Chapter 14
In Soho, things started coming apart. The Soho Police Department started becoming suspicious of Ash and his friends. The police would give any passing trainer a hard look, but usually leave them alone. Sometimes they were stopped on the street, questioned for a bit, then leave them be for the rest of the day. This time things were different. Nobark Westinghouse was Irvin's Pokémon, and so was Tesla. And since Tesla was associated with Ash, that raised red flags up on the Soho hierarchy. Again, the PRA would use trainers as Trojan horses to penetrate Soho's defenses. On occasion the trainers were radical Pokémon activists, running off of the same ideology that built the PRA. But those trainers were few and far in between, and even more rarely the trainer and PRA insurgents would see eye-to-eye.
Ash and his friends were in and out of the Pokémon Center, leaving their Pikachu and Axew with his own Pokémon. Sara and Pikachu would occasionally talk while Axew nap. Somehow it was mystical to see all three Mice Pokémon variants sitting together. The Pichu, Pikachu, and Raichu. The triad of electrical power. Rex had the thought of tracking down Volts's father. It would be nice to have the entire family together. He had mentioned it to Sara and asked her what she thought. The way she reacted suggested she had mixed feelings about the idea. Rex understood why. Yes, it is good to have both the mother and father together to raise the child. However, the father wouldn't settle down with one mate. Sara had no romantic relations with Volts's father and vise versa. He won't settle down with her. They'd just simply mated because it was that time of the season. It was all for lust, not for love. And out of that came Volts, the unplanned consequences of such lust.
Ash's Pikachu seemed to be playing the father-role quite well, maybe he had experience with baby Pokémon. Like Volts's father, Rex saw no romantic tension in Sara's eyes as she chat with Pikachu. Despite being in a place where Pokémon had restricted freedom of movement, they seemed to be doing fine.
Until the police came back.
The entrance simply slid open and they just pour in. Rex just sat there, frozen in shock. He watched as they took dead-aim at Pikachu with shotguns. Sara clutched tight to Volts and used her own body as a shield. Pikachu started pleading, his hands up in the air, trying to guilt the officers. It didn't work, they just grabbed his hands and snapped the Pokémon cuffs on him, then dropped him a potato sack. Axew was also caught off-guard. Before he realized what was going on, the cuffs were on and he was dropped in a separate bag. They squirmed and screamed as the officers carried them out to their squad cars.
Rex just sat there and let the Soho police do their work. He had seen this moment before. Every so often when an outsider with Pokémon set off alarm bells in Soho, the police knew where to find them. Sometimes the trainers were elsewhere. Their Pokémon were left alone to bear the horror of being nabbed by the police. What was unusual about this arrest was the speed, aggression, and number of officers present. The Soho PD followed a guideline when apprehending small Pokémon. Mostly two officers would make the arrest, sometimes three, rarely four. Rex had never seen seven officers at one time, not to mention they were all wearing body armor wielding SMGs. That wasn't the case the other night.
Once Pikachu and Axew were taken away Rex got up and asked the supervisor, "What's going on?"
"Chief Hattricks orders," he said. "All foreigners must leave Soho. With Tesla prodding the PRA, the risk of an attack can never be greater."
"You got a wall around this town and are armed to the teeth, surely you can hold them off!"
The supervisor shook his head. "There's more of them than us, we can't risk having innocent people in Soho at this time."
Rex just stared at him, then asked, "Where's Ash?"
"We picked him and his friends up ten minutes ago, they're taking him to the southern checkpoint where they would officially kick them out of Soho. I suggest you sit tight and wait before you do anything."
Rex nodded. "Understood, sir."
The supervisor and his officers left as fast as they came. Rex could still hear Pikachu and Axew's screams ringing in his ears. He glanced at Sara. She muttered reassuring words into Volts's ear. He sat there petrified, Sara wasn't able to break the spell. Rex sat beside them and wrapped his arm around Sara, she leaned over and licked his cheek, then pressed her head against his chest.
"Oh this is bad," he thought aloud.
"Rai," Sara nodded.
. . .
"You can't do that!" Ash stamped.
Chief Hattricks said, "Oh yes I can."
Ash and his friends were escorted out of the checkpoint. Hours before he had shut down all public transport coming in and out of Soho. What should be a long line was instead replaced by a roadblock of armed guards, wearing SWAT team armor. They watched as Hattricks ordered the cuffs to be taken off. When the officers removed their bonds, Hattricks held up two brown sacks. He tossed one to Ash, then to that green-hair kid. They opened the bags and found Pikachu and Axew inside, an officer removed their handcuffs and they ran behind the trainers. Feverishly shaking to their cores.
