Star in the Storm, Chapter 14
Roary- "A Real Master"
Something was tickling my nose when I woke up at last.
Jolting up into a sitting position, I sneezed, which sent my tear ducts streaming and made my eyes blur. Nearby, a light breeze was ruffling the blinds on the window, clicking them with a sharp "rat-tat-tat" against the pane.
Getting to my feet, I ambled over and shoved the window closed, but not before sticking my head out into the night air.
When exactly had it gotten so dark? And where was everybody else?
Then I heard it: the faint sound of Picassy's sniffling little snores on the floor behind me. And everything came back in a great huge flood.
Lody was gone, kidnapped by some evil group of villainous villains that was supposed to have gone out of commission twenty years ago. Dad would be steaming pretty badly by now; he'd always hated not finishing things right the first time. But knowing Dad, he'd be up and raring to take another shot at Team Rocket-Sprocket in no time at all.
Just thinking about it gave me a warm, secure feeling deep inside. There isn't anything my dad can't do, once he puts his mind to it. If Team Pocket knew what was good for them, they'd give up Lody in an instant and run as fast as they could in the other direction. 'Cause when Dad goes on a rampage, he's about as stoppable as a stampeding Tauros with a third-degree bee sting.
If there is such a thing as a third-degree bee sting, that is.
Picassy's snores kind of wuffed out of existence. An instant later, a familiar pair of sharp little claws was digging into my shoulder, and the little Pichu was peering curiously over my head.
"I think we've both had a pretty good sleep, don't you?" I asked Cass with a weak grin. "Man, though…we must have been out for hours. What time is it?"
"Chu'pi!" Picassy announced, ticking off numbers on its little paws. "Pi, pi, pi, pi…"
I got the point after about the twelfth or thirteenth count. "You're kidding?" I groaned. "That late already? Oh great, I wonder what the others are up to!" Bursting with renewed energy, I scrambled out the door, poor Picassy barely able to cling onto my shoulder.
But once in the hallway, I skidded to a stop in mid dash. For sprawled all over the floor, snoring so loudly I was surprised the whole building didn't come down around my head, was a vast assortment of sleeping Pokémon. The long day had definitely taken its toll on everyone.
Gulping, I edged my way around Pika's curled up body and Bryar's large, hulking mass. The scariest part was when I almost stepped on Bryar's tail (again), but fortunately clutched at the wall and fell back just in time.
The sleeping Meganium was mumbling little words under its breath as it turned onto its side. "Vine whip…I'll show you Vine Whip…" Bryar muttered drowsily, lashing out with its long whips and nearly catching me over the leg. I froze until the whips lay flat again, Bryar still mumbling away in indistinguishable Pokémon talk.
"Pichu'ooo!" Picassy hissed, tugging impatiently at my ponytail.
"Ow! What is it, Cass?"
Picassy screwed up its face and made some wild gestures with its paws. "Chu'ooo! 'Ooo!" it said over and over again, paws flying about as if the poor Pichu was trying to conduct some invisible symphony. Bringing its paws to its mouth at last, it held them there for an instant before glancing impatiently back at me.
I scratched my head. After this whole thing with Lody was all over, I should really get Rowan Chimera to teach me a few words in Fulgent Rodentia. As in Pika-Pichu talk.
Picassy and I stood there silently in the hallway for a moment, staring perplexedly at one another. Suddenly, the little Pichu leapt from my shoulder and scurried back down the hall.
"Cass, wait!" I called, dancing my way hastily around the sleeping Pokémon. "Slow down!" I caught up with my Pichu at the very end of the long corridor, nervous and sweaty from my efforts.
Grinning mischievously, Picassy pointed to a door I hadn't noticed before, half-hidden in the shadows and open just the tiniest crack. Poking my head through, I felt a cold swirl of air brush my face and caught just the faintest snatches of someone playing the harmonica.
"You want to go outside?" I asked Picassy. "To the roof?"
