Poke-genetics: shock
«Genno… Genno... Genno! » they repeatedly whispered to him.
He was paralyzed, unable to move, unable to think. It was all a nightmare, wasn't it? Just like that horrible dream he had. In but a moment, he would wake up screaming, right? RIGHT?
«You'll wake up as much as you woke up after realizing you've been turned into a pokemon. » A corner of his mind viciously replied. «You'll wake up as much as you woke up when you waited in that police station. You'll wake up as much as you woke up when Team Blast completely overwhelmed the police. »
Those could have happened! Life was harsh, that was a fact. This… wasn't harsh, it was impossible! His father couldn't be an evil man.
« Dreams are the door to what the mind refuses to accept. » the voice reminded him.
That dream! What it really showed him was not him failing; it was his father finding fascinating his meltdown! It was about his father being evil!
If even his subconscious had accepted the fact, why was he still refusing? The answer came naturally.
Because it was hard.
«Genno! » Ash whispered almost loudly. «Please snap out of it! We're not where we can afford to just stand in shock! »
The teenager realized his friends were looking at him.
«It's… alright… Please, can we just… stay a little longer? »
Reluctantly, they agreed.
«Well, this makes a nice change of scenery. » Jonathan commented. «Though from a cell, pretty much anything is a nice change. »
«I wouldn't say that, Jonathan. The torture chamber is a lot worse. » she added as she giggled.
«You have a point. » he admitted. «Now, let's see… current boss of Team Blast completely incapacitated, check. Boss of the now destroyed Team Rocket on his knees, check. Evil, competent and insane subordinate under my commands, check. Everything seems functional. »
«You… » whispered an almost unconscious Giovanni.
«You're quite the resistant fellow… Janes, can you finish the job? »
«With pleasure. » she replied.
They all knew how sincere she was.
«Huhum… I meant to make him unconscious. Having more test subjects is always good. »
She did look bored, but she obeyed nonetheless.
«Speaking of test subjects… » he continued.
He shot a look at the unconscious red ditto on the floor.
«… Marco will make a nice one. »
With that, he threw a pokeball at him and Marco Blaze disappeared inside the item.
«Janes, I hope you're ready to work a lot more from now on. I've got a lot of ambition. »
The woman grinned again. «Work» under the poke-geneticist would mean «ecstatic fun» by her standard.
Was it chance or perhaps fate? No one knows. But Jonathan was so filled with joy that he failed to notice the one tear that dropped from the ceiling.
«Pikachu, we need to get away now! » Ash urged his friend.
They grabbed Genno, who had once again stopped moving, and they dragged him along the vent.
A powerful voice echoed through the whole building.
«Attention, dear members, I have urgent news to communicate. »
Many recognized the voice coming from the speakers on the ceiling. It was the most powerful member of the team after Marco himself: Janes.
«I need to bring to your attention a biiiiig problem. »
«A problem? » most members wondered.
«Well, there is a little problem with the hierarchy right now. It seems our dear leader has been incapacitated by his interview with Giovanni. »
«What? »
«As you all know, the responsibility would fall upon my shoulder, normally. The problem is that I hate this kind of work. Luckily, someone has proposed himself for the job. You all know him; he was quite cooperative with us for the duration of his vacation in our favorite hideout. »
This was getting weird… and few were the ones that appreciated where this was going.
«I'm sure you'll all learn to appreciate Jonathan Avery. »
Their shock could be heard easily, no matter in which part of the building you were. There is one place though where the shock did not bring any surprised scream. Instead, it was the last straw to a man's rightful wrath.
Stan Folklow punched the walls of his cells. This could not have been the result of the kidnapping. His old friend… no, not his friend, he couldn't call him that anymore… Jonathan had planned this! What about his son? He was missing! Was that horrible man a pathetic excuse of a father too?
Said son was walking just like he was in a dream. He followed his two friends wherever they leaded him. Maybe he was still hoping that he'd wake up somewhere else. Anywhere except here.
«Okay, Pikachu, I see a big problem ahead of us. » Ash stated.
«What is it? »
«Well, we went down a vent to get here. Now, we have to go up those same vents. »
They thought about the problem. It would definitely be too hard for them to climb up the same vent... and that was without considering the state Genno was in.
He surprised them.
«.. Not necessarily. » Genno muttered.
«Huh? »
«The system must be connected to all three floors. If it's not, then how would the members breathe there? We can just climb by pushing on the walls like before. If we do it one level at a time, it won't be as hard. »
Ash and Pikachu stared at him. Looks like he wasn't as absent-minded as they thought he'd be.
He did not have the strength to open his eyes. He was not feeling well. To be honest, he felt worse than he ever had before. What had happened to him? He remembered the scary man with the long white coat that put him in a glass box. Where was he now? Was he still in that box?
His memory flashed before his eyes. The gas! There had been yellow gas! He remembered breathing some of it and then it was like he was burning from the inside. The last thing he could remember was the feeling of his clothes becoming bigger.
