Creation began on 08-23-16
Creation ended on 10-21-16
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Rage, Power, Gyarados
"…So, he knows you're involved in an experiment with this creature here?" Misato asked Kensuke, an hour after he was made to wake up from the induced coma that enabled him to project his mind into the dimension Shinji was in when the monitoring ceased.
"Yeah," Kensuke answered her, "he also hopes that I don't get back into the Eva at all. I'm the only familiar face he's seen there that's from around here, and he's seen only two faces there that were familiar because he sees them every time he goes to the Pokemon Center."
"Um, what's a Pokemon Center?" Antonio asked him.
"It's a hospital for Pokemon."
"Basically, an animal hospital."
"Yeah, one in nearly every city or town."
"Traveling around the region, catching Pokemon, facing gyms that specialize in certain types of Pokemon, and competing for this Pokemon League." Misato spoke.
"And he's trying out for this league where hundreds of people want to be the best."
"And he just got into this all shortly after he appeared in that world?" Antonio asked him.
"Yeah."
-x-
Once he learned that there was a hidden Pokemon Gym on Cinnabar Island that specialized in Fire-Type Pokemon, Shinji, taking the time to explore the island, decided that he needed to change up the roster of his Pokemon if he wanted to stand a chance against the gym leader. He knew that he would be keeping Rei in his roster; now that she was evolved, she was all the more stronger, and because she was now a large serpent (and a large serpent that saved his life, no less), it would make traveling by water all the more easy because he discovered that Gyarados could swim faster than most speedboats and was among the best Pokemon to have at your side if you traveled by sea. As he had Rei swim around the island, he, Misato and Asuka were on her back, enjoying the calm breeze.
So far, he would use Rei and Asuka (as he promised his Charmeleon that she would be involved in the next gym match), but if he were to use three Pokemon, he needed to decide on whether to stick with Toji or change out with a different Pokemon at Prof. Oak's.
Well, I'm not leaving this place until we get that badge, I'll stick with Rei, Asuka and Toji until further notice, he decided, impressed with Rei's speed as she swam around the island. "You're doing great, Rei! You're amazing!"
"Rrrraurgh!" Rei hissed happily.
"Eevo!" Misato praised her.
"Charmeleon!" Asuka added in.
-x-
"…We'll be ready to begin momentarily," a female nurse informed Kensuke as he was being prepped for another sojourn journey to the Pokemon world with just his consciousness. "Are you ready to travel back?"
"Yes, ma'am," he answered her, laying down on the medical cot as she injected the barbiturate solution into his IV drip. "They have hot springs on Cinnabar Island because of the volcano…and…Shinji has a giant, red sea serpent that…saved…his life…"
With the drug now taking effect, the boy fell to sleep.
-x-
It wasn't a difficult challenge for Shinji to figure out what the riddle on the card a stranger on the street gave him when he, Misato and Asuka were trying to find lodgings for the duration of their time here on the island after they discovered that the Pokemon Center was over-flooded with tourists. But the fact that the riddle was referring to a clock left him bothered by the fact that he was a stranger in a strange land that he was slowly becoming adjusted towards traveling in…and all he had was time…until he could find a way back to his world. After locating the inn called The Big Riddle Inn and gaining a free room for the duration of his time on the island, Shinji was given a second riddle by the same guy that gave him the card on the street.
"The Gym Leader you're looking for, Blaine," the stranger and innkeeper explained to him, "built his gym in a place where a firefighter could never win."
As he fed his Pokemon dinner, Shinji pondered on the possible location of where Blaine built his gym. So far, he couldn't understand where a firefighter could never win, since there weren't that many fires present where he was from; he hadn't seen any fires with the sole exceptions of the Angel attacks and the use of N² explosives.
"Where could a firefighter never win?" He wondered as he tossed another batch of tablets into Rei's mouth. "Probably a place where water is scarce."
"Or the inside of a volcano, Shinji," he heard someone say behind him.
"Oh!" He gasped, turning around and seeing Kensuke. "How long were you standing there?"
"Before you questioned where could a firefighter never win," Kensuke answered him. "You haven't fought the Gym Leader or Badge Guardian yet?"
"You've only been gone for less than a day since I got out of the hospital. We've found this hotel just three hours ago after figuring out a riddle on how to get here."
Kensuke then looked at Rei, who, despite being one of his friend's Pokemon and having to listen to whatever he said, was intimidated by her fierce appearance.
"I gotta own up to it, Shinji," he told him. "Rei scares me a little. There, I finally said."
Shinji petted Rei's mouth and told Kensuke, "I don't blame you for feeling frightened by Rei. She's a Gyarados now, not a Magikarp. Gyarados are known as Atrocious Pokemon for their rage and tantrums. They can go for days locked in anger, but if anger can be limited or tempered, then any Gyarados can be not just a reliable ally…but a great friend to get you out of a jam."
"Like how she evolved and saved you from drowning?"