The Pichu nodded eagerly. Scooping Picassy into my arms, I headed up the concrete steps and out onto the open roof of the Pallet Lab.
Drake was already there, elbows on knees, playing a bright, lively tune on his tarnished old harmonica. Beside him sat Fireball the Charmander, its blue tail flame flickering in the breeze and throwing erratic shadows across the roof. The Charmander's head shot up as we approached, and its small body just sort-of all tensed up at once. A split second later, Fireball was on its feet, flame flaring and eyes smoldering.
"Relax," I said, putting a hand up and just keeping myself from taking an uneasy step back. "It's only me and Picassy. What're you guys doin' up here, anyways?"
The song that had been coming from Drake's harmonica broke off, fading into the wind as the boy looked up and saw us standing there. "We couldn't sleep," he said with a shrug. "Not indoors, at any rate. Fireball and I are used to being outside, with the wind and the stars."
"Have you lived at Charicific Valley your entire life, then?"
Drake shook his head and put a hand on Fireball's shoulder, forcing the Charmander to relax. "Fireball and I are travelers," he answered. "We journey the regions in search of new songs and friends. But we always come back to the Valley."
"So that's why you're so good with that harmonica!" I concluded with a grin. Taking a seat next to Drake, I set Picassy in my lap and continued talking. "That song you were playing before, it sounded like you were really…I don't know. Into it."
"I get that way about a lot of songs," Drake replied with a sigh. "There's always some story woven behind these songs, and that's the kind of story Fireball and I try to seek out when we search for them. In a way, the stories are one of the best parts of the search."
This was going way over my head, but I smiled anyway and said, "So what's the story behind the song you were playing before?"
" 'A Real Master'?" Bringing the harmonica back to his mouth, Drake played a few more strains of the song before breaking off once more. "What do you think?" he challenged with a friendly grin.
"Pichu, pichu?" Picassy said, cocking its ears.
"Um, something 'bout a real master?" I tried hesitantly. "Hey, it makes sense!" I informed a giggling Picassy indignantly.
Drake's smile widened. And to my astonishment, he began to sing the same tune he had played before; voice soft at first, but steadily growing louder.
"Through my life,
I'll take a chance and brave the fight,
Clear my jumps,
And soar to any height.
Like a true Master!
Bold and true
Win my way through.
A real
Master."
A light pattering of footsteps sounded up the stairs to the rooftop as Drake fell silent. Twisting about, I spotted a gaunt figure standing in the doorway, large eyes glowing even in the shadows that surrounded them.
"How are you tonight, Amulet?" Drake said, beckoning the Espeon forward. With a slow stride, the Pokémon obliged. Curling up into a tight ball, head resting on paws, Amulet rolled her eyes back to gaze into the night sky.
"I once told Lody that the stars never shone their brightest here," she said pensively. "Now I think I might have just been fooling myself." Sighing heavily, the Espeon buried her muzzle in her paws, letting her long ears droop across her back.. "Oh, Lody," she whispered sadly to herself. "What I wouldn't give to have you back right now."
"They'll find her," I assured Amulet without hesitation. "We'll find her, Ami. She'll be back here before you know it, and we'll have taken down those loser Rocket-Sprockets to boot! Lody will be so proud of us. Proud of you, Amulet, if you don't worry yourself sick over her."
"Pi, pi!" Picassy grimaced, tugging at my sleeve. Face contorted, it shook its head firmly from side to side.
"Oops, me and my big mouth again," I laughed nervously. "I didn't mean anything by that, Amulet."
"I know, Roary," Amulet replied, settling herself back onto her haunches. "And I think you're right. I'm no use to anyone by sitting here and sulking over what I could have done before. I need to do something to help my trainer now." The Espeon's large eyes shone in the darkness she raised her nose skyward. "Lody, I know you're out there!" she called out into the night sky. "And as soon as we find out where you are, I'm coming for you!"
