Driving Me Crazy chapter 8
Hi everyone!
I apologize for yet another cliffhanger, and there will probably be one in this chapter too... I'm so mean, I know. I'm thinking this will be the second to last chapter. I gotta fit all of my events in here! Which means... yup. Here comes the fluff! ^-^ Probably not until the last chapter, but I might be able to squeeze some in here.
I CAN'T BELIEVE I GOT 105 REVIEWS! YOU GUYS ARE SO AWESOME! ^-^
... okay, you know what? I'm gonna stop boring you now. Read on! ***
"PIKAPIIIIIIII!"
Ash gasped and turned around abruptly, with a furtive, desperate glance back at the wall. "Stay here," he instructed Misty quickly.
"Where are you going?" she said urgently.
"Pikachu's somewhere over there. I have to go get it!" (AN: since I've heard Pikachu portrayed as a boy and a girl, it's just the neutral 'it'.) He turned, but Misty caught him by the edge of the shirt.
"No, Ash. It could be dangerous..."
"I'd do anything for Pikachu, you know that!" he yelled. She gave him a sharp look.
"If you'd let me finish... I want to come." He sighed and shook his head.
"I can't let you do that." She looked at him pleadingly.
"Ash..." She took his hand. They both heard a yell.
"Stay here," he repeated. "No matter what, stay here."
"But-"
"Promise!" he said forcefully. She searched his face and finally nodded resignedly. He squeezed her hand and gave her a brief smile before running top speed toward Pikachu's direction. His eyes searched the room, and saw a gray door in the nearest corner to the main gates. It was ajar.
Without thinking, he ran to it, flinging it open. He stopped in the doorway, breathing heavily. His eyes scanned the room for Pikachu, but he didn't see it anywhere. There was no one else in the room.
"Pikachu!" he called, hoping for a response to follow the sound of its voice on.
Very faintly, he got it: "pi! Pi..ka...piiii!" It sounded like it was coming from... beyond the wall? But there were dense woods and steel poles keeping people out of that entire back area, he'd seen them when they came in.
He decided that he'd have to figure it out. That gunshot came from beyond the wall too- there must be a way in. But that was a different wall- the very back of the far wall.
Hadn't he seen a gun- a tranquilizer or something- hanging back there on the very edge? He was almost certain of it. It was by that big machine- it made some kind of chocolate, he remembered, that had its own brand name- but he couldn't recall the name. But that gun would help!
And the wall- it had been so peculiar. The very back, where Misty was, had *wallpaper*. It didn't seem right somehow... He frowned and started walking back the way he came.
***
Misty stuffed her hands in her jeans pockets. She felt her left hand touch something- what was that? She pulled it out.
"Oh," she murmured. It was the piece of paper Ash told her to use to write down that weird riddle. She was about to unfold it when she heard a door slam and footsteps. She gasped, scared. She frantically searched for something- anything- to defend herself with, though she knew she was in a far corner, out of the way. She turned her head away from the main part of the factory, towards-
The Chocoball machine? She frowned. Had that- yeah, it had been there. She remembered leaning on it. But what about that box with the- the gun in it? There was a metal plaque that said:
SPECIAL UNIT. FOR SAFEKEEPING. ATOMIZER #315.
That number, too, sounded familiar. Atomizer... sounded scary. Well, she'd wait for Ash to see if she should take it, she supposed.
Suddenly, she heard a voice from behind her:
"Hello, Misty."
She screamed.
***
Daniel Anderson smiled as Vincent walked into the room with the Pikachu in an airtight bubble-like container. Vincent looked at the limp figure on the floor that used to be Jason Melton.
"A run-in with a wild Houndoom?" he asked in an amused tone. Anderson gave him a dark look.
"He had it. Can you believe it? He *had* it already, and he didn't tell us."
"So you assumed he wasn't going to?"
"Look," Anderson addressed his boss, "I know him. He was the guy they assigned to be my partner for years when we were Rocket grunts, and even when we were guards here. He had it- he wouldn't have told us."
"So," said Vincent, "got orb?" Anderson smiled and held out a red ball that was about as big around as the length of his palm. It glowed and you could see the flames in it. On the part he was holding up, there was a black spot approximately the size of a thumbprint.
