Chapter 4
Death. The aftermath of death, coffins holding cold, lifeless bodies,
was in front of my eyes. I looked behind myself and to my side, and I
saw sad, crying faces everywhere. If there ever was a sight that could
show how emotional people can be, this was definitely it.
Two weeks had passed since New Island, but the memory of the disaster
was still fresh in my mind, as if it had all happened seconds ago. I
wished that it all were just a dream. That I would wake up in the
speedboat with David, laughing at me for dozing off. That the big secret
at the island was just some type of environmentally safe fuel. That we
would leave the island, and have a burger while watching Ruben.
But as much as I wished it to be true, I knew that it wasn't. David was
dead and there was a murderous pokemon out there right now, bringing
suffering and pain to those who dare challenge him. I was now at David,
along with the other scientists' funeral, dressed in an all black dress
suit, with a white shirt and red tie.
I looked to my left, at Gerald, who was in the same clothes as I, but
with a blue tie. He was looking at the wooden church floor, a blank
expression on his face. It was as if the shock of the situation had
killed his soul. I rubbed his back, trying to comfort him. He looked at
me with those blank eyes and asked, "Why?" Then, he continued
to stare at the floor.
My gaze went to Mom and Dad, who were to my right. Mom, who was in a
black coat, a black shirt and a black skirt that went to her heels, was
a complete sobbing mess. Dad held her in his arms, while her tears
landed on the black tie of his black dress suit. He fought back tears
while quietly saying things in Mom's ear. Things like, "It's ok . .
. It's all right." I could tell that Dad wanted to cry, but he
couldn't. He was the father, he had to be tough. To not show tears, even
while at your own son's funeral.
It was weird. My family seemed happy when they saw me at the hospital.
They were nowhere near as emotionally wrecked as this. I guess that now
that we were sitting here, listening to the priest at the altar finish
his speech on how David and the other scientists, "have gone on to
a better life," that the happiness that I was still alive had
faded, and the reality that David, the oldest brother, was now dead, had
set in.
The priest motioned for the families to see the bodies of the deceased.
From the crowd of mourners, groups of people, including my family and I,
rose from their seats, and walked up the red carpet walkway in the
middle of the main hall to the coffins. The people who stayed in their
seats either wanted to not see the bodies or have the corpses cremated.
Had the bodies not been burned enough by the blast that decimated the
lab?
The main hall was beautiful. Gigantic statues of angels stood next to
the white walls as sunlight came in from the large, stained windows.
Chandeliers hung from the roof and there were beautiful designs on the
doors. Various flowers were hanging from the ceiling in pots and sitting
in front of the podium, which had two candles on it. It was indeed a
great looking church, but my attention wasn't on all of this now, it was
on the coffins.
I walked past the podium, following my family into the rows of coffins.
My gaze set upon a woman and a girl, who seemed no older than 8. They
were looking into an open coffin. The girl placed her head on the body
inside, and began to cry. The woman kneeled down and said something to
the girl. Within seconds, the girl turned around and hugged the woman.
Another parent left single. Another child left without a father.
"Here it is," Dad calmly said. My family stopped as I set my
view on the coffin. It was completely black in color, except for the
golden handles and the name "Thomas" written out on its front,
which was gold in color. Dad placed a hand on the lid of the coffin and
looked at the 3 of us. "Listen. What you are about to see won't be
pretty in anyway. If you don't want to see this, turn around now. Do you
hear me?" We merely nodded. "Last chance. Matt?" I kept
my gaze on the coffin. "Gerald?" Gerald continued to stare at
the coffin, his eyes showing life again. "Amanda?" Mom nodded
and said to Dad, collecting herself as much as she could, "Go
ahead, honey. Let me see my son." Dad looked at us all in the eyes.
Afterwards, he opened the coffin.
A whole new flood of tears came from Mom's eyes as she screamed at the
top of her lungs. Dad quickly went to her side and held her in his arms,
running his hand through her hair. She buried her head in Dad's chest,
sobbing for her lost son. Gerald's eyes quickly regained the blank look
that they had lost seconds ago. My eyes widened as I looked at the thing
in the coffin. It had to be a thing. It couldn't be human. Looking at it
made me feel sick to my stomach.
The thing was wearing a black dress suit with a white shirt and black
tie. Its left arm and right leg were missing, probably torn from the
body by the explosion. The arm and leg that remained were dislocated. I
could see severe burn marks on the body's hand. Burned to the point
where the bones were showing. The thing's face was a mess. Severe burns
disfigured half of it. On the half that was burned, the ear was missing,
and all of the hair was burned off. Only the other half of that face
reminded me of David. So this is it? This is the price that you pay for
playing God?
I looked up from the coffin to see Gerald staring at me with his
lifeless eyes. "Why?" was all that he said to me.
----
I found myself, standing with my family in the crowd of people, watching
20 coffins lower into the ground. The graves were in a circular
formation around a fountain. Mom looked on with dried up tears on her
face. She had finally cried all of her pain out. All the pain of
witnessing her first son's funeral. It tore my heart apart to see her
like this. I didn't want my Mom to suffer like this. I wanted her to be
happy. I wondered if she would ever be happy again.
I read the words that were etched on the fountain. "Heroes of
Science Memorial." My brother, along with the rest of the
scientists had the opportunity to be buried here, in Lavender Town
Cemetery, at this memorial. There were families that decided to not bury
their loved ones here. They would be buried at places closer to their
family. My family had debated on burying David in Cerulean or Lavender.
We chose Lavender, since Mom and Dad wanted David to get the recognition
they thought he deserved.
Workers moved in, removed the lowering machines from the coffins and
started piling dirt on them. The fountain came to life, water shooting
from it. Dad had told me that at night, a blue light would light the
fountain. How ironic. Die by the blue light, rest in peace by the blue
light.
