Otherworldly Infection
Themes for this chapter: Hell on Earth, Mithos (Post Apocolypse)
All We Want is HELL ON EARTH.
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Chapter Four: Death is a mercy
It was a scene out of a horror movie. The only difference was that this was completely and one hundred percent real.
It was exctly half an hour ago the police station in Virdian City had received a call for backup in Pallet Town for Officers Ryan and Alex. It seemed odd, but they had demanded medical back up and for the Medical Examiner to come immediately.
"IT'S AN EMERGENCY!!!!" were Officer Ryan's exact words, followed by some groaning and choking sounds. The transmission got cut off, which sent the whole station in a loud uproar. Many officers were scared that the peaceful little town of Pallet had suddenly gone bad enough to endanger the lives of two authority figures. Some thought a gang had claimed Pallet Town as their new terrictory (it was a report sent over by the Celadon City police that the bikers on Cycle Road were known to be acting rowdy and terrictorial, and unprotected small towns like Pallet were a source of concern for gang targets).
It seemed so unlikely, but appropriate, when a horrified officer spoke up. "I would rather be facing the meanest, toughest and most brutal bike gang then this..."
The chief executive of the station was even saying a prayer. No one in Kanto, Johto, Hoenn or Sinnoh truly believed that prayers solved anything and the only gods in their world were the legendary pokemon depicted by artists. Faith was something every resident entrusted in their friends, family, themselves and their pokemon partners.
Desperate times call for desperate measures.
Pallet Town had become a dangerous place. Homicidal dead pokemon were running amok and eating the flesh of humans. There were blood eyed Raticates, fang bearing Ratattas...even Pidgey, the gentlest of birds, were screeching and clawing at humans.
"We have to find any survivors and evacuate them out immediately..." one officer said.
"Are you crazy??" a rookie exclaimed. "I'm not going out there, even if my job depends on it. I value my life more!"
"But what about our comrades? Professor Oak? The Champion of the Indigo Plateau lives here too! They all need our help!"
"Screw it! Screw them! I'm not getting out of here!"
"In that case, give me your badge and gun..." the chief broke his prayer trance and turned around to face the selfish rookie. "We are public servents and we owe a duty to these people. You're not worthy of this badge or that uniform..."
"Gladly, chief." The rookie unpinned his badge and gave it to the older man. He then reached into his hollister and pulled out his handgun and passed that over to the man as well.
"Now get out of here."
"What?!" the former rookie officer sat paralyzed and stared at the chief.
"You're in a police vehicle and you're not an officer. You're breaking our station policies. We don't give rides to anyone, except criminals."
"But if I go out there...I'll get killed!" the man whined.
"Then you should have stayed a police officer and used your gun in the name of your badge to help protect innocents," the chief retorted. "Now step out or I'll help you step out."
The rookie officer stared at his former boss before being shoved out by the officer who sat next to him. "You heard the man. Get out of here, Lloyd!" With a terrified look stuck on his face like glue, the rookie officer fell to the ground and was immediately noticed by the rampage of zombies. Lloyd reacted fast, getting to his feet and making a break for the Viridian Forest.
The chief sighed. "Coward...alright, men. Listen up. Our job here is to save as many of the innocent and alive people as we can find. Those creatures we're up against..."
"They're unlike anything we've ever faced..." a blond woman said. "But I'm willing to go out there with my gun blazing hot metal," she added. There was a chorus of agreement and the chief smiled tearfully. Death was an option, a risk that outweighed the chance of survival for all of them. But they were duty bound officers, servants to the public who put their lives at stake for the safety and well being of the innocent.
The sound of guns being loaded and safeties being flicked off echoed in the squad truck. Slowly and carefully, the officers got out one by one and faced the ambush of zombies. Three medics were lined up behind them, ready to help the injured.
At the smell of new flesh, the zombie horde, containing mostly pokemon, turned their heads towards the armed force. The police were horrified that there were some humans among them. The commanding officer, Dilan Ais, whispered a curse for the damned and the bullets flew. Screams and horrible screeches filled the air, turning the once peaceful Pallet Town into a graveyard for the dead and undead. The blond woman, Arlene Ven, was headed straight for Professor Oak's lab.
"Samuel Oak!! It's the police! There's been...AAAAAAAAAH!!" she screamed in terror. A rampage of pokemon, still alive, came running from the pokemon lab, taking the woman by surprise.
"Arlene!!" Dilan yelled. He ran over to the woman and was amazed at the number of pokemon she just found. "Where did these numbers come from?"
"The Oak lab!" Arlene gasped. "But I can't...can't find the professor!"
"Search around some more...protecting him is priority one," Dilan instructed. His blue eyes rested on Arlene. "Take care of yourself, okay?"
"Yes, chief," Arlene replied. "What about the pokemon?"
"Set them free. They shouldn't have to face this terror," Dilan instructed. A small Pichu clung onto Arlene, not wanting to go anywhere.
"Pi! Pipipichu!"
Arlene stared at the baby pokemon and nodded. She looked at the other pokemon, who seemed to take on a similar expression. One Magmar stepped forward and cracked its knuckles.
"Chief...I think these pokemon want to help us fight."
"What?" Dilan shot another oncoming zombie and glanced at the group. "Are you sure?"