Vincent gave an evil smile.
***
Ash started laughing hysterically at Misty's expression. She whirled around to find him standing there in hysterics.
"ASH KETCHUM!" she screamed. "Do you have any idea how much that scared me?" He stopped laughing, but still grinned at her. She took a step toward him, looking quite menacing. He held up his hands in an expression of truce.
"Sorry, Mist. Er-" He was about to correct himself, but she had already turned from him. He sighed quietly and looked back up at the wallpapered wall.
Suddenly, he frowned. Slowly, he walked toward the part of the wall he hadn't even noticed before. "Misty," he whispered. He felt her head turn. "Look."
In front of them was a part of the wallpaper with not one single stripe.
Misty frowned. "Why-" she began. He shook his head. "I- I dunno." Suddenly her eyes lit up and she reached into her pocket. Ash tore his gaze from the wall to look at her quizzically. She pulled a piece of paper from her pocket and he gave her a confused shrug.
"Listen," she said breathlessly. "Back of the wall." She looked at him, and he looked briefly back toward the place without stripes. Come to think of it, it was toward the back.
"Stripes are away," she continued, stressing the words. His mouth opened slightly.
"Have a Chocoball," she said with a smile, indicating the machine with a sweep of her hand. "And 315-" she pointed to the plaque on the atomizer- "can't help you now." He gave a nervous, excited laugh.
"You don't think this is how we get back there..." he said.
"It has to be," she replied. "All of it makes sense."
"But it said the atomizer can't help us. Look at that thing! It could probably fry a person. It can't be serious. I think whoever wrote the note is trying to throw us off." Misty nodded hesitantly. What Ash said made sense, but...
"Whoever wrote the note, Ash. How do you know they weren't trying to warn us, to help us?"
"How do you know they were?" he countered.
"We don't," she replied flatly.
"I dunno, Mist," he began, waiting for her to chide him. She didn't, so he continued, "it sounds too much like a threat to be help." She sighed.
"Say what you want," she replied. "I'm gonna try to figure out this wall."
"I'm gonna get the atomizer," announced Ash. She didn't answer him, merely turned towards the wall again and ran a hand across it.
It opened.
Misty frowned. That... was way too easy. "Ash," she called quietly.
"What," he said, banging a fist on the atomizer's box.
"Wall's open." He glanced at her, then the opening in the wall.
"Right. Lemme get the gun and-"
"Forget the gun, Ash." He turned to her abruptly.
"That was a gun shot we heard, Misty- I'm not going in there unarmed!" He rammed a fist into the glass and it shattered on his hand. Misty bit her lip and winced at the blood.
Ash muttered a few choice words through gritted teeth.
"Real becoming, Mr. Pokemon Master," Misty said.
"It hurts!" he snapped at her. She rolled her eyes.
"Well," she answered, "I've never been good at sympathy, but I think I could probably..." Abruptly, she yanked on the bottom of Ash's t-shirt, causing him to yelp in surprise and flail his arms around in the air for balance. Finally, he lost it and fell forward...
... right into her arms. She caught him and they looked at each other a few awkward seconds. Misty felt her cheeks warming and she set him back on his feet. The bottom of the t-shirt ripped off and she smiled.
"What is that for?" Ash asked her.
"Wrap your hand with it," she replied, giving him a look that stated that should have been obvious.
"Oh, of course. I always wrap my hands with the fabric from my t- shirts," he said with a hint of sarcasm.
"Shut up," she commanded him. "This is the best I've got for now. It's not like I carry around an Ace bandage in my bag." Just then, their conversation was cut short by a loud bang. They both turned to the wall, and Misty thrust Ash's t-shirt bottom into his hands. He started wrapping it around his injured hand, and he'd just finished when she grabbed him by his good hand and pulled him through the opening. He managed to grab the gun on the way past.
They found themselves suddenly in a dark hallway, an abrupt change from the harsh lighting in the assembly room. A flashlight was shone in their eyes and they blinked and shielded their eyes.
"Ash and Misty," said the voice. It was not a question. Misty's heart was beating like crazy and she made a soft scared sound in the back of her throat. Ash took her hand and gave it a quick squeeze.