"Mr. Thomas, Channel 25 news. May we have a word with you?" My
father and I turned around to see a female reporter and a cameraman. Dad
snapped, "Can't you see that he has suffered enough!?"
"It's okay, Dad. Channel 25, follow me," I said, leading the
reporter and cameraman away from the memorial.
As we walked away from the memorial, to a nearby bench, I said to the
reporter, "I guess that I might as well tell you something. You
people won't leave me alone until I do." The reporter responded,
"You should only fear the camera if there are things that you don't
want us to know. Are you hiding any secrets?" "Yes, I am. I'm
still afraid of the dark," I sarcastically replied. The reporter
laughed at the remark. "Not all reporters are bad, Mr. Thomas. You
just have to know the right ones."
We sat on the bench as the cameraman focused his camera on the reporter.
The reporter gave the signal, and began to speak. "This is Laura
Ostrander of Channel 25 news. As you can see, we are in front of the new
memorial for the victims of the New Island disaster. We also have
Matthew Thomas, the, until now, silent hero of the incident."
The cameraman moved the camera to show the two of us. "Mr. Thomas,
how does it feel to see so many people mourning like this?" Laura
asked. I took a deep breath, and replied. "It's the kind of thing
that gets to you. It taxes the heart to realize that you will never see
a loved one again," I answered.
"A question that has been on everybody's mind is the identity of
the killer on the island. Mary Angel, daughter of the leader of the
S.C.O.R.S., Harold Angel, has said that the killer is in fact, a pokemon
that was created on the island. Can you give any information on
this?" Laura asked. I replied, "Mary isn't lying. The lab was
destroyed by Mewtwo, a pokemon created in that lab."
"Would you have any idea where this Mewtwo is?" the reporter
asked. "Ask Giovanni," I responded, slightly narrowing my
eyes. "Are you saying that Giovanni's new pokemon, the one that is
always in armor, is Mewtwo?" Laura asked. "Yes."
"Thank you for your time, Mr. Thomas. I'm sure that the world feels
your pain," the reporter said. Unless the world has seen their
brother die in front of them, then they can never feel my pain.
"This is Laura Ostrander, signing off," she said, smiling at
the camera. She held the smile until the cameraman gave a signal. She
shook my hand, saying, "Thank you very much sir. Maybe you should
get back to the funeral." "Yeah, I should," I said as I
left the bench and walked back to the memorial.
When I returned to the memorial, the graves were fully filled with dirt
and the mourners were gathered around the graves. I walked around the
crowd of people, looking for my family. As I walked around, I heard
young voices. They were saying things like, "Is Mommy is heaven
now?" and, "Why wouldn't Daddy get up?" I wanted to go
home now. I didn't want to see this sight anymore. I tucked my hands
into my pockets as I continued looking for my family, trying to ignore
the cries of the children.
I found my family, looking down on David's grave. Dad was holding a
bouquet of black roses. It was broken in half and there was a black sun
on it. The symbol of Dark Dawn. I kneeled down to look at the grave. It
read, "The suffering is over, and eternal life is now gained."
I looked down, with my eyes shut, as the first tears that I had shed
that day streaked down my face. "Rest in peace," I whispered.
----
The funeral ended, and everybody was going to his or her homes. All was
silent in dad's limo as it moved through the highway. My family was
looking out the windows. None of us wanted to talk about the funeral. I
looked at the buildings and cars going by. Is that how life is? A long
road, with people and events going by until you get to the end?
I looked at Dad. Why did he have that bouquet in his hand? "Dad,
what was the bouquet that you had earlier?" I asked, breaking the
silence. "Nothing," Dad said flatly. "Well, it had to be
something. It looked like it came from Dark Dawn," I said. "I
don't want to talk about it, and that is final," Dad replied,
bringing his gaze to me. "But-" "-Final!" Dad
snapped. I gave up on my question and resumed to look out the window
again. It meant something. Something that Dad apparently didn't like.
----
"Hello, Mr. Thomas. Your pidgeot is ready to go," a nurse said
as I entered the front door of the Viridian City Pokemon Center, a
fast-food bag in my hand. My parents and Gerald had gone back to their
homes, and I had come to pick up my pidgeot. Thank God that none of my
pokemon had died. Another death was the last thing that I wanted. I was
now wearing black pants, black shoes, and a red shirt with white sleeves
and a white collar.
I followed the nurse through the white halls of the pokemon center and
quickly noticed that things weren't as hectic as they were when I first
brought my pokemon here after being beaten at the Viridian City Gym.
"What happened? Is the gym closed?" I asked. "It seems as
if less and less people are trying to get the Earth Badge. That new
pokemon must be real killer," the nurse said. "You don't know
the half of it," I responded.
"Here we are," the nurse said while opening a door. Behind the
door were Pidgeot and a doctor. The doctor was writing down Pidgeot's
conditions while Pidgeot calmly stood with a sling on its right wing.
When Pidgeot noticed me, it spread its left wing and said happily,
"Pidgey! Pidgeot!" "I missed you too," I said as I
walked to Pidgeot and hugged it with both arms. Pidgeot returned the
embrace with its left wing. It always felt good to hug Pidgeot. Its body
warmth together with its soft feathers always comforted me. "I'm
glad that you're ok," I said. "Pidgey," it replied.
"It's sights like this that make me proud to be a pokemon
doctor," I heard the doctor say. I pulled myself away from
Pidgeot's hug to look at the doctor. "Is there anything else wrong
with Pidgeot besides the wing?" I asked. The doctor replied,
"No. After the wing heals in a few days, your pokemon will be fine.
I recommend that you don't make Pidgeot battle for at least two weeks.
Also, I want you to keep Pidgeot on a diet of poke pellets." I
nodded as I received the container of poke pellets from the doctor.
"Would you like to see your other pokemon?" the nurse asked.
