Edric's lungs filled with air as his life vest pulled him upward to the surface. He gasped and splashed about, his head whipping around as the water still moved in the aftermath of the wave. His vision doubled and his side cramped in exhaustion, but he turned as best he could in the water, screaming at the top of his lungs for what he was sure he saw underneath him as the wave came down.
"Monferno? Where's Monferno!?" He shouted, looking downward trying to catch a glimpse of scarlet.
He waved about in a panic as he tried to move through the water with the life vest. It tightened and made it hard for him to swim correctly, so he desperately ripped at the straps securing it. In the distance, he heard the sound of a motor. People were approaching, but he did not care. He ripped the vest off, took a deep breath, and dove.
Down and down he swam, the water seeming to be deeper here than he thought. He twisted about in the water, exerting as much effort as he could into trying to see as much as he could. His lungs began to burn with effort. Where are you? He thought.
It became unbearable after 3 minutes of looking and he swam upward toward the surface, gasping for air again as he broke the surface. Wake's speedboat floated in the water feet from him. The old man stared at him as Edric wiped the water from his eyes and was filled with rage.
"Fucking help me!" He screamed, his face growing so hot he thought smoke would come out of his ears. Wake stood, motionless, mouth agape as Edric tread water. Edric splashed at him, pleading angrily again. "Find Monferno!"
Wake seemed to snap back to where he was. He fumbled for something at his belt and Edric then heard the sound of a Pokeball open. Gyarados, seeming to immediately understand what was going on, disappeared under the water.
He heard the sound of someone else break the surface behind him and turned in the water. The referee swam toward the boat beside him.
"Are you alright?" he asked, seeming to be surprised to see him.
Edric did not answer as his legs worked to stay afloat despite his body pleading to take a break. Looking back and forth at the two of them, he gave an annoyed growl and took a deep breath, diving again.
Gyarados' massive body rocketed through the water with no impediment as it skirted the ocean floor under Edric. Edric watched, his body turning in the water as Gyarados flipped over stones and swatted the Pokemon hiding under them away.
Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Edric saw a flash of blue and turned toward it. His heart leaped and he blinked as he saw Golduck swim briefly behind a large rock then back out with something draped over his shoulder, a large figure that looked almost green in the tint of the blue water.
"Monferno!" Edric said, bubbles rising from his mouth.
Golduck reached the surface seconds before him with his Pokemon. It lifted Monferno up onto the boat into the arms of the two men. Edric pumped as hard as he could toward the boat. The referee was there ready to help him up. He glanced at Golduck briefly and felt pressure on the back of his neck as a thought he was unable to voice entered his mind.
– That wasn't me. I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry –
Edric's Pokemon lay on the floor of the boat, unmoving. It's eyes were closed and the lively flame that enveloped its tail was completely out. Edric couldn't move or speak as he stared at Monferno, its chest did not move.
"You." The referee said to Wake. He seemed to be staring at Monferno as well, jolted out of a stupor by the ref suddenly jumping into action. The man knelt beside Monferno's body, placing his hands over the Pokemon's chest. "About a mile west there is a Pokemon hospital close enough to the shore for us to carry him there. Drive."
Wake turned and gunned the boat and Edric lurched at the sudden increase in speed. The ref seemed unperturbed and took in a breath then bent to resuscitate Monferno. Edric stared, shell shocked. His body was cold and his muscles ached at him. His head filled with fuzz and his stomach turned. He had to grab hold of something to keep from falling over
The ref pumped at Monferno's chest and Edric watched as water came out of his Pokemon's open mouth. It seemed to cough twice, a full body convulsion of water being ejected from its body. Edric's heart sunk to the pits of his stomach as Monferno then stopped moving again. The man bent and put an ear to Monferno's chest.
"He's breathing again. We need to get him to a hospital."
The ref did a few more chest compressions and a little more water came out before the boat came to a halt a the shore. He picked up Monferno in his arms, and ran across the beach toward a set of stairs. Edric followed along, not caring to pay any mind to Wake, who seemed to be completely paralyzed in shock.
Rushing down the streets of Pastoria city, they came to a small building with a large EMERGENCY sign out front. A man in black scrubs with a jacket on saw them approach from the drive way and said something into a walkie-talkie he had attached to his shoulder. A go-team of three more nurses, 3 dark-haired woman and a tall man, rolled out a gurney the referee carefully laid Monferno onto.
"What happened? The lead nurse asked as her and her team began to move the gurney. They rushed through the doors of the hospital and down a hallway past a reception desk no one was sitting behind.
Edric blanked and the referee said "It drowned trying to save him from a misaimed attack during a gym battle. I tried to resuscitate it and it gave up a bit of water, but not all of it."
