Pokemon Fan Fiction / Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Pseudo Shigeru ❯ Pains of the Past ( Chapter 6 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Note: This chapter has some major violence. And Satoshi & Shigeru are
just plain evil here. So be advised: it ain't gonna be pretty.

Chapter 6: Pains of the Past

"Have you found anything yet, Sentry?" Kasumi asked as she paced
across the floor of Lab 2.

"Yes, Mistress Kasumi." Sentry's violet, muscular tail waved behind
him as he spoke. "I've been reviewing the impressions I got from the
security tapes. I've identified four Pokémon involved in the
kidnapping: Hypno, Sudowoodo, Steelix, and Venusaur."

"Well, the Hypno had to belong to Sabrina."

"Yes. My scan indicates it was the Drowzee she captured just before
she left the League."

"Anything else?"

"I'm afraid so. The ID numbers on the Venusaur and Steelix match some
already in our records."

Kasumi blinked in surprise. "You mean they stole Pokémon from us?"

"Not quite. The Venusaur belongs to Satoshi, and the Steelix belongs
to Brock."

"B...Brock?" Kasumi whispered. "But... I thought he was..."

"He may be, Mistress. This just means that the rebels have one of his
Pokémon."

"And if they have one, they're bound to have more."

"Yes. They also have several of Satoshi's former Pokémon." Sentry's
eyes glowed bright blue beneath his helmet. "I am greatly concerned
for Master Satoshi's safety."

"He can take care of himself, Sentry."

"Yes, but only if he is focused. Seeing so many of his old Pokémon
will distract him. I think that's what the rebels may have in mind."

"You...really think he needs help?" Kasumi asked.

"I would feel better if I was there," Sentry replied after a moment.
"Even I didn't fight, I could at least put a good scare into them."

Kasumi smiled and patted his paw. "You do look an awful lot like him,
you know."

"That was the general idea, I'm told. Although I'm obviously much more
useful than Mewtwo ever was."

"Well, you're a lot more pleasant to be around, that's for sure."

Sentry smiled. "So glad you think so. But the rebels won't know the
difference, and I don't necessarily have to be there for them to see
me..."

Kasumi nodded. "Link up with Satoshi and stand by. But don't do
anything unless he gets into trouble. I don't want him to know we're
helping."

"Of course, Mistress Kasumi. And thank you."

"No, Sentry. Thank you for caring about him."

* * * * *

Gary almost screamed when he woke up. Then he realized the warm and
furry thing on his neck was only Eve. He reached up and stroked her
head. "You okay, girl?"

"My ears are still sore from that Steelix's Screech, but they're
getting better. What about you?"

"Let's just say I'm glad my ears aren't as good as yours." Gary's eyes
darted around for a moment, getting used to the darkness. "Are we
still in that thing's mouth?"

"No, Trainer Gary," Cleo replied as she appeared at his side. "We're
currently in an underground tunnel of some sort. They left us here
about an hour ago."

"How did you girls get out of your pokéballs?" Gary asked.

"Sally let us out," Eve answered, nodding her head.

Gary looked further down the tunnel to see the Celebi juggling her
green pokéball with two vines extending from her neck. "Glad one of us
is in a good mood, at least."

"I've been...talking...to her," Cleo said, giving Gary the feeling
that it hadn't been easy. "Apparently, she was helping you during the
kidnapping attempt."

"Yeah. I never could jump that high before."

"She also shielded you from Hypno's Hypnosis. That's why you didn't
fall asleep like the rest of us."

"And she couldn't do anything about that Steelix's Screech?"

Cleo smirked. "Actually, she did. If you'd been exposed to the true
harshness of the sound at that close range, you'd be deaf right now."

"Did she happen to tell you why she did all that?" Gary asked.

"No, but from what I can figure, she thinks the pokéball you bought
her is...pretty."

"You don't look like a bad guy."

Gary gasped and looked up as he heard the new voice. "Who said that?"

Without warning, a little girl with an Abra on her shoulders appeared
next to him. "They told me you were bad," she explained. "But you
don't look bad to me. Abra doesn't think so, either."

