(A/N: Trigger warning: suicidal thoughts.)

Chapter 7

Komm, süßer Tod

Everything is a blur. Giselle stares into the distance, unable to make out much. She looks over to her right, and she sees Joe standing next to her in a suit. She then peers down at herself, seeing herself wearing a modest dress.

"Nothing too fancy, but I still look gorgeous," she says. "Where am I?"

She then hears a male voice coming from the distance. It sounds almost as if the person is singing.

"The peace of the Lord be with you always…"

"Amen," Giselle blurts out, unable to control her own speech.

Suddenly, the entire room shakes back and forth, and Giselle opens her eyes.

"Lamb of God, you take away the sin…" she mutters, before seeing Janine shaking her awake.

"Giselle! Giselle!" Janine shouts.

Giselle looks shocked. "Where was I?" she asks.

"Who knows," Falkner says. "But right now, you're here in Johto."

"Johto?" Giselle says. "Crap! That must mean that everything's still screwed up!"

"What do you mean, 'screwed up'?" Falkner says.

"Let her go," Janine says. "I think the radiation got to her, and she's not thinking clearly."

"Oh, I'm thinking clearly," Giselle says confidently. "And what I know is that my husband is Joe, and he belongs by my side."

"But he isn't-" Falkner begins to say.

"Let her finish," Janine says. "I want to hear what she has to say."

Giselle clears her throat. "I am Giselle Gravelpot, three-time Pokémon League champion, before Judgment Day destroyed our world. My husband is Joe, the boy I met at Pokémon Tech. We were married before Judgment Day, and shortly after Judgment Day, I conceived a girl. Her name is Synneva. She grew up with us underground. And everything was fine, until Sabrina showed up and screwed everything up. She took away my daughter, used her in an experiment, and now everything is distorted."

"But the radiation is gone," Falkner says. "So it had to be successful."

"Nope!" Giselle says. "Instead, my whole world is screwed up. I lost my daughter. I lost my husband. I lost everything."

Tears form in both Giselle's and Janine's eyes.

"Don't tell me you believe her," Falkner says.

"I have to believe her," Janine says. "Her story is too detailed to be dismissed. In addition, I lost everything, just like she did. And I went out looking for revenge. That ended in disaster for myself and everyone who got in my way. I still owe a great debt to these people."

"Okay, then," Falkner says. "If we're going to believe her, then what do we do with what we think we know?"

"I'm not sure," Janine says. "Maybe just, question everything. If it was possible for this world to be destroyed by Arceus, then it must also be possible for reality to be distorted in such a way that Giselle is telling us."

Falkner sighs. "Very well then, Giselle. But what are you going to do about it?"

Giselle looks forlorn. "I – I don't know," she says, wiping away tears. "I don't have anything left. I don't know where to turn. I'm just hoping for a little sympathy at this point."

Janine puts a finger to her chin, looking thoughtful. "I wonder," she says. "What if we go looking for your supposed husband, Joe? It is entirely possible that an encounter with you could end up causing something to happen that sets this distortion back to normal."

"That's useless," Giselle replies. "I don't want to see him with Roxanne. It'll gut me even more than I already am. If that happens, I might jump off a cliff or something. I can't stand to see him with her again. Heck, I'm already close to ending my life right now."

Janine shakes her head. "No, Giselle, suicide is not an option."

"Then what option do you have that's any better?"

Falkner grins. "If you don't want to find Joe, then we will go visit him ourselves."

"You and Janine? And what, just leave me to die here?"

"Falkner, we can't just leave her here," Janine says. "She's unstable."

"But if she's not going to try to fix things, what hope does she even have of recuperating?"

Janine sighs. "How about this, as a compromise," she says. "You go use your Pidgeot to fly. You bring back Joe and Roxanne here."

"No! I don't want to see that you-know-what!" Giselle exclaims. "I will only be satisfied in seeing my husband alone."

Falkner shakes her head. "Well, how are we going to separate the two?"

"Just do it," Janine says. "I'm staying here with Giselle. I'm going to get her through this. You go off on this mission."

"As you wish," Falkner sighs.

He climbs a ladder to go up to the surface, before sending out his Pidgeot. He jumps aboard and flies away.

"Now, it's you and me," Janine says. "And I want to tell you a story – just the two of us."

