Pokemon Fan Fiction / Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Pseudo Shigeru ❯ Mental Mayhem ( Chapter 9 )

"Hyper Beam!" Clair & Lance shouted together.

The twin Dragonair fired the powerful beams, bathing the entire arena in blinding light for a few seconds.

When the light faded, a Dratini was revealed at the center of impact…totally unharmed.

Clair smiled proudly. "I TOLD you," she said, reaching down so the tiny dragon could wind its serpentine body around her right arm. "None of your dragons were as tough as my Draco is."

Lance grunted. "If you're so confident, why won't you let him evolve?"

"The longer they spend at each stage, the more powerful they become when they fully evolve." Clair made a slight hissing sound deep in her throat as she stroked Draco's neck, both which seemed to relax the dragon. "I might be an old woman when he finally becomes a Dragonite."

"Well, that's hardly going to make you a very desirable wife."

"Oh, please. I know you're going to marry me as soon as I become League Master."

Lance snorted. "You forget that you've never beaten me, dearest."

"That's because I've never tried. I'm strong enough to now, but I want to wait. Draco's almost reached the point where he can wipe out your entire team by himself. I might even make President of the Rocket League when the boss sees that."

Lance glared at her. "You seem very intent on stealing my positions tonight, Clair."

"Well, I'm Vice President and Rocket Chairperson. I'm supposed to aspire for more."

Lance smirked. "In that case, I have a business proposition to sate your thirst for success."

Clair's eyes lit up at once, and he knew he had her full attention. "I'm listening."

Lance produced a large diamond ring from his pocket. "Why don't you wear this?"

Clair eyed the ring with feigned disinterest. "That's supposed to keep me from wanting your jobs?"

"As is the impending promise of marriage it comes with," Lance added, sliding the ring onto her finger. "Provided that you defeat me, of course…"

Clair grunted and stared at the ring. Finally, she turned to Draco. "What do you think?"

Draco peered at the ring, then hissed into Clair's ear.

Clair grunted again. "And you?" she asked, looking down.

One of the Dragonair curled around her left leg.

"Hmm. In that case…" She looked back at Lance. "We accept your terms."

Lance arched an eyebrow. "We, huh? I don't intend to kiss them at the wedding…"

Clair smirked. "You'd better not, if you're planning on a honeymoon."

Lance laughed. "Are you kidding? I planned that FIRST."

"Naughty boy," she admonished, but her eyes danced with obvious joy.

Lance grinned and tilted her chin up, leaning in to kiss her.

Neither of them saw the huge shadow heading toward them until it was too late.

* * * * *

"You're going to die, aren't you?" Brock whispered, tracing Sabrina's pale face with his fingers. He carefully brushed her dark green hair away from her forehead, searching for any external injuries. "I always thought I would be first, Sabrina. I am the oldest, really. Your powers have kept you young for so long, but Sylvie's seem to be making her older by the second. She reminds me so much of that other you sometimes…the one we used to fear…" He shook his head and sighed. "Anything, Joy?" he asked.

Nurse Joy shook her head. "No brain activity, no pulse, no nothing. It's as if she willed herself into a coma."

"You're probably right, actually," Brock muttered, frowning. "What about that bite?"

"It was definitely from the same Arbok that used to belong to Jessie."

"Then we have an antidote?"

"Yes, I gave it to her an hour ago. The venom's no problem now."

"Just everything else," Brock sighed. "And there's still no word from Sylvie? I can't help thinking Sabrina's condition might have affected her, and not in a good way."

Joy shook her head. "No one's seen her since she was on guard duty with Morty."

Just then, Duplica ran in, a worried look on her face. "Brock, we've got big trouble!"

Brock raised his head. "What?"

Duplica pressed a button on the wall, and a monitor lowered from the ceiling, revealing Captain Jenny's anxious face.

"Now is not the best time, Captain," Brock said in a strained voice.

"I'm aware, Brock. But you're the only one I could think to call." Jenny stepped out of the monitor's path.

Joy gasped as they saw Sylvie's small body lying on a bed.

"She passed out exactly three hours ago, and it's taken us that long just to contact you." Jenny sighed off-screen. "I thought maybe you'd have some ideas on how to help her."

Brock stared at the screen. "Joy, when did Sabrina's telepathic call reach us?"

