Pokemon belongs to who ever owns it.
The Poke Wars alternate universe was created by Cornova who was nice enough to let me muck about in it with Dawson. This is the place for all you people who want to mesh Warhammer 40K with Pokemon... I HOPE YOUR HAPPY!
August 18th
Johto Mountains
The town of Agricola was an idealistic place in the Johto mountains. No more then two dozen homes and businesses made up the center of the village with small outlying farmsteads. The homes forming a cross in the center of the town its main road leading off in the four cardinal directions much like the alpine pastures above. A single Pokemon center and Poke mart also made up the small amount of homes and buildings of the town. The entire area was surrounded by forests and hills in all directions giving it a quaint look as well making it very remote. Dawson would have enjoyed spending a day or two in the village if it wasn't currently covered in at least a foot of soggy yellow stun spore.
The rain hadn't quite made it to the town yet but it had been drizzling for at least several hours. Dawson and Joy had woken up damp and wet with the Pokemon nurse having the worst of it. The tattered remains of her clothes offered little in the way of protection from the weather. Borrowing some of Dawson's apparel her current outfit was ill suited for the nurse as she had to constantly adjust the pants to avoid them slipping down and giving Dawson a show. She was currently doing just that as Dawson examined the town from the attic of one of the outlining windmills the farmers used.
He had borrowed Joy's telescope again and was scanning the yellow stun spore covered town while the sails on the mill turned slowly. The rain combined with the yellow spores made for a muddy mess that Joy and Dawson already had to walk though just to get to their current vantage point. On the plus side it meant they didn't have to dress in heavy layers and their extra clothes were currently piled near the door on the first floor. Dawson was somewhat amazed at the sheer volume of spores, however, as he was actually able to follow the path the Pokemon had taken up the mountain as it stained the normally green leaves a yellow hue.
"Do you see anything Dawson?" She asked adjusting the borrowed pants and tried to fix her somewhat disheveled hair.
A task proving difficult as she only had one hair clip the second one lost somewhere in the woods. The entire day seemed, to the Pokemon nurse, out to outdo last nights trauma by making it as uncomfortable as possible for her. Matters weren't helped by having her questions regarding her friends and sister avoided by the trainer.
She hoped that they could get to the town, and more importantly the Pokemon center, so she could see if her sister survived and get another uniform to wear. They had left the campsite in the early morning leaving the sleeping children in the care of Pokemon. The trip down to the town was almost insufferable as the pants waist was larger then hers and the shirt she had borrowed was constantly catching on branches as it was a couple of sizes too large.
"No human movement, although its hard to tell with this wimpy telescope. Quite a few Murkrow though. To the point that I wished I had brought Luxray instead of Torterra." Dawson replied sliding closed the small telescope and handing it back to Joy before looking back out at the town. "Well no crying over spilled Miltanks, I'm sure if push came to shove Togekiss could deal with most of them. We should head to the Pokemon center fir-huh?" Dawson was interrupted by the feeling of the back of his shirt being lifted up and small fingers poking around his spine. "Uh, Joy, what are you doing?"
"Quiet you, you've been running around for a whole day now without letting me check your spine after that hit." Joy said as she tenderly poked a few areas around his semi bruised back. "We can spare a few minutes before heading into the town for a checkup."
"I'm not going to be able to argue this with you am I?" Dawson asked sighing before leaning forwards on the windowsill to let Joy examine him.
"No, now stop being a big baby and tell me if this hurts..." She said gently pressing various parts of Dawson's back.
"No it doesn't hurt you personal space invader." The trainer said with an exasperated tone.
"And don't think I've forgotten about your hand either." Joy replied with a bit of irritation in her voice at his complaining.
As promised both Dawson and Joy left the windmill after only a few minutes. Joy reached for the clothes to carry them only for the Pokemon trainer to signal her not to. He had found something worth salvaging already and knew they would be back for it later so it was better to make the journey into town as light as possible.
The trip in was quiet for the most part, the most part being the Murkrows launching themselves into the air at the presence of the two humans, which somewhat unnerved Joy and Dawson as they continued though the desolate place. Dawson took the lead as they headed towards the town makeing a trail in the muck as Joy was having enough trouble with her borrowed pants. Following along his footprints created in the stun spore mess that covered the town was easier then walking alongside and makeing her own trail. Each step was like walking though inches of mud as the wet spores began to cling to the shoes of both the trainer and nurse.