"Sure, whatever," Giselle says. "It's not like I have anything better to do."

"Okay," Janine says. "Here's how it goes. There was a girl who watched her father and her aunt murdered right before her eyes. That girl became furious and wanted revenge. She killed dozens of people, all in a quest for vengeance. One of the people she killed was the former flame of the boy she was hunting down. In the end, she finally got revenge on the boy's father – or so she thought."

"You're just telling me your own life story," Giselle says, annoyed. "There's nothing you just said there that I didn't know already."

"Uh, uh, uh," Janine says. "There's more to it. While she thought she killed his father, she never ended up killing him. He managed to survive what was an apparent death. And now that man is out for revenge – on the very girl who set out on a revenge tour herself."

Giselle looks shocked. "Wait a minute," she says. "You're telling me that…"

"Giovanni is alive," Janine states solemnly. "He survived my attack, and he hid underground of Mount Silver for all these years. Now that the radiation is gone, he is free to seek revenge on the person who almost killed him – me."

"Crap," Giselle says. "Sounds like the two of us are both in a bad spot."

"We are," Janine says. "And that's why I believe you. There's something not right about this world, and we're going to figure out what exactly it is."


Sabrina, Liza, Whitney, Gold, Silver, and Jasmine all step out into the fresh air of Goldenrod City.

"Feels so good to be back," Whitney says.

"Now, the question is: how many people are still alive?" Gold says. "We survived partially because of Roxanne's warning."

"That's right," Sabrina says. "She claimed to be one with Arceus, and thus knew about Judgment Day before it happened. She told us, her friends. And we hid underground to avert getting destroyed on that day. But are there any other people who are still alive and hiding underground?"

"Well, how are we supposed to figure that out?" Silver says. "Go through each and every burned-out, collapsed building and look for survivors?"

"I've got an idea," Whitney says.

Silver shakes his head. "Oh, sure, let's hear it," he says sarcastically.

"Let's go northwest in town to the radio tower," she says. "Maybe we can send a signal out using the equipment there."

Gold laughs. "You fool," he says to her playfully. "Of course nothing electronic is going to work. We'd just be wasting our time."

"Au contraire!" Liza pipes in. "Remember how Team Rocket ruled the underground for all those years? I bet there is still lots of radio stuff down there that survived Judgment."

"You're wasting your time," Silver mutters, as Whitney leads the six trainers over in the direction of the radio tower.


Giselle sits alone in a corner of the underground room that Janine and Falkner brought her too, trying to keep her eyes from welling up.

"Gotta stay strong… gotta stay strong," she says very quietly.

"Are you okay?" Janine asks.

"Gotta stay strong," Giselle repeats, not paying any attention to Janine. "Everything will work out fine. I believe it."

She crosses herself, while trying to keep the tears from falling. But despite her best efforts, her eyes turn to waterfalls.

"It's okay, it's okay," Janine says. "We're going to figure things out. Just stay patient."

As Giselle continues to cry, a loud noise comes from on top of the room.

"He's here," Janine says. "I'll be right back, Giselle."

"Gotta stay strong," Giselle repeats her mantra once more, ignoring Janine.

Janine climbs up the ladder, and as she does, Giselle can hear some arguing going on.

"She told you not to bring her!"

"What was I supposed to do?"

"Guys, why am I here?"

"Can you explain everything to me?"

A minute later, the voices grow louder as the people climb down the stairs. There's Janine, Falkner, Joe… and Roxanne.

"Joe, Joe!" Giselle cries out, rushing over to him and glomping him. "I thought I'd never see you again!"

She then looks to Joe's side, where Roxanne has linked her arm around Joe's.

"That's nice and all, but he belongs to me," Roxanne says.

Giselle wipes her eyes. "That isn't true, Joe," she says. "Tell her."

Joe gulps. "It is true," he says. "Roxanne and I are married."

This infuriates Giselle. "Don't give me this crap!" she says. "You are in love with me, and I can prove it!"

"Prove what?" Roxanne asks.

"Luckily for me, I have audio proof that Joe and I are a couple. Just listen to this!"

She pulls out the phonograph, places Joe's disc in it, and begins to turn the lever. But instead of any words coming out, the phonograph emits strange warping noises. Giselle turns the lever faster, to no avail. Finally, she kicks the record player in frustration.