"Yeah. But there's no anger really involved in evolving. I mean… Not all the time. There can be other emotions involved in evolution. I'm not entirely sure what Rei's emotions were when she evolved, but I can assume that they included concern for Misato, Asuka and I. My Pidgeotto, Kensuke, evolved to prove that he wasn't weak any longer to those that believed him to be, and that was because I put in the effort to help him bring out his true strength. Not many Pokemon Trainers see the potential in their Pokemon unless they're strong in ways they want, not ways they can adapt to. But whenever I look at them, I see true strength that can surprise you. Even if and when they lose a battle or match, it doesn't change what I have seen in them. I like each and every one of my Pokemon…and I hope that they like me in return."
Kensuke looked at Rei again and calmly approached her and Shinji.
"Is it…okay to touch Rei?" He asked Shinji.
"Yes, of course," he answered. "Just…not too roughly, though."
He raised his left hand up and placed it on the right side of the red serpent's head. It was strange. Her scales, like armor, were like smooth, curved plates of marble. And they glistened, too, like she was a living piece of jewelry that Shinji just obtained recently.
"Beautiful," he expressed.
Shinji then recalled something, and ran over to his bag and pulled out the camcorder.
"Here," he told Kensuke.
"Huh?"
"I can't film my gym matches at the same time as I participate in them. And you're the one that usually films whatever you can that deals with the military."
"Oh. You can count on me to film your success."
"Success and failure. No shame in viewing where you can improve in a conflict or something similar."
-x-
"…So long as Unit-04 remains off the combat roster, the Fourth Child can't be used for anything beyond synchronization testing," went Ritsuko to Gendo in the latter's office. "And if the Fourth Child is the only one so far that is able to contact the Third Child in this other world he is in, it would seem the Giovanni Corporation has the right to ask him for his aid if he is free to offer it."
"And if Unit-04 were no longer suspended from active duty?" Gendo suggested.
"Then it would be a completely different matter. The Giovanni Corporation wouldn't be able to use him as much."
"Make sure that Unit-04 is working order."
"Yes, sir."
If he couldn't get access to that creature or get that organization to bend for him, Gendo would make sure that they would be hindered as much as possible. It wasn't that he didn't expect them to be able to aid his son by watching and monitoring his exploits, but NERV had no time to waste against the Angels if they were short-staffed on pilots for their Evas. And if it meant separating the Third and Fourth Children from one another, then so be it.
-x-
"…So, assuming that there is a gym in the volcano," Misato heard Kensuke say to Shinji the next day on the monitor as they were at this inn near the volcano that he was likely to be talking about, "are you sure you want your three Pokemon to be the ones you selected for the upcoming match?"
"Against the possibility of Fire-Types, Rei, Asuka and Toji are likely my best bet to obtain my seventh badge," Shinji explained.
"Except that Rei's your only Water-Type currently with you."
"While on this journey and facing many different trainers and Gym Leaders, I've learned that it takes more than just a type advantage to overcome your opponent. There's also leveling, strengthening the Pokemon you have with you and strengthening the ones you need to train in order to face a future opponent. I haven't used Rei in any of my battles or matches, but now that she's evolved from all the time I've spent with her, she's strong and developed greater strength, there's more to her than just battling. How else can one travel from one place to another in a large body of water when a boat or plane is unavailable? Also, I promised Asuka that she would compete in the next match, and Toji's a Rock/Ground-Type, which are able to take extreme heat."
"How are you able to know all this, Shinji?"
"As a Pokemon Trainer, I have a responsibility to learn all that I can about Pokemon, their types and specialties, strengths and weaknesses, their diets and habitats, their evolutionary requirements. And there's not just the standard profession. There are Pokemon Breeders, Doctors and Collectors, Pokemon Stylists, Performers, Coordinators, Pokemon Trainers that aren't always who they appear to be, ranging from Swimmers to Janitors, Hikers or even Scientists and Cyclists."
Misato was about to turn away from the monitor to get some coffee when she heard Shinji gasp.
"Misato, wait! That water's too hot for you to bathe in!" He yelled, and Misato saw him try to get the small, fox-like animal that he nicknamed after her climbing atop a fountain shaped similarly to the serpent he nicknamed after Rei Ayanami pouring hot water into a nearby hot spring.
The fountain began to sink into the spring by a few inches…and then a large wall of stone moved away from the side of the hill, revealing an entrance to a tunnel.
"Whoa," Shinji gasped, and his Eevee ran back to him and climbed atop his left shoulder.
"Eevo," she went.
"It looks like you're right, Shinji," she heard Kensuke say to him. "Let's go see where this hidden gym is in the inferno."
"So many professions relating around these Pokemon," went Antonio to Misato. "I'm starting to feel jealous of the young man."
"Oh, don't feel jealous of him," Misato told him. "He is trying to survive there until he catches enough of these animals to get back to this dimension."
