Author's notes:M-95 Degman is a Croatian tank that has not entered production yet,but prototypes exist. I made up the laser machineguns and flamethrower thing.
Cyclosarine does exist,it is a German nerve gas under the special mark˝GF˝. See A/N of chapter 5 for reading š,j and ć. ˝ž˝ is read like ˝zh˝ and ˝č˝ is read like˝tch˝. Don't forget to review!
Disclaimer:I don't own Pokemon because if I did,Ash&co. would be dead and Team Rocket would rule the world!!
Chapter 8:
The Cerulean battle began to look like a massacre as many TR troopers charged on the defending enemy soldiers and Pokemon trainers,trying to destroy their defense. Troopers followed the tanks,making quick work of the survivors wherever the tanks managed to break through,though Water Pokemon were giving strong resistance on some areas,blocking their advance. Meanwhile,the 6th and 9th Heavy Artillery Group of gen. Sergey Korsakov were shelling the town center,causing panic among people. The alert sirens howled non-stop,but only children and old ones were evacuated. The rest chose to fight for their lives and freedom.
˝This is Giovanni. Status report!˝,the boss wanted to know how was the situation on the battlefield,his voice was loud and impatient.
Gen. Helmer responded calmly,while glancing at the reports about enemy troops:
˝So far,so good,Sir. Our forces have made a breakthrough into the outskirts of the town,we are going forward. Slowly,but steadily.˝
˝Good. Keep me informed on anything new that happens.˝,he became satisfied,what his voice gave away. He cut the connection and caressed his Persian gently.
4 UEPPF officers Ash,Misty,Brock and Gary were among the few ones who actually managed in slowing down the enemy a little bit,primarily thanks to their Pokemon. Ash's old pals Totodile and Squirtle together with Misty's Politod,Staryu and Starmie used their Hydro Pumps and Waterguns to make muddy soil,making it harder for the tanks. However,lots of tanks had amfibious tracks which allowed to traverse mud or even go into water so,that plan had limited success. But Charizard,Cyndaquil,Vulpix and Arcanine managed to roast a couple squads of infantry,which lowered the pressure on the E part of the town. Not only their Pokemon had a hard time,they had to battle themselves to stop the onrushing black-uniformed army.
˝Go down,you criminal S.O.B.-s!˝,Ash swore,after he killed 2 Rockets with several roundhouse kicks to the head. Their bodies rolled away,soon creating a pool of blood beneath them. Pikachu and the other Pokemon usually stunned the enemies,leaving them for Ash&co. to finish off. This mostly worked,and there was a large heap of TR soldiers around them soon. But suddenly 3 Rockets ran at them,and fired madly from their M-249-s,while yelling out a bloodcurling scream:
˝Die,for the Rockets' gloooryyy!!˝
Their bullets hit Arcanine and Squirtle badly,not killing,but incapacitating them. While they were busy with checking up on them,the Rockets quickly flung 2 M-75 handgrenades at their remaining Pokemon. The 4 trainers and some Pokemon ducked just in time,but the shrapnels plunged into Cyndaquil and Staryu,killing them both in a gruesome way. Charizard roared at the 3 soldiers and avenged the deaths with his Dragon Rage,leaving dead,mutilated bodies behind.
But,there was no time to mourn their companions. During their battle with 3 TR foes, another group of soldiers got in an abandoned nearby trench and began to pepper them with their XM 214 miniguns. They were relentless,decisive to either kill them or force to retreat. The attacks annoyed Ash very much and he barked angrily:
˝Pika,make human toasts out of 'em!˝
Pikachu nodded and started to run at the trench,preparing a powerful Thundershock, but the soldiers saw that,and a mortar shell whizzed near him. The shockwave sent him 50m backwards. Ash opened his eyes in shock,then screamed,fearing for his friend:
˝Nooooo! Pikachu!! Hold on there,I'm coming to rescue you!˝
Ash burst forward,firing at the enemy with his M-16,racing with time to save his most precious Pokemon. The trench soldiers returned fire just at the moment when he reached him,testing his reflexes,as he had to leap to take cover,holding Pikachu. Luckily for him,while the soldiers were firing,Brock's Vulpix sneaked close enough to set the ammo on fire. The explosion happened quickly,most of the group was killed,but 2 managed to escape. Ash looked at Pikachu who was badly hurt by the blast and used Full Restore but,it didn't help much,due to his exhaustion. All 4 had to battle without many of their Pokemon,relying on martial arts and weapons. TR soldiers continued to come in large numbers,testing their will,speed and endurance to the limits.
