Pokemon Virus Version Chapter 66: Rise Of A Hero Part 2
Location: Ilex Forest-Northern Entrance
Zero's POV
Away from Goldenrod, and past the abandoned house, we were all at the foot of an Ilex Forest that was recently burned down by Neo Snagem's associate, Lucy. Apparently, she and 22 failed to correctly finish their reconnaissance mission. Commander 22 has been eliminated, while Lucy is who knows where?
"Just pass this forest and we'll be in Azalea Town!" said an excited, talking Chatot who came flying down, landing on Commander 12's shoulder. C.C the Chimchar was on 12's other shoulder.
"I just wonder why in the hell we're walking when we could just use one of Neo Snagem's vehicles to get us to Azalea Town." 12 complained as she glared at me. 12 sighed as she walked into the forest.
For a moment, I just stood in my place as the first of many of Neo Snagem's grunts followed 12 closely.
Once again, my mind was on my brother's defeat. Do I have it in me to watch more people die?
"I know what you're thinking about right now..."
"Huh?" It was Commander 10, who stopped right next to me.
"The fall of your brother still troubles you..." 10 then faced me, his unknown facial expression covered by that dark cloak of his, "Not to worry. I know how to cheer you up. How about I give the people of Azalea a much more gruesome death? THAT way, the death of your brother won't seem so bad. Hmhnhmhm. How funny would it be to hear the screams of all those innocent people in unison?"
"That's not funny..." I said with a straight face.
"No, you didn't...Hnhmhnhm, hahaha, AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" 12 laughed.
"You're psychotic!" I snapped at him.
"Why thank you." 10 snickered.
My eyes narrowed, "As your Commander, I forbid you from killing anyone. Don't do it!" I warned as I started inside the forest.
"I don't take orders from you," 10 answered, "But, I'll try to resist..." He chuckled, "...If I remember."
Location: Azalea Town Pokemon Center
Noah's POV
I spent the hours following my gym battle in the Pokemon Center, and my pokemon were just finished being healed as the nurse called me up.
"So you plan on entering the Pokemon League?" Nurse Joy asked as she handed me my Pokemon.
"That's right." I answered.
"You should be careful where you travel," Nurse Joy said, "Team Neo Snagem has basically taken over the entire midwestern region of Johto."
"They're becoming much more than just a household name now..." I added. I thanked Nurse Joy for the warning, and then abruptly ended our conversation on a positive note as I turned and started to exit the Pokemon Center. "I'll see you." Was the last thing I said to the nurse...
But before I made it outside the Pokemon Center,, I heard an attention grabbing segment from the radio.
We all hear:
"So today, we welcome you all to Neo Snagem Radio. This is future commander Lucy here. MC has signed out awhile ago, and if you haven't already heard from her, I'll tell you right now: Ecruteak City is officially ours. We won! So the story is: Apparently, some guy and his Chikorita had started a city-wide riot, which Neo Snagem eventually overcame. I've personally met this guy as an enemy before, and honestly, I'm glad he's dead. It was abit 'overdue' from my point of view."
'A boy and his Chikorita..." I thought to myself. "Seth..." I said as I exited the Pokemon Center.
I guess the fool didn't know what he was up against. Neo Snagem has become a nation of it's own, and it's only getting bigger. And here I am, about to head to Neo Snagem's epicenter. It'll be the second time I've returned to Goldenrod.
Previously, I had challenged Whitney on multiple occasions trying to win the Plain Badge. Every battle was a losing effort, so I came here to Azalea Town to do some training and challenge Bugsy while I was at it. I believe I'm ready to return to my Neo Snagem-infested hometown. Who knows, maybe I'll meet up with Mother Sakura again. It's been so I finally have what it take to save her from herself.
Location: Azalea Town's Western City Limit
Making my way through the grassy green Azalea Town, I was on my way back where I came from. I passed by many locals and travelers. Nobody caught my attention really, except for an elderly man that seemed to be looking beyond Azalea's City Limit and into Ilex Forest. He had a worried expression on his face, but that wasn't what grabbed my attention. What grabbed my attention was the realization that I saw him standing in the exact same location when I first arrived in Azalea.
"Excuse me," I said as I approached the elderly man, "Is something wrong? You seem worried."
The old man sighed. "I've every reason to be worried right now...It's my granddaughter. She went into Ilex Forest, and hasn't returned."
"Is she lost?" I asked.
"More like 'missing'. If she was simply lost, she would've found her way out by now. She had a friend that looked to be about your age. The two were on a journey to Goldenrod that was only supposed to last a couple of weeks." The elderly man explained.