"Say he succeeds, just as it's likely the Giovanni Corporation can succeed in achieving inter-dimensional travel, how will his experience there have changed him?"
Misato found herself wondering how Shinji will have changed from his time in a world where there wasn't any actual threat to mankind, trying to get back to one where there was, and not just from the archived footage of him as an older person that may have spent many decades wandering around.
Ring-ring! Her cell phone rang.
"Katsuragi," she spoke as she answered it. "What do you mean? I thought it was put in cryostasis. What did he authorize that for?! Well, it's not like we can have them wake him right now. He's in a drug-induced coma with his consciousness in the other dimension with Shinji."
She then hung up and sighed.
"Something happened that won't sync up with what we're currently doing?" Antonio asked her.
"Yeah," she answered him. "How soon will he awaken from his sojourn coma in the other dimension?"
"At least three days; he was just put back into a coma so we could study the monitoring data we record from him. You can't just wake him after injecting him with enough to last three days. That's like treating addiction with a dull needle; the method you use to help will only lead to more harm."
"Hot mama!" They both turned back to the monitoring screens and saw Shinji and Kensuke inside a large chamber that resembled an underground battlefield, complete with torches lining the stone walls, two pairs of iron doors and a large field built atop a large rock that protruded from a large pool of lava, accessible by several smaller pillars of stone to serve as paths; it was Kensuke, filming the place. "Not even a fire truck could win against a volcano."
-x-
Blaine's hidden gym truly was in the volcano, and it proved to be where nobody had ever seen before; Shinji had seen the lava inside of a volcano before, but never a battlefield inside one!
"Welcome!" He looked at the other side of the gym and saw the hotel manager from before. "How do you like the modified gym?"
"Impressive, but who are you? Are a Badge Guardian representing the Cinnabar Island Gym?" Shinji asked him.
"It's not a hat, but it keeps your head dry, and if you wear it, then it's only because you lost it."
"An umbrella?" Kensuke suggested to Shinji.
"You don't wear an umbrella because you lost something," he told him, trying to understand what the answer was most likely to be. "Is the answer…a wig? That's not a hat, but it keeps your head dry, and you only wear one if you've lost your hair."
"Quite right," the manager expressed, though his voice now sounded different, and he removed his red hair, revealing a bald top with gray hair on the sides. "I'm not a Badge Guardian. I am Blaine, the Gym Leader, and you're the second most qualified trainer to challenge me for the Volcano Badge."
"Second?" Kensuke questioned.
"He's referring to the Pokemon Trainer before me," Shinji suspected. "He's currently on a journey in the Johto Region."
"Shall a three-on-three battle with no time limit suit you?" Blaine suggested.
"That works for me. I'll let you go first."
Blaine took out a Poke Ball and threw it out onto the field, releasing a Pokemon that Shinji hadn't seen before, but felt he'd seen something related to it. It looked like a dog-like creature with a creamy color, slender shape, and nine tails growing out of its base.
"Ninetales," it went.
"What is that Pokemon?" He wondered, taking out his Pokedex to identify it.
"Ninetales, the Fox Pokemon," went Dexter, "and the evolved form of Vulpix. Some cultures have come to believe that due to their nine tails, these Pokemon are able to live very long lives by means of possessing mystical powers."
Shinji also discovered that it was a Fire-Type, something which suited Blaine's preface.
"So beautiful," went Kensuke, already filming everything.
He then took out the Great Ball with Asuka's name and threw it out onto the field.
"You're up first, Asuka!" He called out, and the female Charmeleon was unleashed.
"Char!" Asuka hissed.
"A Charmeleon, huh?" Blaine questioned, but then noticed the lack of a tail flame. "What happened to its flame?"
"She took an Ice Beam and survived," Shinji explained, keeping it simple and brief. "But she's tough. Are you ready?"
"Never fought a Pokemon with a handicap like this before, but I don't go easy on any of my opponents. Ninetales, use Flamethrower!"
"Asuka, you counter with Flamethrower, too!"
Both Pokemon spat out fire at each other, and the flames collided into each other, causing an explosion. When the smoke cleared, the Ninetales had jumped through the smokescreen and tackled Asuka to the ground, biting her left wrist.
"Char!" She gasped.
"Asuka, Slash!" Shinji gasped.
Asuka used her right arm and managed to slash at Ninetales' waist, forcing it to back away.
"Nine!" It growled.
"Okay, now use Tail Whip," Shinji told her.
"Fire Spin, Ninetales!" Blaine ordered.
The Fox Pokemon spat out another stream of fire at Asuka, but it encircled her until it enveloped her completely in flame.
"Charmeleon!" Asuka, within the flames, growled and went after Ninetales.
"Nine!"
BASH! She struck the Ninetales with full-force tackle, sending it to the ground as the flames surrounding her body dissipated.
"Nine…tales…" Ninetales grunted, trying to get up, but failed.
