A Call For Help

Ah, I see my anomaly has achieved a milestone.

It really is becoming stronger.

...

Wait.

…

I have to say, I didn't expect it to inherit that trait.

Jordan was falling. The ground had opened beneath him, leaving about 20 feet of space between him and the next surface below him. The fall would break plenty of his bones. It might even be his demise if he hit the ground badly enough or if he couldn't find a way to move after landing.

His situation had taken a major turn for the worse, and yet he wasn't afraid. However, that should be credited more to his sickness than his confidence. His emotions were being dulled he grew more tired with each passing moment. Jordan closed his eyes and let gravity pull him towards the floor.

Jordan felt strong appendages thicker than tree trunks take hold of him while he descended. He heard the cement crunch just a few feet below him but his body never touched the ground, though he still felt a bit of a jarring impact that made his teeth clack together.

Jordan opened his eyes and saw that he was being carried in the arms of a Machoke. It was looking down at him with a concerned expression, a look that was odd on such a burly figure.

Jordan sighed with some relief. "Thanks," he said. He motioned for Machoke to place him on the ground. It did so incredibly gently as if it worried it would accidentally break Jordan's body if it went to fast.

The room they had fallen into was a little bigger than the one above. It looked to be about a little more than half the size of the gymnasium at Jordan's school. It was completely empty. Of course, the empty space was about to be occupied.

The debris from the shattered floor and ceiling rained down beside and on top of him. Rocks from the ceiling above the floor that had fallen through were also falling. Machoke moved on top of Jordan to protect him from the falling cement. Rocks struck the fighting-types back, some fracturing as they did so.

Other Pokemon began to fall around Jordan. Some landed on their feet, some didn't, and some stayed in the air with the help of wings. Jordan cringed as he saw one land sideways on a large boulder-shaped piece of the floor that had fallen in. Fortunately, Jordan saw that a few other Pokemon went over to check on it.

Machines and cables fell, too. The strange devices that had held six Poke balls at a time crashed into the ground near the walls, scattering bits of metal in every direction. Poke balls fell as well. The Pokemon moved out of the way of falling capsules in case one of them happened to be theirs and trapped them again. The computer that Jordan had used was nearby, destroyed beyond the possibility of repair.

Jordan still felt extraordinarily ill and it had only gotten worse since the fall. He sat up and leaned over, waiting for more bile to come pouring out. Thankfully, there wasn't any, but it didn't make him feel any better.

Jordan heard a tapping noise traveling towards him. He looked ahead and saw a crab-like creature with a giant red mushroom on its back. A Parasect.

Parasect approached Jordan and stopped when it was a few feet away. It then began to spew a strange essence from its mushroom directly into Jordan's face.

Jordan was about to jump away from Parasect, as he knew that it was known for emitting toxic spores, but was stopped as he realized that not only could Parasect not hurt him but that the aroma ha a very pleasant smell. He paused where he sat, then relaxed as he continued to breathe in the fumes.

His sickness began to slowly drain away. His vision cleared and the dull pain in his head faded. His stomach stopped heaving and he no longer worried about throwing up. He closed his eyes and began to breathe much more easily.

At his third exhalation, he opened his eyes and looked at Parasect. It didn't have much of an expression. Jordan smiled at it. At his smile, the Parasect turned and scuttled away.

Now that Jordan was no longer in great pain and discomfort, he could afford to think of other things.

Fireball. He didn't see his Monferno anywhere among the rubble and other Pokemon. He guessed that it was still on the floor above. Adrenaline began to pump through his veins as a growing rage filled his mind. It was time to fight back.

Jordan pushed himself off the ground and looked up. Now that he was listening, he heard sounds of more fighting through the entryway of the room above, along with shouting. Jordan decided that most of the previously captive Pokemon were not happy about being contained for so long.

The sounds were fading, meaning one of the two sides was retreating. Most likely Team Dominion, as they were now overwhelmingly outnumbered.

Jordan's first step was to find Fireball. He found the nearest exit to the room and took a step towards it.

A strong hand clasped the top of his shoulder. Jordan turned to see Machoke. The fighting type didn't do anything else, only continued to watch him.

"What?" Jordan asked while simultaneously trying to escape Machoke's grip. He was unsuccessful.

Machoke began to turn its head and look around the room. Jordan hesitantly followed its gaze.

Every Pokemon in the room was looking at him. It wasn't all of the ones he had freed, however. Many had gone ahead to join the fight, such as the Excadrill that had used Earthquake. These Pokemon, however, had decided to stay. Why was that?

