Osteogenesis Imperfecta
by Joshua Falken
Thanks to BenRG for beta-read this chapter and his writing of the Cascade Badge Battle scene :-)
Author's note: Osteogenesis Imperfecta is an Alternate Universe fic, where Ash has the disease of the title. Also, this genetic disorder is real, it really exists. For more info, access http://www.oif.org
Now, the chapter 5! :-)
Chapter 5 - Prognosis
Local: Elsewhere
Date: Elsewhen
He ran faster and faster, through that silent forest and of the cold night.
He had to run faster..
If not... the Shadows could catch him.
Where was Pikachu? And Misty? And Brock? He implored that any of his friends appeared there. He looked all around him, trying find them. But he could not scream for help... Suddenly, the left leg was broken. The pain was terrible, and he couldn't hold back his scream.
Then he heard steps approaching. A woman's voice commenting, sadistic. "He is around here."
He had to get out of there, broken leg or not!
Trying to stand the pain, he began to run again, dragging the leg.
He fell again, breaking two ribs and a bone of the right arm.
The Shadows appeared in front of him on that exact moment. They were two titanic beings, which seemed to be nothing more than gigantic human shadows. The Shadow-man threw a black rope of its arm, which coiled around Ash's neck and lifted him off of the ground.
Then he was thrown against one of the trees. The sound of the bones breaking echoed through the forest. The pain was so intense that he couldn't even scream.
The Shadow-woman said, when catching her victim, "This is the sound that I love more than anything!" and then she laughed.
"Help!" Ash screamed.
"There is no one to help you... aberration!" The Shadow-man spoke with scorn.
Ash felt the cold hands of the Shadow-woman enter his body, and disintegrate every bone in his body...
============
Ash woke up screaming, in his room in the Viridian City General Hospital, bathed in a cold sweat and trembling so violently that the various medical devices attached to his body rattled like some kind of percussion instrument. His mother, who had been asleep in a chair, woke up quickly and ran to him.
"Ash! What happened?" Her face twisted with fear and concern.
He couldn't answer; he only could close his eyes, trying to forget the nightmare. But he wasn't very successful in attaining to that goal...
Viridian Hotel
June 16, 2063
Brock woke up with two strident sounds: the ringer of his cell phone and the sound of Misty knocking on the door.
"Brock! Brock! Wake up!"
Still dizzy for not having slept enough, he went and opened the door.
"What's going on, Misty?"
"See this!" She exclaimed breathless.
He looked at Misty's cell phone. In the LCD text display, he read the message that blinked insistently. It was the same one that, when he checked later, blinked on the screen of his own cell phone...
From: Kimberly Steeleyon,
President of the Pokémon Global League
To: All the Gym Leaders of the League
Subject: Emergency Meeting
All the Gym Leaders of the Indigo, Orange, Johto and Global Leagues are summoned for an emergency meeting in Viridian City, to be accomplished in the afternoon, on June 17, 2063.
I apologise for such a hasty summons, but the subject is of extreme importance. Please, your presence is necessary and urgently required.
Kimberly
Steeleyon
President of the Pokémon Global League
June 15, 2063
"A meeting on June 17? But... it's TOMORROW!" Brock exclaimed, confused. He tried to imagine why the Grand Master would summon the Gym Leaders so hastily...
Then he understood, just as well as Misty had already perceived. There was just a reason for such a meeting...
"Ash..." He murmured. Misty shook her head in disbelief and horror, confirming rather than denying Brock's fears.
Eldridge Avenue
June 16, 2063
Detective Jenny Wigand noticed immediately as her car turned into the street that passed the City General Hospital. Looking at the building, she remembered the frightening image that she seen on the previous day. Automatically, she began to recollect the details of her investigations.
No clues on the weapon or in the scene of the crime.
No witnesses, and the victim was not still in a fit condition to give her a statement.
Translation: she was in the dark, and the only person that could give her a clue was in the hospital...
She sighed. Her boss was pressuring her hard to make some progress in the case... but she didn't need that. What she had seen in the hospital yesterday was already motivation enough...
"Good luck." she murmured to the courageous boy that was resting eight floors above her.
Thunder suddenly roared and lightning flashed. Jenny shivered in a deep, superstitious fear. She had the strangest feeling that someone no, scratch that, something was most interested in the outcome of this investigation.
