Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon.
This is a reboot of a previous story of mine. I got interested in it again and changed a couple of details.
Death for the Blind
Ch. 1 – Plans
"You have failed me."
A cold voice spoke from the darkness and echoed throughout the silent room. Four figures could be seen standing staring into the dark abyss, all trying to be as still as they possibly could for fear of what would happen next.
The voice spoke again. "Tell me again. What exactly prevented you from successfully capturing the target? Speak wisely."
One of the figures spoke nervously. "My lord, it seems he was already informed of our plan. He was trying to escape when we arrived."
"But surely that was only a minor setback? Gloom, why did you not stun them?" the voice asked.
Gloom hesitated to speak. The second figure broke the momentary silence, interrupting Gloom's thoughts. "My lord, we were cut off by-"
"SILENCE!" the voice roared. Mr. Mime fell silent. He was frozen with fear as he had often seen his lord in this mood. It usually did not end well.
"It's all right," the voice said, almost in a whisper. "I'm sorry."
Mr. Mime's jaw dropped with shock. He was not sure he had heard correctly. Since when had his master had a sympathetic side?
"It's my fault," the voice continued. "I should have known better than to send you two morons. I forgot that you both are incapable of performing even the simplest of tasks. You remember what my words were before you left for this mission?" The voice sounded casual, but everyone in the room sensed a hint of anger.
Gloom and Mr. Mime stood in silence, both feeling a sense of dread slowly enveloping them. Something bad was about to happen. They could feel it.
"Please, master. I beg you. We have failed. Give us another chance." begged Mr. Mime. "The next time-"
A fifth figure came out of the darkness. His presence silenced Mr. Mime for the umpteenth time that day.
"I grow tired of your blubbering, Mr. Mime," the figure started. "You have failed me many more times than you have succeeded. I see no reason for you to have an opportunity to disappoint me once more. Same with you, Gloom. Perhaps either of you can give me a good enough reason why I shouldn't just kill you both right now."
Once again, both Pokemon were silent. The owner of the voice showed no sign of emotion or thought on his face. "Very well. Get out of my sight. I trust you will never disappoint me again?"
"Yes, master," Mr. Mime muttered.
"Of course, my lord," Gloom said softly as the two turned around and headed for the door. They could hardly believe their luck. However, as they grew closer to the exit, they felt all was not well. Suddenly, there was a quick flash of purple and both bodies fell lifelessly on to the floor.
"Tyranitar, dispose of the bodies," the killer said. "Jynx, bring the young one over. I've got his first mission for him." The other two who had been silently watching throughout the whole scene now moved as quickly as they could to carry out the orders they had been given.
The owner of the voice was furious. A vital opportunity had escaped him. Who knew when he would get another chance? The failure of the two simpletons he had sent had far deeper repercussions than it seemed on the surface. He now had to make certain he acted before his opponent did. There was no time to waste. The police or the royal families would catch on to his plan sooner or later. Maybe even the legendaries. It would be best to move silently as possible for now until he was unstoppable. But acting without caution was certain to bring unwanted attention as he was the leader of the largest criminal organization in the world…or he would have been.
There was another with just as much desire for this power, just as many faithful underlings, and just as much cruelty as him. They had been at war unofficially for two years. But now, the time had come. He would end this silly little war and take control over everything. As he began thinking of his plans, he began to laugh. Everything would be his sooner or later.
Jynx and another Pokemon entered the room.
"At last. Now, everything can begin. Are you prepared?"
"Yes, master."
The one they called master conjured a purple ball of psychic energy in his hand. He shot it at the young Pokemon and listened to him scream in agony.
Soon, it would be over and he could finally rest. Soon. He had no doubt that his plan would come to fruition. It was his will and nothing could stop that. Who would dare to? He was the leader of the Eyes…one unlike any before. He was Mewtwo.
1 month later…
"Let go of me!"
Gallade laughed at the torment of his twin sister. He gripped her a little longer, keeping her immobile before a voice cut in.
"All right, let her go. Haven't you tortured her enough?" Alakazam asked his best friend.
Gallade released his sibling, letting her fall to the floor. "I thought you were supposed to be the graceful one?" he asked his sister with a grin.
"Shut up," Gardevoir replied as she got up and headed for the giant building in front of them. Zam noticed her blushing as she hurriedly moved ahead of them. "Come on, we're going to be late."
"Right," Alakazam said, following her. Ever since childhood, he had been everywhere with the two siblings. He couldn't remember life without them. They had come to this building in Saffron for a battle tournament. The winner would receive something great…or at least that's what was promised.
