Chapter 10
The alarm clock buzzed five-thirty as it was programmed. Mark killed the alarm and sat up. His Pokémon groaned and murmured under their breaths.
"Emo?" Emolga asked.
Mark said, "You can sleep a little longer, girls."
Emolga managed a smile and curled up with a pillow.
Mark got up and walked to the bathroom, stripped off his clothes, and took a short shower. He dried himself off and brushed his teeth and shaved. He then slipped his clothes back on and pocketed the toothbrush and tube of toothpaste. Mark walked back into the hotel room and flipped on the lights, now his Pokémon really complained. "Use the bathroom," he said, his voice blunt from grogginess. "When you're all done, we're gone."
His Pokémon weren't too happy of waking up early. They were groggy, disoriented even. Nonetheless, they done what they were told. Emolga used the bathroom first, then Pikachu, then both the Cheering Pokémon. Once the toilet was flushed, Mark took the Poké balls and recalled Pikachu and the Cheering Pokémon. Then Emolga leaped up on his shoulder. "Emo," she mumbled.
"You can sleep on my shoulder if you want," said Mark. "It's going to be a while before we get out into the forest."
Emolga nodded, then snuggled on his shoulder.
Mark picked up his shaving kit and pocketed them, then dumped a fifty-dollar bill on the bed along with the key card. He stepped out into the sidewalk. The sun was still below the horizon and the streetlights were still on. Mark scanned the street for morning walkers. There were none. He headed back toward main-street, his eyes scanning for a particular store. His eyes centered on a particular convenience store that kind of looked off. The front window was cracked, but the electric signs were blazing bright as ever. It was open, so he stepped inside.
The front counter was glass, and displayed underneath were a selection of knives. Pocketknives from the left, fixed-blade knives the right. The clerk was a thirty-something year old with messy hair. He looked like a renegade, much like Mark.
"Morning," said the clerk.
"Morning," said Mark. "I'm looking for good quality knives, a fixed-blade and a folding one. Can you help me there?"
The clerk nodded. "What kind of fixed-blade do you want?"
"A smooth blade with a thick rubber handle. If I jammed the blade into something thick, I don't want it slipping out of my hand and slicing my fingers."
The clerk walked over to the right and opened up the display cabinet, he pulled out a knife and sat it on the table. "We don't have any knives with rubber handles but we have one with a carbon-fiber grip. Quite strong, the diamond ridges are guaranteed to grip your palm."
Mark picked up the knife. It was a 14 centimeter blade, carbon-impregnated stainless-steel. The handle, as the clerk have said, was thick with diamond ridges. Mark squeezed the handle, then twirled the blade one-eighty degrees.
"You used to be army?" the clerk asked.
"Yes," said Mark, which was half-true. "It teaches you strict discipline."
"What's your name?"
"Max Pane."
"Well, Max, will this knife suit your needs?"
Mark nodded. "As close as it would get," he sat the knife on the table. "Now for a secondary knife, same standards as the last one."
The clerk walked to the left and opened up another cabinet, then picked out a pocketknife. "Will this do?"
The pocketknife had a metal handle, the blade also made out of stainless steel. Mark flicked it open, the blade was carbon-impregnated. He gripped the handle and twirled it one-eighty degrees, he nodded. "This would do, how much?"
"Five-hundred Pokédollars."
Mark whistled. "I think that about does it."
He fished out his wallet and noticed he had barely enough cash left. Mark handed over most of his Pokédollar bills and the clerk counted them, he then grabbed the holster to the hunting knife and handed it to him. The holster was a thick velvet black with a secondary pouch. There was also a mini Velcro strap with a snap-on button to hold the knife in place. Mark slipped the knife back into the holster, then tucked the pocketknife into its secondary pouch. "Enjoy your purchase, Max," said the clerk.
"I will," said Mark.
Mark stepped out of the store and strapped the holster to his belt, he then walked to the corner of the street before waking Emolga. "We're heading to the forest now, I'll wake you when we get there."
"Em," she nodded.
. . .
Tesla woke up around the same time Mark did. He sat up on his bed and looked around. Ash was sleeping in the next bed. His Pikachu was curled up in his arms, snoozing away. Cilan and Iris were sleeping in their, while Rex slept near the door. Sara and Volts were nowhere in sight. Either they were in their Poké balls or sleeping in the next room.
The Mouse Pokémon got out the bed and smoothed out the covers, then headed for the restroom. He grabbed a small Pokémon Center shampoo bottle out of the dispenser and took a long shower. Tesla used up the entire bottle while the floor of the shower got a fresh yellow plush carpet. He stepped out, dried himself off, then brushed his teeth using the Pokémon Center toothbrush and toothpaste. Tesla grinned in the mirror. No matter how many times he brushed, his teeth were still brown and rotten.
He tossed the toothbrush into the trash can and sat the tube of toothpaste on the counter, then walked back to the lobby. The Red Cross bag sat behind the receptionist desk, ready to go. Tesla looked around the room. It was empty. The spot where Sara and Volts sat was bare, the couch behind the TV was empty as well. He was alone.
Or so he thought.
"You're leaving now?"
Tesla turned around and saw Pinki standing behind him. "No, not yet. I'm just getting ready."
"Remember to find Tendon," Pinki said again. "Tell her I want answers."
Tesla nodded. "You want the whole truth?"
"Yes, everything you could get out of her."
"Alright then."
Then Pinki asked, "You want something to eat?"
"Cereal, with soymilk."
Pinki head to the back and returned with a bowl of cereal, Tesla sat behind the TV as she handed it to him. "You ever ate Pokémon food?" she asked.
"Not a single millimeter," said Tesla. "I spent my entire life eating naturally growing fruits and vegetables and people food. Mostly people food though, even though they're not designed for my biology."
"The PRA don't eat Pokémon food either," Pinki asked.
"Chances are they got that habit from Nobark, Irvin never fed his Pokémon the usual food. He always gave them people food because he treated his Pokémon like human beings rather than Pokémon."
Tesla sat back and flipped on the TV. There weren't anything worth watching this early in the day. A lot of the channels had pre-paid commercials running. The channels that were playing looked like old reruns from a few years ago. Tesla flipped to the local news channel, then muted it. "You ever thought of leaving Soho?" he asked Pinki.
