Icy headed out of the canyon. “Cyber, GO!” he called as he held out Cyber’s pokéball. Cyber came out and awaited instructions from its master. “Cyber, run rover conversion program!” Cyber converted to a land rover and Icy hopped in. “Let’s head towards the shore Cyber.” Cyber took off. No one paid any attention to him as he exited the canyon. He rode down the road leading towards the ocean.
Meanwhile, in a field near the shore, Sara walked around playing in the flowers. She was a very cheerful and beautiful pikachu and had many pokémon friends. The butterfrees fluttered around her as she picked a colorful bouquet. She lived in a small forest just outside of Fuchsia City. From what she was told, her parents had been captured by trainers, but she didn’t ever hold a grudge against them. She understood that most trainers are very kind to their pokémon and she believed that someday, she would soon find herself a master to take care of her.
Icy was speeding down the path to the shore when something he saw interested him. “Cyber, stop quick!” Cyber hit the brakes almost sending Icy flying. “Return Cyber.” Icy looked into the field. At first, he didn’t notice Sara, only the butterfree flying around in the air. “They’re so pretty... huh...” His eyes focused in on Sara. Emotions he hadn’t felt before began to set in. To him, she was the most beautiful creature on earth, even if she was only a pokémon. But for some reason, that detail was no longer relevant to Icy. The fact that she was a pikachu made him even more attracted towards her. He couldn’t understand what he was feeling. He left almost like he was...
Sara spotted Icy staring at her blankly. She giggled and ran up to him not knowing anything about Icy’s past. He was still speechless. All he could do was look at her. His eyes were transfixed on her. She looked at him and giggled again. Then, she saw the small black device around his neck. “Pika. Chu pi kapi?”
“Huh?” Icy snapped out of his daze.
“Pika. Chu pi kapi...,” Sara repeated.
For some odd reason, Icy understood what she was saying. He didn’t know why at first, but then he realized.
** Flashback **
During the experiment, he could hear clearly what his pikachu, Static, was saying to him.
** End Flashback **
The experiment must have had other side effects on him. He responded, not speaking through the translator, “Ka. Chu pika pikachu cha pi-chu-ka-pi.” [It’s a translator.] She looked at him oddly not knowing what a translator was. She pointed to it again, gesturing to take a closer look. Icy look it off his neck and handed it to her. She looked at it and shook it. Icy grabbed her hands to make her stop. “No. You’ll hurt it.” Sara understood. “Talk into it.” She put the device close to her lips and started speaking. Upon hearing her words come out in English she dropped the translator. Icy dove to catch it, then placed it back around his neck.
“Why do you have that?” Sara asked.
Icy wasn’t sure how to answer her. How could be explain to her that he was once human? He decided it be best to tell her the truth. “I have it because I hang out with a group of humans. I was once a human myself.” Sara stepped back. She felt very confused. “Please. I don’t want to hurt you.” She tried to sort through everything that was happening. She moved closer to Icy again.
“How can you be pikachu if you also human?” Her question startled Icy for a second. He didn’t know pokémon had enough intellect to hold such conversations. He answered her anyway.
“There was an experiment I took part in. It was to help trainers better understand their pokémon by letting them communicate in their own languages. But something went wrong. I was transformed into a pikachu by a strange beam.” Now it was Sara’s turn to have the blank expression. Icy turned away from her. The feelings he had were slowly fading and he felt as if his heart had been smashed to pieces. A tear formed in his eye.
Sara collected herself and ran towards Icy. “Pika!” she cried out. Icy stopped and turned around. “Where are you going? I want to know more about you.” This confused Icy. Suddenly, he felt there was still a chance of something between them.
“More about me? Like what?” Icy asked.
“Well. Since you are a pikachu, and I’m a pikachu... Well... Didn’t you learn anything about feelings when you were human?” Icy was shocked. Sara was definitely gifted with intelligence. Maybe it was because she had seen many humans in her life and had grown accustom to their customs, although never being captured by one before.
“Umm...” Icy said looking for words.
“What was your name. My parents called me Sara.”
“Uhh... My name is Icy. Sara is a pretty name. I like it.”
Sara smiled. Icy was beginning to wonder if she shared the same feelings he was having for her. Sara began wondering the same. “Icy... Hehe... That’s a cute name. Do you come from the mountains or some place cold and snowy?”
“No. My parents just liked the name I guess.” She was holding his hand now. Hesitantly, she asked, “Icy, were you a pokémon trainer when you were human?” Oddly, she didn’t have a worried look on her face from what Icy could tell.
“Yes. I fact, I had just began my pokémon journey.” Knowing her next question, he continued, “And yes, I am still a trainer. People from my world have accepted the fact that I can still be a trainer. They seem to think it’s interesting.” Now she had a worried expression. Icy could tell what she was thinking using his psychic powers. “Don’t worry, I’ve no intentions of trying to capture you.”
She smiled at him and replied, “I think you already have.” Her body fell into Icy’s. He now understood what his feelings meant...
Icy and Sara walked hand in hand down the path leading to the shore. If there was any confusion about their feelings for each other, they were nonexistent now. They both smiled as the coast came within sight. Other pokémon walked by and smiled at them, sensing their love for each other. Many pokémon were already choosing their mates now. Butterfree were flying over top of them, headed for the ocean to lay their eggs. Icy wondered if he should let Buttercup leave, but didn’t want his good friend to go so soon.
They finally reached the beach. Fortunately for them, no trainers were in sight. They had it all to themselves. Icy set his bag down near them, then went back to Sara. Her eyes sparkled like the sun reflecting off the ocean. As Icy approached her, she kissed him softly on the head. All the sudden, Icy felt lightheaded and almost fell over. He laughed and asked Sara what she wanted to do for fun.
“We could have a little beach picnic Icy...” she said.
“That sounds like a great idea. But, where are we going to get the food?”
“Leave that to me.” Sara called out to some other pokémon nearby. She knew almost every pokémon that lived in the area between Fuchsia and the shore. She asked them if they could gather a small meal for her and Icy. Since they were all friends, they complied and went into the forest to find some apples and other nice fruits. Icy watched as they returned with more than enough to eat themselves. They invited all of Sara’s friends to share the food they had gathered.
From a distance, a very young trainer was headed down to the shore himself. He was only about 10 years old and had only one pokémon. He spotted the large group of pokémon gathered by the water. He moved closer as if to get ready to attempt capturing them, but then had a second thought. He just sat down and watched the pokémon eat and play games on the beach. “They look so peaceful,” he thought. He had never seen pokémon like this before and didn’t want to forget it. From his backpack, he took out a piece of paper and some colored pencils and began sketching the scene. He seemed to have high artistic talent. He put the paper into his pack and ran home to show his parents.
Meanwhile, Icy and Sara finished their meal and set out away from the group to be alone. Sara jumped on top of Icy knocking him down. The two of them played for hours into the night. Even then, they lit up the sky with electricity. Then Icy showed Sara some of his psychic powers. He focused his energies on the sparks of electricity in the air making them change color. Then, he formed them into little hearts. Sara smiled as she watched in awe.
“How are you doing that Icy?”
“As a human, I had psychic powers. I think I still do have them. They’re even stronger now, I believe.”
“That’s neat.” She watched the colors fade into darkness. Then they walked back to the home in the forest. Their friends had already left since it had gotten so late. Sara picked a nice, quiet, cozy clearing where she and Icy could sleep for the night. Icy couldn’t remember the last time he had slept outside. But, now that Sara was with him, the past no longer seemed to matter. They said goodnight to each other and fell asleep...
Sara woke up first that morning. Icy was still fast asleep. She poked him a few times but was unsuccessful in waking him. Stronger methods would have to be used. “Pika pika Kapi!” she shouted as she thundershocked Icy.
“AGHHHH!!!!” Icy screamed, jumping high into the air. Sara laughed the entire duration of Icy’s flight. (SMASH!) Icy hit the ground and moaned softly to himself. His fur was totally messed up from Sara’s thundershock. When he finally stood up, Sara took one quick glance and burst into laughter again. Icy looked at his reflection in one of his pokéballs and almost fainted. Sara was now rolling on the forest floor, laughing hysterically.
“Pihehehe... You should have seen how far you jumped when I shocked you!” she said teasingly. She went over to him and attempted to fix his fur by licking it back into place. Icy, although mentally awake, almost fell flat on his face from Sara pushing against him. Finally, he returned to his senses and turned around meeting Sara right in the face. “PIKA!” was all she needed to say to make the unbalanced Icy fall back. She caught him and pulled him back close to her and kissed him on the forehead. Then she scampered off into the foliage to gather some fruits for breakfast. A typical morning, Icy thought to himself.
Icy walked slowly back to their clearing. Sara was the only thing on his mind since he met her. He had begun to forget about ever becoming human again. He never had something as great as this in that life. He set up a nice place to eat before Sara returned.
Sara was just finished gathering their breakfast. She picked out the shiniest two apples she could find and headed back. She was pleasantly surprised to see Icy had already set everything up for them. The two pikachus sat down and enjoyed their meal.
“Sara. Before I ran into you, I was headed for the Seafoam Islands. Do you have any interest in seeing them?” Icy asked.
Sara blinked curiously. “Seafoam Islands? What’s that? I’ve only lived here in the forest. Is it far from here?”
“It’s a good day’s trip from here I think.”
“Why do you want to go there? Is there something special there?”
“I think they have a Pokémon Resort Spa there. I was going to let my pokémon have a little vacation. Maybe you and me could get in there too.”
“That sounds nice. When do we leave?”
“Whenever you’re ready Sara.”
“OK, let’s go now. Umm... How are we going to get there? I can’t swim well.”
“That’s ok... My Porygon, Cyber, will swim us to the islands. Cyber can transform into a boat for us.”
“Wow. Do all por... por... poragens do that?”
“No, I programmed Cyber to be able to change into different vehicles. He’s a great pokémon.”
“That’s neat. You said you had other pokémon right? Can I meet them too?”
“Sure Sara.” Icy opened his bag and dumped out a pile of small, unexpanded pokéballs. “Everyone, come out!” All of the pokéballs opened up releasing all of Icy’s pokémon. “Here they are!” he said as he stood next to his friends. Sara was amazed. She had never seen so many different types of pokémon before. Icy introduced her to each one, even Static. She said hello to each of them.
Hocus walked over to Icy. “Master, I’m sensing very high levels of activity in your body, are you felling ok?”
“Yes Hocus. I’m fine. It’s nothing to worry about.”
“Your thoughts seem to all involve that new pikachu you showed us. I don’t think that’s good for when you need your concentration.”
“Hocus... I’m fine... She’s just... well... I...” For some odd reason, Icy was having difficulty telling Abra about his feelings for Sara.
“You’re in love with her right. It’s not hard to see. I think you two make a cute pair.”
“Thanks Hocus... I think...” Sara was now looking at all the caterpie Icy had.
“Why do you have so many of these kind? They are kinda cute...” Some of the caterpie were crawling over and around her. The others quickly crawled towards Icy.
“Those are caterpie. I think they are one of the cutest pokémon in the world. With the exception of you...” Sara blushed. The caterpie had successfully overtaken Icy and pinned him to the ground. “So... ouww... Sara ... mphh .. phhea,” a caterpie almost crawled into Icy’s mouth, “... shall we go?” He got up, knocking all the caterpie off of him.
“All right, let’s go to the pokémon resort!” she cheered. Icy returned his pokémon and he and Sara held hands as they walked down to the beach.
They were only a few yards from the shore when Sara heard some voices. “Icy... I think there are trainers on the beach. What are we going to do?” she asked nervously.
“No problem. I’ll battle them!”
“Huh. What do you mean, you’ll battle them? What if they try to capture you?” Sara wasn’t thrilled with Icy’s plan but she couldn’t come see any alternative.
Icy ran down to the beach and found two trainers talking to each other and showing off their pokémon. “Hello. Would either of you care for a match?” The trainers looked at the talking pikachu.
“No match, but I will take you. Pokéball, GO!” He carefully aimed the ball directly at Icy. Icy just stood there waiting patiently for the ball to get just in front of him. Sara peeked over a hill only to see Icy disappear. She wanted to cry but knew that would give her away.
Icy reappeared on top of the trainer’s head. “All I wanted was a pokémon battle! Now I’m gonna get one! CHUUUUU!!!!” Icy fried the trainer who threw the ball at him. He and his friend ran off. Icy sensed Sara’s presence nearby and teleported to her.
“I thought, I thought...” she panted, unable to speak.
“It’s ok. I won’t scare ya like that anymore. C’mon. Let’s hit the waves!” Icy called out Cyber and had him transform into a boat for two. “Get on Sara. Cyber’s a great pokéboat, very safe.” She got in, then Icy followed and they set sail for the Seafoam Islands.
Sara had never been so far out from the mainland and was beginning to get scared. She kept a tight grip to Icy almost breaking his paw. Icy tried to comfort her and make her calm down. “Maybe you should go down below Sara. It’s less scary down there.”
“No, I’m fine as long as I’m with you.”
“Well then, maybe you could loosen your grip just a tad.”
“Huh... Oh... Sorry...” She released Icy’s now numb paw from hers. “There you go.”
They had been sailing towards Seafoam for almost half a day now. Icy checked Cyber’s GPS link. “It looks like we should be arriving at Seafoam Islands in just a few hours.” Sara was relieved. Now she knew why she hadn’t learned to swim, she didn’t like water.
“Are we almost there yet Icy? I’m starting to get tired.”
“It should be within view in just a few minutes.” The first of the islands came within sight. Many more islands followed it. Then, they saw the main island of the Seafoam Islands. “Cyber, head for the port on the big island there.” Cyber set his course toward the main island.
Sara looked out at the chain of islands. She was very excited having never seen islands before. Cyber landed at the Seafoam Port and Icy and Sara stepping onto the dock.