"Head to either Carbondale or Springfield," said Chief Hattricks. "They're not that far, I'll tell Tesla to check the towns for you guys assuming he would come around."
"You could have just asked us to leave," said the purple-haired girl.
"Had asked trainers to leave before, most of the time a Pokémon of theirs would go rouge and attack us."
"Why?" Ash asked.
"Cause the Pokémon were PRA and they are ruthless. Kid, I don't know where you have been and what you have seen. But we hadn't seen Pokémon like the PRA since ancient times, and back then humanity wasn't so forgiving."
Ash said nothing.
"Well," said Chief Hattricks. "Move along now, daylight's burning."
. . .
The PRA had eyes everywhere. In the trees, the sky, and other trainers. If a person were to sneeze or cough, they would know about it. Scout hid in the bushes and watch as the raven-hair kid and his friends walked away from the checkpoint. Chief Hattricks just stood there, his arms bent with his knuckles resting on his waist. His goons just stand there, ready to open fire when necessary.
What caught his eye was the unusual yellow Mouse Pokémon the raven-hair kid was holding. He clutched to the rat, it wrapped its chubby arms around his neck and cried into his shoulder. The green-haired kid handed the Axew backed to the crazy purple-hair girl, it snuggled into her hair and vanished. There was something about them that made them stand out from the rest. He saw no greed or prestige like they saw from other trainers. They saw something different. Something familiar, yet so far away it might as well be the twinkle of a shining star.
"Better inform Nobark about this," Scout said to no one in particular.
Scout turned around and disappeared into the trees, heading back to Soho.
. . .
When Smugleaf stepped out of the bathroom, Tesla was impressed. She looked both confused and awed, but clean as a whistle. The Snivy walked up to the old Pikachu, her jaw hanging as she stared at him. "Well," said Tesla. "How did it go?"
She smelled like pineapples and grapefruit shampoo and her breath was minty. Tesla couldn't pick up a single trace of the stench that once clung to her. Smugleaf looked at her hands for a moment, then dropped them. "I'm lost for words."
"How long was it since you had a proper shower?"
"About never."
"Feels good, does it?"
"Nothing itches as they used to, I'm amazed."
Tesla nodded. "If you want to get a shower like that at Fort Wernher, you must work for it. Putting together the building components is a tedious task, you better put some backbone into it."
Smugleaf rubbed her belly. "I'm getting hungry, can we get something to eat?"
"Services here are good, but the restaurants in town are better."
"What kind of restaurants?"
"I'll show you."
Smugleaf followed Tesla out of the Pokémon Center and back onto Main Street. After a quick scan, the Mouse Pokémon found a restaurant that seemed nice. He and Smugleaf walked in. The place had a smooth concrete floor, sky-blue wallpaper, and paper-white ceiling. The place was well-lit and had plenty of tables for seating. It wasn't crowded, yet it wasn't near empty either. The people wore mostly casual clothes, and their Pokémon were seated at the tables. A few eyes wander toward their direction, but no one took interest. Tesla got a seat at a small table next to a window, but this time at the corner of the restaurant. Smugleaf sat down in front of him. She glanced around, her eyes glitter with amazement.
"Civilization feels nice, doesn't it?" Tesla asked.
Smugleaf blinked. "What?"
"You look like you haven't been in a restaurant before."
"Uh, yes. Wait, no, I've never been in one before."
"What were you expecting?"
"A trash can."
Tesla smiled. "I was raised off of trash cans, but I was trained for the table. Believe me, having matters at both settings would bring less problems from strangers."
The waiter came up and asked to take their orders. He was surprised when Tesla spoke human speech as he ordered biscuits with butter. Tesla asked what Smugleaf wanted, she looked at the menu and asked for macaroni and cheese. Tesla translated for her. The waiter wrote their orders down and left them alone.
"What was it like living with your trainer," Smugleaf asked. "And with Nobark?"
"On most days, dull. On some days, a nightmare. Irvin's Pokémon are crude, silly, and get on my nerves a lot. But they're loving and loyal, I should know because I was the one who brought them into our little army."
"How?"
"Irvin never caught any Pokémon in the wild, not in the sense we all know it. Instead he staked out Pokémon populations he desire and send me to poach specific eggs."
"You kidnapped them," Smugleaf asked. "Why?"