Suddenly, the hallway was illuminated with a dim light which allowed the occupants of the room to see each other. The man, Ash noted, was probably in his early thirties, dark hair and eyes... and he had a gun. Misty visibly paled, but Ash willed himself not to. The man's gaze traveled to the atomizer in Ash's hand. He clucked disapprovingly.
"Didn't you see Vincent's message?" he asked with a grin. "That thing won't leave a mark if you have this." He held up the fire orb.
"What is..." Misty screamed, cutting him off. He glanced at her peripherally, not taking his eyes off the man. She pointed quickly to Melton's dead body lying motionlessly on the ground, with a gunshot wound in the chest and blood taking over the surface of the hardwood floor. Ash tore his eyes away from the gruesome site and back to the man.
"Who are you?" Ash demanded of the man.
"Anderson, Daniel M. Anderson at your service."
"What's your angle?" He smiled.
"No angle. I have what I want. How about you give my boss what he wants... and he'll give you what I'm sure you want." Daniel Anderson held up a cage. In it was a tired Pikachu.
"Pi..." it muttered listlessly. Ash lunged for the man, and Misty barely caught him by the back of the shirt.
"God damn it, Ash, he's got a gun."
"So have I," Ash replied, indicating the menacing-looking atomizer #315. Anderson laughed again, a cold, hard sound.
"Shoot me then, Ketchum," he said with a fair amount of amusement. Ash aimed and fired. A great green light came shooting out of the end almost instantly. It enveloped him completely, and Ash let up on the button.
Anderson stood there, a smile on his face, completely and totally unharmed.
"My boss, Mr. Ketchum," he said with a hint of aggravation, "is not often wrong."
"How did you-"
"I told you. The fire orb."
"Do you work for Giovanni?" demanded Ash.
"I'll ask the questions," growled Anderson. "But, since it won't matter much when you're lying next to my buddy here-" he indicated Melton- "no. Although we are trying to affiliate him in this little project of ours."
"So, since you plan to finish us off anyway," Ash said as casually as he could, "what exactly is this plan of yours?"
Anderson began to explain, when a figure stepped out of the shadows. "I'll explain, Anderson," they said coldly. Ash's mouth dropped open and Misty's eyes widened.
"Of course, sir," answered Anderson, not taking his eyes off of Ash and Misty, who were currently sharing a confused look.
"Well," said the figure, taking a few steps toward Anderson, "it's very complicated, very complex, we wouldn't want to give away every detail- " they stepped even closer to him, until they were almost directly behind him.
"Of course, Vincent, sir," agreed Anderson promptly, and the figure smiled. The confusion on Ash and Misty's faces, Anderson noted bewilderedly, had turned to what appeared to be amusement.
"But, Anderson, I am going to need that fire orb- makes you immortal, you know," the figure added to Ash and Misty. Anderson handed it over without a word.
"Thank you Anderson. Oh, and one last thing as well."
"Yes?" said Anderson eagerly, obviously hoping for promotion.
"Goodbye," said a female voice slyly. A hand reached over and undid Pikachu's cage. There was a loud 'zap', and Anderson lay, charred, next to his partner. A young woma with green hair reached over and took his gun.
"Erika...? What- why are you- you're the boss? No, you're... holding a voice modulator." Ash said, all very quickly. Erika smiled and flipped back a strand of hair.
"I followed you guys from Celadon. Sabrina called and said you might need my help. She told me to give you her regards... she had a League inspector coming."
"From Celadon?" repeated Ash. "That was out of your way though..."
"Oh, it was no trouble," assured Erika.
"Then, did you see who dug that hole? Why didn't you help that dead guy? And where's the real boss?" Erika grinned at Misty.
"Come back to this room back here. I can explain everything there." And she led them into what would have been Vincent's office.
****
I know, I know, that was somewhat of a cliffhanger... I'm sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry. And sorry it took me so long to get this out... I couldn't decide what should happen in a couple of parts. To all my reviewers... thank you so much for sticking with the story!! Almost over now...
All the rest of the concluding-happily-ever-after events will happen in our concluding chapter: chapter 9! See you then, I hope ^_~
*lavenderespeon*
Hi everyone!