"You're right," Roxanne says sarcastically. "Those noises definitely prove your case."

She and Joe begin to laugh. Falkner crosses his arms with a look of annoyance, while Janine looks extremely concerned.

"All right, you know what, screw it," Giselle says. "If loving you is a crime, Joe, then lock me up for good. You and I were meant to be. And if you're choosing Roxanne over me, I don't have a reason to live."

"Don't say that!" Janine says.

"What point is there to living if I've lost everything?" Giselle says.

"Giselle, let's talk things out here," Janine says. "I believe you. There's got to be another way."

"Guys, why did you bring me here?" Joe says. "I am not sure why you're putting us through this. You're wasting my time, and you're killing her."

"Yeah, let's go," Roxanne says.

"Wait!" Giselle exclaims. "Joe, please tell me where you went to school."

"Silly," Joe replies. "The Pokémon Trainers' School in Rustboro City. And Roxanne was my teacher."

"You don't remember Pokémon Tech?"

"Nope, sorry."

"Okay, that's it," Giselle says. She reaches for a Poké Ball, only to have Janine grab her arm.

"Suicide is not an option," Janine says. "You have a friend in me. I'm going to figure this out. If we have to go to the ends of the Pokémon world to fix things, I'll do it for you."

Giselle bites her lip. "But why?"

"Because I owe you."

Janine begins to cry, making Giselle stop her own crying and instead become the comforter.

"I killed her, I killed Blue!" she cries. "She was Silver's original girlfriend, and I killed her in anger! She did nothing wrong at all. I'm a murderer, Giselle. I don't deserve to live!"

"Yes, you do," Giselle says, abruptly changing her tune altogether. "You didn't do it in spite…"

"Yes, I did do it in spite!" Janine exclaims. "I'm a horrible person. And you know the only person in the world who doesn't think of me as such?"

She points over to Falkner.

"That's the boy I poisoned, trying to kill as well," she says. "If I had been successful, I would have his blood on my hands too. I am an awful, terrible person. But I haven't given up on life. And neither should you."

Giselle goes back to pouting. "Maybe so, but at least you have your lover."

"I don't know anything about these things," Joe says. "I don't remember Janine killing people."

"Neither do I," Roxanne says. "Come on, let's go."

Roxanne and Joe are about to leave, when Falkner stops them.

"Hold on a second," he says. "Roxanne, you lived in Hoenn after Judgment Day."

"That's right," she replies.

"And Joe, you lived in Kanto after Judgment Day."

"Yes," Joe says. "As an Elite Four member."

"Hmmm," Falkner says. "Is it at all possible that this distortion that Giselle talked about… that it only affected certain regions of the Pokémon world? Because Janine and I have been in Johto all this time, and everything seems to be the same for us as it was before."

"Huh?" Roxanne says.

"Wanna bet that our friends down in Goldenrod City haven't been affected either?" Falkner continues. "If so, we will have a piece of this mystery solved. Come on, let's fly."

He pulls out his Pidgeot.

"You sure all of us can fit on that Pidgeot?" Roxanne asks.

"Don't you have one too?" Janine asks Giselle.

"Oh, right, I do," she says, and she calls him out.

"Pidgeot, go!"

Giselle's Pidgeot appears, with different colors than Falkner's.

"You have a shiny Pidgeot?" Falkner asks. "Oh, I'm so jealous."

"There's a reason I'm the world's greatest Pokémon trainer," Giselle remarks.

Janine chuckles. "That's the Giselle I know and love," she says. "I'll go with Giselle, you two go with Falkner."

"Okay, I guess," Joe says.

He and Roxanne hop on board Falkner's Pidgeot, and Janine climbs up on board Giselle's.

"We're going to figure this out," Janine tells Giselle right before their Pidgeot takes flight. "I promise you."

(A/N: NewSchoolShipping is brutal for a Giselle fan and a TechShipper to read or write. And writing Giselle's suicidal thoughts is also very difficult. But I feel it's important to break Giselle, "Break the Haughty" so to speak. Finally, you may notice the religious aspects of Giselle's story. I thought that since she went to Pokémon Tech, a private school, that school may have had a different religion than the Arceus one that most of the Pokémon world believes in.)