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Chapter 21

Tesla wasn't sure if he was happy or sad, he was proud of her yet grief-stricken. The Tiny Mouse Pokémon – no, the Mouse Pokémon – was ready to fend for herself. The old Pikachu was already considering his options when he left the Vegas City Gym, but he shoved the thoughts aside. His great-great granddaughter had just made her greatest accomplishment, and for that he must celebrate. In other words, get drunk.

But Volta wouldn't allow it.

When they got to the Red Rock Hotel, he suggested to Volta if she wanted to try a beer. She blew up for the third time this week, "NO, NOT A BEER! EVER!"

Then she broke down in tears.

Instead of feeling sorry for her, Tesla broke down laughing. Ash and his friends looked on in confusion as the old Pikachu gave her a hug, "Volta," he said in Pokémon speech, "You don't have to worry anymore. Believe me, when drunk at the right moment alcohol can let you have a good time."

Volta sniffled, "But look what alcohol did to you, it made you a fool and it killed your liver!"

"That's because I abused it. You don't have to start right away, maybe never at all. But remember, take a moment to enjoy life once in a while. Among all the things I've done for you, this is one thing I wanted most of all."

"Here, Volta," said Tesla, "Let's go have a little fun, you and me. What do you say?"

Volta's eyes glittered underneath the overhead lights, she manage a nod, "Okay," she said, "But I'm exhausted, Tesla. My energy is spent. Can we do something that doesn't have much walking in it?"

"Course we can, how about the café?"

Volta let out a big smile, "Sure! Can you tell me a story as well!?"

"Why not?"

Tesla turned to Ash, "Can you go find Cabot? I need to talk to him."

"Sure," said Ash, "I'll go find him for you."

"We will!" Pikachu chirped.

As Ash and his friends leave, Hipp stayed behind. The Audino approached Tesla and sat a hand on his shoulder, "Anything I need to be aware of?" she asked.

"No," said Tesla in Pokémon speech, "There's nothing you need to worry about. Why not have a drink at the café? They have really good cold drinks with caramel and chocolate."

"I can't stand sweets." Hipp whined.

Tesla frowned, "Well, you're no fun."

"And it's getting late, caffeine can make you-"

Tesla seized Hipp's hand and squeezed it, "Do you know how much short-term memory you can have at one time?"

"Seven thoughts per second," she said. "Why?"

"Narrow that down to one thought: You, sitting back, relaxing without a care in the world. Now, Hipp, if you can make it through the remaining hours of the day without frying then I think you will do better once you're back on the job."

Hipp lowered her head, she took a deep breath and held it for a moment, "It's just so hard not to think, but I'll try."

Tesla reached down and kissed her hand. Hipp jumped, yanking her hand out of Tesla's grip. She squirmed as she held it away, "You're alright?" Volta asked.

"I'm fine," she said, she flexed her hand and stared at the area Tesla had kissed, "I, uh, I gotta go. I really gotta go."

"You're a real friend, Hipp," said Tesla, "If I was younger, I would ask you out on a date."

Hipp's eyes widened, "Oh, uh, how sweet of you. Um, I'll be at the Pokémon Center. Please be back, will you?"

"Sure, Hipp. Just remember to-"

Hipp was already out the door before Tesla could finish. The old Pikachu chuckled to himself, Hipp was quite funny, she probably doesn't realize she was quite a comedian. That nervous wreck of an Audino might need some professional help controlling her anxiety. Maybe it was a bad idea to kiss her hand, she must be germaphobic considering what horrors lay in his mouth, "Germaphobe," Tesla thought aloud, "That must be what's bothering her."

Volta stepped up from behind and wrapped her arms around Tesla's chest, "Can we have some cheese sandwiches instead of hot drinks?" she asked, "My belly's all rumbily."

"Alright," said Tesla, "Why not?"

. . .

People were staring at them. Some were taking small curious glances, while a few were locked on. Volta didn't mind the attention. She was a special case in that tournament, her trainer was a Pokémon, not to mention a living ancestor. Nonetheless, she snuggled up besides Tesla as they sat on the cushion chairs of the café. It was already getting late. Volta was ready to go to bed, but she couldn't bring herself to sleep. She nibbled on her grilled cheese sandwich as she listened to Tesla's voice, resting her head on his shoulder while he stroke her ears.