Arlene nodded, holding the baby Pichu close to her. It clung to her tightly and she could sense fear and determination all in one. Arlene felt a sense of protectiveness for this innocent pokemon and allowed it to stay on her shoulders. The Magmar, joined by a Tauros, a Starmie, a mother Kangaskhan with her baby still in her pouch, a Rhydon and an Alakazam began to chat in their language and the smaller pokemon stayed behind them. Magmar began to spit embers and the Starmie's jewel began to glow in the seven colours of the rainbow. The baby dove deep in its mother's pouch and stayed there. The Rhydon stomped angrily and the two human police officers were grateful it was on their side. Alakazam held both its spoons in its hands, ready to use telekinetic powers.
"I see..." Dilan said. "In that case-"
"CHIEF, BEHIND YOU!" Arlene yelled. Dilan spun around and fired a bullet into the brain of an oncoming undead Pidgey. The pokemon didn't wait. The six fully evolved and strongest ones dove forward, unleashing their most powerful attacks. Kangaskhan roared and shot a Hyper Beam from its mouth, eliminating a lot of the monsters. Rhydon jumped on both his feet and shook the very ground in a huge Earthquake that stopped all the fiends from going anywhere. Starmie's top point shook and Hydro Pump blasted out, stunning the zombies and confusing them greatly. Alakazam's eyes glowed, lifting several zombies up and stopping flying undead in their tracks. It yelled something out in pokemon and Magmar unleashed a scorching flamethrower and incinerated all the final foes.
It was over.
Cheers from the humans and pokemon rose quickly, celebrating the defeat. Dilan never saw this coming, but Arlene actually ran up and hugged him tightly. The baby Pichu squealed with delight.
Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
"What was that?"
Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
Bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...
Arlene looked up and screamed. What was approaching them was an absolute nightmare no one could have seen coming. An entire swarm of zombie Beedrill was flying straight towards them. The sight of undead bugs with sharp jabs and glowing blood red eyes made Dilan shudder.
"Open fire! Magmar, use your flamethrower up there!"
"MAG-" The Magmar opened its mouth and prepared to strike...
...but all anyone could see was a Beedrill's jab impaling it through the stomach.
"!!" Dilan was shocked. These Beedrill were much faster than their normal state. Screams erupted all around him. Every human and pokemon was getting attacked.
"Arlene..."
"W-what is it?" Arlene stammered.
"RUN!" Dilan shouted, pushing Arlene away from him. She stumbled, still holding the tiny Pichu, and looked at her boss with questions.
"Arlene, please run...you have to live...run anywhere, just get away from this fucking hellhole!" Dilan screamed. He whirled around and began firing at any oncoming Beedrill. Arlene didn't know what to do: run far away or stay and try to protect the people. But Dilan turned to look at her again. "JUST GO!"
The woman burst into tears. She clutched the tiny Pichu close to her chest and ran away from the gruesome sight. The Pichu also sobbed. Its ears were much bigger and it could hear the screams of its friends from the lab crying and dying.
Dilan took one last look at the fleeing figure. He checked his gun and realised he only had one bullet left. If he ran after Arlene now, the swarm would chase them both down. Instead, he fled into a different direction, making the swarm chase after him. Once he lead them far enough, the big man sighed and put the gun to his head.
"Arlene...I love you...one day...we'll meet again in heaven...until that day, please...just live..."
He pulled the trigger and fell to the ground. The swarm caught up and began to feast on the dead flesh before them.
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Arlene sobbed, rocking the Pichu back and forth. The Pichu itself was also crying uncontrollably. They had ran for an hour straight, without bothering to stop for a rest. Arlene had no idea where she was and she didn't care either. She had heard her comrades in arms die and the man she held closest to her heart had sacrificed himself to give her time to run. She had no idea if Dilan was alive or not, but she had her doubts.
"Hello! Are you alright?"
Arlene looked up. To her surprise, the one standing before her was the man she was told to look for and protect. "P-P-Professor Oak?"
Oak nodded. "You must be from the Virdian Police force...Pichu? Is that you?"
"Pipichu..." the Pichu whimpered.
"So you just came from Pallet Town?" Oak asked. Arlene nodded and Oak sighed. "Judging by your current state...Pallet Town was overtaken."
"Y-Yes..."
Oak shook his head. "Those pokemon at the lab...I only hope they're safe. I thought maybe they could be safe if I left the doors closed...tell me, are they okay?"
Arlene felt the words practically choke her throat. Pichu looked at the professor and shook its head.
"..." Oak's eyes were cast downward. "I see...I should have known better...I should have locked the door or put them all in their pokeballs...but I was so frantic to escape, I had to hurry."
"P-Professor...they're all...dead..." Arlene finally chocked out.
"I know...I should have expected it...come with me. I am on my way to the Indigo Plateau. This needs to be brought to Kanto's attention before more people die," Oak said. He held his hand out and Arlene took it. Together, they started the long walk towards the Plateau.
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HOLY SHIT, IT'S NOT DEAD. WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF.
(cough) Long story short, a lot has happened. DA, my mom going to the hospital, me trying to find a job...
I'm still so mad at myself for not paying more attention to this. Everytime I did, I got distracted by someone or something.
I AM SO SORRY. I REALLY AM. THIS STORY IS NOT DEAD. JUST ASLEEP FOR LARGE PERIODS OF TIME.
PLEASE DON'T KILL ME.
Cameos in this chapter: Kingdom Hearts and one Tales of Symphonia. Cookies to anyone who finds them.
-Moonlit Assassin