Chapter 95: The Jump of the Black Fang

The ship creaked ominously, steel groaning under the weight of battle that had just unfolded. The hallway of the S.T. Anne was a twisted wreck, walls shredded, floor cracked from repeated impacts. My Alakazam stood in the middle of it all, hunched, trembling, chest heaving like it was dragging each breath through sand.

His golden fur, normally so pristine, was matted with grime and blood. His left arm twitched uncontrollably, still paralyzed from Nidoking's 𝘚𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘨𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘮𝘣. Frost clung to his side from that Ice Beam, and the deep gash along his ribs bled freely from Rhydon's 𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘌𝘥𝘨𝘦. The spoon in his right hand was bent, warped from the brutal physical clash that I should've seen coming.

"Master," his voice came to me, sharp and jagged in my mind. His eyes flickered, the psychic glow dimming. "We won."

I stepped toward him, ignoring the chaos that surrounded us. The ship's luxurious decor was a distant memory now, buried under the destruction we'd caused. I knelt in front of Alakazam, placed a hand on his head where his fur was still soft, unmarked.

"Yeah," I said, my voice low, keeping the adrenaline from bleeding into my words. "We did."

I kissed the top of his head, my lips brushing the coarse fur, and in that moment, everything narrowed down to just me and him. The ship's trembling, the smoke in the air, all of it faded. 

Across from us The Black Fang, clapped slowly, his cold, calculating eyes reflecting none of the destruction. He stood tall, black trench coat billowing slightly. His lips twisted into something like a smile, but it never reached his eyes.

"I have to say," he began, his voice cutting through the wreckage like a knife, "you're good, Kid. Lucky too. A shiny Dratini? An Alakazam? Rare, ancient, and somehow, that Alakazam just took down five of my Pokémon. Bravo. Bravo."

He kept clapping, slow and deliberate, mocking. His icy blue eyes fixed on mine, and I could tell he wasn't done.

I rose to my feet, leveling my gaze at him, the calm returning to my voice. "Now," I said, voice sharp with a challenge, "it's time to throw you out."

Darius stopped clapping, his smile fading, replaced by something harder. The cigarette between his lips smoldered, releasing a thin trail of smoke. His eyes narrowed, and for a moment, the temperature in the room seemed to drop.

"You think you can do that?" His voice held an edge, the kind that cut deep. "Tell me something first. How does a kid like you teach Pokémon moves from another region?" He took a step forward, his hands disappearing into his coat pockets. "And which organization are you a part of?"

The question hit me like a hammer to the gut, but I didn't flinch. My mind raced, but outwardly, I kept my face impassive.

"World Horizon," I said, my tone relaxed, keeping my cards close to my chest. 

Darius stiffened, and in an instant, the icy composure he carried so easily cracked. Sweat beaded at his forehead, his hand twitching as it gripped the edge of his coat.

"Impossible," he muttered, almost to himself. He took another step back, his boots scraping against the broken tiles of the hallway. "No… no, I can't be this unlucky. A World Horizon member? Here?"

I kept my gaze steady, enjoying the sight of him unraveling. "Why not?" I asked, voice casual, as if we were discussing the weather. "We can't be here?"

His eyes darted around, as if looking for an escape that didn't exist. "World Horizon only has one member per region, but… but you're not supposed to be operating in Kanto." His voice cracked slightly. The infamous Black Fang, shaken.

"I'm just traveling," I shrugged, every word precise, deliberate. "Thought I'd try my hand at the Indigo League."

That was the moment he broke. The cold, calculating criminal, reduced to a groveling mess. He bowed low, trembling, desperation seeping into every inch of him. "I'm sorry, sir," he stammered, "I-I'll give you all my Pokémon, or, or I can rob anything for you—girls, Pokémon, money, whatever you want. Just… just please…"

I blinked, dumbfounded at the sudden shift. Did he actually think I'd take his offer?

I tilted my head, my voice smooth as I replied, "Just jump from the ship."

Before I could register what was happening, Darius spun on his heel, charging toward the shattered window at the end of the hall. He leaped through the broken glass with reckless abandon, disappearing into the cold night air.

I stared at the empty space where he'd been, too stunned to speak. "What the hell?" I muttered under my breath, running a hand through my tousled black hair. 

I returned Alakazam to his Pokéball, giving him a final look. He deserved a long rest after this.

But then the ship lurched, a deep, rumbling groan that reverberated through the floor. I narrowed my eyes as the walls trembled violently. The S.T. Anne wasn't just damaged—it was going down.

"Too much time wasted," I muttered, pivoting on my heel as the floor shifted beneath me.

Without another word, I started making my way back to my room. Time was running out.