Oddly enough, Volta didn't feel like a grown-up. Sure, she evolved into a Pikachu. She was almost as big as Tesla and just as strong. But she still feel like a youngster. Volta wondered if Tesla was going to dump a load of responsibility on her, it scared her to think that he was going to toss her into the wild to fend for herself. Oh f*ck no, hopefully that would never happen. Volta couldn't find herself ready to let Tesla go, but the old Pikachu seemed persistent on it. She thought back at those moments when Tesla told her what he had planned for her. Deep down in her heart, Volta knew those plans were more fantasy than actual intentions, cause the old Pikachu wasn't showing it.

Volta ate the rest of her sandwich before wrapping her arms around Tesla. He felt smaller now, probably because she got taller. Volta ran her fingers against his bandages, listening to his voice as he spoke.

"We had a snow day when I was in my sixties, Irvin's Pokémon were thrilled when that blanket of snow came falling from the sky. It was around 40 to 60 centimeters of snowfall, and by the time it stopped falling the whole countryside looked like a landscape from the frozen ice caps. I remember looking up at the sky to see gray sky, trying to find the sun. I couldn't see any trace of it, the clouds were so thick that daytime felt like sunrise and sunset, with a lack of shadows."

"How do you like the snow?" Volta asked.

"I honestly never liked the snow," said Tesla, "Snow is cold and unforgiving. My feet, tail, and ears kept getting cold no matter how much insulation that I put on. There was one time where I was walking around the snow, watching my friends build igloos and snowmen when I sunk into the wintery mix. The snow bit me so hard that it felt worse than fire. I was pissed, so pissed that my anger kept me warm enough to avoid frostbite," Tesla snickered, "Of course, anger turned to grief. And by the time I was ready to start crying, Irvin sunk his cyber hand into the snow and pulled me out by the arm. My friends said I was begging for Irvin to hug me, and so he cradled me like a baby while I whimper like one."

Volta giggled, "Had you ever went back out into the snow?"

"A few times, and every time I get swallowed up before taking one step. Even though it wasn't his fault, I blamed Irvin for having me go outside, even though he didn't say I had to."

Both Mice Pokémon let out a laugh.

"I love you, Tesla." said Volta.

"I love you too, sweetie."

Volta opened her mouth and slowly pulled up some of Tesla's fur with her teeth, the old Pikachu rubbed her ears as she pruned his fur, massaging the skin while nuzzling her nose into his armpit. Some clumps of fur came loose and floated onto the cushion of the chair, "You're still shedding."

"Doesn't matter now," said Tesla, "If I'm going to lose my fur, then so be it. What's important right now is being with you.

Volta reached up and licked Tesla on the cheek, the old Pikachu laughed and pushed her away, "That ain't necessary, Volta."

"But I wanna give you kisses!" she insisted.

Tesla held Volta's head and kissed her between her eyes, "Then what are you waiting for?"

Volta stood up and buried her nose into Tesla's ear, he laughed as her tongue twirled around the inside of his ear canal, "Volta, that tickles!"

The Mouse Pokémon leaped up on Tesla's head, perching herself in the usual spot, "Volta, please get off. You're too fat now."

"Fat? How am I fat?"

Tesla reached up and grabbed her love handles, "Classic Pikachu flab, makes you wanna cuddle more."

"Ah, let go!"

Volta fell off and landed on her back, Tesla reached down and poked her in the belly. She giggled as she covered her belly with her hands, "Stop!"

"But you are so adorable, how can I stop?"

The café door opened and Cabot stepped through. Ash and his friends were following behind him, looking quite unsure on what to do.

"You needed me, Tesla?" Cabot asked.

Tesla sighed, "You know what I'm about to ask you."

Volta's smile dropped, she turned to Teslaasked, "What's going on, Tes?"

The café went silent, only the background music was playing.

"Before our match at the arena," Tesla said in Pokémon speech, "I've asked Cabot if he could take you in after you evolve. He agreed."

Volta gasped, "No, Tesla. No, no, please don't toss me out!"

"Volta, I'm not tossing you out. I told you clearly that I'm not going to leave you alone in the world. Cabot here has a home to shelter you, a bed for you to rest, and plenty of food and water for you to eat and drink. As much as I love to, I cannot provide those things. I don't have a home or a bed, and I can't keep purchasing food to feed you. He doesn't have to train you if you don't want him to, what's important is that he will take care of you better than I can."

Volta shook her head, a tear escaped her eye, "Please don't leave me, Tesla. Oh, I should have never even evolved!"

Tesla spoke in human speech, "I would have gave you up either way, there isn't much I can do about it."