"Whoa, Asuka," said Shinji, surprised by the power she had unleashed. "Nice going."
Blaine was equally surprised by his Ninetales being defeated by a Charmeleon without a flame on its tail, and recalled it back into its Poke Ball.
"Impressive," he congratulated Shinji, "but let's see how you fare against my next Pokemon. Come on out, Rhydon!"
He threw another ball and the new Pokemon Shinji saw was undeniably like that of the Pokemon he had encountered back at the Pewter City Pokemon Gym, only bigger, standing on two legs and had a tail to go with a large drill on its head.
"Rhydon?" He questioned, looking it up on his Pokedex.
"Rhydon, the Drill Pokemon, and the evolved form of Rhyhorn. Due to its armored hide, this Pokemon can survive in volcanic temperatures reaching thirty-six-hundred degrees."
"That's not a Fire-Type at all, is it, Shinji?" Kensuke asked.
"Nope," he answered him. "Asuka, take a break! Switch out!"
Asuka obeyed and returned to her ball.
"Your turn, Rei!" He threw out new ball and unleashed his Gyarados onto the field. "Oh!"
He didn't take into account the size of the gym or its potential incompatibility with whatever Pokemon that were chosen, and so far, Rei didn't seem to fit due to her size.
"Rrrraurgh!" Rei roared, coiling up to make herself smaller.
"I'm sorry, Rei," Shinji apologized to her.
"Never expected to see a trainer with a Gyarados before," Blaine expressed. "I was expecting smaller Water Pokemon, like Tentacruel or Slowbro, even a Golduck. You're full of surprises."
Rei looked down at the Rhydon and growled at it.
"Grr!" Rhydon growled back.
"Horn Drill, Rhydon!" Blaine ordered.
Horn Drill is a move that causes enough harm to you that you don't get back up after it hits you, Shinji realized the severity of what could happen to Rei if she took a direct hit from Rhydon. "Rei, use Hydro Pump on Rhydon!"
Because she had recently evolved and gained strength to achieve greater feats, this included new attacks that made her powerful.
Rei opened her mouth and unleashed a large stream of water that shot out of her like a jet!
"Whoa!" Kensuke gasped, getting this on film.
The Hydro Pump made contact with Rhydon and forced the Drill Pokemon backwards.
"Grrraurgh!" Rhydon roared, unable to regain its footing on the field, and losing strength in its endurance from the extreme water pressure in the attack. "Grrraurgh!"
It was sent flying backwards and into the volcano wall, smashing into it and left dazed.
"Rrraurgh!" Rei roared in triumph.
Blaine recalled Rhydon and expressed, "Excellent way to win the second round. One attack to counter a TKO. You must have some luck on your side today."
"It's not always luck, sir," Shinji responded. "I put my faith in what my Pokemon can do. They're skillful and tougher than anything I've seen."
"But we'll see how well you can stand up to my last Pokemon, since it has the very power of a volcano," Blaine told them.
Shinji was puzzled by this. He knew Electric Pokemon could produce over several thousand volts that were enough to paralyze a person, how Poison Pokemon could cause rashes and spread common illnesses, even how Rock and Ground Pokemon could trigger earthquakes by stomping on the ground. But he didn't believe in there being Pokemon that could harness the power of a volcano.
"I've only been a trainer for almost nine months, and I've never heard of any Pokemon with the power of a volcano," he explained to Blaine.
"Well, then, you're in for a surprise," Blaine told him. "Come out now, Magmar!"
The lava in front of the Gym Leader exploded into the air as something started appearing from deep within it. Whatever it was, it didn't seem that big, probably only as big as a person.
Kensuke recorded the lava as it stopped flowing up and he saw some sort of Pokemon that looked like it was made of fire.
"Oh, man!" He gasped.
"Eee!" Misato gasped, hiding behind Shinji's legs.
The creature was unlike anything Shinji had seen in the past. It was camouflaged perfectly to blend in with fire, with a flame on its tail like Asuka did before she lost it from an Ice Beam attack, with what appeared to black bands on its neck and legs, spikes on its back and a strange snout that made Shinji think of a picture of a duck he had seen a few weeks ago.
"Magmar?" Shinji questioned, using his Pokedex to identify it.
"Magmar, the Spitfire Pokemon," Dexter addressed. "With a body similar to that of a furnace, Magmar is a living inferno. They have only been found near active volcanoes."
Probably living in molten lava for years, Shinji thought, suspecting that this was what Blaine meant by having the power of a volcano. Judging from how Blaine saved it for last, it must be his strongest. Asuka's got pride for facing strong opponents.
He recalled Rei and had Asuka go back out.
"Charmeleon," she growled at Magmar.
"Magmar," it responded, raising its claws up defensively. "Mag."
-x-
"…The Fourth Child won't be able to return to active duty until he's recovered from the barbiturates he's under by the Giovanni Corporation," Ritsuko informed Gendo in his office.