"Who are you?" Gary asked. He got the strange feeling that she was
somehow familiar.

"I'm Sylvie," the girl replied. "And you're Shigeru, but you don't
seem like a bad man."

"Well, I'm not," Gary said. "Do I know you?"

"Nope. Just my big sister, probably."

Gary blinked a few times, staring harder at the girl's features.
"Sabrina."

"Yup! She doesn't think you're bad, but she doesn't like you, anyway."

"Gee, thanks." Gary glanced over at Sally, who was watching them with
great interest. He wondered why Sylvie hadn't said anything about the
Celebi. He was sure they weren't common creatures in any world.

"Can I pet your Espeon?" Sylvie asked hopefully, staring at Cleo.
"She's real pretty."

Gary shrugged. "Sure, if she'll let you."

Sylvie slowly walked over to Cleo and placed a hand on her back. "Wow!
She's so soft and silky..."

"Comes from good grooming." Gary watched Sylvie for a few seconds.
"Does your sister know you're down here?"

"Hope not. Mary and Mikey said they'd stall for me. They're good at
that." She smiled. "Mikey's got a whole bunch of Eevee like yours.
Well, he used to. He evolved all but one of them."

"So he's an Eevee trainer?"

"Kinda sorta. He likes Ice Pokémon, too. He's got a Delibird and a
Piloswine, and a Smoochum that we all raise together. She's so CUTE!
You'd like her."

Gary stared at her. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

Sylvie shrugged. "I don't think you did all the bad things they said
you did. Anybody with an Espeon this pretty couldn't be that bad."

"You must be the only one that thinks that."

"Mikey and Mary will, once I tell them how cool you are. Maybe Casey
and Nurse Joy, too. But the grown-ups will be harder to convince."
Sylvie blinked rapidly, then shook her head. "I better go. My big
sister's looking for me."

Gary nodded. "Thanks for talking to me."

Sylvie flashed him a bright smile and patted her Abra's right leg.
"Let's go, Abra!" In an instant, they were both gone.

"Such an interesting child," Cleo said. "The way she petted me was so
perfect...as if she could sense just how I preferred to be touched."

Gary grinned. "Yeah, sure. As if."

* * * * *

Captain Jenny frowned and tucked a loose strand of blue-green hair
behind her ear. "This is not going to be a good night." She sighed and
turned away from her computer.

"Something wrong, Captain?"

"Yes, Tracey. Looks like we have a kidnapping case."

"Really?" Tracey looked up. "Anyone we know?"

"You could say that. It's Shigeru."

Tracey froze. "Are you serious?"

"I'm just as surprised as you are, but I got the call from Indigo
Plateau five minutes ago."

"Who made it?"

"Lance himself. He claims Shigeru returned earlier tonight. The rebels
attacked, intending to take Kasumi, but Shigeru got in their way."

"So...what do we do?" Tracey asked. "I mean...are we actually going to
help the Rocket League, or...?"

"I'm afraid we have no choice. Kidnapping is a crime, and despite the
Rocket League's reputation, until we can prove anything, we're
obligated to recover Shigeru."

"And you think he'll go quietly if we try to rescue him?"

"Of course not. But it'll be hard enough getting him out of rebel
hands, and if he puts up a fight, I certainly won't say anything if he
just happens to get roughed up."

Tracey chuckled. "This from an officer of the law?"

"No. It's from a lady who's seen the Rocket League slip away one too
many times. This may be our chance to shut them down, and I'm not
going to miss it."

* * * * *

Satoshi frowned as he reached the edge of the forest. According to the
Rocket League's intelligence reports, the rebels had tunnels going on
for miles underground, and one of the most likely places was the
forest. Still, that had never been confirmed, so for all he knew, he'd
flown into enemy territory the moment he'd left the Indigo Plateau.

"Land here," he said quietly.

Charizard snorted in reply and quickly touched down.

Satoshi slid to the ground and glanced around before recalling
Charizard. He paused, as if listening for something, then held up a
black pokeball.

