Pokemon Virus Version Chapter 26: Two Sides of the Same Coin
Alright, So Chapter 26 is here early, and A LOT will be explained this chapter. Why does Neo Snagem exist? And why did Chapel need to borrow Seth's heart way back in the first chapter? And where's Rui? Please leave a review and let me know how I do
Wes' POV
Location: ?
"Don't you remember my voice?" the voice asked.
...
"I am the reason you created Neo Snagem," the voice said.
"...Where's Rui?" Chapel asked.
"W-what are you doing here?" I asked Chapel
"We're both dreaming, are we not?" Chapel asked.
"Dreaming?" I said confused.
I took another look around me. The purple seas and pink skies, along with the abundance of vivid green grass, surrounded me.
"Where are we?" I asked. "What is this?"
"Utopia..." A voice said flatly as Seth approached us. "A utopia where all of our hearts are connected by one being: Missingno."
The virus? But when did the virus contact me? I knew Chapel, Seth, 26, and a few of Neo Snagem's top 10 commanders were infected, but me? This can't be.
"Seth, Chapel... I thought you two were going to kill me," I said.
"And here I thought you knew everything," Chapel said calmly. "You can't die while dreaming."
"My voice is faint, and will eventually fade away, along with this dream," the voice said.
"Then you'll show yourself, right?" I asked.
"Not exactly," Seth replied.
"If I am unable to wake and restore myself before the dream fades, I will fade along with the dream and be lost forever," the voice said.
Who is this? I have to free this voice from it's slumber to find out.
"How do I wake you up?" I asked the voice.
"...I'll give you another hint: You must exchange a life for a life..." The voice said.
Confusion filled my mind as the dream started to grow light. It grew lighter, and lighter until I awoke to a cloudy morning.
Location: Ecruteak City Resident House
When I came to, I scanned the small, quiet room and bed that housed me. Still laying on the bed, I notice movement about on my stomach.
"Wha?" I was confused when I saw what was on my chest.
"To?" A spiked egg shaped pokemon cried confused as it made eye contact with me.
My eye narrowed. "What do you want?"
Rather than reply, the pokemon tipped it's head to it right. I grabbed the pokemon and held it as I got out of bed. This situation was irrelevant, at least compared to two other questions on my mind.
"How far has Operation Takeover gotten? And how did I get here?" I asked myself as I looked at the spiked egg I was holding.
"Late last night, I found you on the street, just outside of this house, unconscious," A voice said as a young woman in a pink kimono walked in the room, accompanied by an Espeon.
"You have an Espeon too?" I asked.
"Pi?" The spiked egg said confused.
"You know, getting the right amount of sleep WILL keep you from collapsing like that again," The kimono girl said. "Besides, locals and travelers alike are being kidnapped, so I suggest you stay put, just to be safe.
"So, who's this pokemon?" I asked about the pokemon I was holding. "And why is it here?"
"Oh, where are my manners?" The kimono girl started. "My name is Naoko, and this is Espeon." She gestured to her Espeon as it cried, introducing itself.
"Last night, the streets of Ecruteak was filled with forced kidnapping by Neo Snagem. So when I found you on the ground, I also found Togepi, and decided to bring it in to safety as well," Naoko said as she looked at me. "So, who might you be?"
Hmph, poor woman... She has no clue that I lead the chaos that has overtaken the city. I began wondering if I should capture this woman right now and reveal my true purpose. But what IS my true purpose? I looked at the woman and felt a hint of warm serenity and gratitude. I didn't want to just crap on someone who cared for me unconditionally.
"My name is Wes..." I began speaking what I thought my purpose was as I began changing my outlook. "I am on a journey to find a lost someone, someone important."
"Toge," The spiked egg cried as I looked at it, my eyes narrowing.
"It's trying to say hello," Naoko said with a sincere smile, looking at us. "You know, it is said that Togepi will take a liking to people with pure hearts, and share happiness with them."
Pure hearts? But I'm not even a hero. At least, not anymore...But then again, I've never turned truely evil either. Finding that missing 'someone' was my reason for creating Neo Snagem. I thought by increasing our numbers, we could cover more ground searching for that lost 'someone', but Atticus strongly opposed due to his quest for power. Ever since then, Atticus and I have despised each other and our differences. His attitude had eventually rubbed off on me, and I was almost swallowed whole by the exact same thirst for power. But when I looked in the mirror, I realized that I had lost sight of MY purpose, and questioned the person I was turning into. Allowing Zeno to live (Chapter 7) was the first step toward adopting the compassion I had always lacked. That compassion is 'streaky', but has continued to change my character as we speak.
I put Togepi down as I got out of the bed.
"Must have me confused with someone else..." I said as I approached the window, looking out to yet another day where a blanket of white clouds covered the sky.
"Toge Toge!" Togepi cried as it followed me.