"So what do you think the prize is going to be?" Gallade asked the other two. He scanned the area, taking a look at his competition. Heracross, Snorlax, Lucario. He had definitely heard of some of these Pokemon even if he had never met them.
"Who knows? It's got to be worth it, with all these famous Pokemon showing up." Gardevoir said. "Or else I'm going to be a little ticked off."
"Uh-oh," Gallade said. "What would we do? The world would come to an end if my dear sister got upset, right Zam?"
"Yeah," Alakazam joined in. "Hey, remember the time when she-"
"That's enough out of you two," Gardevoir huffed. She turned red once more as she remembered the last time she had gotten 'upset.' She had not reacted well to the news that there was no more food in the house and ended up destroying half of the kitchen.
The trio entered the gigantic building where the tournament was to be held.
"Hey, what happens if we end up having to face each other?" Alakazam wondered out loud as they were signing up.
"Well then, my friends. I'm afraid I'm going to have to mercilessly beat you down," Gallade answered loudly.
"You keep telling yourself that," his sister muttered under her breath.
"I heard that!" Gallade said. "Anyway, let's go check out the crowd. I want to see the smiling faces of the poor souls who are going to get absolutely destroyed by me. I am the best, after all."
"A bit too modest there, brother," Gardevoir remarked.
"Whatever, let's just go." Gallade grabbed the arms of his two companions and dragged them to the registration line that awaited them.
All the Pokemon had soon finished registering. The noise level grew as competitors grew anxious for the battles to begin. "How much longer are we going to have to wait?" Gallade moaned.
"I think we're waiting for the organizer to show up," Zam mused.
"You always were the brains of the group," Gallade said sarcastically. "Thank you for pointing out something so obvious."
"How about you just shut up?" Zam said.
"How about I kick your ass?" Gallade shot back.
"Guys, I think he's here now," Gardevoir interrupted.
All eyes focused on the stout figure entering the room. He made his way to the stage and let out a yawn as he gazed over the crowd before speaking.
"Greetings! And welcome to the Saffron Battle Tournament! I'm the organizer of the event, Slowking!" He took another second to scan across the room.
"Well, it seems all of you are eager to fight so I won't bore you with logistical details. I'll just show you what you'll all be fighting for. My assistant Slowpoke will now bring out the prize."
Five minutes passed and Slowpoke finally made his way on to the stage, holding the prize in a glass case with cloth wrapped around it.
"I present to you…the TwistedSpoon!" Slowking said as he pulled away the cloth dramatically to reveal the item.
For the first time since entering the building, the entire crowd was silent for a moment. Voices suddenly broke out among them discussing the newly uncovered prize.
"Are you serious?" Gallade asked in disbelief.
"I can't believe it either." Gardevoir muttered. "There's only one in the world and he's about to give it away?" Alakazam remained silent, his eyes focused on the spoon next to Slowking.
"Quiet now. I'll explain why I'm giving this away," Slowking rumbled. The crowd fell silent.
"In case you didn't realize it yet, I am the Keeper of the Twistedspoon, one of the 17 elemental items. They are all handed down and entrusted to 17 Pokemon, each different types, for safekeeping as they all hold great power. Of course, it can be customized into any other item as long as the essence core is undisturbed so you don't have to carry a spoon all the time."
Gallade leaned in and whispered to the other two by his side, "I don't think that old man is cut out to be one of the Keepers. How can he just give it away? They picked the wrong guy to entrust one of the most powerful items with."
Slowking began speaking again, "I am getting old and the time has come for me to pass it on to a worthy successor. It has been a great honor to serve as a Keeper but I am losing my touch. Plus, I need the registration money for pants."
The crowd grew tense. This was a bigger prize than they had bargained for. Although it could only benefit psychic Pokemon directly, the other non-psychics could gain a healthy profit in more ways than one once they held the Spoon.
"Is he even allowed to do that?" Gardevoir turned to ask Alakazam. "Isn't there some board of Keepers that prevents him from giving it away like that?"
"I think once it's passed on to him, he can do anything he wants with it other than destroy it," Zam answered.
"Who cares?! I'm going to get that Spoon!" Gallade said excitedly.
Slowking calmly looked over the crowd once more, observing the effect his announcement had on the crowd.
"And now, I'll announce the first match," he said. "We randomized your registrations as well as the bracket. Good luck."
Natu came up to Slowking and handed him a sheet. He read it once and ate the piece of paper. The crowd saw him close his eyes and direct some energy to the wall. When they looked after, the bracket was inscribed for all to see, all 32 numbers matched up against another. "Contestants #13 & #12! Will they please move to the battlefield?"
