Author's Note: It's been a while since my latest Resetverse oneshot, isn't it? Guess I could do more if I wasn't so focused on writing my main Naruto fic "Son of the Sannin", but that fic is a demanding mistress.
Anyway, this is rather different than the others I've written, not just because this is the first oneshot not focused on a gym leader, but the writing is style is a bit different, as you're about to see.
Stull, I hope you enjoy this Halloween special horror story:
Pokemon Reset Bloodlines: Shadows of the Jungle
...
Log Date – Day 1
In a few hours, we will arrive at Guyana. Must say, after all the obstacles we had to go through, I'm quite excited to finally be here.
My colleagues, professors Bertram Huges and Sonya Keys, as well as myself, professor Gideon Knowles, decided to specialize in research of rare Pokemon, such as those denominated Legendaries. As you can imagine, the main problem with such a field is the lack of specimens to study, as opposed to those professors specialized in more...mundane fields.
What are Legendary Pokemon? Why are they so powerful? Why are there so few of them? Are they truly Pokemon, or are they something more? Upon meeting each other in college and sharing our mutual interest, my colleagues and I decided to answer those questions.
Besides the lack of specimens, another not so worthless obstacle for our research is locating and securing said Pokemon. Legendary Pokemon have a reputation of being elusive, and even if you manage to track them down, well, trying to capture them is something very few people have been able to accomplish.
However, all of our woes disappeared when a certain man contacted us: Giovanni, Gym Leader of Viridian City.
Giovanni had read some of the papers we published on some scientific magazines, and told us that he's quite interested in Legendary Pokemon as well. His duties as a Gym Leader, as well as his own private businesses keep him busy, and thus unable to partake in any investigation or expedition himself, that's why he uses his vast wealth to fund like-minded people, such as my colleagues and I.
We met Giovanni –a rather pleasant man, might I add–, and told us about a project of his: an expedition to a faraway land in the southern hemisphere, believed to be the homeland of Mew, a particularly elusive Legendary Pokemon. Mew in particular is so hard to find that he belongs to a small subset of Legendaries named "Mythical", due the fact that they've been seen so few times and there's little evidence of their existence that many think they're just a myth.
His first team managed to successfully capture one, but sadly, it managed to escape on the way back. He presumed it returned to the place it was found at.
Anyway, Giovanni heard rumors of a presence that's disturbing the fauna of one of the jungles of Guyana. Giovanni thinks it might be another Mew. We aren't so sure about that, but we have hopes that there might be another Legendary Pokemon, waiting for a human brave enough to capture it.
Besides the necessary funds and supplies, Giovanni also provided us with three skilled trainers that will protect us from the wild Pokemon, as well as capture the Legendary once we're able to locate it.
I'm so excited. I can't wait until we land...
Log Date – Day 2
We've just arrived at the port city –I don't remember its name, these foreign countries have names that are hard to pronounce, much less remember–, gathering even more supplies and asking for directions, we've found where this Mythic might be located: in a dense jungle to the southeast.
There are very few roads that go the way we want, and said roads aren't exactly of the best quality either, so the journey ahead is going to be everything but quiet. Oh well, thanks to Giovanni's generous funding, we managed to rent the best possible bus in order to travel there. Which isn't saying much, given that this bus has seen better days. But oh well, if it can take us to our destination, and then the way back, it will be money well spent.
Given our rather large budget, Bertram suggested to hire a guide as well, somebody who knows this place well and can help us in case we ever get lost, and I couldn't think of any reason to decline such a sensible suggestion.
Sonya thinks this is also a great chance to study the wildlife of such a faraway land, but so far, we've never seen any Pokémon that cannot be found in our homeland either. My guess is that she thought this would be like Alola, where the Pokemon we know have evolved in a different way. Then again, given that we're in a country with a similar climate to Alola, she might have a point.
But even then, that's not the reason for us to be here. We're here to find rare and powerful Pokemon, and we won't leave empty handed.
Log Date – Day 4
After two days trapped on that Arceus-forsaken bus, we finally reached our destination. The travel has been less than pleasant. We didn't check if the bus had air conditioning –spoiler alert: it hadn't– and thus the heat became unbearable. Though I don't know what was worse, the heat, or Bertram's incessant complaining.