Viridian City General Hospital
June 16, 2063
Dr. Andrew Rupertson breathed in deeply and looked around at his team. "Are you sure about this? Because I will have to convince the patient, and that will be difficult."
Slowly, each one of the members of the medical team agreed. The air in the Ready Room was grim and serious.
Fifteen minutes later, accompanied by Dr. Brenda Wiggins and Dr. Michael Cook, the hospital's chief orthopaedist, he began to explain to Ash Ketchum and his family of his prognosis.
"First we will have to guarantee that there is no damage to your internal organs nor any current infections in the wounds you suffered during the assault. We anticipate that those tests will take no more than one month. Then we will reassemble your bones by means of nanorobotic celullar and molecular construction machines. We will start with the bones of the head and of the chest, and then move on to reassembling the superior and inferior members..." Rupertson grimaced gently and looked into Ash's eyes. "As you are aware, for nanorobotic re-assembly to work, you will have to be completely immobilised for the entire procedure, which should take between eight to eleven weeks, depending on how many fragments the nanorobots have to reassemble."
The rain calmly beat on the window of Ash Ketchum's room.
The eyes of Ash, Delilah, Professor Oak and Misty didn't waver from the face of the doctor. Dr. Rupertson sincerely wished that the patient hadn't insisted that his girlfriend stayed in the room. The last thing he wanted to deal with was a hysterical teenage girl. Then the patient interrupted him, in a worried tone.
"Doctor, excuse me for interrupting you," Ash said, "but were there any lesions in my spine?"
"Well, there was no damage to your spinal cord." Dr. Wiggins answered, a little evasively.
Misty breathed in happily when she heard that news, but not Ash or Delilah. They knew better...
"To continue," the head of the medical team resumed, "after the re-assembly, we will reprogram the nanorobots to assemble, molecule-by-molecule, prosthetic rods to help your bones support your body weight. This should take no more than two weeks. You will begin biofeedback treatment simultaneously with the nanorobotic therapy to avoid muscular atrophy. After the nanorobots complete constructing the prosthesis and we are sure they are secure, you will switch over to conventional physiotherapy."
"Prosthetic rods?" Misty asked. "What does that mean, doctor?"
"It is a procedure normally used in cases of OI if the patient has suffered a extensive trauma, Ms. Williams. The nanorobots will assemble a telescoping rod made of a dense metal like platinum or titanium in the core of the patient's long bones, spine and pelvis. As well as increasing the impact resistance of the bones by about 50%, they also create a 'template' for the bones to grow around despite the collagen deficiency." Dr. Cook explained. "This technology has, thankfully, virtually eliminated the grotesque malformations that used to be common in cases like this."
"How long will the treatment take?" Delilah asked.
The doctor swallowed dryly. "The complete regimen from infection treatment to the completion of primary physiotherapy will take nine months... in the best case."
Nine months? Misty thought, her face reflecting her shock and horror.
Misty turned to look at Ash's face and saw those unforgettable brown-on-blue eyes showing hardness that she was all too familiar with. The very first time she saw that particular look was those three long years ago, shortly after Misty and a reluctant Brock had examined Ash's medical files in his Pokédex...
Cascade Gym
Cerulean City
May 27, 2060
What am I doing? I can't fight Ash! Misty thought helplessly as she took her place at the Gym Leader's end for the Pokémon Battle. Ash stood fearlessly at his place on the other side of the pool. She saw water everywhere. Of course! This is the Cerulean City Cascade Gym, a Water Pokémon Gym!
Me and my big mouth! she berated herself angrily. She had to open her mouth to defend the honour of the Gym, assuming that one of her sisters would gladly step forward to do the defending! But, as Daisy had always insisted, it was Misty who was the fighting Trainer of the 'Sensational Sisters.'
"You ready yet?" Ash yelled defiantly. He is incredible, she thought. If he slips he could be crippled, but he is still fearless he really scares me sometimes. Misty drew in a deep, shuddering breath. Not having any other choice, she had to play the role...
"Get ready, Ash Ketchum!" she called back.
"Begin!" Daisy, her older sister, announced.
"Misty chooses Starmie," she shouted. She threw forward a blue-and-white Aqua-type Pokéball, which split open mid-air to release the five-pointed starfish-like water-type.
"Pikachu, I choose you," Ash countered. Unfortunately, his Pokémon was unwilling to fight Misty and Starmie, a comrade in many battles against Team Rocket. The electric mouse clutched in Ash's arm when he tried to toss him forward, wearing an uncertain expression. The unexpected weight threw Ash off-balance and he staggered, the Challenger's float pitching and rolling wildly...
