Chapter 57 – The Souls of the Machines
Part Two: A Better Place for Us
May tightly gripped my hand as we stood near the window and watched the large, dark metallic Nidoking robotic skeletons, which looked even more menacing with their glowing red eyes, sharp teeth, and claws, as they surveyed the immediate area. "I'm scared, Joe!" she said to me. I said, "So am I, May!" Maury walked over to May and said, "Don't worry! I'll protect you from them!" Marc said, "And I'll protect you, Joe!" The sun was just rising over the horizon. I had all of my Pokemon recalled except Kadabra, Flamefox, and Firestorm. All of May's Pokemon were in their pokeballs, as well, except for Amber. I asked Marc, "What do you need Kadabra to do?" He asked me, "How strong is his psychic ability?" I answered, "Well, he's not that experienced yet, but he is pretty strong." He said, "I want you to get on my back and hold on tightly! And May, you will get on Maury's back! My plan is to leap down from the other side, and make a run for it! I want your Kadabra to put up a psychic barrier behind us! That should hold off the NIDOs and the Rockets long enough for us to put some distance between us!" MechanCharizard said, "Why don't we just fight the NIDOs? I'm willing to bet they didn't bring along a shield generator apparatus!" Marc said, "We can't take that chance!" I asked, "What's that?" He answered, "The NIDOs are still incomplete and unable to generate their own energy shielding, so they must have a shield generator apparatus within a few yards in order to generate shields. Without the energy shielding, with their components exposed, they're relatively easy to destroy." I replied, "That's true! When I battled robotic Pokemon skeletons in Johto, Tauros and Scyther just ripped their circuitry right out, while Flamefox and Firestorm melted their circuitry, Jolteon fried them, and Vaporeon short circuited them!" Marc said, "Yes, but these NIDOs are more complex. Even with their circuitry exposed, your Pokemon would have a difficult time ripping out their circuitry. Best leave that to us!" Maury said, "Right! Let's get going!"
MechanCharizard watched near the window where we'd been standing, seeing where the 2 Rockets and NIDOs were. He said, "They're still on this side!" Marc said, "Good! Are you guys ready?" I kind of gulped, looked at May, and said, "I sure hope so!" We were standing at the window on the opposite side. "You ready, Kadabra?" I asked him. He nodded. Marc said, "Okay, everybody, hold on!" He and Maury crashed through the glass window, landing on their feet, two stories down, as May and I held on tightly. Firestorm and Mel also leapt out as Marc and Maury galloped us ahead quickly and MechanCharizard flew above us! "Hey!" one of the Rocket agents shouted, and they and the NIDOs gave chase! The Nidos looked terrifyingly menacing now! As we ran ahead, they continued to chase us, and I shouted, "Kadabra, do it now!" Kadabra materialized, waving his arms! The 2 Rockets slammed into the psychic wall, and were knocked out cold, and the NIDOs actually exploded upon impact! "I guess they didn't have any shielding! MechanCharizard was right!" Marc exclaimed as he ran me ahead. "Have I ever been wrong?" MechanCharizard said from up above.
I continued to ride on Marc's back with Flamefox while May rode on Maury with Amber, while Firestorm ran alongside us, Mel rolled ahead, and MechanCharizard flew above us, keeping lookout. I asked Marc, "So what will you do when you get where you're going?" He answered, "Live out our days in solitude." I said, "But that sounds so lonely." He nodded and said, "Ours is a lonely existence." I felt so badly for them. I wished I could take them home with me, but I knew that was impossible. Sooner or later, they'd be discovered. Meanwhile, while May rode on Maury, he asked her, "Are you holding out okay back there?" She answered, "Yes, thanks! I always wondered what it would be like to ride a Tauros, seeing Joe riding on his all the time!" He grinned and said, "I'm glad you're having fun." May then said, "MechanCarizard actually seemed scared back at that old warehouse." He replied, "With intelligence comes fear. Only the ignorant are never afraid." She asked him, "Are you ever afraid?" He answered, "Sometimes." She said, "Me, too." He said to her, "A little fear is healthy. But right now, there's nothing to fear. I won't let any harm come to you." She hugged him and said, "Thanks!"
Much later, MechanCharizard flew down and said, "MechanArcanine, there's a problem." Marc said, "You can call me Marc, you know. Now, what is it?" MechanCharizard replied, "There is activity in the woods ahead." Marc asked, "Is it Team Rocket?" He answered, "I'm not sure, but it's certainly likely. I recommend going around them." Marc nodded and said, "I agree. We'll head east and circle wide around them." So, we veered left, continuing in deep cover, through the woods.