"Of course," I replied, pocketing the container.
----
A few minutes later, Pidgeot and I found ourselves in a patient's room
with all of my other pokemon. Blastoise, Raichu, Primeape, and Flareon.
Raichu had bandages wrapped around the top of its head, Flareon had a
cast on each of its forearms and bandages wrapped around its chest,
Primeape had a cast on each of its arms and legs, and Blastoise had a
big bandage across the back of its shell.
The site made me feel pity for them, and disgust for myself. I had made
them suffer, because of my lust for revenge. I saw what Mewtwo could do,
I saw a trainer break into tears, but I still made them fight. I will
get my revenge, but I won't risk the lives of others to get it. I'll
join the S.C.O.R.S., and learn how to fight. One day, when the bastard
isn't expecting it, I'll strike. His blood will stain my hands, and I
won't give a damn.
Despite the thoughts that went through my mind, I managed to show a warm
smile. I opened the bag that I held and showed hamburgers to my pokemon.
A fed a hamburger to all 5 of my pokemon, patting them on the head while
I did so, except for Raichu, who received a belly rub.
I watched as Pidgeot carried on a conversation with Raichu.
"Pidgey...Pidgeot." "Raichu! Chu Chu." I had never
understood what pokemon said to each other. Their language seemed so
strange to me. Always calling out their name. I guess that human
language must seem strange to pokemon too. I should employ a Joy, so she
could translate what my pokemon say. It must take years to learn how to
understand pokemon.
"Come on Pidgeot, it's time to go," I said as I placed a hand
on the doorknob. Pidgeot stopped talking to Raichu and walked to me as I
opened the door. "Don't worry guys, I'll come back for you when
you're healed," I said.
----
Pidgeot and I left the room, waving as we exited. I walked down the
halls towards the exit, stopping when I saw a familiar face. A woman
with red hair that reached to her neck and green eyes exited a patient's
room and closed the door behind her. I stared at her, trying to connect
a memory to her face. Then, I found the memory. She was the woman who
fought Mewtwo with a pikachu and raichu.
"Pidgeot, you know your way back to where my other pokemon are,
right?" I asked. "Pidgeot," Pidgeot said with a nod.
"Go there, I'll be back in a minute," I said, leaving Pidgeot
to follow the woman. I peered into the window of the door that the woman
walked out of. A pikachu was sleeping in a bed. I couldn't see the
raichu. Maybe she had it with her somewhere. I left the door and
casually walked behind the woman, slowly gaining ground on her. Soon, I
would walk next to her, and say something like, "Oh, weird bumping
into you, isn't it?"
It looked like she was heading for the main entrance. I decided to speed
up my pace so I would be able to talk to her. Suddenly, she took a sharp
turn into another hallway. So maybe she was heading somewhere else? I
continued to follow her, turning into the next hall to find . . .
nothing. The girl had somehow disappeared! She couldn't be that fast of
a walker, or a runner!
I walked up the hall, looking for her. I looked into the rooms in the
hall, wondering if she went into one of the rooms. I opened a door,
checking to see if she was inside. Suddenly, a hand yanked my arm from
the knob and pulled me into the room. My arm was quickly twisted behind
my back as I felt the cold end of a gun press into the back of my head.
"You know, there are laws against stalking," the woman said.
The woman pushed me away from her, slamming me into the door. I quickly
turned around to find that she was holding the gun to my head.
"What are you doing following me?" the woman asked in an
authoritative tone. "Um, I wanted to say hi. Hi," I said,
slowly turning the knob of the door. "Let go of the knob,
now!" she demanded. I promptly gave up my grasp on the knob.
"You know, that gun isn't silenced. If you kill me, you will surely
be caught and charged for murder," I said, trying to save my life.
The woman smiled and said, "The only person who could be charged
here is you."
The woman took one hand off the gun and reached into her shorts' pocket.
She pulled out a wallet and opened it. Inside the wallet, was a driver's
license, which had the name Jessica Redwood on it, accompanied by the
woman's picture. Next to the license was a completely golden badge. The
top of the badge read, "S.C.O.R.S.", while the bottom of the
badge had Jessica's name on it. In the middle, was a fearow.
"I suggest that you start talking," Jessica said, holding the
gun steady. I quickly took the open window for an explanation. "I
wanted to talk to you, because I saw you before. I was with Giovanni
when you battled him for an earth badge." Jessica's grip on the gun
tightened. "So you are working with Team Rocket now? They told you
to follow me?" "No! I'm not working with them! Giovanni wanted
to bribe me into not talking about-" "-New Island?" I
sighed with relief when Jessica lowered the gun.
"You know, I could easily kill you without this gun," Jessica
said, placing the gun back into the holster that was under her shirt.
"Thanks for the thought. You know, that's an interesting place to
keep a gun." "Yeah, well people never expect me to be carrying
a gun there," Jessica responded. "Oh really? I know of a lot
of people that would search that area," I said with a smile.
"Funny," Jessica responded flatly. "Let's get out of this
room before somebody finds us. They might get the wrong idea."
"Agreed."
The both of us stepped out of the room, Jessica walking through the door
while I held it for her. We began to walk down the hall, towards the
main exit. "Are you sure that you didn't take Giovanni's bribe? I
have never seen you on TV, telling what happened on New Island,"
Jessica asked. "Well, I'm not too fond of the media. They were
bugging me allot a few days ago. Since I haven't given any interviews,
they have been battling to be the first channel to get me to take an
interview from them. They have slowed down since Mary gave her
interview, but they are still after me. Maybe the interview that I have
just given will shut them up."
"Don't worry about it. They are just looking for a story that they
can stretch out for 6 months. Once the next big thing comes along,
you'll have your privacy back," Jessica said. I responded,
"Yeah, I just hope that it comes soon. So, how are your two pokemon
doing? The pikachu and raichu?"