The nurse said something Edric couldn't hear in response as his head became hot again and his ears filled with fuzz. His vision began to fade in and out as he suddenly became unable to walk straight. He felt himself stumble and fall as his lids became too heavy to keep open anymore.
–
Edric awoke with a bit of a start. He sat up in an uncomfortable chair in a large room he took a few seconds to realize was a waiting room. Looking around, there appeared to be no one waiting here. To his left was the reception desk, still apparently unoccupied and on the other side was a hallway that came to an intersection.
"Fuck," He cursed, reaching for his phone and realizing he'd left it in his bag. Eyeing a clock on the wall, It had been about two and a half hours since he was scheduled for his battle with Wake. He wondered if Hart had come to the gym looking for him yet.
Slowly, and still a little shaky, he stood and stretched. He caught whiff of something and realized he stank like seawater. Grimacing, he walked toward the desk.
"Hello?" he ventured, leaning over a bit. He was careful to keep his voice down as this place did not seem to be a very large hospital. Behind the desk was a large room with computers and phones set up with another door leading out, but no one seemed to be sitting around. His stomach made a sound. Turning toward the hallway, he chanced there was a vending machine somewhere.
Taking a right at the intersection, Edric froze as he heard voices coming from around the next corner. Forcing his footsteps to be silent, he sneaked to get a closer look. The two voices, immediately identifiable, spoke in hushed tones.
"The league will absolutely hear about this, there's no way I'll be able to keep this secret." The referee seemed to be speaking sternly to Wake in a similar fashion to the way he spoke to the both of them on the boat.
"There must be something you can do to keep this quiet, Trevor. I can't risk something like this getting out again." Wake responded.
"It's not about what I can do. It's about what I will do, James. The kid could've died."
James?
Wake gave what Edric could only assume was a groan but sounded more like a deep whine. "Ever since you guys have started watching me – 20 years, I might add – I have not fucked up a single time. I've been clean, submitting the urine samples every week, going to meetings, all that shit for20 fucking years as punishment for something I had no control over. I think I deserve a bit of a break."
"A break?" The ref's hushed tone grew sharper. "You think you need a fucking break? Every single day I have worked my ass off to make sure nothing like what just happened affects the integrity of our department. I have been out there, on my board, making sure you don't fucking kill a kid because you insist on being all the way out on the god damn ocean instead of a normal, reasonable gym. I don't even like the ocean!" Edric heard the sounds of hands patting together with frustration.
"Before this even happened the first time, we could've had a gym with a nice sized pool and actual safety precautions for this exact situation, but no! Your stubborn, drunken ego has gotten in the way of every single ruling we've tried to make over this gym. What the fuck would you have done if the kid hadn't asked you for a vest? Forget that he even had to ask you for one, what if he did drown out there?"
Wake seemed to stutter and search for words to say.
"You're an idiot. You don't deserve to be a gym leader. You're a disgrace to what this entire department stands for and I personally can not wait to report to my supervisor."
Edric did not move as Trevor turned the corner and saw him there, listening to their conversation. A second later Wake appeared too, his face contorted in anger, then the old man was storming past the both of them and around the corner.
"I'm glad you're alright. You took a big hit and I was sure you'd be knocked out when I swam up."
His tone was suddenly sympathetic as opposed to the harshness he'd just regarded Wake with. He handed Edric a candy bar and he accepted it.
"Thanks." Edric said quietly. "Where's Monferno?"
Trevor paused briefly, rubbing the back of his neck. He still wore his water-suit with the Sinnoh League logo on it. "Monferno is in the operating room currently. They say it should take an hour or two before you can see him, but he's alive. Do you have anybody you can call?"
Edric's heart dropped again and he gripped the candy bar. "Yeah,"
There was a payphone outside where Edric dialed up Ethan and told him what had happened and let him know he had left his bag at the gym. He and Trevor waited in the waiting room until they arrived, Edric's belongings in tow. Edric glanced at Trevor as Hart handed over his Trainer ID card and a circular badge with a light blue lake inlaid.
"You won, the league will recognize that."
Edric nodded to him. "Is he going to lose his job for this?"
The man didn't seem to be holding anything back. "Yes, it's very likely he will lose his job— Not that the man even seems to like it anyway...I'll submit my report when I get home and proceedings will likely be carried out later this week. We'll almost assuredly be contacting you for more information as a witness."
Despite what happened, Edric can't help but feel a pang of remorse for the man. Silently, he shoved the feeling back down.
Hart seemed to jump on that information, saying "This isn't the first time this has happened, I assume?" Edric could tell he'd already known about the kid who'd nearly drowned before. His eyebrows raised a little as Trevor shared the story with the rest of them.
"Crasher Wake was a pretty bad alcoholic back then and needed to be reprimanded, but the Rookie League still hadn't come under much scrutiny for how the man had been acting. It had been more of a local kind of problem since most trainers don't come out this way for the early gym battles, usually for the later ones. He was told he had to get sober or lose his job."