The battle had become bitter,every soldier giving his last ounces of strength for the cause of his army. Things were going well for TR army until the special UEPPF unit ˝Spirit Fighters˝,led by gen. Bruno Tyler himself managed to defeat the Pokemon who were guarding the dams and aqueducts,forcing them to retreat. UEPPF sappers shortly afterwards blew those up,resulting in creation of a large flood. Now,the Water Pokemon had the advantage,they began to push back the TR and inflict large damage to their army. This effect was increased because some UEPPF officers had Grass and Poison Pokemon with the capability of Acid attack. The acid was released into water and muddy soil,causing accelerated corrosion on some tank types.
˝Allright! Now this is my terrain! Let's wash those crooks out!˝,Misty roared her battle scream out. Indeed,she was an expert when fighting in water.
They were well prepared for this,since this was the original plan to fight Team Rocket. They all had good quality waterproof uniforms and were good swimmers unlike TR troopers who were caught by surprise by this turn of events and became sitting ducks for their merciless adversaries who began to slaughter them massively.
Gen. Franz Helmer was petrified by this but managed to gather his senses and call Giovanni,though in a shaky,fearing voice:
˝Sir,are you there? There's been a terrifying turnover. The UEPPF forces drove out the Pokemon that prevented the flooding of this area,and now,we're deep in water. Their troops had obviously planned this,they have waterproof suits. They even put down some of our tanks by releasing acid into the water. What do you suggest that we do,Sir?˝
Giovanni slammed his fist against the table,then responded,clearly in an upset state:
˝Damnit! I knew those law-protecting diletants are up to something! Listen,Franz,I got some reports confirming what you said,about a minute ago. Order most of the infantry to retreat to higher ground,as well as some tank types,like Type 90,RF-16 and BH-92. Gen. Ravanzoni's tanks and T-90-s are not so prone to corrosion,they can stay. I have ordered gen. Hugh Reaper to start aerial strikes. Watch out,they'll be using Napalm bombs. This should ease the situation a bit. The main problem is,our special forces cannot go through,at least not until we get rid of their 10th Motorised Infantry Group of gen. Tsubota,that's what I've heard. You 5 generals are my top ones,I believe in your skills and your ability to command the army even in these very dangerous moments. Hang on there as long as you can,hold your defensive positions and pray that our special forces can make the breach. But remember,you must not,under any circumstances,let your line be breached!˝
General Helmer breathed deeply and said in a dignified voice,now his brave side prevailing,after a moral-boosting speech by his boss:
˝Yes,Sir. I swear,in behalf of me and every general here,we will not stand down,we will fight them,even if it means to the last man.˝
After the talk,the Berlin-born general ordered retreat to a pre-established defensive position. The other generals did the same and the battle entered its second phase. The 5th and 13th Fighter/Bomber Group of gen. Reaper began to harass the enemy,throwing Napalm bombs at their Water Pokemon,forcing them to stop their advance. The temperature of over 1000°C made the water evaporate,creating mist which blocked visibility,making it harder for the UEPPF troops to attack. But as soon as the mist disintegrated,the attacks increased again,pressing the Rockets' defense line.
TR troopers fought bravely,killing many Pokemon. Their courage and the fact that if they get caught,they would be tortured and killed brutally,gave them strength to repel furious assaults of UEPPF soldiers joined with Pokemon.
But the defensive line was struggling heavily to contain the enemy,and it was getting thinner and thinner as time passed. Gen. Helmer,the main army commander became desperate,he thought of many options but none seemed to be the right one.
˝What should I do? The situation is bad. I need those special forces,damnit! I saw that many enemy soldiers have thrown away the part that protects their head from radiation. But I can't take advantage of that,the reinforcements have been prevented from aiding us. We cannot hold on much longer here... Dear God knows what cruel torturing methods will the UEPPF officers use on us if we get captured. We were so close to winning this war,and now,this could be the turning point.˝
˝Die,you piece of shit!˝,Gary Oak cursed after he had cut a soldier's throat,4 friends were cleaning their side with little trouble and their minds already imagined the faces of happy Cerulean citizens cheering their names. No one thought that the battle could see a new turnover,not even in their worst thoughts.