A huge rush of wind drowned out the last of Amulet's words. Staring over the edge of the roof, I saw a sleek-feathered Pidgeot touchdown on the ground far below, followed by several hovercrafts, and indistinct shapes that could only be other Flying Pokémon. A shadowy rider jumped down from the Pidgeot's back and recalled its Pokémon before heading towards the front door. Behind it, a whole hoard of other shadow figures was coming, making for one of the strangest midnight sights that had ever graced the hill of the Pallet Lab.
"We'd better get downstairs!" I called to the others, making a dash for the rooftop stairs. "C'mon, you guys!"
Tiptoeing around the sleeping Pokémon in the hall and practically tumbling down the stairway, I froze in my tracks before reaching the second landing. Behind me, Drake, Fireball, and Amulet barely avoided crashing into my back.
"Pichu? Chu-chu?" Picassy demanded, climbing back onto my head.
I pointed down the foyer below. Illuminated in the lobby light, Professor Koreyu had already opened the door and was admitting a long stream of tired and travel-worn adults. The head of which was the Pidgeot's rider and Lody's mother, Rowan Chimera.
"I'm sorry I took so long getting back," Rowan said to the Professor. "But I decided to bring a couple of old friends along. We're going to need all the help we can get."
"I've been traveling all night long from Shamouti," a woman with long brown hair yawned, rubbing her eyes with her fists like a schoolgirl. "Don't know what you think an ol' girl like me can do, but I'll be glad to stick around, just in case."
"We're ready when you are," a man with purple-colored hair affirmed, patting the laptop slung over his back. "What should we do now?"
Professor K. barely managed to stifle a yawn. "A friend of Ash's daughter has got his Charizard surveillance team out and searching for Lody," he explained, going on to quickly detail Drake's plan. "Meanwhile, the police are doing all they can to sniff out Team Rocket."
A dark-haired man with a sketchpad in one hand in a pencil in the other snorted not so quietly. "For all the good that will do," he scoffed. I recognized him as Tracey Sketchit, one of Dad's old childhood friends. "I know everything that the police do," Tracey continued, flipping open the sketchpad and waving about what were probably pages and pages of extremely detailed notes (I was too far away to confirm this myself). "And I know nada about the new and improved Team Rocket. Except that they should have been wiped out long before things ever got this far."
"We should have never let our guard down!" a woman with sweeping dark hair snapped. Everything about her, from her stiff posture to her clipped voice, had an aura of command about it. It was Serena (or Sabrina, or something of the sort), the woman I gotten the package from a couple days back.
"No one could have known Team Rocket would resurface!" Tracey shot back, several pages of his sketchpad fluttering loose and flying all over the floor. "Not like this, at any rate!"
A huge argument erupted right then and there, with all the adults bickering and yelling at each other like Bryar and Pika do over who has to clean the dinner dishes. Behind me, Drake, Fireball, and Amulet stood and watched silently. None of us made a single move down the stairs.
"Everybody, please!" the Professor was yelling over the noise. "We can't afford fighting among ourselves, especially while we should be directing our attentions towards an even greater enemy!"
"Who would've thought Team Rocket would ever amount to anything more than a bunch of lowlife slowpokes?" a redheaded woman near the front of the room posed thoughtfully. Around her, all the adults were shaking their heads and agreeing with her.
Picassy gave a small cry of excitement, and I hugged the Pichu close. That woman was my father's friend, Misty Waterflower. She lives all the way down at the Pokémon Land Theme Park, and takes her work very seriously. She would've never even considered coming here in the middle of the night, not for anything less than a full-fledged apocalypse.
Amulet moved up to take a place beside the railing. Her body was trembling so badly that she practically had to lean against the wall. "These are all the people who were at Kayley Mindstar's gathering," the Espeon said faintly.
"What about it, Amulet?" I whispered back.
The Espeon moaned, shaking her head and refusing to say anymore.
"Kayley Mindstar?" Drake was muttering to himself, clutching at the stair railing and gazing down with narrowed eyes. At his side, Fireball moved a little closer to the boy and put a steadying paw on his knee.