Emily scoffed at that. "The man seems like he didn't take that well."
"He hasn't been the easiest to work with." Trevor said. "I'm sure his replacement will be much more… friendly."
They talked for another few minutes before Trevor had to leave to submit his report. His three friends joined him in the waiting room where they sat silently, waiting for someone to reappear at the desk. Emily had him go over the exact details of what had happened. Edric found it replaying in his head again as he recounted it to the three of them. Monferno's punch, the steam, Golduck's look from underwater… He found himself unable to describe the Pokemon's demeanor, like something was blocking him from remembering how he felt about it as it brought Monferno to the boat. His friends stared at him, a little confused as he moved on.
"It wasn't still mad at you and Monferno after it fired off the attack? It didn't try to hit you again?" Emily asked.
Edric's thoughts seemed to skip, like a memory in denial of it's own existence. He shook his head, himself confused.
After about an hour, a woman's head popped out from behind the desk and she called Edric's name. She was short and dark skinned with her hair tied up in a neat bun. Edric recognized her as the lead nurse that took Monferno in. He approached the desk quickly.
"How is he doing?" He asked, his hands tapping his thigh nervously.
She gave a sort of a sad smile, practiced, he could tell. Probably from giving bad news often to trainers who came in with sickly Pokemon. Edric could feel his head growing hot and his chest contract as she spoke.
"The operation was only partially successful. We pumped a lot of the water out of him, but there's still some in his lungs that's making it hard for him to get oxygen." She said slowly.
Edric's next words threatened to catch in his throat. He felt a hand on the small of his back, warm and comforting. Ethan stood next to him.
"Is there anything you can do to help him? There must be something to get him to breathe." He said. Every word felt like a concrete sliding off of his tongue, sloppy and gray.
"Monferno's species makes it hard to perform that kind of operation. We're afraid putting that kind of stress on him would end badly before we could get anywhere with his lungs."
"B- But what about the, uh… I can, uh…" Edric's hands were on flat on the sides of his head and he was shaking. The nurse just stared back at him, he looked back at her, confused.
"You can see him, if you'd like?" She offered.
Edric couldn't say anything anymore. His mouth opened and closed as his world crashed in around him.
"We'd like that, thanks." Ethan answered.
She led the two of them down the hallway and into the patient room at the end of the hallway. Edric recognized the gurney Monferno had been placed upon sitting outside the doorway. He found he couldn't breathe as the nurse opened the door and stepped inside, the two of them following.
His Pokemon laid on its back, covered in a soft-looking white blanket up to it's chest. The scarlet fur had turned a paler, soft orange, as if the fiery-red tones of it were sucked away. Monferno still looked damp too, it's white collar matted and dirty. It didn't look to be breathing, despite the machine across from the bed that beeped steadily with what he could assume was his Pokemon's heartbeat.
Edric gave a small whimper and felt Ethan's hand tighten around his own, grip so strong Edric thought his hand might break. His ears flooded and he was suddenly back underwater, watching Monferno's body be carried from the ocean floor. He found it hard to take his eyes off of his Pokemon.
"...overnight, that would be best." he heard someone say. Looking, he saw a man standing next to Monferno's bed he hadn't noticed before. A short man with pale skin in a white lab coat with blue scrubs underneath. Probably the doctor. He looked up at Ethan as Ethan nodded in response to the doctor's instructions.
"What did he say?" Edric asked his boyfriend.
Ethan looked down at him. "They're giving him some medicine they think will help get the fluid out of Monferno's lungs, but it takes a while to kick in so they want to keep him overnight."
Edric nodded halfheartedly, looking around the room. There was a padded chair situated in the corner. That would be enough.
"I'll stay here then. You guys should go back to the hotel and get some sleep and I'll see you in the morning." Edric said. He glanced briefly at the doctor and the nurse, who didn't seem to be making any objections, just that same passively empathetic expression they'd had before.
"Are you sure?" Ethan asked.
"Yes."
Ethan, looking down at his boyfriend, gave him a sad peck on the forehead. "Keep me updated? I love you."
He nodded again at Ethan and the boy left the room along with the nurse. He turned toward the doctor.
"That's okay here, right?" He asked him. The doctor smiled and placed the clipboard he was holding on the side table next to Monferno's head.
"Not usually, but we make a few exceptions." He said. "If you have any more questions, I'll be here until about midnight until the next shift comes in."
Once the doctor was gone, Edric moved to Monferno's bedside. It looked to be sleeping, almost in direct conflict with what had happened just a few hours ago. He laid a soft hand on the Pokemon's forehead, stroking it's discolored fur. It seemed to lack the familiar warmth Edric had come to know and love.