"And how long will that be?" He asked her, not really caring so long as the pilot was back in the Eva by the time of the next attack.
"He was recently put under for their project again, so he'll be like this for at least three days."
"Is there any way to bring him out of it any faster?"
"Not without risking any harm to the pilot."
"Very well."
-x-
As Misato and Antonio continued to watch the match between Shinji and Blaine on the monitors, Shinji's Charmeleon was showing herself to be quite a persistent combatant, almost like her redhead namesake was in her Eva. She had been pummeled, burned, scratched and slammed around the field, but she kept getting back up and coming back for more.
"Your Charmeleon has a lotta pride, young man," said Blaine to Shinji, "but I get the feeling that you two haven't been together for a long time."
"Only two-and-a-half months," Shinji explained; Misato was beginning to wonder if he kept track of how long he had each Pokemon he caught to pass the time. "It's a sensitive subject."
"Coming from you, my best guess is that you found it during a difficult time. I did read an article once about an abandoned Charmeleon causing trouble for a few trainers traveling between Saffron and Celadon City a while back. Could this be the one that was attacking others?"
They could all see Asuka snarling, and Shinji just responded, "Her previous trainer didn't see her for what she could be, how strong she could become."
"I guess this saying's true, then. One trainer's discarded Pokemon is another trainer's grand achievement. It's such a cruel fate with only the promise of a different future."
"It's cruel if anyone casts you aside for unjust reasons. Asuka, try Fire Blast!"
Asuka spat out a large fireball, but then needed to catch her breath as she fell to her left knee.
Magmar took her Fire Blast head-on and was only mildly scorched.
"Magmar!" It went.
Shinji could see that Asuka was exhausted, almost at her limit, and needed to rest more.
"Asuka, tag out! Tag out!" He ordered her, holding out Toji's Poke Ball.
Asuka looked at him and sighed in acceptance; as much as she would have preferred to go out fighting this enemy, her new trainer seemed to know when she needed to stop for now. She vacated the field and fell onto her back.
"Char."
"Eevo," went Misato to her, congratulating her for her intense fighting against Magmar.
"Charmeleon."
"Okay, Toji, you're up next!" Shinji threw the new ball and released Toji, who was only intimidated by the sight of Magmar for a few seconds before putting on a tough exterior.
"Larvitar!" He growled.
"Now, that's a strange Pokemon there," went Blaine. "That's from the Johto Region, isn't it?"
"Yes, but I caught him here in the Kanto Region," Shinji explained. "You ready, Toji?"
"Tar!" Toji responded.
"Okay, use Stone Edge!"
Toji raised his arms up and the ground around him shot up two rings of stone shards that floated around his body before being sent flying at Magmar like bullets.
"Magmar!" Magmar grunted, using the superheated air around its body to reduce most of the stone shards to pieces of dirt before they could harm it, but some of them were able to slip past its defenses and harm it considerably.
"Magmar, use your Fire Blast!" Blaine commanded.
Blast! Magmar spat out a large fireball at Toji.
"Evade it with Dig, Toji!" Shinji told him, and the Larvitar dug quickly into the ground, avoiding the Fire Blast.
"Dig?" Kensuke asked Shinji.
"Before I went to Fuchsia City, I taught Toji how to use Dig during training," he explained.
Magmar looked around the field, unsure of where the Larvitar would pop up and attack.
CRACK! The ground under it buckled and it was head-butted by the Larvitar, sending it falling backwards onto the ground.
"Tar!" Toji cheered for himself with pride.
"Mag!" Magmar sneered, and tail-whipped Toji away, surprising him.
"Tar…" He groaned, unable to get up. "Tar."
Shinji could see that he was unable to continue, and recalled him back into his ball. He had considered sending out Rei to finish Magmar, but then looked at Asuka, who was facing him, looking a little rested from her earlier fight.
"Asuka…are you ready found for round three?" He asked her.
The Charmeleon looked down at Misato, who nodded in the positive and encouraged her to get out there and win it all.
"Meleon!" She turned back to Shinji and nodded that she was ready to fight against Magmar.
Suddenly, the screens started to get static.
"What the…" Antonio went, turning a knob and hitting a switch.
"Something's affecting the power!" One of the male technicians shouted.
"Where are we with the emergency generators?" Antonio asked.
"Coming online right now," a female technician answered.
The main lights then shorted out and the cameras that were being used on Palkia shut down, leaving the monitoring connection between this dimension and the other dimension cut off.
"We've lost the connection," the male technician revealed.
"What about Mr. Aida?" Antonio asked.
"Vitals are stable," a male nurse revealed, even though the medical equipment used to monitor him weren't working.
"Looks like the entire building took a hit," Misato suggested, and Antonio answered his cell phone.
"Yes?" He spoke, and sighed. "Understood."
"It is just the building, right?"
"Wrong. It looks like the entire city's experiencing a blackout. This is bad."
