I guess it's obvious, but Raikou: Legend of Thunder's English dub is…Well… I found myself laughing and making snarky commentary as I watched through various scenes for this arc. I've got the original script, too, so I can see all the differences they made. Oh man. lol
This chapter feels pretty odd, though. Yet again I decided to split the chapter up from what I originally planned. Otherwise it would be too long, and some interesting stuff will be discussed in the next chapter so I didn't want to skimp out on it. I always end up writing more than I think.
Anyhow, enjoy!
Chapter 76
Downtime
"So how is everything? Have there been any changes?" Professor Elm asked Marina for the third time that day. Watching the interested expressions of him and his assistant on the videophone screen, the girl gave a light shrug.
"Yeah, a little," she said, "Nurse Joy says its condition has stabilized for now."
"Hmm. That's good." Elm nodded and adjusted his spectacles. "What is Kenta doing?"
"Still tending to Raikou. He hasn't left the infirmary since he got here."
"Is that so…"
Marina put on a cheerful face. "It'll be okay! He's making sure Raikou is safe and sound. If those guys come back, we'll be ready to boot them right back out!"
"I don't doubt that," he said with a laugh. "Oh yes, I got in touch with my friend that I mentioned earlier. He's in the area, and should be on his way to visit you today."
"You mean the archeologist guy?"
"Yes. I imagine he should be helpful with answering any questions you have about Raikou. His name is Kudou."
"Great! Thanks so much for the help."
"Not at all. Feel free to call me if anything else comes up."
"Right. Bye, Professor!"
After the scholar said his words of farewell, the screen went black.
Marina exhaled sharply and relaxed in her seat. Her eyes drifted to the windows lining the walls of the lobby, observing the sunlight that slowly slipped away into the early evening.
A few hours had passed since the fight with the grey-clad Team Rocket duo. After Marina arrived at the Pokémon Center explaining the situation to the nurse, Nurse Joy called forth aid from the nearest police department in Mahogany Town—which helped bring in the injured Raikou to the facility for treatment. No one had an explanation for Raikou's hostile behavior, so Kenta suggested that Marina ask Professor Elm about the Legendary Beasts. Unable to break the odd promise she made with Eusine to keep their partnership secret, Marina went along with it.
Since then, she had been calling to give updates to Professor Elm, Jackson, and Eusine. The first two called often, and Marina couldn't help but see a resemblance between the father and son in how genuinely excited and curious they were about the situation. The latter, however, called out of the blue ten minutes ago claiming that he would arrive at any moment before abruptly hanging up.
Marina enjoyed being given this duty of informing everyone. She didn't have anything better to do, and it made her very antsy to stay rooted in one place watching Raikou like Kenta was doing.
The whole situation made her anxious, really. Standing alone with Kenta only led to thoughts of her Lapras, so she opted early on to keep watch in the lobby. Even so, her mind spun with possibilities involving Team Rocket, Raikou, and Kenta. It made her want to run around or get into a battle; anything to get it out of her system. But she didn't want to leave for fear that Bashou and Buson would return—here or out on the road.
Do they know my face? Marina pondered with a haunting shudder. Team Rocket did have a picture of me in those documents I found…oh, I wish I had taken a better look. Maybe I'm just thinking too much into it.
She let out a brief sigh.
A light nudge on her shoulder pulled out of her swimming thoughts, and she turned to see her Misdreavus looking back with slight puzzlement.
"Oh, it's alright!" Marina told her, running a hand through Muu-chan's pink-tipped tassels. "I just completely spaced out there. Thanks for snapping me out of it."
"Muu," the Pokémon hummed back sleepily. Her Trainer disconnected the PokéGear from the videophone, and Muu-chan hovered alongside Marina as they made their way across the lobby. Marina wandered a bit before she approached the vending machines, leaning forward to peruse their inventory of drinks.
"I still can't believe they don't have any milk," Marina said with a small huff. "Oh well, I'll settle with juice."
She selected her drink and, after a moment of thought, purchased another. The two passed by the food court, which was writhing with gossiping people. Word had spread quickly about Raikou's appearance. Pokémon Trainers and even ordinary citizens came to check it out—although none of them were allowed to see the Legendary Pokémon for themselves.
When she arrived at the infirmary doors, Marina nodded supportively at Nurse Joy's steadfast Chansey standing guard. The pink Pokémon smiled and, knowing that the girl was allowed in, let her through.
Compared to the constant chattering in the lobby, the hallway greeted her with a very still silence. It was empty aside from Kenta, who stood beside a large windowsill that overlooked one of the recovery rooms. He wore a very tender look of deep thought and concern. For a moment, she watched him from afar.
I wonder if he looked at me the same way, she wondered. When I was sick back in Cianwood City… Or when—.
She shook her head to chase away the troubling thoughts that began forming in her mind. Taking in a deep breath to prepare herself, Marina closed the gap between her and her friend. Even as she stopped beside him, Kenta failed to notice. She put on a playful little grin and, to get his attention, tapped his cheek with one of the bottles she held.