The Mouse Pokémon sobbed, "No."

"Look at me, Volta."

Volta held up her head, more tears trail down her face.

"If you're gonna function in this world, you'll need friends. Lots of it. Hang around with Cabot for a while and make some friends you think you can keep in touch. I managed to get this far in life by having some friends with dews needed to be paid. I had just called one in just to let you set foot on a Pokémon battlefield."

Tesla placed both hands on Volta's shoulders, "You cannot rely on me forever, there will always be other people and Pokémon who can help you."

Volta said nothing.

"I know how this feels, Volta," Tesla added, "I never had a choice in the matter, but you do. You can go back to your home with your Dad and his buddies or move in with Cabot, but staying with me is not an option."

"You're going to look for Polly, are you."

Tesla shook his head, "I don't think I am ever going to see her again, maybe not even what's left of her."

"But will I see you again?"

Tesla nodded, "You will, I'll promise you that."

Volta looked up at Cabot, then looked back at Tesla, "You said there will be a home, a bed?"

"Much like the hotel here," said Tesla, "But more private."

She thought about her options: Volta could either go back to Dixie or stay with Cabot, till Tesla decides to take her back under his wing. Ray, Bruiser, and her dad, Pika, are close relatives with a horde of family members behind them, but there might be a lack of shelter and food might be a problem. Cabot had all those things, but she doesn't know him, and she doesn't know squat about his own friends. It felt like a gamble, but she doesn't see anything obvious that may be a major downside.

Volta wrapped her arms around Tesla, "I love you, Tesla, and I will miss you."

"I won't forget about you," he said in Pokémon speech, "Once I got a stable home set up, you can move in with me at anytime."

"I'll go with Cabot," she said, "I trust your judgment on this, Tesla, because I love you."

Volta got off the chair and approached Cabot, "You've forgot your handkerchief at the arena," he said, "I've cleaned it up for you."

Cabot got down and pulled out her pink handkerchief. The grime and dried sweat was washed away, leaving nothing but the bright pink color. Cabot wrapped it around Volta's neck and gently knotted it so it looked kinda like a scarf, "There we go," he said, "You look so cute, you know that."

Volta smiled, "Thank you."

Tesla got off the chair, then look up at Cabot, "Thank you for taking in Volta, Cabot. As long as she's under your care, I am forever in your debt."

"You want my phone number so you can call to check up on her?" Cabot asked.

"No, that would be too much."

Volta spun around and gave Tesla a big hug, Tesla couldn't help but laugh, "Goodbye, Volta. I love you."

The latest generation of Tesla's family held her mouth to his ear, and whispered her final words to him in Vegas City, "I love you too, Tesla."

. . .

Tesla's eyes went white, Did Volta just spoken . . . human?

When Volta let go of him, Tesla remained frozen in place. She turned around and jumped up in Cabot's arms, "Okay," she said, "Let's go."

Cabot cradled her in his arms, she snuggled her face into his chest, getting ready to sleep off the night. He then turned to Ash, "It's nice meeting you, Ash," he said, "I see why Tesla liked you so much, you're definitely a true friend."

"Thank you, Cabot," said Ash, "We'll see each other again some other day."

"Yeah," said Pikachu, "Some other day."

Cabot nodded, "Bye, you guys. Take care."

"So long, Cabot." said Cilan.

"Bye." said Iris.

"Bye." added Axew.

Cabot turned towards the door and walked out, Tesla watched as he took his great-great granddaughter away. His heart churned, his stomach flipped, and his mind was clouded with a sense of loss . . . and puzzlement.

"She spoke human," Tesla muttered to himself, "Volta learned how to speak human, but . . . how?"

"You said something, Tesla?" Ash asked.

Tesla blinked, then shook his head, "Uh, nothing, Ash. Thanks again for helping me to train Volta, I swear I was at the edge of letting her down several times. I don't know how I can repay you."

"Don't worry about it, its always good to help a friend. That's what matters."

"Truly what matters." said Pikachu.

Tesla looked up at the ceiling, "Well, I guess I better head back to the Pokémon Center for more diagnostics. I am still not in the clear for my liver you know."

"We'll come over to the Pokémon Center tomorrow morning," said Ash, "If you don't mind, of course."

"No, I don't mind."

"Is it alright if we escort you back?" Cilan asked.

"Sure," said Tesla, "But I'll walk, you don't need to carry me."

. . .

Darkness came swiftly, and Wotter and Smugleaf were more than ready.

