Across the window in a surgeon's room, the little skarmory lay on a hospital bed. Monitors were hooked up to it and a bent up, scrunched up beak showed the battle it had gone through. Its mouth was open, not able to receive air through its battered up nose. Rin watched it, her strait face not betraying her worry for the pokémon before her or for Cherry, who owned the pokémon.
"I have done as much as I can, for now," Nurse Jacey said, standing next to Rin. "The beak is a big problem, it landed strait on it."
"I can see that, what can be done now?" Rin asked.
"Well, I can't fix her, nor can this facility," Nurse Jacey started to explain. "There are three options, a forth if you want to try and move it to another facility, but they would only offer these choices too."
"And what are they?" Rin asked.
"The first would be to leave it," Nurse jacey said. "It wouldn't be able to battle, defend itself and it would need constant care."
"No, a pokémon should be a pokémon," Rin said thinking of possibly what Cherry would do.
"The second, I could bring in a local black smith," Nurse Jacey said. "He could right the beak, he's done it before. But the problem is it is very painful for the pokémon."
"You wouldn't num it or put it to sleep?" Rin asked.
"Dear heavens, no!" Nurse Jacey explained. "Its just after the procedure, Skarmory will be in a lot of pain and its beak will be very brittle, it wouldn't be able to battle, but it can at least live normally in the care of a human trainer."
"What's the third?" Rin asked. "I don't much like the first two."
"The third will be the most painful," Nurse Jacey said, "But it will come out with a very strong beak, and it could live in its natural state."
"How is it worse than the second?"
"Well, the second would just right it with what's there, but the third would right and strengthen it with the use of the black smith's techniques and the power of combined metals," Nurse Jacey explained.
"What do you mean?" Rin asked wondering about combining metals.
"Most modern buildings are built with steel and concrete," Nurse Jacey continued. "Steel is formed when you take several metals and blast oxygen into them. From there if you cool them quickly and over a several repeated steps, the steel will be produced. Now it's the process of heating and cooling that will be painful."
"Steel is weak when it comes to fire…" Rin said quietly to herself.
"Yes, and that's why it hurts it so much," Nurse Jacey said. "I wouldn't suggest it, but its there, and I wouldn't expect Skarmory to like people too much either."
There was a long pause. Rin watched the young Skarmory as it lay on the bed. Blissey tried her best to keep healing the pokémon, but all it could do was spray the comforting hyper potions on the small pokémon.
"I'm going to rule out Cherry no matter what she thinks," Rin said finally. "I want you to strengthen that beak, but only if you can get it out of here and do it tonight."
"Are you sure?" Nurse Jacey asked.
"Yes, quiet," Rin said with a hard tone. "I don't want Cherry knowing, nor do I want you telling her either."
"Yes, ma'am," Nurse Jacey said already dialing on the phone.
Rin watched the small pokémon. Rin wouldn't have chosen the option if Cherry wasn't about to fight in a tournament and then leave on her own adventure. Rin hoped that the small pokémon wouldn't blame Cherry, rather thank her.
"He says he's firing up the furnace now," Nurse Jacey said. "He said if we got Skarmory over to him now, he would take care of it by morning."
"Good, I will go and see for myself," Rin said turning to go up and grab her things.
"Wait!" Nurse Jacey said grabbing Rin's arm. "Are you sure? I-I've only ordered this once before, and it was a horrible experience for everyone."
"It sounds like it," Rin said coldly. "But I would rather it be a stong a pokémon afraid of humans and able to live on its own, rather than a weak pokémon that would depend on every ounce of a human's care."
"But…"
"I'll be ready in a few minutes, I will make sure that Cherry wont ever have know about this said deed," Rin turned back and head back up to her and Cherry's room.
Inside the room, it was dark. Cherry lay on the bed she had chosen. Rin walked over to her daughter. Rin sat down and watched Cherry sleep. She hoped Cherry would never learn of this procedure that her pokémon had to endure.
"Cherry…" Rin said quietly. Cherry quietly mumbled in her sleep. "Cherry can you wake up for a minute?"
"M… Mom?" cherry said quietly, she was still half asleep.
"I need to go take care of something, alright?" Rin said to her daughter. "If you need something, your father is only a phone call away, alright?"
"Yes, yes…" Cherry mumbled wanting to get some more sleep.
"Good night," Rin whispered as she gave her daughter a kiss on her cheek. "I love you," she whispered standing up. She walked to the door and shut off all the lights before exiting.
Cherry quietly sat up. She had an empty pokéball in her hand. "Skarmory…" she mumbled quietly. She pulled out her pokégear. It was half past eight. She wondered what was going to happen. Ambulance sirens suddenly blared out from the Pokémon Center. "Oh No…"
Rin sat in the front seat of the Ambulance. Nurse Jacey sat up front with her. Blissey and Chancey were both in the back holding down Cherry's young Skarmory. Rin watched the pokémon squirm in pain as they headed for the smith. After every bump or hard turn, the pokémon would scream out in pain. Rin did her best to stay emotionless.
"How long until we're there?"
"Another minute if traffic stays clear and the road stays clear," Nurse Jacey said. They hit a pot hole and Skarmory let out its biggest cry yet. After a few moments Nurse Jacey announced they were there, as she popped over a curbed.
A tall, bark and burly man stood at the door, waiting. Rin jumped out as Nurse Jacey and the two other pokémon unloaded Skarmory. "Inside with all of ya'!" The man said loudly ushering them into a very hot work shop.