The ball shuddered faintly for a moment, then grew still.

Satoshi clipped it back on his belt. "I need your light, old friend."

Pikachu emerged from the black cloak and hopped onto Satoshi's
shoulder. His body glowed brightly as they moved deeper into the
forest.

Neither of them noticed when the tiny pokeball hanging from Satoshi's
neck turned violet for a few seconds, then back to its usual red and
white.

* * * * *

Eve's ears twitched. "Someone's coming."

Gary stood up as a huge Ursaring lumbered into view, snarling softly.
"Great."

"Relax, Shigeru," said a familiar voice. "He won't attack unless I
tell him to, so don't give me a reason."

Gary looked at the young woman beside Ursaring. "Do I know you?"

"Probably not. I'm Duplica."

Gary thought her name sounded weird, but figured it wasn't smart to
mention that.

"Anyway, let's go. It's time for your interrogation."

"Aren't you gonna knock me out first?"

Duplica smirked and motioned for him to go first. "Don't tempt me.
Just recall your Pokémon, and no tricks."

Gary recalled Eve and Cleo before realizing that Sally was gone. He
frowned and walked past Duplica, waiting for a blow to the back of his
head. But there was none, so he kept going.

Soon, they entered a dim chamber that appeared to be part of an
ancient temple. There were strange markings all over the walls, and
many of them looked like eyes. But Gary didn't have much of a chance
to study them closely.

"Sit," a voice commanded.

Gary sat in the indicated chair, not at all surprised when two Mareep
appeared and sat by his chair. He could tell just by looking at them
that they had very strong electric attacks. His hair was even starting
to stand on end from the close range.

Then he realized that more people had suddenly appeared in the
chamber. They were all sitting behind a table on the other end of the
chamber, staring at him. Duplica took the last chair on the right.

"Where have you been all this time, Shigeru?" one of them asked. "Did
you really disappear, or was that just a rumor started by the Rocket
League?" The voice was rough and cold.

"I left," Gary replied.

"Where did you go?"

"Training."

"Where?" the voice pressed.

"Training," Gary repeated, more forcefully.

There was silence for a moment.

"You knew we were after Kasumi," a female voice said. "How?"

"Because I don't think you're as stupid as Giovanni did."

"That doesn't explain how you knew," the rough voice growled.

Gary shrugged. "It's what I would've done if I were you."

"How so?" another male asked.

"Satoshi was the biggest threat to you. If you had Kasumi, he wouldn't
be a threat anymore."

"You sound confident of that."

Gary smirked. "Well, you did try to kidnap her. I'd say you were
pretty confident of it, too."

"Do you think they'll send Satoshi for you?" a different female asked.

"They don't have to send him. He'll come on his own."

"Why?" Duplica asked.

Gary glanced at her. "First, he could never resist a good battle.
Second, you took me before we could have our rematch. He'll want to
know which of us is better. Finally, you tried to take Kasumi. He
won't forgive that, and he definitely won't forget it."

"You don't think he'd come just to save you?" the rough voice asked.

"Doubtful. He probably figures if I'm smart enough to trick you into
taking me, I'm smart enough to escape on my own."

The rough voice chuckled. "And are you?"

Gary grinned. "Guess you'll have to wait and see."

"Why'd you make him do it?" a voice behind Gary asked.

Duplica stood up. "Casey, you're not supposed to be in here."

Casey ignored her and glared at Gary. "Why'd you make him do it,
Shigeru?"

Gary stared at the younger girl. "Do what?"

"Show him, Sabrina."

Duplica frowned. "Casey, don't-"

"Show him!" Casey shouted.

"Do it," the rough voice agreed after a moment.

Sabrina stepped over to the wall and pressed a few of the markings. A
panel slid away, revealing a vid-screen. "This is a recording of a
battle at Pummelo Stadium. The very LAST battle there, and in the
Orange League at all."

Gary watched the screen in silence. And he couldn't believe his eyes.

* * * * *

"Dragonite!" Drake shouted. "Hyper Beam!"

