Ch 12
The group looked stunned at the revelation and stood back, waiting in silence as the information sunk into their minds. Anca picked up the photo and sighed as she gazed down at the image of her first love. Red pulled his hand down over his face and closed his eyes.
"Lord, why? What is the matter with the world? Did the people learn nothing from my sacrifices and trials?" he murmured. Rui bowed her head and stared at the floor.
"It's an omen. It means that Seth and I will never be together." she said in a dead tone, "If I try, it will only lead him to death. Just like at the Indigo Plateau."
"No, it's not like that." Anca told her and pulled out the old bound book from her handbag. "This is Wesley's journal. He gave it to me the day before he died and told me to give it to the people who would come in search of him."
"Us?" Silver asked in confusion, "How did Wesley know about us? Most of us weren't even conceived during his time!"
"He had a dream about it. I've read his journal and in it he talked about the Time Flute his mother passed down to him. It's hidden on a cliff at a place called Mt. Orren. He also composed a small melody that the flute must play to the one who carries his image." Anca went on, holding the book out. "Wesley had a bright spirit, but it was also strange. It seemed as if he was nurturing a second soul." She cocked her head and looked at Red. "In fact, so do you, Red. Only your second soul is fully mature and hidden under that mask. Wesley's was still in a child-like state."
"Oh Lord." Red whispered, paling at the words. Pikachu looked horrified. "Anca, Wesley's second soul is a gift from the Pokémon. It's part of a legend that is passed down among Pokémon all around the world."
"What legend?" May asked, thoroughly confused by what was happening. Brendan rubbed his head as he tried to wrap his mind around the news.
"The legend of the Chosen Master is known among humanity as well as Pokémon, but we call it the legend of the Chosen One in some parts of the world or the One Master. It's basically the legend of a trainer born with the ability to commune with Pokémon on a level far greater than any other. That's the Second Soul. This trainer is called the Chosen Master, destined for his generation to protect Pokémon from those who would use them for evil purposes." Red explained, "Only one Chosen Master is ever born per generation of trainers, and another isn't born until the current one dies."
"So if you have the Second Soul, does that mean that you're...?" May trailed in shock. Red nodded.
"I am the Chosen Master of this current time. I am able to speak the languages of every Pokémon in the world and enhance their strengths through transfer of my own spiritual energy. That's partly why Pikachu here is so powerful for his evolution." he finished.
"Then that means that Wesley was the Chosen Master for his time." Brendan remarked. Anca shook her head.
"No, his Second Soul wasn't mature. If the legends are true, a Chosen Master comes to power only when his Second Soul is fully grown. Wesley never came to power." she corrected, "Because he was killed before he became a Chosen Master, the world was without one for a long time."
"During which Evice began the Shadow Pokémon plan, something that his son would have stopped at the beginning." Brendan muttered and shook his head. "Killed? Who would kill a trainer? Did he have enemies? Was he followed here?"
"I should tell you the whole thing then." Anca sighed, "Wesley showed up thirty years ago yesterday. He had great plans to be a trainer for his mother, who was dead as you know, and to help his father restore Orre."
"Restore it? It wasn't always a desert?" May interrupted.
"It was once a lush forest, but Mt. Orren erupted and we got the desert region of Orre." Anca answered, "We dated that night, and he asked me to marry him during dinner. We were very much in love, since the day we met on the 'Net, I guess. Things carried on, I won't say what, but in the morning he heard the news of a wild Pokémon in the woods near here that was attacking people as they passed through."
"The news articles! Dad's story!" Brendan cried, "The trainer that was attacked and killed by a Pokémon was Wesley?!" Anca nodded.
"Yes, he went out with several other trainers to help capture it and instead, it found him first and killed him." She closed her eyes as she relived that horrid day in her mind. "The news was so horrifying, journeys for children were nearly banned outright. The funeral for Wes was carried out here, and that's when I met his father.
"Garik Evice was a nice man then; he was so heartbroken that Wes was gone. But as Wes was being buried, I saw his aura. It suddenly turned black, as dark as the coffin that carried my Wesley away. He announced that he would bring Wes back and that the world would be conquered by Pokémon carrying shadows as dark as that day and the rain, wind and sun would bow to his reborn son."
"The Shadow Pokémon plan and Project: WSLY were conceived that day." Red realized, "Everything that happened now and last year was directly caused by Wesley's death!"
"But where is The Beginning?!" Rui demanded, "We know that this is the end of Wesley's life and journey, but we don't know where The Beginning is!" Anca opened her eyes and caught her gaze.
"Every Beginning is some other Beginning's End. The End is merely the point where another Beginning is born. Wesley's End became Seth's Beginning." she told her cryptically, "The answer is clear. Seth is at..."
"I think that answer belongs to us." Rezrik remarked coldly as the group of trainers turned and saw the Cipher peons leveling guns at them. "Mrs. Fleur, I presume? I have someone who is very interested in knowing where the young Mr. Evice is hiding."