His clothes… he wasn't wearing any! Not even his underwear!
That gave him the strength to move. He stood up straight and looked at himself. There was a good reason for him not to have clothes on; he was covered in yellow fur! Not only that, but he had paws and a tail too!
The young pichu totally freaked out. Sebastian screamed.
Both Genno and Ash felt a chill down their spine.
«Is there something wrong? » Pikachu asked as he noticed their looks.
«No… we're fine. » Ash tried to sound convincing.
They couldn't explain it, but there was an unsettling feeling in their guts. It was as if they had been connected to someone.
Reality seemed to think that they were not thinking about it enough, so it jumped straight at their face.
«Guys, we're just over the exit. » Pikachu informed.
There was another grille. Behind it, they could see a member of Team Blast standing next to the elevator. Genno knew exactly what they had to do.
«Pikachu, can you get him from here? »
«Sure, but do you think it's a good idea? »
«Waiting in the ventilation system won't do us any good. »
«Getting captured will not either. » Pikachu objected.
«Just do it! » Genno urged.
He obeyed, but he shot a worried look at Ash. That was not how Genno would act normally. He was far from okay.
The member was wondering about the implication of having a new leader. It was weird. How could Giovanni do anything to the boss? He was broken, alone, without weapon. It was really weird.
But he wouldn't do a thing about it. If there was one thing that Marco had always insisted, it was to obey orders. Follow whatever orders a higher ranked member gives you and you will never be punished. Never. Right now, Janes was the most powerful member in the headquarters and the only reason they'd stop obeying her would be that Marco recovered.
He wasn't comfortable with it, but he was a soldier, Marco's soldier, and he would obey.
He was in the middle of these thought when Pikachu shocked him with a thunderbolt.
From the ceiling, three pikachus fell to the floor. One of them began to glow and turned into the unconscious member.
«Okay, we're out of here. » Genno said.
«Shouldn't we take him with us? » Ash said as he pointed to the member.
«Why? »
«I don't know… to… question him? »
«There's been a huge change in the hierarchy of the Team; there isn't any plan right now. They succeeded with the last one. We also know the exact location of the hideout, the structure of the place, the number of prisoners, what more do you want to know? What they eat for breakfast? » He enumerated rudely.
«I was just saying… »
«Oh, and I'm pretty sure that taking a regular guard hostage won't give much results. Great idea, isn't it? »
«Will you stop rubbing it in? » Ash asked.
«Genno, you're rude. » Pikachu accused.
Said boy seemed shocked at the statement and he looked ashamed.
«Sorry Ash. »
There was sadness in his voice, too much for anyone.
«Forgiven. Now Genno, we need to make a run for it. »
The three friends jumped inside the elevator and quickly escaped. As they let their legs get them as far from the place of evil as possible, they wondered how things would turn out now. Marco was gone but someone else was in his place, someone they had no idea of how to deal with. Ash had been right; there was something important bound to happen now that Team rocket was out of Team Blast's way, only, it was something they would never have predicted.
Though in Genno's head, the thought were more about if he had seen it coming but refused to acknowledge it.
Delia Ketchum walked sadly into her son's room. Less than a month ago, he had called to say he would come home a few days later. She waited for him, but he didn't show up. She was worried. She knew that he missed her and his hometown, she could hear it in his voice.
Delia Ketchum had thought she'd been stabbed in the heart when she heard about the misdeeds performed by Team Blast. As a mother, she couldn't help but feel that it threatened her child.
So, for the past few days, she was joyless. It had been hard to think that her son might have been caught up in the conflict with Team Blast. She only hoped he hadn't been hurt.
She looked at his empty bed and she couldn't hold it anymore. She cried. Oh Mew, she cried. She just couldn't fight it. She was just a mother without news of her only child in times of great danger.
Between her tears, she caught the glimpse of a light falling from the night sky.
A shooting star.
«Please, please, whoever hears this, just make sure Ash is okay. »
She wished with all her heart.
This time, there was a campfire next to the tent. They were far enough from Team Blast to take the risk of lighting a flame.
Ash and Pikachu were staring at the fire, trying not to worry too much about the future. They had discussed for a good moment now. They wondered what they should do, what they wanted to do and what they couldn't do. It was not a joyful conversation at first, but then, Ash just changed the subject. He talked with his best pal ever about things that might be meaningless to some, but were precious to them.
For years, they had been next to each other, unable to communicate properly. So, they used one of the only advantages of Ash's transformation.
«What was it like before Oak gave you to me? » the former trainer asked.
«It was not pretty. I was an only child, but my mother still had trouble being strong enough to feed me. She got sick before she had me. I heard it only made things worst. Maybe it was because of guilt, but I tried to be the one bringing food home as soon as possible. »
«That's so… »
«No need to pity me, Ash. We were quite happy with things the way they were. Even with all the hardships our lives were filled with, we managed to be a happy family. It's just that… her sickness was incurable. It slowly weakened her. »
The pokemon stopped talking for a second. He looked like he was fighting something inside him: sadness.