"How bad?"
"Without power for the majority of our needs, we won't be able to monitor either the other dimension or keep track of Mr. Aida's condition while he's under. We still have enough on the backup generators to keep the lights and Palkia's containment cell intact, but beyond these, we're dead in the water."
Misato got worried. If they couldn't keep an eye on Shinji, they wouldn't be able to know what he was doing or know from Kensuke until he woke up from the barbiturates in his system…and that was if he could still be in the other dimension while the conditions were off.
-x-
"Huh?" Kensuke went, getting a strange feeling for a moment before it ended.
Shinji's Charmeleon had managed to score several hits at Magmar, but she was still in need of rest.
"Char…char…char…" She panted; her ragged breathing and drool escaping her mouth.
"Your Charmeleon is tough, but there's no way it can keep going," Blaine told Shinji. "Sadly, it looks like Magmar can barely go on, either."
"Mag…mar…" Magmar panted.
Asuka then looked back at Shinji, and he looked concern for her.
"Asuka," he uttered, "it's alright to stop now. You've done enough."
"Eevo," Misato agreed with him.
Asuka gave in and collapsed on the field.
Shinji held out her ball and recalled her back into it.
"We're both tied," he told Blaine, "but I intend to win this."
"I know you do."
Shinji then threw out Rei's ball and she returned to the field.
"Rrraaurgh!" She hissed as she coiled up.
Magmar looked up at her and smirked; there was no way it could lose to a Water-Type.
"Rei, Hydro Pump," Shinji commanded.
"Magmar, use Fire Blast! Turn that Gyarados into sushi!" Blaine ordered.
Rei inhaled deeply as Magmar spat out a large ball of fire that was the biggest Shinji had seen so far. Then she spat out a huge stream of water that made contact with the fire attack, creating steam from the friction caused by the evaporation. But the strength of the Hydro Pump had to have been stronger, as the remaining water struck Magmar and it steamed up, possibly from the fact that it possessed a high body temperature.
"Magmar!" It growled, shaking its body to straighten out. "Mag!"
Rei was starting to look like the heat was getting to her, as she started to pant.
"Rei!" Shinji gasped. "Are you okay?"
Even if she had scales as hard as steel, Shinji felt that even Rei, regardless of her being a giant sea serpent, was not invulnerable to intense heat. Fighting inside a volcano had to be a calculated affair with any other Pokemon besides Fire, Rock and Ground-Types.
"Magmar…mag…mar…" Magmar sighed…and then fell backwards. "Mag…"
It was down, unable to get back up.
"Magmar!" Blaine gasped. "You beat my Magmar. You're the second person to beat my Magmar!"
"We did it?" Shinji questioned; he couldn't believe that it was that sudden, as he was sure Magmar had plenty of strength left to continue after taking a direct Hydro Pump like Rei's.
"Eevo!" Misato cheered, jumping around and doing a few flips.
"You won, Shinji!" Kensuke congratulated him.
Blaine recalled Magmar back into its Poke Ball and walked over to Shinji, who recalled his Gyarados.
"I never thought anyone other than the previous trainer with a Charizard that wouldn't listen to him could beat me in years, but you did. Congratulations, Shinji Ikari. Now, I have a final riddle for you. What is always red, but has no words?"
"The Volcano Badge?" Shinji suggested, and Blaine placed a small, red object in his left hand.
"That's right," he answered.
-x-
Even though the lights were still running due to the generators, Misato was uneasy because they couldn't monitor Shinji or Kensuke, anymore. And she just learned from Ritsuko that the city's power station shut down due to a fuse, and it would be at least a few hours before auxiliary power could be transmitted to the city.
"I don't believe this," she sighed, sitting on the console where the monitors were disabled.
"Man has always feared the darkness of the unknown," she looked at Palkia, which was speaking. "To dispel the fear, they use the gift of fire to ignite the darkness, setting it ablaze."
Misato, out of curiosity, questioned, "Can you see them? Shinji and Kensuke, I mean. Can you see them in the other dimension?"
"I cannot," the Spatial Pokemon answered her. "I may be the guardian of space, but neither omnipresence and omniscience are not among my powers."
Misato sighed and worried about the two in the other world.
"Surely, they are doing well," Palkia suggested; it didn't express any ill will towards the displaced boy that was from this world or the boy that was somehow able to travel subconsciously to the world it was from in order to find his friend. "The only dangers in my world…are the ones made by those that seek something beyond themselves."
"Like Commander Ikari?"
"The fool that thinks himself destined to decide everyone's fate? Those that seek a power beyond themselves will often invite danger and desire from others that will be drawn to them."
-x-
"All your Pokemon are in good shape, sir," said Nurse Joy to Shinji, handing him the tray with his Poke Balls and Misato.
"Thank you, ma'am," he expressed, taking the ball with Asuka's name and letting her out.
"Char," the female Charmeleon sighed.