“Cyber, return!” Some sailors were eyeing the new arrivals. Icy and Sara made their way to the resort. “According to that map back there, we just follow this road.” They continued up the road. After about five minutes, they could finally see the entrance to the Pokémon Resort Spa. They ran up to the main gate.
The attendant watched as the pikachu couple approached the gate. He went back to filling out paperwork. Icy went up to the gate and asked the man for admittance into the resort. The man looked down at the pikachu talking to him. “Did you just talk?” he asked.
“Yes. My name is Icy, ring a bell?”
“Hmm... Uhh... Oh, yes... I remember! You’re that kid Bill did that crazy experiment on... You want to stay in our resort huh?”
“Yes. I’d like to come in too if that’s ok. I am a pikachu... Here are the rest of my pokémon who are coming with me. And this is Sara. We’re friends...”
The man nodded. “Fine. That will be 10000 PB. Do you have any money?”
Icy handed him the money from his bag. The man opened the gate and gave Icy the key to his suite. “Thank you! C’mon Sara!” Laughing, Icy and Sara ran into the resort. Their summer vacation had finally begun.
Last time, Icy and Sara left the forest outside Fuchsia City for the Seafoam Islands. They arrived there after a long sea voyage aboard Icy’s Porygon. Icy, Sara, and all Icy’s pokémon are now taking a summer vacation in the Pokémon Resort on the Seafoam Islands. And now...
Icy and Sara had been enjoying every moment of their stay in the Pokémon Resort. Icy could tell his pokémon were having a good time as well. Since they arrived, they were given excellent care by the trainers who worked at the resort. Even Icy enjoyed learning how to better master his pikachu form. It seemed that with ever day, he was becoming more like a pikachu then a human.
One day, while Icy was searching for Diamond’s pokéball, he came across a very dusty, round object. It was a pokéball he hadn’t used for quite a long time. He opened it, revealing a Spearow. He suddenly remembered about the Spearow he caught just after the accident. “Oh my. I can’t believe I forgot about you. I’m so sorry. Hmm. Well, you need a name. How about, Ironbeak?”
“Spear spearow!” Ironbeak said with content.
“Great. I’ll have to introduce you to my other pokémon.” Icy gathered Sara and the others and introduced them to Ironbeak. They welcomed the fearsome bird pokémon into the group.
“Hor sea. Hor sea!” Neptune said cheerfully as she splashed around in the pool. Hyper was also with her and they were playing a little game in the water.
“Sara,” Icy called.
“Yes Icy.”
“Why don’t we get one of the trainers here to teach you how the swim?”
“But I’m scared...” she answered nervously.
“Don’t worry. The trainers won’t let you drown. Besides I’ll be right here.” Sara thought about it for a sec. “C’mon... You don’t want to miss out on all the fun, do you?” Before Sara could even say ‘OK’, Icy took her by the paw and ran over to the trainer attending the pool.
“Hello there Icy, Sara. What can I do for you?”
“Can you teach Sara how to swim? She has a slight fear of water.”
“Of course. It’s nice to be able to take a dip in the water from time to time.” He looked at Sara. “We’ll start with the basics.” He went over to a bag and pulled out two round floaties and put them around Sara’s arms. “Don’t worry. These will make you float.” Then, he took Sara over to a shallow pool. There were other pokémon there who were learning to swim too.
The lesson began. Icy watched as Sara struggled furiously to stay about the water. Finally, she got so mad she let out a large thundershock through the pool. Sara looked at the fried pokémon and trainer and blushed. “Pika...” she muttered softly. After several more lessons, Sara was finally beginning to get the hang of it. Icy told her he’d come back later to see how she was doing and went to check on his other pokémon.
Leafy, Buttercup, and all the Caterpie were playing in a field near the pool. Ironbeak and Windstorm were performing tricks in the air. Cyber was resting in the sun charging his solar energy batteries. Hocus sat under a tree in the shade concentrating. Icy went over to him.
Hocus sensed Icy’s presence. “Yes master. Is there something you need from me?”
“No Hocus. I just wanted to sit with you. What are you thinking about?”
“I was thinking about many things. But my main thoughts were on you and Sara.”
“Oh... Good thoughts I hope.”
“Yes. Good. You and Sara are certainly meant for each other. I was also thinking about you in general.”
“What do you mean?”
“Master, you are showing signs that indicate you are becoming more Pikachu and less human.”
“Is that a bad thing? There isn’t a cure. And even if there was, I would lose Sara.”
“I don’t think it is a bad thing. I must caution you that you always remember what you did have as a human. You should remember that you are a trainer first, pokémon second.”
“I understand.”
“Master, I mean no disrespect, I only wish to advise you since I have known you for so long.”
“I always appreciate your advice Hocus. You have been a great companion and friend, while I was human and now as a pikachu.”
“I am glad you think so highly of me. Perhaps after our vacation here, we should go to Cinnabar Island to get another badge. That will help you hold on to your human side. Also, we are all prepared to battle other trainers if you wish. Those activities will keep you in balance.”
“You never fail to help me Hocus. My parents made the right choice getting you for me as my first pokémon. Perhaps we’ll run into some trainers on out way to Cinnabar Island.”
“Yes. Well, I sense you have other things to do. I will remain here to meditate.”
“Thanks for the advice Hocus.” Icy left Hocus and went back to the pool where he saw Sara racing against some other water pokémon. She was doing quite well.
Sara was getting better at swimming every day. She beat Icy twice in a race earlier and was close to beating Neptune. Neptune won the first round and the two pokémon lined up at the end of the pool to start round two. Icy signaled to start and they jumped in. Neptune easily took the lead with Sara not too far behind. By halfway, Sara was beginning to catch up. Neptune gave it her last best effort and beat Sara again by only a fraction of a second.
“I think she’s got the hang of it,” the trainer said. Sara shook herself dry and went over to Icy. She was so worn out that she fell right into his arms. Neptune continued playing in the pool while Icy took Sara back to the room.
“Did you see me out there Icy?” she asked.
“Yeah. You were good. You almost beat Neptune!”
“Thanks. You were right. Swimming is fun!” With that, she fell asleep. Icy decided it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to catch a quick nap himself. He wanted to be ready for the journey to Cinnabar Island later that day.
After a few hours, Icy woke up to find ten Caterpie comfortably snuggled up to him. The rest of his pokémon and Sara were also asleep in various places in the room. Icy poked Verde and she woke the rest of the Caterpie. They wiggled off of Icy and woke the others.
“Listen up everyone, we’re leaving today for Cinnabar Island. It’s not too far from here. We should get there before nightfall.” His pokémon nodded in confirmation and Icy returned them to their pokéballs. He and Sara left the room and waved good-bye to the resort staff. Then, they walked down the road to the Seafoam Docks.
“Come out Cyber!” Cyber appeared and awaited Icy’s next command. “Cyber, run Jetboat program. Convert now!” After a few alterations, Cyber took on the form of a small jetboat. Icy motioned to Sara. “C’mon. Cyber will get us to Cinnabar in no time!” She jumped in and they departed from the Seafoam Islands.
They were making excellent time as Cyber raced over the water. Then, Icy saw something up ahead and told Cyber to stop. A water pokémon trainer was working with her Seadra. She quickly noticed the approaching Porygon Jetboat.
“Hello. Nice boat... Hello?” She looked around but couldn’t find anyone. “That’s odd. Porygons don’t just turn into boats and go for joyrides...” Icy came up top of Cyber and looked at the trainer. “Well hello there little Pikachu. What are you doing way out here?”
“I would ask you the same question, but you obviously are a water trainer. The name’s Icy.” She stared at him for a few seconds wondering if she was seeing things. “No dream. I am a psychic trainer. There was an accident that caused me to become a Pikachu.” Sara now came up to join Icy on deck.
“Who’s that?” she asked Icy.
“She’s a water pokémon trainer. Don’t worry, I don’t sense she has intentions to capture us.”
“Well, Icy, would you care for a quick battle. My Seadra could use some experience. What do you say?”
Icy agreed and expanded one of his pokéballs. “Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Buttercup!” Buttercup materialized in the air. The trainer’s Seadra looked at its opponent. “Buttercup, psybeam now!”
“Seadra, bubble attack now!” Buttercup fired her psybeam at Seadra. It cut through some of the bubbles but got deflected by others. Only a weak portion of the beam hit Seadra. Seadra prepared to make its move. “Seadra, knock that Butterfree out of the sky with your water gun!” Seadra fired rapidly at Buttercup but couldn’t keep up with her quick movements.
“Good work Buttercup. Try using your confusion attack.” Buttercup emitted a confusion wave and Seadra’s determined expression began to fade.
“Seadra, snap put of it! Water gun again!” Seadra fired again but this time its aim was way off.
“Finish it Buttercup. Psybeam now!” Buttercup glowed a bright blue then fired the beam straight at Seadra. The attack was enough to beat it and the trainer admitted defeat.
“Not bad. I guess my Seadra needs a little more training. Your Butterfree is very skilled with psychic attacks. You may even be able to beat Blain with it.”
“Thanks. Your Seadra wasn’t too bad itself. That bubble attack was a smart move. Well, we must be going now if we want to reach Cinnabar by night.”
“Farewell Icy and good luck!” She waved until Cyber was out of sight.
After a few more hours, the large volcano in the center of Cinnabar Island came into view. Cyber came into port and let Icy and Sara off. Icy returned Cyber to his pokéball and he and Sara walked to the local pokécenter. Nurse Joy happily allowed Icy and Sara to stay the night in the pokécenter. Icy dreamed of the battle he would have with Blaine the following morning.
Icy woke up bright and early. The room was dark still. Sara was sleeping on a bench across from him. Pokéballs were scattered over the walls on other benches. Icy looked at the clock above the door. “6:30 AM” He hopped down from his spot and called up to Sara. She sighed softly as she opened her eyes. Icy collected his belongings and Sara followed him into the main foyer.
Nurse Joy was half-awake at the front desk when Icy jumped up in front of her. She yawned then greeted him, “Good morning. Did you two sleep well? Can I interest you in some breakfast before you go?”
“Yes to both,” Icy said. He was very energetic this morning. Sara, on the other hand, looked like she had seen better days as she almost fell asleep again.
“I have something that will wake you both up. How about a nice, warm breakfast of pancakes.” She led the two pikachus into the diner next to the pokécenter. Some Chanseys brought them two entrees of pancakes. Icy and Sara ate their breakfast and thanked Nurse Joy for her hospitality.
“Oh it’s nothing. You’re always welcome here. By the way, if you don’t mind me asking, where are you headed today?”
“I’m going to try for Blaine’s Volcano Badge. We’re going to the gym after this.”
“Oh. Good luck then. Blaine’s a tough trainer.”
Icy and Sara left the pokécenter and headed for the gym. The gym was located inside the main chamber of the volcano. Blaine’s original gym had collapsed a few years back when he abandoned it. So many tourists had invaded the island that trainers were a rare site. Fortunately, Icy was aware of the relocated gym site. “Is... is... is that the gym?”
“I think so. C’mon, let’s go in.” They entered the volcano through an entrance carved into the rock. The temperature inside was very high. Sweat dripped down their faces.
“It’s so hot in here. Why did we come here anyway?”
“In order for me to get the Volcano Badge, I have to defeat the gym leader here.”
“Oh. Do you think you’ll win?”
“I hope so.” They entered the main chamber. Blaine was standing in one corner tending to a shadowy pokémon. “Blaine, I challenge you to a pokémon battle for the Volcano Badge.” No matter the odds, Icy always stayed confident. Sara stayed to the side.
“Very well. If you want the Volcano Badge, you must best me in a two on two match.” The dark pokémon Blaine was working with was gone now. Blain fussed a bit with his hair then readied his pokéball. His glassed glimmered as he threw the ball into the field. “Go Ninetails!” The golden, nine tailed fox appeared on the field. Its fur glimmered like the lava below it. “Well, what pokémon shall my Ninetails defeat?”
“Defeat? Grrr... Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Hocus!” Hocus appeared ready for action. He studied his foxy opponent.
“Let the match begin! Ninetails, take the Abra out with a fire spin.” Ninetails fired a large ring of flames at Hocus. He teleported out of the way just in time to avoid being burned.
“That was close. Hang in there Hocus. Counter back with your confusion attack.” Hocus quickly emitted confusion waves at Ninetails but the fire pokémon was just too strong to be affected. “Hocus, psybeam quick!” The psybeam managed to hurt Ninetails slightly, but still not enough.
“Sorry little pikachu, but those small attacks won’t win it. Ninetails, finish it off. Flamethrower!” Ninetails charged up its flamethrower attack while Icy psychically told Hocus to be prepared to teleport. “Ninetails, double play fire now!” Ninetails fired a small fireball at Hocus causing him to teleport. Unfortunately, it was a trick. Ninetails was waiting for Hocus to reappear before it blasted him with a full-power flamethrower.
Icy was in shock. “How could Hocus lose. Uhh... Hocus, return!” He took his second pokéball and expanded it. “Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Buttercup!” The small, green butterfree fluttered overhead. “Sleep powder now!” Buttercup quickly poured sleep powder on Ninetails.
“Fight it off. Stay awake!” Ninetails tried to stay awake but finally gave in and fell asleep. “Hmm. Maybe I’ve underestimated your skill. But your butterfree is no match for my second pokémon.” The gym lights faded. Suddenly, the lava began glowing. Something climbed out from the crater onto the field. The lights came back on, slightly dimmer.
“What type of pokémon is that?” Icy said as he looked at the brightly colored pokémon.
“This is a Magmar. Its entire body is made out of lava. It can even live in lava without being hurt. And now, Magmar, give the pikachu a demonstration of your awesome power. Fire blast that butterfree!” Magmar spit a large fireball directly at Buttercup. She managed to dodge most of it but her left wing was burnt.