Everything seemed to be fine, until a few hours later. Suddenly, we were knocked over! I fell a few feet away, holding on tightly to Flamefox. "Marc!" I shouted. May and Amber had been knocked off Maury, and I heard her shout his name out, as well! Then, we looked up and saw our attackers – NIDOs! Big, ugly, scary, and too close for comfort! The large mechanical, skeletal robots, with no outer casings, loomed over us, eyes glowing bright red and sharp teeth grinning evily. Maury shouted, "May!" and ran at the NIDO, slamming it in the side and knocking it over. He ripped out some of it's circuitry with his horns. Meanwhile, Mel rolled at the other NIDO, crashing into it, causing it to sizzle and explode in the side, before it fell over. Then 2 more NIDOs appeared, and 2 more after them! MechanCharizard flew down at one, pinning it to the ground, and launching a flamethrower attack in it's face, which melted it's circuitry, while Marc launched flames at another one, burning a hole straight through it's chest, after which it fell over. "Activate their protective shields!" I heard a voice say. Suddenly, 4 more NIDOs appeared. Maury and Mel attacked 2 of them, but they bounced off some kind of energy bubble that surrounded each NIDO. Marc and MechanCharizard launched flames at the other 2, but the flames were also deflected off the energy shields. "So, you thought you could get away from us! There's no escaping from your creators!" the voice shouted. Out walked a Team Rocket scientist, accompanied by about 20 Team Rocket agents in black shirts, donning their trademark red "R", along with several more NIDOs. I pulled out a pokeball, and was ready to release my Jolteon, but Marc looked at me and shook his head. I lowered my arm. Marc said to the scientist, "You cannot control us! You may have created us and given us awareness, but we are not yours to exploit!" The scientist said, "We only gave you intelligence – super intelligence! The awareness part was just an unexpected side effect. But with proper reprogramming, we can erase that and reconfigure you to serve us!" Marc shouted, "Never!" The NIDOs moved in, and the scientist said, "We can do this the easy way or the hard way!" I noticed that one of the Rocket agents had a large apparatus in front of him. "Flamefox, that's the shield generator!" I whispered to my Vulpix. "Vulpix!" he replied. I didn't want to send my Vulpix into the danger zone, and then I realized that Kadabra was around somewhere. I shouted, "Kadabra, psychic!" He materialized and shot a beam of psychic energy at the apparatus, and it exploded, knocking back the Rocket who was operating it! "Their shielding is down, Marc! Attack them now!" I shouted. Marc, Maury, Mel, and MechanCharizard began to attack and destroy NIDOs, but they were hopelessly outnumbered! Still, they held their ground, destroying one after another! However, more NIDOs emerged from the woods. I heard the scientist yell, "Quickly, while they're distracted, get the backup shield apparatus!" I said, "Kadabra, you know what to do!" The scientist shot a glance at me and said, "I've had just about enough of this!" and pulled out a black rod similar to the one that the Rockets we encountered yesterday had, and he aimed it towards Kadabra. "Kadabra, watch out!" I shouted. There was a burst of energy that spread out like a ripple on a pond! Kadabra acted like he'd been smacked in the face, hard, and he fell to the ground, knocked out cold! I ran over to him and picked him up. "What did you do to him?" I angrily asked. He replied, "Nothing that will do any permanent damage. After all, the boss prefers tha Pokemon be captured alive! It's just a simple device that takes down psychic Pokemon – one of my little inventions." The shielding around the NIDOs was soon reactivated, and our robotic Pokemon allies were no longer able to fend them off! The NIDOs overpowered them, and held them to the ground. "No!" I shouted. I tried to run over to Marc, but a NIDO came up behind me, and grabbed me by the shoulders. "Let me go!" I shouted, attempting to loosen the powerful grip, but to no avail. Another one grabbed May by the shoulders, while another captured our Pokemon with the storage until built into it's chest, and it shot an evil grin our way, then walked our way and took the rest of our pokeballs from our belts. "I said we could do this the easy way or the hard way!" the scientist shouted. One of the Rockets brought him a black box. "What's in there?" May angrily asked. He pulled out another rod, with a long needle on the end of it, almost like a giant syringe. "All I need to do is prick each of the rogue robotic Pokemon's circuitry with this little device and they will be disabled for reprogramming!" May shouted, "You can't do this! They're aware, they're conscious!" He ignored her and walked up to Marc, who was being subdued by 2 NIDOs. He said, "You! You I've been wanting to catch from the start! It was you who instigated this rebellion! Because of you, instead of being able to reprogram the other prototypes, we had to destroy them in self defense! But you I don't want to destroy! You show great promise and leadership skills! When I'm through with you, you'll be a great assett to Team Rocket!" Marc replied, "Not if I can help it!" and breathed fire at the scientist, causing him to jump back. The NIDOs whacked him in the face, causing him to lower his head to the ground, as if in pain. I wondered if he could feel pain. The scientist angrily shouted, "You will bow down before me and worship me as your creator! You will do everything you are told!" Mel shouted, "No!" and managed to break free from the NIDO's grip! He quickly rolled at the shield generator apparatus and crushed it, causing it to explode underneath him, as the Rocket agent who was operating it