Post by WARendfeld on Oct 17, 2012 18:22:35 GMT -6
Shadow Pain
Night had settled over Cianwood City, the stars becoming visible in the skies above and a chill going through the air. The general calm, however, did little to brighten Alex's spirits as she sat within the Pokémon Center, her gaze locked out the window and into the night's sky.
"Hey, Alex!" Her attention shifted back to Jake as he strode up to her, a gleeful expression on his face. "What's got you so down? We beat off those goons from Team Rocket, the Safari Zone warden's recovering, and everything's worked out! Heck, I've even gotten a little training in before I challenge the Gym tomorrow! You should be celebrating!"
A sad smile. "Yeah, I should." The smile faded as she noted, "Still, the two goons we fought got away, and the work crews they had providing a distraction were just guys they duped. They should be in jail."
"Yeah, and so should a lot of other people. But we can't do anything about it, so why worry over it, right?"
A shrug. "Yeah, I guess so." Turning the discussion elsewhere, she turned to him and asked, "So why challenge the Gym tomorrow? I mean, I've got my own reasons for taking so long to get here, but what's your excuse?"
"I had the crazy idea to try and get the mainland taken care of first." Jake nervously laughed as he admitted, "Trouble is the Gym in Mahogany Town turned out to be a little more trouble than I thought it'd be."
"So you backtracked and came here to get a little more experience before battling Bryce again."
"Yeah, something like that. So, you battle him yet? Chuck, I mean."
"Earlier today, not long before I battled you. Won too, but it wasn't an easy one." A small shrug, and Alex admitted, "Both Pokémon I have with advantages against Fighting-types are also weak against them, so I had to work a little harder for the victory. Still, we managed it, and if you've got a good Flying-type or Psychic-type, you should be golden."
"Well lucky for me, I've got both." He nodded his head towards the cafeteria and offered, "So, you want to grab a bite to eat? Just us sharing a meal, I promise."
"Sure, but you go on ahead. I need a little private time."
Jake accepted that and went on his way, and Alex found a secluded corner of the Pokémon Center before pulling a Poké Ball from her belt and sending out her Murkrow. "Hey ShadowWarrior. You feeling better?"
"A little stiff, but I'll loosen up with time." He fluttered up onto his trainer's shoulder and asked, "So what's up?"
"I had a run-in with a couple wiseguy Rockets today."
"Oh." ShadowWarrior's earlier, relaxed tone turned downcast. "They recognize you?"
“If they did, they didn’t make a big deal out of it. Anyone with an Internet connection can figure out I have a Murkrow on my team, but it isn’t exactly common knowledge that you can talk.â€
"I didn't think so." He sighed uncomfortably as he noted, "It's not like I'm expecting them to try and hunt me down and recapture me, but still, Team Rocket is hardly known for pragmatism. If anything, they're known for the opposite."
Alex wasn't inclined to doubt her friend's account, given what he'd been through, but he didn't need to mention his pain in order to get his message across. "ShadowWarrior, if you want, we can leave. There's plenty of ferries heading back to Hoenn, and I can just as easily go to Sinnoh or Unova or anywhere that doesn't..."
"Alex, as much as I appreciate the offer, I'm not going to ask you to do that. I always knew you'd be coming back here someday, and I don't want to be the one responsible for you failing to see Johto or Kanto for yourself. And the chance of me running into Team Rocket again has always been there. The only thing we can do is deal with it."
"Why would Team Rocket want your Murkrow?" The two turned to find Jake nearby, not quite having gotten to the cafeteria. "I mean, yeah, he can talk, and that's cool and all, but..."
"Team Rocket is the reason I can talk." His gaze locked on the young trainer, he added, "And didn't your parents ever teach you that it's rude to listen in to other people's conversations?"
"ShadowWarrior." Alex's chiding was slight, but enough to discourage him from going further. She sighed and explained, "Him talking about this isn't easy. That he can share it with me is something I'm always thankful for, but it's his choice to share it. Always has been."
Jake took a second to let that sink in before continuing. "Alright, that's fair." He then turned from Alex to the Murkrow on her shoulder and asked, "So, may I know what happened? Please?"
A small smile formed on ShadowWarrior's beak, and he nodded. "Yes. Yes, you may." He prompted the two humans to find a place to sit down, and he fluttered down to his trainer's knee began his tale. "You know that old song from that one singer, the one about gypsies and tramps and stuff? Nothing about it applies to me, except for that first line; I was literally born in the wagon of a traveling show. I barely remember anything about it, however, and I wouldn't be surprised if those in the show had forgotten me. I do remember being happy." His tone turned bitter as his eyes closed, practically croaking his next few words. "Until Team Rocket came along."
"You were taken from them."