"Ugh, what do you want?!" I said annoyed as Togepi maintained that same, indifferent face. "It's like talking to a baby!"
"All it wants you to do is smile," Naoko said with a childish smile on her face. "Come on, smile!"
"Are you kidding? I-" I was interrupted.
"Smile smile smile!" Naoko cheered as Togepi joined her. "Smile smile smile!"
"Come on, Wes, do it for me," That familiar voice said.
"Ugh, the girl won't leave me alone! She's just as bad as-" I thought to myself.
I gasped, "RUI!"
I then blacked out upon remembering that name. Rui, where are you?
Location: Utopia (Dream)
When I returned, I was running, running without a set destination in mind. I was looking for that 'someone' I suddenly remembered. That 'someone' ventured with me, as we saved a far away land from Team Snagem five years ago. Now, I have aligned myself with the same oblivion in search of not only that 'someone', but myself as well.
"Where are you?" I asked as I kept running along the edge of the purple sea. "I remember you now. I remember our quest as heroes."
I then stopped as I remembered what happened AFTER defeating the original Team Snagem.
"Missingno, the virus that gifted you with the power to see Shadow Pokemon...it also cursed you with your own downfall. Every virus can crash, and when Missingno told us you would fade away in it's place, we searched everywhere to 'fix' this problem." I explained.
I started walking again, talking to what appeared to be an empty realm.
"Our search for a solution lead us to Goldenrod City, where we encountered Chapel, one of Missingno' newly infected at the time, five years ago We killed her mother to get rid of her only defense. But the effort was in vein, thanks to Chapel's refusal to cooperate, and Zero's interference (Chapter 4). We couldn't find our answer in time, and I was devastated when I witnessed you fade from the world." I said.
"What has happened since then?" The familiar voice asked.
"Well, not too long ago marked the fifth anniversary of when Missingno first possessed Chapel. She was supposed to suffer the same fate as you, but no. Only her heart faded away. She was in need of a new heart, so she asked a boy named Seth for his heart (Chapter 1). Chapel's destruction has only been delayed, while Seth is just an empty shell of his former self. But in the end...their connections with Missingno seem to differ very much from yours.
"I guess we're all connected somehow," The fdamiliar voice said. "Now explain your connection with me , Wes."
"Huh?" I said confused..
"I remember now - Wes," I said.
"Wrong name, Wes," the familiar voice said. "Wes? Wes?"
The faint voice was becoming a bit louder as I started to white out again.
You're name? You're name is Rui...
"Wes! Wes! Please, you've got to wake up!" Naoko yelled with tears in her eyes.
"What happened?" I asked as I stood up.
"Ecruteak City Limit, Neo Snagem!" Naoko started to panic as she pointed out the window. "I know Neo Snagem recruited many innocent people, and those innocent people are getting hurt."
"Whoa..." I said to myself as I looked out the window.
Ecruteak's city limit could be seen in the distance. The barricade of unranked Neo Snagem grunt, who guarded the city, was penetrated, but by who? Body after body, the forced recruits went down as a Garchomp eliminated the entire unit.
"No..." I said as I started to worry about the state of Operation Takeover.
Whatever became of 24, 20, and 10? I had to find out since they were assigned to the mission as well.
"I've gotta go," I said as I started toward the outside of the house.
But Naoko wouldn't let me leave. She grabbed my arm and started to panic even more.
"No please! Don't leave us!" Naoko yelled. "We don't know what will happen if we split up!"
"Ugh, get off!" I said annoyed.
"No! Don't leave us!" She seemed determined to stop me from leaving her
"Esp," Espeon cried with a worried looked.
"Toge," Togepi was still here?
When looking at Togepi, I thought about my changes as a person once more.
"Do I really have a pure heart?" I asked myself. "It is a question that fascinates me. And I must find an answer." I addressed the three who begged for my presence. "You may accompany me, but discretion is heavily advised, because you might not like what's about to happen."
The three calmed down as we all started toward the edge of the city, but my mind drifted towards what Naoko thought about me. My betrayal was imminent, although she does not know it. I asked myself :Should I abandon my mission and save Naoko, or betray Naoko and save Neo Snagem? I was Naoko's door to survival, but I was also her door to her destruction.
"Should I?" I said to myself.
"Esp?" Espeon said confused.
"What is it?" Naoko asked with a curios look.
"Oh, uh nothing. I was just thinking out loud. I looked at Togepi once more and asked Naoko. "You said you found Togepi when you found me. So Togepi isn' t yours, right?"
"Well, it may or may not belong to a trainer, but it seems to have taken a liking to you and that pure heart of your." Naoko then had an idea. "Hey, why don't you try and catch it?"
Without hestitation, I declined as we continued our conversation.
"Doesn't suit my style..." I replied.
Togepi did not seem affected by my words. Does it even know what we're talking about?