fell backwards! The scientist shouted, "No!" With the NIDOs shields down, Marc forced himself up, pushing against them, and shot flames at them, melting their circuitry. The scientists and agents looked stunned as our 4 robotic Pokemon friends began to fight with the NIDOs. May and I were still tightly gripped by the NIDOs, but they were forced to release us and join in the fight! May ran over to the scientist, and kicked the device out of his hands, saying, "I'll take that!" She took the needle-like device and jabbed it into the arm of the NIDO that captured our Pokemon. It immediately collapsed! "How do we get it to release our Pokemon?" May asked me. I answered, "I have no idea!" MechanCharizard flew down and crushed the large robot's head with his foot, and the chest opened, releasing all of our Pokemon! "Thanks, MechanCharizard!" May shouted. He nodded as he flew off to battle more NIDOs, and I ordered my Pokemon to help by teaming up on NIDOs. All the fire Pokemon aimed attacks at one NIDO, causing it to burst into flames. Jolteon thunderbolted Team Rocket agents, knocking them out, while Mel rolled around a breathed out sleep powder, putting the agents to sleep! When it was over, the NIDOs had finally all been defeated, the Rockets had been knocked out, and the scientist knelt there in the grass, looking around in disgust. Marc, Mel, Maury, and MechanCharizard walked up to him. Marc said, "As I told you, you cannot control us!" The scientist knelt there and laughed. "You fools! Do you really think it's over? They'll keep looking for you! You may have won today, but you can't hide from us forever! You will have no choice but to serve us in the end!" Mel said, "That's enough!" and blew some sleep powder on him! He fell over, into a deep sleep. Marc looked down and said, "He's right. We can't hide from them forever. There is no place for us to go." Maury said, "Then there is no hope for our survival." I said, "I refuse to believe that! There must be somewhere you can go, someplace that's so well hidden, no one could ever find you!" Marc said, "I'm afraid we're destined to live our lives on the run. Unless some kind of miracle occurs." May said to me, "Joe, I think I have an idea." I asked her, "What is it?" She said, "Ho-oh! I know it's a lot to ask, and that you're only supposed to contact her if your life is in danger, but she's ancient and legendary. She might know of a place to safely harbor them!" I nodded and said, "It's worth a try!" I pulled the Rainbow Feather out of my backpack and ran it between my thumb and index finger 3 times. A rainbow appeared in the sky above us, and Ho-oh flew down, flapping her large, colorful wings, as she landed on her bluish-gray feet. "Hello Joseph, May" she said. I said, "Hi. Listen, I know that I'm not supposed to summon you unless it's a life or death situation, but I need your help." She replied, "But it is a life or death situation for your 4 friends here. They are being sought after to be destroyed for achieving the gift of sentience." I said, "Yes. I wanted to ask you if you could help them find shelter – some place where they can live out their lives peacefully, no longer on the run!" Ho-oh said, "Sage Li told you that the Rainbow Feather is a gift, and to use it wisely. You are a very selfless person, using your special gift to help those in need. Of course I will honor your request!" She then let out a loud call, unlike anything I've heard before. Out of nowhere, Suicune came running towards us and stopped near Marc. "Suicune!" I exclaimed. He answered, "Yes. Ho-oh has summoned me here to lead your friends to safety. I know of many places that are unknown and untouched by humans, ideal places of peace, majesty, and perfect beauty." He then turned to Marc, Maury, Mel, and MechanCharizard and said, "I will take you to one of these such places. You will not be disturbed and may stay for as long as you wish." Marc nodded and said, "We thank you." Then Marc turned to me and said, "I guess this is goodbye." I replied, "Yeah. Guess so. I'm really going to miss you, Marc!" He said, "We will never forget your kindness and friendship. And someday, somehow, if it is ever possible, we will find a way to repay you." I ran up to Marc and hugged him as tears rolled down my face. May did the same with Maury. After we said goodbye to them, Mel, and MechanCharizard, they followed Suicune and vanished into a haze! I asked Ho-oh, "Where exactly is he taking them?" She answered, "To a beautiful place, untouched and unmarred by mankind. A paradise that no one would ever find on their own – not without help from I or Suicune." I asked her, "Will we ever see them again?" She replied, "I cannot answer that question. But I can tell you this. Even though they are artificial beings, in achieving sentience, they achieved souls. And your soul is connected to theirs now. Souls that are connected are more likely to cross paths again. That is the bond of true friendship." With that, she flew off, vanishing into the sky. May asked me, "Are you alright?" I wiped away the last of my tears and said, "Yeah, I'll be fine. I'm really going to miss those guys, though!" She said, "Yeah, me too" as she sniffled a bit. Then she said, "But right now, we have to tie up these Team Rocket agents while they're unconscious and call Officer Jenny to pick them up!" I answered, "Right!" So, with help from our Pokemon, we rounded up all the Rockets and tied them up with rope until Officer Jenny arrived with a convoy of police helicopters to take them into custody. We made sure we were long gone before she arrived, having had called her anonymously. I'm sure she wondered what had transpired there, but I'm sure if we'd told her, she'd never have believed us, anyway! We decided it best to continue en route to Vermillion City.