Jessica went into silence. "Raichu died, didn't it?" I asked.
She nodded and said, "Its levels weren't high enough to take such
an attack. Pikachu is being cared for here. The doctors say that it will
pull through. I've never battled a pokemon that could damage a pokemon
beyond a simple healing or . . . kill it." Silence fell over the
both of us. All that could be heard was the sound of chanseys carrying
medical equipment in boxes up the hallway.
"So, you're a part of the S.C.O.R.S.? I'm going to join too. I
start tomorrow," I said, breaking the silence and trying to lighten
the mood. Jessica responded, "Oh yeah. The S.C.O.R.S. is hard to
train for. Are you sure that you can handle it?" I smiled and
responded, "Hey you did it, didn't you?" She shook her head
and said, "No, I'm still training. Badges with fearows are for
trainees." "They give you a gun and badge while you're
training? That sounds stupid to me. Giving out power like that," I
said.
"Guns are for top class trainees. They don't just hand you a gun
the minute you walk in the building," Jessica said. "Of
course. If that were the case, Team Rocket and Dark Dawn would be there
all the time," I said. By this time, we had reached the main
entrance. "Well, it was nice talking to you Jessica. My name is....
do I really need to tell you?" I said. "It was nice talking to
you too, Matt. Just don't expect the S.C.O.R.S. to be a picnic,"
Jessica said while exiting from the main door.
----
Moments later, Pidgeot and I were also exiting the center. Seconds after
we stepped out of the center, police cars, fire trucks, and ambulances
sped by, sirens wailing, engines roaring, and tires screeching as they
maneuvered through traffic. Right behind them were news vans. Something
big was definitely happening.
I sighed with relief when none of the news vans stopped in front of me.
Maybe Jessica was right. Maybe the next big thing was here and I was now
a free man. I noticed a crowd of people gathering at the restaurant
across the street. The restaurant where I was the day I battled
Giovanni. The people were grouped around the TVs that sat in the outside
area of the restaurant. The big story must be on right now. Pidgeot and
I ran across the street just seconds before the walking sign switched to
red. I pushed my way through the crowd of people, forcing my way to the
TV. Finally, I was able to see what was on the screen. My mouth
instantly dropped open.
What I beheld was the Viridian City Gym. What was left of it. The place
was in ruins. What was once a majestic palace was now nothing more than
twisted wreckage. Policemen were sealing off the area, keeping onlookers
from getting any closer. Medical teams were carrying out Team Rocket
members on stretchers into Ambulances. Fire trucks were leaving the
area, since there was no fire. As the fire trucks left, more ambulances
came.
The anchorwoman started to say something, but I didn't care. My mind was
split into two. One part was happy that this had happened. That Giovanni
had lost his gym. It even wished that Giovanni died in the incident. The
other half felt sorry for the people who were in the building when it
was destroyed. Rocket or not. There was no pity for Giovanni, though. If
he burns in hell, I would feel nothing but happiness, although I would
never admit it.
I walked away from the group of people and toward my car, which was
parked on the side of the road. Pidgeot followed close behind. My mind
drifted back to the reporters. I came to a realization. What just
happened wasn't the next best thing. My pace started to become faster.
It was more of a new twist! I opened the car door and Pidgeot went into
its pokeball. That means that I'm not free of the media yet! My car
screeched as it launched down the street, leaving the reporters and
cameramen who were coming back from the gym to talk to me in the dust.
----
Soft rock music played as I drove through the highway. Only a few more
miles until I would be back home. I had to call Gerald and talk to him
about keeping my furniture at his house while I was in S.C.O.R.S.
training. He definitely had the room in his big mansion that Dad gave
him. Gerald's life would definitely be harder if Dad wasn't there to
give him everything that he wanted. A ringing sound suddenly grabbed my
attention. I looked around the front seats of the car, trying to find
the source of the noise. I found the object under my seat. Of course! My
cell phone! Gerald had given it to me for my twentieth birthday. I
didn't use it much, since nobody called most of the time. Only Clark and
my family had the number. I activated the phone and asked,
"Hello?" "Matt?" came a voice from the other end.
"Mary? How did you get the number to my cell phone?"
"Clark gave it to me." Of course. Ever since I had told Clark
about Mary, he has been trying to convince me to try and become a couple
with her.
"Well, what is it?" I asked. "Well, Dad is talking to a
government official, and he wanted to talk to you," Mary responded.
"About what?" I asked. "Guess," Mary said. I
responded, "Of course. I need directions. First of all, tell me
where you live."
----
I drove through the suburbs of Pewter City, looking for Mary's house.
"It should be around here somewhere," I mumbled to myself.
12405…. 12406…. 12407 …… There it was. 12408, Stone Avenue. I
parked my car on the driveway and walked to the front door. Funny, I
expected the leader of the S.C.O.R.S. to live in a mansion instead of a
normal, two-story home. Ten seconds after I rang the doorbell, Mary
opened the door for me. She was now in a wheelchair. The cast was still
one her left leg. "Come with me," she said, turning around and
wheeling herself down the hallway. "Let me do that," I said,
taking the handles on the back of the chair. "I'm fine," Mary
responded. "Just let me do it," I said as I started pushing
the chair. "I guess that I'm not in a position to make you let go,
right?" "Nope," I said as I gently pushed her down the
hall.
"Turn left here, " Mary said as we went down the hallway. I
did as she said and turned left. We found ourselves in a room with two
other people. Both were sitting on a couch, talking to each other. Cups
of coffee sat on the table in front of them. I made out one of them to
be Mary's dad, but couldn't recognize the other. While Mr. Angel wore a
military outfit, the other was in business attire. The other person
seemed no younger than forty. "Mr. Thomas, please sit down,"
Mr. Angel said, gesturing to a chair that was on the other side of the
room. I took my seat, waiting for the first question to be thrown at me.