Drake finally let go of the railing, and as he raised his head, I saw his tanned face had paled to an ashen grey. By a Chansey with two eggs," he said faintly, shaking his head in disbelief. "You've met Kayley Mindstar?" he whispered to us.
I shrugged unconcernedly. "I saw her, like, once in my entire life. It was at the meeting that Amulet was talking about, at the Coliseum."
"Tell me," Drake said quietly, squeezing Fireball's paw for support. "Was there a man at this meeting, a man with hair like mine? He may have had a Charizard with him, one that answers to the name of Blazer."
"Nope, can't say I've seen him. Why does the name Kayley Mindstar get everybody so up and antsy anyways?"
A small shadow fell over the ground at the head of the hall. Flame flickering in the dim light and sea-green eyes equally bright, Charm stood there with its paws folded. Its red bandanna had come askew, as if it had just woken and hadn't had time yet to tie it properly. "Roary, Drake? Fireball and Amulet?" the Charmander said in a soft, almost inaudible voice. "Why aren't you asleep at this hour?"
It was Fireball who answered. "Forgive us, Uncle Charm," it said with a hasty bow. "There is a meeting underway in the foyer. We were simply curious about the arrival of such a large number of people."
"I understand." Charm bent forward briefly to tie its bandanna. Giving the cloth a firm tug, it straightened and nodded towards us. "But creeping around back here like spies or saboteurs; all of you know that the adults would have requested your appearance if this matter was of your concern."
"But, Charm!" I protested. "Lody is just as much our concern as theirs. And we've met Kayley Mindstar, too! We know about her already!"
Charm's head snapped up so quickly I heard a sharp popping sound in its neck. "Kayley Mindstar?" it repeated, the effort of echoing these words alone making its voice tremble. Quickly regaining composure, the Charmander opened it mouth to say more. And it probably had quite a lot to say, believe me. But I never knew for sure, because at that very moment, a chorus of gasps and rising murmurs erupted from the gathering of adults below.
Leaning far over the railing, I squinted at the illuminated computer screen all the adults were crowed around. All I could make out were some kind of diagrams, and lines and lines of small, cramped typing that I couldn't ever hope to read from where I was standing.
"What exactly is it, anyway?" the brown-haired woman from Shamouti demanded, voicing my exact thoughts.
Professor K. swerved around in his chair, and though I couldn't see his face too well, his voice was grim. "Something Amulet swiped off my old student, Shane Rising," he told the assembled crowd .
"That Rocket boy," someone, I think it was Tracey, muttered disgustedly.
The Professor went on to explain what Amulet had said about Shane thinking Lody had stolen the files herself. And how Lody might have been captured for this very reason. Beside me, Amulet had placed her paws on the railing and was peering expressionlessly down into the gathering below.
Unaware that I was holding my breath, I leaned so far over the railing that I almost knocked the wind from my stomach. No one had any doubt left in their minds that these files were crucial to Team Rocket. But what Professor K. was about to say surely none of us could expect.
"One generation ago, Team Rocket tried to achieve the unthinkable, to clone a Pokémon and a human child," the Professor said. "Now Team Rocket is on the move again. Apparently, this leader of our rejuvenated Rocket Org. isn't looking to clone Pokémon or humans. Instead, they want to Merge the two, creating beings of undreamed power."
A bunch of the people, including Tracey Sketchit, were shaking their heads in disbelief and confusion. "Team Rocket will continue to grow crazier and crazier," Tracey said incredulously. "Until they inevitably destroy themselves in the process."
"Heck," the Shamouti woman crowed. "We won't even need another Ash Ketchum!"
I bristled at the offhanded remark.
"That's what I believed as well," Prof. K. admitted. "But these files prove otherwise. All of it…" He pounded the table surface that the computer was resting on with the flat of his palm. "All of it documents something called Project 'Star in the Storm,' the creation and development of one such Merger. A young girl-Espeon Merger whimsically named Silver Star. According to these files, said Silver Star is currently held under heavy security at the Rocket HQ."