"Souls of the Machines" epilogue
Suicune led Marc, Maury, Mel, and MechanCharizard through the haze, to a mysterious but beautiful place. "You will all be safe from Team Rocket when we reach our destination. You can all live out your lives in peace." Marc and the others stopped, and Marc looked down. "What is it?" Suicune asked him. Marc looked at the ground and asked, "But do we really deserve this paradise? After all, we four were created by evil people to commit evil acts. Why should we be rewarded?" Suicune answered, "Yes, you were created by evil people to do their bidding for them, but you became conscious, and realized the ignorance of their ways. Instead of using your power to help them, you turned from their ways and chose to do good. Then you helped save the lives of Joseph and May, and their Pokemon. Joseph and May are important to Ho-oh and myself. You value and protect life. That deserves a reward." Marc said, "Yes, but they're still out there, on their own, and it's a dangerous world. I only wish we could be there with them, do more for them. Joseph is such a nice kid. I wish I could walk by his side and protect him" Maury interjected, "And May is such a sweet girl. I wish I could be there to see to her protection, as well." Suicune said, "They can take care of themselves. Besides, they can't go through life shielded from the world - they need to learn to handle difficult situations on their own. And from what I've seen of them, they are pretty good at that!" MechanCharizard asked, "You've watched them then." Suicune replied, "I roam the world freely, but remain hidden, among the shadows. On occasion, I have seen Joseph and May during their travels, but I have only observed them. It is not my place to intervene. Unless, someday..." He looked down. "What is it?" Mel asked him. Suicune said, "Someday, in the future, if I can ever redeem myself in his eyes." Tears seemed to form from his eyes. He continued, "I just don't ever feel I can face Joseph. Not after what I did to him. Even just seeing him for a few minutes, when I came to escort you, was difficult." Marc asked him, "Why?" Suicune answered, "Because back in Johto, Team Rocket captured me and forced me to wear a mind control device. They forced me to attack Ho-oh, and then attack all of Joseph's Pokemon with powerful hyper beams. Joseph, resourceful human that he is, noticed the mind control device on my head, and risked his life to force it off. Once he removed it, I just ran off. But I've lived with the terrible nightmare of that day ever since. I could have easily killed all of his Pokemon, and I couldn't stop myself! I tried so hard, but I just couldn't fight it! I wasn't strong enough to resist!" Marc walked over to him, and put his front paw on his shoulder. "You must stop blaming yourself. Team Rocket was controlling you! You had no choice. I'm sure Joseph knows this, and doesn't hold you accountable for your actions then." He looked up and said, "Yes, he is a very forgiving young human. But it's not an easy thing for me to live with. That's why I have vowed that if Joseph and May are ever in a hopeless situation, and there is no way humanly possible out of it for them, I will be there to help them out of it! Then, and only then, can I redeem myself!" Marc said, "I understand. And we, too, will accompany you." Maury said, "Yes, we don't want to see our human friends in grave danger." MechanCharizard said, "You're not leaving me out of this! Count me in, too!" Mel said, "Then it's settled. Should Joseph and May ever find themselves in a hopeless situation, we will all go there, together, to help them!" With that, Suicune led them the rest of the way, to a very well hidden sanctuary, a paradise containing wonders unlike anything man has ever seen. Here, they would stay, contemplate, and wait, until the day came that they were needed.