Would they ask me first? What did I think Mewtwo looked like? Did David
have any information on him?
The first question came. "Coffee?" Mr. Angel asked. "Um,
I'm fine," I responded. "I'd like you to meet George Yoko, the
leader of the new W.O.R.L.D. government division, and the leader of the
search teams on New Island." "W.O.R.L.D.?" I asked.
"World Organization of Researching Life Development," George
responded. I gestured to Mary while saying, "Mr. Yoko, I'm sure
that Mary here can answer your questions." "Not this one, Mr.
Thomas," Mr. Yoko replied. "Which is?" I asked. Mr. Yoko
responded, "About your brother David. Did he mention any other
projects or experiments to you?" "No. I thought that Mewtwo
was the only project being done on New Island." "Trust me, so
do we." Mr. Yoko drank some of the coffee, and continued speaking.
"It's just that at this point, we don't have a lot of information
on what happened there. No camera footage, no records, nothing. What we
would want are the DNA codes of Mewtwo."
Mary quickly asked, "Why would you want the DNA codes?" Mr.
Yoko drank more of the coffee, and responded. "Those codes could
mean a lot to our new division. That pokemon's DNA could hold the cure
for diseases, raise life expectancy, and other things to aid humanity.
That DNA could be what we have been waiting for! But it looks like we
won't find it." I noticed Mary look away from everybody else in the
room for a while, as if she was thinking about something. She looked at
Mr. Yoko, and asked, "But it could also be used for biological
weaponry, am I correct?" The room fell silent for five seconds. Mr.
Yoko finally answered, "Yes, it possibly could. But W.O.R.L.D.
isn't planning on using it like that." "But the military is,
right?" Mary responded flatly.
Tension started to form in the room. Mary was questioning her own
government. The government that her father serves everyday. "Well,
why didn't you just go to Viridian City Gym and take Mewtwo?" I
asked. Although he didn't show it on his face, I knew that Mr. Yoko was
glad that I had changed the direction of the subject. "We were
today, but Viridian City Gym collapsed, as you should know. We can't
search any of Giovanni's places without risking bloodshed. If we try it
peacefully, we'll end up in a legal battle. You should know how cases go
when Giovanni is involved," Mr. Yoko said. Yes, Giovanni always
wins. Nobody has ever been able to get the solid evidence to prove
Giovanni's connection to Team Rocket. He is truly an escape artist. Mr.
Yoko continued in saying, "There are still uncertainties about
Mewtwo existing in the first place, since we are basically going on your
word and the recent happenings at the gym."
"Well, if that's all that you wanted to ask me, I'll be going now.
Goodbye, Mr. Yoko," I said as I rose from my seat. "Matt, will
you help me upstairs?" Mary asked. I began to stare at Mary.
"Me?" I asked. "Dad and Mr. Yoko probably want to talk a
little more, I don't want to interrupt them," Mary explained.
"Well, Ok," I said as I took the handles of the wheelchair and
pushed Mary out of the room and into the hallway. "I look forward
to speaking with you again," I heard Mr. Yoko say as Mary and I
went down the hallway.
"Did Mr. Yoko seem weird to you?" Mary asked. I responded,
"No. What was so weird?" "You would think that the
government would be more aggressive in getting that DNA. It seems as if
they don't want to really try," Mary replied. "Nonsense. Of
course they would try to get that DNA as much as possible," I said.
"Then why was Mr. Yoko making excuses like legal battles and
bloodshed? They could just send the S.C.O.R.S. on a mission to bust into
Team Rocket HQ and take the thing now," Mary asked. "When you
say it like that, it does seem strange. Well, at least nobody has those
DNA codes now," I replied. "Yeah. Nobody," Mary replied.
We stopped at a stairway. A pair of crutches sat next to it. "Can
you hand me those crutches?" Mary asked. "Sure," I said
as I brought the crutches to Mary. She slowly rose from her chair on the
crutches and started going up the stairs. "Don't worry, I'm behind
you," I said as I followed her up the stairs. "Thanks for the
help, Matt," Mary said as she ascended another step. "Mary,
what were you thinking about when Yoko started talking about the
DNA?" I asked. Mary fell silent for a few moments, and then
responded. "Oh. I was thinking of what that DNA could do if it fell
into the wrong hands. I just don't-" Mary was cut off by her own
screams when she slipped on her crutches and fell back. She fell into my
arms, causing me to grab the stair rail to avoid falling with her.
Something happened inside of me. Comforting warmth started to fill me. I
suddenly didn't want to let go of Mary. I wanted to stay close to her. I
wanted to sniff her hair and rest my head on her shoulder. I wanted to
be with her. Did Mary feel the same way? "Matt?" Mary asked.
"What?" I replied. "Thanks for catching me."
"Anytime." I let go of Mary and continued following her up the
stairs. I didn't believe the thoughts that went through my head as I
held Mary. It must be because of the funeral. It must have messed with
my emotions or something. That had to be it.
"Here we are," Mary said as we reached the top of the stairs.
"Are you fine now?" I asked as Mary opened a door. "Yeah,
my room is in here. Thanks for the help, Matt," She said as she
walked into the room. "I have to go now. I have to meet with
Clark," I said. "Bye Matt," Mary said. "Bye," I
replied as I walked down the stairs. When I reached the bottom of the
stairs, I turned around and looked up to see that Mary was still looking
at me from her room. I waved and walked towards the front door. I had
plenty of time before I had to meet Clark. I knew why I really didn't
follow Mary into her room. I was scared of what might happen in there if
I did.
----
"Clark, are you sure that we're better off taking the subway
instead of driving?" I asked. Clark patted me on the back as we
entered the train. Night had fallen, and I was in Hop Hop Hop Town with
Clark. He was taking me from his apartment to a bar. "Sure, Matt!
