To settle two matters of unfinished business.

Your heart sinks as your eyes fall upon the red-coated Rocket, dread filling the places where relief had been but moments ago. You, your friends, and the three scientists all stare at the bespectacled man, not saying a word. The cavern is deathly quiet, the only sound that can be heard being the distant flapping of retreating bats. It doesn’t even seem like any of you are breathing, just all holding your breaths as you await your fate. Inferno still has five fresh Pokémon, and you doubt that they’re any weaker than his Houndoom. Your Pidgey and Pikachu and Daniel’s Golbat are the only partners you have left, unless the swarm of Zubat can be called back in. Could you get so lucky a second time?

As you sit there, heartbeat pounding in your head, the pink-haired man unfolds his arms… and begins slowly clapping.

*Clap*……… *Clap*……… *Clap*……… *Clap*……… *Clap*……… *Clap*……… *Clap*

None of you dare make a sound or a movement in response. You simply stay where you are, silent and dumbfounded. He’s clapping? Why? And why didn’t he leave with the other Rockets? Why is he still here? What does he want?

Finally, the lack of speech is broken by the languid man’s raspy voice. “That… That was not boring, I will give you that. Calling in a flock of wild Zubat to back you up… No, not boring at all.” A small, crooked grin rests on the man’s lips, and faint amusement shows in his eyes. “You kids weren’t half bad in battle either. You’ll probably turn out to be pretty solid trainers… If you survive long enough, I mean.”

The end of his statement makes your heart stop for a moment, and you can feel yourself start to shake. Daniel gets to his feet, still clutching his Golbat. “That supposed to be a threat, asshole!?” The buff blond shouts, though there is an obvious quaver of fear to his voice.

“Hm? Oh, no, no…” Inferno shakes his head, putting his hands in his pockets. “Just… If you keep rushing into danger like you did here, trying to play hero… Well, crossing Team Rocket doesn’t end well for anyone.”

Kayla gulps, then stands up on quivering legs. “So, what? You’re telling us to just sit back and let criminals do whatever they want? To not help people or Pokémon in trouble, to not do the right thing?”

The Rocket Agent shrugs, then yawns. “All I’m saying is that you’ll live a lot longer if you don’t get in our way. Think you’re the first ‘heroes’ who haven’t been willing to ‘just sit back and let criminals do whatever they want’? You’re not. And you wouldn’t be the first to die for those stupid beliefs either. So think carefully about what choices you make from now on. It’d be a shame for you to die so young. Especially…” His orange eyes shift focus, landing squarely on you. “… someone like you.”

Terror grips you as, once again, this strange Rocket seems to take some sort of special interest in you. Gulping down your fear, you get up off of the ground yourself, and stare the man down. “What is it about me that you find so damn ‘interesting’ anyway? You stared at me for a while during our battle, like you were trying to figure something out about me. What do you want from me?” You do your best to stay steady, but you can feel your heart pounding and knees shaking as you lock eyes with this frightening man.

The fear you feel only intensifies when, rather than answering, Inferno begins to walk towards you. Silently, he starts to close the distance between you two, looking you up and down all the while. His orange eyes have once again taken on a look of vague curiosity, as if there’s something mysterious about you he wants to figure out. You hold your ground, and both of your friends from Vermillion shift closer to you. You’re grateful for their support, though you aren’t sure what the red-coated man intends to do, or what any of you could do in response. Punch him? …You’re not sure why, but you have a funny feeling that wouldn’t help matters all that much.

As Inferno approaches, your trepidation grows even further… because the air around him is heating up. Once he’s within about ten feet of you, the temperature starts to rise by at least ten degrees Fahrenheit. He stops his approach once he’s about five feet away, and now you’re sweating from both increased heat, and your fear. He withstood a Heat Wave from his Houndoom earlier - which melted rock - was completely avoided by all the bats, and seems to literally exude heat. Just what is he…?

The wild-haired man continues looking you up and down, and starts… sniffing? Is he… smelling you? A look of realization flashes in his eyes, and his lips crease in a frown. “Oh, is that all? No wonder it wasn’t super obvious right off the bat…”

“What…? Just… what?” Is all you can respond with, now feeling weirded out as well as intimidated.

“Oh, don’t mind me. It’s nothing.” The man yawns again, seemingly having lost interest in you, then cracks his knuckles… and turns his attention to Kayla. “Now, enough chit-chat. Time for your forfeit, girlie.”

The slim brunette flinches, but it’s her master who responds. “Oh, like hell it is! Your little friends earlier didn’t pay up when they lost, so why the fuck would we give you anything!?” The muscular young man’s fear seems to have vanished, replaced by protective fury.

“Not my problem. Besides, you guys are the ‘honorable’ ones, right? The type to play by the rules, be the bigger people? If it helps, I don’t give a shit about taking money from you dudes. Just looking for a quick fuck, then I’ll be on my way.”

Kayla takes a deep breath, trying to calm herself. But her eyes betray her fear. Her pale green orbs are full of terror, and you feel a pang of anger yourself. “Do you really think we care? You’re a crook. What’re you going to do if she says no, report us?” You manage to overcome your fear enough to speak defiantly, and both you and the blonde move in front of his ****. All thoughts of the man’s strange behavior towards you are gone, all you want to do is keep him away from your friend.