"A couple of weeks?" I said confused. No person could spend weeks at a time lost in a forest. Especially not an Azalea Town local, where the forest is just a walk away. I faced the elderly man and asked, "How long has she been missing?"
"Two months..." The elderly man answered.
"Two MONTHS?" I repeated with much surprise. "Haven't you tried looking for her yourself?"
"More than once, actually," The man answered ," But it's been so hard to navigate through the forest. Well, at least since the forest was almost destroyed by that fire two months ago. Ever since, the forest has been in a continuous flux trying to regrow itself."
"I see..." With all that's happened in Ecruteak City, it wouldn't be a good idea to rush there for the time being. I guess I could 'waste' some time here in Azalea before heading to Goldenrod... "I could look for your granddaughter..."
"My, you will?" The old man asked ,"That's so unexpected. You know, with how youth are these days, chivalry is basically dead...THAT, and good samaritans are tired of ungrateful people."
"Just tell me what she looks like, and what I need to say to her," I said.
"Okay, her name is Maisy. She's about THIS tall, and she has red hair. She's ten years old. Tell her 'Grandpa Kurt has been worried sick about her and that she needs to come home right now'!" The elderly man said.
This old man is Pokeball Expert Kurt...
"She should be traveling with a pretty pink haired young lady." Kurt added.
"Alright," I said as I started to Ilex Forest, "I'll be back to let you know if I've found her."
Location: Ilex Forest
The forest had a distinct night time shade to it as I walked under what looked like a night sky in the middle of the day. The light of day was just squeaking by the forest leaves. It was as if the sky was littered with shining stars.
Earlier on my Pokemon journey, I was once told that this forest was filled with a variety of Pokemon like Volbeat, Illumise, Pineco, and Oddish. It had been such a sight when a was younger. But now, it's not what it used to be. While Ilex Forest WAS green, it wasn't as colorful and lush...It was breaking news all over Johto when the forest caught fire, and was on the brink of burning to the ground.
Now, the forest was inhabited by Venipede, Durant, and Spinarak to name a few pokemon. Will Ilex Forest ever return to it's rich, former state?
"Maisy? Maisy!" I honestly had no idea why I called out the girl's name. It didn't work two months ago, so why would it work now? "Maisy..."
...
After plenty of time was spent calling out to Maisy, I stopped. I had arrived at a lake. It was the lake on the forest's northern half that I passed by on the way to Azalea Town a few days ago.
For a moment, it was quiet. The distant cries of wild pokemon had stopped, and all I could hear was the sound of the moving lake water. But like I said; It was only for a moment. The peace and quiet had made their exit as the sounds of approaching footsteps made their entrance, as well as incoming voices headed in my direction...I Recognize them...It's been so long since I last heard them, but they were still familiar...I quickly hid inside one of the nearby bushes...
"So what exactly is the plan?" asked a familiar feminine voice.
Before the question was answered, the approaching people were in my sight.
Zero, 10, and 12...They were former teammate of mine back when I was in Neo Snagem. I haven't seen any of them since the day I was banished from the organization...
"With bordering cities such as Violet and Goldenrod under our control, we expect Azalea Town to surrender. They simply have nowhere else to go," Commander 00 answered.
"And if they don't surrender right away?" 12 asked with a bit of sass. The flame of her Chimchar making her face very visible, though her eyes were still covered by those sunglasses.
"..." Zero's eyes narrowed. He was unable to find an answer to 12's question...
"We use pain to persuade them," 10 answered. The cloaked commander was right behind Zero and MC, and ahead of the many grunts following the trio. "A few deaths should make them see things our way..."
"Shadow..." Zero said, calling 10 by his real name as he gave him a threatening look.
"Oops! I seem to have 'forgotten' out 'little deal'." 10 snickered, "I wonder if this is only first time that happens. Hehe!"
"Shadow, I mean it! Don't kill anyone!" Zero commanded, raising his voice.
"I'll try my best," 10 chuckled.
"Chim..." C.C, the nicknamed Chimchar cried silently as it looked at 10. C.C apparently didn't know how much fear 10 could inflict of a person's soul...
"Riiight!" 12 replied to 10, "So why are you obsessed with killing people so much?"
I didn't get to hear 10 reply. They were so far away, I couldn't hear their voices anymore. So I got out of the bushes, and thought about what I had just overheard.
So Azalea Town's next...I had to do something to stop what was to come. But...but what could I do? I at least had to try. One of the reasons I became a Pokemon Trainer was to defeat Neo Snagem, and save my mother from herself.