"Three hours ago," Joy replied, her eyes still full of concern for Sylvie.

"I thought so." Brock frowned. "Jenny, do you have any Pokémon that are weak against psychics there?"

Jenny nodded. "Chigusa and Shiro have some fighting types. Why?"

"Have them bring one to Sylvie's bedside. We're going to try an experiment." Brock turned to Duplica. "Do you have Ash's Venusaur with you?"

Without a word, Duplica released Venusaur.

A few minutes later , Chigusa's Hitmotop was at Sylvie's side, giving the little girl a curious look.

"So what's this idea of yours, Brock?" Jenny asked.

"Place Sylvie's hand on Hitmontop's head," Brock replied, "and then watch."

Duplica patted Venusaur's head, and its large flower shook gently, as if caught in a breeze. Tiny spores floated from the flower and wafted towards Sabrina's body. Upon contact, the reaction was almost instant.

Sabrina didn't move.

Hitmontop, however, wailed in pain and backed away from Sylvie's hand as quickly as possible.

"What did you do?" Jenny asked in alarm as Chigusa tried to calm Hitmontop by hugging it.

"Poisonpowder," Brock said. "Being a psychic, Sabrina's mind would've repelled it. And it did, in a way…because Sabrina's mind is in Sylvie's body."

"WHAT?!" Duplica cried.

Brock sighed patiently. "Hitmontop was harmed because Sylvie's body reacted with psychic force. But Sabrina's mind was what told Sylvie's body to react that way."

"But…why would Sabrina do that to Sylvie?" Joy asked. "To rob her own sister of her mind…"

Brock shook his head. "Sylvie's mind isn't gone. It's working with Sabrina's. A perfect match, you might say. The DNA is certainly all there. I can only assume that Sabrina would rather place her mind in her sister's head than be controlled by the Rocket League. They would've used Sabrina against us, if Cassidy had captured her."

"And it'd be hard enough to catch Sylvie with just one mind," Duplica said slowly. "With two, she's virtually unstoppable."

"Or she will be, when she wakes up," Brock pointed out. "Jenny, I'd suggest you have Mary & Mikey close by when that happens. You don't want to alarm her in that state…"

"Of course not," Jenny said quickly. "But isn't there anything else we can do for her?"

"I doubt it will take very long for Sylvie to recover from the shock of 'losing' and 'gaining' Sabrina all at once. Once she wakes up, I'd advise that you do whatever she says. Two psychics will most likely have the patience of none. If you have any problems, we'll be in touch."

The screen went blank.

"What now?" Duplica asked.

Brock sighed heavily. "Prepare to mobilize. As soon as Sylvie wakes up, we're taking down the Rocket League once and for all."

* * * * *

Gary frowned as he recalled his battle with Satoshi mere hours ago. "It was like every attack Marie threw at that Gengar had no effect. And I haven't used her often enough to be sure, but I think she got tired a lot faster than usual. Remember how tough she was when we battled?"

"That's something Togetic nor I would ever forget," Kasumi replied honestly. She smiled a bit as Togetic gently fanned Marie's back with his wings. "This Frieda of yours must be an amazing trainer."

Gary didn't say anything. He had mentioned Frieda moments before, only saying that they'd traded a few times and that she had once turned down an offer to become a gym leader. It was certainly true; several of Frieda's siblings were also excellent trainers, and all of them had turned down at least one offer of becoming a gym leader. Monica, the eldest sister, seemed to be of the opinion that her family's sole purpose was to share their gifts with every trainer they came in contact with…on the proper days, anyway.

Anything else would just get in the way.

"Shigeru?" Kasumi said, giving him a look.

He got the feeling that she'd been calling him for a while now. "What?"

"I asked if you wanted to know why you couldn't beat Gengar."

Gary blinked. "You weren't there."

"It doesn't matter. I know how Satoshi thinks, and I know things about his Pokémon that you don't."

"Like what, Kasumi?"

She smirked. "Like the fact that his Gengar can absorb any and every kind of heat directed at it, including fire and electric. Not only that, Gengar can turn it back on his opponents with devastating results. You saw their infamous Electric Fireball, no doubt. It's like he made an evil clone of Pikachu or something."

"That doesn't explain why Marie was so tired."