"Sorry to that we had something this late," Nurse Jacey apologized.
"Not a problem, little miss," The big man said, a slight Scottish accent was hinted. "Now, why don' you head yourself back down to the center, I'll handle it from here."
"Yes," Nurse Jacey said thanking him also. "I'm going to leave Chancey here, is that alright?"
"Plenty fine by me," The man said turning to Rin. "And who might you be lass?"
"I am Rin, the leader of Tandraville gym, the one who ordered the operation," Rin said.
"Ah, mind you it will not be a pretty one; I suggest you got with Nurse Jacey there," The man said.
"No, I will stay and watch," Rin said preparing herself. "I'll stay and help anyway I can."
"Welcome aboard Miss Rin," The man said. "My names Tiren, I'll be your surgeon tonight," he said putting on a black apron. "My suggestion for now is stay out of the way of the open furnace and use these," he said handing Rin a pair of fresh ear plugs.
"What are these for?" Rin asked.
"When that young one wakes, there will be Hell to pay," he said pulling out a large piece of blackened metal. "Chansey, you got those burn heals ready?" He called out to the healing pokémon. It saluted its readiness. "Alright, come on out," Tiren said releasing three pokéballs.
Two Charmellions and a Pidgeotto were released. "What are they for?" Rin asked.
"Super heat the furnace," Tiren said. "Pokémon steel is much harder to work with and needs more heat. Chansey! Bring that poor pokémon over here," Tiren called pulling out a table. The three other pokémon took their places around a large stone furnace. Chansey wheeled the pokémon up to a heavy iron table on wheels. "Let's get started. Skarmory, prepare yourself for the worst pain ever…"
Tiren shoved a metal wedge that was made to fit a healthy Skarmory. The Skarmory, cried out in pain. "Ash get over," Tiren demanded. One of the Charmelions ran over to Tiren. "Ready your flame thrower," Tiren said and the pokémon nodded. "Chansey, have you given it the sleep aid?" Tiren asked. The Chansey answered, yes, in its own way. "Alright, here… we…" Rin watched the mallet fall onto Skarmory's beak, "Go!". It cried out in shock and pain, the screech deafening.
Like clock work, Charmellion, Tiren and Chansey used a combination of Flamethrower, Hammering and Burn heal. Skarmory screeched loudly she saw when Chansey wasn't working she was holding her ears, even with the earplugs; Charmellion soon followed.
After and hour of working, Tiren sighed and put the mallet down. Skarmory had passed out halfway through the process. All their ears were ringing. "Wished you had left now, don't you?" Tiren asked turning to Rin. Rin ignored the question.
"Eat these Ash," Tiren said pulling out a few berries and handing them to him. "You two ready over there?" Tiren asked calling out to the pokémon at the furnace; Ash joined them and they nodded in unison. "Start heating it," Tiren said. The pokémon nodded and waited for tiren to pull a lever that would open their place for input. Tiren pulled the particular lever and the pokémon started throwing moves into the furnace.
"Lass, I don't know why you decided to stay, but are you sure you want to stay, this place is about to get a whole lot hotter," Tiren announced to Rin.
"I'll manage," Rin said.
"I hate to nose, But are you staying for some sort of penance?" Tiren asked.
Rin didn't speak for a long moment. "Yes, sort of."
"I see," Tiren said. "Well, don't be too upset, this is for the pokémon's own good, I promise," Tiren said. A blast of heat hit both of them; the furnace's temperature rising.
"I still think I should stay…" Rin said staring down at the ground.
"Its not your pokémon?" Tiren asked.
"No, its my daughters, and I was the one who ordered her to order skarmory to fly into the danger."
"I just suggest you step outside," Tiren said. "You've suffered enough," He said as a large hand came around and grabbed Rin's arm.
"Hey! What're…"
"If you get too cold the house is open next door," Tiren said as he pulled her hard and fast enough to trip her. She would have fallen if he hadn't been holding her hand.
"What! Wait! No!" Rin turned to only find a shut door. "Darn it…" Rin sighed. Snow flakes that floated with in a few feet of the door instantly melted. Rin sighed.
Rin stood out side for a few minutes. Almost pure silence echoed. In the silence there came a loud, soul-shaking. Wondering what it was, Rin ran to the middle of the parking lot. The chimney was bursting with flames. Watching it was terrifying.
Rin stood in a trance watching the flames rise out of the stack. Finally her attention was broken when the heavy door that closed the inside of the smith from the out opened. Rin turned to see Chansey stumble out. An excited Tiren was heard from the inside before the door clunked shut.
Rin turned to Chansey. Steam blew off her as she made her way to a snow pile. "Chansey?" Rin said hurrying over to the exhausted pokémon. One side of Chansey was black with soot and burns. "Are you alright?" Rin asked just before Chansey collapsed into the snow pile. "Chansey?" Rin asked again. Chansey moaned pleasure fully as the snow melted away. "Oh my…" Rin exclaimed as she watched the snow pile melt away very quickly.
"How's the little guy doing?" Rin asked, her thoughts turning back to the skarmory.
"Chansey…" The egg pokémon sighed ignoring the question.
Rin sighed and stood up. The man was going hard at it to save the young pokémon, it was a terrible sight to behold, but it didn't seem to bother man. She sighed again and this time felt the cold air brush over her. She may have been an Ice gym leader, but she was human before that and she had not had enough on to sustain her warmth.
Rin left to go inside the warm empty building.