"Zippo, use your Fire Blast!" Richie yelled.

Both dragons unleashed their most powerful attacks.

The resulting explosion should've covered the entire arena in light
and smoke. Instead, everything was contained at the center of impact
in a giant ball. And as the ball gradually shrank, the arena was
plunged into confused, amazed silence.

A Gengar and Houndour stood in the middle of the battlefield, licking
their lips, as if they'd just enjoyed a delicious meal. Then the air
around them shuddered, and two young men appeared. The slightly taller
one had a Natu on his shoulder, while a Pikachu perched on the other's
head.

Drake and Richie both blinked and whispered, "Ash...?"

The boy once known as Ash Ketchum smiled evilly. "Gengar?"

The ghost looked up at its trainer expectantly.

The smile vanished from his face, and his voice was without emotion.
"Destroy."

Gengar grinned and opened its mouth, revealing just where Dragonite's
Hyper Beam had gone.

The audience was instantly reduced by half as the destructive wave
swept through the stands.

"NO!" Richie cried. "Ash, what are you doing?!"

"Don't worry, pal. I saved a special death for you." He raised his
right arm and pointed.

Richie wondered what he was doing, until Pikachu raced down his arm at
lightning speed. "Sparky!"

Richie's Pikachu leaped at the other, responding to his trainer's cry.

"Pikachu, Evolve."

Pikachu snarled and twisted in the air, his body almost tripling in
size. When he landed, it was indeed a Raichu that stood in his place.

Richie looked on in shock. "There's...no way..."

"Wrong. There's no you," the boy said. "Raichu, show them how a
Thunderwave should really be used."

Raichu growled and spun around, his long tail whipping out in a wide
arc. "RAI!"

The electric energy washed over boy and Pikachu, and neither of them
remained when the smoke cleared.

Drake blinked and shook his head. "I don't know what's gotten into
you, Ash, but this stops now!"

The boy with the Natu smirked. "Wrong. It's just beginning." He
whipped out his hand, tossing three pokeballs into the air. A
Skarmory, Ursaring, and Scizor emerged. "Be sure no one makes it out
alive."

Skarmory took to the air with blinding speed, while Ursaring stomped
its way toward the stands.

Drake growled in anger. "I won't let you do this!"

"Too late. Natu has the exits sealed off."

Drake's eyes darted to the little bird. "Ice Beam!"

Dragonite opened its mouth and fired.

The boy gasped in surprise when he realized that the beam was aimed at
Natu, but at himself. Not that it mattered. Natu teleported them both
out of the beam's path.

"Well, if that's how you want it. Scizor, Quick Attack!"

Drake would've sworn he never saw the red Pokémon move. All the same,
deep cuts opened up all over his arms, legs, and chest. He groaned and
fell to his knees.

Dragonite roared in anger and charged.

"Steel Wing."

Scizor's wings flashed before he charged as well, flying just beneath
the dragon's vulnerable belly.

Dragonite let out a wail of pain and crashed to the ground.

Drake looked on in shock as Scizor stopped. His wings were stained
with crimson liquid. "Dragonite...NO!"

"Don't feel bad, chump," the boy chuckled. "You never had a chance,
and I'll tell you why." He walked over to Drake and bent down. "Every
Pokémon is born with self-imposed natural limits. Sort of like a power
regulator. It's the only thing that really keeps them from killing
each other in battle." He grinned evilly. "Your Pokémon still have
those limits, of course. Unfortunately for you, ours don't anymore."

Drake was about to say that he was wrong. But he couldn't ignore the
screams behind him, and he knew that it was true. "Who are you? Why
are you doing this?!"

"We're the Rocket League," the boy replied. "And we're doing it
because we can." He stood up. "Ever wonder what would happen if a
Pokémon used Psychic on a human?"

Drake's eyes widened as the Natu began making a strange noise.
"No...please...don't!"

They were the last words he would ever speak.

The boy laughed. "Houndour and Scizor, go help the others finish up.
We don't have all day."

The two Pokémon nodded and went to do their trainer's bidding.