Kasumi grinned. "You still don't get it, Shigeru. Gengar absorbs ALL types of heat. Even body heat. And with Marie being an electric type only using fire and electric attacks, she had to be giving off tons of the stuff. It's no wonder she could barely give him a scratch, with all the energy she was giving him. In fact, I'd say Gengar was probably absorbing heat from you two the moment you walked into the lab."

Gary frowned. "That's cheating."

Kasumi shrugged. "It's also another reason why no one wants to battle Satoshi. His Gengar's too powerful. Sometimes he actually leaves it out in the sun all day…with Charizard, if you can believe that!"

"What about Pikachu?"

"What about him? He's a fine Pokémon, but there's no competing with that Gengar. It's not like Satoshi ignores him; they still go everywhere together. Pikachu just hasn't needed to battle much since Gengar stepped up." She lowered her voice. "Personally, I think he's getting older, and de-evolving from Raichu might be putting a big strain on him. Satoshi's under the impression that he and his Pokémon are invincible."

Gary smirked. "Well, can you blame him? An ego the size of a Snorlax is almost required when you're one of the Elite Five."

Kasumi suddenly frowned.

"What? Okay, I'm sorry. I didn't think you'd take it personally."

But Kasumi was still frowning as she stood up. "Who are you?" she whispered softly.

Gary stared at her. "What?"

"Who are you?" she repeated. "You're not Shigeru. You can't be. You look, talk, and act an awful lot like him, I'll give you that much. But you're NOT him."

Gary wasn't about to let on that she was right. "Kasumi, what are you talking about? You think just because I lose to Satoshi once-"

"Don't be stupid; everyone loses to Satoshi," she snapped. "That's not how I know you're a fake."

Gary was about to ask if she was crazy, but Cleo spoke to him just then.

"Tell her the truth, Trainer Gary. I believe we can trust her. Sally agrees with me…"

He sighed and licked his lips. "How, then?"

Kasumi's face lost most of its menace. "Pikachu," she said simply.

Gary blinked. "Huh?"

She smiled. "In all the time I knew him, Shigeru NEVER called Pikachu by his name. It was always 'electric rodent' or 'yellow rat' or 'Mickey wanna-be', things like that. But you called him Pikachu while we were carrying Satoshi in. And you've just done it again now."

"That's IT? That's all you're basing this on?!"

Kasumi shook her head. "No. There's one other thing, a big one. Shigeru would've made at least one attempt to win me back from Satoshi by now. You didn't."

"What, getting kidnapped in your place doesn't impress you?"

"Actually, it did. Shigeru wouldn't have done that, either. He'd have battled his way out of it. That was usually his answer to most situations. He was a true innovator when it came to Pokémon strategy, him and Satoshi both." She stared at him for a long moment. "So. Who are you?"

Gary ran a hand through his hair. "In a way, I AM Shigeru." He saw her opening her mouth to protest, and quickly added, "But not the one you know. Not the one any of you knew. This will sound crazy, so maybe you should sit down."

Kasumi sat, an impassive look on her face. She definitely looked ready for whatever he had to say.

"My name is Gary Oak. I come from another world, and another time, where none of this ever happened."

Kasumi continued to look at him. "I'm guessing you have some proof?"

Gary smirked. "Other than the fact that I look exactly like the Gary you knew?"

Kasumi glared at him. "Yes, other than that."

"When we battled, you sent out Pokémon with psychic attacks against my Umbreon."

She frowned. "Umbreon?"

"It's a Dark Eevee evolution. The fact that I know about it and you don't should be proof enough."

"So you're well-informed. That doesn't prove anything."

Gary sighed. "Look, Kasumi. I don't have time for this now. Either you believe me or you don't, and it probably won't matter pretty soon, if my hunch is right. But the fact is, I'm here and Shigeru's not."

"If you've hurt him…" Kasumi began, reaching for a pokéball.

"Relax. I've only seen pictures of the guy. I'm not here to replace him."

"Then why are you here?"

Gary frowned, then replied, "I came for Ash and Misty."

Kasumi stared at him, her face draining of color. She opened her mouth, and looked as if she might scream.

Suddenly, Cleo burst from her pokéball and used Confusion.

Togetic was knocked out instantly. Kasumi's eyes rolled up into her head, and she began to sink to the floor.