"ASH, BE CAREFUL!" Misty screamed.
Ash dropped down low and waited for the float to stabilise. After regaining his balance, Ash glared at Misty suspiciously, that mathematical-like tactical sense of his processing her unusual behaviour. "What is going on, Misty?"
"Please, Ash, you've got to be careful," Misty pleaded with him. "If you fell on that concrete floor with your disease..." Then she covered her mouth with her hand, realizing that had said far too much.
Ash was silent for a moment, with a surprised expression in his face. "How do you know about my disease?" he asked in a cold tone that made Misty want to hide.
"I... I saw... the emergency medical warning... in your Pokédex..." she admitted, her face red with shame.
Ash stared at Misty for a long, silent minute, his face expressionless and hard with a keen sense of rage and betrayal. "Pikachu, return," he grated. He turned and, without another word, left the Cascade Gym.
"Like, what disease?" Lilly wanted to know. "What's wrong with him, Misty?"
Misty, for the first time she could recall, lost her temper with her good-natured older sister. She told her, with an unrepeatable profanity, to leave her alone, and fled as fast as she could run.
== == == == == == == ==
Later, Misty and Brock sat in a small café near the Gym. Ash had finally calmed down, but the two Gym Leaders were still shifting uncomfortably under their friend's hard, accusing gaze.
"Do you mind telling me," he asked in a hard, furious tone, "why you sneaked a look at my medical records... without my permission?"
"Well..." Brock tried to explain. "We were curious about you and"
"If you were curious why you didn't ask me before you started peeking into personal information?"
The two Trainers couldn't offer an answer to that which could convince them, let alone Ash...
"I don't believe that you read my medical records!" Ash repeated.
"I'm sorry, Ash... that was my idea," Misty said. Ash directed his fiery brown gaze on her and Misty felt her face go red. She tried to explain her reasoning. "I'd figured something big was up, Ash. If we'd asked, you would tell about about OI?"
Ash's gaze became soft and tired. "No." He simply answered.
"Why not?" Brock asked, carefully.
"Because I know what happens when people know about that." He said in a low tone, without looking at them. "They think that I am a freak or that I am like a porcelain doll that has to be wrapped in cotton wool and never allowed to live the life that so-called 'normal' people live."
Misty looked at Brock and they both remembered when Ash broke his arm in the Boulder Gym. The fact was Ash was playing with fire just being outside a hospital.
Ash lifted the eyes and looked his two friends in the eyes. "Well, I am normal," he said defiantly, "and I am going to prove it." After a moment, he laughed in a bitter, ironic tone. "When I was six years old, my nickname was 'Mr. Glass.' A friend of mine by the name of Gary Oak said it was because I broke so easily."
There was an undertone to the word 'friend' that made Misty shiver. The two Gym Leaders were in silence. They could understand all too well the reason Ash tried to hide his affliction. After all, Misty was a girl who had fought all her life to be free of her family's ambitions and demands. Brock was a man who had lived a role for his entire life and was only now trying to do what he wanted to do. They both knew what it was like to have something in the background, holding you back.
After a long, reverent silence Misty finally spoke in a whisper. "Ash, how fragile are you?"
Ash's face was pale. There was a lot of pain in the answer to that question. He drew in a breath before speaking. "Well, I was born with both my arms and both my legs, besides three ribs, broken by the force of my mother's contractions. I've spent, in all, about three of my ten years in hospital."
Brock swallowed dryly in horror. Tears ran from Ash's eyes in that strange, silent crying that so fascinated Misty. Pikachu patted Ash's arm gently. "Chu-pi-pikachu-kachu-ka, Pika-pi," [I will look after you, Ash,] the little electric mouse said comfortingly.
Ash hugged Pikachu gratefully. After a moment he stood and looked into Misty and Brock's eyes again. "If you could consider me a normal person, then I am grateful to have you at my side," he announced. "But if you cannot see me in that light well, then I don't think we need to see each other ever again." Then he turned away and left. Pikachu jumped to his Trainer's shoulder and looked back at them in a sad, lonely way.
Brock and Misty only could look at each other in deep embarrassment and shame.
== == == == == == ==
The following day, Ash challenged the Williams Sisters again for the Cascade Badge. But, again, the only one that appeared to defend the Gym was Misty.