The bird nodded. "And I'd rather not go into the details. In any case, I ended up in the closest Rocket base, in the care of one of their scientists as part of an experiment. You know who Ash Ketchum is, how he's had to deal with a trio of Team Rocket operatives including a talking Meowth? The way those scientists talked, the Meowth had a flaw; learning how to use a human language to the extent that he did left him devastatingly weak in terms of battling strength. They wanted the best of both worlds; a talking Pokémon, but one with the potential to be as powerful as any other."
"A properly trained Murkrow can learn how to use words in human languages, a Honchkrow even more. You don't see many doing so in battle, but it isn't exactly a necessity." Alex turned to ShadowWarrior and continued, "But what sets ShadowWarrior apart is the fact that his vocabulary is a great deal more expansive and comprehensive than even the best trained of Murkrow, all without sacrificing his strength in a Pokémon battle. The trouble is that he didn't get there through pleasant means."
A harsh caw, and ShadowWarrior amended, "That's an understatement. I was tortured, plain and simple. Locked in a cage at all hours of the day, given electrical shocks to facilitate learning, barely given food even when I asked for it, and all that public television aimed at little kids..." He shuddered. "Those damn things with the monkey faces and televisions in their stomachs still haunt me, and don't even get me started on purple dinosaurs. Those things are evil, even if they don't admit it."
"Jeez...I'm sorry I asked." Now uncomfortable, Jake tried his best to speed things up. "So what happened? I mean, obviously you escaped, but how?"
The Murkrow turned from bitter to proud with amazing speed. "Murkrows and Honchkrows aren't stupid. Give us enough tools to do a job, and we're just as inventive as you humans. Give me a paperclip and enough time, and I can pick a simple lock or remove the screws from a vent in the wall. After all that, escape was practically a snap."
"And I ran into him not long after he got free when I was on my way to the Silver Conference." A happy smile on her face, she added, "And he's stuck with me since."
ShadowWarrior returned the smile and noted, "Well, we are kindred. And it's not a big leap to guess what would happen if the Rockets decided to try and take me back. Not that I'm in a rush to see them try, however; there's the slim chance that they'll succeed."
"Unfortunately." Alex turned discussion to better things as she noted, "Still, I don't see them interfering with dinner."
"Oh yeah, definitely not." Jake got back to his feet. "But the sooner we do eat, the better."
"Agreed." Alex moved to follow, ShadowWarrior fluttering back to her shoulder, but paused to ask the bird, "Kindred?"
"We're family, aren't we? And besides, we're both a little outside the norm."
TBC!
Night had settled over Cianwood City, the stars becoming visible in the skies above and a chill going through the air. The general calm, however, did little to brighten Alex's spirits as she sat within the Pokémon Center, her gaze locked out the window and into the night's sky.
"Hey, Alex!" Her attention shifted back to Jake as he strode up to her, a gleeful expression on his face. "What's got you so down? We beat off those goons from Team Rocket, the Safari Zone warden's recovering, and everything's worked out! Heck, I've even gotten a little training in before I challenge the Gym tomorrow! You should be celebrating!"
A sad smile. "Yeah, I should." The smile faded as she noted, "Still, the two goons we fought got away, and the work crews they had providing a distraction were just guys they duped. They should be in jail."
"Yeah, and so should a lot of other people. But we can't do anything about it, so why worry over it, right?"
A shrug. "Yeah, I guess so." Turning the discussion elsewhere, she turned to him and asked, "So why challenge the Gym tomorrow? I mean, I've got my own reasons for taking so long to get here, but what's your excuse?"
"I had the crazy idea to try and get the mainland taken care of first." Jake nervously laughed as he admitted, "Trouble is the Gym in Mahogany Town turned out to be a little more trouble than I thought it'd be."
"So you backtracked and came here to get a little more experience before battling Bryce again."
"Yeah, something like that. So, you battle him yet? Chuck, I mean."
"Earlier today, not long before I battled you. Won too, but it wasn't an easy one." A small shrug, and Alex admitted, "Both Pokémon I have with advantages against Fighting-types are also weak against them, so I had to work a little harder for the victory. Still, we managed it, and if you've got a good Flying-type or Psychic-type, you should be golden."
"Well lucky for me, I've got both." He nodded his head towards the cafeteria and offered, "So, you want to grab a bite to eat? Just us sharing a meal, I promise."
"Sure, but you go on ahead. I need a little private time."
Jake accepted that and went on his way, and Alex found a secluded corner of the Pokémon Center before pulling a Poké Ball from her belt and sending out her Murkrow. "Hey ShadowWarrior. You feeling better?"
"A little stiff, but I'll loosen up with time." He fluttered up onto his trainer's shoulder and asked, "So what's up?"
"I had a run-in with a couple wiseguy Rockets today."
"Oh." ShadowWarrior's earlier, relaxed tone turned downcast. "They recognize you?"
