From: John Willemin (vze27q9e@mail.verizon.net) Subject: [PW!] Making a Commitment Newsgroups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon Date: 2001-06-11 13:17:34 PST (OOC: That's "commitment" as in "an official consignment, as to a prison or mental hospital." ^_^) "Man, I thought we'd never get out of there!" Kyle remarked, seconds after Grendel the Aerodactyl had taken off from Jeanette Fischer's summer home on a secluded island south of Pallet Town. Jeanette had taken Kerrigan the Nidoqueen's daughter, but not before inviting Kyle and Jessica into her house for tea and lengthy conversation. "She was just being a good host," Jessica scolded him. "If she had really wanted to be a good host, she would have acknowledged that we were in a hurry," Kyle grunted. "But anyway...next stop, Rosetta University." He looked over his shoulder at Thanatos the Gengar, who was flying in Grendel's wake. "What's on the radio today, Thanatos?" Kyle called back. Thanatos responded by producing his ghostly guitar and launching into a rendition of Tantric's "Breakdown." The flight to Rosetta Town from Jeanette's island took about thirty minutes on Grendel's swift wings. Kyle pointed Grendel to a large building that he thought was the Visitors' Center. Grendel circled a few times and touched down in front of this building, which turned out to be a hospital. Kyle asked the nearest college-student-looking person where one would find Doctor Eckert. The student pointed to a two-story house which rested upon a huge plot of open land. Kyle thanked the student. Then he recalled Grendel and made the brief trek to the doctor's home with Jessica and Thanatos. Kyle stood at the entrance in the house's tall surrounding fence and pushed the call button on the intercom. After fifteen seconds or so, a voice responded: "Hello?" "Doctor Eckert?" Kyle tried. "Speaking," the voice said. "Who's this?" "I'm Kyle Richter, sir...you gave me your card at the Pokémon League Games last year." There was a pause. "Ah, yes, I remember. Kyle of the wild Rhydon, eh?" The mechanized fence slowly swung open. "Come in..." Kyle, Jessica, and Thanatos headed along the dirt path to the house. Doctor Eckert's property was essentially a small Pokémon reserve. On one side was a pond where a few grad students were studying numerous Krabby and Kingler that were playfully squirting bubbles at each other. Opposite them, several Pokémon, a few of which Kyle recognized as Sarah Jane's, were training in the tall grasses. Kyle noticed Svengali the Hypno and Sigfreid the Alakazam battling it out. He also noticed a Ponyta trotting merrily out of the large barn adjacent to the doctor's house. As they approached the house, Kyle and company saw the doctor, a bald man possibly in his late sixties, open the front door. "I'm glad you took me up on my offer after all," the doctor said as soon as Kyle was within earshot. "Well, I figure, if I made it all the way to the fifth round of the Games last year with uncontrollable Pokémon..." Doctor Eckert raised an eyebrow as Kyle stopped in front of the doorway. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves, Kyle. Your Pokémon were unlike any I've ever seen in my career...and that's saying something. Rehabilitation might take months...or years." He paused. "And in any event, this is not an obedience school. At best, we can offer counsel and care. It's the job of the trainer to discipline his Pokémon...to gain their respect." He beckoned Kyle and company into his house. He sat them down in a beat-up old couch in his living room before taking a seat in an equally beat-up armchair opposite them. "So," said he. "What have you brought?" Kyle took his Pokédex off of his belt and called up a few Pokéballs from cyber-storage. "A retiring Rocket turned over his Pokémon to me recently," Kyle explained. "I can't speak for most of them, but this Hitmonlee, Pain Dance..." He held up Pain Dance's Pokéball. "He has a definite attitude problem." He tossed the spheroid to the doctor. "Kind of a superiority complex, I think." "Yes, well, fighting-type Pokémon tend to be a proud sort," Doctor Eckert commented. "But I'll see what I can do." Kyle held up his next Pokéball. "And here's Leviathan, my Dragonite. I raised him from an egg, I rescued him from drowning...but he's totally ungrateful. He's an arrogant one...he thinks he's above taking