"Don't hold back, Misty," Ash said sternly. "If you have any respect for me if you have any respect for this Gym, you will give me all that you have." Pikachu, standing at Ash's side, nodded firmly.
Misty swallowed dryly. "You might have reason to regret saying that," she announced. "This is going to be a full Novice Bout. Three Pokémon in one-on-one bouts. No changes mid-bout, got that?" Ash nodded. "The best out of three wins," Misty continued, "if there is no clear winner after three bouts, we will continue until either one of us wins a bout or has no Pokémon left to use."
Ash nodded firmly. He was at a technical disadvantage here, and he knew it. Misty, a Gym Leader, had twenty Pokémon of the water- and psi-type to call on. He just had Pikachu, Butterfree and Pidgeotto. Well I'll just have to use quality over quantity, he thought to himself. "Let's do it, Ms. Williams," he said formally.
Misty nodded and drew a Pokéball. "Misty chooses Magikarp!" she said. Magikarp hit the water with a small, neat splash.
"Go, Butterfree!" Ash said, releasing his newly evolved bug-type.
Misty frowned as Butterfree swooped over the pool. That wasn't what she expected at all. Ash was far more comfortable with Pikachu. Additionally, a Bug-type was at a disadvantage against a Water-type. "Magikarp, Water Gun attack," she commanded.
Ash simply gestured to the left and Butterfree agilely dodged the jet of water Magicarp spat out of the pool. Misty frowned again. She repeated the attack three times, then four times, and each time Ash could keep his Pokémon just out of Magikarp's reach. As yet, Ash had made no counter-attack. "Okay, Magikarp," she snapped, "Vortex attack!"
Magikarp began to swim in a tight circle, generating a whirlpool that he would launch at Butterfree. Ash finally countered, and used the most devastating attack his Butterfree could offer. "Butterfree, Confusion attack!"
No human could hear it, but Butterfree began to emit an ultrasonic wail that affected Magikarp's nervous system and sense of balance. Disoriented and unable to concentrate, the water-type dropped out of his Vortex attack and charged blindly across the pool, colliding with one of the concrete walls with a loud crunch. He slowly came to the surface and lay on his side, twitching occasionally as he tried to get his sense of balance back.
Misty winced in empathic sympathy. "Magikarp, dive!" she implored.
"Sleep Dust!" Ash commanded.
"Butter-ut-free!" Butterfree cooed gently. The bug-type began to waft dust down onto the stunned fish-like Pokémon.
"Magikarp, concentrate on my voice," Misty called. "Dive!"
Magicarp shook his head and dropped below the surface. Misty could see that he was groggy. He obviously didn't have much left to offer. Misty watched as Butterfree responded to Ash's silent command to return to hovering over the centre of the pool. She had to end this now. She gestured to Magikarp, describing a 'U' shape in the air. The water-type dived down deep and began to curve up towards Butterfree.
"Keep alert, Butterfree," Ash warned.
"Now, Magikarp BODY SLAM!" Misty shouted. Magikarp exploded vertically out of the water travelling about 25 knots and struck Butterfree full on. The bug-type tumbled across the gym and crashed to the ground at the side of the pool. "Water Gun," Misty ordered. Magikarp stuck his head out of the water and spat a stream of water at Butterfree, who was just staggering to his feet. The bug went down and, this time, stayed down.
"You win, Misty," Ash said gently. He recalled his fallen friend and turned back to face her. Misty checked his face. There was no fear, no hesitation and no uncertainty. He wanted to continue.
She sighed deeply. "Okay, the score is Williams 1, Ketchum 0," she announced in the echoingly empty fighting area. "Second bout, Misty chooses Seel!"
"Pidgeotto, I choose you," Ash countered.
"Pidgeeee!" Pidgeotto screeched as he emerged from his Pokéball.
Misty paused for a moment before starting the bout. "Seel, Omni-Blast!" The force beam missed Pidgeotto by a wide margin and slammed into the hardened glass in front of the viewing area, making it buckle. "Aurora Shield," Misty continued, figuring that Ash would respond with a Razor Feather Throw attack.
Ash surprised her. "Tornado attack!" he ordered. Shielded or not, Seel was caught up in the miniature whirlwind created by Pidgeotto's fast circling flight. The vortex picked the amazed water-type up and slammed him hard against the gym wall. "Follow with Razor Feather!" Ash ordered. A hail of razor sharp feathers, laced with neurotransmitter dampening venom flashed through the air and stabbed into Seel's belly, making the water-type bellow in pain and surprise.