After cleaning and loading their MP5s, they packed away the rest of the ammo and clips into their backpacks. Wotter then dragged their mattresses to the center of the room while Smugleaf soaked the room with lighter fluid. She made sure she got enough over the mattresses, they were going to be difficult to burn.

Smugleaf tossed the empty butane carton on the mattresses, "How long do you think this would burn?"

"I'm not sure," said Wotter, "I'm not fire-type."

"Well, hopefully it wouldn't be long."

The PRA operatives did one final sweep for any evidence of their presence, certain that they covered up their stay Smugleaf stuck a candle stick in the grooves of the floor. She struck a match and lit the candle, the fuse had been lit, "Okay," she said, "Let's get outta here."

Smugleaf and Wotter sneaked out the back and climbed down into the storm drain, they managed to snake across town before reemerging near an industrial district. They crept under the shadows searching for a van with a manual sliding door. They didn't have to search for long. They found a white utility van parked outside of a warehouse, it looked like it had been sitting there for a while. Smugleaf checked the van, then nodded, "I can hot-wire this, cover me while I work my magic."

As Wotter stood watch, Smugleaf defeated the door lock and got inside. She wrapped her vines around the steering wheel and gave it a sharp twist, the steering wheel lock shattered under her strength. Smugleaf turned the wheel a few times to be sure it was broken. Satisfied she pulled the steering column cover off and ripped out the ignition wires, she twist the battery wires together. The car's power turned on, the door signal in the dash started beeping. Smugleaf grabbed the green wire and touched the battery wires, the engine churned and turned over.

"Are you done, yet?" Wotter asked.

"Hold on," said Smugleaf, "Just one more thing."

She jumped out and crawled underneath the van and disabled the clutch lock. It was just a simple pin holding it all together, Smugleaf ripped it out and tossed it aside, "Okay, I'm done. You're driving."

Wotter got behind the wheel as Smugleaf rode shotgun. The Discipline Pokémon managed to get the van in gear and drove out into the street. He drove steadily and well within the recommend speed limit. Smugleaf was amazed how steady he was, "Since when did you learn to drive?"

"Nobark taught me." Wotter tersely say.

They drove to a more secluded spot in Vegas City. The operatives pulled into an open parking lot and stopped. Wotter got out and unscrew the license plates off the van while Smugleaf unscrewed a couple of license plates off of two random cars. As Wotter replaced those with the van's license plates Smugleaf screwed the cars' onto the van, "That would stir up confusion."

Wotter quickly rejoined Smugleaf, "I'll drive up to Cabot's hotel with my window rolled down, you get in the back and go prone, facing the driver-side of the van. Once I stop, I'll signal you to yank open that sliding door then we'll commence firing. But that's only if we have to wait."

"What if you see Cabot?"

"I'll screech to a halt and you rip open that van door, then we unload on him."

Smugleaf nodded, "You drive this van back out here and hide it somewhere, then we bail out of Vegas City on foot."

Wotter grinned, "And pizza and beer awaits us."

. . .

Volta giggled as Cabot stroke her belly, she smiled and cooed, adoring him with her black pearl eyes. Cabot smiled, "You are so cute, you know that?"

The Mouse Pokémon let out a soft coo in response.

This was the very Pokémon who had defeated his Emolga. She was fierce and merciless when in battle. But outside of battle, she was the most precious thing who ever walked the planet. It was almost as if Volta was truly innocent, her heart more purer than gold. Tesla had raised her right, as far Cabot could tell Tesla was the best father and teacher anyone could have. It was sad for him to let her go, sad because he knew he was destined to let her down. So he cut his losses by having Volta move in with him.

"When we get to my apartment," Cabot told Volta, "I'm going to give you a nice warm bath, groom your fur, and fix you the best meals your heart desires. I have a Tempurpedic bed at home, you're going to love it. With a touch of a button, you can warm it up and cool it down, even change how soft and hard you want it."

"Pika?" Volta asked.

"You don't have to worry about a thing, you'll be safe and warm. Believe me, you will like it."

Volta nestled her head back into Cabot's chest, he rubbed her ears and held her up, "If you want, you can help me train my other Pokémon."

"Pikachu?"

The Mouse Pokémon gave Cabot a confused look, a part of her might want to help him while another part doesn't. Cabot cradled her head, "Don't worry about it just yet," said Cabot, "Give it a few weeks before you decided what to do with your spare time."

Volta nodded, "Pika Pika."

. . .