He turned around to find his partner fiddling with a television
camera. "Ready?"

"Almost. Raichu?"

Raichu sent a tiny shock into the camera.

"Okay. We're on."

Both boys stepped in front of the camera.

The one with the Raichu chuckled as he began.

"To control the world with devastation."

His partner joined in.

"To enslave the Pokémon in every nation."

"To destroy the goodness of truth and love."

"To extend our evil beyond the stars above."

"Satoshi!"

"Shigeru!"

"Rocket League reigns supreme from now on!"

"Mess with us, and you'll be gone."

"Raichu!"

"Gengar!"

Shigeru looked up, spotting the helicopters in the distance. "Looks
like we got their attention."

Satoshi smiled. "Then let's give them something to be worried about.
Gengar, Shadow Ball!"

Gengar growled and formed a ball in its hands.

"Raichu, juice it up!"

Raichu added a large amount of electricity, doubling the ball's size.

"Fire!"

Gengar threw the ball high into the air.

"Detonate!"

The helicopters were knocked out of the sky by the resulting power
waves. But even when the authorities finally made it to the arena, all
they found was a massacre scene, and a single videotape with the
world's two deadliest trainers on it.

* * * * *

Captain Jenny walked into the briefing room, smiling when she saw that
her team was already there. But the smile faded as she reminded
herself why she'd gathered them in the first place.

"This will be unlike any other mission we've been on. It will also be
extremely dangerous."

"When do we leave again?" Shiro asked, grinning.

Chigusa elbowed him. "Dummy."

Jenny's gaze landed on her newest recruits. "Jessie and James, I know
this will be difficult, but I don't want you to let your personal
feelings get in the way."

James looked confused. "What? Why?"

"Because...we're handling a kidnapping case for the Rocket League."

The Persian and Jessie's feet lifted his head.

"But...I thought we were supposed to fight the bad guys?" Chigusa
asked.

"We are," Jenny replied. "So while we're looking for Kasumi, we'll
also be looking for ways to bring the Rocket League to justice. And if
we do find her, they'll owe us."

"Any suspects?" Shiro asked.

"Yes. They matched ID numbers of the Pokémon involved to several
former gym trainers. Plus, they have Sabrina on their security tapes.
I never thought she'd take it this far."

"Guess they didn't, either," Jessie muttered.

"Fortunately, we're still on good terms with Sabrina. I'm hoping
she'll admit she was involved. At least then we could work something
out."

"You really think she'd do that?" Tracey asked.

"Yes, I do. Sabrina's ultimate goal is to bring the Rocket League
down. Even if it mean being imprisoned for a while, I'm sure she'd do
it willingly."

"What if they get away again?" James asked.

Jenny sighed. "They might get away a hundred times, or even a
thousand. But we will catch them in the end. I swear it."

"Works for me," Persian purred.

"Like I said," Shiro interrupted. "When do we leave?"

"Right now." Jenny stepped forward and touched the girl in front of
her. "Copycat will be mission leader this time."

"What? That's crazy!" Shiro cried. "She can't even talk!"

"She doesn't have to," Tracey snapped. "I know sign language. I can
translate for you."

"But how are we gonna talk to her?" Persian asked. "She can't hear
us."

"She can read lips," Jenny said. "And she's more than capable of
leading this team. Besides, she's the only one that can get us to the
rebel base."

"Think you can do it, Copycat?" Tracey asked.

Copycat smiled and nodded.

Jenny grinned. "Okay, team. Let's move out."

* * * * *

"Well? Are you going to answer me or not?!" Casey shouted. "Why'd you
make him do it?!"

Gary kept his head lowered and remained silent.

Casey growled and grabbed a handful of his hair, yanking his head up.
"I said why...?!" She trailed off, shock etched on her face.
"You...you're...crying?"

Gary glared at Casey and slapped her hand away. "Yeah. It's called
being human. You should try it sometime."

"Why are you crying?" Sabrina asked. "Do you regret what you've done
now? If you're looking for forgiveness, you won't find it here."