Gary barely caught her in time. "Cleo, what did you-"

"In its confused state, her mind was more vulnerable to psychic attacks just then. I didn't want her to alert anyone to your identity, Trainer Gary."

Gary carefully placed Kasumi on her bed. "Well, warn me next time, will you?"

"Sorry, but there was no AAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!"

Gary spun around to see Cleo collapse to the floor in a heap. He was shocked to see the red dot on her forehead was now a dull black. "Cleo?!"

Sally emerged from her pokéball and bent over Cleo, inspecting her closely.

A moment later, Eve was released to translate. "Sally says Cleo was hit by an incredible wave of dark power, but there was something…strange about it."

"Like what?" Gary asked, stroking Cleo's head.

"It was coated in psychic power. That's how it slipped past her defenses."

Gary frowned. "A Pokémon that uses dark and psychic attacks?"

"It's more than that. Sally says the wave is affecting all the islands, too. Every psychic type for miles will be crippled. That means the Pokémon that sent it out is scary strong."

"Great. And I bet I have to go find it," Gary muttered. "Where do I even start?"

Eve looked at Sally, then nodded. "The wave originated in Lab 2."

"Lab 2? Are you sure?"

"Well…no. But Sally thinks that's our best bet."

"Wait. Are the psychic types here down, too?"

"I know what you're thinking Gary, but this goes beyond the Rocket League. EVERY psychic type is down. Except for Sally, anyway."

Gary smirked and patted Sally's head fondly. "Figures."

* * * * *

Tracey was just starting to doze off when Copycat shook him awake. "Huh? What?"

Sylvie was sitting up in her bed, blinking and looking around slowly.

Tracey quickly woke up Mikey and Mary, who hurried over to Sylvie's side.

"Are you okay, Sylvie?" Mary asked.

Sylvie glanced in her direction, then carefully got out of bed. She bent down and picked up the Smoochum at Mary's feet. "Hello, Sweetie. Did you miss me?"

"Smooch!" Sweetie replied happily, planting a kiss on Sylvie's nose.

"Sylvie?" Tracey asked, and then hesitantly, "Sabrina…?"

"They are both safe," Sylvie said. "We must go."

"Where?" Mikey asked.

"The Rocket League. The one true Pokémon Master is already there."

"One true…do you mean Satoshi?" Mary asked.

But Sylvie would say no more.

* * * * *

Giovanni and Butch stood side by side in the infirmary, saying nothing.

Cassidy, who had been in a coma since her battle with Sabrina, occupied the first bed.

Lance & Clair took up the next two beds. Unlike Cassidy, their injuries were more obvious and severe. Both looked as if they'd been caught in a rockslide. Lance had taken more damage, presumably from trying to protect Clair. Neither of them was expected to wake up any time soon.

Their Pokémon had been soundly defeated. Even Draco, Clair's prize Dratini, was in intensive care.

This left Giovanni with several problems.

First and foremost, someone had penetrated their defenses. That left everyone on the four islands in danger.

Second, Satoshi and Sentry were missing. Giovanni preferred to think that they were together, as that offered some comfort.

Third, all the psychics were incapacitated.

Fourth, someone had dared to attack…his children.

Fifth, the Elite Five was down to Three.

"Butch," Giovanni said quietly. "You now have Cassidy's rank. Her Pokémon are yours." He placed a pokéball into the astonished young man's hand. "Take this. Find Shigeru and Kasumi at all costs. Stay together and patrol the islands. I will not suffer any more losses."

Butch nodded. "Yes, sir."

Giovanni left the room quickly.

Butch leaned over Cassidy and kissed her pale forehead. "I'll kill Sabrina for this, Cass. I swear it." He frowned. "None of this would've happened if it weren't for Shigeru. First chance I get, he's gonna be in here right beside you."

* * * * *

Morty and Duplica stood on the edge of the Viridian Forest, waiting patiently.

"Are we really doing this?" Morty asked.

Duplica nodded. "Not much choice now. The Rocket League's never gonna be this vulnerable twice."

Moments later, the PokePolice cruisers pulled up.

"You two ready?" Jenny asked, biting her lip.

"As we're gonna get," Duplica replied, climbing in.

"Where are Brock and Whitney?"

"They're staying with Sabrina," Morty answered. "Just in case."

"Of course." Jenny paused. "I trust you all know each other?"