"I can't, it's my home."
"So was Faraday Island, so was Kanto. I was chewed up and spat out from both of them. It's not really hard to leave, assuming you have a place in mind you wanna see."
Pinki asked, "How long since you've been away from home?"
"A few months now, can't say how long. I'm losing track of the days. Maybe in the end I would settle down somewhere. But not here, not in Unova. It's too close to Faraday Island.
"How about Sinnoh? They have Mice Pokémon there."
"I'm not sure that I wanna be with my own kind," said Tesla. "The world is a big place, and there are a lot of Pokémon out there. I wonder how many of them are corrupted, like PRA-corrupted, if you know what I mean," Tesla took a bite out of his cereal. "If the PRA is bigger than we have anticipated, then they could have branches all over Unova and maybe all over the world. The Pokémon Resistance Army is searching for freedom, civil rights, and Nobark isn't going anywhere with it. Terrorizing a town into closing itself up from the world marks the PRA as a failed cause. Even if Nobark succeeds, he's still going to breakdown. I know his mental state, it's bad. I shouldn't have convinced Irvin not to put him down."
Steam poured out of Pinki's ears, she torted, "If you hadn't, App would still be alive."
Tesla nodded. "She would, but Tendon is, as you say, a loose cannon. She would eventually get to a point where she had enough and either one, leave Soho and never come back, or two, defect and kill either you or App."
Pinki blinked, then let out a sob. "She should have got me instead of my sister."
"Then your sister would be in your place feeling the same thing for you," said Tesla. "Same behavior, but different names. I wouldn't even tell the difference if I was speaking to App instead of you."
"What do you mean?"
"Your identical twins?"
Pinki nodded. "Yeah, the DNA tests showed our genetic code are almost identical. They're almost mirror images of themselves."
"The way you two are set up, your problems are universal. It's one of those weird math equations the universe conger up. If your sister is spared, but you die. She would suffer as much as you are suffering now. What happened to App is not your fault, someone's going to get the burden no matter who gets murdered."
Pinki asked, "How do you know all that?"
"I spent a lot of time reading textbooks of various material, and I spoke to Pokémon first hand to back up the knowledge. I'm an old Pikachu, Pinki. Old age brings wisdom."
"But it also brings senility."
"True, I've been fighting it for years. Sometimes it's just hard to think around certain times of the day."
Rex stepped into the room, he was just letting out a yawn when he noticed the old Pikachu. "Morning," he said. "You get up early?"
"Only when there's something important," said Tesla. "Is everything ready to go?"
"Everything's all set," said Rex. "Wait, you wanna go now?"
Tesla nodded. "Yes."
"You wanna say goodbye to Ash first?"
"I'm going to see him again, I just don't want anyone slow me down right now."
A part of Tesla wanted to say goodbye, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Might as well let Ash sleep off his morning. Soho had enough problems brewing around that Tesla doesn't wish to agitate the town more than he have to. He needed to get out before Ash wakes up, probably seeing him would remind the kid to seek a peaceful alternative, when the chances for one were slim to none.
Rex sighed and turned around. "I'm gonna go get dressed, then I'll drop you off at the forest. You sure you can handle yourself, Tes? Cause from that point on, you're on your own."
"I can handle myself," said Tesla. "How do you think I lived for so long?"
. . .
PRA conscripts woke up to find the Panpour missing, though no one raised the alarm. It was common for new recruits to come and go. Some new recruits might even stay for half an hour before wandering off into the forest. Sometimes never coming back. Nobark managed to track most cases down, he claimed that he sent the new recruits to cells around Unova for certain missions. Nobody asked where those cells were or the nature of the missions. The PRA never question things related to their job descriptions.
While everyone was eating breakfast around the fire pits, Wotter came out to join them. A few eyes rolled over him, but a handful remained fixed. Certain PRA members had felt Wotter's wrath and learned to fear him. He could lash out on them at any time. Either in front of everybody or behind closed doors. It doesn't matter. The only Pokémon who stood up to Wotter so far was Smugleaf, and that was years ago. The Pokémon who feared Wotter were mostly first-evolution Pokémon, assuming they were the kind of Pokémon who evolve. The common victims were water-types, though other types were affected as well. He was especially harsh on fire-types. When a Tepig gone missing three years back, there were rumors that Wotter had killed the Fire Pig Pokémon and roast him on a stick in the middle of the night. Which would make sense, since Fort Wernher smelled like bacon for three days after the Tepig's disappearance.
Nobody asked Wotter if he had seen the Panpour. Mostly because there were no prior heat between the two. The Spray Pokémon was young and recent, no time for rivalry to form. So nobody bothered asking him about it. Wotter grabbed a few carrots from a cooler and nibbled on them. Scout came up and asked him if he wanted anything, the Discipline Pokémon shook his head and turned away. While everyone was finishing up, Nobark came from behind. The conscripts didn't notice him until he was standing right next to Wotter. They all jumped in shock, but Wotter just sat there. He didn't mind Nobark's presence as he was a close friend from the old days.
Like him, the Scrafty was a far cry from the one he first met. Nobark walked like a zombie. Back hunched over. Arms hanging loosely from the shoulders. There was a bruise on his forehead, apparently fresh.
"You okay, Nobark?" Wotter asked.
"Had a flashback from my battling days," he said. "Head-butted the wall by accident."
"Sleepwalking?"
"No, I just got up and slammed against solid concrete. The wall didn't crack but my head hurts like f*ck."
No angry Nobark today, Wotter thought.
He lazily strolled through the PRA sitting groups toward Scout, everyone backed away in fear he would change moods without warning. "Go find Smugleaf," he said. "There's something going on around Soho, I need you and Smugleaf to go find out what it is."
Scout nodded. "Yes, sir."
Scout got up and head toward the elite bunker, then Nobark head back towards his. Wotter sat and watched him wobble on his feet. The Hoodlum Pokémon tripped and caught a wall with his shoulder. He held it in place for a moment, then regained his balance.
One Pokémon mustered up the courage and said to the Dewott. "You ever worry about him?"
"All the time," said Wotter without turning his head.
