Life on the Edge of Chaos
"In the intermediate phase, swiftly developing comlexity within the system hides the risk of imminent chaos. But the risk is there."
--Ian Malcom
*****
Somehow, I managed to not totally black out. The Jigglypuff had brandished a marker, but sudden noises from the left had it running into the tall grass. I must have been in some sort of shock because it didn't feel like I had plummeted from the sky into a bunch of trees. I could see raised welts caused by the Spearows claws on my sides, but the claws hadn't penetrated the skin. The most damage was the cuts and scrapes made by the fall through the trees.
I sighed and found that my stomach was sore from bellyflopping onto the tree branch. I hoped there was no internal damage. I decided to rest a while before I set off and I curled up into a ball at the foot of the tree that I fell on.
The noises that had been coming from the left, finally materialized into two small boys around the age of 11. They were twins, with tidy brown hair and blue eyes. I wondered if the Jigglypuff had the right idea about vanishing.
They looked harmless enough. Maybe they could take me to a Pokémon Center.
"Well, I say, Clem." one boy said.
"What's that, Flem?"
"It's a Pikachu!" Flem said, pointing at me. "Hasn't Mother always wanted one around the house?"
"No, no, Flem." The other boy said patiently, "She wants a Raichu."
The two looked at each other and grinned.
One, Flem or Clem I couldn't tell, walked up to me and crouched down. The other boy rummaged in his backpack.
"I say," the one in front of me said, "Do you suppose you'd like to live with us? You'd be in the lap of luxury forever!"
I shook my head, no, and got up and staggered to all fours. Shakily, I started to walk away.
"I'm afraid you cannot leave us," a young voice came from behind me. "You see, we promised Mother that we would come back with a Pikachu."
"Although a Raichu would be even better!"
I heard a clinking noise from behind me and I paused. This wasn't gonna be pretty. I turned to see both boys coming at me, circling me, something yellow in their hands. One boy to either side of me, no escape, I was trapped!
~Gary~
"Hours and hours of searching," Jessie muttered. "This is getting us nowhere fast."
"I think we've been there before," James grinned. "It's old hat for us!"
"That's not the only thing getting old around here," I muttered to myself.
"What was that!" Jessie exclaimed.
"Nothing, just that it's getting late and that Pikachu is running out of time." I covered quickly.
"You're right," James looked worried. "Cirrus hasn't got much time...Ouch! Jessie, what was that for?"
"You idiot!" Jessie hissed at him, with a look at me. "Ix nay on Irrus Cay!!"
"You know?" I asked, ready to drop the charade. "You know that Xanady did this to Cirrus?"
"Huh, she's not the only one." Jessie said as we walked on. "There have been at least fifteen kids, not including you and that other girl."
Now it was my turn to be surprised. I kept my features neutral as I asked, "How long have you known?"
"Well, it's not like we have any concrete proof." Jessie ducked a low flying Butterfree. "Xanady told us when Giovanni sent us to work for her. Since we can't do one little thing right, this is our way back up the ladder."
"So what's the true deal with Cirrus? Will she really die?"
"Not if we can get her in this special Pokéball." James said, holding up the minimized black and blue orb. "It will hold her in stasis, freezing her in an unbodied, energy form."
Jessie blinked at him. "Sometimes, you surprise me."
She yawned, "Plus since she's not from this dimension, or at least that's what Xanady told us, the serum is affecting her in totally the wrong way."
"I hadn't known that," I frowned. How could I have not known?
"You didn't know?" Jessie stared at me. "Didn't she tell you?"
"She told me something, but I didn't pay any attention to her. I didn't listen." I felt anger. Anger at myself for not picking up on her emotions.
"Gary," Jessie said, "Her...Cirrus is falling apart. She's unstable in a Pokémon form. The only way for her to regain her stability is for Xanady to administer an antidote."
I kicked at a pebble in the road. "Why didn't she just give it to you guys?"
"It's not that we're untrustworthy," James said as we rounded a curve in the road. "But it has to be kept refridgerated and in a stable environment. If it isn't, it would not work properly."
"If some outside stimulation upsets her to a certain degree, she could just die." Jessie finished.
I hadn't know Jessie or James could be so well versed. They actually seemed smarter. But what did I know about them? Ash would know for sure. Ash. He sure was lucky.
My thoughts were put on hold as a commotion was heard from ahead of us. It sounded like pained screeching and kids cheering. I got out a Pokéball and saw Jessie and James do the same. But what we saw shocked all of us.
~Cirrus~
Pain.
Unbelievable pain.
White light and more pain.
The brats had rushed me with a Thunderstone on each side, they both had one. What did they want? A super Raichu?
For a second, beneath all my pain, I thought I saw Gary. A human Gary and he had Jessie and James with him. But that couldn't be right.
The white light burned brighter.
I kept on resisting the change I knew the stones would make.
But
it
hurt
so
much...
The light flared all around me and this time..I fainted.
~Gary~
When I saw the white form between the two boys, I was shocked. The screeching was from the glowing creature between them. There was a Thunderstone in the hand of each boy and both had it pressed to the creature between them.