But what about Kurt? What happened to looking for his granddaughter? My attention shifted so suddenly. I apologized to myself. Kurt's granddaughter was going to have to wait. I had to make my way back to Azalea.
"Huh?" But before I could start toward Azalea Town, I heard more footsteps. "What now?" This time, the sounds were coming from within the trees, and all of a sudden, a creepy suspicion was rising again.
"Sss...ssssss!"
"Who are you? WHERE are you? Show yourself!" I said, calling out to the mysterious sound.
"Sss..." I readied my pokeball as the sound came closer and closer. A drop of sweat fell to the grassy ground, and I was growing quite anxious. I couldn't quite identify what exactly the mysterious figure was, for the forest darkness made it as if I was looking at a silhouette. Multiple legs, and a distinct sound..Yes, I could tell the mysterious figure wasn't human. It was a pokemon, and I guess it was attracted to the many passerbies in Neo Snagem that just passed by. As soon as it happened to walk under one of the rays of light creeping through the cracked, leafy 'ceiling', I immediately recognized what the figure was. It was big for it's species, and it was looking directly at me.
"Ariados..." This Ariados, I've met before though. It's big size was a dead giveaway. Only one person I've ever known has ever had an Ariados THIS big. Commander 22, and Ariados was not with her. Did something happen to 22?
"Dosss..." Ariados cried calmly.
"It's been awhile, Ariados. About a year or so, to be accurate," I said ," But where's your trainer?"
"..." What Ariados did to answer my question was quite typical for a pokemon trying to tell something to a human. It took a few steps forward, then faced me again as if it wanted me to follow. So I followed...
...
It was a long walk. About fifteen minutes to be accurate. Where Ariados was leading me to wasn't toward the northern exi, nor was it back to Azalea Town. As we got deeper into the forest, I began to notice the gradually growing lush and vividness in the trees and bushes around me, However, there were still Venipede everywhere. Even the Whirlipede and Pineco were becoming common sitings now.
"Dos..." The giant Ariados stopped, and I was bewildered by what I saw next...
"You..." Ariados and I stood in front of what looked to be a shrine. And there were two girls, and a pokemon that I recognized. A year ago, I met these two girls and this pokemon in Relic Forest, back in the Orre Region. It was the last mission I completed for Neo Snagem. And it was the last time I saw my mother. "The girl with the Purifier Pokemon..."
But that wasn't the last time I met the girl. She once traveled with Seth and that Yumi girl. We never directly interacted back when Seth had our first and only battle so far, but that's because she didn't have the Purifier with her.
"What? YOU?!" The girl said to me.
The girl looked to be thirteen years old. She had long, pink hair, and wore a white knit beanie. She also wore a snow white jacket, dark navy skinny jeans, and white, high top boots.
"Do you remember me?" I said as I took a single step closer.
"But that's impossible..." The little red haired girl said, "How could he chase us through ti-" the little girl's mouth was covered by the pink haired girl's hand.
"Ssshhh!" The pink haired girl then turned to Ariados and I, "You're, Noah, right? And we've met twice before?"
"Things have changed since that day..." I said, "I no longer serve Neo Snag-" I froze at the thought of Neo Snagem crossing my mind. I remembered that Neo Snagem was on their way to Azalea Town as we spoke. So I asked the both of them the question, "Do either of you know of a man named Kurt? And if so, would he happen to be your grandfather?"
"The short, red haired girl lit up, "Y-yes! H-how do you know about my grandpa?"
"Come with me, to Azalea Town," I said as I started walking fast, "Your grandfather, and the whole town...they're all in trouble! We need to help them!"
With a hint of hesitation, the girls and the purifier followed. I had found Kurt's missing granddaughter, and now it was up to us to save everyone from Neo Snagem...
To be continued...
So, this chapter is a bit short, and the second half was really rushed, but that's because I was impatient. I guess I'm just a bit anxious to showcase Commander 10. But here's the thing, the next few chapters will show development for a bunch of characters whom I plan you use in the future, so they won't REALLY have a true main character.
After going back and writing extra chapters for the better part of the last three months, I believe I'm on chapter 79 or chapter 80 right now. I don't know. I kind of lost track of counting because I've been shifting the order so much. I have ideas for plot twists, like, fifty chapters from now, and as a result, the story's second half COULD be rebranded, the story's second third. I know there are people that don't really like super long fics, but hey, I'm not in it for the recognition anymore, I just really enjoy writing this. As a writer, I've NEVER been flamed. I'll be looking to keep you guys off guard as I continue writing...