. . .
Bubbles was starting to get used to sleeping in a dirty bed in a smelly room, but she was far from comfortable. Having a scaly serpent with legs as a roommate was far from ideal. For one thing she smelled like boiled cabbage, and her breath had a weird mint and dead leaves scent. Her farts were sporadic and rancid, Bubbles wondered to herself how she survived sleeping in the toxic air. She still wanted to go home, but home was no longer there. Mommy was gone. Gloria was gone. All she was left with was a fort filled with oddballs with dirty beds and mountains of garbage.
Not wanting to spend another moment in bed with Smugleaf, she got up and quietly left the room. If Wotter was around the corner, then so be it. She would do anything to be away from Smugleaf for a day.
Bubbles was just about to head out of the elite bunker when the door opened. A Patrat stepped through, Bubbles stopped. She had seen Patrats in the wild before, but she never had met one up close. As far as she could tell, Patrats were paranoid creatures who never let her guard down. But this Patrat wasn't paranoid, nor was it surprised. That was something the Oshawott hadn't expect.
"Is Smugleaf in her bedroom?" it asked.
"Yes," she said. "But she's sleeping right now."
The Scout Pokémon blinked. "You're Bubbles, right? The one Wotter dragged in here?"
Bubbles nodded. "Yup, that's me."
"I heard what happened to what Wotter did to you yesterday. I'm sorry about that."
"It's okay, he didn't break anything."
"You're lucky," said the Patrat. "He would do a lot worse if he was feeling up to it."
"Like what?"
Now the Scout Pokémon was surprised. "You don't know?"
"What?"
"If Wotter was feeling up to it, he would rape you."
Bubbles raised an eyebrow. "What is rape?"
The Patrat's eyes went big, scaring Bubbles so much that she nearly toppled on her butt."Oh my f*cking Ho-Oh, you don't even know what is rape is? How old was your trainer, assuming you had one?"
"She was eight!" Bubbles blurted.
"Wow," said the Patrat. "You're definitely closed off from the outside world, it would have been a shock if you have learned it the hard way."
Bubbles ran passed the Patrat, it jumped to the side as she ran of the elite bunker. "Alright," it called out. "Suit yourself!"
The Sea Otter Pokémon got a short distance away from the bunker before slowing down. She rest against a log and panted. Closed off, she thought. How am I closed off?
Bubbles looked across Fort Wernher. All sorts of small bi-petal and four-legged Pokémon sat around campfires, they talked amongst themselves as they dug into their breakfasts. Bubbles's stomach growled. Hunger was a concept she had rarely felt. Back with Gloria, she was fed at least four times a day. Breakfast, lunch, dinner, and desert. All yummy and fresh from the oven and freezer. Sometimes she felt peckish, but never had she felt full-blown hunger. For the last three days, she had nothing but marshmallows, fresh-cooked stew, and so-called "vodka." Bubbles hadn't had a single meal since her time here.
Bubbles's belly growled, she let out a moan as she walked across Fort Wernher, looking for a few Pokémon that were friendly. A lot of the Pokémon had creepy looks on their faces, they talked with a tone that sounded wrong. Bubbles avoided them, they reminded her of Wotter.
Eventually she found a fire pit with small Pokémon. They seem friendly enough. There was an Emolga and a Joltik sitting by the fire. Bubbles strolled up and down. The Emolga looked up. "New here?"
Bubbles nodded. "Yeah," then she asked. "What's for breakfast?"
The Emolga reached into a cardboard box. It was greasy around the bottom with numbers written on the side, it looked like it was shipped in by mail and left to sit out in the open for a few weeks. Bubbles watched as the Sky Squirrel Pokémon pulled out an olive-green packet and a water bottle. "Here," said the Emolga. "This is what we have."
Bubbles looked at the packet's face. Big black letters were imprinted on the pouch, no pictures. "What is this?"
"They call it a Meal Ready to Eat," said the Emolga. "Or just MRE for short."
"Where's the pictures?"
"There isn't any. The MREs can have all sorts of flavors but they all look the same. I'm not sure what that one taste like, so you better get used to what you're eating."
Bubbles tore the packet open and looked inside. The MRE looked like oatmeal and sawdust compressed into a brick. It looked dry and aged.
"You gotta add water first," said the Emolga.
The Sea Otter picked up the bottled water and twist it open, then poured some into the pouch. The brick dissolved and broke apart upon contact.
"Eat it just like that," said Emolga. "Might taste like hard tack if you're lucky."
"Hard tack?" Bubbles asked.
"Small easy-to-make biscuits. If made right, should taste like bread. Get the recipe wrong, wet cardboard. A little salt would boost flavor though."
Bubbles peaked into the pouch, the MRE was pretty much dissolved now. She lifted the MRE and poured some of it into her mouth. She squeezed her eyes and clamped down on her mouth. The MRE taste like soggy breadcrumbs and rotten pineapple. This wasn't made with love and care in mind. No, this was backwash. Mommy wouldn't make food like this. She would take care in adding in the right ingredients, baking it at the right temperature, then serve it for a delicious dinner. The thanksgiving meal, now that was food. But this soggy backwash, however, was not.
The Sea Otter Pokémon used whatever will she had left and swallowed it down, it felt like sandpaper had crammed down her throat.
"It takes a while to get used to," said Emolga.
"Ugh," Bubbles yucked. "There goes my appetite!"
"There are some other flavors. If you can read the labels, the MREs wouldn't taste so random."
Bubbles shot a look at the Sky Squirrel, its expression changed. "You've lost your trainer too, didn't you."
That was no question. Bubbles felt the tears rise up again, she held them back. "I watched her die."
"I saw my trainer got killed in front of me," said the Emolga. "I didn't have any time to mourn, the bag just came down over my head and everything went blank."
"What happened?" Bubbles asked.
"I don't know, the PRA won't tell me. All I know there was gunshots and blood. It was dark out, I was inside my Poké ball went it all went down."
The Joltik lift its head out of its own MRE and looked up. "I ran away from my trainer," it said. "I, uh, had done something bad. Really bad. I don't think he would ever forgive me."
"What did you do?" Bubbles asked.
"I don't wanna talk about it."