"I was doing what I was told," said Tesla. "I wanted to live and I needed friends, and Irvin needed obedient Pokémon. When we get an egg, we incubate them until they hatch. Then we started knocking training and conditioning into them until we get the desired effect. Punishment is usually bad. Most of the time Irvin doesn't care what they do, but if he caught his Pokémon fighting," he chuckled. "Oh boy did he discipline them!"
"Did he ever hit them?" Smugleaf asked.
"No, he never slap or hit them in anyway. He grabbed them, yes, but never any physical harm. That was my job."
Smugleaf said nothing.
"When there's in-fighting or disputes, Irvin needed me to crack down on that. He cannot afford to have rivalries brewing. Since I have a zero-tolerance policy for nonsense, I really hit them hard."
"That harsh?"
"Their conditioning requires it."
Smugleaf shook her head. "That explains why you attacked Nobark, because of what happened to Soho."
"Nobark's in deep sh*t, worse than any trouble he had gotten with Irvin. I don't always bail him out. If it has to do with affairs outside of Irvin's circle, I would take care of him. But inside, I throw him to the wolves. I treated Nobark like all the others, even though he was my friend."
"Why?"
"Because sometimes, that Scrafty isn't Nobark. That's why I attacked him back there in Fort Wernher, Nobark never breaks down in tears. That was just one of his personalities."
"Do you know how many are there?" Smugleaf asked.
"Several major ones and a few minors. Every single personality is actually an emotion. The more he uses a single emotion, the stronger it becomes. Back then it used to be the happy emotion. Ever since Irvin died, anger took over. You ever see him happy?"
"No, not really."
"He never was happy ever since Irvin died. Yes, he was glad to see me. But his true happiness is dead and buried, much like Wotter's."
The waiter came back with their ordered food. He handed Tesla his biscuits and handed Smugleaf macaroni and cheese. The waiter asked Tesla what they would like to drink. He said water, two glasses with lemons. When the waiter left, Tesla picked up his biscuit and cut it open with his knife, then added in butter. Smugleaf picked up her fork and scooped up some macaroni. "Alice taught you table matters?"
"Yes, she did."
Smugleaf took a bite out of her macaroni, she squeezed her eyes. "It tasted better than I'd remembered."
The waiter came back with the water. He sat them on the table and Tesla thanked him, he left them alone for the final time. Smugleaf stared at the lemon slice clipped to the edge of the cup, she had no idea why it was there. "Put it in your water and drink it, you need the Vitamin C."
Smugleaf knocked the lemon slice into the water and stirred it in her drink, then sipped it. "I can taste the Vitamin C already."
"That would be citric acid from the lemon."
"Oh."
Tesla and Smugleaf ate most of their meals in silence. While the old Pikachu showed little appetite, Smugleaf couldn't help but wolf down her macaroni and cheese. Tesla chuckled. His friends back in the Westinghouse days tend to have that sort of appetite. They would eat till there was nothing on their plate, then try to mooch off of others. On some days when Tesla wasn't feeling hungry, he would give his food away to some of them. Again, Irvin didn't care. If his Pokémon would eat until they got fat, then that's their business. Besides, it made them more manageable.
Speaking of management, Tesla recalled his promise to Pinki. The Hearing Pokémon was said to have such a lifestyle, which was not that different from Smugleafs.
"You know an Audino named Tendon?" Tesla asked Smugleaf.
"Sure," said Smugleaf. "She's Fort Wernher's medic, why?"
She always asked why, Tesla thought. "I heard her name got dropped, it was something I must look into. What can you tell me about her?"
"Not much. She has quite a pot belly going and an attitude similar to Wotter. Supposing she can treat you for ailments and injuries, and in return you must satisfy certain needs as she put it."
"As payment?" Tesla asked.
"Yes," said Smugleaf. "As payment."
"No matter what gender you are?"
Smugleaf shook her head. "She's bi-sexual, she doesn't care who or what. Even Nobark stops by at times to get some pills for his own health problems."
Tesla sat there for a moment, processing it all in his head. He then asked, "Are you bi-sexual as well?"
Smugleaf bit her lip, then nodded. "Yes, you can tell?"
"I don't know what kind of funny business you're pulling with Bubbles, and it ain't none of my business. Like I said, I know your type. Sure you may be helping Bubbles and apparently you're doing well, but you have a secret agenda in mind. And this secret agenda is so selfish I might as well consider you as Wotter's direct opposite."
Smugleaf said nothing.
"Is that what drives the PRA? Lustful pleasure?"
"Why do you care?" Smugleaf asked.
