Poke-genetics: punishment
Ash awoke in a weird white room.
«Wow… what is this place? »
It looked vaguely familiar. With uneasy movements, he stood up and asked:
«Is there anybody here? »
No answer. He looked around. He was on a pikachu-sized bed, which was deliciously fluffy. Wait… what? He was in a fluffy bed?
«I'm not a girl! » he protested.
«Really? » asked a creamy voice. «Of the two, I thought you were the girl. »
He turned and saw a chansey.
«Huh? What do you mean: «of the two?»»
«Well, between this pikachu and you, you were the one that seemed to be the female. » she said, showing the pokemon she was holding.
«WHAT? » he shouted.
Then he stopped, she was holding Pikachu.
«Pikachu! How is he? »
«Your mate's alright. She was just shocked. »
«Thank goo… my MATE? »
«There's no need to yell. »
«Look, we're both BOYS and we're not a COUPLE! »
The chansey seemed surprised.
«Oh, could that be the reason that Alakazam was laughing so much? »
«Ohhhh… my head… » groaned Pikachu.
«Buddy, are you alright? »
«I told you that. » Chansey remarked.
«I don't care! I'm asking him! »
«Someone's a little touchy this morning… »
«Don't you have someone else to take care of? »
Insulted, the chansey pouted and walked away.
But what she said rang an alarm in his ear.
«Wait! What day are we? »
«We are the second of the month. »
Ash lost his voice.
«Ash… where are we? » Pikachu asked faintly.
«We're in a pokemon center… I think. »
«Where's Genno? »
«I… don't know. »
«I'm here, guys. » The voice came from the entrance of the room.
Ash's human body was standing there.
«Genno! » they rejoiced. « Where are we? »
«Viridian City's pokemon center. » he replied, void of emotion.
Genno looked down. He seemed desperate.
«You've been sleeping for twelve hours. Had I not use Recover, I would have too. »
«That Janes… she's a crazy woman and a great trainer. Did you see how she used a battle formation? »
«Ash, I already told you I'm not a good fighter. »
He paused for a second, held a tear and added.
«Not that it would have helped anyway… »
«Genno… » whispered Pikachu.
«Why? Why did I think I could do anything against Team Blast? » he cried.
«Genno! Stop saying that! We'll try something else. That's all. » stated Ash.
«No! No, I won't. I'm done trying! »
And before they could stop him, Genno had run away.
Ash and Pikachu wanted to run, but their bodies refused to obey. Painfully, they walked around the pokemon center.
«What could have gotten to him? » asked Ash.
«He probably blames himself for the failure of the attack against Team Blast…»
«But that makes no sense! We were ambushed, for Mew's sake! Why should he have seen it coming? There's just no way he… »
«I know, HE doesn't want to. »
«Well, if he thinks we're going to let him give up like that, he's up for a surprise. »
He wasn't looking where he was going. He was thinking about what he was going to say, so Ash walked right into Nurse Joy.
«Ouch! »
«Oh my, you're awake. That's good news. I gave you powerful medicine, but it usually takes a few more hours to work fully. Are you feeling tired? »
«Hum… yeah, kind of. » he said.
«…I'll take that as a yes. » she said with an unsure smile.
«Damn, I forgot no human understands me anymore. »
He shook his head up and down. It made him a bit dizzy, but he had to tell her somehow. If she didn't understand that, it'd be her problem.
«In that case, you should return to your bed. »
«But I need to talk to my friend! »
«No objections allowed. »
She lifted both friends and brought them back to their room.
«I'll make sure your trainer knows you are both awakes. » she assured them as she left.
The nurse then closed the lights and locked the door.
«What do we do now? » asked Ash to Pikachu.
«…we wait for Genno to come back. »
Genno was sitting close to the windows. The view was magnificent. Rays of sunlight were gliding on the structure of glass, underlining the beauty of the day.
None of that was getting to Genno. He was just feeling the abyss of despair. He had tried so hard and yet...
He didn't notice that Nurse Joy was now next to him.
«Your pikachus are awake. » informed Nurse Joy.
«I know. » he replied without looking at her.
«Then why are you here instead of being with your pokemon? »
«I… »
«I know from experience that a trainer and his pokemon may go through hardships from times to times. It doesn't matter if it's because of failure in battles or just a fight between you three; it is in time like those that you need to talk to your pokemon. »
«It… this is not the same! »
Ash and Pikachu weren't his pokemon, they were his friends!
Joy didn't seem to like what she heard.
«Why is it not the same? »
«This isn't about them, it's about me. »
«That's selfish. » she declared.
The accusation hit him with the strength of a moving car.
«I… » he mumbled.