Kenta nearly jumped out of his skin, and he backed away in shock even as she smiled at him.
"M-Marina?" he stuttered.
"If you don't eat or drink something, your body won't hold up. Here, my treat!" She held out her extra cup of juice. He looked at the drink, glanced back at her and gently took it out of her hand.
"Thanks…"
Marina turned to look through the window. Inside a glass chamber, Raikou rested with its eyes shut. Several electrodes were taped to various parts of its body, but the wires were loose and allowed the feline to move about if it wished. In the corner, the nurse typed away at one of the computers with calculating care.
"How is it?" she asked.
"Right now it's receiving medication. It finally calmed down and fell asleep a little while ago."
"That's good," she said with great relief. "Raikou really wasn't happy when it woke up. I thought it was going to break out at any moment."
His expression darkened a bit. "Yeah… But most if its energy is gone. Nurse Joy said it's dangerously low."
"Then it's a good thing we took it here like you said; I didn't know that Electric-type Pokémon got so weak when they used too much electricity."
I never really had the chance to find out, since Amber doesn't like to fight and all, she added inwardly.
"…Thank you, Marina."
Confused, she turned to see him smiling at the drink in his hand. She giggled a bit.
"It's okay! It's just something I picked up from the vending machines."
"Not that," Kenta lifted his head to look at her, "For using Perish Song. Your Misdreavus got pretty hurt back there."
"Yeah," her smile turned somewhat modest, "I don't use it very often. But back there, I had no choice."
Well technically I did, but Lapras—oh geez; there I go again thinking about it. She quickly turned to Muu-chan, who listened to the conversation with a patient pleasantness.
"Muu-chan is my trump card. We actually didn't get along at first because I was still a rookie, but after we worked together to defeat Ecruteak City's Gym Leader we've been friends ever since!" Marina leaned over to nuzzle her Misdreavus lovingly. "Like two peas in a pod, right Muu-chan?"
"Muu," Muu-chan said in her typically calm manner, though she snuggled back in return.
Marina giggled, turning her gaze toward her friend. Kenta wasn't responsive however, and seemed to have fallen back into his thoughts as he stared somberly at the sleeping tiger. The girl's merry attitude waned as she realized that she was ignored and failed to cheer him up.
The automatic doors leading to the lobby opened, making a soft sound that was clearly noticeable in the quiet medical bay. She turned to see Eusine charging in, but before she could properly react, the swift gentleman had already reached them and began looking through the glass with the elation of a child.
"Excuse me!" he said as he pretty much forced the young Trainers to step away from him to make room. A broad smile crossed his face. "Whoa, this is definitely Raikou! No mistaking it! How extraordinary! Just like Suicune, being able to see Raikou with my own eyes is—!"
"Oh hi, Eu—." Marina stopped herself mid-sentence.
In spite of this, Kenta took notice. He looked over his shoulder at her, eyebrows raised. "You?"
Crap! Think of something, Marina, quick! She hastily thought.
"Um, you…uh—." She made sure to focus only on Eusine as she put on a giddy face and pushed passed Kenta. "You look really handsome! I just wanted to say that! Hahaha!" Laughing nervously, she bowed and blurted out, "By the way, I'm Marina Shimizu. I believe this is the first time we've ever met, so nice to meet you!"
Eusine regarded her with genuine confusion at first. Marina's eyes glanced over at Kenta, and the unconvinced expression he directed at her caused her face to heat up in embarrassment.
Oh geez, he can see right through it can't he? She struggled to keep a straight face. That was so bad, so overdone. Eusine help me out here! The flustered girl tried to express this with a frantic stare, which seemed to work as the young man straightened his posture and looked at her inquisitively.
"Nice to meet you too, young lass," Eusine said in an eloquent tone. "But why are you here? Did you sneak in because your curiosity got the best of you?" He made his typical dramatic hand gestures as he continued, "I wouldn't blame either of you if you did. The sight of a Legendary Beast in league with Suicune and Entei is certainly a sight to behold!"
"Don't worry; they are the ones who saved Raikou."
Eusine halted his theatrical mannerisms. The three turned back toward the entrance to see a casually dressed man with olive skin walking toward them. Beside him was a female police officer who, similarly to him, toted rich cobalt blue hair.
"Ah, well if it isn't Kudou! What an uncanny coincidence."
"Yeah. It's been a while, Eusine," Kudou responded in a somewhat stiff manner. Eusine seemed oblivious to this, however, as he flicked the fringe of his short cape and continued on with as much enthusiasm that he had before.
"Indeed, long time no see!"
"Officer Jenny," Kenta interrupted and stepped forward to look at the police officer quizzically. "Who are these people?"
"It's okay, they aren't suspicious characters," Jenny responded with an assuring nod.