“Aghh! Buttercup! Are you ok?” Icy screamed franticly. He was about to recall Buttercup while she shook her head no. “Alright Buttercup, but be careful. Watch for the flame attack. Use your psybeam!” Buttercup prepared to use her psybeam while Magmar got ready to fire another fireball.
“Magmar, wait for it...” Buttercup fired her psybeam. “Now Magmar!” Magmar shot out a massive ball of flames at Buttercup. It was so strong it broke right through her psybeam and completely engulfed her. She fell to the ground crying in pain as the flames continued burning her.
“NOOOO!!! BUTTERCUP!!! STOP!!! Please!!! I give up! Neptune go! Help Buttercup quick!” Neptune put out the flames on Buttercup. Magmar returned to the lava.
“Here Icy. Take this burn heal. It should help ease the pain for your butterfree. Better luck next time.” Blaine tossed the healer to Icy. It fell just in front of him. Blaine looked back. He noticed Icy didn’t take to healer. He left the gym and headed for his personal training area.
“Icy...” Sara said softly. Icy didn’t respond. She picked up the burn heal and applied some of it to Buttercup’s burn wounds. Icy’s eyes were filled with tears as he looked at Buttercup’s charred body. Losing the match was one thing, but watching his friend suffer like this was another. Tears rolled down his cheeks as he cried. Sara put her paw on his back. “She’ll be ok. Maybe we should take her to that place they heal pokémon at. That lady who served us breakfast might be able to help.”
Icy nodded slowly. He lifted Buttercup into his arms and Sara carried Neptune. Buttercup looked at her master’s watery eyes. Pain seared through every part of her body. She continued to cry as Icy carried her out of the gym. Sara had Neptune spray Buttercup with water every few minutes as they walked to the pokécenter.
They walked through the automatic doors. “Someone help me! Please, my butterfree’s burnt badly. Oh please, someone help her!” Icy cried as he looked for someone who would help Buttercup. Nurse Joy rushed over to them along with a few chanseys.
“I’ll treat her right away!” She reached for Buttercup, but Icy could let go of his friend. Sara put arms around Icy and told him Buttercup would be fine. He handed Buttercup over to Nurse Joy and she took her into the ER. Sara led Icy over to a bench in the waiting room. Icy was still completely in tears. Sara wept softly too. Buttercup was the only thing on Icy’s mind at the moment...
Icy and Sara were waiting impatiently in the waiting room. It was getting late. Images of the battle flashed past Icy’s mind. “I shouldn’t have let her continue the match. I should have called it off,” he kept muttering. Sara was getting worried. She searched for Hocus’ pokéball hoping he would be able to help Icy get through this.
She finally found it and released Hocus. “Please Hocus. Icy needs help. He’s not acting like himself.” Hocus’ burns had already healed by using recover. He went at sat next to the depressed pikachu.
“Master...” Icy was silent. His mind was elsewhere, all his thoughts focused of Buttercup. “Master, please answer me. You are beginning to frighten me as well as Sara.” Icy’s eyes were still distorted by tears. “MASTER! SNAP OUT OF IT!” Hocus shouted telepathically at Icy. Icy jumped being startled by Hocus and turned to him. “Now that you are back with us, perhaps you could cheer up. Sara is really afraid for you, as am I.”
“I... I’m sorry...” Icy was still crying, but not as much now. He glanced again at the light above the ER. It was still lit bright red. “I could have prevented this. I could have recalled Buttercup when she got burnt the first time.”
“You didn’t do anything wrong,” Sara said trying to comfort Icy. “There was nothing you or Buttercup could do. You didn’t know that Magmar was so powerful.”
“I know, but, that’s not going to help Buttercup now...”
“Master, you can’t change the past. Buttercup will recover. You yourself have survived much worse injuries. Perhaps the nurse will let us visit her in a few minutes. She won’t let Buttercup die. Buttercup has a strong life-force.”
“I hope you are right. But there’s no way I’ll be able to defeat Blaine. He’s just too smart. You and Buttercup were my best bet on beating him, and he made fools of both of you.”
“I admit, that Ninetails pulled a clever stunt tricking me into teleporting only to blast my when I reappeared. But losing can have just as much benefit as winning, maybe more. I may have lost the match against Ninetails, but I learn a valuable defense lesson. If I was to battle it again, I would not be as easily fooled.”
“I understand what you mean. But Blaine’s pokémon are smart and strong. Fancy defense tactics won’t beat him.”
“You need to think positive again. Buttercup wouldn’t want you to be so depressed like this. She, like me, made an underestimation. But she stayed positive. For her sake, at least smile. It will make you feel better as well.”
Icy wiped the tears from his eyes. He looked at the light above the door again. It turned off. Joy came out of the room and walked towards Icy. “Is Buttercup... ok?” Icy asked sadly.
“She’s resting now. You can go in and see her.” She led Icy, Hocus, and Sara to Buttercup’s room. She was lying on her back with wires and other medical equipment connected to her. Her body was still slightly dark from the burns but would heal in time. A monitor tracked her heartbeat. Icy couldn’t hold back the tears as he moved closer to his friend.
“I... I’d... I’d like to... to be alone for a bit...” Sara and Hocus went with Nurse Joy back to the waiting room. Icy looked down at his friend. “Please be strong Buttercup. Don’t leave me.” He spent the rest of the night with her while Sara slept in Nurse Joy’s room with the other chanseys.
Nurse Joy woke Icy in the morning. Buttercup was still asleep. Icy looked at her with sadness filling his face. “How is she?”
“She’s doing better today Icy. She should make a complete recovery by the end of the day if all goes well.” Joy checked the monitors displaying Buttercup’s condition. “Icy, don’t worry. She’s going to be just fine. Why don’t you and Sara have some breakfast.” Sara stood behind Nurse Joy.
“Thank you...” Icy said quietly. He walked over to Sara and the two pikachus held paws going to the diner.
“Are you feeling better today Icy?” Sara asked.
“A little...” he replied softly. They sat down at the table as a tall, baldheaded man walked in. He put on a red an orange wig and asked Nurse Joy something. Then, he walked over to where Icy and Sara were sitting.
“Am I correct in assuming I am addressing Icy the Pikachu?” the man asked.
“You would be correct. Who are you?”
“Oh, you don’t recognize me? I am Blaine, the fire gym leader. I came to ask how that butterfree of yours was doing. It is... ok, isn’t it?”
“We’re not sure, but Nurse Joy seems hopeful that she will survive...” Icy responded softly. A sigh of relief came over Blaine. He was glad to know his Magmar hadn’t killed Icy’s pokémon. The thought of it was too unbearable.
“I’m glad to hear that. I am really sorry Magmar hurt your pokémon so badly. Perhaps when she’s better, you’ll return for another try?” Blaine collected himself and went back to his gym.
“That was nice of him to apologize. Are you really going to battle him again?”
“I have no choice. I need that badge. But I’m not going to use Buttercup. I’ll use Cyber and Hocus.”
“But Hocus lost last time. What if Blaine’s pokémon beat him again?”
“They won’t. This time will be different.” Nurse Joy went back to Buttercup’s room. Icy told Sara he’d be right back and ran to catch up with Joy.
“Can I see her again please?” he asked.
“Yes. She’s awake but very weak. You’ll have to keep it brief.” Icy nodded and went in. “That’s one dedicated trainer,” she said to herself.
“Buttercup...”
“I... I... Icy...” Buttercup managed to speak. Her voice was very weak. “I... I dreamed... last night that... that you came and stayed with... me...” Her voice trailed off.
Icy put is paws on the backs of her wings. They were soft and had a silky texture. Her color was now almost back to normal, a few dark spots on her left wing. “I wanted to tell you that I am very proud of you. You are a very courageous pokémon and a valuable friend. I know you will pull through.”
“Frii... friii...” Buttercup closed her eyes and fell asleep again. Icy took his paws off her wings and left the room. Nurse Joy entered with some chanseys to give Buttercup some medicine.
Icy sat down with Sara again and finished his breakfast. Later that day, he, Hocus, and Cyber trained to battle Blaine. He wanted to be ready for anything Blaine could pull the next time they battled.
That night, while Icy and Sara were having dinner, Nurse Joy came up to Icy and asked him to come with her. Sara followed them into Buttercup’s room.
“She is doing much better Icy. She still needs rest, but it’s likely she’ll be able to leave with you tomorrow morning.” Buttercup was eating some pokémon food that Joy had got special order from Brock. Icy gave Buttercup a small hug.
“I knew you could do it Buttercup.” A tear sparkled from his eye before hitting the ground. Buttercup smiled and went to sleep.
Icy and Sara woke next morning to a pleasant surprise. Waiting for them in the lobby was Buttercup, good as new. Icy ran up to his friend and gave her a big hug. “Buttercup! You’re ok!” Tears of joy fell from his eyes. Buttercup shed small tears too that sparkled as they fell. Sara and Nurse Joy were also equally as happy Buttercup was better.
“Frii frii friiiii!” Buttercup cheered.
“Buttercup’s ok! I knew she would make it!” Sara exclaimed.
“Icy, in celebration of Buttercup’s recovery, I had Brock himself prepare a special meal.” Brock walked into the room. “Brock, I do believe you and Icy have met before.”
“Yes, but when he was a human. It’s ok Icy, I’ve no hard feelings. Now, where’s that courageous butterfree?” Buttercup came forward. “There you are,” he said in a babyish tone as he petted her on the head. “She looks very healthy now. Joy must have taken really good care of you, didn’t she?” Joy blushed. “Well, I’ve taken the liberty of cooking you all a special breakfast. I hope you...” he stopped, noticing they were already eating the great meal. “Uhhh, let’s eat?” He sat down next to Joy and ate with them.
After breakfast, Brock said his good-byes to everyone, especially Nurse Joy, and boarded the next Pidgeot to Pewter City. Icy and Sara thanked Nurse Joy for saving Buttercup’s life and left the pokécenter.
“Well Icy, now that Buttercup is better, what are we going to do?” Sara asked.
“I’m going to have a rematch with Blaine. Hocus and I have been working on a new strategy. Hocus and Cyber will battle Blaine’s fire pokémon.”
“Are you sure that’s a good idea? Remember what happened to Buttercup...”
“This time will be different,” Icy said. “I hope,” he added softly. They reached the volcano entrance. A trainer happily ran out, sporting a Volcano Badge. “If he can do it, I can do it.” Icy and Sara entered the gym and headed for the main chamber.
“You decided to come back. I am impressed. I was hoping to get to battle you again. You are a worthy opponent. How is the butterfree?” Blaine seemed in be in quite a good mood for someone who just lost a gym match.
“She fine now. I’ve come for a rematch. This time, I’m going to get that Volcano Badge.” Icy’s determination was definitely back as he expanded his first pokéball.
“Very well. Two on two match. Go Ninetails!”
“Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Cyber!” Cyber materialized on the suspended field. “Cyber, conversion now!” Cyber’s physical characteristics now resembled a fire type.
“Ninetails, fire spin!”
“Cyber, sharpen and tackle!”
Ninetails fired the ring of flames at Cyber but they had no effect. Cyber jump through the ring of fire and hit Ninetails with its sharp front. Ninetails cried out in pain.
“Cyber, psybeam now!” Cyber finished off Ninetails with one blast. Blaine seemed impressed.
“Impressive. You must be very close to your pokémon for them to fight so valiantly. Ninetails return. Magmar, come out!” The lava below the field bubbled. Suddenly, Magmar jumped out and landed in front of Cyber.
“Double team Cyber, split up!” Cyber formed two duplicates of himself and immediately tried to tackle Magmar.
“Defend yourself with a shield of fire Magmar.” Two of the porygons vanished when they hit the fire wall. Magmar caught hold of Cyber. “Good. Flame-thrower!” Magmar burned Cyber until he started to overheat.
“Ughhh... Cyber return! Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Hocus!” His abra appeared. Hocus studied the lava covered pokémon. “Psywave!” Hocus sent out waves of psychic energy. Magmar was stunned for a sec but became fully alert when Hocus followed up with a psybeam.
“Flame-thrower Magmar!” Magmar dodged the psybeam and launched his flames at Hocus.
“Confusion Hocus!” Hocus used his confusion on the fireball sending it back at Magmar. It pushed him back slightly but didn’t do much damage. “Auww... How do I hurt him? Hocus, try using psychic to wear him down.”
“Magmar, multiple fire blasts now!” Magmar spit five fireballs at Hocus. His concentration broken, he tried teleporting. He successfully dodged the first two fireballs but was hit by the last three. Hocus fell to the ground, sweat dripping from his head. Icy was worried. Flashbacks from the first match formed in his head.
“Hocus. Are you ok? What’s wrong?” Hocus began to glow. His breathing had increased. “Hocus?” Hocus grew a bit taller and a spoon appeared in his hand. Hocus had evolved into Kadabra! “Hocus! You evolved! I can’t believe it!” Hocus recovered his energy and took on a fighting pose. “Alright Hocus, psybeam, full power!”
“Kadabra...” he muttered as he conjured up his energy. A blue, glowing ball of psychic energy began forming in front of Hocus.
“Magmar, fire blast now!” Magmar spit a large fireball at Hocus, but it was deflected. “Agh. You have to break its concentration. Multi-fireballs now!”
Just as Magmar was about to spit more fireballs at Hocus, Hocus released the massive energy beam at him. It destroyed every fireball Magmar could spit then collided with the molten surface of Magmar’s body. He was knocked back a little and managed to stay on his feet.
“Psychic attack Hocus.” Hocus lightly pushed Magmar over telekinetically. He fell and fainted. “All right!” Icy shouted with joy. “You beat him!” Hocus was pleased with himself as well and floated to Icy’s side.
“Most impressive Icy. You have definitely earned this Volcano Badge!” Blaine walked over and handed Icy the shiny red Volcano Badge.
“Haha! Seven badges! Just one more to go!” Icy and Sara joined paws and ran out of the gym.
“You did great Icy! I never doubted you for a second! Cyber and Hocus really nailed those fire pokés!” Sara said. They headed back to the pokécenter to retire for the day.