The bar is next to a subway station and so is my apartment! We don't
need to waste the fuel for nothing." The door slid shut behind us
as we sat down, Clark sitting to my right side.
I rested my head on the window just above the seat as the speaker buzzed
to life. A kind woman's voice announced, "Welcome to the Hop Hop
Hop Town Subway System. You are now leaving the Pikachu Avenue Station
and riding to the Indigo Street Station. Have a nice ride and thank you
for choosing us for your transportation." With that, the speaker
buzzed off.
I looked around the train car, noticing the people around me. One man
was reading a newspaper while holding onto one of the handles that hung
from the roof. A woman was sitting calmly, watching a boy, probably her
grandson, as he ran around the car, laughing innocently. Another man,
who looked like he was in his late teens, sat with his legs on the seat.
He snapped his fingers to the music that he was listening to on his
headphones. Finally, there was Clark, who was looking around the train
car like me.
With a loud screech, the subway train started moving. The view of the
subway station was soon replaced by a view of the dim tunnel, which
would be perfectly black if not for the dull lights that were attached
to the walls. "We should be at the next station in about ten
minutes," Clark said, while he relaxed with his hands behind his
head. I decided to do the same. I closed my eyes, listening to the low
clapping sounds of the train moving.
****
Suddenly, all became silent. I opened my eyes, quickly realizing that
the subway car's lights were out. I looked around in the black darkness,
trying to find some source of light. All the other cars and the tunnel
also were without lights, robbing me of the ability to see anything.
"Clark?" I asked, touching Clark on the shoulder. There was no
answer. I started rubbing Clark's shoulder, trying to wake him up. My
attempts were stopped when I began to feel something warm.
I lifted my hand to my face, trying to recognize what the warmness came
from. "Clark, wake up!" I yelled. I swung my hand at him in an
attempt to smack him in the face. I held in a small groan when my hand
slammed into the window of the train, which had more of the warm liquid
on it. "Hello? Anybody!?" I screamed as fear started to settle
in. Nobody answered. "What in the hell is going on!?" I asked,
hoping that somebody would answer.
*Pathetic humans.* I immediately stood up and quickly darted my vision
around me. I raised my clenched fists, ready to attack whoever revealed
themselves to me. *I'm scared. Really,* the echoing voice continued
sarcastically, going into an inner laugh. "Coward! Show
yourself!" I yelled. Immediately, I saw the blue glow of two eyes
at the other end of the subway car. The whole car was illuminated with
blue light, making everything visible.
Fear gripped my heart when my eyes rested on Mewtwo. I slowly backed
away, toward the door at the end of the car. If I could just get out the
door. Mewtwo raised his arm towards me, surrounding me with the blue
aura. I struggled to break free from Mewtwo's hold, but Mewtwo's powers
were too strong. He threw me into the door, causing me to scream in
pain.
*Humans are so easy to scare. They also make nasty stains, don't you
think so?* Mewtwo pointed at the corpses around the room. The man who
was reading the newspaper was lying on the floor, the newspaper stuffed
down this throat. The woman was also on the floor, her intestines and
other organs showing through the huge, bloody hole in her stomach. The
little boy was hanging outside the broken window of the subway car by
his neck, which was impaled by glass. The man who was listening to music
was on his knees, his head to the wall of the car. Blood was dripping
from his forehead and was making a puddle on the floor.
Finally, my gaze went to Clark, who was sitting exactly where he was,
except without a head. A huge amount of blood was splattered on the
walls and windows around his body. "I took pleasure in blowing his
head into pieces," Mewtwo said while a sadistic smile appeared on
his face. I looked at one of the bloodstains on the window where Clark's
head would have been resting. It had finger markings. I looked at my
hand to see blood covering it. That was what the warm fluid was! Clark's
blood! I started to feel sick to my stomach. The same feeling I felt
when I looked at David's body.
*Do you miss Clark? Do you miss David? Don't worry. I'll take you to see
them!* Mewtwo said as his body started to glow blue. I knew what was
coming. I rushed to the door on the end of the car and opened it,
running through to the other subway car. I immediately noticed more
corpses, lying lifeless on the floor and on the seats of the subway car.
I pushed them out of my mind and started running.
My fear of running in the dark, not knowing where I was going, ended
when the blue light grew brighter. I knew what was happening. I ran from
car to car, pushing my exhaustion away from my thoughts as best as
possible. A low whistling sound came to my ears, followed by the sound
of glass shattering. Sweat poured down my face, from exhaustion and from
knowing that death itself was behind me, and it was catching up.
The temperature became incredibly hot as the blast became 15 feet away
from me and was still closing in. I covered my face as windows exploded
into pieces in front of me. A flaming corpse launched out of the flames
and flew by me, missing the back of my head by inches. I leapt over it
as it fell to the floor. Upon landing, I immediately tripped over the
severed leg of another body, causing me to hit the floor with a thud.
I rolled onto my back, and felt my heart skip a beat as I stared at the
flames. I screamed at the top of my lungs as they mercilessly swallowed
me.
****
"Matt! Wake up!" Clark said, shaking my shoulders. My eyes
shot open, to be greeted by everybody in the subway car including Clark,
looking at me like I had gone insane.
----
The humming sounds of the bar rotating were dulled out by talking
people, arcade machines, and the TVs. Clark and I sat at a table next to
the bar window, silently looking out the window at the rotating Hop Hop
Hop Town skyline. "You had a nightmare about him again, didn't
you?" Clark asked. I nodded. "Yes. This time, it was in the
subway. Everybody was dead. Your head was splattered all over the walls.
Everybody was slaughtered."
