brute force; the unit was destroyed as it collided with Lavana’s chest and as she fell onto her back. The hypnotised Feraligatr regained its senses and dived into the ocean. Lavana looked up at Keith, looking irritated; Keith glared at her for a few second before he took the Miniremo unit off of Lavana.
“Don’t EVER mention that again!” he scolded. He then threw the destroyed Miniremo at Heath’s Miniremo; the collision resulted in a small explosion, which destroyed both units. Heath had to shield himself, since he was still close to his unit. Gyarados snapped out of its hypnosis and dived back into the ocean. Keith stood there, breathing heavily in an attempt to calm himself down. Buizel ran over to Keith worriedly.
“Bui-bui?” he asked. Keith looked down at Buizel, looking mildly calmer than before. He gave Buizel a reassuring smile.
“I’m okay. Sorry I scared you, pal.”
“Bui!” Buizel stroked his head against Keith’s right shin out of affection. Keith smiled kindly towards his loving partner.
“Urgh…!” Lavana’s moaning caught Keith’s attention; he watched her straining to her feet. Heath moved over to her and helped her onto her feet. Heath glared at Keith furiously.
“Tell the boss, we will now! Pay price, Alexa will!” he threatened. He then started to escort Lavana towards the doorway leading inside the headquarters. Keith jogged over to the Miniremo ruins and picked up two metal poles that used to be the stands. He then looked towards Heath and Lavana.
“Save your energy!!” he exclaimed, throwing the two poles at them.

BANG-BANG!

THUMP!

The metal poles struck Heath and Lavana at the back of their heads. The force of the separate impacts was so great, they got knocked unconscious and fell to the ground. Keith slowly approached the fallen duo and looked between them.
“I’ll see myself in…and see myself out with my best friend,” he vowed quietly. “Be certain of that; I won’t fail her.”

BZZT!

“Lavana, status report,” Kincaid requested. Keith spotted a black walkie-talkie that hung on Lavana’s belt and looked at it in confusion.

BZZT!

“Lavana, come in! I said status report!” Kincaid repeated himself impatiently. Keith picked the walkie-talkie up off of Lavana’s belt and held it in his right hand.

BZZT!

“This is no time to mess around with make-up, Lavana, answer me!” Kincaid fumed. Keith looked at the walkie-talkie with frustration.

BZZT!

“Kincaid, if I hear your voice one more time before I come down there, I’ll find your hairspray and shove it down your throat,” Keith threatened sternly.

BZZT!

Keith turned off the walkie-talkie, dropped it and stepped on it to break it. He and Buizel made their way inside the hideout.

Meanwhile…

“I don’t bloody believe this!!” Kincaid fumed, throwing his walkie-talkie into the nearest wall.

CRASH!

“Mmmph!” the walkie-talkie’s collision with the wall startled the already timid Alex as she shut her eyes tightly and looked away from where the walkie-talkie struck the wall.
“What’s up?” Ice asked casually.
“That…was Keith!” Kincaid fumed.
“Mmph?!” Alex looked over at Kincaid and Ice in amazement.
“You’re kidding me. I thought your minions made sure he was immobile!” Ice assumed in shock.
“Then how come he was the one who threatened me just now!?” Kincaid asked angrily. “I don’t know what he’s done with Heath and Lavana, but he’ll pay!!”
“If I may, sir, I’ll go and sort him out,” Ice offered calmly. “Your priority should be making sure Alexa doesn’t escape, though I’m not saying she can.”
“Make certain that Keith ends up in a wheelchair,” Kincaid snarled. Ice smirked as he made his way out of the room.
“I’ll see to it personally,” he complied.

FSSSEH!!

The door to the room opened when Ice stood in front of it. He looked back at Alex, who was looking away from him and Kincaid with fear about her eyes.
“I’ve seen how you tango, Alexa,” Ice began suddenly. Alex looked towards him in confusion. “Now it’s Keith’s turn. Make sure you’re a good girl for Mr Kincaid.”
“Mmmph!” Alex fumed as Ice left the room.
“Dammit!”

THUMP!