Oh well, that belongs to the past, now that we reached our destination. We should be ready to start our expedition next morning. There's a small village at the edge of the jungle, so I guess it's a good place to ask for information about the place we're going to venture into, as well as a place to rest once we get back with our prize.
Log Date – Day 5
Unbelievable! The villagers wouldn't let us set foot on the jungle, since they claim that it's the home of a powerful demon. Or at least, that's what our guide translated. It's obvious that said "demon" is the Pokémon in question, and we did try to explain it to them, but they wouldn't listen.
I wasn't expecting this country to be as civilized as our homeland, but still to be held to some standards. The port city was a good example, even if the services provided weren't as good as what we could have gathered in a more advanced nation.
But this? I find it unbelievable that there are people still living in a dark age, worried about demons, evil spirits and other sorts of superstitious nonsense. If this is what tracking Legendary Pokemon entails, no wonder Giovanni would want to delegate.
Of course, the solution came once again from Giovanni's hand: the trio of trainers that accompanied us told those villagers that if they didn't let us into the jungle peacefully, we will have to do it by force. The villagers accepted the challenge and...well, let's say that these primitives' weak Pokemon had nothing to do against Giovanni's elite trainers.
They can't say we didn't warn them.
We were allowed to enter the jungle, but they told us that if something happened, there wouldn't be help of any kind. No search and rescue parties, not even a message to one of the nearby cities. They even stated that they would even deny seeing us if somebody ever came asking for us.
Ha! As if we would need their help. As usual, Bertram took their threats seriously, and is reconsidering our project. How can I tell him that we just can't go back to Giovanni empty handed? That would be the end of our careers!
Log Date – Day 8
Despite spending more than a week in this Arceusforsaken country, we didn't progress as much as we had expected. The reason? My "wonderful" colleagues.
Sonya said she wanted to check the fauna and the flora of the jungle more thoroughly. Not for any scientific purposes –I don't think there is any discovery to be made here, other than the Legendary Pokemon–, but so we know what to face once we reach deeper into the jungle. Naturally, Bertram agreed with her, even if just to delay our trek into an undoubtedly hostile zone.
On one hand, I have to admit that her suggestion was rather sensible. On the other hand, we can't stay here forever, and our supplies aren't unlimited. Giovanni's men don't seem to mind –according to them, Giovanni ordered them just to protect us from threats and make sure the project is successfully completed, but how it is completed is up to us, the brains of the group.
Why can't more people be like Giovanni? I'm sure the world would be a better place.
Anyway, Sonya is almost done with her analysis. So far, most of the Pokemon we've seen are Bug, Grass, and Poison type. There are quite a lot of Butterfree, Paras and Parasect, Oddish, Gloom and Vileplume, Bellsprout, Weepinbell and Victreebel, Beedrill, Venonat, Pinsir, Spinarak and Ariados, Yanma and Yanmega among many others.
Other Pokemon include Mankey and Primeape, Aipom and Ambipom, Slakoth and Vigoroth, Pidgey and Pidgeotto, Spearow and Fearow, Zubat and Golbat, as well as some Tropius.
So far, these Pokemon appear to be rather docile, and won't attack us if left unprovoked. So naturally, the best course of action is to advance while trying to disturb the local wildlife as little as possible. Giovanni's trainers need their Pokemon to be at their strongest when we face the Legendary, so if they want their Pokemon to do some exercise, they can spar among themselves.
If only the deacon of the university was as diligent and reasonable as Givanni's men...I could have avoided more than one headache...
Log Date – Day 9
The jungle is far thicker than we thought, and thus we're advancing at a slower pace than we would have preferred. Still, this is a rather unknown and hostile environment, and caution is required. At least, that's what our guide said. And of course, Bertram agrees with him.
Sonya as well, albeit her motives are different. She says this is a golden opportunity to study a new ecosystem. Seriously, sometimes I think she chose the wrong field to specialize in, given how unfocused she is, as well as not having her priorities straight.
She has noticed –and by "noticed", I mean "brought up every five minutes"– the fact that the more we penetrate the jungle, the less variety of Pokemon there are. Bug types are becoming more and more abundant, at the expense of other types of Pokemon. Naturally, she wants to find out what causes this disparity.
While I do admit it's an interesting phenomena, it's not what we came here for. Then again, there's a rather high probability that the larger presence of Bug types might be caused by the legendary in question. Now that I think about it, are there Bug type legendaries? I did read about an ancient Pokemon called Genesect which could fit the description, but then again, that creature went extinct millions of years ago.