Going cautiously and keeping a weary eye out for the Murkrows overhead the two made it to the Pokemon center quickly and quietly. It was when they got to the center that their progress hit a snag. All around the center the stun spore muck grew lumpy and uneven slowing their progress even more.
"Damn what is this crap?" Dawson said as he tried to get firmer footing on the lumpy ground.
Sliding his boot over one of the lumps several times he finally made out what it was causing the uneven ground. Officer Jenny's uniform was distinct even with the yellow spores dying it in their colors. With a few more sweeps of his foot clearing away the wet paralysis agent he could see her face.
Her eyes open in a shocked expression most likely her death being somewhat unimaginable to her. Reaching forwards Dawson slid the Pokemon police officer's eyelids closed. Looking around he saw the uneven terrain was caused by the residents of the town all desperately trying to reach the Pokemon center.
"Dawson... what is- Oh Arceus, Jenny!" Joy cried finally catching up to Dawson. "No..."
"Joy, come on, let's at least get inside the center. Maybe someone survived in there." Dawson said resuming his walk towards the center.
As soon as he reached the doors he could tell there was likely no one inside. The glass door was shattered its shards likely buried under the stun spore. Stepping though he could see several people laying motionless inside as his soggy footsteps the only noise being made. The lights were still thankfully on as his eyes adjusted to the inside of the room.
Several townsfolk had apparently broken though the glass in a panic from what Dawson could tell of the people laying on the floor. Their actions probably caused many of the people outside to die as they all tried rushing the door and ended up just clogging around the broken glass entranceway. Those inside didn't fare much better as the inside of the center was filled with spores abet at a much slower pace since the entire place was ventilated from the outside effectively drawing in the spores and ensuring the center offered no protection at all.
Stepping forwards Dawson noted that the stun spore was still dry indoors as his footsteps kicked up the dust slightly as he walked in. The inside was quite spacious as the hallway led to the center's main desk where all the Pokemon would be initially taken and treated. The desk was followed by three doors all leading to areas of the Pokemon center. Dawson surmised from previous center's he had stayed at that, of the three doors, one led to the living quarters for the trainers, one led to the back offices and treatment center of the resident Nurse Joy, and the last one leading to the diner where the trainers ate.
Walking up to the desk Dawson was relived to find that there wasn't a body of a Nurse joy anywhere area the main lobby. Stepping around the desk he sat down in the chair and picked up the remote for the television built into the wall. Powering it on he was greeted with nothing but static.
"Dawson... I'm going into the offices to get a change of clothes." Joy said as she approached the table after climbing though the broken glass door.
"Yeah go ahead I want to see if the playback has anything on this TV" Dawson replied as he began fiddle with the remote.
Stepping in back, and closing the door behind her to make sure Dawson didn't peek, Joy headed to the closet where the spare uniforms were stored. The room was small as it was only intended for one Joy. It was also more akin to a bedroom then an office as it contained a small fold out cot in the corner near some filing cabinets. That with the closet and a table big enough for the cot to be place on made the already small room downright tiny. It was mostly used as a rest area for when an emergency cropped up and the Pokemon Nurse's would have to spend the night taking care of Pokemon. Most Joy's had their own homes within the town and would spend their nights there when one of their sisters took over their shift.
Joy quickly changed out of the lose pants and shirt folding them and leaving the garments on the table as she opened the closet. Inside there were various uniforms hung up and awaiting use. Since she knew she was going to be traveling to Blackthorn with Dawson she chose the slightly more practical uniform. A comfortable pink T-shirt along with denim pants which she threw over a azure nurse apron. The uniform was designed for more remote and inhospitable places as both the shirt and pants were made of much stronger material then the standard pink blouse most Joy's wore. Finally she let her hair fall to her shoulders and formed it into a braided ponytail behind her.
"The benefits of having identical twins I guess." Joy mumbled to herself as she changed, the worry of something not fitting barely even concerning her.
Meanwhile Dawson had finally found a playback option and was watching the last news broadcast from yesterday. As it continued the sinking feeling he got in his gut returned as he watched the broadcast turn from a news episode to a grim survivor's tale as the reporter and her camera man struggled to survive and avoid the attention of Raikou and his apparent minions the Crawdaunt and Corphish.