There was another knock at the door, a nurse Edric also recognized from before bringing in more blankets. She left them on the table next to the chair. Edric gave a deep, sullen sigh and collapsed in the chair. His exhaustion seemed to catch up to him all at once again and he slumped.
The last thing he felt before he lost conciousness was a slight press on the back of his next. An invisible presence beckoning to him.
–
My eyes open and I immediately know I am not alone this time. Like before, soft wind blows my clothes and hair about like a windy day on a beach and I feel as though I could be falling, but in full control of my body. I stand in the air, my feet seeming to steady underneath me as voices erupt around me. I don't dare attempt to respond.
"So would you accept my offer?" One voice says. It seems muffled, almost like it's speaking from behind a glass barrier.
"I'm not even sure I understand what you're asking here. You want me to help him?" Another says. This one also seems to come from behind a barrier.
I stretch my hands out before me and find a wall. As I touch it, the scene seems to unfold and the smoke surrounding me coalesces into two figures, both tall and definitely not human. They are silhouetted by a multicolored light that seems to shift every few seconds.
"To put it simply, yes. I'm afraid I cannot let him lose it like this." The first voice says. It's form is bipedal with long arms, but it's hard to make out any other details. My mind seems to be working to blur anything else discernible out.
The second voice lets loose a laugh. Short and sweet, almost teasing in tone. "Why him, though?" Its figure is quadrupedal and there seems to be a great mass of… something over it's head, but that is all I am able to make out.
The long-armed one hums out something indiscernible, almost like words in a different language further obscured by a mouth full of cotton. I find myself unable to parse a single word. The four-legged one pauses in response, seeming to consider the long-armed one's answer for a moment. The figure distorts for a brief moment.
"I would happily do this for you if you believe this boy has meritable attributes… but I don't understand, why him?"
The long-armed one hums once again in a string of notes sounding almost like a song. Melodious yet morose.
"And you would bring this to the council?" The four-legged one says.
"At the soonest possible convenience." The long-armed one responds.
There seems to be more time passing between the two of them as the four-legged considers the long-armed. I feel warm all of a sudden, like the sun passing overhead. The light changes and grows bright around the four-legged silhouette. The colors begin to rapidly cycle for a few moments, then briefly glow a scarlet red. After a few seconds, the light fades.
"It is done. I shall inform the others and we'll gather to discuss the other matters in some time." The four legged one says. As it finishes speaking, the silhouette abruptly fades.
"Yes. My thanks to you." The long-armed one responds, it's silhouette fading along side it.
–
Edric was awoken by a shake on his shoulder. His eyes fluttered open, exhaustion and the sun beaming in from the bedside window making him a little dizzy at first. Ethan stood over him, stroking his cheek affectionately.
"Morning, baby."
Edric stood from his chair and immediately grimaced at a pain in his back. The chair hadn't been as comfortable as he thought. Ethan gave him a quick peck on the lips.
"Hows he doing?" Hart asked from the doorway.
Not seeing them before, Edric gave Hart and Emily a curt wave as they stood there. Edric's head still clearing from sleep, he looked to Monferno's bed. The room had not changed. The Pokemon still lay on his back, his chest moving almost imperceptibly. It did not make a sound.
"Still the same, looks like. I haven't heard from the doctor any overnight." Edric responded.
As if on cue, a nurse appeared in the doorway. Edric did not recognize this one, but she could almost be the short one's sister. She was small and dark-skinned with her hair in braids. She carried a clipboard.
"Anything happen while I was asleep?"
The nurse looked at Edric silently. Edric's eyes began to fill again.
Then, something miraculous happened. The room filled with white light that blinded Edric through the tearful veil. His arm came up to shield from the light that pulsed out from-
"What-? What's happening?" He asked, stunned. He lost sight of the other four people in the room as the light seemed to grow brighter, The tears came with a sob as he turned and watched his Pokemon disappear behind a flashy white veil. "Monferno?"
Underneath the blanket, Edric could see limbs extend to the foot of the bed, arms and legs all growing longer and thicker as Monferno's body evolved. It's shoulders came into a more muscly, rounded shape and it's neck grew thick and wiry.
The light faded and in the bed lay a Pokemon that only resembled Monferno fleetingly. It was taller, stronger, and agile-looking. It's eyes were still closed and its chest seemed to have stopped moving. Edric had moved to the Pokemon's bedside without thinking. He hovered over its face as the tears came down now and fell on it's brown-red snout.
"Wake up, buddy." Edric pleaded quietly.
The pressure came.
- You should stand back -
Infernape's eyes opened and Edric's breath caught looking down into the deep blue eyes of his Pokemon. Its chest heaved like a burp coming up from it's stomach and out of its mouth came a column of steam that filled the room.
There it is.