Finding Legendary Pokemon is always a huge discovery, but a Legendary of a type not shared by any other of its kind...now that's something big. This trip might be better than I had anticipated, despite all that we had to endure.
Log Date – Day 11
We've penetrated even more into the jungle, and so far, Sonya's observations have been proven correct. We stopped seeing non-Bug type Pokemon quite some time ago. There's also the fact that these Pokemon are way more aggressive and territorial. Thank goodness Giovanni's men were there to fight them back, or else I don't know what could have happened.
We've formulated the theory that, unlike what Giovanni was expecting, the Pokemon in question isn't Mew, but a Bug type Legendary or Mythical. Some sort of hive queen, which other Bug types are induced to serve and protect. Meaning that, the more we advance, the greater the fauna's hostile response will be.
Sonya has pointed out that no other Legendary has such an influence over mundane Pokemon, and that they usually prefer to live alone rather than set themselves as kings over their less powerful brethren. But just because there's no precedent to something doesn't mean it's impossible.
Log Date – Day 12
Bertram has disappeared.
Despite Giovanni's men taking turns to guard us during the night, none of them saw the moment he disappeared.
There's the mystery over if he decided to leave on his own, or something else took him away. Given that his sleeping bag, backpack, and all his personal effects are gone as well, I'm inclined to believe the former.
While Bertram has always been a scaredy Meowth, the fact that he would leave us so suddenly, without even saying goodbye, or even leaving a note, reflects poorly of him.
We tried to locate him through his cell phone's GPS, but it's deactivated. Guess he doesn't want to be found.
Sonya is worried. She doesn't think Bertram left on his own, and wants to look for him. Fortunately, Giovanni's men convinced her that the expedition is our top priority. Even if in the end she relented, she pointed out that given that, regardless if he left on his own accord or not, the fact that Bertram disappeared under their noses is a cause of concern. She said that if Bertram has been abducted, what stops whatever took him away from doing the same to the rest of us.
And as much as it unnerves me, she has a point.
Log Date – Day 13
The day has transpired without any incidents. We barely encountered any Pokemon, and there were no more disappearances.
The jungle has been unusually quiet. Way too quiet.
One would think that this area has a much less dense fauna than the others, but...I had this feeling that we're being watched. I can't describe it, but there's something...like a presence, carefully watching our every move.
How unscientific, right? Thinking about unseen presences and bad feelings and similar nonsense.
Still, that doesn't change what I'm feeling. Sonya and our guide feel likewise. Giovanni's men remain impassible, but this jungle is taking a toll even on them.
I don't think I'll be able to sleep tonight.
Log Date – Day 15
I knew it was too good to be true. The Bug Pokemon have made their presence again, in greater numbers, and with a more aggressive approach. Still, Giovanni's trainers managed to hold them at bay.
Sonya insists we have to find Bertram. Our guide thinks likewise. Giovanni's men, however, still insist that both of us have a job to do.
Still, now I can't help but wonder if there's still a chance to do said job.
Log Date – Day 16
We found some ancient ruins. The place appears to be a destroyed temple. Very ancient, if the moss and vines over it are any indication. We think it's a good place to spend the night, albeit I'm not sure if it will provide any protection against possible attackers.
Sonya and I decided to study the temple a bit. I don't know about her, but in my case I did it to have something that would distract me from thinking on Bertram's sudden disappearance.
Anyway, Giovanni was correct when he guessed that Mew would be here, since we found pictures of it engraved in some of the temple's walls –the few that still stand, that is–. There are other Pokemon as well, but none of them are actually remarkable. We both think that the chances of finding a Legendary or Mythical Pokemon other than have Mew drastically reduced.
Our guide overheard our conversation and offered another alternative: maybe this new Pokemon made its home of this jungle long after the ruined temple was build.
Still, that changes little. We need to press forward.
Log Date – Day 17
Our guide has disappeared.
Just like with Bertram, not only our guide vanished under the watch of Giovanni's men, but his backpack, sleeping bag and other personal effects have disappeared alongside him.
Even if once again Giovanni's men insisted that the expedition must go on, even their imposing demeanor is starting to crack. Not even powerful trainers like them are so sure anymore about their chances of survival.