Misty could imagine the agony of that attack and cowered instinctively. "Seel, get in the water, quick!" she called.
"See-eel!" Seel responded, sliding back into the pool.
Misty watched thoughtfully as Pidgeotto returned to hovering above the center mark. "Seel, multiple Omni-Blast," she ordered.
The most puzzling thing happened. As Ash guided Pidgeotto through the flak-like series of force blasts, his face was twisted with concern. Of course, he didn't want Pidgeotto hurt badly, no decent Trainer ever wished pain on his Pokémon, but there was something else here. She shook her head angrily. She would have to figure it out later. Seel was badly hurt and couldn't keep up these useless attacks much longer.
"Seel, Drill Horn," she ordered. The water-type dived and then swung around to throw himself into the air and spear Pidgeotto on his powerful horn. Ash described a half-circle in the air and then held up his right hand, palm open. Misty frowned. Now what? she asked herself.
Seel exploded out of the water, just as Magikarp did before. "Now!" Ash shouted, but Pidgeotto was already moving. The bird-like flying-type swung up-and-over to seize Seel by the scruff of his neck. Using the water-type's momentum against him, he carried Seel forward and slammed him against the glass partition hard. Seel collapsed into a heap, wearing a silly cross-eyed grin. Pidgeotto returned to his Trainer and went back into a hover.
Misty already knew that the bout was over. "Well done, Ash," she called with a wry smile. "And commiserations to you, Seel," she added quietly, recalling her stunned friend to his Pokéball. She watched Ash stroke Pidgeotto's chest feathers and say a few words of congratulation before recalling him. "The match stands at Williams 1, Ketchum 1," Misty announced after a moment. "As you won the last bout, you choose first, Ash." As if you have much choice, she added silently.
"Pikachu, I choose you!" Ash announced.
"Misty chooses Starmie," Misty responded. Both Pokémon took their places without hesitation. Ash had obviously explained the situation to his little friend. The electric mouse showed not a hint of hesitation this time.
Misty suddenly had an epiphany. She understood Ash's additional concern for Pidgeotto in the previous bout. Ash broke so easily, so very easily. So much so that he instinctively avoided doing things like running and jumping in an attempt to avoid putting too much strain on his weak bones. That fear extended to his Pokémon, even though they were much tougher than he was, tougher than even humans with normal bones were. That was his weakness. And Starmie could exploit that. Misty felt like a witch even considering doing this, but Ash had asked her not to hold back.
"Pikachu, Thunder-shock!"
"Starmie, Agility!" Starmie leapt off of his platform and twirled through the air. The Thunder-shock struck the platform with a loud bang of discharged electricity and Misty saw St. Elmo's fire flash around its' metal mooring chains. She was suddenly very glad to be wearing trainers with non-conducting soles. "Shuriken attack!"
Starmie span through the air right at Pikachu. Ash jerked in surprise at the sudden melee attack and gestured desperately for Pikachu to dodge the attack. There followed a series of near misses as Pikachu followed his Trainer's commands, dodging attack after whirling attack.
Misty pointed to the platform in front of Pikachu. Starmie dropped from the air and landed in front of Pikachu. Ash could have won if he had considered using a fighting attack like Kick or Pound, but he had a blind spot there. He ordered Pikachu to back off as Starmie fired off a Laser Pulse attack. The energy bolt slammed the little electric-type back and onto the poolside walk.
Ash gasped in fear and concern. To Misty's surprise he actually jumped across several platforms to get closer to his friend. "Pikachu, are you all right?"
"Pika-chu-chu, Pika-pi," [I'll make it, Ash,] Pikachu replied, staggering to his feet.
"Water Gun," Misty ordered.
"To me!" Ash shouted. Pikachu leapt into the air and jumped into his Trainer's arms. Starmie instinctively tracked his opponent and Misty watched with horror as the water jet, capable of knocking something as big as a Machamp across an arena, tracked onto her fragile friend.
Still carrying Pikachu, Ash leapt wildly out of the way of the water jet and landed hard on another platform, dropping low and onto all fours, he seemed to fall, but then was back on his feet. Misty realised that he had kept his joints loose, using them to absorb most of the impact of the jump. Ash pointed to the right and Pikachu jumped onto another platform.