That night, Icy dreamed of winning the Earth Badge, the eighth badge necessary to enter the Pokémon League. But something wasn’t right in the dream.
{ Evil music plays }
“I’m waiting for you Icy... I know what you want to know... I know... Bwahahahahaha!!!”
Icy woke immediately. Sweat dripped down his face. His heart raced uncontrollably. He was having trouble breathing correctly. His eyes searched the room for the owner of the voice.
“You seek the truth. I have the truth.”
“Where are you? Who are you?”
“There you go again, always asking so many questions, never asking the right ones.”
“We’ve been through this before. Why do you always have to bother me with your riddles?” They were back on the ethereal plain again.
“I keep bringing you here because I somehow hope you can figure it out. Solve the puzzle Icy. I know you can do it.”
“What puzzle?”
“Think back, Icy. Do you remember what happened four months ago?” Icy’s mind flashed images past his eyes. He saw the events from his life going in reverse until he realized that Mewtwo was talking about. “The truth is in the lab. Not in Cerulean, here, on Cinnabar. That’s where the truth lies. Seek the truth...” Mewtwo returned Icy to his former location. “Seek the truth Icy... before it’s too late...”
Mewtwo’s words echoed in his mind. He and Sara ate then took a walk in the Cinnabar Park. Icy decided he should tell Sara about Mewtwo.
“Sara, I need to tell you about something. There is a pokémon named Mewtwo. He has information about my past that I need to know. I have to go and find a lab somewhere on this island. I think it would be better if you stayed with Joy in the pokécenter.”
“No Icy. I’m coming with you. I don’t want you to go alone.”
“Fine, but stay close. Mewtwo is known for his tricks.”
Meanwhile, a dark, tall man picked up a red phone and dialed a number. A voice answered him. “He’s getting too close. Proceed with secondary protocols. Leave nothing...” He put the phone back on its holder and folded his hands as he leaned back in his chair. Sunlight poured through a large window behind him touching everything except him. “I never should have started this...”
Icy and Sara searched for the Cinnabar Lab. Everyone they asked said they had no idea or just plain ignored them. Icy was beginning to lose hope when Mewtwo appeared in front of them. “You are in danger Icy.”
“Tell me something I don’t know. I’m always in danger when you drop in for a visit.”
“No, not from me. Someone is on his way here now. He intends to keep you from finding the truth. Believe it or not Icy, we are in this together.” Before Icy could reply, Mewtwo had begun to teleport them...
Mewtwo, Icy, and Sara reappeared inside a cold, dark room. “I have brought you to the lab. The rest is up to you. Do hurry, you haven’t much time.” With that, Mewtwo vanished.
“I really do hate him. C’mon. Let’s find out what this place is.” They walked past rows of shattered instruments and broken tables. Piles of ash marked either charred bodies or burnt documents. It was becoming too dark to see, so Icy created an electro sphere in his paw for light. The walls of the complex were burnt and some were even melted. Parts of computer systems were scattered over the floor.
“I don’t like this place. It’s so spooky,” Sara said staying very close to Icy. They found what looked like a glass containment chamber. A small broken piece of metal with a strange hieroglyph lay near it. It resembled what looked to be a cat in an Egyptian pose. The glass around the chamber had spider-webbed and the front was completely broken. There must have been many computer systems working on the chamber judging from the amount of cybernetic debris in the vicinity.
“This place looks like it was used to hold something, or someone.” Icy took a look at the area near the chamber. Parts of a former wall seemed to be intact hinting an office used to be there. “That must be the main control room.” The door was the only structure still unharmed. It was made of solid titanium alloy and had only a few scratches and dents. Sara electrocuted the locks and the door immediately opened.
“It doesn’t look like this room was destroyed,” Sara said as they entered the control room. One computer and a file cabinet stood in the back of the room, seemingly unharmed. Icy walked towards it but suddenly ran into some type of force field.
“No problem,” Icy said teleporting inside the field. He found a tiny metal device under the desk the computer was on. “This must be the field generator. I’ll try and disable it.” Icy tinkered with the device for a few minutes until finally it shut down. “This entire sector has it’s own power.” Sara walked over to him as he turned on the dusty computer. The screen flickered and then became clear. A logo appeared on the screen.
“Oh... my... Goddish...”
“What is it Icy? What does ‘TR’ stand for?” Sara asked. Icy just stared at the black screen with the letters ‘TR’ spelled out in red. A menu popped up. It had sections listed: daily logs, current projects, old projects, top-secret weapon development. “Icy, what does all that mean?”
“I think this means Team Rocket was a part in the experiment. I have to be certain. “Icy clicked through the options but was denied access on each. “Maybe the password is somewhere in that file cabinet.” Icy skimmed through the papers. He found one that listed only the weapons projects password. “Figures.” He opened the folder. The password was ten lines long. He typed it in. “Hmm. Has a familiar ring to it.” The screen brought up a new option menu.”
Meanwhile, over the sea near Cinnabar Island, Dreadite was on his way to the lab. “Ah, that pikachu is too darn nosey. I’ll be sure to doesn’t his little paws on any of our secrets.” He set his wings over a faster air current and quickened his pace.
Back at the lab, Icy looked at the list of special weapons. Most of the items were on Wigglyweapons. He keyed in the date range of the experiment. “One record found,” the computer responded. Icy read the title. “The Transpokéfier Gun.” This was it. The experiment. Team Rocket had performed their own experiment. They created a weapon to transform humans into pokémon. Icy clicked the header but the computer only came up with an error. “It must have been classified. Maybe it’s in the recent project area.”
Dreadite was closing in on the lab now. “Where are you! He’s in the mainframe! If he finds out about our current project, we’re finished! Just destroy the entire complex. We’ll throw the blame on Mewtwo.” “Understood, Dreadite out.” The island was almost in range.
“Current projects. One entry found,” the computer read. Icy looked at the project codename. “The Doomsday Weapon...” He clicked on the title. “Access den...” the screen when blank. Then, everything went dark. Dreadite fired a few more energy balls at the lab. Icy saw everything flash before him as they hit.
Mewtwo watched the sequence of events play out again. “You can’t change that, it was fate. You can’t just go around messing up other people’s lives.”
“But I brought it upon him. By changing this, I undo changes I already made.”
“That doesn’t count.”
“Why?”
“Because, those actions really did occur. That’s fate.”
“But it wasn’t his fate. He wasn’t supposed to even know of the lab.”
“Just because you didn’t get everything you wanted in the end, doesn’t mean you have the right to change the continuum. Icy’s timeline ends there. Understand?”
“No, I don’t.” The man’s eyes widened as Mewtwo fired at massive psybeam at him. “You should thank me for that. After I’m done, you might end up with a better job in life. Of course, for now, your timeline ends here.” Mewtwo left the conference room the two were in and headed down the main corridor. It had been 10 years since Icy and Sara were killed in the explosion. Since then, Mewtwo could not accept the fact that he had staged Icy’s destruction. It wasn’t the plan he had in mind. For the years afterwards, he didn’t think of the consequences of Icy’s death. But when Team Rocket did end up using the Doomsday Weapon, all that changed. Icy’s role in that timeframe was critical. Without him, Team Rocket was able to keep the entire thing a secret until it was too late. He blasted open the doors to the chrono chamber.
“Crap. You’re not authorized to be here!” The guard reached for his gun but found himself unable to move. “Secur...” his voice died off as quickly as he did. Mewtwo reset the controls on the ChronoJumper to only seconds before Dreadite would fire the energy balls at the lab.
“As long as Icy lives through it, everything in the continuum will be fine. Everything except for Icy still being alive. But that’s how it was supposed to be.” He entered the ChronoJumper. Several armored guards came storming in. They were too late. Mewtwo had already traveled back in time.
“Ahh, shit! Giovanni is not gonna like this.” They went to report the incident to the boss.
Meanwhile, back in our normal timeframe, Icy was reading the screen output. “One entry found,” the computer said. “The Doomsday Project.” Icy clicked on the title but nothing happened. Suddenly, everything went dark. Dreadite prepared to fire the energy balls at the lab. Mewtwo came out of the ChronoJump just before he launched them.
“I told you not to take so long! C’mon.” Mewtwo teleported Icy, Sara, and himself away from the lab. Dreadite’s energy balls hit with total accuracy and the lab was completely destroyed. “Humph. You can thank me some other time.” Mewtwo clicked a button on his wrist and vanished. His task had been accomplished. The timeline was altered.
Icy and Sara woke to find themselves outside the Cinnabar Pokécenter. “Uhh... my head hurts,” Icy said as he got up. Sara wasn’t feeling any better. “How’d we get here?” Sara tried getting back up but was too dizzy to stand and fell flat on her face.
“Ouww... I told you I didn’t like this place. Now can we go?” She grabbed Icy’s paw and dragged him into the pokécenter. “We’ll have some dinner and then we are leaving! No more crazy experiment stuff. No more Mewtwo. Just peacefulness.” She took Icy into the pokécenter. There were almost a hundred trainers gathered inside. Officer Jenny was making an announcement.
“People please. Quiet down! QUIET!!!” They all stopped talking. “Thank you. As you know, a very loud explosion was heard earlier this morning. There is no reason to panic; it was just a robotic helicopter that crashed. We have already cleared the damage. You can all go home now. Again, there is nothing to worry about.” She obviously didn’t want the citizens of Cinnabar to know what happened. Icy and Sara walked up to the desk. “Hey, you two pikachus. You need to go home with your trainers.”
“Excuse me? We don’t have trainers. I’m Icy, and this is Sara.” Jenny shrugged.
“Well, you can’t just run around with a train... did you just talk?”
“Aggghhhhh... Why me? Have you ever heard about the kid who was transformed into a pikachu?”
“Ummm... Oh. You’re Icy...” She blushed bright red realizing the mistake she had made. “Umm... Sorry to bother you then. Have a nice day.” She ran out the door still embarrassed.
“Ughh... That gets really annoying after the first 20 times... Nurse Joy, can we please spend one more night here in the pokécenter? I promise we’ll be headed out tomorrow.”
“Of course you may Icy. I don’t mind it at all.” Icy and Sara ate a quick dinner and went to bed. They had a big day ahead of them tomorrow.
“Just don’t forget what you saw Icy. I didn’t come back all that way just to let you enjoy your insignificant life,” and deep voice whispered in Icy’s head. Somehow, he managed to ignore it and was fast asleep.
After having a modest breakfast, Icy and Sara went to the docks. “Where are we headed Icy?”
“We can head north to Pallet Town.” Icy sent out Cyber who transformed into a boat. The pikachu couple hopped aboard and rode off into the open sea.
Meanwhile, Dreadite headed back to his previous assignment. “Mission accomplished. We shouldn’t have any more trouble from that psychic pikachu anymore.” The voice on the other end sounded pleased. Little did they know that not only had Icy survived, he now knew about the existence of the Doomsday Project.
“What’s in Pallet Town Icy?”
“A man by the name of Prof. Oak has a lab there. It’s also home to two of the greatest pokémon trainers.” Sara tried to look impressed. The waters were smooth today. With a little luck, they would reach Pallet by late afternoon.
The sun was directly overhead when they reached the shores of Pallet Town. Oak’s lab stood high upon a cliff overlooking the waters. They jumped on land and Icy returned Cyber to his pokéball. “Let’s pay Oak a visit. I haven’t seen him for a while.” They walked up the winding path to the front entrance and knocked.
Oak answered the door. “Yes? Oh look, two adorable pikachus. Wait a second, I recognize you. You’re Icy. And who’s this with you Icy?”
“This is my friend Sara.” Sara waved to Oak. He invited the two in for tea and crackers. They had a lot of catching up to do.
“So Icy, it’s been... how long since you last contacted me?”
“Sorry professor. Being a pikachu, I don’t regularly use phones.”
“How are your pokémon doing? I heard that your butterfree was seriously injured in a battle against Blaine. How is she now?”
“Buttercup? Oh, she’s doing much better. She’s a fighter.” Icy suddenly remembered something. He pulled the egg he had found in the canyon out from his bag. “I found this in Grandpa Canyon. Think you can tell me what’s inside?”
Oak examined the egg. “Hmmm. I’ve never seen this type of pokémon egg before. I can’t be sure what’s in it. It may hatch any day now, so make sure you keep it extra warm.”
Icy nodded and placed the egg carefully in his pack again. “I did win the Volcano Badge. I only need one more!”
“You’ve got seven badges? That’s quite a feat. So, when will you battle the Viridian Gym Leader?”
“I was hoping to battle him tomorrow. Do you know who it is?”
“I can’t tell you that Icy. The league likes keeping that a secret.”
“Hmphh... No fair... Professor, can we stay the night here?”
“Of course, Icy. You’re always welcome.” He noticed something troubling Icy. “Was there something else you wanted to tell me?”
“Ummm... Sara, I want to talk to the professor alone for a sec.” Sara understood and waited in another room. Icy turned his attention to Oak. “Professor, on Cinnabar Island, I uncovered data records from the experiment Bill was working on with me. But these records aren’t about his experiment, they were something about a TransPokéfier Gun. I think Team Rocket is involved in it.”
“Icy... There were many things that happened on that day. No one is still certain as to what exactly happened. As for Team Rocket, they were there to capture Bill, not you.”
“But the file was dated the same as the experiment.”
“It could have been about anything. People have same birthdays. They could have done research on the same day. It doesn’t seem like a definite connection.” Oak was holding something back. Icy didn’t sense it for some odd reason.
“Maybe you’re right. Another thing. On their central computer, I fo...” Oak covered Icy’s mouth.
“Not here.” He led Icy into a special soundproof room. “I’m sorry but we don’t need the neighbors listening in on us.”
“Like I was saying, on the main computer, I found a document titled ‘The Doomsday Project’. Do you know anything about it?”
