Ahahaha! Another chapter! Whee~!
Disclaimer: Pokemon belongs to Nintendo and Shogakukan Comics. This non-profit, non-copyright infringing fanfiction belongs to me under international copyright laws and taking it is plagiarism. Thank you. *Phantomness bows*
Notes: <> for telepathy, ** for thoughts, italics if a pokemon talks
Chapter 5
“Ring, ring!”
Red groaned and blinked. He must have dozed off. He fumbled in his jacket for the pokedex, before pulling it out. Flipping the cover open, he found an email from Oak. Lance inspected him warily from over the lid of a mug of coffee.
“I’m fine.” Red said quickly, as he opened the email, then gasped. Oak was telling the League to ban all pokemon training for three years? Why?
Had something gone wrong?
He hurriedly scanned the rest. Then, he turned to Lance with a mortified expression.
“They – they’re banning pokemon training!”
Lance looked surprised. “What? Why?”
“Something to do with the pictures you sent off…”
“Oh… well…”
“Do you know what’s going on?” Red demanded. He did not want to give up his life’s passion! Three years without pokémon training? He’d die of boredom!
“I don’t, but I have a strong hunch.”
“Then tell me!”
“It has something to do with the Revolution.”
“The Revolution?”
“Every hundred years, the pokemon will go wild. No one knows why it happens, but it’s a natural part of life.”
Red shuddered. He did not like the explanation. But it made too much sense, on the other hand.
“So the reason they attacked us is because the pokémon are starting to go wild?”
“Yes. I believe it has something to do with the depletion of natural resources. Only it has been getting shorter, thanks to pollution and habitat destruction, and the time in between the Revolution is only about eighty years now.”
“Oh…”
“It’s really safer for you not to go out and train, and everyone else as well. You won’t be the only person who suffers, Red.” Lance pointed out gently but firmly.
Red nodded mutely. Now he felt horribly selfish and wanted to sink into the ground. Lance noticed this and shot him a smile.
“I’m not accusing you of anything, Red, just reminding you of the facts.”
He almost wished they hadn’t sent the pictures, but then people would die and he’d feel worse for having not prevented it. But if he couldn’t train pokemon, at least not in the wild, what would he do?
Red began to ponder alternate solutions. He could theoretically go back to school. Actually, that might be a good idea. Get his qualifications done now so he wouldn’t have to later… then when he actually had to go to school, he wouldn’t have to, and the Revolution would be over so he could go on his journey again!
It was as good a solution as any.
“Ne, Lance, what are you going to do?”
“I haven’t thought of that yet. I mean; I’ve never been anything but a Trainer.”
“They didn’t have school regulations in the Islands?”
“I was… home-schooled.” That was true, to a certain extent. His mother and father had taught him how to swim, fight, cook, and use magic.
It was not normal human curriculum.
Red grinned. “That’s cool. How far did you get?”
“What do you mean? Grade-wise, I’m not exactly sure.”
“I’m sure they’ll give you a placement test. Maybe we should hurry and head back to Pallet Town. I’m sure the Professor’s proposal will go through in a few days.”
“Or, if you are lucky, they will only ban training in the Houen region.”
“Hey, I didn’t think about that! You’re right!” He would still be able to run around in Kanto.
Lance did not bother to explain that no matter where the Revolution started, within three months it would have spread over the entire world. There was no escape temporally or temporarily, really.
In any case, they packed their bags and climbed on Lance’s Dragonite. Kairyuu could easily carry two people after all, and Fly and Surf… Well, its surfing skills were none so good as its pre-evolutions, but that was a trade off. Dragonite were bulky and had extreme physical power, as well as armor-like scales covering their bodies…
Fair trade? Maybe, but it was a free choice.
He hadn’t forced any of ‘his’ pokemon to evolve.
Professor Oak and Professor Elm were both waiting in Pallet Town, along with Gary’s older sister May.
“You’re back, Red. I see you brought a friend.”
“This is Lance. I met him in Cerulean.”
Oak nodded absentmindedly. “That’s nice. Well, I’m afraid I have bad news. I should have known that the email would get your attention.”
“I…”
Oak held up his hands. “I know pokemon training is your life, Red, but everyone will have to stop. If not, well, they’ll face the consequences.”
“You mean die.”
“Yes.”
Lance had to agree. Even the fay-touched were not safe when the pokémon ran wild. Admittedly, water types were better able to control their brutal urges than most, but even so, there were tales of injury and death among all kinds, even the hardy Kappa.
Apparently a squad of angry Gyarados could decimate entire families in one go, were they angry enough…
“What about trained pokemon, Professor? Do they go crazy too?” That was one pressing question Red needed desperately answered.
Oak sighed. “Mostly, no. However, in rare instances, with newly-caught pokemon, or in pokémon with less than ideal trainers, there have been cases… where the pokémon turned on the trainer…”
Red stared. He didn’t think that would happen to him, but the thought of his Poliwrath turning wild and attacking him gave him the shakes. He felt nauseous and made a mad dash for the bathroom.
Oak shook his head with a sigh.
Lance watched Red quietly, shaking his head. It would be a hard blow to all who lived now….
Lugia protect us all.
End Chapter
Completed 2/23/06
Stupid bloody invasive species… die cycloalkanes! Especially the evil cyclohexane conformations! Grr…