Sabrina's dark eyes flashed in her pale face. "Then this Silver Star is just as much a prisoner as Trilody," she stated decisively.
With a haunted look in her eyes, Misty Waterflower began to tell the tale of another being created by Team Rocket, a poor, tortured Mew clone fancifully called Mewtwo. Mewtwo had been created solely for the purpose of serving Team Rocket, and upon learning of this, became violent with confusion and rage. It killed several scientists and almost the entire human race before it was finally stopped.
As the story took shape, I listened with wide-eyed shock and amazement. No one had ever told me the story of Mewtwo before, nor the part my father had played in it.
"And then Ash ran in front of Mewtwo," Misty whispered, choking back on tears. "He had only the intention of ending the horrendous brutality that had ensued around them. But he was hit by an incoming attack, hit so badly that he was killed instantly upon impact."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing! Ash Ketchum, my father, was dead? How did that work?
"Then a most miraculous thing happened," Misty continued. "The tears cried by the assembled Pokémon somehow brought Ash back to life, just as a prophetess named Miranda had foretold in an old folktale." Swiping a tear from her eye, Misty went on to say that no Pokémon, clone or Merger, could ever be allowed to remain in Team Rocket hands. Under no excuse could anyone be allowed to risk the world in such a way again.
All possible action, Misty declared, had to be taken to free Silver Star from under Team Rocket captivity.
"There is another aspect to this entire issue as well," Prof. K. said, adjusting his glasses before going on. "I'll be honest with you all, this new Merging technique may very well be the cure that Kayley Mindstar is in need of. Silver Star, as a living example of such, would be the perfect observation subject."
Shouts and angry accusations came from all corners of the room. Some people were shocked at the Professor's perception of Silver Star as a mere test subject. Others barraged him with indictments of conspiracy and supporting Team Rocket's desensitized attitudes. The Professor never had a chance to get a word in edgewise.
Charm, who had been silent in apprehension the entire time, took its paw from the supporting wall and stepped towards the staircase now. "Stay up here," it hissed to us, tail flame flickering edgily.
A slam of the door made me forget everything Charm had said.
Standing in the doorway of the Pallet Town Lab was a man with dark, wind-tossed hair, wearing a frayed jacket and black shirt. Ignoring Charm's command as well as the mass of strange adults in the room below, I bolted down the stairs and ran forward.
"Daddy!" I grinned joyfully, jumping up to give my father a hug. "You came home!"
"Pichi, pi!" Picassy crooned happily from atop my head.
My father did not smile back.
"Ash!" Misty Waterflower exclaimed, striding ahead of the others to meet the new arrival. "We were expecting you," she said with a weak smile.
"I had some unexpected difficulties getting back from Indigo Plateau," my father replied, setting me back down on the floor. "Seems as if everyone in security's worried about the reemergence of a certain Team Rocket." His black eyes flashed and he lowered his head at this.
"Pretty funny about that, huh Ash?" the Shamouti lady laughed lightly. "We all thought you beat them up pretty badly twenty some years ago. Turns out they were just waiting for a chance to come back, all this time."
"Melody!" Misty hissed reproachfully. She turned back to my father, all set on apologizing for Melody's outburst. "It's not your fault, Ash," she assured him quickly. "You're the last person anyone could blame. You did your best to stomp out Team Rocket. That's far more than we ever asked from you."
My dad didn't reply; instead he turned to Prof. K. and said, "Have you found the Rocket Headquarters yet, Chris?"
Before the Professor could answer, there was a soft padding of footsteps behind me. Evidently, Charm, Drake, Amulet, and Fireball had decided it was time to come down, too. As if feeling the need to bond together, all four of them stood in a circle at the foot of the staircase, refusing to come another inch closer.
"Have you found anything, Professor?" Drake said, echoing my dad's question.