Ash looked at Misty in a calculating way before he ordered Pikachu to fire another Thunder-shock. Misty ordered Starmie into the air, avoiding the searing attack barely in time. She had to end this right now, before Ash, in his fearless courage, injured himself. "Starmie, Body Slam!"
Ash tracked the twirling water-type as he zipped through the air towards Pikachu. "Pikachu, Agility UP!" he ordered at the last moment. Pikachu leapt into the air, dodging Starmie's attack. The starfish-like Pokémon shot past in a dive and crashed into the pool. "Now, Thunder Storm!" Ash ordered. Pikachu leapt into the air just as Starmie surfaced.
"Pika Pika Pika-CHUUU!" Pikachu shouted, launching his most powerful attack into the pool. There was a hiss and a scent of ozone. The pool actually heated up by two degrees and electricity sparked around every metal fitting.
There was a long pause and then Starmie bobbed to the surface, comatose. Misty gasped out a long-held breath and recalled her defeated friend.
"Pikachu-ka-chu, Pika-pi!" [I did it, Ash!] Pikachu squealed in delight. He threw himself into Ash's arms and hugged his face excitedly.
"Yeah, you did pal!" Ash laughed. "You were great, Misty, just great! Thanks for treating me as a normal person."
Misty sighed and jumped across the platforms over to Ash. "But you're not normal, Ash," she said. Ash looked at her in some concern as she joined him on the big 'Challenger's Platform.' "You are far more than that. I don't believe that I am saying this, but you are one of the best Trainers I've ever seen. And you... well, you have earned this."
Misty reached into her belt bag and pulled out a crystal teardrop-shaped badge. "For defeating me and showing such a love for your Pokémon, you have proved yourself worthy of the Cascade Badge," she announced quietly. "Congratulations, Brother Trainer." She shook her head. "Now I want you to promise me you will never pull such a stupid stunt as jumping in between two fighting Pokémon ever again."
Ash laughed and Misty shook her head in disbelief. "How did you do it, anyway?" she asked. "I thought I had you figured out!"
"I thought so too," Ash replied. "So I deliberately let you continue using melee attacks to draw Starmie into a position where Pikachu's electric attacks couldn't miss." Misty shook her head in amazement. "I always have been good at that sort of stuff." Ash added modestly. He then touched his lower left leg and grimaced. "Now I think we'd better go to the hospital I think I've got a hairline fracture or two from my acrobatics."
Misty offered her friend her shoulder to lean on as she led him away. She was worried, but she showed him the respect he deserved by not panicking, not fussing and treating him as normal. Whatever that was.
Viridian City General Hospital
June 16, 2063
Misty remembered that day, and she recalled the change in Ash's attitude towards her in the days that followed. If, before, he wanted to avoid to any mention of his disease with them, now he wanted them, her especially, to know everything about it. She was thankful for the trust that Ash had in her now...
In return she had tried to treat him with the respect she felt he deserved. If she did bop him over the head with her mallet every now and again, it was only because his skull was thicker than the doctors insisted.
She also had a nickname of her own for him, although she would never tell him that. 'Mr. Crystal,' was how she thought of him. Fragile his body might be, but inside he was a beautiful thing, and, in the right circumstances he was Unbreakable.
Ash was looking at his doctors with his blue and brown gaze. He was still talking about the proposed treatment for his injuries. "And in the worst case?" he asked.
After a long pause, Dr. Cook gave his reply in a reluctant tone of voice. "In the worst case, the bones have been so badly damaged that even the nanorobots cannot consolidate their cells enough to sustain your body. You can be forced to use crutches at the very least, more probably wheel chairs and orthopaedical supports for the rest of your life." Cook took a deep breath. He didn't like giving his patients such terrible prognoses, but the boy's mother had agreed that her son should hear the whole truth. The stern, mature way that Ash looked at him guaranteed his respect and his desire to be open with his patient. "Mr. Ketchum, you must understand that there is a definite probability that you could never live a completely independent life again."
The doctor's words cut into their hearts with all the force of a jackhammer.
Everybody looked nervously at the silent boy in the bed, waiting for his reaction.
Then Ash spoke, in a curiously controlled and detached tone. "Thank you for telling me the truth, doctor," he said.
The rain began to get heavier.
Some minutes passed, while Misty and Brock, together with Pikachu and Chikorita, attempted to encourage Ash. Delilah and Samuel Oak went to one side to talk with the doctors.