Wes sat in irritation in the center of the meadow. After going through his pockets and finding the small jar of zinc oxide, promptly sliding a strip of it across his face for no reason other than it seemed right, he was almost positive that someone was out to get him. He had a PDA that gave his name as Seth, a collection of PokéBalls -though where that name came from who knew-, a silvery visor that made him wish he had his old aviator goggles back, and a necklace with a small chip wrapped in yellow wire. He tapped at the chip and blinked as it suddenly glowed softly, then put it on, tucking it under his shirt.
"Okay, I'm pretty sure that I'm not supposed to be here, yet I am. I'm also sure I know who I am, but then I'm not him." he muttered and sighed, "This is stupid! I'm Wesley Evice! Not Seth! Who the heck is Seth and why does he look like me?!" Wes drummed his fingers on his leg and looked up as the winds swirled around him. A helicopter passed by, then again, then made a third pass before circling overhead. "What the heck is going on now?" he growled.
Footsteps sounded as he stood up and watched in disinterest as a group of trainers were pushed into the clearing. One elderly woman caught his attention and he shook his head, wondering why she would be of any attention. His confusion grew as the peons entered the scene, guns still leveled on the trainers.
"It's just like the old bat said! There he is!" one of the peons remarked.
"And there's Nascour, late as usual." another grumbled.
"Seth!" a redhead cried and Wes looked at her, his breath catching.
"Anca!" he echoed and ran for the girl. The peons jumped forward, holding him back. "Let go of me! Anca, what's going on?"
"It's me, Rui! Seth!" the girl cried louder. The older woman cried in shock.
"This is the clearing! I remember now! From the news! This is the same clearing where the police found Wesley's body! This is The Beginning! The beginning of the end of peace for Pokémon around the world!" she screamed as the chopper descended. Wes struggled harder as the peons began dragging him towards the helicopter. Nascour leaped out and folded his arms over his chest as he stared at the trainers.
"I have come for the final experiment! Seth Evice, you are to come with us to Orre!" he announced, "The rest of you, stay here and finish off those insolent trainers! Make sure you kill Rui first! I don't want her coming up to ruin the party!"
"Party?! What party?! And who are you?! My name is Wesley Evice and you will not take me anywhere! I'm staying here! No one is killing anyone!" Wes yelled. Nascour studied him closely and blinked.
"Those eyes! It can't be!" he murmured, then cleared his throat. "Mr. Evice, your father has requested your presence at a birthday party being held in your honor at the tower." Maybe if he just went along with this crazy plot a bit longer, he won't lose his own mind. It seemed like things were getting dangerously creepy now.
"The hell I'm going! I'm getting married to Anca!" Wes snapped, "My father will have you fired for treating me like this! Let me go! I can't believe he's gone this far to control me!"
"On the contrary, you will go and you will be wed to the bride of his choosing." Nascour told him curtly. Wes tried to pull away from the peons as they hauled him into the helicopter. Nascour gave Rui a victory grin before boarding.
"Seth! No! Let him go!" Rui cried as Anca echoed her words.
"Anca! Help me! Get me out of Realgam!" Wes yelled out as the bird lifted away and soared towards Orre. Red growled angrily as he watched it vanish.
"I've had enough of this! Pikachu, on my mark! Thunderstorm!" he declared, "Everyone! Down!" The group dove for the ground as Pikachu leaped up and spun into the air.
"Pikaaaa-CHU!" he yelled, unleashing a storm of lightning bolts on the startled peons before they could fire their weapons. They scattered into the forest in fright, some not so lucky as to escape their fate.
"Geez! What do we do now?! Cipher's got Seth!" May cried as a bloom of green opened in the air, revealing Celebi and Jirachi.
"What are you guys doing here?" Celebi asked in surprise and looked around, panicking, "Where's Seth?! What's happened?!"
"Celebi, Jirachi, Cipher found Seth just as we did and took him to Orre. They think he's Wes. Seth thinks so too." Red translated and spoke out quickly. Celebi covered her face with her hands as Jirachi flew back from her in a fury.
"He is. Seth invoked Wesley and now his soul's trapped in his body. If Evice succeeds in equipping him with the mini-Earth Seal, Wes will remain in this world under his control and Seth will die." she told him as he translated for the others.
"How do we stop them? How do we get into the tower?" Brendan pressed. Rui held up the PDA.
"The blueprints! We'll use the floor plans from Seth's backup to sneak inside!" she pointed out. "The Time Flute in Orre can be used to bring Seth's memories back so he'll be himself again!"
"What will that do to Wes?" Anca asked in worry.
"It will send his soul to heaven, where it should have been to begin with. Not lingering here in pain and sorrow." Celebi threw in and wrung her hands. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for what I've done!"