"Asuka, we won the match with Blaine," Shinji told her.
"Char!" She uttered.
"Your Charmeleon has much pride in her abilities and feels down," Nurse Joy explained to him. "Even though she fought hard, she feels that she's not good enough."
"That's not what I believe, though. I saw her strength…and there was no further need or effort to convince me that Asuka's strong…and she will get stronger in due time. Even though our initial encounter was one of rage and bitterness because the previous trainer hurt her… I wouldn't change anything about any of it."
Asuka still didn't feel any better about being unable to defeat Magmar, though.
"There's always a thing as shared success. When one of us succeeds, we all succeed. When one of us fails, the rest of us do our best to make up for the defeat."
"Eevo," Misato agreed with Shinji; even though he now rarely sent her out against other Pokemon, she still felt she helped a little…and got stronger in the process.
"Char…" Asuka sighed again…and nodded in acceptance. "Char."
"Next stop is wherever we can obtain our eighth and final badge through teamwork." Shinji expressed.
"Oh, you have seven badges already?" Nurse Joy asked. "You may want to try the Pokemon Gym in Viridian City. Many trainers go there to obtain Earth Badges."
"I did make an attempt to go to the gym there, but there was a sign that said it was closed."
"Well, the gym has recently reopened after a short period of renovation. The Gym Leader isn't there, but there's a Badge Guardian residing there that specializes in Ground Pokemon just like them."
"Really? That's great. Thank you."
-x-
Going over the footage and seeing the incredible power exhibited by the Pokemon, Kensuke was on a computer in the in the Pokemon Center after creating a video account to hold the recorded footage for Shinji in case something happened to the memory cards.
"Eevo!" He turned away from the screen and looked down at Misato. "Eee."
He looked up and saw Shinji walking over.
"What's next?" Kensuke asked him.
"Viridian City," he answered. "The very first city I traveled to when I became a trainer."
"How do we get there?"
"Back to the mainland? We could go by boat, but there's a faster way. The Gyarados Express."
"Can Rei travel that fast?"
"She got me and the others here without any worries. I have faith in her abilities to get us to the mainland at a good pace."
"Then let's do this! We're on the road to Viridian City!"
Shinji chuckled. He hoped that Kensuke would be with him and his Pokemon for a while longer, however long that would be. It was just great to have someone from the other world to converse with and talk about this new world he was being nomadic in.
"Yeah, let's go," he agreed with Kensuke.
-x-
A few hours turned into two days for the whole of Tokyo-3 to regain power. Fortunately, there were no cases of any riots on the streets or looting from any stores. But with the lack of power to support the city, there wasn't much activity.
NERV didn't have much of these problems. While the majority of the power NERV had during the blackout went to supporting the MAGI, a lot of doors were left open, allowing for a draft to be constant, reducing the reduction in life support systems.
"What did you hear from the Giovanni Corporation?" Ritsuko asked Misato as they worked on keeping the MAGI in proper order.
"They're going to wake up Kensuke later today," she explained. "After they got the power back on, they were unable to resume the monitoring or recording of the other dimension until they fine-tuned their equipment."
"Maybe he'll be able to tell you what happened with Shinji when he wakes up."
"That's what I'm hoping for."
As they continued on the MAGI, Asuka and Rei walked down the hall towards the testing rooms for another synchronization test.
"Say, Wonder Girl," Asuka uttered, "You hear anything about Shinji or the Fourth Child?"
"I have heard nothing about either boy," she answered; in truth, she knew nothing about anything that was currently happening.
Commander Ikari hadn't been speaking with her about anything that had been going on ever since it was discovered that Shinji was still alive but in another world.
"The last I ever heard from Misato was that Fourth was with him on some island, facing a guy inside a volcano for some badge to participate in some league with these Pokemon," Asuka told her.
That's when Rei asked, "Didn't Ikari-Kun once save you from a volcano?"
Asuka turned to face her and responded, "Yes, he did. Why would anyone fight inside of a volcano is reckless thing. Volcanoes are unsafe and the lava is able to destroy everything it touches."
Rei didn't answer her on the possible reasons, but suspected that whatever the reason for Ikari-Kun doing such, it was for a reason that related to passing the time while in the other world.
-x-
"Are we ready?" Antonio asked the nurse, standing over the unconscious Kensuke Aida.
"Yes, sir," he answered, administering the stabilizing agent into Kensuke's IV drip.
"Hmm…mmm…" Kensuke groaned as the stabilizer took effect on him, waking him up. "What…where… Kanto…Johto… Aah!"
He jumped up and looked around the room at everyone present.
"It's okay, Kensuke," went Misato to him. "You're alright."
"I…I… How long was I asleep?" He asked, trying to process his current predicament.
"Just two days instead of three," she told him. "We had a power outage caused by a city-wide blackout shortly after you went under."
"Two days? I… No, no, that's impossible. I couldn't have been asleep for just two days."
