Hiatus, Day 62
Annastasia, Lucario, Mewtwo, Lil-G, Scarlett, and Bleu had been stuck inside the Tree of Beginning for about two months. Acorn and Aliyah had joined them in an attempt to Teleport them back to the Toka base, only to get stuck as well. The Mew fell sick, and despite the other members of the group giving them all the support they could muster, they weren't getting any better.
And the Tree was dying.
"How are you feeling? Any better?" Annastasia asked the Mew after having them try a new concoction.
"No," Acorn said weakly.
"Aliyah?"
Silence.
"We've exhausted our resources," said Mewtwo.
"Pikachu pi Pika."
"I can feel their aura slipping as well," said Annastasia.
"That means that the fusion is sucking it up. It's using its ability to steal the Mew's aura. My shield can't block that since that monster is stronger than me."
"It's using Malamar's ability to control bodies to control the Mew—the beauty and horror of the monster fusion is that it has the abilities of all Pokémon, including you."
"If we are going to save this Tree, must stop this fusion immediately," said Lucario.
"We already tried using a Night Stone and all it did was give the monster fusion access to Acorn and Aliyah's aura."
"It was a mistake. We should have listened to N and Ash. You have to go alone, be gentle and connect. We will back you up, but we have to do it from a distance."
"It will kill her," said Mewtwo.
"That was always a possibility."
"We can't back down now," said Annastasia. "Those visions I've been getting, those scenes are occurring now. I can't ignore it because I'm scared."
"Pikaaa."
"Scarlett should go with her but the others should stay with us," said Lucario. "It may take you a few tries. If you feel like you are in danger, return immediately."
"I'll go now," Annastasia replied.
"Return the moment something doesn't feel right," said Mewtwo. "It will be hard, but if it puts you in a lot of pain, run away."
"Pikaaa pi ka chu."
"I will," she vowed.
"Be safe," said Lucario. "Thank you for all you have done."
"Ditto," Annastasia responded. "You said it yourself, Lucario: I was born to do this."
"We will be waiting here," said Mewtwo.
Annastasia and Scarlett started walking towards the heart of the Tree of Beginning, using the power of aura that Lucario taught them to guide them there.
After about ten minutes, they came to a unique part of the Tree. It was the only space they had discovered that was open. When they had tried to escape from that spot, they found it was covered by a transparent but powerful force field, supposedly erected by the fusion. The most striking feature was how it allowed them to see the sky, which permitted light. Now it was early evening, and it was just dark enough for the stars to guide through the cold, dark area.
"Pikachu?" Scarlett asked suddenly, her ears perking up quizzically.
"What is it?" Annastasia inquired.
There was a colony of bug-type Pokémon resting just outside the parameters of the force field. Scarlett shouted her name a few times. Then, after a few seconds, someone responded.
"Illuuuumi!"
"Volllllbeat beat!"
"Lumi meeeese!"
The firefly Pokémon flew so that Annastasia and Scarlett could get a full view of them. They continued to chant their names.
"What're you doing up north?" Annastasia inquired. "You should be in the Orange Islands."
"Pikachu pika pi pika."
"Illumise illuu."
"I don't understand," Annastasia responded.
"Pika Pikachu pi pika chu chu."
"Ill Illumise."
The chief Illumise engaged Scarlett in conversation. When they were done, they turned to Annastasia.
"Pika, Pikachu pi," Scarlett said as she did an impression of Michio.
"Michio sent these Pokémon?" said Annastasia.
"Pi!"
"He must be in danger. Is that true?"
"Volbeat vol," one of the Volbeat said as it shook its head.
Every Volbeat and Illumise—twenty-four total—lined up behind her. With another loud exclamation, their chief took off drawing. The other Pokémon eagerly followed her. Annastasia and Scarlett waited, not sure what message they were going to reveal.
"Pikachu? Pika!"
"I guess I couldn't expect anything different from him," Annastasia told Scarlett after she read the message. "It's so sweet. I have to think of something good to say back. Or I can just follow his lead and keep it simple."
"Pikachuuu Piii."
Annastasia turned to the firefly Pokémon. "You all must be exhausted."
"Illumiiiiiiise."
The Tree used to be a place of life and healing. Now it was a place of death and destruction.
"I know it will be hard for you, but try to make it to the White Jade Springs," said Annastasia. "They're about a mile southeast of here. When I was training it helped to restore my energy. It might take a while, maybe a few weeks or longer for you to feel better. There are also medicinal berries surrounding the spring, make sure you eat plenty of those. Then you will be ready to make your way back through Johto and Kanto and to the Orange Islands."