"Because in my day there is always a Pokémon mating with another Pokémon around the corner. I saw that look in your eye Smugleaf. You run off of it. That's why I held a gun to your face. I had the notion you will try to seduce me, and so I stripped whatever pride you had in that confused little head of yours."
He could see Smugleaf shrink in her skin. She whimpered, her hands shook. She looked like she was getting ready to cry.
"The loss of your trainer still hurts."
That was no question, Smugleaf nodded her head grievously. "Yes."
Tesla pushed his plate of biscuits to Smugleaf. "Here, I'm not feeling really hungry. You have the rest. Remember, I'm not here to hurt you. I'm here to help you. If you want a better meaning to your life, you better suck it up and get with the program. Things are about to change and you need to be in the best condition possible. Got it?"
"Yes, I got it. Thank you."
Tesla chuckled. "Don't thank me yet, we haven't even gotten started."
. . .
"Please don't hurt me," Mark's Pikachu pleaded.
"Nonsense," said Nobark. "Why would I ever hurt you?"
While Wotter and Woody hauled Mark into the human jail, Nobark brought his Pikachu into the command bunker. The other Pokémon were told to sit and wait, and since Smugleaf wasn't around to keep an eye on them he had them locked up in the Pokémon jail. Temporary of course. Nobark led her to the same room he led Tesla, sat her on the same sofa on the same spot. Nobark sat down beside her, a smile barely visible on his grin. His first impressions of her were so far good. Mark's Pikachu was well fed. Chubbier than Tesla, but more docile. Polly was like that, docile and sweet. Tesla's great-great granddaughter managed to inherit it, but apparently had not inherited his traits.
She scanned her surroundings with dread. Fort Wernher was foreign to her, and the thought of being apart from her trainer made her feel even more helpless. Nobark couldn't exactly remember how the whole thing went down. He remembered Wotter knocking Mark out and escorting the Pikachu to the fort, but not the middle. A whole chunk of the moment had been blanked out. No matter. The memory was somewhere in his head, he would go over with the other emotions and figure it out later.
Nobark reached out and pinched Mark's Pikachu's belly. It was sagging a little over her groin. She squirmed as Nobark pulled it up. "You're quite well fed," said Nobark.
Pikachu yelped and swat his hand away and covered her belly. "Stop, that's ticklish!"
"Whatever this Mark is doing, he seemed to be doing it right. Does he feed you when you feel like eating?"
Mark's Pikachu nodded. "Sometimes, usually on the weekends. The weekdays, usually four times a day."
"He must be constantly stress from satisfying your needs," said Nobark. "Were there some days where he doesn't have any energy?"
"Around the evening hours, mostly." Then Pikachu said, "Where's Mark and the others?"
"Taken care of," said Nobark. "Your great grandfather have asked me to sit on you until he gets back."
"So he's really here."
"Yes, he's away for the moment. He is running an errand for me. From what he told me, Mark's going to stay locked up and you are going to do whatever Tesla says. Don't make this harder than it should be."
Mark's Pikachu just looked at him, her eyes tearing up. She covered her face and cried, "I want Mark!"
. . .
Nobark's head clicked as a personality took over. He grabbed Mark's Pikachu by the fur on her collarbone and hoisted her up. "Look at me," he hissed.
Mark's Pikachu froze.
"Tell me, who brought you here?"
"Mark," she whimpered.
"Who took you over the cliff at Soho?"
"Mark."
"And who stirred up the Soho PD and caused trouble."
Pikachu said nothing.
Nobark threw her back, hitting her head on the arm of the couch. "Answer me, damn it."
"Mark," said Pikachu. "It was Mark, it was all Mark!"
"And you went along with all of this, even though he almost got you and your friends killed?"
Pikachu curled up at the corner, shivering out of her skin.
"What else did he do for you, besides fatten you up?"
Pikachu said nothing. Nobark caught something in her eye, she knew something but wasn't willing to tell. He nodded, then got off from the couch.
She's just like Smugleaf, Anger hissed in his head. Pleasure-driven, I tell you!
Shut up for a moment and let me think.
Nobark thought for a moment, turned back to Pikachu. "What did he do for you?" he asked in a calmer voice.
Pikachu said nothing.
"I can tell what it is, but I don't know the specifics," he chuckled. "Let me guess, he helped take care of a certain urge you were having?"
The Mouse Pokémon covered her eyes. "Leave me alone!"
. . .