"Holy sh*t," said Wotter, "There he is, get ready!"

Smugleaf cocked her MP5 and went prone on the van's floorboard, she faced the back driver-side sliding door and took aim, "Ready, Wotter!"

. . .

The van crept steadily just 70 meters away, it didn't rang any of Cabot's alarm bells. He saw vans go both fast or slow. The utility companies and service providers work feverishly to keep their networks up and working. Smart grids, satellites, communicator and videophone reception, Vegas City had all these neat toys that demand immediate care. The technicians in the van were probably doing their evening diagnostic tests, just to make sure someone tonight could order a pizza.

Cabot cradled Volta in her arms. It was starting to get cold out, but so far she remained comfortably warm. Maybe she had tuned out the world so she could savor the moment. The Mouse Pokémon's face was buried in his armpit, Cabot could feel her breathe into his shirt. She must like his scent, probably trying to get used to the smell. Or, she had fallen asleep. That tournament took a drain on her, she was ready to sleep for 10 hours straight.

And she will get plenty of it, he thought.

The hotel was just right around the corner. Cabot yawned, he too was beat. Though he had lost the Faraday Island Tournament, having the victor's Pokémon was a nice constellation prize. Besides, he didn't need the money. His life was just as fine the way he had it, maybe the next time he sees Tesla he should thank him for his unconditional support.

But that was not meant to be.

Cabot located his hotel room and approached it, just as he was halfway down the sidewalk he heard the van stop behind him. Out of curiosity, he turned to see what it was doing. The driver-side window rolled down, the sliding-door ripped open. The shadows inside stuck out barrels of sub-machine guns, aimed directly at him.

Oh sh*t.

Cabot spun around and threw Volta as far as he can.

. . .

Volta was rudely waken by loud bangs and flashing lights. The Mouse Pokémon spun end over end before kissing the pavement, she tumbled twice and came to a stop against a trash can.

What's going on!? She thought.

. . .

Smugleaf grinned when Cabot spun around, it made things easier.

She fired a two-round burst, both rounds struck the back of Cabot's head. His medulla and half his brain turning to jelly. He was dead before he could hit the ground.

But Nobark wanted it to be a mafia hit style, so Smugleaf squeezed the trigger and unloaded the 30-round magazine into Cabot's cooling corpse.

Wotter was quick with his gun, he took steady aim and unleashed a full-auto blitzkrieg. Their combined fire shook up the sleeping city like storm. Birds scattered, car alarms went off. It sounded like a world war despite the sub-sonic rounds muted noise.

Nonetheless, the extra stopping power made things twice as messy. Cabot was quickly turned into red and pink Swiss cheese in less than 10 seconds. Blood and brain got lodged in the wall of the hotel, chunks of flesh strewn across the pavement. Cabot's glasses went flying, clattering near one of the hotel doors.

A bright plasma arch strewn out of Cabot's backpack, an Emolga materialized just a few meters away from its dead trainer. Smugleaf saw the shattered remnants of a Poké ball spilled out of his backpack through a bullet hole. Somehow the Poké ball caught a round and got destroyed, releasing the Pokémon within.

The Emolga was facing away from the trainer, before it could see the carnage Smugleaf shot a vine at the Sky Squirrel and coiled it up. Smugleaf gave it no time to react, she quickly pulled the Emolga into the van and slammed the butt of her gun against the back of its head. The Sky Squirrel went limp.

Smugleaf shoved the Emolga into the back of the van and took one final glance outside. In the darkness, she caught a glimpse of a Mouse Pokémon huddling at the foot of a trash can. She realized who it was when she saw the pink handkerchief.

Volta, I presume. Smugleaf thought.

One prisoner was enough, and there was no time to bag a second. So Smugleaf fired the rest of her clip above Volta's head, the Mouse Pokémon scrambled on her four feet and scurried away into the alleys.

"Step on it!" Smugleaf cried.

Wotter wasted no time, he tossed his gun into the passenger seat and floored the gas. Smugleaf was thrown against the back of the car as the van sped down the road, "Slow down for a sec, I need to get the damn door shut!"

The Discipline Pokémon slowed the van just enough for Smugleaf to stand, she wrapped a vine around the sliding door's handle and pushed. It slammed closed. For an added safety measure, she locked the doors so no one could get them open, "Head back to the parking lot, we'll ditch the van there!"

"Why did you bag that Emolga, Smugleaf!?" Wotter swore.

"Just shut up and drive, we'll argue this later!"

TO BE CONTINUED...