orders. He's even made threats against my life before. Really I think he's all talk, but I'd like to get him checked out anyway." "I remember him from the Games," the doctor said as he caught Leviathan's Pokéball. He then pointed up at Thanatos. "How about your Gengar there? My granddaughter said something about that Gengar..." "He's been taken care of," Jessica piped up. "He has a guitar he loves to play...problem was, he'd take it into battle with him. I've since broken him of that habit." "Good, good," Doctor Eckert said with a wide smile. Suddenly there came the bony clatter of a Kingler from down the hall. The giant crustacean scurried sideways into the living room and settled down next to the doctor's chair. Amazed that this creature would be running around inside the house, Kyle got up to take a closer look. The Kingler, his eyes showing a faint glimmer of recognition, looked right back at him. The crab's mouth started to foam with anger. Kyle immediately sat back down. "It would seem that Nipper remembers you," the doctor said as he looked sternly at Kyle. "That reminds me: what of your Rhydon?" "Also taken care of," Jessica explained. "I've taught him of a little thing called strategy..." She decided to go no further, realizing that the doctor probably would not have approved of her taming methods. "Excellent," said the doctor. "I imagine that was no easy task; Rhydon are not known for their intelligence. What's your name, miss? You may want to look into enrolling, or perhaps even getting an internship here." Jessica gulped. "My name's Jessica...Richter. Kyle's wife. And, uh...I'll definitely consider it." Kyle shot Jessica an incredulous glance. Jessica just smiled weakly. She did not particularly want to be recognized, considering what her doppelganger was doing in Cerulean. "Wonderful," the doctor commented, deep down wondering if perhaps these two were a bit young for married life. "There's been a bit of a teacher shortage of late...we could always use new recruits." He looked at Kyle again. "So, have you brought any other Pokémon for me? You mentioned a Charizard before..." "Espio? Well, he's manic-depressive, and I think he has multiple personalities..." Kyle said. "But he's very obedient." "Still, those disorders are treatable. Even if he is loyal, you may want to leave him here." "He's currently hospitalized with a punctured lung," Kyle responded. "What happened?" "Some intruders broke into our house, and he got into a vicious fight with their Scyther. But I could bring him by after he's fully healed..." "I could take care of that. Where's your Charizard staying?" "He's in the Pokémon Center on Seafoam." "I'll call Joy there. She can easily transfer your Charizard here." The doctor shifted in his seat. "There's one more Pokémon Sarah Jane told me about. A Nidoking, was it?" Kyle sweatdropped. "Oh...yes." He gave Daggoth's Pokéball to the doctor. "This is Daggoth. You might know him better as the host body for that Vorge monster a few years back..." Doctor Eckert said nothing. He just stared at the Pokéball in disbelief. "We're not exactly sure what's wrong with Daggoth," Kyle said sheepishly. "I'd say: a whole lot," Jessica remarked. "We'll find out," the doctor assured them, somewhat uncertainly. "I hope you have good orderlies," Kyle cautioned. "The best," said the doctor. Kyle stood up once again. "Well, those should be enough of a handful for you, I think. We'd best be going...we have a scandal to bust up in Cerulean." Doctor Eckert blinked. "...Best of luck to you there. My phone number is on my card; I hope you'll keep in touch..." "Of course. Talk to you later, then." "Goodbye." Doctor Eckert saw Kyle, Jessica, and Thanatos to the door, and minutes later, Grendel the Aerodactyl was flying the two humans to their next destination. The doctor just sat back down in his armchair with the three Pokéballs he had been given and wondered what he was in for. (OOC: Any fixes needed, TL?) -------------------------------------- K * A * R * N * I * V * A * X Vaarok, mecha artist, on one of my drawings: "I don't particularly like that style of anime, but the chick is great. The dragon, on the other hand, looks unthreatening, alien, and stupid. There's no snout, no impression of anything other than starving apathy. The dragon has no menace." Me: "Sounds like my dragons and your mecha have a lot in common... =P"