Bubbles sat back and sighed. "We've all been through a lot."
"Pales in comparison of Wotter though," said Emolga. "His trainer stripped him of his pride and morale, and replaced them with anger and hate. I couldn't imagine the torture the Dewott had been through."
Bubbles looked around Fort Wernher. "Do you know what this place is?"
"Not really, all they told me was that this place used to be a military fort. It doesn't have running water or gas, and there's barely enough electricity being generated."
"Big issue for me on that last part," said the Joltik. "My body is too small to hold a charge, so I suck whatever juice I can out of batteries and the gennys. As long as I don't Thundershock anything, I think I can scrape by."
"I can share some electricity with you," said the Emolga.
"Thanks, but no thanks. You are more needed around here than me, you can't afford to pass out around here."
Bubbles glanced around the fort again, this time she noticed Smugleaf coming out of the elite bunker. The Grass Snake Pokémon glanced around, saw her, then started running towards her. Her feet moved awkwardly, like a cross between jogging and skipping. Bubbles blinked, the way her tail swung up and down made her brain numb looking at it.
"Bubbles," Smugleaf cried. "I got up and saw you were gone!"
"That room stinks, I had to get fresh air."
Smugleaf stared at her for a moment. "Well then, I got a task Nobark needs me to do. Will you be alright while I'm gone?"
"I'll be fine," said Bubbles. "I think."
The Snivy looked up and saw the Emolga. "Hey, Emolga!"
"Hi, Smugleaf!" the Emolga waved back.
Smugleaf turned back to Bubbles. "I see you've already made some friends, a few more might make Wotter back off. Whatever you do, don't get disconnected with them."
"Okay, Smugleaf," said Bubbles. "I'll keep in touch."
Smugleaf hugged Bubbles for a moment, then kissed her on the cheek. The Oshawott's mouth tasted sour, she squealed as Smugleaf pulled away. "See yah later, Bubbles!" Smugleaf chirped, using a tone that oddly sounded like Gloria.
You're still creepy.
When Smugleaf was out of earshot, Bubbles wiped the cheek she kissed with her wrist. "Ugh, she's so wrong!"
"Just for a heads up," said Emolga. "Smugleaf is the nicer version of Wotter. If you look deep enough, you'll see two sides of the same coin, each of the two owning a side. Now that Grass Snake Pokémon, as so she told everyone, is that she's bi-sexual."
"What's a bi-sexual?"
Emolga hesitated for a moment, then said, "Someone who prefers to have romantic relationships with both genders. Male, female. Doesn't matter. Wotter may be an asshole, but Smugleaf is one seductive Snivy."
Bubbles squirmed. "No wonder she is so weird!"
"Don't be so harsh," said Joltik. "She's just trying to help you."
"I don't need her help!"
Bubbles got and walked away, but Emolga followed her. "Bubbles, if you want I can find something for you to do in the meantime."
"I don't want to play right now."
"We're not going to, Nobark forbids the PRA members from playing. Instead he gets us to work, simple tasks that needed to be doing."
Bubbles thought for a moment. During her entire time with Gloria, she never had to do chores or anything. Mommy always take care of the house, keeping it clean. Bubbles never thought of doing chores. Never thought of cleaning a bedroom. Never thought of scrubbing a toilet. It was Mommy who does that, not her or Gloria. The concept of doing work never exactly fit well into her mind.
"We'll wait for Smugleaf to get back," said Bubbles. "We'll ask her about the room and such."
. . .
Just across Fort Wernher. Wotter watched Bubbles talk to the squirrel and the bug. That pink sack of sh*t was not the kind of Pokémon he would never be again. An Oshawott, a little daredevil of his species. Heck, all that fun and play was a waste of time. Maybe if Wotter had worked in pleasing his trainer a little more, he wouldn't had salt scraping his skin and dealing with sh*tdicks all day. He snorted. Yeah, sh*tdicks.
Wotter spat in the grass and headed straight back into the elite bunker. He passed Smugleaf's room and two other vacant rooms. He stopped at one door. A latch lock was screwed into the door. Wotter screwed it in there recently. He slid the latch back and opened the door. Leaning against the wall of an empty room was the Panpour. She was pinned to the wall, her arms and legs were spread far apart, duct taped to various plumbing fixtures in the room. They were tight, so tight that it gave her excruciating pain. Her mouth was gagged with a rag, also sealed in place with duct tape. She had been sitting there since last night. Wotter wasn't sure when she woke up, not that it mattered in all. Her head was held low, softly sobbing to herself. Wotter grit his teeth, she was just like all the other sh*tdicks. Well then, might as well get her to clean up her act. She was too much of a sh*tdick to do it herself.
He walked up to the Panpour. She stank with fresh sweat and urine. To Wotter, it was a wonderful smell, like breathing in a used undershirt fresh off its wearer. He got on his knees and pulled the gag off, grabbed her chin, and forced her eyes to look into his. The Spray Pokémon squirmed, sobbing into the palm of his hand. Wotter stared at her for a moment, then pressed her lips into his.
He held the kiss for a full minute, then released and put the gag back on. "Be ready for round two," he told her.
The Panpour held her head low and shook her head, probably wondering how much of a sh*tdick she really was. Wotter nodded, then stepped out and relocked the door.
. . .
Tesla sat in silence as Rex drove him to the checkpoint in a rental car. It was a cheap sedan, manufactured a few years back. Despite its age it was perfectly clean. The interior smelled like Lysol and carpet soap. Not a single smudge or bird dropping stained the windows, they were so clean they might as well be air. Tesla leaned up to peak outside, saw nothing of interest, then set back down.
Soho customs cleared Rex through the checkpoint. He didn't have to share any paperwork or anything. Must be Chief Hattricks's doing. Whatever the reason, they didn't seem too happy. They cut the GPS device off Rex's ankle and let him drove through. Tesla didn't look back, he simply kept his fixed forward and rested.
He drove on until the checkpoint was out of sight. Tesla saw Rex relaxed. He must be expecting to be arrested or something.
"You have something to hide?" Tesla asked.
"Yeah," he said. "A .38 Model 10."
"Smith & Wesson?"