Nobark blinked. Spots flooded his vision, his head throbbing with his heartbeat. The Hoodlum Pokémon shook the spots out of his head, then sat back on the couch. "Did I yell at you?"
"Yes," Pikachu whimpered. "You did, you were harsh!"
He sighed. "There's more than one me in my head, they're all demanding control."
You can say that again, said Judgment.
Nobark gripped his head. "It's like having a committee in your brain that isn't getting along so well. It's a nightmare, Pikachu. It's hard for me to compete with them. I'm sorry I yell at you, I don't know what came over me."
Pikachu stopped shivering, but was no less cautious. She sat up, scooted closer, but kept her distance. "How did Tesla handle you?" she asked.
"He hits me to cycle through the personalities," said Nobark. "Like pressing the button on the TV remote to change the channel. Your whimpering called one of them out, the one that craves fear. And it was you begging for mercy that called me back."
Mark's Pikachu shivered, she sat up and hesitated before asking, "What was Tesla like back then?"
"Mean, professional, if he catches you breaking Irvin's No Fight Policy he hits you until you get bruises, then lock you in a room to fester for the entire day. But only if you're lucky. Irvin never hits his Pokémon, that's Tesla's job. He's like a thug almost."
"He was quite compassionate when I first met him, kinder."
Suddenly, Nobark thought of something. "Was he around this Ash character?"
The Mouse Pokémon nodded. "Yes, he was. He was quite attached to him."
"And he also have a Pikachu."
"Yes, he does."
"For whatever reason, I saw no compassion from him. Just discipline. Why? That part of me that yelled at you f*cked up, that's why. And now I feel like I'm waiting for an executioner as he sort through my mess."
"But he's your best-friend, he says so himself!"
"He is my best-friend, but I can't help but fear him. No Pokémon he come across can't help but fear him. His aura was damaged a long time ago, long before I was even born." Then Nobark added, "He's more dangerous than me, Youngin. Very dangerous. People fear him for a reason."
"Not Mark," said Pikachu. "Not him, he doesn't fear Tesla. Not even a little."
"Why?"
"His bloodline made sure Tesla won't inflict harm on him. Because Mark is Matt's grandson, and he's Irvin's best-friend, right?"
"Yes."
Pikachu nodded. "I don't know what exactly happened, I wasn't there at the time. Emolga told me that Tesla sent her and the Cheering Pokémon to the hospital, and so Mark and his father broke him."
Nobark said nothing. A lobe sprain in his head, he grabbed his noggin and groaned, "Urr, damn headaches."
He took a deep breath and said, "Well, everyone breaks sooner or later."
"He was taking care of my niece, Volta. Do you know what happened to her?"
Nobark's eyes bulged open. "That's what brought him here in the first place, that was how he found out. Yes, I do know. But the memory is buried, all I can say is that I somehow destroyed her life without knowing. I was the one who give the order to assassinate her trainer, which was before she became her trainer. You want more details, asked Tesla. I gave the order, someone else did the dirty work."
"Who?" Mark asked.
Nobark just stared at her. "This is not the right time to tell you, you'll find out soon enough."
. . .
Tesla got his meal to-go and paid off both his and Smugleaf's meal with the thumbprint scanner. They went back out into Springfield and scouted for stores holding much needed supplies. They found some, though it wasn't that impressive. Most of the stores were small convenience stores, loaded with all sorts of goodies. Most of these goodies were similar in looks, yet the prices were slightly different. Tesla found the same coffee mug in four different stores with four different prices. Capitalism at its finest, he thought. Human greed makes people wanna compete with each other, to be better than the other. Of course, greed is good, if one would count out the folks who get the losing end of the stick. Nonetheless, all of the stores held the most basic supplies. Food, bottled-water, shampoo, toothpaste, batteries, tools. There were also clothes, though Tesla wasn't sure if the PRA needed clothes. Coats for winter, sure. There were children sizes available. He made a mental note to pursue that thought later.
While he was marking out the stores, Smugleaf stayed behind him. She ate the biscuits, one by one. Just five minutes after they left the restaurant she had all the biscuits and butter eaten and tossed the take-out container in a trash can. Tesla chuckled.
"What's so funny?" Smugleaf asked.
"Every time my trainer takes his Pokémon out for dinner and gets their meals to-go, they finish them before they get home. You know why?"
"No, why?"
"Cause they can't wait to eat the rest later, much like you with those biscuits."
Smugleaf said nothing.
"You want to live a little, right?"
"Yes," said Smugleaf.