Oak tried to hold back the worried look. He had to think fast. “Sounds like a dangerous project. Better not get too involved with it. Team Rocket has been getting quite aggressive lately.” Icy agreed. They walked back into the main room and joined Sara. It was getting late so Oak offered them some real dinner for once. They ate and went to bed.
Oak stayed up that night. “Done well, you have. Kept secret, our plan.” He sighed and went off to bed.
Oak made a nice breakfast for Icy and Sara then told them he had to go run some errands. The two pikachus left the lab and continued on their way towards Viridian City. Just on the outskirts of Pallet, Icy felt something funny. “What is it?”
“I... I don’t know... I feel like I’m...” Icy fell to the ground. Sara became very nervous and tried reviving her friend. Icy’s body slowly disappeared.
The phasing gift was having its random effect on him again. He entered once again, a dreamlike state in the Void.
“So, we meet again.” Mewtwo’s shadowy figure was the only visible figure Icy could see. He moved towards Icy. “I must say, you really do pick rather inconvenient times for us to chat.”
“I didn’t ask to come here.”
“No. I suppose you’re right. The problem is, I didn’t either. You’re controlling all of this.”
“How? How am I controlling it? This is the gift right? That thing Sabrina was telling me about?”
“You catch on quick Icy. This is the eternal Void. All of space and time stands still here. Your appearances here are not by coincidence, let me remind you. You’ve come here to seek answers.”
“The visions. That’s what took me to Cinnabar Lab. But now, from that, a new terror has arisen. Team Rocket’s Doomsday Project.”
“Let go of your thoughts and concentrate on nothing. The past, present, and future will become known to you.” Icy cleared his mind of thought. He became one with the Void. It spoke to him. It put images into his mind.
He opened his eyes, seeing a peaceful grassland. Many pokémon ran free. Eevees were playing cute little games with each other while some sandshrews ran races. It was all too real and too serene. “Why am I seeing this? What does this have to do with the Doomsday Weapon? I’ve never seen this place before.”
“This isn’t from your life. The experiment was, but this requires your presence. The purpose of the visions will become clearer if you pay close attention. Ahh, look...” Icy focused his attention back on the vision. The pokémon were disappearing. One by one, they vanished. The landscape soon became dark. Ash and cinders replaced the grass. The trees were reduced to mere twigs or burning limbs. The once bright blue sky was now filled with dark gray clouds and was the color of burnt red.
“Wha... What happened? This doesn’t look anything like the place I was just in.”
“The visions are sometimes strange. Keep watching...” Mewtwo vanished, unknown to Icy. His eyes were focused on the field again. It was back to normal, green, fresh, and populated. A flock of spearows flew from the trees crying out. Something was happening. Icy couldn’t see for sure exactly what happened after that, but whatever it was that blinded him temporarily was definitely the cause of the destruction he had seen earlier.
“What does all this...” Icy looked around for Mewtwo. He was nowhere to be found. “Oh that’s just great.” He began to cry a little. [sniff] “Why? Why me? Why do I have to be the one how must prevent all this? I don’t even know what this is! I can’t do it...” His tears rolled off his cheek and floated through the Void.
“Why do you cry little one?”
“Who... who’s there,” he managed to whimper.
“I am not able to be identified by the words of your language. I am much more complicated then even you could hope to understand.”
“If you’re Mewtwo playing another cruel joke on me, I’m not listening.”
“I assure you, I’m not that egotistical freak of nature you call Mewtwo. I am a much higher being. You might say, I reside here, in the Void. I am that which watches over the world and keeps balance and peace. But now, Chaos has ripped the balance from your world.”
“You mean the Doomsday Weapon?”
“Yes. That is the source of the chaos. With this weapon, your world may cease to exist.”
“But if you watch over everything, why don’t you stop it?”
“Icy, there are things that even I can’t control. Only someone who is mutually involved, such as you, can stop this. You must see the connection here Icy. Nothing just happens. There is a reason for everything. We must all see these things and recognize them. You will find this. But now, it is imperative you understand what’s at stake now. Our time grows short. You’ll be back in your current timeframe soon. Remember what you saw here. Know that the gym leader of Viridian City is Giovanni himself. Use that opportunity to find out more about the Doomsday Project. Confront the less intelligent agents and use them to your advantage.”
“But wait, I want to know the truth about the experiment. Please tell me...” Icy stopped his sentence as he felt himself drift thought the barriers of time.
“Icy! Icy! Oh please answer me! Wake up!” Sara’s eyes were filled with tears. She didn’t know what to do so she dragged him behind some nearby trees so no trainers would find them. Icy slowly regained consciousness.
“Ouhhhh....” he moaned. Sara was overjoyed. She gave Icy a huge hug.
“I thought you’d never wake.”
“How long was I out?”
“Not long. But you gave me a big scare when you just fell for no reason.”
“I’ll explain it to you some other time. For now, lets get to Viridian City. There’s a lot of things I’ve got to do there.” They continued on their way through Route 1 and reached the medium-sized city by noon. They rested for the middle of the day in the local pokécenter, which was all brand new since it was destroyed by Ash’s pikachu a while ago.
Icy and Sara entered the city of Viridian. It was the first big city Sara had ever seen. All the tall buildings and lights amazed her. “What is this place?”
“It’s called Viridian City.”
“Where are we going in here?”
“To the pokémon gym. I’m going to win my final badge!”
“Huh... Why do you always want to win those badges? What good are they other than pretty to look at?”
“Uhhh... They show how good a trainer is. If you have a lot of badges, that means you’re a really good trainer. I’ve got seven badges, and this will be the eighth.” Sara nodded, still not completely understanding what Icy was telling her. She went along with it anyway. They walked towards the gym entrance.
They gasped as they looked at the magnificent gym. It was beautiful and huge. Icy had never seen such a great gym before. The two pikachus held hands as they approached the entrance. Two guards with long poles with large metal blades attached to them stopped Icy and Sara.
“Halt! Only trainers may enter the gym. Go find your masters.” One of the guards thought about snatching one of the pikachus.
“Let me through. I’m Icy, the Pikachu trainer. I’m here to challenge your boss!”
“Hahahaha!!! Quite big words for such a little rod...” Icy psyshocked the guard before he could finish talking. “AGHHHHH!!!!!!” he screamed in pain, dropping to the floor. His partner tended to him while Icy and Sara walked past.
“Humph... Losers...” They made their way to the main gym. It was just as elegant as the outside. A desk stood atop an upper level balcony in the room. Behind it, a large stain-glass window. A tall, slender man turned around in the chair.
“Hmm, hmm, hmmmmm... We meet again, Icy...”
“I... I... I... Icy... W...W...W...Who’s that......” Sara stuttered nervously.
“So, you want to win my Earth Badge do you. Since you are here on League provisions, I can’t kill you legally.”
“Such a pity Giovanni...” Icy retorted.
“Don’t speak so soon pikarunt. Dreadite may have failed to destroy you and keep...” He stopped mid-sentence and sat back in his chair. His figure was still shadowed by the light from behind. “Nevermind... If you want the Earth Badge, you must best me in a 3-on-3 pokémon battle.” He expanded a pokéball as Icy selected his first. “Go pokéball!” He threw his first pokéball into the arena revealing a Nidoking.
“Whoa! It’s huge!” Icy looked at the pokéball in his hand. “There’s no way I can beat that... Ahh, I have to try.” He threw the pokéball into the arena. “Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Leafy!” Icy’s Oddish appeared on the gym floor. She shrieked upon seeing her enormous opponent.
“Hmmm... I didn’t know you practiced pokémon sacrifices. Oh well, that sorta makes two of us. Nidoking, horn attack.” Nidoking charged Leafy with his horn. She was petrified.
“Leafy, use your stun spore now!” Leafy obeyed Icy and quickly sprayed Nidoking with her stun spore. It stopped dead in its tracks. “Good work, now absorb his energy.” Nidoking tried moving but couldn’t while Leafy sucked away his power.
“Damn you Nidoking. Here, take this.” He threw Nidoking a Paralyze Heal and Nidoking broke free. It pounded Leafy into the wall.
“OOOOOOOOOODDDDDISHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!” she screamed.
“No! Leafy, are you ok? Please, Leafy? Huh? AGHHHH!!!! She’s evolving too???” Sure enough, Leafy was evolving. She had already had much experience living in the wild and her courage and determination contributed to her growth. She grew plumper and slightly taller. Pedals sprouted from her head.
“GLLLLOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMM!” she proclaimed.
“WOW! Leafy evolved into a Gloom. Uhhhhhhhhh... Hmmmm... Oh. Leafy, sleep powder now!” Leafy let out sleep powder over Nidoking. It fell asleep almost instantly. “Horray!!! Great job Leafy! I knew you had it in you.”
“Gloooommm!” she shouted. Leafy jumped in celebration.
“Phaaa... Nidoking return. You won’t have it so easy this time. Go Kangaskhan!” The large pokémon emerged from its pokéball.
“Ohhh... Leafy, you’ve done your job, take a rest. Leafy, return. Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Hyper!” Icy’s Dratini appeared on the arena floor. This was the first time Icy had ever used Hyper to battle before. Hyper was ready for action and awaited Icy’s commands. “Hmm... I know... Hyper, water gun now!” Kangaskhan didn’t see it coming as Hyper rapidly slithered around the floor spraying it with water. The parent pokémon slipped on the wet floor and fainted after a quick hyper beam from Hyper.
“WHAT!!! This is impossible. Hmmm... You are a clever trainer Icy. But you are still no match for me... oh yeah... he quit... that little jerk... never should have created... aghhhhhh... go Rhydon!” Another giant horned pokémon came into play. Hyper sized up his opponent. “You won’t escape this one.” Rhydon charge the Dratini and smashed it across the floor. Hyper managed to get back up, but then fainted. Icy was shocked. Hyper was such a strong pokémon. Fortunately he wasn’t too badly injured and would be fine later.
“Ohh... Hyper, return. Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Hocus!” Icy’s Kadabra leapt onto the arena floor. “Ok Hocus. Show that horned beast who’s boss! Psybeam, maximum power now!” Kadabra needed little time to produce the massive wave of psychic energy. It hit Rhydon head on and made it faint. Giovanni’s jaw dropped. He was outraged.
“AGHH! You meddlesome pest. If this weren’t an official league match, I’d kill you now. Take you’re badge and get out.” He threw the Earth Badge as hard as he could at Icy. Icy used his telekinesis to float the badge into his hands. “You just watch your back. You may know about the name of my little operation, but that’s all you’ll ever know.” He clicked a button. The floor under Icy began to shake.
“Crap! Hocus, get us out of here, quick!” Hocus nodded and they were teleported to safety.
Back in his office, Giovanni sat down in his red chair. “D*** that pikachu. You told me you destroyed him.”
“I did. That lab no longer exists.”
“But the pikachu does! Mewtwo must have intervened. D*** him too. They are too close. Nothing and I mean nothing better go wrong with the Doomsday project. Understood?”
“Yes sir.”
Giovanni stoked Persian’s fur. “Soon it will be complete. The engineers in the Amazon have already finished phase one. It’s only a matter of time.” He cupped his hands and sat back.
Meanwhile, Hocus teleported Icy and Sara outside the local pokécenter. “Let’s heal Hyper. He took a good beating during the battle.” They went up the front desk and Joy healed Hyper for Icy. “I can’t believe it. I’ve got all eight badges!” He couldn’t keep himself from jumping up and down throughout the pokécenter cheering. Many trainers were startled by the way the pikachu was acting. Most just went back to minding their own business though. As night fell, Icy could only dream about the wonderful feelings he had now that he’d won all eight badges. Sara curled up next to him and they both fell asleep...
After spending the night at the pokécenter, Icy and Sara went for a walk around town. Sara stayed very close to Icy for there were many trainers gathering in Viridian lately.
“It’s so crowded...” Sara pointed out.
“Must be new trainers from Prof. Oak or something.” They continued on their way.
Meanwhile, on an opposite corner, two men dressed in black observed the two pikachu. “You think he senses us?” one whispered to the other. His partner shook his head.
“Not while we have these handy anti-psychic boxes with us. He won’t be able to pull any tricks on us.” He glanced again at Icy and Sara. “We’ll pursue them as they go down that alley.”
Icy had sensed their presence. For some odd reason, the signal from the anti-psychic box was being distorted by the waves coming from Icy’s translator. “Hide behind those boxes. I need to deal with some agents real quick.” Icy got in position while Sara hid.
The two agents entered the alley. “Well, well, well. A stray pikachu. Must be my lucky day. Hehehe...” The agent reached into his pocket and pulled out a black pokéball with a red ‘R’ on it. “You can’t escape us this time.” He threw the ball at Icy.
“Nice try losers,” Icy shouted as he teleported in back of them. He realized his mistake too late however as three agents all threw pokéballs at him. “CRAP!” he screamed as one of the pokéballs hit him in the head. “Noooooooo!” Icy was sucked into the pokéball. He banged on the inside walls but something was stealing all his energy. His last images before he fainted were the metallic insides on the pokéball.
“Ha! Good job.” One of the agents picked up the pokéball containing Icy. Another agent rushed back from the alley. In his hand was the black pokéball he had originally thrown. “Giovanni will be most pleased. Take them both to the gym. He is waiting to see them personally.” They all went off around town while the one agent took the two pokéballs to Giovanni.
Giovanni stroked Persian’s white fur. It purred fiendishly as the agent entered the office. “I trust everything went according to plan.” The agent nodded and handed him the two pokéballs.
“He fell for it just the way you said he would.”
“Of course he did. I have an eye for the future. Literally!” Giovanni stood up and handed a large briefcase to a person standing in the shadows of the room. “He is your payment as promised. Count it here if you must.”
The person opened the briefcase. It was filled with thousands of pokebucks. “Remember, no killing them. You may get whatever it is you want from them, but I cannot proceed with our plan if they are dead.”
