Chapter 58: Aftermath
"Gyarados! Play with me!"
The orange-haired girl tried to ride Gyarados, which made it quite nervous.
"Misty, be careful! If you fall, we can't do anything about it," her three older sisters called out from below, but Misty ignored them and continued trying to climb on.
"Gyarados! Let's go!" Misty cheerfully pointed towards the ocean, eager to set off with Gyarados.
Gyarados sighed, feeling a bit different from other Gyarados, despite being known as the wrath of the sea. Obeying its trainer, it took Misty to the ocean.
Misty was excited, greeting the Pokémon she encountered. Unfortunately, they were all scared—after all, there was a Gyarados in front of them.
"Why are they all avoiding us?" Misty asked innocently, making Gyarados sweat a little.
Misty continued happily... until she noticed something.
"Huh?" Misty squinted at something in the distance.
There was a strange-looking Pokémon, with the body of a horse trapped in a fence, but its skin was as dark as night. Its red eyes stared at her.
She sensed something was wrong.
Suddenly, the Pokémon in the ocean began to tremble violently, emitting eerie energy and red eyes. They started targeting her.
"G-Gyarados, let's go back!" Misty said fearfully, hurriedly speaking to Gyarados.
But for some reason, Gyarados didn't respond.
"Gyarados?"
Gyarados suddenly let out a roar, causing Misty to fall into the sea. Fortunately, she could swim, but given the current situation, knowing how to swim might not be enough to ensure safety.
"G-Gyarados?!" Misty cried out in worry, but Gyarados turned to face her.
This isn't my Gyarados.
A dark aura surrounded Gyarados, overpowering the nearby Pokémon.
It began to gather energy, aiming at Misty.
"GYARADOS?! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU?!" Misty called out in fear and panic, but Gyarados wouldn't listen.
And as it finished gathering energy, Gyarados fired a Hyper Beam at Misty.
In that moment, her world turned completely white.
***
"AGH!" Misty woke up, covered in sweat. She touched her body to make sure she was okay and sighed in relief when she realized she was safe.
"Oh! You're awake!"
Misty turned her head to see Officer Jenny and Nurse Joy looking at her.
"W-What happened?" Misty asked, confused.
"Did you have short-term memory loss? Team Rocket attacked your gym."
Team Rocket? Oh, right.
Misty looked around at the scene and, wow, it was a mess.
Everything was nearly destroyed.
"Luckily, no Pokémon were stolen, and no one was hurt."
"Hey, look at this! If I lose a tooth, does that mean I can put it under my pillow, and the tooth fairy will come?!" one random player showed off their broken tooth to everyone.
"Well, not exactly," Officer Jenny scratched her head.
Hearing this, Misty remembered Gyarados.
She looked at the Pokéball holding Gyarados, stayed silent for a moment, then put it away.
"Thank you..."
Misty stood up and saw the other trainers being treated, including Lukas, who was wrapped in bandages and lying flat.
"Surprising, isn't it? All of you are only ten years old, yet you easily handled things we adults couldn't. Maybe I should hand out more rewards," Jenny said to the trainers, making them cheer and breakdance on the spot.
Red silently thanked Jenny again, as he had almost nothing left to give them anymore, which was why he wasn't assigning any new missions.
Red approached Misty, who stood quietly, gazing at the aftermath of the battle caused by Team Rocket. He wasn't sure what to say (can you even speak?).
"Hey! Are you okay?"
Blue, Leaf, and Brock walked up to the two of them, with Leaf asking Misty in a concerned tone.
"Uh... yeah, I'm fine," Misty scratched her head.
"Hey, I don't mean to make it awkward, but you actually look a lot prettier with your hair down," Leaf commented.
"H-Huh?"
Hearing that, Misty touched her hair and realized her hair tie had snapped.
She sighed in disappointment. That hair tie had been with her for a long time, and now it was broken. She felt a bit sad.
Misty was actually quite pretty, but the hair tie unintentionally diminished her looks and made her appear more tomboyish.
Why did she even wear it? Was it just more convenient for swimming?
"As long as you're okay, that's what matters," Brock nodded with a smile.
Blue, however, didn't look at Misty and instead approached Red.
"Your Pikachu has a move I've never seen before," Blue remarked, glancing at Pikachu, who was sleeping in Red's jacket.
"..."
"Pika Papow? Sounds like something a kid would name it."
'...Aren't we all still kids?' Red thought, confused by Blue's comment.
"Whatever. Anyway, both of us have the Cascade Badge now, so I want to challenge you."
"But this isn't the right time, so I'll wait for you at the bridge," Blue said and left.
"Still as edgy as ever," Leaf teased, but Blue ignored her.
Red gazed at the sunset, a quiet smile forming on his face.
Meanwhile...
"UM UMMM UMMM!!" Lukas desperately tried to say something, but the bandages covering his mouth muffled his words, making them unintelligible.
"Don't worry, I'm just checking to make sure everything's fine down there~ Trust me!" A muscular man, dressed as a nurse with heavy makeup, looked down at Lukas with a cheerful smile.
"UMMMMMM!!!" Lukas struggled, trying to get away.
"Come on now, a cute boy like you shouldn't move around so much. Wait a sec, I'll grab some baby oil~♡"
"UMMMMMMMMMM!!!!"
Rey watched Lukas being embraced by the muscular, creepy man, noticing the words printed on the back of his outfit:
Diddy Party
...Goodbye, Lukas.
Tears welled up in Rey's eyes as he clasped his hands together, hoping Lukas would have a better life in the next world.
*****
i just wrote a new song and i hope you like it.
Here are the lyrics:
Papa diddy
Please don't touch me
I'm still 16
Please don't abuse me
1000 baby oil
Please don't use it on me
I'm still a minor
Please be a human, not a monster