"What do you mean? How is it impossible?"
"Because…I was traveling with Shinji for nearly four years. After we left Cinnabar Island for Viridian City, in fact. We…we were on our way to the Pokemon Center in Hearthome City when I dropped to my knees and found myself in darkness."
"F…four years?" Misato questioned him, puzzled by this would-be revelation. "Are you sure?"
"Give or take three months," he uttered. "Shinji's been the one to keep track of every day and the timeline of every Pokemon he's either caught or obtained through contests or found someplace."
"How is he doing?" Antonio asked him.
"I gotta hand it to him. Training Pokemon may be his calling. He's been doing so well with everything. He does it better than piloting the Eva, in fact."
"Really? He, um… What about the Pokemon League? You said he was aiming towards that. Did he ever…enter it?"
"He entered three different Pokemon Leagues from three different regions. We're in… I was with him on his fourth region to journey in when I was brought back here."
"How did he do?"
"Third place in the Kanto League. Second place in the Johto League. Second place in the Hoenn League. He's caught almost a thousand Pokemon in that length of time."
-x-
"…Is he sure about this?" Ritsuko spoke on her cell phone in front of Gendo in his office. "How did this happen? This could go either way, you know."
When she hung up and turned to face Gendo, who looked the same as he often always did.
"It would seem that while the blackout had the intended effect of forcing the Giovanni Corporation to awaken the Fourth Child from their experiment, but it may have had an unintended consequence in the process," she explained to him. "He claims that in this other dimension the Third Child is in, nearly four years have passed. That would make him eighteen instead of fourteen or fifteen."
Gendo should've known that causing a blackout would cause unintended repercussions. He just couldn't forget or forgive what that creature said about him.
"Your orders, sir?" Ritsuko asked him.
"Resume synchronization testing of the Fourth Child," he ordered.
-x-
"…So, Shinji's traveling in another region in this Pokemon world?" Asuka asked Misato, who relayed the information that Kensuke divulged to her, later in the apartment.
"Yeah," she answered her. "It turns out there are several regions in that world that are full of Pokemon often unique to those select regions. He's caught close to a thousand of them."
"But he still hasn't found a way back here?"
"That's…something else that Kensuke recently discovered while with Shinji. Shinji needs to find select Pokemon if he's to get his ticket back here."
"What kind of Pokemon does he need to find, anyway?"
"Rare Pokemon of the legendary and mythical variety. So rare that there's usually very few of them to find in all the world. And so far, according to Kensuke, he's only caught five of them."
"Five of these things? He caught five of them within that length of time?"
"Sometimes, it's quantity over quality. Other times, it's the reverse."
"I'd be surprised if Shinji had gotten any taller in that length of time like he was shown in the earlier footage obtained."
"That's something Kensuke says has also been affected by what has happened in the three-and-a-half years he's been with Shinji. Something about how fate has been altered by external forces."
"Fate? External forces? What did he mean by that?"
"He suspects it has something to do with his presence in the Pokemon world."
-x-
Nearly four years together…and he disappears, just like that, thought Shinji, not as changed from his time in the Kanto Region, but sporting a different attire for his time in the Sinnoh Region.
He was wearing black, baggy pants, a yellow sash around the waist and a blue shawl over a white shirt. Beside him as he sat against a large tree was his Eevee, Misato, only a little larger since their time traveling around the Johto Region, still wearing the same scarf from their time in Kanto, but now sporting a small, circular stone and chain around her neck.
Somehow, during their most recent encounter with a Pokemon Shinji tried to catch because it would help him get closer to a way back home to his world, he and Kensuke found out that, because of the latter's periodical presence in the world, whatever original path of fate that had been laid out for the former when he arrived had been drastically altered. And by drastically altered, neither boy was for certain if the trainer's life here was bound to get better or worse than ever. All Shinji could believe in for certain was that he couldn't stop just because of a change occurring on the path he had started on way back when he left Pallet Town. If he was ever to get back, he had to continue going forward.
"Misato?" He asked his Eevee, who sat beside him.
"Eevo?" She responded, looking up at him.
"No matter what happens in the future… I mean…if the day ever comes and I get to go back to my world…will you and the others come with me?"
"Eee?"
"Heh. We've been together the longest out of everyone, so I value your responses in questions like this. Almost four years, you know."
Of course, the human concept of time didn't fully apply to her or most other Pokemon, since their concept of time was different from humans. In her trainer's mind, they've been together for the length of time he stated, but in her mind, they could've been together far longer than that. Still, she had her answer for him.
"Eee!" She answered him, nodding her head positively.
"Thanks, Misato," he praised her, and then got up onto his feet. "Come on, let's get to Hearthome City and see where fate takes us all until we see Kensuke Aida again."
"Eee!" She agreed with him, getting up.
They ran down the path leading towards the city on the map feature on his green Poketch.
To be continued…
A/N: Aw, man a time lapse! Most unexpected.