«It came to a point when there was nothing for her to do, but wait. »
«Pikachu… »
«It was after her… departure that Oak caught me. I didn't want anything to be with humans. My mother always told me that they could snatch away any wild pokemon and bring them back with them, with no hope of ever escaping. »
Ash felt his face burn from the shame. He was - or had been, depending on the point of view – human too. Whenever he captured a pokemon, did he really take everything it had away from it? No, he wasn't that kind of trainer. His pokemon were willing to join him. He had helped them, protected them, cared for them, so why was he feeling ashamed?
«Ash, don't look away like that. You are the best trainer ever. You are my best friend ever. » Pikachu assured with a smile.
«Pikachu… » Ash said with teary eyes.
They hugged.
«You're my best bud too. »
«That's good, now why don't you go talk to our other good friend that's confused about his father? »
Ash saw Genno, in his human body, lying on a rock not too far from the tent. He seemed to look at the stars with great interest.
He approached him while trying to think of the best way to talk about it. He did not have a lot of ideas.
«Hi Ash. » Genno said without looking.
«… how are you feeling? »
«Hazard a guess. » he answered sarcastically.
«Shocked, I guess. »
Genno looked at him, amused.
« Actually, I no longer feel that way. I'm just puzzled. Should I continue fighting? »
«Of course, you should! » he couldn't stop himself from saying.
«Even with my father on the other side? »
«Even if your whole family was on the other side! »
«You make it sound easy. »
«I know it's not easy, Genno. But don't you want to fight Team Blast? Can you seriously ignore all the evil they're doing? Can you just say to yourself that you shouldn't fight anymore? »
«… »
«Genno, this fight isn't about us anymore. It's about doing what's right. Team Blast has taken hostages. It has poisoned pokemon. They are threatening to turn children into pokemon. Nobody can just stare at Team Blast and say: «I won't fight you. » Genno, this is something that has to be done. »
«I understand that. I just… don't know what is right and wrong anymore. I've always loved my father. He was the only one to take care of me. My mother died before I was old enough to walk. I don't have memories of her. Whenever I think of my family, there's only my dad. Now, I wonder if he's ever been there for real. What if I become like him? It was my dream to resemble him someday. Now, I think it would be a nightmare. »
«Genno… »
«I… I'm not sure what the right thing for me to do is. I could be wrong. I've always followed my father's advises before. I'm… empty right now. »
He got hit by a thunderbolt.
«Genno! You're not your father! You're yourself and that's final! What is your heart telling you to do? »
«…to try to stop my father. »
«Why is it telling you that? »
«… because… it's just wrong. »
«What is wrong? »
«It's wrong for him to side with Team Blast! They're evil! There's no way to argue about that! »
«Was it that hard to say it? » asked Ash.
Genno blinked in surprise.
«Genno. Whatever your father may be, you won't become someone else. You're Genno, my friend and a poke-genetics crazy fan, but hey, nobody's perfect. »
They chuckled at the joke.
«It's normal for a kid to want to be like his father, even I wanted to be like mine, but ultimately, it is a matter of choice. Genno, you'll be the person you want to be. »
They didn't know what to say, they stayed silent… until Ash awkwardly inquired.
« … so, are you going to become evil? »
«… it's just not my style. »
«What is your style then? »
Genno turned and lied on his back. He pointed at the stars over them.
«My style is to try to understand what our world is made of. Pokemon, humans and nature alike.»
Ash looked to the sky and saw the infinity of the stars over them. It was so simple yet so beautiful.
«That's a nice sight. » Ash commented.
«You bet. »
The two friends just stayed as they were. Silent, they observed the night sky in peace.
«Genno! Look over there! » Ash excitedly exclaimed.
There was a trail of light moving in the night.
«A shooting star. Make a wish. » Ash said.
«It… doesn't look like a normal shooting star. »
«Who cares? Just make a wish. »
He honestly was too confused to think of what he wanted. Genno was unable to think of a wish for a second. Suddenly, he was struck by inspiration. Mentally, he asked the stars:
«I wish that things get better for Ash. »
At that moment, the shooting star vanished.
«Wow, guess this means your wish will come true. » Ash stated as his jaw dropped to the ground.
«That's nice. I really hope that wish will be granted. »
Ash was intrigued by the enigmatic air that surrounded his friend for a second. Well, at least, he managed to cheer him up. Mission accomplished.
«Ash… thank you. »
«Hey, I'm here whenever you fall into a wimping state. »
Genno eyebrows rose, but he didn't answer that comment. It was pretty true. There was one thing he wanted to do though.
«Ash… there's something you might want to do tonight. »
«What is it? »
He took his cellphone out of his pocket.
«It's working now. »
She had fallen in the land of dreams for an hour when the phone rang. Intrigued, she answered. When she recognized the voice, her tears fell again.
She wasn't sad. In fact, it was the happiest moment of her life. Delia Ketchum cried tears of joy when she heard her son on the phone.
Her wish had been granted.