I placed my head on the table, closing my eyes. I heard Clark ask,
"You want him dead, don't you?" "Nothing would make me
happier, Clark. I just don't know about how I feel around him. I want
him dead, but I'm scared of him at the same time. Just seeing him makes
me want to curl up on the floor and shiver. I guess that's why I'm
joining the S.C.O.R.S. Maybe, just maybe, I can become strong and
skilled enough-" "-To kill Mewtwo?" Clark interrupted. I
nodded, reopening my eyes.
Clark gave a smile, and stood up from the table. "Hey, we can think
about things like this tomorrow. Let's go to the bar and drink a little.
That'll make you forget about your problems. At least for a little
while." "Clark, you know how I feel about drinking," I
said, looking up at him. Clark took one of my arms and pulled me to my
feet. "Come on, Matt! You're always trying to be the good guy! You
won't take any money from your rich parents for Christ’s sake! At
least drink one brewsky in your life!"
Clark and I walked past the tables, full of other people talking and
enjoying themselves, to the bar table. Clark gave me a stool and snapped
his fingers to get the bartender's attention. "Bartender, get me
two muks," Clark said. "Coming right up!" the bartender
responded, walking towards the drinking glasses. "They call beers
muks?" I asked. "Well, it's a brand of beer."
I nodded at Clark and turned towards the window. I watched the buildings
come in and out of my view, until one building caught my attention. The
building looked normal, except for a mansion on top of it. "Clark,
look at that building," I said, nudging Clark in his side with my
elbow. He turned to look at me, then at what I was looking at. "Oh
yeah, that's the mansion of a pokemon watching group." "I
heard about them. They had some type of sleeping incident a while ago.
So that's what the mansion looks like."
"I'm telling you, Matthew Thomas could very well be the
killer!" A voice said from the TV hanging over the bar table,
causing me to look at it immediately. The channel 25 anchorwoman sat on
a couch with another man. They both wore business attire. She asked,
"But Mr. Blond, what motives would he have?" Mr. Blond, who
actually had black hair, responded, "Katherine, I can't tell you
what his motives would be. Maybe he wanted to kill his brother."
"WHAT!?" I yelled as I immediately rose from my stool. Mr.
Blond continued in saying, "We have to consider all possibilities
here. The man could have set the whole disaster up with Ms. Angel. For
all we know, this Mew2 business could very well be a story that was made
up just to bring suspicion."
I couldn't believe what I was hearing. How could I be accused of killing
so many people? How could they blame me for doing such an inhuman act? I
slammed my fist into the table and shouted, "The bastards!"
Clark patted me on the shoulder and said, "Don't worry about it,
Matt. They are just trying to look at all of the possibilities. You
can't be mad at them for that." "I'd never do a thing so
horrible! I know that I wouldn't!" "They're not you, so they
don't know. Calm down. You can start worrying if the police throw you in
jail. Just don't think about it now. We start training in the S.C.O.R.S.
tomorrow. Worry about that," Clark replied.
I returned my attention to the TV, to see that Mr. Blond had left the
screen. The Channel 25 anchorwoman, Katherine Cheshire, looked into the
camera and said, "We thank Mr. Blond, Channel 25's news examiner,
for having the time to speak with us on this ordeal. We now take you to
the launch of W.O.R.L.D., the World Organization of Researching Life
Development. Laura?" The camera switched to a reporter, the same
reporter that interviewed me earlier. She was standing in a hallway that
was full of people in business suits walking around. "This is Laura
Ostrander of Channel 25 news, reporting from Lavender Town City Hall.
The conference has just ended, and here is the basic information that I
have gotten. W.O.R.L.D. is basically a specialized scientific group.
Their job is to make the job of the government's biological research
teams easier. They will be doing things like researching viruses, and
developing new types of medicine. They will also be researching on
pokemon and human DNA codes. I am trying to find George Yoko, the
president of this organization, but I . . . . .Wait, I think I see him
now!"
Laura walked off camera, and walked back while holding a man in a
business suit by the arm. "Mr. Yoko, this is Channel 25 News. Do
you have anything to say about the start of W.O.R.L.D.?" Yoko
looked at the camera, and immediately checked his hair and straightened
his tie. He cleared his throat, and said, "I am proud to be the
leader of this new organization. Advancing our technologies, whether it
is technological or biological, can be hard. W.O.R.L.D. will help make
this task easier. The S.C.O.R.S. fights to save lives. We fight to
improve them." "Thank you for your comments, Mr. Yoko. This is
Laura Ostrander of Channel 25 news, signing off."
"Unless they can instantly make me rich, I don't see them improving
my life," Clark said. "Your muks are ready," the
bartender said, placing them on the bar table. Clark and I turned
around, and picked up the glasses. "A toast to life in the
S.C.O.R.S. May we not be shot into pieces on the first mission!"
Clark said, gently touching my cup with his.
----
"I should have parked closer!" I muttered to myself as I
walked down the street. Clark had gone home, and I was now walking in
the streets of Hop Hop Hop Town to my car. The only sounds that could be
heard were of my footsteps, and distant sounds of cars. I tucked my
hands into my pockets, trying to shake off the cold feeling that was
creeping all over me. "Just a few more blocks and I'll be in my
car," I said to myself. The city definitely had a dark feeling to
it when it was late at night.
I started to hear footsteps behind me. I glanced over my shoulder, to
see a person in a gray trench coat walking behind me. It's just another
person walking. There was no need to be worried. I continued walking,
trying to pay no attention to the other footsteps. I heard them slowly
getting closer, forcing my heart to speed up. I sped up my pace and took
a left at the next intersection. The footsteps still followed. I took
another left, thinking that a U-turn would get rid of him if he weren't
following me. I looked over my shoulder again, to see the same person,
still walking behind me. I had all the evidence that I needed now. I
started dashing down the street at my full speed. My heart was pounding
inside of my chest now, as if it wanted to break out. The man gave chase
to me. "Get away from me!" I yelled. The man still chased me,
gaining on me as the seconds went by. Suddenly, a hand from behind me
grabbed the back of my shirt and pulled me to a halt. I turned around,
only to see a fist rush towards my face.
