Chapter 215: The Woman in Red
"Damn it!" Xiu swore internally, his expression hardening as he saw someone release a Weezing into the dense, panicked crowd. The twin-headed Pokémon, notorious for its explosive potential and noxious gases, was a nightmare in an enclosed space like this.
If it detonated or released a cloud of poison… the casualties would be horrific. All their efforts to stabilize Viridian, all the sacrifices, could be undone in an instant.
He reacted instinctively, whipping out a Poké Ball. "Scizor!" The imposing black and gold Pokémon materialized with a thud, its metallic carapace gleaming under the lobby lights. "Protect Xiaoyuan and Xiaochun!" Xiu barked the order, already moving, another Poké Ball in his hand, his focus locked on the Weezing.
Many in the crowd, unfamiliar with the rarer Poison-type, didn't immediately recognize the Weezing, but its grotesque appearance – two distorted heads and perpetually foul-smelling gas – and the immediate sense of menace it exuded were enough.
The already precarious order shattered completely. Screams erupted. People shoved, clawed, desperate to get away, their fear overriding any sense of self-preservation. Some even lashed out at the security personnel trying to apprehend the other operatives, inadvertently aiding the attackers.
A stampede was imminent. The sheer press of bodies became a wave, people tripping, falling, dragging others down with them.
Xiu, pushing through the chaos towards the Weezing, braced himself. But just as he was about to release his next Pokémon, the Weezing, which had been preparing to unleash an attack, suddenly convulsed. It wobbled in the air, its gassy emissions faltering, a look of pained confusion on its distorted faces.
An instant later, an unnatural chill swept through the lobby. Xiu felt it on his skin, a prickling sensation as the temperature plummeted with shocking speed. What in the world—?
Before he could fully process it, a visible wave of frigid air, laced with shimmering ice crystals, surged from somewhere within the crowd. It enveloped the Weezing in seconds. The noxious gas solidified, the Pokémon's movements ceasing as it was flash-frozen into a grotesque, suspended ice sculpture.
The wave of cold washed over the nearest panicked civilians, shocking them into a momentary, shivering stillness.
Psychic energy! Xiu recognized the subtle signature immediately, a ripple of power he was intimately familiar with. He ignored the frozen Weezing for the moment, his gaze urgently scanning the chaotic sea of heads, searching for the source. A psychic of this caliber, capable of such precise and powerful cryokinesis, was a far greater potential threat – or asset – than any Weezing.
The heaving crowd made it difficult to pinpoint the origin, but his eyes locked onto a figure standing calmly amidst the chaos. A Pokémon, humanoid in form, with smooth purple skin, large round eyes, and oddly prominent pink lips on a head that seemed disproportionately large for its body.
Its most striking feature was a mane of thick, blonde hair, even more voluminous than Kiba's. It wore a flowing, red, dress-like lower body, and its purple hands possessed five distinct fingers. A Jynx. Ice and Psychic type. No wonder the sudden freeze.
Standing beside the Jynx, radiating an aura of absolute composure that was even more unsettling than the Pokémon's power, was a woman. Tall, strikingly beautiful, with fiery red hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail.
She wore a stylish, low-cut professional dress or suit, and thin-framed glasses perched on her nose, giving her an air of sharp intelligence and dangerous elegance. Her arms were crossed, a faint, almost imperceptible smile playing on her lips as her gaze swept the scene.
As Xiu's gaze met hers, the world seemed to warp. The surrounding noise, the screams, the panicked shoving – it all faded into a dull roar. The frantic movement of the crowd blurred, time itself appearing to slow.
In that frozen moment, only the woman existed, her presence filling his senses, an immense, almost suffocating pressure emanating from her, far more potent than Gym Leader Sakaki. This woman… she's on another level entirely. He had suspicions, but no certainty about her identity.
"Xiu! Are you alright?"
Xiaoyuan's anxious voice, close by, shattered the strange moment. The world snapped back into focus. The sounds, the motion, the fear – it all rushed back in. The intense connection with the woman broke, though the memory of her pressure lingered, a cold weight in Xiu's mind.
"I'm fine," he managed, turning to Xiaoyuan, forcing a reassuring nod, though his heart was still pounding. Xiaoyuan, perhaps sensing his unease from their recent conversation, followed his gaze, her eyes widening slightly as she took in the Jynx and the imposing woman in red.
Xiu quickly reassessed. The Weezing was gone... just like that. The woman and her Jynx, while exuding immense power, hadn't acted hostilely towards them. Friend or foe, she's not the priority right now.
He refocused on the immediate aftermath. The initial psychic-induced chill had somewhat quelled the panic, but the lobby was still a mess of crying children and frightened adults.
Interestingly, he spotted Kiba huddled on the floor near a fallen display stand, shivering, eyes wide with terror. A cruel smirk touched Xiu's lips. He walked over and, with deliberate casualness, patted the idol trainer on the back. "Hey there, superstar. You alright? Need a hand up?"
"Aah!" Kiba yelped, flinching like a startled turtle, refusing to look up.
Just then, the Pokémon Center's emergency broadcast system crackled to life. Nurse Joy's calm, authoritative voice filled the hall. "Attention everyone! Please remain calm. The perpetrators have been apprehended. Please follow the instructions of Pokémon Center staff to evacuate the area in an orderly fashion. Medical assistance is on its way."
The announcement, repeated several times, slowly brought a semblance of order back to the terrified crowd. Staff members and security, who had seemed to momentarily vanish during the initial psychic freeze (regrouping or receiving new orders), reappeared, efficiently moving through the crowd, directing people, checking for injuries, and disarming the subdued operatives.
Kiba, hearing the announcement and realizing the immediate danger had passed, cautiously raised his head. He found Xiu leaning over him, an utterly contemptuous smile on his face.
"Took a tumble, did we?" Xiu drawled. "You hit the deck so fast, I almost missed it. I was wondering why no prominent Trainers answered Nurse Joy's call for aid earlier. Turns out you were just busy practicing your 'hit the dirt' maneuver, eh?"
Kiba's face flushed with humiliation. He scrambled to his feet, trying to regain some dignity, frantically attempting to smooth his disheveled blond hair, but it stubbornly refused to return to its previous immaculate style. Some things, once broken, can't easily be fixed. He opened his mouth to retort, but Xiu cut him off, his voice turning sharp, accusatory.
"Let's talk, Kiba. Where exactly were you during the worst of the city's crisis these past few days? Why were you and your associate deliberately trying to stir up trouble here today, creating a diversion that allowed these operatives to infiltrate the Center? What's your connection to them?" Each question was a verbal jab, delivered with relentless precision.
Xiu then waved dismissively towards the approaching security personnel. "Take him. And his entourage. I suspect he's an undercover operative for Team Rocket, or at the very least, complicit in their activities. Confiscate their Pokémon and secure them for interrogation."
Kiba stared, dumbfounded. "Who… who do you think you are?!" he sputtered. "You can't just order—"
His protest was cut short as two uniformed Center security officers stepped smartly to Xiu's side. "Yes, sir!" they responded in unison, then turned purposefully towards Kiba and his stunned bodyguards.
Kiba's jaw dropped. His entire body went numb with disbelief. This… this nobody… actually commands the security?!