"We don't have time for apologies or blaming." Red growled, looking at Jirachi and Celebi alternately before resuming his gaze towards the humans. "We need to split into two groups. One will infiltrate the tower and rescue Wes. The other will get the Time Flute."
"I'll go to the tower. Seth needs me!" Rui cried. Anca declared herself on Rui's team.
"So will I. They need a good battler." Silver put in, folding her arms over her chest. Red nodded and looked at May and Brendan.
"You two will come with me to get the Time Flute." he ordered.
"But there is no Mt. Orren in Orre!" Brendan protested as May released HeartSong.
"Yes there is." Rui corrected, "Mt. Orren was renamed Mt. Battle a few years ago. Wes wouldn't know of that, so he used the name it went by long ago."
"You'll never make it to Orre by flight. I'll teleport you to the places you need to go." Jirachi offered, "You'll need to find your own way in, though. That's as far as I can go to help."
"At this point, we'll take anything." Silver muttered as they were covered in golden light and vanished. The legendaries sighed tiredly and looked at the ruined clearing. Things were moving faster than they thought. Would everything work out in the end?
Wes glared at Nascour as the helicopter made its way to Realgam Tower as fast as it could fly. The man was talking on a phone, trying to soothe someone and looking fairly frightened at the same time. Wesley rolled his eyes and sighed, then caught sight of Orre outside the window. He straightened in shock and stared out at it.
"What is this? I thought we were restoring Orre! Where are the machines tilling the land and the irrigation pipes?! And what's become of Realgam Tower?! Why isn't it collecting air moisture?!" he cried, "What has my father been doing?!"
"Bringing you back to life, Wesley. Thirty years has passed since you died in Kanto. That time has been spent perfecting a plan to conquer the world with an army of Shadow Pokémon with you at the head, controlling the weather." Nascour told him, hanging up the phone. Wes turned to look at him in confusion. "You're the final piece in the plot, and the plan won't be complete until you marry one of the girls at the party."
"I'm marrying Anca." Wes remarked defiantly, eyes narrowing at him. "And my father won't stop me!"
"Give up on it. She's probably dead in the woods, along with that troublesome Rui Roane girl." Nascour went on and sat back as the bird began to descend outside the tower. The doors slid open and both men recoiled at the sight of a grinning Evice standing just outside.
"Welcome home, Wesley! Happy birthday!" Evice exclaimed, holding out his arms for an embrace. Wes pressed himself as far from the man as possible, eyes wide with horror.
"My God, what has happened to you?! Dad! You're...!" he stammered.
"Glad to see you? Yes, I am! Now, come and see all the pretty girls that are here to be your bride!" Evice told him. Wes shook his head as Nascour carefully slipped out of the helicopter and dashed off to take his place as security head. Evice's eyes seemed to glow a bright red and narrow in fury, even as his smile stayed plastered on his face. "Wesley, that is not how a young man of your stature should react to such news." he said in a controlled voice.
"What's happened to you?" Wes repeated softly, fearing this man that claimed to be his father. Evice reached into the bird and grabbed his leg, causing him to yell suddenly as the portly Cipher CEO began to pull him forward. "Dad! Let me go! What are you doing?!"
"We don't have time to cater to your childish whims anymore, Wesley. You are going to get married today!" Evice snarled and caught his arm in a painfully tight grip, twisting it to pull him down to eye level, "And nothing is going to stop my plans of domination! I will make this world pay for daring to take you from me!"
"Dad! That hurts! Let go!" Wes cried, cringing as his arm twisted further. The Cipher head ignored him and pulled out a single Ultra Ball.
"I need to make sure you don't try to run away. This is the beast that took you from me. I paid millions to have it hunted down and brought to me." Evice boasted, "It was the first Pokémon to have its heart sealed and filled with darkness. If you thought it was insane before, wait until you see it now!" With that, he threw the ball forward and allowed the raging Arcanine within it burst into the world, its huge body matted and scarred from abuse and fights long gone by. Wild eyes rolling in its head, it seemed only to focus on Wes, its teeth automatically pulling back in a snarl. Wes froze, paralyzed as he came face to face once more with the creature that stole his life, hand over his neck as his mind called up the memory of its jaws clamped around his throat.
"Father..." he whispered hoarsely and cried as his arm was chained to the Pokémon's collar, bound to it by a length that allowed him to stay far enough to be somewhat safe, but not so that it couldn't easily turn and slaughter him for breathing.
"It obeys only me. So if you don't do as I say, I will end your body's existence and create another for you to inhabit." Evice told him coldly and turned back to the red carpet. "Arcanine! Come! The brides await!"
The huge dog snarled again but walked forward obediently, followed by Wes as he tried to stay in step beside it, face drawn in terror at what was happening. He could feel it, somewhere deep inside, he knew; his father was insane, this creature was unnatural, and he was going to die again.
It was only a matter of who else would suffer with him once he did die.