----
"He's waking up," a male voice said. I slowly opened my eyes,
to be greeted by blurry visions. I noticed that I was sitting in a
chair, and tried to get up to no avail. My wrists, waist, and legs were
tied to the chair, rendering me immobile. I looked around as my vision
became clear. The room was dim, being lit by a single, flickering light
that was above me. Everybody around me was wearing black. Black boots,
pants, shirt, and gloves. There was a black bulletproof vest on each
shirt. A black belt, complete with buttoned pockets and a gun holster
was around each waist. I didn't see a single person without a gun.
Everybody in the room wore a black mask. "Welcome, Mr.
Thomas," another voice said, younger than the first one that I had
heard, and also male. I looked in front of myself, to find two people
standing out from the circle of onlookers. They wore the same thing as
everybody else, except they wore trench coats. One was solid black,
while the other was dark gray.
"Where-" I started to ask. "-Dark Dawn," the person
in the black trench coat responded. "I am Dark," the person in
the gray trench coat with the younger voice said. "I am Night, the
leader of Dark Dawn," the person in the black trench coat said
while placing a hand on his chest. "Why am I here?" I asked,
struggling to loosen the ropes on my wrists. "To stop you from
making a huge mistake, Mr. Thomas," Night responded. "What
mistake is that?" I asked. "Why, joining the S.C.O.R.S. of
course. You want revenge for what happened to your brother, right? If
you join the S.C.O.R.S., you will be too caught up doing all of those
missions to pursue your true intentions," Dark said. "Come
with us. Join our family. We'll train you, and give you the freedom to
find your target," Night said. I responded, "That is, when I'm
not doing your missions." By now, I had given up on loosening the
ropes. "You have to give a little to get a little," Night said
while folding his arms. "What's the point then? It doesn't matter
whom I work for! The S.C.O.R.S. will make me do missions, and so will
you! I'd rather fight for them than you!" I spat. Night and Dark
looked at each other for a few seconds, then back at me. "Don't you
want to be part of a new world order?" Dark asked. Night
immediately followed Dark's statement with, "Soon, we will have the
perfect weapons, and nobody will be able to stop us. Not even the
murderer of your brother."
My eyes widened. Weapons that could beat Mewtwo? "You heard me
correctly. These weapons will be able to beat, or even kill Mewtwo.
Don't you want them?" Weapons that could kill Mewtwo. They were
just what I wanted. But was it worth it? To join Dark Dawn to satisfy my
need for revenge? To join one evil to destroy another? "No," I
said calmly. "What!?" Dark asked with surprise in his voice.
"That's right, you won't bribe me into your gang," I replied.
Dark's eyes lit up with anger. He immediately pulled a knife from his
belt and pressed the dull end against my neck. "You dare refuse our
offer!? What kind of a fool are you!? I could easily kill you right now!
Nobody would find your corpse for days! What do you think of
that!?" I remained perfectly silent, not showing fear. "If I
die. I won't die begging for my life," I calmly said. I had already
begged for my life enough times in my dreams. I'll be damned if I do the
same when I really die.
Dark turned around the knife so the sharp end was facing my neck. He
kneeled down so he could look at me directly in the eyes. I stared into
his cold, blue eyes. They were watching my face, trying to find fear and
weakness. I returned the gaze with an emotionless stare. He pulled the
knife away from my neck and let out a small laugh. "You may be
brave, but you still don't realize what you are dealing with," Dark
said.
Night pointed a finger at me, saying, "Yes, the line of business
you are going into can be very hazardous to your health." Dark
punched my stomach, causing stifled screams to emerge from my mouth.
"Did I hurt you? Good," Dark said as he punched me in the
face, causing my vision to go blurry for a few seconds. Dark immediately
followed the punch with a kick to my chest, causing me to fall back in
the chair to the floor with a thud. I heard Dark say, "We send you
a bouquet for your brother's funeral and this is your thanks!? You
should be more appreciative!" I looked up to see him standing over
me. I heard him laugh as he slammed his foot into my side. I gritted my
teeth, trying to hold in my screams. "Come on! Scream!" Dark
yelled, nailing me in the side again. "No!" I yelled back.
Dark stepped back, and kicked me in the stomach with all of his might.
The wails of pain finally escaped my lips, echoing through the room. I
felt tears forming in my eyes.
"It's not over yet, Thomas!" Dark said with sadism in his
voice. "Enough!" Night demanded. "But-", Dark began
to say. "-What I say here is final! Do you understand me!?"
Night yelled. Dark grumbled as he picked up the chair that I was in off
its back and onto its legs. Night walked closer to me, saying, "You
are a fool for not taking our generous offer." Night took my chin
in his hand and forced me to look him in the eyes. They were blue, just
like Dark's. "Trust me, Dark could have done worse. Consider
yourself lucky that we didn't shoot you in the head while you were
unconscious. Don't join the S.C.O.R.S. if you value your life,"
Night said as he raised his other hand into the air and chopped at the
side of my neck. The room moved in circles before everything faded into
black.
----
"Throw him off here!" was the first thing that I heard when I
woke up. I heard tires screech to a halt, a car door opening and felt
hands grabbing my legs and shoulders. I was thrown out of the car, into
a group of garbage cans, causing me to moan in pain. I barely heard the
car screech off into the night. As my vision started coming back to me,
I heard a feminine voice scream, "Oh my god! Get me some medics,
quick! This man looks hurt!" As I felt hands pick me up and place
me on a stretcher, I weakly asked, "Where am I?" "You're
at a hospital. You're safe now," The voice responded. I let out a
weak smile, and let myself fall into unconsciousness.
End Chapter 4
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