Cirrus...
"NO!" I cried out, throwing the Pokéball I held, "STOP IT!!"
The boys fell back as my Arcanine formed in front of them and howled. The glow faded from Cirrus and she dropped to the ground. Arcanine held the boys back as we ran to Cirrus.
"James, get that Pokéball ready!" Jessie yelled at her partner.
"Cirrus," I said, reaching for her.
"No," Jessie held my hand back. "Don't touch her, it may cause her to.."
She stirred then, Cirrus did, and we saw what the Thunderstone duo had done to her. She had a Raichu's ears and coloration, but with a Pikachu's body. The tail was a Pikachu's, but the tip was the tip of a Raichu's. I could just barely see a shield of electricity all around her. There would be no way to physically touch her.
I stood up, a cold look on my face. "Do it, James."
Cirrus' eyes were on me, distant and unfocused, as James tossed the sphere.
"Pokéball go!" He cried out.
The ball hovered over Cirrus and a blue beam of light enveloped her and changed her once more, this time to a bodiless, energy form, and she was pulled inside.
There was no waiting for the glow to fade or the chime to ding. The ball simply flew back to James' waiting hand. He minimized it and held on to it tightly.
I recalled Arcanine and glared at the two kids. They ran off as I sent out another Pokémon.
"Alakazam!" The Pokémon cried out.
"Mystikal, I need you to Teleport us to..uh," I turned to the duo. "Can one of you form a picture of Xanady's lab in your mind?"
Jessie nodded and closed her eyes. Moments later, Mystikal's eyes were glowing blue and our surroundings blurred and then reformed into the cold, sterile tiled walls and floor of Dr. Holly Xanady's laboratory.
"Aah, I see Cirrus has finally returned to me." A cool, cultured voice spoke from behind us. "Nice to see you have recovered, Gary Oak."
I spun around at the voice, my eyes narrowed. "Xanady."
The woman before me was tall and slender, black hair tumbled in curls to her waist, her blue eyes glittered with supressed intelligence. She smiled. "I suppose you hate me?"
"You got the first question right." I snapped, "Should I move on to number two?"
"And I see you've taken on some of your 'Trainers' more appealing traits." She walked past Mystikal and me, Jessie and James were her targets. "The Pokéball?"
James placed it in her outstretched hand, his own trembling with fear.
"No need for fear, James!" Xanady laughed. "I'm a changed woman."
"I suppose you fight for a greater cause now?" Jessie asked suspiciously.
"It's not like this wasn't a good idea." Xanady said, taking a syringe from a refridgerator. "I just didn't think of the moral repercussions. A first for me, I admit, but every stone has it's day."
I recalled Mystikal as she released Cirrus, aiming for the countertop.
Cirrus reformed and slumped into a heap on the counter. Even I could hear her harsh breathing.
"Oh my," Xanady breathed out. "Did you try to evolve her?"
"No," James said, finding some bravery. "Twin boys tried to use two Thunderstones on her at one time. Did we get to her in time?"
"Barely," Xanady said, staring at Cirrus. "Maybe, we are just in time." She inched her fingers forward and then jerked them back. There had been a snapping sound as she touched Cirrus.
"Hmm, seems there is an excess of statical electricity. It has formed a shield around her." Xanady pulled on thick rubber gloves and readied the syringe. "This could be tricky."
I held my breath as the syringe was lowered. It passed through the shield with minimum snapping and Xanady injected Cirrus. She stepped back, dropping the syringe in a red sealed bin.
"All we can do, is wait." She said, smiling.
~Cirrus~
I was awake.
I was asleep.
1's and 0's passed before my eyes, millions of them in tight, precise rows and columns.
Everything I'd ever done in my entire life was flashing before my eyes in a surreal kind of movie. Mom. I wanted my mother.
Rocks, pressing in on either side of me. Towering over me.
Pressing, shoving,
I can't breathe!
I was in a pool, a pond. I thrashed for the surface, unable to breathe, no air in my lungs. Stars twinkled before my eyes as I broke the surface and gasped in air...
My eyes opened to darkness. The air around me was cool and strange smelling. I was in a bed, of sorts, a pillow beneath my head and a blanket tucked in around me. I stared at my arms, one on either side of me. There was an IV in the left one.
Hands. Arms.
It hit me then. I was human.
I wanted to cry out, but I was overwhelmed by sudden exhaustion and I fell asleep again.
*****
I found myself in a clearing, human and standing tall. It was dark out, the full moon tinting everything blue. I heard rustling behind me and turned around. Nothing there. The rustling came from behind me and I turned around again, facing the clearing. This time, it was filled with powerful Pokémon.
"Welcome, Cirrus!" The large, purple cat said. "Good to see you are unharmed by your Ordeal."
"Mewtwo?" I was confused. "What Ordeal?"
"I am sorry that I could not help you, but it was important that I did not interfere."
The array of Pokémon behind Mewtwo shook their heads in agreement.
"What? Was I a documentary to you?" I shook my head. "And now we watch as the human is caputured by the mad scientist. Look at how it prepairs the syringe..."