I apologize for yet another cliffhanger, and there will probably be one in this chapter too... I'm so mean, I know. I'm thinking this will be the second to last chapter. I gotta fit all of my events in here! Which means... yup. Here comes the fluff! ^-^ Probably not until the last chapter, but I might be able to squeeze some in here.
I CAN'T BELIEVE I GOT 105 REVIEWS! YOU GUYS ARE SO AWESOME! ^-^
... okay, you know what? I'm gonna stop boring you now. Read on! ***
"PIKAPIIIIIIII!"
Ash gasped and turned around abruptly, with a furtive, desperate glance back at the wall. "Stay here," he instructed Misty quickly.
"Where are you going?" she said urgently.
"Pikachu's somewhere over there. I have to go get it!" (AN: since I've heard Pikachu portrayed as a boy and a girl, it's just the neutral 'it'.) He turned, but Misty caught him by the edge of the shirt.
"No, Ash. It could be dangerous..."
"I'd do anything for Pikachu, you know that!" he yelled. She gave him a sharp look.
"If you'd let me finish... I want to come." He sighed and shook his head.
"I can't let you do that." She looked at him pleadingly.
"Ash..." She took his hand. They both heard a yell.
"Stay here," he repeated. "No matter what, stay here."
"But-"
"Promise!" he said forcefully. She searched his face and finally nodded resignedly. He squeezed her hand and gave her a brief smile before running top speed toward Pikachu's direction. His eyes searched the room, and saw a gray door in the nearest corner to the main gates. It was ajar.
Without thinking, he ran to it, flinging it open. He stopped in the doorway, breathing heavily. His eyes scanned the room for Pikachu, but he didn't see it anywhere. There was no one else in the room.
"Pikachu!" he called, hoping for a response to follow the sound of its voice on.
Very faintly, he got it: "pi! Pi..ka...piiii!" It sounded like it was coming from... beyond the wall? But there were dense woods and steel poles keeping people out of that entire back area, he'd seen them when they came in.
He decided that he'd have to figure it out. That gunshot came from beyond the wall too- there must be a way in. But that was a different wall- the very back of the far wall.
Hadn't he seen a gun- a tranquilizer or something- hanging back there on the very edge? He was almost certain of it. It was by that big machine- it made some kind of chocolate, he remembered, that had its own brand name- but he couldn't recall the name. But that gun would help!
And the wall- it had been so peculiar. The very back, where Misty was, had *wallpaper*. It didn't seem right somehow... He frowned and started walking back the way he came.
***
Misty stuffed her hands in her jeans pockets. She felt her left hand touch something- what was that? She pulled it out.
"Oh," she murmured. It was the piece of paper Ash told her to use to write down that weird riddle. She was about to unfold it when she heard a door slam and footsteps. She gasped, scared. She frantically searched for something- anything- to defend herself with, though she knew she was in a far corner, out of the way. She turned her head away from the main part of the factory, towards-
The Chocoball machine? She frowned. Had that- yeah, it had been there. She remembered leaning on it. But what about that box with the- the gun in it? There was a metal plaque that said:
SPECIAL UNIT. FOR SAFEKEEPING. ATOMIZER #315.
That number, too, sounded familiar. Atomizer... sounded scary. Well, she'd wait for Ash to see if she should take it, she supposed.
Suddenly, she heard a voice from behind her:
"Hello, Misty."
She screamed.
***
Daniel Anderson smiled as Vincent walked into the room with the Pikachu in an airtight bubble-like container. Vincent looked at the limp figure on the floor that used to be Jason Melton.
"A run-in with a wild Houndoom?" he asked in an amused tone. Anderson gave him a dark look.
"He had it. Can you believe it? He *had* it already, and he didn't tell us."
"So you assumed he wasn't going to?"
"Look," Anderson addressed his boss, "I know him. He was the guy they assigned to be my partner for years when we were Rocket grunts, and even when we were guards here. He had it- he wouldn't have told us."
"So," said Vincent, "got orb?" Anderson smiled and held out a red ball that was about as big around as the length of his palm. It glowed and you could see the flames in it. On the part he was holding up, there was a black spot approximately the size of a thumbprint.