Out of frustration, Kincaid slammed his fist down on the table next to him. Alex shut her eyes tightly and looked away from Kincaid out of fear.
“I don’t believe it…you were right…” Kincaid finally said angrily.
“Mmph?” Alex squinted towards Kincaid fearfully. He glared furiously towards her, which made her close her eyes and look away from him again.
“Someone did figure out what you tried to say. And it was Keith, of all people,” he growled. “What does it matter anyway? Even if Ice fails to stop him, Keith won’t succeed.”

Elsewhere…

Keith and Buizel ran along a narrow corridor. Keith suddenly stopped and lifted his right foot off of the ground. Buizel stopped and watched Keith in confusion as he saw Keith rubbing his right knee.
“I should really take it easy, given my knee injuries,” Keith sighed. “But I can’t knowing that Alex needs help! I’m sure Alex would do the same for me, despite any shortcomings.”
“Bui-bui-bui!” Buizel stated clearly. Keith looked at Buizel in confusion before he sighed with a gentle smile.
“You’re right; she already has,” he said quietly. “It’s my turn to save her now. I won’t let her down, Buizel,” he stated, carefully standing back onto his feet. “And I won’t let my knees get in my way either!”
“Good; that means I can get in your way,” Ice scoffed. Buizel and Keith looked ahead of them as they saw Ice approaching them casually.
“Ice!! Where’s Alex?!” Keith asked demandingly. Ice looked around in confusion before facing Keith again.
“Where’s that Lucario of hers?” he asked nonchalantly.
“Answer my question!!” Keith shouted spitefully. “Where is Alex?!”
“Chill out; she’s in safe hands with Kincaid, no worries,” Ice answered offhandedly.
“He’s the last guy I want near her!” Keith reproached. “She’d better be unharmed!!”
“She’s fine. She apparently hates me and is evidently scared of Kincaid, but she’s fine otherwise,” Ice answered calmly.
“She hates you? I’m not surprised; you’re the one who kidnapped her in the first place!” Keith raged. “And I can’t believe you hadn’t noticed that she hated you before all of this! You must’ve said something to make her mad when you first met her!”
“Probably. Oh, and, uh, speaking of Alexa, Kincaid’s told me not to let you get to her,” Ice said steadily.
“Why am I not surprised?” Keith sighed as he watched Ice setting up a Miniremo unit. Ice looked over at Keith.
“I know Alexa can masterfully maintain her control over her styler, even while severely wounded,” he began as he glanced down at the Miniremo. “Let’s see how well you do with your weakened kneecaps.”
“I was struck from behind, not from the front!” Keith exclaimed in self-defence. Ice ignored him as he typed into his Miniremo.

CRASH!!

GRAAAAAAAAGH!!

A hypnotised Tyranitar broke through the metal door in between Ice and Keith. It stood in front of Ice and glared furiously towards Keith. Keith had become somewhat intimidated by Tyranitar’s savage appearance.
“Ready to give it up, Keith?” Ice asked.
Keith said nothing; he stared at the green bipedal behemoth, completely intimidated. Keith looked away from Tyranitar and clenched his fists together. After a short period of silence, Keith looked up at Ice with determination.
“Like hell I’m ready to give up!” Keith declared angrily. He held out his right arm in front of him and rested his left hand on his styler. “Not when my best friend needs help!”
“Are you sure you’re here just because of that?” Ice asked.
“Don’t blame me because nobody else was willing to try and save her!” Keith snapped. “Capture on!”
Keith fired his capture disc at the Tyranitar. Though Tyranitar was slow, Keith’s main difficulty in controlling the capture disc lay in the fact that there was very little room for the capture disc to spin around Tyranitar. Keith drove his capture disc towards him just in time for Buizel to fire a bubble at the capture disc. Tyranitar attempted to strike the capture disc with its large foot, but Keith managed to flick a decent-sized bubble at Tyranitar’s foot and ultimately dodge the foot altogether. While the Tyranitar staggered momentarily, Keith spun his capture disc around the dinosaur-like Pokémon and finally redeemed it from the Miniremo’s control. Ice’s Miniremo gave off a small explosion, and Tyranitar retreated back into the room from whence it came.