Dawson watched with such rapt attention that he never even noticed Joy walk up behind him. Covering her mouth in shock she stood aghast at the horror being recorded. Eventually it all came to ahead as the two ran down an ally that had no exit. As the two realized they couldn't escape the reporter pulled the camera to her and stood as straight as she could before addressing the camera.
"To anyone who hears this listen to me. Goldenrod city is under attack. Raikou and an army of water Pokemon are destroying the city! Somehow... some way... Pokemon attacks can kill! Hundreds are dying and thousands are dead right now and more will follow by the end of the night. I.. I know we won't survive this night but everyone has to know." From behind several of the Crawdaunt and Corphish had begun to advance into the alleyway.
It was only a few moments but as Dawson and Joy watched it felt like each and every second dragged on for minutes. As the Crawdaunt advanced on the two the recorder tossed his camera aside and rushed to the reporter holding a steel bar. He lunged at the water Pokemon only to be cut down by a rush of bright stars indicating a brutal swift attack. Each one cutting into him and then exploding sending bloody chunks everywhere. The reporter had it no better as a single Crawdaunt launched forwards grasping her with it's claw and cutting her in half with a sickening squelch.
After the deaths of the reporter and camera man the tape simply recorded what happened to their bodies for a few more moments before it was cut off by static. Leaning back in the chair Dawson slid a hand though his hair and let out a breath he unconsciously had been holding in. He had eventually put his elbow on the desk and rested his head in his hand while his mind fathomed the implications of the video they just saw.
Joy's reaction was far from Dawson's quiet contemplation. She had attempted to step backwards only to bump into the desk and nearly fall from the sudden contact. Using her hands she lowered herself to a kneeling position while she found her self gasping for breath as her mind went into a full state of panic trying to grasp the magnitude of what she saw.
Dawson was the first to recover as he looked to Joy. "Come on we need to get to searching this place..." He said standing up and holding out a hand to help the Nurse up.
"Search this place? DIDN'T YOU SEE THAT!? THE WHOLE WORLD IS LIKE THIS, EVERYONE EVERYWHERE FIGHTING FOR THEIR LIVES!" Joy said breaking into a yell at Dawson's callousness.
"Yeah I saw it... But I'm not worried about the world right now. I'm currently worried about the kids back at the camp and the Pokemon nurse who apparently is having a panic attack." Dawson replied calmly as he knelt next to her and helped the distraught nurse to her feet.
"But..." Joy paused as best she could and forced herself to take several deep breaths. "But the whole world is... If Pokemon can attack and kill people across the world..."
"Then it's likely the human race is on a collision course with extinction, I know Joy." Dawson said doing his best to steady his companion.
"How... HOW CAN YOU BE SO CALM ABOUT THIS!?" Joy said slipping into another panic attack.
Dawson sighed and looked at her. "Because if you recall I've been coming to grips with the idea that this was what happened from the beginning. Remember I'm weird like that. It's also not the first time I've seen a town destroyed." He said moving the two of them towards one of the doors. "But right now knowing the world has... changed... doesn't affect us or our plans. If there is a safe place somewhere-" Dawson pushed open the door to the next room. "-we still need to get there... and-"
Dawson never got a chance to finish as both he and Joy walked into the Pokemon treatment room and were greeted with the sight of Joy's sister laying on the floor curled up in a fetal position. Still in her uniform she was covered in a thin layer of the spores like everything else in the room. Both trainer and nurse stood still for a moment at the sight letting the room fall silent as the door closed behind them.
"S- Sis?" Joy said quietly.
Taking a step forwards she called out again. "Sis... P- Please... your just... your just resting right?" Joy slowly knelt next to the body of her sister, reaching a hand to her shoulder and slowly turning her still form to face the two. "Oh... Oh no..." Her sisters glazed eyes met her and Joy knew she was dead.
Tears formed in Joy's eyes as she knelt down next to her sister. The idea of the world being like this and her sister dead right in front of her was too much for the Pokemon nurse to handle. Pulling her hand away from her sister's body she wrapped them around herself as she felt a chill go though her entire body. Joy started to cry openly while she sat on the floor managing to make out words though her sobs to Dawson.