Rex nodded. "With a snub-nose for better accuracy," then he asked, "You're familiar with guns?"
"My trainer was a gun-nut," said Tesla. "He practically trained all of his Pokémon to shoot a gun. Well, those with hands at least. Just how do you think Nobark gotten a hold of an AK-47?"
Rex went silent for a moment, then asked, "What is the Tesla Cannon like?"
"The cannon's a death machine," said Tesla. "It's like Hyper Beam, but it is a constant blast and it destroys anything it touches. It blows apart human beings and Pokémon alike, turns them into ash. They're practically vaporized."
"How does it work?"
"It's basically a portable Tesla coil, it amplifies my power and concentrates it to a single point. Nothing complicated about it."
"How did Irvin get a hold of it?"
"Team Rocket, they were the manufacturer. He got the original blueprints from the Faraday Government and got them to design and build it. Not only Irvin stole the damn thing, he also copied the blueprints. I never said a thing when he lugged the crate into the back of the osprey when we're heading back home. I knew what it was. I just don't wanna know how he got it."
"You ever fired it?"
"Yes, I had to. I was the only one who can use it, so they called me in. We set it up in a controlled environment and I fired the damn thing, it was so powerful that it cut through the heavy titanium plating of the walls and killed a few people. Team Rocket deemed the test a success despite the overkill."
"You . . . you ever felt regret for killing?"
"No," said Tesla. "After what happened to me all those years ago, I don't feel much empathy for others."
"Not a drop?" Rex asked.
"I put down a friend of mine who was fatally wounded. Never felt bad over it, even though everyone melted down for a few days."
"What does your trainer think about it?" Rex asked.
"He knew what he was handling when we first met."
The car went silent after that. Tesla sit back and closed his eyes, trying to picture what Nobark looked like. Scrafty, big mohawk, shaking arm, the constantly changing personalities. Sounds about right. The Hoodlum Pokémon was raking up the years. The older he got, the more unstable he became. Despite his sociopath tendencies, Nobark was a good friend. He was close to Matt, loyal to Irvin, loyal to him. Tesla thought for a moment. Could he still influence him like he did back in the Westinghouse days? Irvin conditioned him so. Even though Irvin was long dead, doesn't mean Nobark wouldn't listen to him. Tesla frowned. If Nobark was still loyal, then he could also steer the PRA to his own ends. Who knows? He might dismantle the entire militia with a single command.
"What political affiliation are you?" Rex suddenly asked.
"What do you mean?"
"The PRA is mostly about politics, right?"
Tesla nodded. "Right."
"So what political affiliation are you, and Irvin? Maybe there's something we can work on there."
"Irvin's a liberal, a bit radical but sensible."
"What about you?" Rex asked.
"I don't have a preference."
"Surely you lean somewhere."
Tesla said nothing.
"What is it, left or right?"
"Hm, maybe somewhere near the right. Can't say I'm a liberal or a conservative, but I can say I feel more right-wing as I get older."
"What about Nobark's affiliation, do you know?"
"The last that I recalled, he was very conservative, more radical than Irvin was liberal. He learned Irvin's system so well that he didn't want it to change."
Rex slowed the car and made a right turn. The road went from paved to gravel, the sky went from blue to green. Tesla peaked out the window. All he saw was trees. He felt a part of his brain buzz, reminding him of his childhood.
"You're much of a nature person?" Rex asked.
Tesla frowned. "I was born and raised in the wild, with wilderness Pokémon values. If I wasn't, I would have stayed in Faraday City."
"Sorry I asked."
The twist and turns were bumpy and jagged. The car bounced up and down, churning Tesla's stomach. He hid his sudden nausea, the last he needed today was to be berated by a Pokémon doctor. He felt relief when Rex slowed and pulled to a stop.
"I can't take you any farther," he said. "Just down this road is Fort Wernher. This road hadn't been used for years. The farther you go, the more things become wild than man."
Tesla said nothing.
"You okay back there?"
"Uh, yeah. I just couldn't see much. How far did we go?"
"A few kilometers, well away from Soho. We've just went at least two kilometers into the forest."
"Any warning signs posted?"
"Just old military signs that has more rust than paint, but nothing from the PRA."
Tesla unbuckled his seatbelt and grabbed the Red Cross book sack. "Thank you for bringing me out here, Rex."
"No problem. Just be careful, Tes. I know Nobark may be your friend in all but he had killed people and Pokémon."
"He killed before, I watched him do it. I know what I'm dealing with, Rex."
Tesla opened the car door and jumped out, Rex rolled his window down and stuck his head out. "One more thing," he said. "Find that Tesla Cannon, assuming it's still around."
"I'll see if it is," said Tesla. "Bye."
Rex U-turned around the gravel road and head back the way he came. Tesla watched his rental car kicked up dust as it bounced along the road. When it was out of sight, Tesla hunched over and vomit out his cereal he had for breakfast that morning.
"I hate cars," he muttered in Pokémon speech.
. . .
High above the tree line, Swoo I flew overhead. Hissonar scanned the forest floor, searching for movement. Nobark entrusted him on security, he couldn't afford to have a security breech. That would make Nobark angry. Nobark isn't nice when he's angry.
The Courting Pokémon's radar eventually picked up something moving down in the trees. He wasn't sure what it was. The shape was foreign. Small. Maybe weighing less than ten kilograms. Swoo I concentrated his radar. Inside his mind, the blip took the shape of a rodent with a lightning bolt tail.
I don't recognize this Pokémon, he thought.
It had something, and whatever it is it was carrying a backpack. Whatever this Pokémon is it was heading toward Fort Wernher. Swoo I panicked, he spun 180 degrees and flied back toward base, his wings flapping as fast as they could take him.
. . .
Smugleaf and Scout were just a hundred meters from the gate when Swoo I swooped down. Both Pokémon covered their eyes as dirt was kicked up, then Smugleaf said, "What is it, Swoo I?"
"Found a trespasser," said Swoo I. "A loner, not a Pokémon I recognize."
"What does it look like?"
"A fat rodent. Small. Maybe less than ten kilograms. And it's carrying a backpack."
Smugleaf nodded. "Any identifying features?"
"It has a lightning bolt tail, a big one."