“If they did, they didn’t make a big deal out of it. Anyone with an Internet connection can figure out I have a Murkrow on my team, but it isn’t exactly common knowledge that you can talk.â€
"I didn't think so." He sighed uncomfortably as he noted, "It's not like I'm expecting them to try and hunt me down and recapture me, but still, Team Rocket is hardly known for pragmatism. If anything, they're known for the opposite."
Alex wasn't inclined to doubt her friend's account, given what he'd been through, but he didn't need to mention his pain in order to get his message across. "ShadowWarrior, if you want, we can leave. There's plenty of ferries heading back to Hoenn, and I can just as easily go to Sinnoh or Unova or anywhere that doesn't..."
"Alex, as much as I appreciate the offer, I'm not going to ask you to do that. I always knew you'd be coming back here someday, and I don't want to be the one responsible for you failing to see Johto or Kanto for yourself. And the chance of me running into Team Rocket again has always been there. The only thing we can do is deal with it."
"Why would Team Rocket want your Murkrow?" The two turned to find Jake nearby, not quite having gotten to the cafeteria. "I mean, yeah, he can talk, and that's cool and all, but..."
"Team Rocket is the reason I can talk." His gaze locked on the young trainer, he added, "And didn't your parents ever teach you that it's rude to listen in to other people's conversations?"
"ShadowWarrior." Alex's chiding was slight, but enough to discourage him from going further. She sighed and explained, "Him talking about this isn't easy. That he can share it with me is something I'm always thankful for, but it's his choice to share it. Always has been."
Jake took a second to let that sink in before continuing. "Alright, that's fair." He then turned from Alex to the Murkrow on her shoulder and asked, "So, may I know what happened? Please?"
A small smile formed on ShadowWarrior's beak, and he nodded. "Yes. Yes, you may." He prompted the two humans to find a place to sit down, and he fluttered down to his trainer's knee began his tale. "You know that old song from that one singer, the one about gypsies and tramps and stuff? Nothing about it applies to me, except for that first line; I was literally born in the wagon of a traveling show. I barely remember anything about it, however, and I wouldn't be surprised if those in the show had forgotten me. I do remember being happy." His tone turned bitter as his eyes closed, practically croaking his next few words. "Until Team Rocket came along."
"You were taken from them."
The bird nodded. "And I'd rather not go into the details. In any case, I ended up in the closest Rocket base, in the care of one of their scientists as part of an experiment. You know who Ash Ketchum is, how he's had to deal with a trio of Team Rocket operatives including a talking Meowth? The way those scientists talked, the Meowth had a flaw; learning how to use a human language to the extent that he did left him devastatingly weak in terms of battling strength. They wanted the best of both worlds; a talking Pokémon, but one with the potential to be as powerful as any other."
"A properly trained Murkrow can learn how to use words in human languages, a Honchkrow even more. You don't see many doing so in battle, but it isn't exactly a necessity." Alex turned to ShadowWarrior and continued, "But what sets ShadowWarrior apart is the fact that his vocabulary is a great deal more expansive and comprehensive than even the best trained of Murkrow, all without sacrificing his strength in a Pokémon battle. The trouble is that he didn't get there through pleasant means."
A harsh caw, and ShadowWarrior amended, "That's an understatement. I was tortured, plain and simple. Locked in a cage at all hours of the day, given electrical shocks to facilitate learning, barely given food even when I asked for it, and all that public television aimed at little kids..." He shuddered. "Those damn things with the monkey faces and televisions in their stomachs still haunt me, and don't even get me started on purple dinosaurs. Those things are evil, even if they don't admit it."
"Jeez...I'm sorry I asked." Now uncomfortable, Jake tried his best to speed things up. "So what happened? I mean, obviously you escaped, but how?"
The Murkrow turned from bitter to proud with amazing speed. "Murkrows and Honchkrows aren't stupid. Give us enough tools to do a job, and we're just as inventive as you humans. Give me a paperclip and enough time, and I can pick a simple lock or remove the screws from a vent in the wall. After all that, escape was practically a snap."
"And I ran into him not long after he got free when I was on my way to the Silver Conference." A happy smile on her face, she added, "And he's stuck with me since."
ShadowWarrior returned the smile and noted, "Well, we are kindred. And it's not a big leap to guess what would happen if the Rockets decided to try and take me back. Not that I'm in a rush to see them try, however; there's the slim chance that they'll succeed."
"Unfortunately." Alex turned discussion to better things as she noted, "Still, I don't see them interfering with dinner."
"Oh yeah, definitely not." Jake got back to his feet. "But the sooner we do eat, the better."
"Agreed." Alex moved to follow, ShadowWarrior fluttering back to her shoulder, but paused to ask the bird, "Kindred?"
"We're family, aren't we? And besides, we're both a little outside the norm."
TBC!