"Why... why Dawson... why did this happen?" Her sobs continued as she leaned forwards trying to withdraw within herself. "Who would want this? Why would they want this? What could they possibly hope to gain by this? My sisters... My sisters, my cousins and my family are all dead and for no reason at all!"
Dawson sighed as he listened to Joy cry on the floor "Joy..." He closed his eyes and carefully picked out the next few words. "I don't have the answers to your questions." He said walking around the two. "I don't know why it happened or what anyone could hope to gain by this or would desire it." He pulled from a nearby desk a small piece of paper and began making a few folds in it. "The only think I know is that your family isn't all dead. Your here and your alive. If your sister's are even half the woman you are then they'll survive as well. I can't truly believe that they're all going to make it though this, but I assure you that you're not the only nurse Joy left." He finished folding the paper and picked up a white towel from nearby and walked back over to the distraught nurse. "If you can survive so can they."
Reaching over he handed her what he had been folding. A simple origami flower made from the a spare sheet of nurse's notes. Joy watched as he place the white towel over her sisters face and looked up at her.
"I can't do much better then this but at least your sister can rest a little easier knowing she had a funeral." Dawson said as Joy took the flower and placed it on the towel.
As she placed the paper flower over her sister tears flowed from her eyes. She couldn't really see very well but within the hands of her sister Joy saw something that made her heart skip a beat. Wiping away her tears as best she could she reached for a Poke ball that her departed sister was clinging to.
Reaching respectfully Joy slowly slid the Poke ball from the grip of her sibling. Looking at it she knew which Pokemon was inside. Raising the red and white ball up Joy pressed the release and with a flash of light a Chansey appeared.
Unlike many other times once released Chansey didn't cry out in its usual overjoyed tone. Instead it simply looked down at the two Joys with sadness in it's eyes. Stepping forwards it put one of its small stubby arms on the shoulder of Joy silently stood next to her.
Joy sniffed once and reached to Chansey, wrapping her arms around the pink Pokemon as she cried into her. Chansey simply did the same with Joy and made soft soothing noises to calm the Nurse down. After a few moments Joy eventually pulled away and looked at the pink Pokemon.
"Chansey... is anyone left alive in here?" Joy asked tentatively only for the Pokemon to shake its head sadly. "I- I see... Will you come with us? Some of the children survived with me and Dawson. We could really use your help getting to blackthorn." Chansey responded with a nod of its head.
Standing up and looking to Dawson, who was leaning against the desk, Joy wiped away the tears in her eyes. Taking out the Poke ball she returned Chansey to her ball. With one last longing look at her sister Joy then turned and walked out of the medical lab with Dawson following.
"I'm going to head to the center's cafeteria, I want you to get to the supply closet and get as much medical supplies as you can." Dawson said hoping that giving Joy something to work on would help get her mind off her sister. "After that we can head to the Poke mart in town and pick up everything else we need."
Joy looked at Dawson as she stopped outside. "Are we going to carry all of this back to the camp?"
"No I saw a wagon we can hook up my Rapidash or the Poneyta to back at the windmill. Once we get all the supplies together I'll send you back to the camp on Togekiss and have her return with Rapidash." Dawson replied. "I'll get the stuff together and you can work on getting the kids information down. We'll need shoe sizes, house numbers so we can get their clothes, and figure out sleeping arrangements."
"Sounds like you thought a lot about this..." she said.
"Not really, When I started out my journey I was tasked with chaperoning two kids who's parents were worry worts. I'm just remembering what I needed to get back then and what I wished I had." He said heading off towards the mess hall.
Joy nodded and made her way though the hallways of the Pokemon center. She had worked here for several months before she was given her assignment to head up to the alpine pastures. Knowing where to go allowed her to quickly make her way to the supply closet. Outside the closet she was greeted with the sight of a man who lay slumped face first against the door, his hand holding the electronically locked handle.
She paused and stared at the scene before her. He must have been hoping there was something in the closet to stop the spores from killing him. Only to be stopped by the electronic lock. As his body blocked the door Joy briefly debated in her mind the idea of being respectful and not moving him. It lasted no more then a moment but the speed in which she realized she had to move him, respect or not, made her a little cold inside.
Reaching over she took the man by the shoulders and slowly slid him to the side of the door allowing her access. Placing him down in a face up laying position she put his hands on his chest and closed his eyes with her fingers. She said a small prayer for him and went back to the door.