"Mrs. Ketchum, we still have to talk about the psychological therapy." Dr. Wiggins said calmly.
"Psychological therapy?"
"Yes. You should remember that curing the body is just half of the battle, in a case like this. The most important part is also to cure the wounds that the attack inflicted to your son's mind."
Delilah Ketchum remembered the nightmare that Ash had the previous night.
"Sure," she said quietly. "Go ahead with it."
"Thank you very much for your permission." The geneticist said sincerely. She knew how much the structural engineer hated not be able to do anything to help the son to deal with the Osteogenesis Imperfecta (especially because the poor woman always thought that it was her fault). The incredible problem-solving mind of the woman who created the Lugia Bridge must feel so utterly helpless in the face of something her buildings and machines could not defeat...
Later, she telephoned Saffron City, calling Dr. Ben Gough. He was a psychologist who specialised in post-traumatic stress. His work on helping young Sabrina Bowman (the local Gym Leader and the world's only proven human telepsychic) come to terms with her amazing powers was considered amongst the most incredible therapy ever attempted.
Meanwhile, Dr. Rupertson was informed that the hospital had a very low stock of blood Type O negative, the same blood that ran in Ash's veins and arteries. It seemed that, genetically, the whole of Ash's biology seemed to be conspiring against him. There were alternatives to using human blood, but in Ash's perilous position, Dr. Rupertson was wary of even thinking of using them.
Edward Jenner Building
June 16, 2063
While Dr. Rupertson explained the case, two people observed the doctor-patient discussion from a dark room in the building in the other side of the street.
"What are they saying?" The woman asked, bored.
The man was observing the patient through his electronic telescope and listening in on the conversations in the room using a laser microphone. He grinned sadistically when he looked at his partner. "He will spend a minimum of nine months in the hospital."
She smiled back, a smile similar to that of an Ekans or an Arbok. "Then he is out of the Pokémon League?"
"Sure, even if he recovers, what is almost impossible, there won't be time for him to workout for the next year Global Championship."
"Something that little freak of nature deserves very much." she laughed.
She rose of the sofa and went to the room's small refrigerator. She caught two wine cups and filled it with cheap Champaign. The two observers toasted.
After a while, the man jerked his chin at the hellish device he had just finished assembling. "All the same, I think it is a pity that we can't use our little toy."
"Who knows? Maybe the boss changes his mind and let us finish the job!" There was a crash of thunder and the darkened room was strobe-lit with the blue-white of thunder. The observers in the shadows laughed.
Viridian City Pokémon Center
June 16, 2063
A strong white-haired man walked in the through the corridors of the Pokémon Center. He was talking urgently into his mobile 'phone. "And Tracey, don't forget to check the feeding of the Pokémon, okay? The automatic systems are good, but they are not foolproof."
"Yes, Professor," his assistant, Tracey Sketchitt, replied.
"And could you please drop into the Ketchums' house and check the mail for Delilah?"
"Sure. Um Professor? How is Ash?"
Professor Samuel Oak stopped in front of the door of his room, with a depressed expression on his face. He didn't notice the drops of water in front of the door. "Not good, Tracey."
Tracey nodded silently, tears threatening at the corner of his eyes, and cut the connection.
When Oak entered in the dark room, he realised that he was not alone. The intruder, who clearly had not noticed him enter, was seated, in a chair, their back to him and wearing a black plastic hooded raincoat, that made it impossible to identify who it was or even their gender.
Oak closed the door and snatched up an umbrella as a makeshift weapon. "Hey! Who are you?" he yelled.
The woman in the black raincoat leapt to her feet in fear. "Calm down Sam! It's me!" she yelled.
"Kim?" He asked surprised.
Kimberly Steeleyon nodded sheepishly, removing her hood with her gloved hands.
"How did you get in here? And why are you here?"
"To answer the first question: I asked Nurse Joy to let me wait for you in your room." Kimberly grinned in a mischievous way that took ten years off of her age. "There has to be some advantages to being the League Grand Master!" She seemed embarrassed for a moment and became serious again. "To answer your other question, I came because I needed talk with you. Could we leave the Center and talk?"
Samuel Oak noticed the seriousness in her face. He opened the door of his room. "Sure," he said, "let's go."
The researcher and the Trainer left the Pokémon Center and walked out to Viridian City Park
To be Continued... Chapter 6 coming soon!
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