Pokemon: Bounty Hunter Alex

Aegislash managed to return to the base a few days ago after tracking Brutus through his shadow. Once he located Brutus’s hideout, he tried to infiltrate it but was unsuccessful. There was a powerful Cleanse Tag that warded off hostile Ghost types, so he chose to retreat. He retraced his steps all the way back to the Eterna Grand Market before returning to the base in Oreburgh Underground.

With the help of Gardevoir’s memory reading, they were able to pinpoint Brutus’s base. It was near Eterna City in an unregistered location, next to the 15th level of a Spacious Hideaway full of Champion ranked nests. It was no wonder no one had ever been able to find him.

Alex and the girls packed up their things and bid their base farewell before teleporting to Eterna City. They dove into the Grand Underground, following Aegislash’s trail to a Spacious Hideaway. Moving through the tunnels between levels, they continued until they reached the 10th.

"It’s going to get harder to descend from here on out," Sable said. "There are just too many nests compacted together to slip through undetected."

"What if we dig our way through like you did last time?" Mika asked.

"We could, but there’s a risk I might miss a nest directly below us. The only reason I was able to detect the battle between the Lucario and Tauros nest was because they were fighting. Champions emit a significant amount of vibrations when they fight, allowing me to see."

"What about at the edge of the hideaway?" Lyra asked. "We don’t have to search for anything this time. We just need to get to the 15th level before we start searching for the base."

"That’s doable. I should be able to keep us at the edge while staying far enough away to avoid attracting attention," Sable answered, then turned to Alex. "What do you think?"

"What are the chances of Brutus detecting our approach?"

"Very likely. My detection ability through vibrations may be amazing, but I still lose to the latest tech on the market. The only thing that sets me apart is the greater detail I can make out, but they would be easily able to notice us digging towards them much sooner."

"Is there a stealthier way to make our approach?"

"Hm... we could do half and half. We dig to the 15th level far from Brutus’s base, then make our way through it. Even then, we would still end up making a lot of noise. I don’t think there is a guaranteed way to sneak in."

"If that’s the case, we might as well take the shortest route to avoid having to do continuous battles. Let’s head to the section of the hideaway near the base before drilling down and fighting any nests below us," Alex decided. "At worst, we fight 5 nests and immediately begin a battle with Brutus."

With their approach decided, they made their way through the 10th level until they reached the approximate closest location to the base. All they had to do now was dig down and they would eventually land near it.

Sable led the way, digging through the floor of the 10th level before drilling through the ceiling of the 11th, where they found themselves in the middle of a Houndoom nest.

Rather than drop down and risk being surrounded, Alex released his water team and had them use Surf while falling. The immediate area was quickly flooded, forcing the Houndooms in the area to retreat.

Not the Champion and the Elites, though. They charged forward, ready to take down the intruders. Unlike the nests at Clearstone Valley, which specialized in defensive tactics, the nests here were more than eager to charge blindly. The battle didn’t last long, considering it was just a single Champion nest.

The next levels, all the way to the 14th, featured relatively similar battles.

The 15th, however, was a clear step above, as they had discovered a 5 Champion nest. The Champions themselves weren’t the problem. Rather, the issue was that there were over 10 thousand Pokémon ready to fight, and die, for them. It would take a while to quell which would certainly attract Brutus’s attention.

"What now?" Sable whispered as they peeked down on the 15th level.

"Can you tunnel us to the base without attracting any nests?" Alex asked.

"Brutus might detect us though."

"That’s fine. We’re close enough to storm the place once we’re in sight."

"What about the traps?" Lyra asked, concerned. "We can’t just rush through them without triggering them."

"Do you think you can detect them, Sable?" Alex asked.

"I should be able to. If I can’t, I’ll assume they’re built similarly to the trap Rhea made."

"That’s good enough."

Sable closed up the hole they used to peek into the 15th level before heading in the direction of the base. They continued until Sable paused.