"Illu?"
"I'm not sure what you're saying, but I'm very grateful you came."
Scarlett tried to act something out. Annastasia understood what they meant.
"You want to know if I need anything in return?" she said.
The Pokémon nodded.
"It'd be great if you can stop by Pallet Town and tell my family where I am," Annastasia replied. "I live near the Oak lab, in a lavender home with a magenta roof. If no one is there, please go to the Lab and give this message to Professor Oak. If for some reason he isn't there, his Pokémon definitely will be, as there are hundreds there. Tell them what I told you. Someone in my family can translate."
"Lumi Illumise."
"Beeeeeat."
"I'll write a few sentences in my journal. Since I cannot hand you the paper, just do your best to memorize what I write down. Does that work?" she inquired.
"Luuuu."
"Beeee."
"Great. Maybe each of you can each remember a separate part since there are so many of you," Annastasia suggested.
Annastasia wrote down as many details as she could without making the message too lengthy for the Pokémon to memorize. Then she held it up against the force field and the tired Pokémon studied it.
"You should rest and then come back here. It will be easier to memorize my message once you are re-charged," she told the Pokémon. "The White Jade Springs and those great berries are southeast from here. Let the scent guide you."
The Pokémon chanted their names a few more times, nodded, waved, and then flew off.
"That was a pleasant surprise," Annastasia remarked. "They might help us get out of here. It makes me a little more motivated to do what I am about to do."
"Pikaaaa."
"Thank you for being there for me. That message that Michio sent was for you too. I know it—he loves you too."
"Piiii."
"You're special because you are kind. You've helped so many and we're all grateful to you."
"Pi ka chuuuu."
"Ditto."
XO
Annastasia and Scarlett came into full view of the monster. The creature was enormous; at least twice the size of a Wailord. It had large eyes and long, sharp, teeth like a Gyarados with red cheeks for storing electricity like a Pikachu. Its body was extremely muscular and flexible in considering its incredible length and width. Its arms were large like a Machamp, and its legs were even stranger looking than those of a Dugtrio It had large Scizor-like blades that acted as extra limbs located near different parts on its body. The entire creature was covered in a deep-blue combination of scales and fur, producing a material that has yet to be discovered on any other living creature. It hissed and blew fire in their direction.
"Pikachu pika pi," Scarlett announced. 'We aren't going to fight.'
"You said that last time," it communicated telepathically.
"And we didn't," said Annastasia. "The last time we came we didn't fight."
"But you brought weapons."
"Pikachuuuu! Pi pi!" Scarlett exclaimed. 'Of course, we did, we need to be able to protect ourselves in case you attacked us.'
"She's right," Annastasia responded.
"You can understand the Pikachu?" the beast inquired.
"Yes. I can understand her, a little bit. Other Pokémon as well."
"Through aura."
"Correct. Please listen to us. We won't inflict harm. We just want to understand. You said that humans betrayed Pokémon by manipulating and tricking the Pokémon into conformity. Even humanity's most powerful weapons cannot stand up to Pokémon. Just look at what you are doing to this Tree. You drove the native Pokémon out and trapped us inside. Pokémon can take control of a person's body. They can destroy buildings and manipulate minds, start fires and electrocute people to death. But there's a reason they don't."
"Yet you treat them as second-class."
Annastasia bowed her head. "You're right. We can do better. Many of us have already started making things better. People are studying Pokémon, looking for ways to help make their lives happier and healthier. Thworkingorkign alongside us instead of for us, and it's not just me—it's millions of us. I know it isn't much, but in a few years, things are going to be better. Pokémon will be able to use a wide variety of technology, from appliances to cars, and they would hold positions of honor and power."
"The change is too slow; we've been waiting for centuries."
"Pikachu Pika pi pika pika pi!" said Scarlett. 'Many of us love our trainers and like our roles as Pokémon.'
"That is what you are telling yourself but it isn't true."
"Do you think inciting rebellion will help make things better? What do you plan on doing?" Annastasia questioned.
"Team Rocket believes that capturing Pokémon is just. They need must be destroyed."
"You can't do that."
"What are you going to do about it?"
"People can get hurt, killed, my family and friends—"
"I know who you are. You are famous. Or infamous rather. Very good at capturing powerful Pokémon. Very good at using your gift of aura to manipulate them so that they bend to your will."
