From: John Willemin (vze27q9e@mail.verizon.net) Subject: [PW!] Northern Exposure Newsgroups: alt.games.nintendo.pokemon Date: 2001-06-28 15:57:36 PST (OOC: Yeah! It's time-jumping time!) "Aeeerrrooo! Aeeero dactylll!" Grendel the Aerodactyl whined plaintively as he flew over Cerulean City. "What's with Grendel, Kyle?" Jessica wondered. "Eh, he's just hungry," Kyle explained. "We'll find him some bug Pokémon to eat on the way back." As Grendel, with Thanatos the Gengar in his wake, came within range of Bill's Cerulean lighthouse, Kyle and Jessica noticed that Bill seemed to be holding some kind of press conference outside. He spoke at a podium on a stage like a politician, while the select audience of reporters, fellow scientists, and Cerulean elite asked questions and took photographs. Standing next to Bill on the stage was a large cylindrical machine, not unlike a Telepod. As they got closer, Kyle and Jessica could also see a tiny Eevee sitting next to the pod. Eventually they were within earshot, and could hear Bill answering a scientist's question. "Well, as of yet it can only go forward in time," Bill explained. "But I've gotten this far. Mastering the past is only a matter of, well, time." He paused, as if expecting the audience to laugh. "Now, are there any further questions, or shall Edison and I demonstrate - oh my!" He suddenly pointed in Grendel's direction as the massive Aerodactyl came to a landing. "Isn't that Jessica Larufa arriving in the back there? But how can that be, when Jessica Larufa is already sitting right in the front row?" A sly grin crossed Bill's face. Everyone in the audience turned around. Camera-shy Jessica blushed as flashbulbs went off left and right. Five people in the front row stood up to look: first Jessica's mother who Kyle recognized as famed actress Ingrid Sullivan, then a middle-aged man who was no doubt Jessica's father, then Jessica's older brother John, then Vincenzo Larufa, then Vincenzo's wife, a version of Jessica whose elegant dress and extravagant jewelry taunted the real Jessica with visions of what could have been. "Nonsense! My Jessica's much more beautiful," Vincenzo nervously explained, using the stuffy voice he only used in the presence of other elite. The audience, particularly John and the couple standing next to him, was not so easily convinced. Bill whispered something to his Eevee. The Eevee scurried to the edge of the stage, then fired a Swift attack right at the fake Jessica, hitting her from behind. Those in the audience who were not still staring at the real Jessica let out a gasp at this sudden assault on the fake one. The fake Jessica, surprised by the pain of the Eevee's star-shaped projectiles, could no longer focus on holding her shape. She started to melt into a pink mass, revealing her true form: that of Morpha, Enzo's Ditto. The whole audience gasped collectively. The tall raven-haired Ingrid Sullivan fainted. Her husband, a slick-haired man who looked to Kyle like a stocky Clark Gable, caught her as she fell. "What is the meaning of this?!" he demanded of Enzo. "Well, I, uh..." Enzo suddenly pointed menacingly at Morpha as he tried to defend himself. "Why didn't you tell me you were a Pokémon?!" he shouted at the confused Ditto. "Nice try, Enzo," Bill said into the podium microphone. "As I understand it, the real Jessica didn't take to you, so you used a Ditto as a substitute!" "Is that true, Vincenzo?" roared Jessica's father. "It is," came the voice of Jessica as she approached the front row. "I wouldn't marry Enzo for all the T-shirts in China! He's been stalking me relentlessly for the past two years, and what's worse, he tried to kill my fiancé!" There was another gasp. Enzo was speechless. "Yes, fiancé!" She showed her ring to her father and brother. Recognizing his cue, Kyle came walking up. He waved unenthusiastically to everyone. "Ugh!" remarked John. "Jessica, how could you get engaged to this street trash?" "Good to see you again too, John Boy," Kyle snorted. Enzo just stammered out random syllables. In his mind he was debating whether to run away or to unleash all of his Pokémon and go on a murderous rampage for having his plans foiled again. Jessica's father was silent for a great many seconds, trying to grasp all of this. Then he looked sternly at Jessica. "You defied us..." "You tried to marry me off to a total stranger!" Jessica snapped. "We're your parents!" came the