Vincent gave an evil smile.
***
Ash started laughing hysterically at Misty's expression. She whirled around to find him standing there in hysterics.
"ASH KETCHUM!" she screamed. "Do you have any idea how much that scared me?" He stopped laughing, but still grinned at her. She took a step toward him, looking quite menacing. He held up his hands in an expression of truce.
"Sorry, Mist. Er-" He was about to correct himself, but she had already turned from him. He sighed quietly and looked back up at the wallpapered wall.
Suddenly, he frowned. Slowly, he walked toward the part of the wall he hadn't even noticed before. "Misty," he whispered. He felt her head turn. "Look."
In front of them was a part of the wallpaper with not one single stripe.
Misty frowned. "Why-" she began. He shook his head. "I- I dunno." Suddenly her eyes lit up and she reached into her pocket. Ash tore his gaze from the wall to look at her quizzically. She pulled a piece of paper from her pocket and he gave her a confused shrug.
"Listen," she said breathlessly. "Back of the wall." She looked at him, and he looked briefly back toward the place without stripes. Come to think of it, it was toward the back.
"Stripes are away," she continued, stressing the words. His mouth opened slightly.
"Have a Chocoball," she said with a smile, indicating the machine with a sweep of her hand. "And 315-" she pointed to the plaque on the atomizer- "can't help you now." He gave a nervous, excited laugh.
"You don't think this is how we get back there..." he said.
"It has to be," she replied. "All of it makes sense."
"But it said the atomizer can't help us. Look at that thing! It could probably fry a person. It can't be serious. I think whoever wrote the note is trying to throw us off." Misty nodded hesitantly. What Ash said made sense, but...
"Whoever wrote the note, Ash. How do you know they weren't trying to warn us, to help us?"
"How do you know they were?" he countered.
"We don't," she replied flatly.
"I dunno, Mist," he began, waiting for her to chide him. She didn't, so he continued, "it sounds too much like a threat to be help." She sighed.
"Say what you want," she replied. "I'm gonna try to figure out this wall."
"I'm gonna get the atomizer," announced Ash. She didn't answer him, merely turned towards the wall again and ran a hand across it.
It opened.
Misty frowned. That... was way too easy. "Ash," she called quietly.
"What," he said, banging a fist on the atomizer's box.
"Wall's open." He glanced at her, then the opening in the wall.
"Right. Lemme get the gun and-"
"Forget the gun, Ash." He turned to her abruptly.
"That was a gun shot we heard, Misty- I'm not going in there unarmed!" He rammed a fist into the glass and it shattered on his hand. Misty bit her lip and winced at the blood.
Ash muttered a few choice words through gritted teeth.
"Real becoming, Mr. Pokemon Master," Misty said.
"It hurts!" he snapped at her. She rolled her eyes.
"Well," she answered, "I've never been good at sympathy, but I think I could probably..." Abruptly, she yanked on the bottom of Ash's t-shirt, causing him to yelp in surprise and flail his arms around in the air for balance. Finally, he lost it and fell forward...
... right into her arms. She caught him and they looked at each other a few awkward seconds. Misty felt her cheeks warming and she set him back on his feet. The bottom of the t-shirt ripped off and she smiled.
"What is that for?" Ash asked her.
"Wrap your hand with it," she replied, giving him a look that stated that should have been obvious.
"Oh, of course. I always wrap my hands with the fabric from my t- shirts," he said with a hint of sarcasm.
"Shut up," she commanded him. "This is the best I've got for now. It's not like I carry around an Ace bandage in my bag." Just then, their conversation was cut short by a loud bang. They both turned to the wall, and Misty thrust Ash's t-shirt bottom into his hands. He started wrapping it around his injured hand, and he'd just finished when she grabbed him by his good hand and pulled him through the opening. He managed to grab the gun on the way past.
They found themselves suddenly in a dark hallway, an abrupt change from the harsh lighting in the assembly room. A flashlight was shone in their eyes and they blinked and shielded their eyes.
"Ash and Misty," said the voice. It was not a question. Misty's heart was beating like crazy and she made a soft scared sound in the back of her throat. Ash took her hand and gave it a quick squeeze.