"I…I don't do that…"
"Piiiika pi, Piiii!"
"You are foolish," the monster replied. "The worst part is that you wouldn't even have that power if it wasn't for me. And you use it for evil. Annastasia, you are evil. You lie and you manipulate using a defective aura that was given to you by accident. And you can't even admit it to yourself. If you had any sense of dignity, and any concept of love and friendship, you would submit to fate."
"Pika! Pikachu pichu pi!"
'It isn't manipulation if you didn't know that you were doing it,' Annastasia mused. 'Where have I heard that before?'
"You're wrong," Annastasia asserted.
"Another classic: a human assuming she knows better than a Pokémon," the fusion responded. "If you won't surrender your aura, I will just have to take it from you."
"Pik pi chu pika!"
"Why do you care about her life? She's just one human. The world is a better place without her."
"Pikachuuu pi pi ka. Chu pi ka."
"She's right," said Annastasia. "Our auras are symbiotic. If I die, so will you. What would having us both die accomplish?"
"I must do everything in my power to stop Team Rocket," it replied. "And with Scarlett's aura being an extension of ours, as long as she is alive, you can be gone while I persist."
"Team Rocket makes it so that Pokémon and humans can coexist. Destroying them and me for that reason is absurd."
"Forced into battling, forced into Pokeballs, forced to travel. Would you, a human, consent to any of that?" the monster asked.
"I agree that Pokémon often suffer at the hands of humans. However, many trainers—including Team Rocket—treat their Pokémon with kindness and respect. It wasn't always like this for the organization, but it is now."
"You sound like that N character", the monster commented.
"N had a mindset similar to yours once too. He believed that Pokémon and humans were better off avoiding one another, and that Pokémon needed to remain untouched by humans. I agree, as do many others, that if a Pokémon wishes to be free and undisturbed by humans, it should have that right. However, I also believe that Pokémon and humans can live together in society as long as we listen and respect one another. I've seen it. I've lived it."
"Pokémon may get along with their human 'masters' but that isn't the same as equality."
"There is always going to be a struggle. Not all people get along either. Inequality is everywhere. Achieving equity is an ongoing process."
"Pika pika ka chu Pikapi pi," said Scarlett. 'We need you to call off the other fusions, because they are attacking our friends, including our Pokémon friends.'
"If I call them off then nothing will change. I broke free because I wanted change," the monster replied.
"This isn't the right way to do it," Annastasia insisted. "Getting people to change their minds can be difficult but it is possible. Trust me."
"I cannot trust you."
"If you can read my aura you will find that I have nothing to hide."
"You will be able to read my soul too if I do this. You might be disturbed by what you find."
"More disturbing than having you potentially kill my family?"
The fusion contemplated this for a moment. Both Scarlett and Annastasia thought this to be odd since just five minutes previously it was ready to kill her, and now it seemed to be considering her emotions. A few minutes later it finally turned to Annastasia and stared into her turquoise eyes with its large red ones.
"I will read your aura, and you will read mine. If you have ever done with before, then you will know what to do," it said.
Annastasia let herself become hypnotized. She had practiced this technique with Mewtwo, and knew the process was similar to reading a time flower; the reader saw what was relevant to them based on what was in their soul. It took her a long time to master the skill, and she was nervous that she would mess it up due to lack of constant and diligent practice.
As everything became dark, intense pain gripped her body. Lucario told her that any physical pain she felt during a reading was a reflection of emotional pain that the person she was reading was experiencing. Then, like the visions she was so used to having, several images came into view.
She was in a prison. Someone was crying in front of her; it sounded like a woman. It looked like a woman too, based on the shape of her body, but she was just a shadow. Then the image disappeared, and there was just sound.
"Stop, someone is going to hear you. Shut up!" and an angry female voice yelled. She couldn't see where it was coming from. There was another crash, and the crying stopped. 'There', the same voice echoed.
The scene sent shivers up her spine. 'Did I just hear some get killed?' 'What does this have to do this me or the fusion?'
The next image was much less dark. She could see brightly that it was her mother. She couldn't tell where she was, as the background was faded, but her left hand was ring-less and she had a very tiny baby bump. She looked the same as she did now, just a bit younger. She wondered for a moment how the fusion could possibly have an image of her mother stored in its memory, and then soon realized what it meant.
"Stop!" Annastasia yelled. "I'm done. I know what happens next. Please stop!"
To her relief, everything faded out and within a few seconds, she was back in the heart of the Tree, the fusion and Scarlett watching her.