«What do you take your pokemon for? »
«…»
«They're your friends, the most loyal companions you'll ever have. »
«I…it's not… there's nothing wrong with them! I'm the one who's in the wrong! »
«Then talk to them. If they have done nothing wrong, don't punish them by letting them in the dark. »
«But… »
Could he really talk to them? Could he face them? Could he show his face, no, not even his face, Ash's face, in front of them again?
«...I'll go see them. »
«That's better. Go. »
The first thing they noticed was that someone had turned the light on. The second was that Genno had come back.
«Genno! » they exclaimed.
«Sorry guys, I shouldn't have run off. »
«Hey, you came back, so it's alright. »
He smiled weakly.
«Thanks. »
He wore a much more serious look.
«…But I feel like I'm not worthy of your forgiveness. I am responsible for this mess. »
«That's not true! » yelled Pikachu.
«Team Blast is the only one we should blame. » added Ash.
«No, it's not. » Genno whispered. «Don't you understand, guys? I've dragged you into this, turning you, Ash, into a pokemon, messing your relationship with Misty. I've gone into Team Blast's lair only so that what little information I retrieved was useless. In fact, it seems they were inspired and the problem got worse. After that, I led the police of Viridian City into a trap and now, Team Blast has less enemies and more hostage than ever. »
«The attack was my idea! » said Pikachu.
«And I insisted to go with you in the lab. » added Ash. «Besides, the police of Viridian City was already planning an attack on Team Blast. Had you not led them, they'd have fought blindly and things could have turned even worse than before. »
«What about the pokemon? » Genno countered with cynicism.
«The pokemon? »
«You have not forgotten, have you? »
They were unsure of what to say.
Genno turned around and they feared he might run away again. Fortunately, he just asked them to follow him and he walked out of the room.
He led them to a glass window.
When they looked through it, Ash and Pikachu gasped in horror.
There was more than a hundred unconscious pokemon connected to machines to ensured their survivals.
«Those are the ones that suffered from my failure against Team Blast's poisoning plan. So, guys, can you still say I should be forgiven? »
They glanced at him in shocks.
«You're not…»
«Can you still tell those pokemon and trainers that they should forgive me? Can you...»
He stopped mid-sentence, he was sobbing.
«I could have done something… I had knowledge about their idea… at that time, I failed to run fast enough… I failed to contact anyone… I could have just called the factories or something… I could have… just… »
He was unable to continue. He felled to his knee.
«I made everything worse! »
A calm, soothing voice came from behind him.
«Are those the reasons why you didn't want to speak to them? »
«Nurse Joy…»
«Why do you blame yourself? » she asked.
«Did you not hear me? I caused all this! »
«… this… is completely false. » she stated.
Just as Genno turned away, the nurse added.
«After all, I'm the only one that should be blamed for this mess. »
«What? » all three boys said in unison.
«Don't you realize it? Had I been able to find an efficient treatment against the poison, Team Blast would have not threatened the cities and the police would not have gone to their place. »
«You can't blame yourself for that! You tried everything in your power! » Genno protested.
«Then why can you blame yourself? »
«I… »
«Those things were out of your control. They were beyond what you could have done. Wondering on what could have been is the fastest way to despair. The only courageous path is the right one: accept that you made mistakes and that you'll fight to correct them. »
This was exactly what they first thought when Janes had kidnapped Stan Folklow. Why was he like that now?
Because there was too much on his shoulder. He was trying to take the responsibility on himself.
«Hey, Genno, share some of your pain with us. We're strong; we'll be able to take it. » Ash said.
«Guys… »
«Besides, you shouldn't give up so soon, young boy. There is still hope. »
«What about them? » he asked, pointing at the window.
«See for yourself. » she answered with a smile.
«Huh? » the three boys babbled.
They looked through the window. At first, it seemed exactly as desperate as before, but as the minutes passed, they realized some were moving faintly.
«They are waking up. » Nurse Joy told them.
«But… »
«Team Blast's poison was very strong, but to have a way to threaten trainers, they had to make sure the pokemon wouldn't die. So, it only induced coma… for a few days. It seems the substance is slowly being neutralized by the body. In a week or so, most of them will be awake.»
«That's fantastic! » Genno exclaimed. «Wait. Why would Team Blast temporarily disable our pokemon? Won't they have a problem maintaining their grip on us? »
The nurse shrugged her shoulder, saying she didn't know.
«Genno, we should look for news! »
They were afraid of what they'd discover.
«Dear viewers, we interrupt this program to present urgent news. Our station received a tape containing a video of Marco, leader of Team Blast, answering to the ones that opposed him yesterday. »
The lady's face faded to make place to a man in red and black, with black hairs and a furious look on his face.
Marco talked to the whole region.