“Well, well. I’m impressed,” Ice scoffed. “But I’m still not going to let you reach Kincaid.”
“You won’t have to, we’ll make our own way to him,” Keith countered, walking over to Ice. Ice closed his eyes and looked away from Keith with a smirk.
“I doubt it. You don’t even know where he’s keeping Alexa,” he laughed.
“Should it matter?” Keith asked rhetorically.

THUMP!!

Keith punched Ice into the wall with his left fist. Ice hit the wall head first, and the collision with the wall was heavy; he got knocked unconscious upon collision. Ice slumped to the floor and lay there, not moving an inch. Buizel approached the unconscious Ice and poked his head a couple of times.
“Buizel, let’s not waste any more time,” Keith sighed. “Kincaid’s waiting.”
“Bui!” Buizel growled angrily.
“I know; he’ll pay,” Keith nodded. He and Buizel ran further down the corridor.

Meanwhile…

“Oh for love of crap, what the hell is taking Ice so long?!” Kincaid complained angrily. “How long does it take to kick out one bratty Ranger!?”

FSSSEH!!

“It’s about bloody time, Ice! Did you manage to amputate Keith’s legs?” Kincaid asked impatiently.
“I don’t know, he’s right here,” Keith answered sternly. Kincaid looked at the doorway in complete horror and disgust as he saw Keith and Buizel entering the room. The door closed behind him.
“Mmmph!!” Alex was apparently overjoyed to see Keith.
“You meddling idiot! What have you done with the Sinis Trio!?” Kincaid demanded furiously.
“Honestly? I knocked them out,” Keith answered bluntly.
“Mmph?!” Alex was left astonished. Kincaid, however, was furious.
“What?!”
“Lavana pissed me off for the last time, but I also knocked Heath out cold for no particular reason,” Keith explained. “And as for Ice, well…I’m sure you can understand why I decided to give him a knuckle sandwich.”
“I swear, Keith, sometimes you annoy me more than Alexa does!” Kincaid fumed spitefully. “I despise seeing the two of you together! I almost felt like throwing up when you encountered me atop the Altru Tower!”
“What a shame,” Keith sighed sarcastically, moving over to Alex. He stood in front of her and faced Kincaid protectively. “Because if you want to hurt Alex, you’ll have to get through me first. And believe me when I say that I won’t go down so easily! I’ll make you pay for everything you’ve done to her!!”
Alex looked up at Keith with tear-filled eyes. Kincaid, however, couldn’t stop snarling towards Keith. He eventually set up a Miniremo unit in front of him.
“What compels you to save her, Keith?” Kincaid asked rudely. “What are your motives to challenge me?”
“Kincaid, those are extremely easy questions for me to answer!” Keith exclaimed. “They’re easy because they’re painfully obvious; Alex is the best friend I’ve ever had, and I, for one, feel that I was lucky to have met her! As for why I want to challenge you, Kincaid, well… May I ask where you were when Ice kidnapped my friend? Surely you knew what your little blue boy was up to!”
“Shut up, Keith! Don’t talk down to me! I’ll kick you out of here myself!!” Kincaid ranted angrily, typing into his Miniremo. While Kincaid typed into his Miniremo, Keith looked back at his bound and gagged friend with a reassuring smile.
“Don’t worry, Alex, I’ll save you,” he promised sincerely. Though she still appeared to be worried, Alex nodded at Keith. Keith nodded in return before he faced Kincaid once more.

RHEEEEEEEEEEEERGH!!

CRASH!!

A hypnotised Salamence crashed through the metal doors and confronted Keith and Buizel. Keith readied his styler while he maintained his ground, protectively standing in front of Alex.
“Any last words before Salamence rips your legs off?” Kincaid asked tauntingly.
“Several. However, there’s a lady present,” Keith replied.
“She’s all you care about, isn’t she?!” Kincaid asked with frustration.
“Well I can’t exactly show any concern for you, can I?” Keith asked sarcastically.
“Salamence, attack him!!” Kincaid shouted demandingly. Buizel suddenly spotted a thin piece of wood not too far from the left hand side of the chair nearby.

RHEEEEEEEEEEEERGH!!

As soon as Salamence began flying towards Keith, Buizel picked up the piece of wood and looked up at Keith.
“Bui!” Buizel threw the wood piece to Keith. Keith caught it and faced Salamence again.
“Back!”