"I found the entrance. It’s full of traps and cameras."

"Let’s keep going until you see the entire base."

They continued to dig closer for over a hundred meters before Sable finally stopped.

"I can see the entire base now," Sable said, her eyes closed in concentration. "It’s not big. Only about as big as the mansion in your farm."

"Do they know we’re here?" Alex asked.

"I don’t think so. Brutus is still relaxing in his hot tub with a pair of maids. There doesn’t seem to be anyone else."

"What about his Pokémon?"

"Roaming around in the mansion."

"Gardevoir," Alex called out as he released her. "Grab Sable’s memories and draw it out on the dirt."

Gardevoir did as instructed and, using her psychic abilities, managed to draw out the schematics of Brutus’s base. It was a mansion with two entrances. The front led to the 15th level of the hideaway, and the back led to a shaft going up.

There were traps and security cameras everywhere with Pokémon roaming freely, but the only occupants were Brutus and his two maids.

"Alright, here’s the plan," Alex said. "Sable, take Mika with you and block off the rear entrance. If he starts digging, follow him but don’t engage. Mika, try to slow him down as best as you can but don’t risk your life. He’s still a Champion ranked trainer. Lyra, you’ll guard the front entrance and delay him for as long as possible."

"What about you?" Lyra asked.

"I’ll try to sneak in. Sable, let me know if he knows I’m there and I’ll storm in while avoiding the traps. I’ll try to take him down as fast as possible, but he might be able to reach you, so be on guard."

Once the plan was laid out, Sable and Mika continued digging to the back entrance, while Alex and Lyra jumped down to the 15th level.

Lyra started preparing with her Pokémon, while Alex wore his Silent Suit. It might not allow him to avoid the traps given his weight, but it should obscure him from the cameras.

As for the traps, they seemed to be pressure-sensitive, considering there was a crooked path without traps that Brutus likely takes regularly.

Once Alex was ready, he set off. He reached the entrance and followed the crooked path from memory. The tunnel leading to the main entrance was not only lined with traps; it was also filled with statues radiating powerful auras. It was the reason no Pokémon took shelter here, given how condensed and varied those auras were.

Finally, he arrived at the entrance barred by a thick metal gate. He released Rotom to try and hack into it.

With a loud clang, the bolts snapped, opening the door. Thankfully, Rotom was able to prevent an alarm from triggering.

That held only until Alex swung the door open. Alarms blared, making it painfully obvious that the door had an independent mechanism capable of detecting a break-in. Still, Alex had managed to get quite deep, so his efforts weren’t in vain.

"Alex! He knows. He’s heading for the back door," Sable said through their communications device.

Alex didn’t waste any time and rushed through the now-empty mansion. There didn’t seem to be any roaming Pokémon in the hallways, so Brutus had likely recalled everything the moment he started his escape.

"Alex! He isn’t heading for the back. He dove into another shaft that leads down. I didn’t notice it during the initial scan because I was too high up," Sable reported.

"So the front and back are for convenience, but the one at the bottom is for escape," Alex realized.

"I... I lost him," Sable said, disappointed. "He softened the surrounding ground, preventing the vibrations from reaching me. He also made the tunnel he passed through too dangerous to use without reinforcement."

Alex stopped his chase and simply stood in place, shaking his head. Brutus had proven to be far too slippery.

He had obvious weaknesses, like being unable to sense their approach underground. But he also had clear strengths, such as the independent alarm mechanism that was almost certainly installed to counter a Rotom intrusion, or the hidden escape tunnel below. Who in their right mind would expect an underground escape tunnel this deep underground?

Alex had no one to blame, not even himself or the girls. Their target had simply won the game.

"Is there anyone or anything left in the base?" Alex asked.

"Both maids are still there, and I’m not seeing a warehouse or storage location. I think he took everything with him in his space bag."

Alex sighed and simply gave up. There weren’t any benefits left in this place.

It was a shame, but they had completely failed.

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