"Don't worry, I wasn't." Gary wiped his face on his sleeve. "I'm just
mad that it took something like that to get Ash and I to be partners
again."

Duplica narrowed her eyes. "What do you mean, again?"

"It doesn't matter," Brock said. "Would you ever attack anyone so
mercilessly again, Shigeru?"

"Of course not," Gary muttered. "I'd never do that...and I never have
done that. I don't know where you got that tape, but that wasn't me."

"You're lying," Casey whispered angrily. "This is no joke! Those
people and Pokémon really are dead, and their blood is on your hands!"

"Well, `I' wasn't alone," Gary pointed out.

"How DARE you!" Casey slapped him across the face. "Ash Ketchum would
never--!"

"Yeah. But the tape says he did." Gary smirked. "So either we're both
guilty or both innocent. Make up your mind."

"No....you made him do it!"

Gary chuckled softly. "Oh? Then why is it the last time you guys saw
him, he attacked you on his own?"

Casey fell silent.

"Then you're not controlling him," Brock said. "But someone--or
something--is. I've suspected there was some unknown force controlling
the Rocket League for a long time."

"But I still didn't do what's on that tape," Gary insisted.

Brock frowned. "Then it's worse than I feared."

"What do you mean, Brock?" Morty asked.

"Giovanni has turned the Elite into perfect killing machines. They
strike without feeling, and afterwards, their minds are wiped clean.
They don't even realize what they've done. They must think we're the
evil ones attacking them for no reason."

"But it would take incredible psychic power to control them for this
long and so well," Sabrina said. "And I didn't sense anything when I
was there."

"If the Rocket League did have something that powerful, it could
probably mask its presence from lesser psychics," Brock replied. "And
that's saying a lot, considering it's you, Sabrina."

"I know," she said quietly, suddenly looking very afraid.

"Regardless, we have to try and reach Satoshi. He'll be vulnerable,
now that we have Shigeru."

Sabrina nodded. "I'll do my best, Brock."

"I know you will. Everyone will." Brock sighed and gently stroked the
head of his Ninetails. "Duplica, take Shigeru to the battlefield.
Casey, you round up the kids. Morty, keep a tight watch on the
perimeter. I want to know the second Satoshi arrives. Whitney, I want
you to prepare Plan Alpha-Beta."

Whitney blinked a few times. "Are you sure, Brock?"

"Yes. We can't afford to take anymore chances. He may walk in here as
Satoshi, but if he walks out, he's taking a little piece of Ash with
him."

As Duplica led him away, Gary felt a familiar pressure on his cheek.
He looked up to see Sally floating just over his shoulder. There was a
mysterious smile on her face.

"Sure hope you know what you're doing, Sally," Gary muttered. "But
next time, warn me when you're gonna feed me a line. It's way too
weird to feel me talking and not know what I'm saying."

Sally nodded and patted his cheek with a vine.

Gary smiled slightly, then hid it behind a frown as Duplica glanced
back at him. "There's just one thing I can't figure out," he thought
to himself. "If Sally's powerful enough to stay hidden from everyone
we've met so far, is she strong enough to take on whatever controls
the Rocket League?"

* * * * *

Pikachu stopped as they reached the edge of the battlefield, his ears
twitching. "Chu."

Satoshi looked down. "What do you hear?"

"That would be me," Brock replied, slowly stepping into the light.
There was a Crobat perched on his shoulder.

Satoshi frowned. "Where is Shigeru?"

"If you win, you can have him."

"Who do I have to battle? You?"

"Yes. But not just me." Brock drew a pokeball from his belt. "Are you
ready...Ash?"

"My name is Satoshi."

Brock chuckled. "We'll see, old friend..."

* * * * *

Continued in Chapter 7: Enemy Within

Satoshi and Brock battle, but what do they have in store for each
other? With Brock's theory confirmed, Gary sets out to find the real
power behind the Rocket League. But that path leads straight to the
mysterious Lab 2, home to some very powerful Pokémon. Is Sentry the
enormous psychic force controlling the Rocket League, or is there a
Pokémon even greater than him?