Suddenly, the hallway was illuminated with a dim light which allowed the occupants of the room to see each other. The man, Ash noted, was probably in his early thirties, dark hair and eyes... and he had a gun. Misty visibly paled, but Ash willed himself not to. The man's gaze traveled to the atomizer in Ash's hand. He clucked disapprovingly.
"Didn't you see Vincent's message?" he asked with a grin. "That thing won't leave a mark if you have this." He held up the fire orb.
"What is..." Misty screamed, cutting him off. He glanced at her peripherally, not taking his eyes off the man. She pointed quickly to Melton's dead body lying motionlessly on the ground, with a gunshot wound in the chest and blood taking over the surface of the hardwood floor. Ash tore his eyes away from the gruesome site and back to the man.
"Who are you?" Ash demanded of the man.
"Anderson, Daniel M. Anderson at your service."
"What's your angle?" He smiled.
"No angle. I have what I want. How about you give my boss what he wants... and he'll give you what I'm sure you want." Daniel Anderson held up a cage. In it was a tired Pikachu.
"Pi..." it muttered listlessly. Ash lunged for the man, and Misty barely caught him by the back of the shirt.
"God damn it, Ash, he's got a gun."
"So have I," Ash replied, indicating the menacing-looking atomizer #315. Anderson laughed again, a cold, hard sound.
"Shoot me then, Ketchum," he said with a fair amount of amusement. Ash aimed and fired. A great green light came shooting out of the end almost instantly. It enveloped him completely, and Ash let up on the button.
Anderson stood there, a smile on his face, completely and totally unharmed.
"My boss, Mr. Ketchum," he said with a hint of aggravation, "is not often wrong."
"How did you-"
"I told you. The fire orb."
"Do you work for Giovanni?" demanded Ash.
"I'll ask the questions," growled Anderson. "But, since it won't matter much when you're lying next to my buddy here-" he indicated Melton- "no. Although we are trying to affiliate him in this little project of ours."
"So, since you plan to finish us off anyway," Ash said as casually as he could, "what exactly is this plan of yours?"
Anderson began to explain, when a figure stepped out of the shadows. "I'll explain, Anderson," they said coldly. Ash's mouth dropped open and Misty's eyes widened.
"Of course, sir," answered Anderson, not taking his eyes off of Ash and Misty, who were currently sharing a confused look.
"Well," said the figure, taking a few steps toward Anderson, "it's very complicated, very complex, we wouldn't want to give away every detail- " they stepped even closer to him, until they were almost directly behind him.
"Of course, Vincent, sir," agreed Anderson promptly, and the figure smiled. The confusion on Ash and Misty's faces, Anderson noted bewilderedly, had turned to what appeared to be amusement.
"But, Anderson, I am going to need that fire orb- makes you immortal, you know," the figure added to Ash and Misty. Anderson handed it over without a word.
"Thank you Anderson. Oh, and one last thing as well."
"Yes?" said Anderson eagerly, obviously hoping for promotion.
"Goodbye," said a female voice slyly. A hand reached over and undid Pikachu's cage. There was a loud 'zap', and Anderson lay, charred, next to his partner. A young woma with green hair reached over and took his gun.
"Erika...? What- why are you- you're the boss? No, you're... holding a voice modulator." Ash said, all very quickly. Erika smiled and flipped back a strand of hair.
"I followed you guys from Celadon. Sabrina called and said you might need my help. She told me to give you her regards... she had a League inspector coming."
"From Celadon?" repeated Ash. "That was out of your way though..."
"Oh, it was no trouble," assured Erika.
"Then, did you see who dug that hole? Why didn't you help that dead guy? And where's the real boss?" Erika grinned at Misty.
"Come back to this room back here. I can explain everything there." And she led them into what would have been Vincent's office.
****
I know, I know, that was somewhat of a cliffhanger... I'm sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry. And sorry it took me so long to get this out... I couldn't decide what should happen in a couple of parts. To all my reviewers... thank you so much for sticking with the story!! Almost over now...
All the rest of the concluding-happily-ever-after events will happen in our concluding chapter: chapter 9! See you then, I hope ^_~
*lavenderespeon*