Running a hands through his unruly hair, Prof. K. shook his head wearily. "No luck so far," he answered with a sigh. "But we've just begun. To expect results immediately is irrational."
My dad nodded in silent agreement. "When you find out where they're hiding," he said, emphasizing the word when, "I will flush them out and finish what I should have years ago."
"But what about Lody?" Rowan Chimera asked urgently.
"And poor little Silver Star?" Misty added, worry creasing her pale brow.
My father looked every single person there squarely in the eye before replying. "They are victims of Team Rocket's evil," he said, voice firm and decisive, as always. "Of course, our first priority will be to rescue them. Then I will deal with Team Rocket."
Silence followed the first few seconds after this announcement, then steady applause and encouraging cheers broke out from the assembled crowd. My dad stood tall in the midst of it all, and though he didn't smile or even seem to react, I couldn't help being reminded of his old Pokémon matches, back when Ash Ketchum was just an aspiring young Champion. Back then, Dad could really make the crowd thunder.
Roary, he told me once. Roary, sometimes there's nothing a trainer finds sweeter than the roar of the crowd. It gets me every time, applause does. As a young trainer, I used to dream about packed stadiums and cheering audiences at the Pokémon League. But you know what, Roary? Great trainers don't do it for the crowd, they do it for themselves and their Pokémon. It takes something more than a shiny trophy or fancy title to make a Champion, Roary. You have to believe strongly in what you are doing to succeed.
Now, with his brilliant eyes and face flushed in fervor, my dad was the very image of greatness. A rising swell of pride bubbled up inside me as I stood there, cheering along with everyone else. Even though he wasn't the Champion anymore, my father still retained the attitude of a real master.
At last, I understood what Drake had been talking about before.
"I want to help, too!" I declared loudly. Picassy crowed happily into the air from its perch atop my shoulder.
It was Rowan Chimera who spoke at last. "I do think it would be wisest to send a child, someone like Roary, in first. Somebody less conspicuous, just to contact Lody and this Silver Star child beforehand. What do you say to that?"
"I'll go, too," Amulet's voice came from the side. With a burst of energy, the young Espeon strode forward to gaze determinedly into the faces of the crowd.
"And I," Drake said, stepping forward. With his fiery hair and smoldering-eyed Charmander by his side, Drake Flamefoe certainly made quite an impression.
There was a murmur of surprise as the boy came out of the shadows for the first time. Whispers of "Ashkoa's boy" and "looks just like his father" drifted up from the converging crowd of adults. Head held high, Drake managed to keep a firm grip on his composure.
"Well, that's decided then!" Professor K. announced. "Roary, Drake, and Amulet, once we find the Team Rocket HQ, you three will be the first to go. After you contact Lody and Silver Star, we'll be ready with reinforcements. Agreed?"
Rapid agreement came from all three of us. Amulet nodded, setting her long ears waggling, Drake bowed thankfully, and I simply grinned and pumped my fist into the air.
As the others began to discuss preparations for the invasion, I felt a gloved hand come to rest on my shoulder.
"I want you to know, Roary," my father began, "what you did was very brave. But you must promise to be careful."
"I will, Dad. Don't worry!"
With a slap on the back and a smile, my father left me to find Pika. I was still beaming to myself, hours later, when I finally fell asleep on the living room couch, lulled into unconsciousness by the steady drone of voices.
Dad's always been watching over me, ever since Mom died. Personally, I kind of appreciate the way my father looks after me, even if it means he can get a bit overprotective sometimes. But the tangled situation we had gotten ourselves plunked into was far different from anything we'd been through before.
Dad, I know, could never live with himself if I got hurt. Especially if it was because of something he failed to do long ago.
Notes:
Drake's song for this chapter, "A Real Master", is of my own creation. It is not an actual Pokémon song.
Wait a sec, Misty's not supposed to know about Ash and Mewtwo, is she? Too late; should've kept my mouth shut and hoped nobody noticed; maybe Mewtwo restored their memories later on? Flimsy rationalizing, I know...