Around 14:30,major Albelin ran to gen. Helmer,in an exhilarated,jubilant state:
˝Sir,excellent news! The reinforcements and special troops have broken through! They are at your disposal,ready to act.˝
The general first opened his eyes widely,then spoke with a relief,clenching his fist:
˝In the last minute! Dispatch the ˝Venom Rockets˝, now! Order the tank groups to provide them with cover,we're launching a counterstrike!˝
The major nodded and ran hurriedly to his communication post. Soon,tanks moved, clearing the path for the new forces. A group of 80-90 TR troopers in protective suits, wearing gasmasks appeared on the battlefield. 2 of them stepped out,and ordered,using megaphones:
˝Team 1,go west! Team 2,go center! Team 3,go east! Call out your Pokemon and begin area intoxication!˝
Many Pokeballs opened,and Poison Pokemon came out,ready to do their masters' biddings. The attack began when many Koffing,Weezing,Grimer,Muk and Dustox began to spew out a blue gas which moved towards the enemy. Upon in contact with it,the UEPPF soldiers began to die massively,as well as most of the Pokemon. Then,other Poison types attacked,preventing the escape from the death-bringing gas cloud. Groups of humans and Pokemon were being surrounded,then murdered by this horrible substance. This proved to be a quick success,as the enemy forces were cut in half just 10 minutes after the use of the gas. The 2 commanders cackled and roared evilly after seeing the effects of that weapon:
˝Jessie,those idiots thought that Poison Pokemon are for no good! I guess this proves that they are wrong! Ha,ha,ha,ha!˝,the blue haired officer enjoyed seeing all those dead men and Pokemon.
The red-haired female officer nodded and replied,barely preventing herself from a strong laughter burst:
˝Indeed,this is entertaining to watch! Those fools trying to get away from the gas... Only 2 things are resistant to this:another Poison Pokemon or a good gasmask. But those airheads have none! And you know what's the most tragic thing? Their suits came with a head cover with an integrated gasmask,and they threw it away,thinking that we won't use gases or the MWRR-1. What a foolish decision!˝
The male officer grinned evilly and added,while explaining like a true scientist:
˝I wonder which guy got the idea of feeding Poison Pokemon with cyclosarine gas? He should be given a medal! Their stomach processes it and we get the deadliest gas ever produced:tri-cyclosarine(TCS)! The symptoms:coughing blood,nausea, convulsions,respiratory and cardiac failure... Need I say more? It is so thick that even the strongest Gust can't blow it away. Oh! There are some buggers left on the eastern side. Jessie,shall we go and make them sorry for confronting Team Rocket?˝
˝Certainly. Let's intoxicate those amateurs.˝,she replied,having only one thing on her mind:a cold-blooded mass murder.
At the place where the ˝Spirit Fighters˝ defeated the TR Pokemon who guarded it,hell broke loose. Even all the most powerful Machop,Machoke,Machamp,Tyrogue, Hitmonchan,Hitmonlee,Hitmontop,Blaziken,Makuhita and Hariyama fell down under the blue gas,leaving this part unprotected.
˝Oh,my God! Misty,Brock,Gary,did you see that? Something is making our men and Pokemon fall like flies! Let's get away from that blue thing!˝,major Ketchum had the same, dreadful sense like when he witnessed the horrendous effects of MWRR-1.
˝What could cause this? It kills in seconds,no one lives! Those deaths,that putrid stench...it's just awful! God,help us!˝,Lt. Hudson was astounded and terrified by the symptoms. He knew a lot about human medicine and poisons that affect human body,but this was something new.
Major Oak cleverly advised:˝Since we don't have those head covers with gasmasks anymore,I say we should rip off a piece of dead soldiers' clothes and cover our mouth and nose,at least to have some protection.˝
They did that,and continued to fight,despite their army was getting massacred. At 15:00,a large force appeared near the ruined dams and aqueducts,going steadily.
After the ˝Venom Rockets˝ had killed most of the ˝Spirit Fighters˝,a big number of engineers and constructors came here to fix the structures. Their checkered white-red patterns told that they were part of special reinforcements of general Miroslav Janšetić sent to stop the enemy. He took his microphone and began giving out loud orders to his troops:
˝Inženjeri! Počnite popravljati brane i akvedukte! Borbene grupe 2,3,4 i 5,postavite vaše topove i minobacače te počnite zasipavati neprijatelja sa zapaljivim granatama! Grupe 1,7,8,9 i 10,jurišajte izravno na njihovu liniju obrane grada! I ne zaboravite navući plinske maske!(Engineers! Start fixing those dams and aqueducts! Combat groups 2,3,4 and 5,mount your cannons and mortars and start pelting the enemy with incendiary shells! Groups 1,7,8,9 and 10,assault directly on their town defense line! And don't forget to pull your gasmasks on!)˝
The heavy barrage fire began soon,Croats carpeted the areas crowded with Water Pokemon with Napalm shells,creating chaos and death everywhere where the enemy was present. The other 5 groups performed a fearstriking onslaught,ripping through the city's defense line which was weakened for the purpose of strengthening the counterattack on TR troops,thinking that they wouldn't have to defend it anymore. This proved to be a tactical error with catastrophic consequences for the UEPPF.