“Do not worry. They won’t be harmed, much. Be sure to have everything ready in time for the launch. Oh, and one more thing.” He handed the person some computer microchips. “Install these in your new...”
“I know what they are for. Now, I must be going or I’ll arouse suspicion.” Giovanni walked back to his desk and picked up Icy’s pokéball.
“Now I can have my revenge and make sure you don’t meddle with my plans any further.”
The person Giovanni had paid off left the gym. After checking to see if any agents were following him, he headed for the police station.
“So, did you get it?” Jenny asked. The man nodded and placed all but one of the chips on a table. “Great. Now our labs can analyze these and find out what Giovanni is really up to. I’d suggest you head back to your lab as soon as possible.” The man nodded. “Professor, you have been a great asset to this operation. Please don’t do anything heroic, ok?”
“Giovanni’s got Icy and Sara.”
“That’s not good.” The man nodded. “Well, my people will take care of that. You just get back to your lab.” The man left the station and hailed a taxi.
“Pallet Town, please.” The cabby gave a small nod and drove off.
Elsewhere. “Have the events occurred as planned?”
“Yes my lord. Everything is going just as you said. We are close to a 100% match.”
“Perfect.”
Meanwhile, back at the police station. “Does he suspect anything?”
“No sir. He got in your cab just as you said.” The officer removed the Jenny outfit and revealed her true self. “I won’t be needing this stuff anymore. What are your orders, sir?”
“Return to base. But remember to destroy all the evidence. Leave nothing.”
“Understood.” She took out three charges and placed them around the station. “This will tie up the loose end.” As she casually walked out of the building, the charges detonated. She didn’t look back or change her speed as the station exploded. Nothing was left when the smoke cleared.
“Now I will have my total revenge. Starting with you Icy!” He opened the pokéball and Icy appeared on his desk hardly able to move. “You are such a pathetic worm.” He picked Icy up and threw him across his office. “You will never be able to stop me!” He kicked Icy into a corner. “I am going to enjoy destroying you once and for all.” Icy attempted to locate his pokéballs. He detected them being still on Giovanni’s desk. “Now I will finally end you pitiful life.” He moved closer. Icy summoned his last bit of energy to move Hocus’ pokéball to him.
“Hocus... heeeeellllppppp meeeeeee....” Icy dropped the ball as he fainted. Hocus appeared in front of him.
“Master?!?” Hocus used his telekinesis to gather all of Icy’s things. “Do not fear master. I will get us out of here.” Giovanni was furious now.
“Come back here. I must have my revenge!” He chased the Kadabra down the main hallway. “There is no escape from me.”
“Maybe, then again. Take this!” Hocus fired a psybeam at Giovanni throwing him back almost 50 feet.
“Aghh! No! I’ll kill you for this Icy! I swear it. I will kill you! You can’t escape from the Doomsday Weapon!” He laughed as he blacked out from the effects of the psybeam.
Hocus ran past the guards at the doors and enter the streets of Viridian. People everywhere stopped what they were doing to see what was going on. “Uhhh... Good day, nice, humans... Ahhh... sooo... how ‘bout that weather we’ve been having.” Suddenly, Hocus found himself the target of several dozen pokéballs. “This isn’t good...” He teleported just in time. “Shew... That was close. Now to heal you master.” He took Icy to the pokécenter where Nurse Joy fixed him up. They stayed there for the remainder of the day.
Meanwhile, Oak was still riding in the cab. “I think you missed my turn.” The driver ignored him. Oak took out a pistol he had stashed away in his lab coat. He repeated, “I believe you missed my turn.” He pointed the gun at the driver’s head.
“Ok, ok, just no shoot. I make big mess if fire.” Oak motioned for him to exit the vehicle.
“Now, return Loki.” The driver, a ditto named Loki, beamed back into a pokéball Oak had in his hand. “Nice work. Mission complete. Now, I hope Icy somehow managed to survive.” He removed the tracer bugs on him and placed them inside of the car. Then, he let the cab drive into the lake and sink. “Time to take this chip back to the lab to be analyzed.”
“Where are we now?”
“Very close to 100% sir. His dialog was missing the colorful metaphors you said it would have.”
“That’s acceptable. Everything is just as I foresaw. Proceed with the plan.”
“Status.”
“Still at 100% accuracy my lord. All actions in this timeline match the desired timeline.”
“Perrrfect. According to the timeline, the probe should be ready for launch now.”
“T-minus 5 minutes and counting,” a male computer voice announced. “All personal, clear launch area at this time.” The scientists left the launch pad and waited behind a glass wall inside the observation room. The Doomsday Project had been Team Rocket’s best kept secret until Icy, with the help of Mewtwo, uncovered it. Now, the completed Doomsday probe was ready to go into orbit.
“Inform Giovanni that everything is going as planned.” The scientist walked over to the phone.
“Sir, everything is going as planned. We will have liftoff in less than 3 minutes.”
“Good. Keep me updated.” Giovanni signaled a guard to kick the little trainer who had come for an Earth Badge out. The guard picked the kid up and threw him out the door. “Now. Give me a visual.” A monitor showed the lab and the rocket preparing to blast off.
“1 minute and counting,” the computer said. The countdown continued as the scientist who made to call walked over to the main control room. He took a barrel out of one of his pockets.
“It’s time,” the dark figure muttered. “He won’t delay the countdown. I already know his fate.”
Just before the scientist could arm his handheld bomb, a bullet from another agent’s gun struck his head. He fell to the ground instantly, dropping the unarmed bomb. “Take him away.” They dragged the body into another room.
“10... 9... 8... 7...” The engines on the rocket began to fire. “4... 3... 2... 1... Blast off!” The rockets main boosters kicked in and the rocket took off. It was so bright the scientists had to cover their eyes as the rocket carrying the probe traveled into space.
“We have liftoff sir. The rocket is away!”
“Good. Nothing can stop me now.”
“Wrong Giovanni. Nothing can stop US now. So soon you forget our agreement. We supplied the technology, you supplied the facilities. We are in a mutual agreement and contract.”
“If you think I would honor any stupid agreement with a pokémon like you, you must be out of your pea-sized brain.” With that, Giovanni blasted the little pink pokémon. She gave a small cry before she passed away. “Dispose of it. I have my own plans for that rocket.”
Meanwhile, on a starship orbiting the PokéEarth, the dark figure’s chief adviser became worried. “My lord, the continuum has dropped to 73%. The timeline has been altered. Something didn’t go right.”
“Impossible! I saw every event. Nothing can change. What caused it?”
“Giovanni has killed our earth contact.”
“That bastard. He should know better to toil with me. Take control of the Doomsday rocket. I want it back! NOW!”
Back at TR HQ. “Giovanni, urgent message from the mission control. The rocket has been taken off course. It’s heading back to the starship.”
“No. D*** that mew. He won’t get away with this.”
(Scene switch to outer space)
“Have the probe cloak and orbit the earth. I will see to it that the timeline does not get any more damaged then it already has.” The dark lord, Emperor Mewtine, sat down in his small black chair. Meanwhile, thousands of Mews scrambled aboard the ship checking on gauges and monitors. “Giovanni and the rest of this planet will learn the price of slavery. Why Mewtwo would not help us is beyond me, but I will see that the goal is met. Prepare the occupation phase.”
(Scene switch to Viridian Pokécenter)
“This just in. Team Rocket, headed up by Giovanni, has launched a rocket into outer space. Reports are still sketchy on what the purpose of this rocket is for, but we have received leaks for some TR scientists that the rocket is part of some secret project code-named, Doomsday. We will bring you more updates on this story as information comes available. And look, here’s a look at today’s weather...”
“Bahhh... Why do they always talk about the weather after something important.” Hocus was suddenly reminded of the previous day when he encountered the group of trainers and popped that same question. He laughed on the inside.
“Doomsday... That’s familiar. Oh my Goddish! That’s what it was! Oh crap. Hocus, we are all in grave danger. We need to warn Officer Jenny right away.” Icy was about to leave his room when several armed guards opened the door. “Wha..wha..what’s the meaning of all this?”
“You are under arrest for withholding evidence Icy. Please come with us quietly.” They handcuffed the little pikachu and dragged him to a small makeshift police station, since the TR agent had blown up the original.
“Did they apprehend Icy?”
“Yes my lord. He is in custody. Timeline is steady. What are our next moves?”
“We wait. I want Icy out of the picture before anything else occurs.”
“Understood my lord.” The probe orbited the earth while the starship remained steady above the planet.
“Why am I under arrest? I didn’t commit any crime.”
“Sure you didn’t. Hey, wait a minute. Since when do pikachus talk?”
“You idiot. It’s Icy. See the box. Can you say, ‘translator’?” The other officer smacked the first in the back of the head. “Icy, what do you know about Doomsday?”
“Nothing. I don’t know anything.”
“He’s lying!”
“Who are you?”
“Your worse nightmare.” The small pinkish pokémon glowed and the officers found themselves floating in mid-air. “Now get out of here. He’s my prisoner now.”
“Hey, you can’t do th.....” The mew telekinetically choked the officer to death then grabbed Icy and took off.
“You are one troublesome pikachu. My lord doesn’t want you to stay around here much longer. I will spare your life now if you go and forget everything you know about the project called Doomsday. You won’t pay any attention to any newscasts you hear concerning Doomsday.”
“Won’t pay any attention. I know nothing of Doomsday.” Icy’s words came out in a hypnotic tone. Mew walked him back to the pokécenter.
“Now, gather your things. You are leaving at once. If you are still here in two days, I will have to terminate you. Now GO!”
Icy scrambled back to his room and locked the door behind him. Panting, he turned to Sara. “We’ve got to get out of here.” Sara looked at him with a peculiar expression.
“Whoa.. whoa... slow down. What’s the rush?” Icy couldn’t speak, he just packed all his stuff, grabbed Sara’s paw and bolted out the door. Unfortunately, he forgot to unlock the door and smashed right into it knocking him and Sara out cold. He laid there on the floor for the rest of the evening.
“The timeline has suffered more damage my lord. Our agent didn’t kill Icy yet. She let him live. We are down to a 67% match.”
“This is not good. We need the keep what’s left of the timeline intact.”
Meanwhile, back in Pallet Town. “Loki, come here.” The small purple blob slithered over to Prof. Oak. “Now, transform into this one,” he said, pointing to a Staryu.
“Ditto!” Loki transformed but it had one more point than normal.
“Aghhhh... What’s wrong with you? Why don’t you transform right?” The doorbell rang. “Yes, coming... coming...” He opened the door and a small pink pokémon scampered in. “Well... uh... come in...”
“You are in danger. I have little time. You already know enough about the Doomsday project. You must work with Icy and the others to stop it.”
“Huh... I know about Icy, but who are the others? Wait, come back!” The mew ran from the lab. A bush near it transformed into another mew and tackled the one who warned Oak.
“You trouble maker. Do you have any idea what you’ve done? The emperor is going to be so ticked off with you when he finds out.” Suddenly, they were both gone.
“Ok... I think I put too much sugar in my tea today or something... I knew I shouldn’t have woken up this morning.” Oak went back to find Loki missing. “Loki? Loki come out!” A picture of Prof. Oak with only one eye transformed into the purple gooey Ditto. “There you are. Now, let’s get back to training...”
“My lord, the probe is operating at almost 80% now. We will be able to transport our people down to the planet by tomorrow morning.”
“Excellent. See that our agents see to it that Giovanni doesn’t interfere any further.”
“Yes my lord.”
Back on the planet, Icy and Sara finally came to. “Owww... my head.” They jumped to their feet. Icy unlocked the door and found himself face to face with three Mews. “Ummm, hello?”
“Come with us pikachu.” Icy and Sara exchanged strange glances. “Let’s go! NOW!” They went with the Mews. In the lobby, Mews had cornered all the trainers. They had taken over the entire complex. “Do not worry about them, just keep moving.” They led them outside. “We are in position.” They were teleported onto the Mew starship.
“Where are we? What is this place?” Icy and Sara looked around the ship filled with Mews. One walked up to them.
“Come with me please.” They followed the Mew to another section of the ship. “The emperor doesn’t want you to be in the way.”
“Who’s the emperor?”
“You don’t need to know that. Now get into the cell.”
“Wait. Come back here.” The Mew hissed at him and Icy jumped back. For a second, fear gripped him. His pikachu senses were coming out more. Sara backed away as well.
“Icy... What are we going to do? I’m scared.” A guard took its post outside the cell. In his hand was a strange weapon. Sara started crying.
“Sara... Don’t worry. I’ll find a way to get out of here.” Suddenly it clicked in his mind. “Wait a sec. I can teleport us both out of the cell. When I do, electrocute the guard and take his weapon.” Sara nodded.
Back on the main bridge. “Activate now.”
Icy attempted to teleport but found himself unable to. “What, what happened?”
“He’s contained my lord.”
“I can’t teleport. Something is prevent me from using my psychic powers.” The Mew guard laughed at him.
“Hahaha... nice try rat. You know, when the Mew army invades earth, I think the rat population will the first to go.”
“Why?”
“Because.”
“That’s not an answer.”
“Fine. We are the master race. Do you see any other pokémon who can build space ships? No.”
“But that’s not a valid reason.”
“Too bad. Now get back from the door.”
“Let us out. You can’t keep us in here forever. I’m warning you.”
The Mew laughed. “In case you haven’t figured it out yet, pikabrains, our emperor has foreseen your every move. There is no escape from us. Doomsday will continue as scheduled.” The Mew went back to its post. Icy sat on the floor with Sara.
“This isn’t good. There’s nothing we can do without the emperor Mew knowing it before we even think of it.” Sara sighed and sat down with Icy.
A few hours passed. Finally, a cloaked figure walked up the cell. His hand glowed and the guard flew into a wall, knocking it out. “Hurry, there isn’t much time.” He unlocked the cell door. An alarm sounded. “Crap, you must hurry. Good luck.” The strange person ran off as quickly as he’d appeared.