A Pikachu, Smugleaf thought. "Okay, return to base and inform Nobark. I'll bring the trespasser in."
Swoo I nodded. Understood.
The Swoobat flied into the trees and vanished.
"It's definitely a Pikachu," said Smugleaf. "No other Pokémon has a lightning bolt tail like a Pikachu."
"A Pikachu?" Scout asked.
"I've seen one in Vegas City, I know what they look like."
"Are they local?"
"No, they come as far away as Kanto."
"Then what is a Pikachu doing here in Unova?"
Smugleaf turned to Scout. "That is what we're going to find out."
. . .
The gravel road had grass growing everywhere. After years of neglect, the forest was finally trying to reclaim what man once took. It looked abandoned, forgotten. Tesla readjusted the backpack and made his way down the road. If this gravel road indeed led to his old friend, there were no signs of Pokémon activity anywhere. The forest was silent. No birds chirping, no wilderness Pokémon anywhere. They were gone, long gone for many years. If the PRA were overthrown today, the wilderness Pokémon might not even move back in. There was so much history, so much misery, in these woods that stood on the border of human civilization.
The wind rustled the leaves above, Tesla sniffed the air. A foul pungent odor greeted his nose. The old Pikachu squeezed his eyes shut. He knew that smell. There was a difference between a wild Pokémon and a feral. Wild Pokémon smelled more like earth and leaves with a spruce scent, as they nestled in the mud for years and had become assimilated into it. Feral Pokémon on the other hand were a little different. They smelled stronger than their wild counterparts. It smelled more human, but more barbaric. Whoever's scent this was, it was strong and the owner was quite near.
Tesla veered off the gravel road and bushwhack parallel to it. His ears tune in to faint sounds, and listened.
He heard faint chatter, it sounded like it was a Snivy. The accent of its voice was a bit off. It was more refined, the syllables plainly spelled out. It was different from a wild Pokémon's accent, who slur and exaggerate their words. To a human ear, there is no difference. The faint accent is too high for them to hear. But for a Pokémon like Tesla, the accent sounded clear as day.
Definitely born in human captivity, he thought. Definitely PRA.
Tesla peaked through the vegetation and saw the Snivy in question. It was walking with a Patrat. Side by side. Like they were friends. The Snivy was a little fat and had faint traces of scars on its body. This was definitely a former battler, but it looked like that time of its life was ancient history. Tesla then noticed something strapped onto its back. It looked like a leather holster. Home-made. A knife's handle protrude out of it. The handle looked worn in from years of use.
"That Pikachu you saw in Vegas City was recent right?" The Patrat asked.
"Two of them actually," said the Snivy. "One of them is independent, the other with a trainer. The independent one acts more human so I bet it's this one."
"Why would it be heading for Fort Wernher?"
"Your guess is as good as mine."
Tesla dug into his backpack and pulled out Mark's .22 Ruger. It hadn't been fired since its bath in the ocean. If he pulled the trigger, the gun might malfunction and shoot shrapnel back at him. But he doesn't actually need a pistol. He was the Master of Electricity. A single bolt from his thumb is enough to kill a man.
He waited till the Snivy and the Patrat passed by. They were slow, relaxed. They had a rough idea of who he was, maybe they were thinking he was just another Pikachu.
That kind of thinking insured Tesla a long life.
The Mouse Pokémon stepped out of the bushes. The Snivy and the Patrat kept on walking, blissfully unaware. Good.
He threw up a hand and called out a mighty Thunderbolt. Blue-purplish lightning shot out of his hand and grounded itself just between the Snivy and the Patrat. The concentrated electricity didn't touch them, the sudden flash and bang knocked them off balance. They stumbled and fell to the ground a second later, the echo of the Thunderbolt already fading into a distant roar.
. . .
Nobark was laying on his bed when he heard the crack of thunder. His eyes shot open. Even though the thick walls muffled most of the sound, he knew it all too well. It was like a fingerprint. All electric-types have their own unique signature, a trained ear can tell them apart. But it didn't take an expert to recognize this thunder.
"Tesla," Nobark thought aloud. "My friend is here."
. . .
Smugleaf's mouth tasted like metal. Her vision was blurry and her ears rang. It only took a moment for her senses to clear. She was just about to get up to her feet when she heard the faint cock of a handgun.
She froze.
"Get up," said a hoarse Pikachu voice. "Hands where I could see them."
Smugleaf stood up and lifted her hands.
"You freeze right there, Snivy," the Pikachu said. "You move a millimeter toward that knife, you wouldn't have time to pull it out."
Smugleaf felt sweat trail down her neck, her very core shivered. She hadn't felt this scared since-
She felt the butt of the pistol slam against the back of her head. Smugleaf fell face-down on the ground. A hand extracted her knife from her holster. Now she was really scared.
"Turn around."
Smugleaf rolled on her back and came face to face with the Pikachu, the pistol trained straight at her.
She glanced at Scout, he was lying face down on the ground, spirals in his eyes.
"Look at me," said the Pikachu.
Smugleaf turned back to the Pikachu. It was slightly large. The pigment of its fur had slightly faded, giving a near Pichu color. The one thing that stand out was the black plastic welding goggles strapped onto its head. They didn't look like he was wearing them for looks. The Pikachu held the pistol higher, aiming for her head. Smugleaf saw her knife clench tight in his other hand, the blade pointed down in the takedown position.
She held up her hands. "Please," she muttered. "Don't h-"
"Don't even think about trying to guilt me," the Pikachu hissed, with human words. Now Smugleaf was terrified, she felt herself became smaller and smaller with each passing second. "That game will not help you and neither the game Nobark taught you."
He knows Nobark!?
The Pikachu saw the look on her face. "W-what?" she asked.
"You know Nobark?" he asked.
Smugleaf nodded.
The old Pikachu raised an eyebrow, considering if she was bullsh*tting or not. Smugleaf felt her heart seizing up, a part of her wondered if he was either going to shoot her or electrocute her. Tesla walked up to her and pressed the tip of the knife over her belly. She squirmed. The knife wasn't that sharp at the tip, but the thought of having her belly split by her own blade was unthinkable.