Janšetić's M-95 Degman tanks,equipped with laser machineguns and flamethrowers rumbled through their defence,destroying every resistance,their tracks left bloody marks on the town streets. Soon,all the backup forces,including the special ˝Scandinavia Corps˝ of gen. Albert Crohnfeldt counting 10000 soldiers and 3000 tanks arrived,dealing easily with almost all enemy remaining outside of Cerulean.
Ash looked with sadness in his eyes on the remains of the once mighty Cerulean defense,as he and his group were probably the last ones to be alive outside the town. They were forced into hiding to save their lives. There wasn't anything that they could do to help it. It was sentenced to destruction,they all knew that.
˝Why my hometown? Why all those beautiful Water Pokemon? The people in it didn't do anything... Why did all this happen?˝,Misty sobbed inconsolably as she saw the destruction of her beloved town.
Ash tried to answer those questions,but even he wasn't sure about those answers:
˝I guess that madman Giovanni has insane ambitions and that nothing is sacred to him. But I do not get it...how did so many people join him? They knew that the is an evil,twisted person.˝
Brock Hudson supplied,gritting his teeth in an inhuman anger:
˝Yeah,sick,rotten,megalomaniac,damned bastard! Even Hell would be to good for him. I would do unspeakable things,if I reached him. Grrr!˝
But that conversation was suddenly cut off when 2 voices shouted at them madly:
˝You! We found you,at last! Insulting our boss results in a death punishment! Now,it's payback time!˝,the female voice shouted raspily.
The male voice boomed deeply,preparing a Pokeball:
˝Yes. For all those times when you were lucky,we will take revenge. You may have been lucky in Petalburg,but this time all of you will feel our demonic wrath! As for you 2 fags,I'm gonna enjoy this. Weezing, Ultra Poison Gas!˝
The 2 headed purple Pokemon cried out his name and spewed out the blue gas on the teenagers. They ran away,thinking that their improvised protection will help them. But the cloud neared them and when Misty tripped on a rock,it came to her,entering through her skin. She began to feel dizzy first,then began to shudder.
˝Miiistyy! Nooo! You'll die for doing this,whoever you are!˝,he cried out and let out several fire bursts from his M-16 at the 2 ˝Venom Rockets˝. They dodged and the male voice taunted,in a derisive tone:
˝Feisty,ha? But why care for her? You gave your heart to Gary,right? I bet he's good in bed... Enough of this! Weezing,track him down and then execute Tackle!˝
Weezing charged towards him like an enraged Tauros. He managed to dodge a few times but he got tired soon and had to catch breath. Weezing charged again,ramming into his legs. He was sent flying backwards and landed with a loud noise.
Misty wasn't dead yet,probably because the poison needed more time to kill when entered through skin. She knew that her friends and Pokemon had to be saved so,she secretly put her Pokeballs on the floor,together with Togepi. She hoped that her little companion will be able to use Teleport and get them out of there.
˝W-Who are you two? What do you want??˝,Ash muttered in pain and anger,trying to get up.
The red haired woman answered:˝You thought we were dead? Think again! Let us refresh your memory.
Prepare for trouble!
And make it double!
To protect the world from devastation!
To unite all peoples within our nation!
To denounce the evils of truth and love!
To extend our reach to the stars above!
It is me,Jessie!
And I'm James!
Team Rocket blast off at the speed of light!
No need to surrender now,this was your final fight!˝
Ash gaped at them and screamed in exasperation:
˝It can't be! You 2 should have been dead! But that means...you killed Norman,you rotten bastards!˝
2 Rockets nodded,and pulled out their Scorpions. Just at the moment when they pressed the trigger,white light engulfed Ash and his friends. They disappeared before their very own eyes. James turned to Misty and said,in a grave tone of voice:
˝Your Togepi saved them,but you are facing death,young girl. Before I shorten your miseries,I have to tell you that Ash,for whom you sacrificed,doesn't love you. His love is Gary. After all those years with you,he loves another person! I almost feel sorry for you.˝
He then took a small hatchet and chopped her head off. He returned with Jessie to the base,carrying Misty's head as a trophy. The town was destroyed with the use of rocket launchers and Napalm bombs. All the survivors were shot by gen. Janšetić's orders,as a warning to other cities. Another city fell down,this time the UEPPF put up a good fight but,it wasn't enough.
Cerulean has fallen,and Misty with it. What awaits Pewter and Pallet Town? For how much can they hold on? Will Jessie and James hunt down their arch-enemies?
