Chapter 3
Disturbed murmurs echoed throughout the stadium and mimicked the very ones coming from those watching at home. After almost 2 decades of peace, few people could remember a time when gangsters roamed the streets stealing people's Pokémon. Now, all of a sudden, some man in a business suit presumes to land his helicopter right inside a battling coliseum inside a major city, announcing that is going to make big changes. No one could believe it.
"What… exactly do you want?" The emcee now spoke in his normal voice, trying to keep his own heart level.
The man didn't look at him, instead looking at the audience as a whole. "For those of you wondering, you may refer to me as 'Nessler'. Of course, soon enough, you'll be calling me your new ruler.
"Ruler? That's a real nice joke, now get out of here!"
Catcalls from the crowd effectively saying the same thing echoed throughout the night sky. With the crowd behind her passionate words, Misty continued her discourse.
"You don't have a right to start marching in here making demands! For your information, the regions of Kanto and Johto are governed by a joint Senate and House of Representatives. We are a republic, not a monarchy. Once you go home and read a book before we have security for you out and maybe scrap that helicopter of yours."
More cheers for the swimmer echoed. Nessler didn't look intimidated in the slightest. In fact, what he did do was take out a Poké ball and start moving in between his palms.
"You really don't understand the situation that you're in, do you?" Chuckles escaped from the short man as said this and he released the mystery Pokémon from its container. It was a Primeape.
"Oh, so you want to battle, is that it?" Misty called out her Starmie.
"Oh?" At that moment, the strangest thing happened. Nessler actually walked toward Misty's partner as if to inspect it. "That is indeed, a Starmie. Well raised, all the trimmings, even a decent glow on its jewel." He promptly walked back to his own Pokémon.
Misty's look of irritation only festered as she watched this display. "Well, are you here to fight or just to gawk?"
As all of this was happening, Regis tried to read the man's mind, but to no avail. Either he himself was losing his touch, or this man was specifically trained against psychic mind reading. He wanted more than anything to believe the former.
Nessler glanced at the psychic, as if annoyed by something. "Reading my mind won't work, you know. I'm very used to psychic mind probes from both humans and Pokémon, and I'm well able to defend against them." Nessler turned back to Misty. "As for you, I'd be glad to have your Starmie fight my Primeape. It'll give me plenty of time to show of what makes this partner of mine so special."
"Fine then!" Misty huffed, sick of Nessler's posturing. "Let's go! A big Psychic blast can easily take care of any Primeape!"
The starfish glowed blue as it readied its attack. Nessler pushed a button on a remote control he took out and an electronic collar appeared on his Pokémon's right arm, just below its natural armband. To his shock and surprise of everybody, it lunged forward with a Sucker Punch. There was no mistaking it. That Primeape just used a move it could never learn, not by breeding, not by teaching, not by TM, and definitely, not naturally.
"What in the world?" The emcee shouted. "That's impossible…"
"Not for me," Nessler countered, "or any of my Pokémon for that matter thanks to my little invention here. With this, any Pokémon I choose to learn any move I desire for it to, obtainable by normal means or not." He turned to his partner. "Show them. Shadow Punch!"
The monkey lunged in and slugged its opponent with a fistful of darkness. The already weakened starfish was now down for the count.
Nessler merely smiled, more at the audience's reaction than anything else. "Well, well, well. It seems that now got your attention. Would've done here today is basically throw out type matchups. They're all out the window. Oh, and don't think that this is all that this device can do.
"There's more?" Regis asked, now physically shaking in a mixture of anger and fear.
"Oh yes, there's more." Nessler then looked at his watch. "Does time ever fly when you're having fun. I have a meeting to get back to, but before I go, I leave you with this proposal: you scrappy little Republic now and name me ruler. Common people, trainers and Pokémon will be more powerful than ever. Soon, the region of Kanto will be the most powerful place in the world. It will be the most technologically advanced one as well. Everybody wins."
The emcee finally found the courage to speak up. "And if we don't?"
"Glad you asked. This little gift I'll leave you should answer that question." As Nessler's helicopter began to take off, Primeape pounded the ground, causing cracks to spread throughout the arena. A fissure was opening up! Nessler left at that, fleeing the scene with his partner in the copter.
Pandemonium. That's the only word that could describe the situation that Ralphie was seeing around him. Terrified crowds of people moved like the violent waves of an ocean as the place they were safely seated in not five minutes ago while watching the battle of the century was now poised to become their tomb. It was more than a struggle to spot his mother amidst the panic, but she just happened to be screaming at a security guard animatedly, presumably about finding him. Her words when she finally got a hand to him were very to the point.
"Come on! We need to move and move NOW! The sooner we find the car, the farthest and fastest we can pack up and move."
"What?" Robbie wasn't sure if he'd heard her right.
His mother continued to drag him by the hand to the nearest exit, fighting off the sea of ear rending screams and other panicky mothers. "We're moving! As fast, and as far away, as possible."
"But I—"
By now, they were in the arena's large parking garage which still played host to plenty of chaos in its own right. The building was separate from the main stadium, but it had taken some clear structural damage as well. Ralphie's mom looked at her son with eyes full of both fear and a grim determination. This truly wasn't up for debate.
"Get in the car."
Ralphie did so without hesitation. The ensuing car ride was gripped with fear and anxiety. The air in the car felt shockingly stale. Neither of the two could move, nor think. In fact, it was as if the car was on autopilot the whole time. Ralphie's mother's demeanor became eerily quiet. What few looks back she spared told the story of the level of trauma she had just bore witness to. It only took a quick look back at the now crumbling stadium they were just in for a Ralphie to start thinking very grim thoughts. How many people could survive that? The majority of the Pokémon League have been in attendance for the tournament. Challengers for the League had been turned away for today just for this event. Not to mention the tens of thousands of spectators that had come to attend. Before they could begin to overtake him, he desperately shook the bad thoughts away.
"Get your things, Raphael." His mother's words were chilling and devoid of life. They were back in their house in Vermilion now, but it was clear that they felt no safer. Ralphie didn't move even though he heard the words. In fact, he didn't even blink. He barely even processed the fact that he was crying now.
"Go," the mother ordered, but didn't bother to press any further after her efforts yielded no results. Instead, she brought the boy to the couch and let him collapse, eyes still wide open in horror. She joined him. Ralphie's only thought was whether or not the two of them could just exist on that couch forever, because there was nothing that either of them would've rather done at that point.