Zam looked at his registration details, which had a bright #13 on it. "Hey, that's me," he told his two friends.
"Go on then," Gallade said.
"Good luck," Gardevoir said.
Alakazam made his way towards the battlefield and waited for his opponent as spectators filled the seats around the arena. After a couple minutes, a hooded figure appeared on the other side.
"What the… I don't like him. Seems too suspicious," Gallade remarked to his sister. They were both sitting in the stands with their eyes on the mysterious stranger.
"You're right, it looks like they just let anybody enter" the female psychic answered. "I hope Zam does ok."
"He had to have some kind of proof of ability. They asked us for it at registration," Gallade said. "The old man wouldn't want any scrubs in the tournament."
Back on the field, Alakazam and his opponent were sizing each other up. The stranger seemed about the same size as Alakazam, but on closer inspection, he was in fact a little smaller.
Girafarig, the judge, spoke to the two competitors. "Remember the rules, guys. There's not much to remember. No killing blows and no attacking the audience. Other than that, anything goes. Ready? Begin!" He moved out of the arena to a safe viewing area as fast as he could.
The stranger instantly teleported behind Alakazam and aimed a Psybeam at him. Alakazam took a direct hit to th eback and fell to the ground.
"Is he ok?" Gardevoir squealed as she tried to get a better look. Everyone in the stands was on their feet now.
"Relax, he can take a couple hits," said Gallade calmly.
Zam got up and shook his head. "You surprised me. That's the only reason why you got me. It's not going to happen again."
The hooded stranger remained silent.
"Not the talkative kind?" Zam continued. "That's fine. Anyway, you ready?" Without saying another word, Alakazam rushed at the hooded figure, his right fist tightly gripping a spoon and covered in flames.
The stranger took a hit to the chest and fell to the ground with a thud.
"Ha, Zam's famous elemental punches at work," Gallade said as he watched the scene with interest. He was getting excited at the thought of his own match after this.
"Don't just sit around," Alakazam said as he aimed a Psybeam at where the stranger was lying. The hooded Pokemon took another direct hit as smoke came up. Alakazam waited for the smoke to clear when he was suddenly hit with a flame-covered fist.
"What the…" Alakazam stared in disbelief. He quickly recovered from the shock and aimed with another elemental punch. This time, his fist was crackling with electricity. But to his surprise, the stranger was rushing right towards him… with a Thunder Punch of his own.
"Damn," Alakazam muttered. "Time to change punches." His Thunder Punch was replaced with a thin sheet of ice covering the outside of his fist.
The stranger noticed this and quickly imitated Alakazam, choosing to attack with an Ice Punch of his own.
"No way," Alakazam told himself in disbelief. It had taken him forever to master the elemental punches, a feat that he was proud of. Psychics were not known for physical abilities and that he had done so was astounding to the rest of the world.
Back in the stands, the twins were watching with shocked expressions.
"I thought Alakazam was the only psychic who had mastered all three elemental punches. Not even Medicham could do it!" Gardevoir said.
"He is!" Gallade told his sister. "What the hell is going on?"
"Maybe he's not a psychic?" Gardevoir asked tentatively.
"Oh, come off it," Gallade said. "He's showing all the signs. Teleportation, Psybeam. Just who's under that hood?"
Alakazam was wondering the same thing. He had worked so hard for the power of the elemental punches. He was hailed as being the only psychic and even one of the few Pokemon who had been able to master all three. So who was this?
"Who are you?" he asked the hooded Pokemon. Not to his surprise, the stranger did not answer.
"I'll just have to uncover it myself," he thought to himself. For the remainder of the fight, he would focus on the identity of the mysterious Pokemon. The prize of the TwistedSpoon seemed unimportant to him at the moment.
The fight dragged on. His opponent fired a Shadow Ball. "This is it!" Zam said. He quickly teleported in front of him and attempted a quick uppercut Thunder Punch. The stranger had fired another Psybeam in the process, causing the two attacks to clash.
The stranger was knocked back as smoke filled the arena once again. Alakazam stood on the other side, awaiting what came next. The smoke cleared, and he noticed that the cloak the stranger was wearing was in rags now. He saw the hooded Pokemon's face and let out a gasp.
Gallade also looked in disbelief. Gardevoir had not seen the hooded Pokemon's face yet, and sensing there was something she was missing, asked, "Why? What's wrong? Who is it?"
"It's his dead brother," Gallade choked out.
Alakazam stood dumbfounded as he looked into the face of his younger brother.
Kadabra looked around the field before staring straight at Zam's face. He grinned and said his first words since entering the field.
"Missed me?"