Wonder how many of us there will be left when we reach the Legendary Pokemon. If we managed to find it, that is...
Log Date – Day 18
We continue our trek through the jungle. The constant attacks from Bug-type Pokemon makes our already slow advance even slower. And without our guide to show us the way, it's even harder now.
Sonya wants to call it quits and go look for Bertram, but that wouldn't do for several reasons. Not only there's still the expedition, we don't even know how did he disappear or where he may be. Trying to find Bertram now would be a fool's errand. And even bigger one that what our current expedition has become.
She asked me if I wouldn't like for my friends to look for me if I was ever kidnapped. While she does have a point, we are not prepared to look for Bertram. He could be anywhere. We must go on.
Log Date – Day 21
Our supplies have finally run out. We're now forced to look for wild berries and gather water from nearby rivers and streams, but it's easier said than done.
It seems that the Bug Pokemon know we're hungry, and they lure us with visibly unguarded berry bushes and trees, only to ambush us when we're gathering the goods.
During one of those attacks, one of Giovanni's trainers was stabbed multiple times by a Beedrill's sting. We rushed him to our camp, and administered him the proper antidote.
However, we were too late, and the man had too much poison coursing through his body. The poor bastard swollen up like a balloon, his skin turning purple, before finally expiring. His last moments were indeed agonizing, and asked us to release him from his pain, but none of us had the heart to do it.
We buried the trainer under a tree, before finally going to sleep. The other two trainers took his Pokemon with them.
Sonya insist in that we should go back already. I told her we can't, or else all these sacrifices would have been for nothing. Despite the fact that there's nothing I wouldn't wish more than get out from this hell of a jungle.
It seems my sanity is starting to slip away.
Log Date – Day 22
The attacks from swarms of Bug-type Pokemon are increasing, in both frequency and intensity.
This morning, we were attacked by a swarm composed by Beedrills, Yanmegas, Butterfrees and Ariados. Giovanni's two trainers protected us the best they could, and thankfully, nobody died this time.
Or, at least, that's what I thought at first. When we managed to regroup in a nearby cave, we realized that Sonya was nowhere to be found. It seemed that, during the chaos of the battle, she slipped away from our sight and left. Probably to look for Bertram, or to simply leave this place.
I should be angry, but I'm not. I understand her. I reached my limit. Hell, even Giovanni's men reached their limit too, and agreed with me when I suggested to follow Sonya's example and get out of here, now that we're still alive.
Giovanni's men stated that their boss would be very angry at them if they returned empty handed, but his wrath seems to be nothing compared to the fury of this green hell. Tomorrow we will head back with the first light.
Log Date – Day 24
The decision to go back was the best one we could have ever take. I feel such a fool for not doing it earlier. But then again, I guess that desperation wasn't so big just a couple days ago. Still, Bertram's disappearance should have been a very big red flag.
Anyway, even if there's still quite a trek until we reach the village at the edge of the jungle, I can finally sigh in relief. The constant attack from the Bug types have finally ceased. Well, not exactly. Sometimes Giovanni's men have to deal with some kind of unruly Pinsir or Butterfree, but nothing too serious. I guess that, since they realized we got the hint and are leaving their territory, they decided to let us go in peace.
Hopefully, once we're out of this hell, we'll be able to gather a better, more numerous team, and go back to find the disappeared, and if possible, finish the job Giovanni tasked us with.
Log Date – Day 25
The way back proceeded without any incident. The jungle is quiet. Too quiet I must say.
Maybe the Bug types are preparing another ambush like they did the first time, and are lulling us into a false sense of security. Or maybe the bugs decided to let us go, given that we aren't invading their territory any longer.
I pray to Arceus it is the latter.
Log Date – Day 26
Arceus didn't hear my prayers.
Turns out, the Bug Pokemon were merely preparing their final assault. Giovanni's men and I were attacked by a swarm unlike any other. Pinsir, Parasect and Ariados crawling everywhere. Beedrill, Butterfree and Yanmega blocking the sun with their numbers. Even using all their six Pokemon at once, Givanni's men were overwhelmed, and presumably devoured by them.
As for myself, I did the only thing I could do: run. Run as fast as my legs could carry me, as the two unfortunate escorts and their Pokemon met their demise at the claws, pincers and stings of our attackers. I didn't think I could outrun them, but what else I could do?