SLASH!

RHEEEEEEEERGH!!

Salamence flew away from Keith, having just been slashed across the face with the piece of wood Keith received from Buizel.
“Don’t you dare come any closer!!” Keith shouted angrily. “Capture on!” He fired his capture disc at the slightly wounded Salamence.
Salamence continuously attempted to shoot the capture disc with small blue embers from its mouth, but Keith kept masterfully dodging the flames. Keith continued to spin his capture disc around Salamence.
“Give it up, Keith, you won’t win against me,” Kincaid scoffed rudely.
“And leave Alex with you? Like hell!” Keith fumed angrily. “There’s no way I’m leaving my best friend with a hairspray abusing lunatic with an unhealthy hatred for hallway runners!!”
After a short while, Kincaid’s Miniremo gave off a small explosion. Keith, however, kept his capture disc spinning around Salamence.
“Keith, what’re you doing now?” Kincaid asked in confusion. “You’re done.”
“Oh no I’m not,” Keith smirked. A white ring of light formed and shrunk around Salamence, eventually enveloping it in a white light, which soon faded. “Now I’m done; it’s capture complete!”
“You actually caught the Salamence?!” Kincaid asked in horror. Keith glared at Kincaid angrily.
“Salamence? Can you give us some privacy please?” he asked calmly. “And be sure to give Kincaid a good run, won’t you?”

RHEEEEEEEERGH!

“Oh, bloody hell!!” Kincaid fled from the room, with the Salamence in hot pursuit.

Keith recalled his capture disc and ran over to Alex as he took out his mini Swiss Army knife. He first cut through the ropes that bound Alex’s torso to the back of the chair. Once he freed Alex’s wrists, he instantly moved in front of Alex and pulled the gag away from her mouth. Alex gasped for air and started to hyperventilate. She flung herself into Keith’s arms and held onto him tightly. Keith held onto her softly.
“Oh, Keith!! I thought Kincaid stumped you this time!!” Alex cried sadly. Keith smiled warmly as he stood up straight. He helped Alex out of the chair she was tied to and he looked into her eyes.
“I told you; if anything goes wrong, let me know and I’ll help you,” he said softly.
“I tried to let you know, I really did!” Alex cried fearfully. “When Ryder and I saw Team Dim Sun’s helicopter landing in the Chroma Highlands, I tried to call you for backup!”
“Really? You were going to call me first?” Keith asked in astonishment.
“But Ice showed up! He had Tangrowth ensnare me while Machamp occupied Ryder!” Alex added. “Y-you have no idea what Ryder went through! Brick Break, Fire Punch and Close Combat! It was like that Machamp was trained to defeat Ryder or something!!” she cried, tears streaming down her face. Keith untied the cloth stuck around her neck and used it to gently wipe the tears away from Alex’s eyes.
“That explains the burns anyway. But, Alex, I need to know something. Did they hurt you?” Keith asked softly.
“No,” Alex answered timidly. Keith sighed with relief.
“Oh thank God…I knew Kincaid didn’t have the guts,” he smiled.
“No; he said he couldn’t be bothered to,” Alex said sadly.
“What? That seems out of character for Kincaid,” Keith stated in bewilderment.
“He kept saying he had better things to do,” Alex explained. “So he decided to make the ransom demand to the union; if any of the other Rangers tried to stop him, he’d hurt me.”
“But you knew he wouldn’t?” Keith asked.
“He practically told me,” Alex answered shakily. “As soon as he told me, he tied that over my mouth,” she added, pointing to the cloth Keith held in his hand. He looked at the cloth in question.
“Now I know why I heard you gasp down the phone,” he sighed. “But if he didn’t want his plan ruined, why did he tell you in the first place?”
“I don’t know!” Alex cried loudly. Her outburst startled and concerned Keith.
“Sorry,” he apologised gently.
“I-it’s not your fault. I-I’m just…shaken up,” Alex said shyly. “I-I’ve never been around Kincaid for so long, that’s all.”
“And you’re afraid of him still, aren’t you?” Keith asked sensitively. Alex looked straight into his eyes; her own eyes were flooded with tears.
“Not still afraid of him; more afraid of him,” she said tearfully. She started to sob, but she held herself back instantly.
“Hey…” Keith drew Alex closer to him and held onto her softly. She wept in the security of Keith’s cuddle. “Hey, it’s okay…I won’t let him hurt you.”