Jordan looked back at Machoke, who was still staring intently into his eyes. That was when Jordan realized it. They need someone to follow behind. A trainer.

Machoke noticed Jordan's thought process. The muscular Pokemon removed its hand before turning around and squatting down. It then began to point to its back.

It wants me to get on? Jordan wondered. He slowly complied, climbing on to Machoke's backside and wrapping his arms securely around its neck. He looked around at the other Pokemon again.

Jordan was met with deja vu. He had seen something like this before. Pokemon, lots of them, all focused on him. All with the intent to fight.

But this time, they weren't fighting against him. Now, they all had a common enemy.

Jordan smiled at how far he'd come. "Alright," he said. "Find your way up! We're gonna beat these guys until there's nobody left standing!"

Machoke extended its legs and launched off the ground. It grabbed a ledge that led to the next floor and held on before pulling itself and Jordan up. They were back in the hallway. Rocks were on the ground here now, too.

Among the debris, bodies clad in black clothing lay on the ground. They had most likely been either hit with rocks or physical Pokemon attacks.

Jordan hopped down from Machoke's back as other Pokemon started to come up. Flying types carried smaller Pokemon. Large Pokemon like Gyrados and Onix lifted some heavier Pokemon onto the next floor. Soon, all of them were at the same level again.

Jordan turned and took off down the hall towards the sounds of battle. More than fifteen determined Pokemon followed behind.

No.

Dream Eater watched, frozen, as Shadow Force crumpled to the ground like a lifeless doll. Fear petrified his body, keeping him from moving towards the boy. He struggled out of his shock before rushing over.

Chu - Shadow Force had been calling his Pokemon by that name - had run to its trainer immediately after he had fallen. It noticed Dream Eater's approach and readied itself. Electricity crackled across its body.

"Wait!" Dream Eater insisted. "I want to help!"

Chu hesitated. Dream Eater knew it didn't have many options. There wasn't much it could do on its own. Eventually, the Pikachu reluctantly lowered its guard, allowing Dream Eater to get closer.

Dream Eater dropped to his knees to examine the boy's condition. He grimaced at the amount of blood seeping from the child's head. It ran through his dark hair, soaking it, and onto the floor, creating a small puddle.

No. No. No. No!

Dream Eater began to apply pressure to the wound. This kid couldn't die. He wouldn't allow it. Not until their battle was over. They needed to finish it! There needed to be a winner! This wouldn't be a victory.

Not to mention that this was the most excitement Dream Eater had felt in a while. He had been having fun. The only regret that had been passing through his mind was that the two of them would only have been able to battle this once.

You can't die. I need you to wake up. We need to finish our battle…

The boy suddenly stopped breathing. When he noticed this, Dream Eater held his own breath. He removed one hand from Shadow Force's head and placed two fingers on his neck, feeling for a pulse. There was none.

The blood continued to pour. Dream Eater released his hands from Shadow Force's head and neck and made fists against the ground. Chu seemed to realize what was going on. Dream Eater had never heard of a Pokemon crying, but it seemed like this one was about to as it looked at the deceased body of its former trainer.

Dream Eater opened his mouth and let out a furious scream of agony.

Carol woke. She wished she hadn't. Then she wouldn't have been able to feel the overwhelming pain.

Skuntank's Toxic attack had definitely done its work. Carol had always wondered how it felt when a Pokemon became poisoned. She could now say with the utmost certainty that it was not at all pleasant. There was no way someone could feel this sick, even if they ate garbage.

Her skin felt like it had been ripped apart. She opened her eyes to try and examine it, but she couldn't see much, as the room she was in now was very dark. She instead tried running her hands over her arms, straining with the effort it caused. It didn't cause any more pain to touch it, so she assumed there wasn't any damage. That was something.

She was laying stomach down on a hard, lukewarm floor. She grimaced as she lifted her head up. She had once fallen asleep on a hardwood floor. That experience, though difficult, was much preferable to concrete.

Carol looked around to find Scarf. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw that it was laying next to her. She sighed with relief, reaching out and putting an arm over it. She pulled it closer to herself for comfort. The dragon type was still unconscious. Its breathing was ragged and quick. It must've been poisoned, too.

Carol heard the sounds of footsteps. She tried to push herself up but failed. Her head fell back against the ground, making her wince. The footsteps came closer, and Carol decided to simply pretend she was still asleep.