Turns out, I did manage to lose them and hide inside a nook below a fallen tree, which is rather hard to see at first sight. However, I can't just stay here forever.
Log Date – Day 28
I did manage to evade the horde of insects for a whole day, but I don't think I'll be able to keep it for much longer. I barely ate anything, and I'm too tired and beaten to continue the trek back.
Hell, I don't even know what direction should I take.
I don't know why I keep writing this journal. Maybe it is a morbid unconscious desire to record what will be my final moments. Maybe is my brain trying to cling to the last remnants of sanity. I don't know, and I don't care.
Nights are so cold...
Log Date – Final Day
Yes, you read that right. There won't be any more days, for neither this journal, nor I.
As I expected, the bugs ended up catching me. The last thing I remember is an Ariados sinking its jaws into my side, and then everything turned black. I was quite surprised to wake up some undetermined amount of time later, and realize that I was still alive, but in more pain than before.
The bugs have brought me to some sort of underground lair, which I presume is where they live, and I met their leader. Contrary to what I expected, it wasn't a Legendary Pokemon that was controlling them, no.
It was a human girl.
A human girl no older than fifteen. Yet for some reason, the bugs seem to not only obey her, but treat her as if she was some sort of goddess. Her skin tone is light brown, like most of the natives of this country. She has long, untamed, dirty black hair, and brown eyes. She wears makeshift clothes made of leaves and what appear to be discarded insect husks.
She speaks in unintelligible grunts, growls and cries, nothing resembling a human language. Yet the bug Pokemon seem to understand her and carry out her orders. Her eyes sometimes glow with an eerie yellow light.
It seems that I finally met the "demon" those natives rambled about. Who could have guessed that it wasn't a Pokemon, but some human teen girl. She leads them with her evil influence, and what I think are supernatural powers. Could she be one of those Bloodliners that I heard about?
They placed me in a large pit, covered in spiderwebs and moss. Impossible to climb, even if my physical condition was better. I see the girl, looking down at me from the edge of the pit. Her eyes glow yellow, and she lets out an inhuman screech.
Bug type Pokemon of all kinds, some of which I wasn't even aware existed, started to crawl down the walls of the pit, looking at me with hungry eyes. It doesn't take much imagination to know what's going to happen to me.
As my final moments approach, I can't help but remember the villagers' words about the demon that ruled this jungle. Demon or not, it was clearly something dangerous, and we arrogantly dismissed those claims as mere superstition. Now all of us, or me at the very least, will pay the ultimate price.
I can't say they didn't warn us.
…
The reader shook his head in disappointment, and sighed. The notebook was all his retrieval team managed to find in Guyana, and nothing else. Not a single trace of the disappeared, neither those whose deaths were accounted for. To add to the weirdness, it was found in a place that didn't even remotely look like that underground pit from the last entry.
Closing the book, the man pressed a button on the intercom that rested on his large and well organized desk.
"Yes?" a female voice answered.
"Cancel all the future operations to Guyana. That place is a dead end," the man spoke, his tone firm and authoritarian.
"As you wish, Don Giovanni," the woman replied.
The Team Rocket Boss stood up, and picked the book. He removed the large portrait hanged behind his desk of himself and his trusty Persian, revealing a safe box. Some people might have called it cliched, but Giovanni was a huge fan of the classics.
Upon opening the door, he tossed the journal inside, engrossing the collection of items and documents that would never see the light of the sun again in a long time, but were still to valuable to permanently destroy.
Casting the failed expedition out of his mind, Giovanni sat back on his desk, and resumed his work. Criminal empires don't run themselves after all.
Author's Note: Even if it was a short ride, I hope you enjoyed this Halloween special.
You know, I was going to originally title this "Wrath of the Hive Queen", but Viroro-kun pointed out that it was way too spoilerific, so I changed to to something more generic and ambiguous, but at the same time a bit indicative.
Speaking of the Hive Queen, I was thinking in making her another half-sister of Ash, but given how far she lives from Kanto and the other regions, that would have stretched it way too much.
Another change I made was the ending scene. Originally the story was only going to be the log, but Fox and Viroro both told me that I should add somebody reading the journal at the end. And well, I couldn't think in a better person than the very same man who started to whole thing.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this little tale of suspense and horror, and see you in my next oneshot!