"Well, you never know if that mindset will change," Naoko said camly.
"Hmph," I said.
Location: Ecruteak City Limit
"No...How could I lose to YOU..." A man said as we approached a scene.
"!" The scene feature one of Neo Snagem's men being defeated by a Garchomp. The man who was defeated was none other than Commander 20 of Team Neo Snagem. And the Garchomp's trainer was a sight that amazed everyone, including me. Red hair. Cape. It was none other than former Champion, Lance, of the Pokemon G-Men (Government Men).
"With a Commander eliminated, this mission will certainly be more difficult on your part," Lance said coldly to a defeated 20. "This organization...it is different. Neo Snagem attempts to use the power of humans AND pokemon alike. But unlike other organizations, you've yet to generically pursue a legendary pokemon.
It was time to reveal to Naoko, my full identity.
"Actually, since my days in the region of Orre, the memories of my heroism were soon replaced by those of a boy named Michael. Since his encounter with Shadow Lugia, Commander Atticus came to the conclusion that Ho-oh, Lugia's counterpart, may also have some sort of shadow form. The closest answer to that conclusion lies here: in Ecruteak City's Bell Tower." I explained.
"Commander Wes?" a downed 20 said as he addressed me.
"What?" Naoko was shocked. "You're with them?!"
"Surrender now!" Lance yelled as Garchomp roared.
"I mean no harm, at least for now," I said. "If you stand down, I will explain more of what is to be said, 'Champion'."
Garchomp calmed down,a s di Lance. Togepi was as indifferent as ever. Naoko and Espeon were also ready to hear my explanation; I expect her reaction to my involvement with Neo Snagem will some soon after.
"Neo Snagem commands all shadow pokemon, and the pokemon are forced to obey without question," I said as I walked toward Lance. " With Shadow Ho-Oh at hand, as well as an endless army of Neo Snagem grunts, nothing will stand between us and finding a common purpose. At least, nothing except the Purifier, Celebi. I've personally sent a girl named Chapel on a journey to find the missing Celebi, in exchange for halting Neo Snagem's pursuit on her."
"But what is the point of all this?" Lance asked.
"To find a very close friend. "If I don't find her, she'll fade away and be lost forever..." I said.
"But why use violence? You've taken the lives of many innocent people." Lance's voice began to rise. "I understand if you wish to help a friend, but sacrificing people and pokemon against their will is just selfish!"
"I don't care what you say! Forcing people into Neo Snagem will surely keep us form taking no for an answer!" I yelled. "This world is filled with selfish people. I would like to see YOU risk getting imprisoned just to save someone you care about!"
Lance sighed, trying to keep his emotions in check. "Look, I'm sorry, but it's too late to try and talk yourself out of punishment. I am placing you and this entire organization under arrest."
I then looked back at Naoko. "I apologize for dragging yo-" I was interrupted.
"I hate you! Leave me alone!" Naoko turned her back as she and Espeon started walking away.
"No! Wait! You don't understand!" I attempted to follow Naoko before being stopped by Garchomp.
"I said you are under arrest!" Lance said as he and Garchomp asserted themselves.
"Think again!" A man said as a Skarmory attacked Garchomp.
24 had approached me, ready to be of assistance of needed. The Skarmory he caught in Dark Cave had distracted Garchomp enough for me to put some distance between us.
"24..." I said.
Garchomp was bewildered as 24 recalled Skarmory and went to aid a defeated 20.
"Might be game over for you," 24 said to 20, "Well not really, Commander Wes and I just gave you an extra life."
"24, enough of the video game talk," I said. "Move over as I make a deal with this 'Champion'."
"I commend yo for getting past the city's first defenses. But I doubt you'd get much further, considering we've taken over the entire city.
"You're point?" Lance asked.
"How's about I make you're job A LOT easier?" I asked. "I challenge you to a pokemon battle. If you win, we will surrender the city to you and turn ourselves in, without argument. But if you lose, not only will you surrender the city to Neo Snagem, but you will also swear your allegiance to Neo Snagem."
Lance looked uneasy as I smirked.
"What's wrong? As a former 'Champion', you should have no problem gambling an entire city in a simple pokemon battle." I said. "I mean, that Garchomp of yours looks like our clear winner."
For a moment, Lance looked at Garchomp before giving his answer.
"Fine..." he sighed.
"Commander Wes, are you sure you can win?" 24 asked worried.
I held up a pokeball. "Worry not, for today Neo Snagem's empire takes a turn for the best." I said as I threw the pokeball
To Be Continued...
So, Wes sounds like he knows what he's doing. If you guys can guess, he might even resurrect an old habit from back in the Pokemon Colosseum days. Please Review and stay tuned for a battle that means absolutely everything for these two. Oh, and by the way, Naoko IS one of the Kimono sister's from Heartgold and Soulsilver