"Here," a female voice said. Carol remained still. The woman sighed and nudged Carol with her foot. "Come on," she said. "I know you're awake."

Carol continued to remain motionless. She knew it wasn't much of a tactic, but it was all she had. She tried to think of a plan since pretending would only buy so much time.

"Girl, I saw you moving your head and bring your Pokemon closer," the woman said in a frustrated voice. "I know you're pretending to sleep. I have medicine for you. So you won't puke your guts out onto the floor."

Carol felt her stomach churn at that statement. If this woman really did have medicine, it would be nice to have some. She reluctantly turned herself over and struggled to sit up. She leaned her back against the wall next to her.

Her eyes focused on the face in front of her. It was difficult to make out the features, so she couldn't decide if she had seen her before. Then she noticed a shape on her shoulder that couldn't have been anything but a Noctowl.

The woman held out something in her hand. It was a cup filled with a yellow liquid, like lemonade.

"What is it, exactly?" Carol asked.

"An antidote, like the one used on Pokemon," the woman explained. "Except it's been modified to work on humans."

Carol wanted nothing more to drink and be rid of her poisoning. But she was a smart person. She held the cup back out to Noctowl's trainer.

"Sorry," she said. "I don't really trust you."

Carol thought she saw the woman roll her eyes. She took the cup from Carol before taking a small sip. She then held it back out. "Happy?"

Carol hesitated before taking the cup back. She downed everything in a single gulp. She placed the cup on the ground and wiped her mouth. She noticed the sickness in her stomach begin to fade away. Her strength returned.

"I could've just forced you to drink it if it was something that would hurt you," the woman said.

Carol only shrugged. Her sight became a little better. She found that there had been some black at the edge of her vision that was making it more difficult for her to see.

A bluish light was coming from the other side of the room behind the woman. Carol blinked once. Then her eyes widened.

A working computer!

Then Carol noticed that the room was full of computers. Most rooms had only had one or two, but this one had at least ten. There were more PCs in this room than there had been in any other.

She was there. All she had to do was get past this one enemy, and rescue was almost assured. However, she couldn't afford to fight with Pokemon. Not only was Scarf still unconscious, but the battle might break the computer.

Her only options were either to wait for someone or to try and talk her way through. Fighting herself would practically be suicide with Noctowl against her.

"What's your name?" Carol asked conversationally.

The woman sat down in front of Carol. She placed her elbows on her knees.

"I'm called Extrasensory," she answered. "They told me you were called Outrage?"

Carol nodded. She had almost forgotten the false name she had chosen for herself. It had been based on a move Scarf was supposed to learn, eventually.

The two sat in silence for a half-minute or so. A light tremor passed through the room. There was still fighting going on, meaning at least one of them was still moving around. That was good.

"Did you guys come up with the medicine?" Carol asked next.

Extrasensory nodded. "Some other members came up with it. There's a laboratory on the top floor for experimenting with potions and other Pokemon medicine. We needed to figure out how to make our own potions, along with medicine for humans in case one of us fell victim to our own trans-attacks."

Carol couldn't help but be impressed. "You know," she commented honestly, "You guys are doing some pretty revolutionary things here, despite what they are. The Dominance ball, the devices that allow you to harm humans with Pokemon. Why are you doing this? Wouldn't you rather use your talents for good?"

Extrasensory's face darkened. "Like what, working for the CPP?" She asked bitterly. "Yeah, no thanks."

Carol tilted her head sideways, confused. "Do you have something against them?"

Extrasensory met her eyes. "You all think that the CPP is made up of the good guys, and we're the bad guys."

Carol gave her a sarcastic expression with her eyebrow raised. "Well I mean, can you really blame us?"

Extrasensory shook her head. "You don't know what we've seen inside those facilities. Pokemon being experimented on. Pitted against each other for research data. Seeing which attacks deal the most damage. Then there's the one we found when the leader was with us…"

Carol hadn't known about anything Extrasensory was saying. She hadn't even considered it.

"But that can't be true…" She insisted quietly.

"Oh, it is," Extrasensory said. "The professors in the CPP are no better people than we are. Did you know we didn't even come up with the idea for the Dominance ball? We took the research designs from one of their insane professors."

"You encourage people to steal other people's Pokemon!" Carol said. "What makes you think there's anything justifiable about that?"

Extrasensory shook her head. "I never said it was justifiable. I'm not for it. I just follow orders. I joined because I had seen what the CPP was doing. The leader offered me a chance to put a stop to it all."

