The longer Delaney looked at it, the better pleased he was.
And so his mind to take it grew stronger still.
"Oo-oooo—"
The "Suicune" gave a low call, its eyes full of stubbornness. It was not giving in.
Look at him how it might, the human in front of it did not meet its standards for a Trainer. From the first glance there had been no liking in it.
And what crude methods these were.
Food and nothing else — was that the only cheap trick he had? Had he nothing else to show for himself??
People choose Pokémon, and Pokémon choose their Trainers just the same.
A clever Pokémon has its own instinct, and that instinct makes a rough judgement.
Plainly, nothing Delaney had done had yet earned its regard — weak as it was at present.
"Won't submit? Then there's none for you. You'll go hungry."
Delaney was all temptation, fanning the smell of the food over towards it, trying to work on its appetite.
"Damn the thing. I refuse to believe I can't tame a Pokémon of Intermediate strength."
Seeing it still stubborn-faced, Delaney was losing his temper.
If it were not genuinely valuable, would he be putting this much thought into it??
He was a Gym-class power. A Pokémon it might be, but this little creature still would not submit? What exactly was he lacking?
He had paid a heavy price for it as well. The attempt on his life a few days back was one consequence of it.
That much Delaney had seen coming.
The little creature was simply too unusual, too valuable, and that was what had drawn them.
The whole business went back to that clearing-out a while ago, when he had come across it at one of the bases and come away with a batch of data besides.
The data set out exactly what this creature was, and as he had a good deal of that material and could read it, he knew its value.
So he had used the authority in his hands to spirit it quietly away and bring it here.
By those figures it had Near-Champion potential at the very least, and it was a Pokémon holding the power of a Legendary Pokémon besides — a "successful specimen". Who would not be tempted?
Which was why he was standing here at all, with the object of taking it for himself.
It occurred to Delaney that he could not let it starve to death, so he took a little of the food and threw it into the cage.
That way it would not starve, and having tasted something so good in so small a quantity would gnaw at it unbearably. Ha ha ha — an excellent stroke.
Keep that up and she would submit soon enough. Hunger bows the head of any living thing.
He, Delaney, had patience to spare.
"Oooo—"
The "Suicune" changed again, back into a small dark thing, a Pokémon shaped something like a fox cub: its body grey-black, its pupils pale blue, the fur at its neck black, and its limbs, the rings round its eyes and the flame-shaped tuft standing up on its head all a dark red.
Zorua. That was its name.
Pokémon of this kind, like the Psychic-type Ralts, are very rare, and very hard to come across.
...............
"Congratulations. You have all passed this trial."
Viper offered his congratulations, and the words brought smiles to the faces of Jessie and the rest below him. It was over at last; all that running about over the past days had been tiring work.
"First place this time goes to the team of Jessie, James and Meowth."
A murmur went through the crowd. How could it be those three? Every face wore a look of doubt.
By real strength it ought not to have been them at all.
"Damn them!!"
Cassidy ground her teeth. Seeing them take first place hurt her more than anybody.
And that first place had been carried off from her and her partner.
She and Butch had come no higher than third.
Insufferable. Seeing the smile on the face of her mortal enemy, she wanted to go over and tear it off.
"Very well. The rewards will be handed out shortly, and after that you will be posted to the various bases to carry out missions. You are to be the backbone of Team Rocket. In time you will rise to Branch Chief and become senior officers. A bright future is waiting for you."
Viper gave the usual encouragement.
"Master Viper is right!"
"We'll work hard and repay the organisation."
"Rise to Branch Chief, get to the top — Meowth will work hard too."
The crowd below was full of extraordinary enthusiasm and drive.
Even Cassidy set her grudge aside for the moment and shouted along with the rest.
They had grown up this way from childhood, taking Team Rocket's education, and loyalty to Team Rocket was rooted deep in their hearts.
"Mm. Very good, very good."
The showing these boys and girls made pleased Viper greatly.
"Now then. For fairness, the branch you go to will be decided by drawing lots. Draw by teams for the branch you are to go to."
One from each group came up in front of Viper and drew a slip of paper out of the box.
"Hmph."
Cassidy and Jessie met each other's eyes, gave a cold snort and each drew a slip.
"Ha ha ha, I'm going back to Viridian City. That's good luck."
Cassidy opened hers and looked. The posting written on it was Viridian City.
Which was a fine place to be. Headquarters was there.
Celadon City, Saffron City, Vermilion City... all of them came up in somebody's hand.
"You open it, Jessie. Let's see where we're going."
James urged her.
"All right, all right. What's the hurry? The paper isn't going to run away."
Jessie said it impatiently, and James gave an embarrassed laugh and did not dare answer back.
Between the two of them it was Jessie who had the upper hand.
"Let me have a look as well, meowth."
Meowth crowded in to watch the slip as Jessie slowly opened it out.
There in large characters it said: Dark City.
"Dark... Dark City, meowth. Not headquarters."
Meowth blinked, and it still said Dark City.
The three of them looked at one another. They were not best pleased with the posting.
Dark City was a small city. Set against Viridian City, where headquarters was, or bustling Saffron City, Dark City really would not do.
"Ha ha ha, so you're off to Dark City. Oh dear, oh dear — is this what they call just deserts? Not like me. I'm only stuck in Viridian City."
Cassidy's head appeared beside them. She had seen the words Dark City on the slip, and had found something to sneer at last.
"That wretched woman."
Jessie was furious. She had not been angry before; it was Cassidy saying it that made her angry.
"Now then, is everybody done? If so, go to the branch you drew. You are all future officers of Team Rocket, and going down to a branch now is a seasoning. Perform outstandingly and you will be transferred to headquarters."
Viper said it again in that deep, full voice of his.
"An officer must think on a larger scale, and start from the bottom. The leader of each of your squads is promoted to Squad Leader. Go to your branches and take your orders there. Make a good showing. I hope to see you at the organisation's commendation assembly."
Perhaps there was sense in what Viper had said, or weight behind it.
Jessie, downcast and angry a moment before, recovered her composure.
Put like that, going to Dark City was not so bad after all.
Jessie's eyes rolled round, and she had her retort ready.
"Heh. We are here to make our contribution to the organisation, and going to Dark City is the most natural thing in the world. Even if we hadn't drawn it we would have applied to go — not like certain people, who haven't the smallest wish to put up with any hardship. A worrying attitude."
This time it was Cassidy's turn to be left choking.
The two of them fell to abusing each other at once.
Their respective teammates pulled them apart. Put those two together and there would be a quarrel.
"Very well. Go and make your preparations. Dismissed."
Viper announced it and let them all disperse, keeping back only the winning teams, Jessie's among them, to hand over their rewards.