Duplica and Copycat stared at each other for a long moment before looking away.

"Something like that," Morty said with a smirk.

Sylvie peered back at him from the passenger's seat. "We could've used Steelix."

Morty winked at her. "Just because Brock isn't here doesn't mean his spirit isn't."

* * * * *

Satoshi woke up in total darkness. Instinctively, he reached beneath his cloak for Pikachu, but found his old companion strangely absent. "Pikachu?" he whispered.

There was a snort behind him, and then a bright flame came into view, revealing a large, familiar outline.

"Charizard." Satoshi slowly stood up and a placed a hand on the dragon's side to steady himself. "Where's Pikachu?"

Rocks shifted as Charizard turned and led Satoshi through the cave, stopping every so often so his trainer could catch up.

Soon, they reached a small shrine that Satoshi recognized. "Dragon's Den," he murmured. "But how did we get here?"

There was a quiet chattering near Satoshi's left ear, and he ducked at once. "What…?!"

"Relax, Satoshi," said a laughing voice. "They won't harm you."

Satoshi frowned. "Show yourself."

"You're the one with the Charizard, old friend."

Charizard's flame grew higher at once, bathing the cavern in an eerie, orange glow.

Satoshi immediately noticed the many black shapes near the roof of the cavern, darting in and out of view. Though they were all different, each had a single, glowing eye that spun about wildly.

"I take it you know my little friends."

Satoshi turned in the direction of the voice, and his throat went dry.

Standing in front of the shrine, holding Pikachu in his arms, was Shigeru. But it was not the same young man that Satoshi had battled mere hours ago. He knew without question that this was the Shigeru he'd spent all of his life competing against, the one he considered his true equal and brother in every way that still mattered.

"A little unexpected, I know," Shigeru said quietly. "But he was in pretty bad shape."

Satoshi stared at him.

"The rat," he added, nodding at the electric mouse. "Otherwise I wouldn't touch him at all. But he's getting better with every passing moment."

Satoshi saw something moving on Pikachu's forehead, and recognized it as one of the same Pokémon dancing along the cavern roof. This one had a very prominent eye, surrounded by a circular ring of black, thin flesh. "What is it…doing to him?"

Shigeru smiled mysteriously. "These Pokémon…they're unlike anything we've ever seen before. Usually, Pokémon are just confined to one or two types. But these…each of them unlocks a new ability in the host."

"Host?" Satoshi asked. "They're…parasites?"

"You've got it all wrong, Satoshi. They don't take anything from the Pokémon, only add. Make it stronger. All they want is a chance to use their power, nothing more." He pointed to the one on Pikachu's head. "This one's a ghost type. Now your rat can absorb heat, not just electricity. It'll make him twice as strong, once he heals up properly."

"And what happens to…that?" He gestured to the black Pokémon, which was making a strange, shrill whining sound.

"They call themselves the Unown. Afterwards, it detaches itself, leaving you with a super-powered rodent. Maybe even strong enough to beat that Gengar of yours."

"Why did you bring me here, Shigeru? And…who was it that I battled with?"

"You'll know everything soon, old friend." He handed over Pikachu. "But for now, we've got to get over to the Arena. Sentry and the other legendaries are waiting there."

Satoshi's eyes widened. "How did you know about them?"

"Just because you haven't seen me doesn't mean I haven't been here." Shigeru laughed and gestured to the Unown. "I have eyes everywhere, after all."

Several of the Unown disengaged from the crowd and formed a ring around Shigeru. They rotated in a surreal way that made Satoshi's head hurt if he watched too long. "What are they doing?"

"Talking," Shigeru replied absently, apparently more focused on his 'conversation' with the Unown. "They're excited about something."

"What?"

"Well, don't take this the wrong way or anything, but…apparently, it's the end of the world."

* * * * *

Continued in Chapter 10: Afraid of the Dark

Gary discovers the controlling force behind the Rocket League, and Giovanni's plans for the legendary cats. Sylvie challenges Butch to a life-or-death battle, while Kasumi ceases to exist. Plus, Shigeru tells all.

Note: The part about the unknown is kinda sorta true. Though all are psychic and have Hidden Power (normal), that attack gives each access to an attack of another type. So there are some ghost Unown and psychic Unown and even dark Unown, but they're not very strong…alone, anyway.