As she pressed the six key combination and unlocked the door she began to gather all the necessary medical stores inside. Her focus was on the few items the Pokemon center had that the local Poke mart didn't. As she went though she grabbed two of the spare medical bags and loaded them up with two different types of supplies.
Putting together a first response kit for both Pokemon and humans was easy enough as the closet had a guide for preparing such things taped to the wall. Joy faced another problem as the two bags combined with the additional supplies she had added to her own medical backpack was surprisingly heavy.
Joy realized she was carrying three separate bags now and remembered what Dawson said about traveling light. Sighing she put down the two waist bags and took off her own medical bag and began to do a second run though of what she had. After a third and forth check of her supplies, only dropping a box of band-aids as unnecessary, she began to wonder if she'd end up having to carry all this since she couldn't see any of the supplies as being completely unnecessary.
"So... I take it your not done packing yet?" Dawson said as he moved up behind her in the hallway.
He had two backpacks and a waist pack along with an empty cooler bag. He was currently carrying all of it but placed the cooler bag down when he made it to Joy. His back was aching at the weight of it, but he chose to ignore it for now.
Joy sighed and looked back at him. "I'm trying but..."
"There's too much important stuff, right?" He said finishing her sentence. "Did you remember to account for the fact that Gardevior has heal pulse and Chansey has soft boiled along with other abilities?"
"What... oh I guess not." Joy said turning a slight red and going back to the medical supplies and finding a lot more that could be put aside.
With Dawson's advice she managed to cut down the remaining things to two bags. She zipped up the side back and closed the other one's straps. Still blushing she looked up at the trainer to indicate she had finished.
"When we get outside I want you to take Togekiss, one of these backpacks, and head back to the campsite." Dawson said adjusting one of the packs he was carrying to a more comfortable position.
"Are you going to be OK alone?" Joy asked standing up and taking her medial bag and pulling the other over her shoulder.
"Yeah I'll be fine" Dawson said hurriedly, "When you get back to camp get that information from those kids and send it back to me along with Rapidash. My Pokemon are pretty mellow overall so there shouldn't be an issue with that."
Both trainer and Nurse headed to the entrance of the Pokemon center. Once there Dawson stepped out into the drizzle first and looked up to see the Murkrow had gathered once again. Sitting on the rooftops of the buildings they all watched with red eyes as the trainer scanned the roofs. With deliberately slow movements Dawson pulled out Togekiss's Poke ball and released her from inside.
With Dawson's Pokemon's sudden appearance the Murkrow launched themselves into the air again and began circling the town shouting their name's down at the trainer in irritation. Climbing on Dawson handed one of the bags he had obtained to Joy. Patting Togekiss on the side he looked up at the murder or Murkrow and spoke to his Pokemon.
"Fly low and fast Togekiss. Get to the camp then head back here once Joy gives you Rapidash and a list... alright?" Dawson said to his Pokemon as it nodded it's understanding.
Stepping back he watched as Togekiss lifted herself and Joy off the ground and flew quickly and quietly through the streets back towards the campsite. Soon Dawson was left with just himself and the circling Murkrow overhead. As Togekiss vanished from sight a fluttering drew his attention to the top of the Pokemon center's roof.
A large bird Pokemon had landed at the topmost part of the building just above the Pokemon center's sign. It's similarly red eyes stared down at him just like the Murkrow moments before. Pulling out his Pokedex he lined up the scanner and was rewarded with the standard monotone voice of the archive fact.
"HONCHKROW THE BIGBOSS POKEMON. IF ONE UTTERS A DEEP CRY, MANY MURKROW GATHER QUICKLY. FOR THIS, IT IS CALLED 'THE SUMMONER OF THE NIGHT'." The small device said.
"Great..." Sighing Dawson put away his Pokedex and reached for Torterra.
The Honchkrow sensing the movement let out a shrill cry which the Murkrow responded by cawing their name in unison at the trainer. With a swift wrist movement Dawson let his Poke ball release it's owner. In a flash Torterra was next to him with a roar that drowned out the murder of Murkrow.
"Jeeze I feel like I'm about to play out that terrible movie about the attacking bird Pokemon. More's the pity there's no phone booth." Dawson said sardonically as the Murkrow dived en masse at the trainer.