"You're definitely a feral," said the Mouse Pokémon. "Too civilized and fat, not to mention I can smell you all the way down that road."
He dragged the tip of the knife down to her waist, Smugleaf squeezed her eyes shut.
"Looks overused," he said as he inspected her groin. "A bit red, overstretched. You're quite a pleasure seeker, are you?"
"Don't hurt me, please." Smugleaf whimpered.
Tesla pulled the knife away, she stretched out an arm and reached for it. "That's mine!"
"What's so special about this knife?" asked the Pikachu.
"It belonged to my trainer."
She saw something clicked in the Pikachu's eyes, he lowered the knife. "Is she?"
Smugleaf nodded.
"I'm sorry. I had seen my own trainer died before my very eyes. Believe me, the funeral felt worse than the actual moment itself," then the Pikachu's expression changed, he held the knife back up. She tensed up again. "Whoever you are, I do not know. But judging by how I last spotted you following me in Vegas City, I have my suspicions. I am going to hand you back your knife, and you are going to put it back into your holster, and it is going to stay there. You take that knife and wield it against me, and I am going to break your limbs. I do not need this gun, this knife, or my own electricity to kill you. I can do it with my bare hands alone."
Tesla added, "Do I make myself clear?"
Smugleaf nervously nodded.
He flipped the knife around and held the handle to Smugleaf, she took it and slowly slid it back into its holster.
The Pikachu then held out its hand. "My name is Tesla Westinghouse, do you have a name?"
Smugleaf gulped. "Smugleaf Stucky."
Tesla raised an eyebrow. "Your trainer named you?"
"Yeah."
"Did she have a relative named Jack?"
"I don't know, I think she mentioned an Uncle Jack once but . . . but that was a long time ago."
"Are you going to take my hand or not?"
Smugleaf grabbed it and Tesla pulled her back on feet. He asked, "Do you speak human, like the way I'm talking right now?"
"Yes," Smugleaf muttered in human speech. "Yes, I do."
"Who taught you?"
"I taught myself."
Tesla nodded. "You and Nobark speak human speech a lot?"
"Only to each other, not to anyone else."
Smugleaf noticed he was still clutching her hand. He squeezed her fingers and pinched her palm with his thumb and index finger. "You're part of Nobark's inner circle?"
"Yes," said Smugleaf. "He came to me fifteen years ago, at a river not far from Nimbasa City. He wanted me to join the PRA, he had been watching me for a while and he liked what he saw."
"Is the Dewott's name is Wotter?"
Smugleaf's jaw dropped. "Yes, how did you know?"
"Like Nobark, I met him when our trainer is still alive, and when he had a smile on his face. He told you the story?"
"More than once."
"Did Wotter give you his version?"
"He did."
"I knew it was Wotter with you back in Vegas City. You two were spying on me, weren't you."
That was no question. "Yes, that was us."
"You are terrible spies, mostly Wotter. He was always an idiot. He tried the classic reading-the-newspaper-while-leaning-on-a-lamppost trick, I just knew something was up. And then the Pichu I had with me – well, now a Pikachu – went missing. And then you guys disappeared."
Uh-oh, she knew that hit on Cabot would set off alarm bells. Now the consequences had presented itself, and it didn't look pretty. Smugleaf tried to pull her hand out of Tesla's grip, but she couldn't move. She looked down and realized she couldn't even move her fingers. Her arm was out of her control.
"Right now I'm not assuming anything," said Tesla. "You and Wotter may or may not have killed Cabot, but I don't care. It was Nobark who gave out the order. Chances are he won't remember them. He never remembers certain things under certain moods."
"H-How long did you know him?"
"Since he was a Scrafty a few weeks old," said Tesla. "Irvin raised him, I disciplined him. But most importantly, I helped trained him. Whatever he knows, I know. And whatever he does, I foresee it. How do you think it was so easy for me to track you down and nab you?"
Smugleaf wheezed, Tesla let go and Smugleaf staggered back. She gripped her hand, it was numb but it moved quite fine. She glanced back at Tesla. His eyes bore into her like cobalt drill bits. Smugleaf had seen Nobark with a similar look but this one was more powerful.
She was in deep shit. Whatever Nobark had done, it had backfired. Something was up, something big. This old Pikachu, this old fart with the strength of an Onyx wasn't too happy. What did Nobark do to piss him off? What really happened to him?
"What do you want?" Smugleaf asked.
"Nobark," said Tesla. "My old friend is in trouble, and apparently you are caught up in his conspiracy. I don't exactly know what he is doing here, all I know is that he runs the Pokémon Resistance Army and had been clawing at Soho like hungry hawks. You're going to help me or not?"
"Please, Tesla. Don't hurt me."
"I don't want to hurt you. If I did, you would be dead ten minutes ago."
Smugleaf sniffled and wiped away a tear, she never felt more down to earth for years."
Tesla tucked the gun back into his backpack. "Look," he said in a calm voice. "I'm sorry I've upset you. I had been through this sh*t more than once, it always turns out badly in the end. If I don't sort this out with Nobark soon, it will. You can count on it."
"Okay," Smugleaf said. "Nobark's at Fort Wernher, just down the road at the command bunker."
"How big's his crest?"
"Big, why?"
"It was small when I last seen him twenty years ago."
Smugleaf whimpered and Tesla hugged her. "There there, you don't need to get all upset. How mean did Wotter get?"
"Really mean."
"Then I'll make sure he won't be when I'm around. Let's go find Nobark, then you stand by and watch the pieces fall into place."
Smugleaf turned to Scout. He was groaning, but he was still not moving. "We can't just leave Scout," she said."
"Close friend?"
"I saved his life years back, he's more than a close friend."
"Does he know the lay of the land?"
Smugleaf nodded. "Yes."
"Then he should be alright," Tesla nudged the Grass Snake Pokémon toward Fort Wernher. "Come on, let's go."
. . .
Nobark ran toward the elite bunker, clutching to his pelt along the way. He barged into Wotter's room. The Dewott jumped and fell off the bed, he was about to rage his head off when he saw who it was.
"Someone's coming," he said. "Be ready."
"Who is it?" Wotter asked.
"An old friend of mine. Just be ready, he will be here any minute."