"We can change them," Carol tried. "We can make things different. You just have to stop being a criminal."

Extrasensory narrowed her eyes. "People don't change just like that. Besides, what could either of us do? You're a kid, and I'm a criminal." She shook her head. "I know what you're trying to do, and it isn't going to work. Sorry."

"You said I'm just a kid," Carol said. "I made it this far, haven't I? And my friends are doing even better than I am."

Another tremor passed through the building after she said those words, followed by sounds of distant and muffled shouting from a direction Carol couldn't identify. Extrasensory laughed.

"I suppose you might have a bit of a point there," She said, smiling. Then her smile changed back to a straight face. "But this is just something you're wrong about. Let it go." She stood back up and began to walk to her computer on the opposite side of the room. "I'm keeping you here until your friends are captured. Don't cause me any trouble." She sat down, facing away from Carol. Her Notowl jumped off of her shoulder an onto the ground. Carol couldn't see if its eyes were closed or not.

Carol sighed quietly. That hadn't worked. So what now? There wasn't anything else she could do. Talking hadn't worked, and that had been her only option. Battling wasn't-

Carol turned and saw that Scarf's eyes were open. It's breathing was no longer discomforting. It was still laying down as to not give away the fact that it was awake. If Extrasensory didn't know Scarf was conscious, it would be a huge advantage. Scarf would just have to subdue Noctowl with wrap, then Carol would find some way to deal with Extrasensory so she could send a message to the CPP.

Carol looked around for her bag. She found it to leaning against the right wall. She might be able to get to it without Extrasensory noticing. However, Noctowl might be a problem. If its eyes were open, it would see her for sure, and their surprise attack wouldn't be very effective at all.

She had to make a choice. She decided it was better to risk it than do nothing at all. She began to slowly move along the wall. Scarf stayed put. Carol moved over several minutes so as to not show much motion that might draw Noctowl's or Extrasensory's attention.

She reached her backpack and placed a hand on it. Extrasensory was still on her computer. Noctowl hadn't shown any signs of seeing her. Carol wrapped her fingers around the bag's zipper and began to slowly open it.

It was much louder than Carol would've anticipated. Before the zipper had opened more than an inch, Noctowl's head snapped towards her direction. It began to make a loud noise as it flapped its wings.

Extrasensory turned to where Carol had been before and seemed surprised to see her in a different spot. She looked toward the bag in her hand. "Hey!"

Carol panicked. She yanked the bag open and reached inside. Scarf seemed to understand that the game was up as it abandoned its possum act and slithered towards Carol. The trainer pulled out a potion and began to quickly apply it.

"Noctowl, use Extrasensory!"

The world was suddenly too much for Carol to take in. The light from the computer became blinding, the once normally quiet sound became as loud as a jet engine, and the pain on her body was multiplied tenfold. She shouted in pain.

Then it stopped. Carol breathed heavily as everything turned back to normal. She hadn't been able to notice if anything had happened, so she took a moment to gain her bearings.

Some computers and tables had been knocked over. On the ground next to them was Noctowl Jolts of electricity were running across its body. Paralysis.

Extrasensory was on the ground, too. Dratini was wrapped around her body, restraining the Team Dominion member as she struggled to break free while also trying to give Noctowl orders.

Carol wasted no time. She ran over to the computer Extrasensory had been working on, which hadn't been knocked over in the apparent scuffle. She located an email application and opened it. She logged into Kyle's email and started a draft to send to the CPP professor he had been talking with. She prepared a message and let her finger hover over the "send" option.

"Do you really trust them after what I've said?" Extrasensory asked from behind her.

Carol paused. She had to admit, if the things she had said were true, then she definitely had plenty of reasons not to support the CPP any longer. But they needed their help right now. She would have to deal with the other issues later.

She sent the message.

Bradley Pine sat in his small office. He wasn't up to much, at the moment. In fact, he was getting ready to go home, as it was getting rather late in the day. He just had to wait until his boss let him go.

His boss was a good guy. If he hadn't been, Bradley wouldn't have been allowed to keep talking with Kyle. He liked talking with the kid. It made him feel useful. Not to mention, it gave Bradley hope for the future of society.

Of course, he had always been required to act professionally, something Bradley despised doing. He wasn't as much of an uptight stiff as his emails suggested. He was actually a rather energetic person in his late thirties. He liked going out, having a good time, and exchanging jokes. But of course, if he did any of those things with Kyle, his boss would take away his priveledges.