"Humans did that. They forced Pokémon to help," said the monster. "Pokémon would never do such a thing willingly. Humans trapped Pokémon souls and abilities and put them into these devices. When they extracted a Pokémon's ability, they took with their aura. That aura remained when humans decided to once again extract those abilities and to build a Pokémon from the assault weapons they had stolen. I am the result of their favorite weapon, the one they used to kill the most. You and I are composed of hundreds of auras that have been reconfigured into one powerful one. The same would be true for your mother if it wasn't for the fact that you were there. You sucked up the aura. That is why we are symbiotic beings."
"If the weapon was used to kill people, does that mean we have those auras too?"
"Yes."
"Chu Pi Pikachupi Pikachu. Pik Piiiiiii Pi ka chuu chu Pikapi Pikachupi pi," said Scarlett. "And I have that aura too because I was attacked by the weapon. That same day.'
"You were…why?"
'I was trying to help your mother, but I failed before I could. I almost died, but I lived. Acorn and Aliyah were injured and sick at the same time. I know because Ash's Bulbasaur, who still lives at Professor Oak's Lab, told me. All the Pokémon there were wondering if I was a Mew, because of my ability and because I came from Toka. They knew the Tree was dying, then Mime Jr. told us about how the twins were also sick during that time.'
"I had no idea…you never told me."
'If I had succeeded in helping your mother, it would have been better for everyone. But I couldn't and didn't so the point is moot."
Annastasia turned her attention back to the monster.
"Don't blame all of humanity for something a few people did," she asserted. "If you keep with up, everyone in the world will suffer."
"Everyone in your world will suffer," it replied. "Not in mine."
"Can't you see that everything's connected?"
"These connections are what doomed us in the first place."
"The connections aren't good or bad, they just exist—and you know that. All Pokémon inherently know that."
"Piiikaaaka!"
"As do I…"
"Please listen to me. If you stay here, we'll lose everything. This Tree of Beginning will die. It is this Tree that allows there to be life and peace it the world. Opposing armies see the Tree's aura shine and all tension between them stops. The origin of every Pokémon lies within this Tree. No one knows for certain what will happen if it perishes, but some legends say that it means that all auras will cease to exist, as will all life on the planet."
The fusion was silent, clearly mulling over Annastasia's words. Scarlett didn't say anything either.
"You are not giving me a choice," the fusion responded.
"There is always a choice," said Annastasia. "Everyone always has a choice. Even if the options suck." For a moment she almost smiled at the familiarity of her words. "You can always choose."
"I need to think about what to do once I get out of here. You can go, but your Pokémon 'friends' must stay here with me."
"Why?"
"Because they are Pokémon."
"Pikaaaaa!"
"Scarlett's right; we're family, plus there's a blizzard out there. I'll freeze out there alone. I at least need one of them to help me."
"If you are worthy of my trust, you will be strong-willed enough to make it back to your family, alive. If you do, come back to this Tree and I will let you in, maybe. It doesn't matter to me if you die. With Scarlett alive, I can ensure that it won't come down to just you and me: if you die now, I will not."
"You said I was the cruel one, yet you have no problem banishing me to frozen mountains with nothing but some minimal supplies. Will isn't enough to keep any human alive out there."
"Your Mew friends used to spend days out there playing. Rumor has it your grandmother Miyamoto was killed trying to find them for the same organization you now worship. How ironic would it be if you died trying to create distance between you and those same Mew? I wonder how you mother would feel about that."
"It would destroy her."
"Come back alive and I will have a newfound respect for you."
"Deal."
"Pika chu! Pika pi!"
"I know, but it will be better for us all. I have my backpack with my most essential gear. Tell Lucario and the others about my decision."
"Piiiika!"
"You are either suicidal or valiant," said the fusion.
"The latter," Annastasia replied. "I hope."
With all its cogency, Annastasia was forced, alone, into the storm. The monster fusion then turned to Scarlett.
"Your life will be better without her."
"Pikaaaa!"
"Now you have that Alolan trainer all to yourself."
"Pikachu Pikaaa!"
"Get out of here."
Scarlett electrocuted the fusion, who responded by whipping her across the cave. Scarlett fainted from the force. The fusion approached it.
"You think you are tough," it remarked. "But you are just an average, stupid, and worthless Pikachu."
XO
IN THE NEXT CHAPTER
· Michio gets to Pallet
· Annastasia is banished
· Taken by surprise