Before Wotter could say a word, Nobark was out of the room and out of the bunker.
. . .
"Did Nobark ever mention me?" Tesla asked.
Smugleaf nodded. "All the time, he spoke to you as if you were his hero."
"I'm no hero, never was for a hundred years. Literally, of course."
The two Pokémon walked on down the gravel road side by side. Tesla kept an ear out for more surprises. So far there were none. As they approached Fort Wernher, a putrid smell came over his nose. It was similar to Smugleaf, but slightly different. Tesla glanced at Smugleaf. She was still shaken up by their encounter, but nonetheless took the courage to walk beside him. Smugleaf was so used to being in control that her foundation was literally built on it. Now that foundation was cracked, unable to withstand the weight she built on it. If she were to recover, she would need to patch it up with by exercising power. But what kind of power, and for what kind of satisfaction?
Pleasure seeker, Tesla thought.
Up ahead he saw an industrial-looking building, made out of poured concrete. The windows were covered with plywood and wooden boards. They vary in ages and color. Most of them were rotted, so rotted he could pull the boards out with his bare hands. The garage door had wooden crates and broken pallets piled against it. The way they were placed suggest they were supposed to act like some sort of barricade. "Who piled all that there?" he asked Smugleaf.
"Woody," said Smugleaf. "The Timburr."
"For what purpose?"
"Defensive barricade."
"His barricade is sh*t."
"That's what I figured, amazing Nobark hadn't complained about it yet."
She approached the warehouse door. It was painted white, rusting at the hinges. Smugleaf grabbed the doorknob and opened it. "Why isn't it locked?" Tesla asked.
"It's never locked," said Smugleaf.
"Why?"
"The Swoobats, they keep an eye out for intruders. One of them spotted you earlier, so the PRA should be expecting you."
Smugleaf stepped into the warehouse and Tesla followed her inside. The whole building was dark, but he had no problem seeing the warehouse shelves and the supplies stacked in them. The air smelled of gasoline and sawdust. Tesla looked up and saw a ceiling lamp flickering madly, trying to stay on.
The old Pikachu frowned. The bulb started buzzing, then popped. The warehouse got darker.
Tesla continued on to the other side of the storage room, he wondered into a smaller conjoining room and found Smugleaf looking around. "Woody," she called out. "Are you here!?"
The smaller room was crowded with half-finished projects and tools. Tesla noticed a rusty cot with an olive green backing. No pad. Several springs were missing in the middle, causing the backing to sag. Tesla pressed his hand against the backing. It flexed, but squeaked loudly. Sitting by the cot was a radio. It was covered with oil, grease, and white paint. The antenna was broken off, just a jagged stub of what remained. Tesla reached out and flicked the power button. Nothing. He picked it up and opened the battery compartment, revealing two corroded AA batteries. Tesla looked around for a trash can. It was sitting against the wall, filled to the brim with cans and beer bottles. He pulled the batteries out and dumped them into the trash can.
Smugleaf turned around. "That radio doesn't work."
"Course it doesn't, the batteries had bled to death."
"Woody," Smugleaf called out again. "Are you in here?"
"I'm here," a voice called out in the next room. "Just give me a moment!"
Tesla opened up his backpack and pulled out the back of AA batteries, he popped two out of the case and stuck them into the battery compartment. He closed it up and flicked the switch, a hiss of static came out of its speaker.
Woody had just walked into the room when Tesla turned it off. "You got my radio working again!?"
"It just needed batteries," said Tesla. "I just so happened to brought some."
Woody glanced at Smugleaf. "Who is he, Smugleaf?"
"An old friend of Nobark's," she said. "From back in the day."
The Muscular Pokémon's expression changed, he turned to Tesla and gasped. "Are you Tesla?"
Tesla sat the radio back on its stand. "The one and only."
Woody blinked. "Holy . . . uhh-"
"Where's Nobark?" Tesla asked.
"Command bunker," said Woody. "Down the walking trail to the left, it's bigger than the other buildings."
Woody jogged up to a garage door and lifted it open, bright sunlight engulfed the room. "You have any more batteries," he asked. "My flashlight is just about dead as well."
"What kind?" Tesla asked in Pokémon speech.
"Three-Double Ds."
Tesla reached into his backpack and pulled out a four D-Cell battery pack, he tossed it to Woody. "Once I'm done with Nobark, then we'll talk business."
Woody nodded. "Yes, of course!"
Tesla stepped out of the warehouse and into the military fort. He was surrounded by plain concrete buildings, fire pits, overgrown grass, and random mountains of trash. The Pokémon walking by looked sick. Their fur looked matted with dirt stuck on. Some of them even looked weak, disoriented. A few moved and acted fine, but looked a little grumpy. Almost all of the Pokémon were either small bi-petal or quadruped Pokémon somewhere around his weight. For a moment, it almost felt like home. The way everyone acted, the way everyone worked. There was that care-free lazy feel that he remembered experiencing in Irvin's household. But there was something wrong, something not quite right. It soon became clear that Nobark tried to recreate the environment Irvin had set up, only to have it fail under its own weight.
"Welcome to Fort Wernher," said Smugleaf. "The headquarters of the Pokémon Resistance Army."
"Looks depressing," said Tesla. "But I can see what Nobark's trying to build, he just doesn't have the incentive to maintain it."
He started down the walking trail. Almost immediately the PRA took notice of him. They stopped what they were doing, their eyes locked on him as he pass by. They began muttering among each other, wondering if either Tesla was a new recruit or was it really who they think he was. A small crowd followed behind, keeping a respectful distance from the old Pikachu. Smugleaf stayed behind him, almost like she was his bodyguard detail.
As Tesla approached the command bunker, a Swoobat blew overhead. It landed on the edge of the roof and sat there. Tesla stared at it for a moment. That could be the Swoobat that had spotted him earlier. He asked Smugleaf to confirm.
"Yup," she said. "That's Swoo I, he spotted you earlier and alerted Nobark."
Tesla shook his head. "No, I alerted him."
The front door open. Nobark ran out like he was in a hurry. He screeched to a halt, almost toppling over himself. There he stood as he and Tesla were reunited.
TO BE CONTINUED…