A notification appeared on Bradley's monitor. He stopped moving around in his swivel chair so he could take a good look.

Speak of the devil, Bradley thought with a smile. He had received an email from Kyle. He opened it and began to read.

His eyebrows crawled upward when he read the first few lines, then they furrowed. Then his eyes themselves widened to the size of dinner plates.

"Holy shit!" Bradley exclaimed, putting his hands on his head. He grabbed his phone off his desk and stood. He pulled his long, brown coat off the hanger as he ran out the door. He dashed past his coworkers, frantically apologizing each time he bumped into one of them, which is to say every time he passed someone.

When he said he wanted to help, I didn't know he'd be this determined!

He ran out of his office building and into the parking lot. There had been an address sent with the email. Bradley had recognized it. It was actually pretty close. About an hour's drive from the building he had just left. But he doubted he had an hour. It would certainly take longer than that for the police to show up, anyway.

Fortunately, there were other ways to get around these days. Bradley reached into his pocket and pulled out a Poke ball.

The dust was finally clearing. Finally. Now they could continue their battle.

Kyle wasn't really sure what to do, now. There wasn't much more he could do to gain the advantage. All he could do now was keep fighting and hope to win.

"Alright, Eve, let's-"

Kyle stopped. He saw Leader raise an eyebrow.

"Well then," the founder of Team Dominion said. "That certainly changes things, doesn't it?"

What the hell? I could've sworn…both of us saw it. I…

As the dust cleared, everyone saw the last thing anybody would've expected. Standing in the middle of the room amid all the falling lumps of concrete were Null and Eve. Except Eve was an Eevee. Not a Glaceon, an Eevee.

What…

As more dust faded away, Kyle's eye was caught by a whitish-blue stone. It was the ice stone that had been used to evolve Eve.

"Okay," Leader said, "I have to admit, this is very confusing."

You're telling me.

What had happened? Kyle had never heard of a Pokemon devolving before. Was Eve sick or something? Had the evolution only been temporary?

Eve used its back leg to kick the ice stone. It skittered along the ground to where Kyle was standing. The trainer stopped it with his hoe and bent over to pick it up. He turned it over in his hand as he examined it. Nothing seemed to be out of place.

Leader chuckled. "Well, anyway," he said, "Your Pokemon is much weaker now, even if I no longer have a move that's super effective against it." He pointed to Eve. "Go now! Use Tri-attack!"

"Judgment!" Kyle said reflexivly.

Eve sent out beams of light while Null sent out a fire beam, an ice beam, and an electrical beam, all at the same time. The attacks collided in the center before Eve's own attack surpassed its opponent's. The beams struck Null and threw it backward.

That attack, Leader thought. Judgment, he called it? I suppose that's where he gets his name from.

There was something familiar about the attack to Leader. Something he couldn't quite place…

Realization flooded inside him. Of course! He thought. It's exactly like the light from the Arceus!

New thoughts began to fill his mind. What is this Pokemon? Is it connected to that creature somehow? Could I- His spirits rose by a hundred percent at this next thought. Could I use it to find that creature?

An idea formed inside of Leader's head. Unreliable, untested, and probably worthless. But he was desperate to find some progress towards his goal. Besides, the logic seemed sound.

I think I have it here. Leader began to search his bag, taking out Dominance ball's and looking them over.

No, not that one. Not that one either.

Finally, he found the one. He smiled as he unlocked and opened it.

A white and green Gardevoir materialized in front of Leader. Kyle began to panic at first when he saw it. Is he going to try and use two against me?

"Destiny Bond!" Leader shouted.

Nothing visible happened. Everything stayed the same. But Kyle knew that a bond had just been formed between Gardevoir and Eve, though there was no visible indication to the move. Destiny Bond bound two Pokemon's essences together, or a least that's what the CPP had revealed in their studies.

"Now, use Mean Look, then run up to it and use teleport!" Leader said as he returned Null to its Poke ball and put it in his pocket.

Gardevoir's face flashed into one of pure ferocity. Eve froze in pace, unable to move. The psychic type took the opening and ran towards it, reaching out to touch it. Leader was running as well, holding on to Gardevoir's other arm.

Kyle had no idea what Leader's plan was, but his instinct was telling him to grab hold of Eve. He ran over and dove onto the ground, placing his hands on his petrified Pokemon. Rocks and pebbles scraped his arms and knees.

In the next instant, the two trainers and the two Pokemon vanished into thin air.