“I’m sorry! I’m sorry I dragged you all the way out here!” Alex apologised sadly. Keith looked down at her with concern.
“What’re you talking about? You couldn’t help anything, you were in danger,” he said tenderly. “Besides, I wanted to save you.”
“I-I just felt so helpless!!” Alex wept. “A-as soon as I heard your voice on the phone, I-I had to tell you what Kincaid told me!”
“That the ransom was a bluff?” Keith asked.
“I would’ve finished my sentence if Ice hadn’t shut me up again!!” Alex cried sorrowfully.
“It’s okay, you told me enough,” Keith smiled reassuringly. Alex momentarily calmed down and looked up at him in confusion. “Though I did wonder about what that final word was. But when Ryder mentioned Kincaid’s past deceit, I worked it out. Ryder then used his aura to track where you were, and here I am.”
“Ryder?” Alex questioned nervously.
“Despite his condition, he was of tremendous help,” Keith smiled. “I had to promise him I’d bring you back safely.”
“So he’s okay?” Alex asked, sounding somewhat hopeful. Keith continued to smile gently as he wiped away more of Alex’s tears away from her eyes.
“He’s in safe hands back at the union,” he confirmed. “I brought him back myself, along with your styler.” Alex smiled warmly at him.
“Keith?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you…for saving my life,” Alex thanked nervously. Keith placed his right hand gently on the back of Alex’s head and cuddled her lightly.
“You’re welcome,” he whispered.

CLANG!

Alex and Keith looked towards the doorway leading out of the room, only to find Ice, Lavana and Heath barging their way inside. Keith instantly held onto Alex protectively.
“You’re quite the one, aren’t you Keith?” Ice asked sternly, rubbing the left hand side of his head.
“I thought I left you all zonked out! What do you want now?!” Keith asked angrily.  
“It was lucky we woke up; the boss was being chased by a Salamence,” Ice said calmly.
“Yeah, I know; I was the one that made it happen! I wanted some privacy while I finally freed Alex from your grasp!” Keith sneered.
“But you’re not out of the woods yet,” Kincaid scoffed, making his way into the room. Alex and Keith stepped back; they eventually found themselves in the nearest corner of the room, much to their astonishment.
“Surrender, now, you will, yes?” Heath threatened. Keith glared at Kincaid and the Sinis Trio furiously.
“Nowhere left to run, kid,” Lavana scorned.
“I gave you a chance to give yourself up, Keith,” Kincaid sighed as he, Lavana, Ice and Heath brought out a Miniremo unit each. “But you blew it. There won’t be any more mercy from us.” He, Ice, Lavana and Heath all typed into their Miniremos.

A hypnotised Nidoqueen, a hypnotised Donphan, a hypnotised Aggron and a hypnotised Weavile made their way into the room and confronted Keith and Alex.
“What are you going to do now, Keith?” Kincaid asked teasingly. “Alexa doesn’t have her styler; she can’t help you with this. You’re completely alone.”
“Nrrgh…” Keith glared towards Kincaid with frustration. He subtly nudged Alex into the corner and he stood in front of her protectively. He held out his styler in front of him. Buizel ran over to Keith and stood at his side, looking confident.
“Hm. Still as persistent as ever, I see,” Kincaid scoffed. “But remember; it’s one Ranger against the four of us.”
“Keith…be careful,” Alex cautioned worriedly. Keith turned to her with a smile on his face. He nodded towards her.
“Just stay behind me; I’ll protect you,” he promised. He faced the four hypnotised Pokémon again, with his styler at the ready. “And I’ll make sure they all pay for kidnapping you!”
“I’d love to see you try, Keith,” Kincaid laughed. “You’re only one Ranger; what can you do against four Pokémon?”
“The only thing I can do; release my capture disc and hope for the best!” Keith replied. “And with Alex behind me, things are looking hopeful!”

To be continued…