Inferno sighs, shaking his head. “Oh boy… okay then. Fine, let’s put it this way.” The man holds up a single hand, open side facing the ceiling. Slowly, the heat around him builds up even more, and a flicker forms in his palm. That flicker grows until, to your horror, a ball of swirling red and black flames grows in his hand. The hellish fireball is so hot that it makes the air around it look hazy, and you can’t help but wonder morbidly just how hot it is… You all stare in shock at the inhuman display, and anyone who had a backbone just lost it. The Rocket’s eyes glow brightly beneath his glasses, and his voice reverberates once more. “I always feel the need to blow off some steam after a battle. Now, I can either do that by fucking the girl, or by melting this cave until it looks like the center of a volcano. What’s it gonna be, heroes?”

……………

No one speaks. No one breathes. You’re not even sure if anyone is thinking right now, because you’re just struggling to do so yourself. This man… is he even a man!? What is- Why is- How- THE FUCK!? What have you gotten yourselves into!? Maybe he’s right, maybe Team Rocket is too dangerous to be stopped. He doesn’t even need his Pokémon to threaten you! If there are more people like him in the crime syndicate, then… What the hell are you supposed to do!?

As you all stand, paralyzed by fear and indecision, Kayla’s trembling voice cuts through the strained silence. “O-Okay… I’ll d-do whatever you ask. Just… d-don’t hurt us.”

All at once, things go back to normal. Well, relatively normal. The ball of flames vanishes from Inferno’s hand, and his eyes stop glowing. The temperature drops down slightly as the fireball disappears, and the terrifying man smirks. “Smart girl. Good choice.”

“Wait, Kay-“

The brunette stops her master mid sentence. “Not much choice here, Daniel!” She snaps, then takes another deep breath, laying a hand on her lover’s shoulder and speaking more gently. “I told you, just last night, didn’t I? That there will be times where no one will be able to protect me, and that we’ll have to deal with that? Face the consequences together? This is one of those times… No, not even. Because at least me doing this can protect the rest of you, from… whatever he is. Okay?” She’s clearly scared out of her mind, but Kayla is doing her best to appear calm.

The blue-eyed young man’s face twists in agony, and you can see him biting the inside of his cheek. “…FUCK!” A single loud curse is expelled from his lips, and his body shakes with rage, but he does relent. “You’re right, Kay. I know, you’re right… I’m so sorry.” The golden-haired boy tears up slightly, but holds himself together.

“Me too. You and Red should just… turn around, or go wait-“

It’s Daniel’s turn to interrupt her. “Fuck that!” The venom in his voice catches you off guard, but it isn’t directed at her. “If you’re going to suffer, then I am too. I’m staying. I’m watching. I’ll… be here for you.”

“I’m not going anywhere either. Not a chance.” You give the green-eyed girl the best smile you can manage. “You’re really brave, Kayla.” She’s doing this to quite literally save all of your lives, if Inferno’s threat can be believed. And you just can’t shake the feeling that his threat can be believed…

Kayla’s eyes widen, small tears gathering at their corners. “…Okay. Thank you, both of you.” With one last deep breath, the Vermillion girl pulls away from you two, walking to the front of the group and facing Inferno. “Well, what do you want me to do?”

Before he can respond, Ellie speaks up unexpectedly. “W-wait… It should be me. Theses people were just protecting us, including her, so I-“

And now it’s the Rocket’s turn to cut someone off. “Not interested. Weaklings who can’t do anything to protect themselves don’t appeal to me. I like my girls to have a little fire in ‘em, like this one. Hers is just a spark, mind, but it’s there.”

The female paleontologist withers from his harsh words, and Kayla repeats her previous question. “What do you want me to do?” She’s speaking far more evenly than you would have expected now, having apparently steeled her resolve well.

The pink-haired man grins. “See? That’s what I mean. Go ahead and start by stripping. Completely.”

The brunette nods, then sets about her task quickly. She sheds her green windbreaker first, then pulls her pink Jigglypuff-covered t-shirt off swiftly afterwards. A white bra is all that covers her torso now, and then that is discarded as well, revealing her flat stomach and perky C-cups to the room. The Vermillion girl’s jeans go next, as do her shoes and socks. Plain white panties are her last bastion against nakedness, but they too are removed. Kayla now stands completely nude before you all, letting Inferno look her slim body up and down as he pleases.

“Not too bad. A bit less curvy than I like, though.” The orange-eyed man remarks, which feels unnecessary. “Come get my pants off now, and make me hard.” He orders, not even sounding all that excited. The brunette dutifully makes her way over to him, then sets about undressing his lower half. She undoes his belt, then drags down his black skinny-jeans and his blue boxers. The green-eyed girl locks onto her target, grabbing the Rocket Agent’s penis and quickly stroking him to full mast, it becoming a full 9 inches once completely erect.

Her current task done, Kayla looks up at the man she must serve, awaiting his next command.