"Then take note of these stores, you are going to guide Nobark and the PRA to them in the middle of the night for raids. Bring back as much as you can. You are also going to bring Bubbles along. You wanna help her, you better teach her how to defend herself. Maybe even teach her your skills, you got that?"
Smugleaf nodded. "Sounds like a plan."
"Wotter better cooperate as well. He beats up insubordinates for power right?"
"Right."
"So teach him how to use it for the common cause. The PRA wants a higher level of status in human society, then he must take care of others. We'll have to force him to think like his past-self somehow, and to do that we gotta get him comfortable."
"How?"
"Same way to get the entire PRA comfortable, restock on much needed supplies. That way they stop thinking about themselves and focus on that major cause Nobark is trying to build up. My best-friend of a Scrafty may be a lost cause but the PRA can live on, assuming it survives human justice."
They scouted around Springfield for about an hour, then backtracked to the Pokémon Center. He stopped and looked up at the Pokémon Center's modern façade, then asked, "Has Tendon ever been out?"
"Almost never," said Smugleaf.
"We'll bring her along for the raid, we'll give her a small posse for the Pokémon Center here. She knows what to get, we'll reward her a keg of beer at the nearby liquor store. Would she like that?"
"She would," said Smugleaf. "She'll appreciate it, though she won't show much of it."
Tesla walked back to the town center for the third time. Smugleaf started slowing down, her legs were buckling from stress. The old Pikachu noticed she was starting to lag behind. Either this Snivy was getting tired or was out of shape. Then again, a Snivy's arms and legs weren't really practical. They were nimble little things, it was amazing they could even walk at all. He stopped and let Smugleaf catch up, she was panting like she had ran a fifty meter dash. "Are we almost done?" she asked.
"Just one more thing," said Tesla. "A very important thing."
"What's that?"
"Documentation, you're literate right?"
"Yes, very literate. I read whatever books I can get a hold of."
"How about writing down your thoughts."
Smugleaf paused for a moment. "Now that I haven't done in a while."
"Get a journal," said Tesla. "Record the daily events, no matter how minor. A conversation you heard, or a project. Put as much detail in it you can, and maybe even write down your past on paper."
The Grass Snake Pokémon said nothing.
"Look, I know the subject on Alice is sensitive and you might think nobody would care about your story. But I care, I had a trainer who was caring and loving as yours. I may not like that trainer much, but he was still the most compassionate human being I ever known. Nobark told the story to you, yes."
Smugleaf nodded.
"That's a modern legend that everybody tells and retells over and over again. A lot of folks would want to hear your story as well."
"But I have killed-"
"So did I, you don't see anybody complaining about it. Believe me, the world knows that I have committed acts of violence, but that was all part of the legend. I am the Master of Electricity, supposed to be unbeatable. But I'm not immortal, I never was. I was just a puppet being used by a puppeteer."
Tesla took Smugleaf to the local bookstore. Her eyes lit up. There were posters displaying the latest books that were published. Thirty percent off, forty percent off for members! Smugleaf started walking toward the bookstore entrance, but Tesla clamped a hand on her shoulder. "Do you know what time it is?"
Smugleaf looked up at the sky, "Looks like its three or four-oh-clock."
"We have to head back to Fort Wernher. But don't worry, you're going to raid this bookstore here on that special night."
Smugleaf held her head low, then nodded. "Okay, I'm getting tired anyway."
. . .
Nobark talked to Mark's Pikachu for a long while. She grew more comfortable with him, then actually started to like him. Most of the conversation went into Pikachu giving Nobark updates in Faraday City. What were current events? How was Matt? How was Emmy? He was surprised to learn of the building tension between Faraday Island and Unova, even more surprised that Tesla contributed to it. Home had moved on, and it sounded like had gotten more advanced. Medical technology improved, maybe he could get his PA treated and his multiple-personality disorder under control.
That thought was interrupted with loud banging on the door. Nobark grabbed his head an got up to answer it. It was Scout.
"What is it?" he asked.
The Patrat said, "We got a trainer with a yellow mouse Pokémon heading towards Carbondale. There's something about them that seemed a little odd."
"Odd eh," said Nobark. "Find me a Swoobat and bring it here, I wanna see if we can get contact with this trainer."
"He has friends and other Pokémon, sir."
"Well then, that makes things a little complicated. Doesn't it?"
"Yes, sir. Very complicated."
Nobark thought about it for a brief second, then gave an order. "Keep an eye out for Smugleaf, send her here when she gets back. She would make things less complicated for us."
TO BE CONTINUED…