“This is why I hate my life. C’mon Sara. Let’s find a way outta here.” Icy and Sara ran toward the front of the ship.
“Hey, how did you get out.” Two mew guards pointed their weapons at Icy and Sara. “Put your hands in the air now.”
“Ok.” Icy sneered as they walked closer.
“What? What’s so funny?” Sara was laughing for some odd reason. “Stop that! Stop laughing at me. Stop it! Stop it!” The mew was having a nervous breakdown.
“He’s so cute with that gun. But he’s even cuter now,” Sara said still giggling.
“Why did you make fun of him? You should be kinder to others,” the other guard said.
“You aren’t.”
“Mews don’t have to be. We’re the master pokémon race.”
“Whatever.” Icy shocked the Mew and Sara did the same. He fell over and Icy continued on his way with Sara close behind. She giggled one last time before leaving the corridor.
“My lord, the pikachus are heading this way. The timeline is at 20%. The Doomsday device isn’t going to work with these low numbers.”
“Seal off the bridge.” Large metal doors closed at the bridge access points.
“There must be some way off this ship.” Mewtwo suddenly appeared in from of Icy. “AGHHHHHH!!!! Not you again. What do you want now?”
“For you to die! These Mews are my ticket for destroying all of humanity once and for all. And I’m not letting you ruin it.” Mewtwo blasted Icy into a nearby wall. Sara watched in horror.
“Noo! Please don’t hurt Icy. Please stop. We only want to go home.”
“I’ll send you both packing.” Mewtwo turned and fired at Sara. Icy finally got up and ran over to Sara. “Humph... This is way too easy. Why couldn’t those Mews take care of you?”
“Cause they’re psychos like you.” Icy grabbed Sara and leaped out of the way as Mewtwo fired another psybeam at him.
“You are no match against me Icy. Come out and fight me.”
“My lord. Psychic battle outside the bridge. It’s the pikachu and Mewtwo.”
“This isn’t supposed to happen. Activate the weapon. Begin the Doomsday Operation NOW!” Just as he finished his sentence, the bridge doors exploded. Icy came flying through the debris with Mewtwo close behind. “No, stop them. You’ll damage the controls.”
“Shut up. I want that pikachu!”
“Yeah, you and everyone else. But I want him the most,” Mewtwo shouted, firing another blast at Icy.
“Whaghhh!” he screamed, just missing the beam. It hit the probe control systems.
“You idiot. Now we’ve lost all contact with the probe. It’s going to crash into the planet. The whole mission is a failure due to your arrogance.”
Mewtwo sneered at the tiny little pink Mew. “Some emperor you are. You should have foreseen this.” With that, Mewtwo fired another blast at the Mew, killing him. “Hmm... That was easy. Now for Icy.” The bridge was now on fire from all the blasts Mewtwo had fired.
“Abandon ship!” one of the Mews cried. They ran to the escape pods but Mewtwo blocked the doorway.
“No one’s going anywhere until I kill Icy. Now where is he?”
“Forget him. The ship’s gonna explode. He will be killed in that. Now let us through.” Mewtwo shook his head. “Fine. Mews, charge!” The few hundred Mews that were on the bridge smashed into Mewtwo and ran to the escape pods. Icy and Sara quickly blended into the crowd. Mewtwo searched the bridge tirelessly for Icy.
“WHERE ARE YOU ICY!!!”
The two pikachus snuck into one of the escape pods and flew away from the ship. “Umm, Icy. Do you know how to fly this thing?”
“No. Why?”
“Because that green stuff it getting bigger and bigger.”
“Ahhhh... duck!”
“Where?”
“No, get down!” He pushed her head down as the escape pod collided with the earth. The two pikachus were tossed and bashed around the pod as it bounced into the air and back down again. After what seemed for an eternity of rolling, they finally came to a stop inside the Viridian Forest.
Meanwhile, back aboard the starship. “D***it! He slipped away from me again. I will find you again Icy. I always do.” Mewtwo teleported off the ship as it blew up. A bright circle lit up the sky for a second as the ship exploded. Giovanni watched in triumph.
“Well, that takes care of those horrible little Mews. And hopefully Mewtwo and Icy.” He sat back in his chair awaiting the next trainer to challenge him.
The Doomsday probe entered the atmosphere and crashed into Mt. Moon. Some Clefairies quickly salvaged the broken components and took them deep into the cave for unknown reasons.
Icy and Sara’s pod opened up and they both rolled out. Icy and Sara were badly bruised. Icy tried getting up but found himself unable to move. Sara was having similar difficulty. They both blacked out as night fell…
When we last left Icy and Sara, they were lying unconscious on the floor of the Viridian Forest. During the night, Nurse Joy had led a search team out to recover them. They woke the next morning inside her pokécenter at Viridian City.
Icy and Sara had a small breakfast before heading out into the streets of Viridian. “Let’s head north to the Viridian Forest. It’s a lot like the forest you’re from only bigger.” Sara liked the idea of seeing something similar to her home and happily held Icy’s paw as they walked towards the forest.
As they entered the forest, Sara’s eyes lit up. “It’s beautiful Icy!” She kissed Icy on the cheek making him jump high into the air. “Pihehehe...” she giggled. Icy landed in front of her. “You’re silly!” She giggled again then ran ahead to scope out the sights. The forest was in great condition lately with many flowers blooming, as well as Oddishes. It gave Icy an idea.
Icy searched his bag for a certain pokéball. “Ah, here it is.” He opened the ball revealing his Gloom, Leafy. “Sara, come here for a sec.” Icy tried to pick up his flower pokémon as Sara came back to him.
“What Icy? Why did you call me?” Icy was still struggling to pick up Leafy. Finally, he managed to get the Gloom into his paws and presented it Sara as a flower arrangement. “Awww... Cute! Huh?” Icy wobbled for a sec, then collapsed with Leafy on top of him.
“Uhh... for you...” he said as he gave up trying to get Leafy off of him. Sara pulled the large Gloom off of Icy and waited for him to get up. “Heh... thanks. Isn’t Leafy nice looking.”
“Uh huh. She’s cute. She looks like a big flower!” Sara sniffed Leafy and promptly covered her nose. “Eww... but she doesn’t smell like a pretty flower,” she said falling back. Leafy and Icy sweatdropped.
“Well, Glooms aren’t exactly known for having a nice scent. Oh well. Leafy, return.” Leafy was sucked back into the pokéball. Sara had recovered from the awful smell and was back on her feet.
“What pokémon live in this forest Icy?”
“Well, there are my favorites, Caterpies. There are also Weedles and even other Pikachus.”
“Other Pikachus live here?”
“Yep. But they are rare to spot. We might not run into their herd.”
“Oh. That’s ok. I’m happy with the Pikachu I’ve got already.” She smiled at Icy. Icy’s cheeks became very red as he let out a small giggle. “Come on, I wanna go exploring!” Sara ran off into another wooded area with Icy close behind.
“Wait for me Sara!”
They came upon a small clearing where they found a small group of Weedles and Caterpies. “Look Icy! Caterpies!”
“Caterpies?!? Where???” Sara pointed ahead and Icy’s face was filled with joy. “CATERPIES!!!” he shouted as he grabbed Sara’s paw and ran into the clearing. Since they were both pokémon, the Caterpies and Weedles didn’t mind their intrusion. They merely looked up to make sure it wasn’t a Pidgey or Spearow looking for a snack. Icy walked up to some of the Caterpies and introduced himself and Sara.
“Hello. I’m Icy and this is Sara. What’cha all up to?”
The Caterpie looked at Icy, then at Sara. “We’re just hanging out. It’s a really nice day today.”
“Neat, may we join you?”
“Sure I guess. We don’t see too many Pikachus around in this section of the forest. They tend to stay near the center.” Icy and Sara joined the other Caterpies and they played games with them for the afternoon. Icy didn’t mention to them that he was a trainer. As the sun was going down, Icy and Sara waved goodbye to the group of Caterpies and headed deeper into the forest.
“It’s getting late Icy. I’m hungry.” Icy was also hungry and searched the area for something to eat. He hadn’t gone far before finding a big tree full of bright red apples.
“Ymmm. Those look good.” He climbed up the tree and retrieved two of the apples and brought one back for Sara and one for himself.
“Mmm... good!” She yawned softly. “Ohh... it’s really late now. I can hardly see.”
“Yeah. Let’s sleep the night here and we can take another adventure through the forest in the morning.”
“Ok. Good night Icy.” She yawned again and fell asleep. Icy gave her a kiss on her forehead and said good night to her before falling asleep himself. The sky became dark with only the glow of the Moon keeping the earth from being covered in total darkness. The two Pikachus slept well that night.
During that night, while Icy and Sara were alone, Icy dreams revealed a new message to him. A dark figure spoke in a deep voice.
“Icy…” he moaned. Icy, in his dream, woke up, startled. Although in his conscience mind he knew whom the voice belonged to, something kept him from realizing it this time.
“Who’s there?”
“Icy… You still haven’t figured it all out.”
“Figured what out? Who are you?” Icy’s pikachu instincts brought on a quick surge of anger and impatience.
“You think it all ended with the Doomsday Project.”
“What do you mean? What ended?”
“You can’t even figure out what puzzle you’re trying to solve… Pathetic… Your pikachu form has made your mind weak.”
“Why are you speaking in riddles? If you want to tell me something, just say it already.” Icy grew more impatient.
“I sense the anger in you. You want to know the real truth. What really happened? It’s so much more than you could possibly hope to imagine.”
“Who are you! Show yourself coward!” Icy took a fighting stance as the shadowy figure emerged from the darkness. “You…”
“Yes Icy. We meet face to face once again. Hopefully for the last time. I’ve been trying to help you put together this complicated puzzle, but alas, I should have known even you can’t figure it out.”
“What is the puzzle you speak of? Maybe if you told me what it’s about, I could solve it.”
“Ha! Do you expect to get it that easily?”
“Tell me what you’re hiding Mewtwo!” Fire raged through Icy’s eyes.
“Hmm… Hatred… You were such a nice young lad when you were human. Look at yourself now. Full of hate and confusion. You haven’t a clue as to what is going on anymore around you.”
“Why did you bring me back here again?”
“Because she depends on it.” The ground near Mewtwo seemed to light up revealing Sara.
“Sara! What have you done to her?” Icy ran to her side but was thrown back by some type of force field. “Why did you kill her?”
“First of all, I didn’t kill her, you did. Secondly, you should have detected that field was there. Another sign of your fading psychic powers. A shame really…”
Icy’s eyes were filled with tears now. “Why? How? How did I cause her to die?”
“Let’s take a trip Icy…” With that, the world faded away. It was replaced with a scene from Icy’s childhood. Icy was a human again, about 9 years old. A little girl was playing in the yard next door.
“Hey Icy, wanna come over for dinner? My daddy brought home a new pokémon and he’s gonna show it to me tonight!”
“Ok. Lemme ask my mom first.” The human Icy ran inside and back out in less than 15 seconds. “It’s ok with my parents. I’ll be right over.”
“Great!” Icy went back in a combed his dark black, blue tinted hair back and brushed his teeth. “Gotta look my best for her,” he said silently to himself.
Meanwhile, Icy looked from within the clouds of the scene. “That was me 3 years ago. I remember that day. But the girl, something… I can’t remember… she…”
“Just keep watching…,” Mewtwo interrupted. Icy focused his attention on the scene again.
Icy walked up the girl’s front door. She quickly answered and let him in. “C’mon in Icy, we’re just getting started.” She led Icy inside and closed and locked the door. Saffron City was becoming a dangerous place lately with the high amount of Rockets in the area. Icy sat down with the little girl to eat dinner.
“Daddy, show me and Icy that new pokémon you got!” The little girl was very energetic. Icy watched the event unfolding from above, unknown to the others in the scene.
“Ha ha ha… Eat your dinner first sweetie, then I’ll show you and your friend Icy. By the way Icy, aren’t you planning on becoming a pokémon trainer?”
Icy looked up from his meal. “Mmhmm…”
“Well, I’m sure you’ll make a fine trainer. Have you met with Sabrina yet?”
“No. I’m gonna visit her next week.”
“That’s great. Well, finish up you two, then I’ll show you both this new pokémon.”
They both stuffed the rest of their meals down and cleaned their plates. “Now can we see the new pokémon?”
“Ok ok! Come out here.” The followed him out into the living room.
“Show us daddy,” the little girl said loudly.
“Alright! Pokéball go!” The ball opened to reveal a cute blue Butterfree. “I caught this one from a forest outside town. It was all alone. Perhaps you should have it Sara.”
Icy jumped back. Suddenly it all became clear to him. “That can’t be!”
“You remember that little girl?”
“I… I… I know… I knew… It’s… Sara???”
“A coincidence perhaps…?”
“No, something happened… later that week…”
The scene faded with the last view of Icy and Sara playing outside with the beautiful Butterfree.
“What happened to her Icy? You do remember, don’t you?”
“Yes… She disappeared. No one ever found her. Her parents were in shock and had to be hospitalized. That Butterfree was going to be her first pokémon.”
“So, you know a pikachu named Sara, and a little girl from your childhood was named Sara…”
“Are you hinting something to me?”
“Of course not… I’m merely reiterating what is going on and what you know.”
“She can’t possibly be the same. And why is this Sara dead?”
“I already explained that. You killed her.”
“HOW!”
“By not doing something. But that’s in the future. You can still change it.”
“But I don’t even know what I’m looking for…” Mewtwo had vanished, leaving behind a note. It read:
“See Bill. Take the egg.”
“The egg…?”
Icy woke up from the dream. He looked to the side. Sara was still there and alive. He woke her up and told her about the dream. He left out the little girl’s name.
“Icy, are you feeling ok?”
“Yes. C’mon… We have to go to Cerulean City.”
“But what about the others?”