«Citizens of Kanto, yesterday, despite my generous offer, some of you chose to oppose me. Some simply refused to cooperate while others physically tried to harm Team Blast. This… shall not… go unpunished. »
Everywhere around the region, people were holding their breath.
«As I said, some thought they could try to attack my organization. »
The screen showed a bunch of beaten up policemen and women on their knees, handcuffed. Surrounding them was a group of Team Blast members and their pokemon. One was closer to the prisoners than the rest and was holding a knife.
«Ooooh, that's a bunch of naughty little officers we've got here, don't we? »
The officer she talked to refused to answer.
«My, it's not polite not to answer. »
And she stabbed him in the shoulder.
A core of hatred for the woman was born in the heart of many viewers, especially a blue-haired one.
The image switched back to Marco.
«These men and women were sent by Gregor Dexter, mayor of Viridian City. »
His tone lowered until it was but a threatening whisper.
«They attacked my family. I shall do the same. »
Ash whispered.
«No… »
«Don't worry, I won't kill anyone… but some might wish I did! »
His eyes seemed to look through the screen.
«Are you watching, Gregor? You refused to cooperate. You brought this upon Kanto. »
Gregor Dexter was clenching his fist in front of the television he was watching.
«You… »
«For those of you who might not know, I sent a few hours ago a dozen of elites group all over Kanto with but one order: kidnap any kid you meet. »
All over the region, people froze in horror, time stopped for an instant, as parents called for their children in panics. Not all of them received an answer.
«The only place that was spared from my wrath was Saffron City who wisely chose cooperation over violence. »
He paused then he looked through the screen again.
«Gregor, I sincerely hope you are looking right now. I know how you worried parents must feel, so I'll be nice and let you see them. »
The image switched to that of a group of children in a closed room. Many parents recognized their child and fainted in despair.
«No harm will be done to them… except for one. There is one parent out there that has defied me and he must pay for it. »
As soon as he finished, a member entered the room and grabbed a blond kid that looked around nine. Moments later, the image showed the boy from close, sitting in a glass box.
He was hitting the walls of his prison.
«Dad! Dad! Please, save me! »
Gregor Dexter felt tears rolled on his cheeks.
«Sebastian…»
The young boy kept hitting the walls.
«For those of you who don't know, this is Sebastian Dexter, the son of the mayor of Viridian City. »
A scientist with a mad grin on his face approached the kid.
«Are you afraid? »
The young boy fought to hold back his tears. He stared defiantly at George Greenwood.
«It won't matter anyway. » he said as he pressed a button on the wall.
Slowly, a yellow gas flooded the box.
When they realized what it was, Genno, Ash and Pikachu yelled:
«NO! »
The young boy looked with fear as the gas reached him. He began coughing. Soon, he was on his knees, faintly calling for his dad.
Sebastian's skin slowly turned to a bright yellow and he became smaller and smaller. The kid fell unconscious in the middle, calling one last time for his father.
Thousands of incredulous eyes stared at their television as the kid changed. In a matter of minutes, he had been turned into a pichu.
«Now, now. » Marco said to get the attention back. «I said I wouldn't kill any hostages, but I would certainly not hesitate to free this kid. »
A thousand interrogations rose at the same time. Out of them, Ash was the only one to understand fully how dangerous of a threat that was. It got worse when Marco laughed.
«I can almost hear your confused exclamation. I said I'd free him, not that I'd give him back. That means he'd be on his own… in the wild. »
Gregor Dexter finally understood the meaning of bottomless despair.
«Do you understand, Gregor? If I free him right now, you'd lose him forever. He'd be a pichu among the others. You'd have no way of ever finding him and even if you did you would have no way of knowing if it is indeed him. Even worse, even if against all those odds, you could find him, you could not change him back. All of that is assuming he'd be able to survive on his own. I heard bird pokemon have been quite aggressive recently… »
When he ended his speech, he left the mayor of Viridian City broken.
«Now that I know that I have your full cooperation, I want you to keep being the mayor of Viridian City. Only this time, you'll follow my every order. »
Marco changed of tone.
«As for the rest of you worried parents, I take for granted that you'll also cooperated… or the fate of your children will be the same as little Sebastian's. »
Everywhere, parents were crying their despair. In Pallet Town, Delia Ketchum was letting her sadness overflow her eyes.
Genno realized something strange. He thought he'd fell to the ground when the situation got so much worse, but he didn't. He couldn't help but think about Sebastian. «It is a strange thing indeed: despair. Once you reach the absolute bottom, there's nothing else to do than to climb your way out of it. »
Marco looked at them with complete seriousness.
«Here is the first order I want you all to follow. If it isn't done by next week, I'll turn one kid into a pokemon for each passing day. »
They all waited with expectations each worse than the others. What would he make them do to save their children?
«I want you all to annihilate Team Rocket. »