"I am Kudou, archeologist and researcher," greeted Kudou as he acknowledged the young Trainers, "I came here at the request of Professor Elm."
"Oh yeah! We were expecting you," Marina exclaimed. She cast a hesitant glance at the boy standing beside her. "My name's Marina, and this is my friend Kenta."
"And I am Eusine," the gentleman in the purple tuxedo joined in. He bowed in an elegant fashion as he said, "I study the Legendary Pokémon of Johto—an expert on Suicune in particular."
"Nice to meet you," Kenta said to Eusine and Kudou with a well-mannered nod.
The group then began to discuss the events that had occurred earlier that day. The young Trainers recounted the incident with as much detail as possible so that Eusine and Kudou were on the same page as them and the policewoman. Whenever the knowledgeable men revealed some information about the Legendary Beasts, Marina would join in with some trivia of her own. Kenta grew quieter as time went on, but she knew he was being the most attentive of them all. A good listener, he looked at whoever was speaking with indisputable focus.
"Have you been able to identify the culprits, officer?" asked Kudou.
"Yes," Officer Jenny said. "The men who attacked Raikou have been reported to be snatching up wild Pokémon unethically across Johto in the past few months. And as Marina suspected, they have a strong connection with Team Rocket."
"Team Rocket?!" Eusine exclaimed.
"Those guys?" Kenta suddenly asked. "What would they want with Raikou?"
"To use it as a weapon, no doubt," answered Jenny. "With Raikou's power, they would be far too dangerous."
Eusine turned away with a defiant frown. "How despicable. A Legendary Pokémon chooses its Trainer, not the other way around."
Marina nodded in agreement. Kenta shared the man's disdain as he glared down at the floor. In this brief absence of conversation, Kudou nodded to himself as if confirming an idea in his head. He then eyed the group around him.
"That isn't a good sign," he said. "The more I learn about this situation, the more Raikou's demeanor makes sense."
"How?" Marina asked.
"Raikou once coexisted peacefully with humans," Eusine interjected. His tone carried a sense of solemnity. "However, there came people who wanted to abuse its power. The same could be said for Electric-type Pokémon overall; there was a time when people used them mercilessly as generators without giving them the proper care they needed."
The girl's eyes widened as she recalled the group of Electrode that were hooked up to the generator in Team Rocket's hideout. She frowned in empathy.
Those poor things…
"Unlike Suicune who was revered as a messenger for Ho-Oh, and Entei who was respected for its stern and destructive power of fire, Raikou was hunted specifically for its seemingly unlimited energy. They say its trust in humans was broken ever since."
Kudou nodded and added, "Raikou has a deep longing to protect electric Pokémon, which has earned it the title 'Guardian of Thunder'. It could probably sense that those wild Pokémon Team Rocket attacked were in danger, so it jumped in to save them. With this fresh in its mind, it is somewhat understandable that it distrusted you two."
"That's why Raikou wouldn't let us near it," Marina replied. She carried Muu-chan's lightweight body in her arms as the little ghost had fallen asleep, petting it gently. "Those thunderbolts really were warning us off. That glare it gave us just seemed to shout, 'don't you dare touch me!' Even though we were just trying to help it…"
Everyone stood in somber silence. Marina looked back up with a worried look.
"Was it really a good idea to bring it here?"
Kenta turned to her fully. "There was no way we were just going to leave Raikou behind like that."
"But what about its feelings?" she asked in return. "Raikou probably thinks we're just going to use it like Team Rocket will. The moment it feels better, it might end up hurting someone from fighting its way out of here."
"I know that, but I can't just pretend not to see it in pain, Marina," he fervently argued. He flicked his eyes away from her in discomfort. His voice tapered down as he almost muttered, "Even if Raikou doesn't appreciate the favor, I hope it understands that it can trust us."
Marina watched his conflicted actions without a word, smiling slightly.
That's Kenta… He's still himself when it comes to the things he believes is right, she thought in a bittersweet manner.
"Regardless, we will protect Raikou until it is fully recovered," Eusine declared. He turned to Jenny and Kudou. "They may have failed once, but it's unlikely those poachers will give up so easily."
"We will be on alert in case they return." Officer Jenny accompanied her response with a professional glint in her eyes. "You all can rest easy."
Trusting her words, everyone else began to make way for the exit. Kenta, however, lingered behind. Marina noticed first and turned back to him, followed by the rest of the adults.
"I'll stay here," he volunteered.
"Are you sure? You've been here all day," Marina asked. The boy nodded with a calm smile, having dropped any animosity he had earlier.
"I'll be fine, don't worry." He turned back toward Raikou, his stare hardening with resolve. "I want to be there to reassure it when it wakes up."
Marina formed a tiny grin in return. "Right." She turned away, skipping ahead and activating the double doors upon her approach. With a final look behind her, she gripped Muu-chan tighter as she, Eusine and Kudou left the infirmary.