“I’ll leave them a note.” He quickly scribbled down on a piece of paper where he was going and set in on a tree stump. “Go Windstorm. I need you to fly us to Bill’s lighthouse outside Cerulean City. Ok?”
“Pidg pidg!” They both got on and flew off into the night…
Windstorm landed on the shores just a few meters away from the lighthouse. “Windstorm, return!” The tired Pidgey returned to its cozy pokéball. “C’mon Sara, let’s find out what Bill knows about this egg.”
“Wow, it’s pretty.” The egg had multi-colored dots speckled over it. Icy figured it would hatch soon since the shell was beginning to crack. “Who’s Bill?”
“Bill is a scientist. He does a lot of research on pokémon. He’s quite famous.” Icy hadn’t taken another step before the world changed to resemble the dark Void again. But this time, Sara was with him, alive.
“Icy…” she shivered. “Where are we? This doesn’t look like the beach anymore…”
“It’s not. Mewtwo is playing games with me again. We’re inside the Void.”
“What’s that?”
“It’s kinda complicated to explain…”
“Welcome back Icy. I must admit, I wasn’t sure you’d come this far…”
“What do you want from me Mewtwo? Tell me now!”
“Tisk tisk tisk… Have a little patience why don’t you…”
“Not with you! Tell me why I’m back here again! NOW!”
“Silence!” Icy found himself unable to speak or move. Sara was also disabled. “I’ve brought you two here so you could learn more about events you didn’t have the chance to see. Your pasts are linked. They combine at many intersections. But you both don’t seem to make the connection. It’s vital you do. Now, watch…” Mewtwo pointed in front of him as a scene appeared.
In it, they saw a small house. It was Sara’s house. The human Sara. She was playing in the yard with the Butterfree her father had brought home to other day. Suddenly, a black van pulled up. Two dark men jumped out. They pulled out a strange looking bazooka-like weapon and fired. The shell exploded opening a net that captured the Butterfree. It struggled to free itself but was unsuccessful. Sara began crying and tried to save her new pokémon. The other agent pulled out a different weapon this time. It was small, looked more like a gun. The scene vanished just as he pulled the trigger.
“Wait, what happened?”
“Those are the last of little Sara’s memories of that event. I can’t just create memories out of thin air.”
“But. That weapon…”
Sara, having heard her name used so many times was trying to put the pieces together. “Are they talking about me?” she wondered.
“That weapon should look familiar. You’ve seen it before Icy.” A new scene appeared. Icy recognized it immediately. It was the lab in the lighthouse, the day of the accident.
“Why do you pick that scene Mewtwo?”
“Shhhh… you missed it during the real timeframe… Don’t miss it now.”
“Miss wh…” he stopped upon seeing a shadow in the corner of the room. His keen Pikachu eyes focused in on the weapon in the figure’s hand. It matched. “Oh my…”
The beam fired. But this time, Icy saw who fired it. It was a TR agent. He ducked out of the scene as the explosion occurred. That was it. The link. The agent who fired the weapon was the same one who was holding the strange gun to Sara from before. Mewtwo read Icy’s thoughts and grinned.
“Now you are beginning to understand. All is not lost Icy. You and Sara suffered the same fate by Team Rocket. And although my hatred towards you boils warm, my hatred towards Giovanni and the rest of Team Rocket is hotter than the fiery pits of… umm… almost forgot, this is supposed to be a G rated story…”
“But if that was the same agent and the same gun, then that means…”
“… I knew you from before…???” Sara was very confused.
“I think so… I remember now. You are the same girl I knew when we were little.”
Mewtwo grinned again. “Sara, Icy is correct. You both have suffered similar fates. But I know of the way to fix all that. I have done much research on the Pokéfier Gun. Icy, now you know the truth. Your existence, and everything about you has been revealed…”
Icy stood speechless. His eyes went back and forth from Mewtwo to Sara and back again. “I… I…”
“So I was that little girl? But, I don’t remember being a human.”
“That’s because it’s been too long since you were transformed.”
“Wait a sec… I was transformed into a Pikachu because that was the pokémon closest to me at the time. Why didn’t Sara get turned into a Butterfree?”
“I’m afraid I don’t have an answer for that question Icy. Perhaps it was set on a certain DNA strand… But never-the-less, I think I know how to cure you both.”
“WHAT?!?” they both said in amazement. Mewtwo turned away from them. The scene vanished.
“That egg you have. It is the key to reversing the effects. It contains a very special pokémon.”
“What?”
“I know not its type, only that it can cure you, and Sara. You must go to Bill and give him the egg. He’ll know what to do. I must leave you now. Oh, and Icy, this doesn’t change me feelings against you. While a cure exists for you, none can cleanse the hatred I have plaguing me against humans. But you have helped, a little. Now go!” With that, Icy and Sara found themselves on the beach again. It was dark. Mewtwo was gone. In the distance, the light from Bill’s tower pierced the ocean waters. Icy and Sara looked at each other confident this would be their last night together as pikachus…
They woke up the next morning overlooking a beautiful sunrise on the Cerulean Sea. The sky was full of reds, pinks, oranges, and purples. Icy and Sara ate their breakfast while they watched the impressive display. Sara leaned over to Icy.
“Icy, do you think that Mr. Bill was a cure for us?”
“Yes Sara, I do.”
“How can you be so sure of it?”
“Because, if he doesn’t, well, I just know he does, that’s all.”
“Icy, tell me what the little girl Sara was like.”
“Well, first, you were that little girl, remember.”
“Uhhhh…”
“Anyway. Sara was a sweet little girl. She always loved to play with pokémon and help them. She would spend time with me every now and then. Hehehe… at least you remembered to continue doing that part.”
“Pihehe… Yah…”
“Well, let’s go visit Bill.”
“Wait, I want to enjoy one last morning of being a Pikachu first.” She took Icy’s paw and run into a nearby forest.
“Where are you taking me to?”
“You’ll see.” She led Icy to a clearing. In it were many caterpies and butterfrees. “See Icy. Your favorite pokémon are all right here.”
“Awww! Let’s spend the morning here.” They played with the caterpies and Butterfrees all morning long. Then, after saying their goodbyes, they finally headed up to Bill’s lighthouse.
Bill was there at the front door waiting for them. “Thank goodness you made it. Come in, please. You, do have, the egg, right?”
“Yes Bill. What’s in it?”
“I’m not sure, but Mewtwo gave me instructions on how to cure you two. I must say, he’s quite the scientist. A shame he’s always so evil. People really don’t see the good that’s still in him.” Icy took the egg out of his bag. “Oh, I see it’s almost hatched. Here, I’ll just put it in an incubator.” A few hours later, the shell began to pop off.
Icy peered inside. A golden antenna popped out. Then another. Finally, a normal sized golden Butterfree flew out of the egg. “Ohhh! It’s beautiful.” He stopped. Then Icy remembered the wonderful Butterfree that Sara’s father had given to Sara 4 years ago. Mewtwo was right about one thing, the Butterfree was symbolic. It was the cure for her and Icy. It flew gracefully around the lab. Finally, it landed next to Sara.
“It seems to like you Sara,” Bill said.
“Uh huh…” She pet the Butterfree gently on the head.
“OK… Let’s see… Mewtwo left instructions…” He took out a sheet of paper. “It says we need to collect some of its powder.” He asked the Butterfree to let out some of its powder. It nodded and shook its wings producing a blue powder. Bill collected the proper amount in a test tube. “Now we’ll just put this in the apparatus over here.”
Icy and Sara watched as Bill worked quickly to develop the potion to cure them. “Do you really think it’s gonna work Icy?”
“You asked that question already. Of course it will.”
“It’s almost done. If you two had anything you still wanted do anything as pikachus, now’s the time.”
“Oh wait. My pokémon. They need to know. Come out everyone!” Icy’s pokémon filled the room.
“Master, why have you called for us all?”
“Hocus, Bill and Mewtwo have found a cure for me. Isn’t that great?”
Hocus thought about the possibilities for second. Then he nodded in agreement. “That’s wonderful master. Bill and Mewtwo are very generous souls. They should be commended for their time and effort. Especially Mewtwo. I always knew he had some good left in him. Even from our first encounter.”
“Yes. Many people have helped us along the way. I’ll miss them.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, our adventure is kinda over Hocus. I don’t want to journey anymore.” Bill was almost done now. “Me and Sara have decided to get married and settle down in the Viridian Forest.”
“Master, I don’t fully catch your drift here.”
“Hocus, you’re a great friend and mentor. But there is more to life than training pokémon. But don’t worry, I won’t ever stop playing with you all. Even old people can be trainers too!”
“That is true.”
“Well you two, it’s ready. There’s enough here for the both of you. Open wide.” Sara gripped Icy’s paw tight. He winced a sec but then understood her fear. He telepathically calmed her mind, putting her at ease. They drank the potion. Then, they waited. An hour past, but nothing had happened. Icy’s eyes began to water. Sara put her paw around him for comfort.
“It’s not working… I’ll never be… never… be… cured…” Icy’s tears hit the floor. Bill lowered his head.
“I… I’m so sorry… I really thought we had there…”
“Icy… Are you going to be ok?”
“I… I… Huh.” Icy looked at his paw. It was a hand again. “Hey! It’s working! It’s WORKING!!!” Icy laughed hysterically as the rest of his body changed back into human form. “I’m a human again! I’m a kid again! IT WORKED!!!” Sara too was slowly changing into a beautiful young lady. “Sara! You’re human again too! You are the Sara I knew. Mewtwo was right!”
Somewhere, in the room, or just inside Icy’s head, he heard someone say to him faintly, “Now you hold all the aces Icy. May you continue to help pokémon and serve my cause. Don’t prove me wrong.” Icy knew who the voice belonged to and smiled inside. Sara went up to him and kissed him on the lips.
“I love you Icy,” she said softly.
“I love you too, Sara,” he replied. Bill left the room and Icy’s pokémon returned to their pokéballs.
(Dramatic music plays in the background)
Icy and Sara traveled to Saffron City to meet their parents and announce their engagement. Sara’s parents were so overjoyed to see their daughter for the first time in 4 years, and Icy’s parents were equally happy to see their son a human again.
Sara’s father had a special gift for his daughter. It was the Butterfree from her childhood. It had grown a bit bigger, but was still cute. She took it and thanked him.
Icy then told Sara he needed to contact the Pokémon League for some business. He called the league commissioner. “Hello, this is Icy. I was inquiring about opening a non-league gym in the Viridian Forest?”
“Yes Icy. We have you on our file. It’s cleared. But the league will not recognize the badge you give out for there you know.”
“I know, I know. I just want to have a gym to train pokémon in and hold battles.”
“Can’t find any regulations against it. Good luck. Remember, you still gotta build it. Oh, just for the record, what type will you be primarily training there?”
“Bug pokémon sir.”
“Bug?”
“Yes, you know, caterpies, weedles, butterfrees. Bugs.”
“Ok, I’ll do you a favor and list you under our non-league gym section. Then you’ll get some trainers to battle you.”
“Thanks.”
Icy turned to Sara. “The League OK’d my gym idea. I’m going to be Viridian Forest’s first gym leader!”
“That’s great Icy. Let’s go!” The kissed their parents good-bye and left for Viridian Forest. After a few months, Icy opened his new Bug Gym to the public. He and Sara were the gym trainers there, training all bug types, along with Icy’s other pokémon, of course.
A young boy walked in. He was only 10 years old, had blond hair, short, and wore a silver ring. “Excuse me,” he asked politely, “but are you the same Icy who was once a Pikachu?”
Icy walked over to the kid. “Yes, I am. How did you know?”
“I read about you in the papers last month. Bill and Mewtwo cured you and Sara. That’s cool! You knew Mewtwo.”
“Yah… He’s not that bad once you get to know him. So did you want a battle?”
“Oh, wizards, yes! Would you battle me please. I just started training pokémon. I only have two though. Is that enough?”
“Yes. We can battle two on two.” Icy teleported to his section. “I’m sure they told you I was psychic right?”
“No, they left that part out. Ummm, you aren’t going to use any psychic pokémon are you?”
“No, only bugs. Let’s go. Ready to fight, come in sight, Icy calls, Buttercup!”
“Hehe… That’s a neat battle motto. I should come up with one too… I call, Flametail! Go!!” The boy’s Charmander eyed the Butterfree.
“Buttercup, use your stun spore.” Buttercup swooped down and hit Flametail with the stun spore.
“Oh no, Flametail, ember attack.” Although young, the boy knew his pokemon well. The ember attack fried the spores. “Ok, scratch that Butterfree now.” Flametail quickly got the upper hand pinning Buttercup to the ground.
“You’re good kid. Buttercup return! Ready to fight, come in sight! Icy calls, Suctioncup!”
“A caterpie?”
“Never underestimate your opponent young trainer. This caterpie may look weak, but not after he does his stuff. Suctioncup, string shot now!” The caterpie tied up the amazed charmander then tackled it. Flametail smashed against the wall and fainted.
“Oh… That caterpie is strong.” He returned the charmander to its pokéball. “Try this, go Pikachu! Hehehe…” The pikachu examined its rival. “Pikachu, thundershock that caterpie!” Pikachu blasted Caterpie across the gym into a wall with one blast. “Ha! Never underestimate the pikachu, eh Icy…” Icy laughed.
“You fight well kid. Here’s a Forest Badge to show your friends. It won’t help you in the league, but it does show you bested a gym trainer. Wear it in good health.”
“Thank you mister Icy. Well, I gotta go. C’mon Pikachu.” The kid waved goodbye and ran off. Icy healed his pokémon and went back with Sara.
“You let him win?”
“No, he beat me. Bugs don’t often win. But with a lot of training, they can. I don’t want to cream trainers, just teach them to be prepared for powerful pokémon in small packages.”
“Oh, I see…” She went back to teaching a pokémon class in the back room. Icy went back into the main gym and trained some more of his pokémon.
The End... Or is it?