"Who..oh, wow!" Suddenly I recognised the Pokémon around me. Mew, Mewtwo, Lugia, Ho-oh, Zapdos, Articuno, Moltres...Three others were kept shrouded by darkness beyond the three Legendary Birds.
Mewtwo said nothing as I walked past the Avians.
I walked closer, feeling the power around me, and suddenly I could see them.
The Legendary Dogs.
"Well, I'll be." I grinned, "Hello!"
Entei, Suicune,and Raiko seemed shy. The misty ribbons twisted gently around Suicune's body, ruffled by an invisible breeze.
"You are brave..."
I turned at the deep toned mental voice. Lugia stood by me, towering over me in blue-tinted whites and purples.
I thought of all the times Lugia fought for me in my GBC Silver version. "I caught you with a Master Ball."
Lugia blinked.
I mentally smacked myself. I come face to face with Lugia and all I can say is that I caught it with a Master Ball.
I saw Mewtwo grin as it played 'Catch the Psychic Ball' with Mew.
"I mean, in my dimension, the whole Pokémon world is a video game and.." I broke off. Lugia was just not getting it.
"I suppose you caught me with a Master Ball too?" This was a female-sounding mental voice and it chimed in amusement.
I turned to see Ho-oh, its feathers a glorious assortment of vivid colors.
"Uh, no, sorry." I smiled weakly. "Only one Master Ball per game. I caught you with an Ultra Ball."
She who smiles weak, speaks weak. I thought harshly to myself.
"This Ordeal is far from over, young one."
I turned to see Mew hovering upside-down in front of me.
"Here, have a 'Psychic Ball'."
I was barely able to catch the Pokéball tiny, translucent pink sphere.
"Don't let go...."
*****
I woke up, not to sunshine streaming in through a window, but to harsh halogen lights.
"Good to see you made it." A woman's voice, cool and cultured.
I blinked, trying to place it, when she came into view. Xanady.
I gasped and tried to shrink away from her, but when she made no move towards me, I settled down. Xanady only looked at me, her blue eyes concealing some emotion.
"You could've had it all," she said suddenly. "You do know that? A simple life, following a Trainer to glory in the Indigo Plateau."
"That's not my dream." I said. "I wanted to be the Trainer. Not the Trained."
"Perhaps." She moved to the door, one slender hand on the knob. "Perhaps...not."
She left then and for a few moments there was nothing but silence. I knew I had to be near her lab. I doubted that Xanady ever strayed far from it. What she had said...made me wonder.
I frowned as I stared up at the ceiling. When parents forced their kids to be football players or beauty pagent winners, it was usually because they wanted that when they were young, but never achieved it. Could that be Xanady's case? Did she want to be a Pokémon?
"Wacko," I muttered. I could still sense the small bubble Mew had tossed at me. My hand was clenched as if holding something small. I opened my hand to see a silver necklace with a small Crab charm. "The hell?"
"Ah-ah-ah!" The familiar mental voice rang out. "Such language! Wear the necklace. It will protect you from Xanady's mind games."
"Anything else?" I said, slipping it over my head.
"Yes, it also slices, dices, and makes Julianne fries. Of course nothing else!" Mew did not make itself visible, but its presence was definatley felt. "If you get yourself into really dire straits, I'll swing on by and try to help you out. Now make sure that you don't take it off, aiight?"
"Uh, riiight." Suddenly, Mew's presence faded. "Hey wait! What about the whole no interfering thing?"
Silence.
"Oo-kay." I settled back on the bed. The pillow was actually quite comfortable. I was thinking about what to do about Xanady, my thoughts suddenly clear, when I noticed my arms. They were now a deep tan color.
"Again I say, the hell?"
It looked like I went to a tanning salon or something. Never before had I desired a mirror then in that very moment.
*****
"So, you're saying that everything is fine with Cirrus now?" Gary asked, suspicion on his face.
"That's right." Xanady smiled. "Why within a few hours, I'd say she'd be ready to go back to Pallet. That is if you want her. If not...well, I'd be glad for the company."
"I don't think she'd mind at all," Gary smirked, "I think she'd appreciate my company more than yours."
Jessie watched Xanady's eyes narrow slightly. Carefull, Twerp, you're on thin ice.
Xanady smiled again. "Jessie, James. Why don't you report back to Giovanni now? I will be sure to tell him what a success the two of you have been."
James nodded and led Jessie out of the lab, closing the door gently behind them.
"Would you like a tour?" Xanady asked. "After all, you should realize the greatness of a mind like mine."
And Ash thought I was arrogant. Gary thought sourly.
Well how was that? I hope it was good for you, it was for me! Psych. I know, corny is as corny does.
Aiight. For Chapter 8:
Is that it for Cirrus or does Xanady have more plans for her? Why have so many powerful Pokémon taken an interest in our avid transdimensional traveller? Will Cirrus ever find her way home? Just where has Meowth been at? Does anyone miss the Xena Disclaimers? All this and *possibly* more in the next exciting chapter!!!
Managment wishes at this time that it be known that the authoress known as Pikajenn has been watching way too much TV and reading waaay to many books.
--The Managment