reply. "We know what's best for you!" "No, you don't," Jessica shot back, her eyes starting to fill with tears. "You only know what's best for your image..." "I don't much care for your tone, Jessica!" the man responded, fuming. "But if this is how you feel, then who am I to stop you? If you want to marry commoners, go ahead! If you want to throw away fame and luxury and a family that provides for you, be my guest!" Jessica was crying quite a bit now. "I do...and I have." "So be it!" Jessica's father thundered. "From this day forth, I have no daughter!" He scowled at Jessica one last time before turning and growling at the stunned Enzo, "And as for you, I don't want to see you anywhere near my home any more, you bestialist!" He slung Jessica's mother over his shoulder and commanded, "John, we're going home." Without another word, Jessica's parents and siblings walked away. Jessica ran into Kyle's waiting arms. "I don't think I'll be keeping my maiden name," she commented, forcing herself to laugh through her tears. "Everything...you've ruined...everything..." came the strained voice of Enzo. Kyle and Jessica turned their heads to look at him. They had almost forgotten he was there. He seemed to be in a great deal of pain...and Kyle knew what that meant. The fabric of Enzo's suit ripped, revealing a pair of black Scyther wings. The audience became panicked at this and started to run for it. Only a few reporters were brave - or foolish - enough to stick around. The Scyther change was the fastest one Kyle had ever seen. He did not even have time to shout for Grendel and Thanatos before the fully-transformed Enzo lunged and tackled Kyle to the ground. Jessica made an attempt to shove Enzo away from Kyle, but Enzo just smacked her in the face with the back of one scythe, knocking her underneath the stage. "Edison! Take Down!" Bill yelled. The little Eevee dived from the stage and crashed into Enzo with all his might, sending the black Scyther rolling. Enzo flailed about madly as Edison latched on to his thorax and gave him repeated Bites. Eventually Enzo was able to pry Edison loose and fling him into the podium. Then the Scyther stood back up and leapt at Kyle in an attempt to stab the trainer through the neck. Kyle logrolled out of the way. Enzo made another downward stabbing motion, and this time he caught Kyle through the side. Kyle shouted with agony. "After I've killed ya, I'll kill Jess too," Enzo snarled as he raised one blade high. "If I can't have her, no one will!!!" And all of a sudden, Enzo was torn from the ground. A massive set of teeth had clamped on to his raised scythe...Grendel's teeth. Grendel flung Enzo into the air and caught the black Scyther head-first in his mouth. Enzo struggled furiously...at least until Grendel's terrifying jaws crushed his head. Several exoskeleton-crunching bites later, all that remained of Enzo was one insectoid arm hanging out of the front of Grendel's mouth. Grendel slurped up the arm like a strand of spaghetti, swallowed one last time, and sung contentedly. As if in fear that she was going to be next, Morpha the Ditto bounced away like a rubber ball. The remaining reporters retreated too, confident that they had the biggest scoop ever. After Kyle stopped himself from retching, he thanked Grendel for his timely rescue. Bill jumped down from the stage. "I would've preferred to have had him arrested," Bill rather quietly told Kyle. "But this works." Kyle clutched at his bleeding side and forced a smile. Bill offered to help Kyle up, but Kyle refused, in too much pain at the moment to stand. Bill got the dazed Jessica to her feet and then explained to Kyle, "Listen, you should know that the Larufas have some powerful friends. And the reporters are going to report on this. And you're in big trouble once those friends find out." "You sound as if you have a plan," Kyle noted. "As it so happens, I have this time machine here," Bill proudly announced as he pointed to the cylindrical device. "I'll send you two, say, five years into the future. Then I'll confront the media and tell them that you, Kyle, died from your injuries here. When you emerge in the future, everyone will have forgotten about this incident!" "You'll secretly tell my dad and Doctor Xavier Eckert I'm still alive, I hope," Kyle commanded. "I can do that," Bill replied. "Any other loose ends I'd need to tie up?" "Well," said Kyle as he reached for his Pokédex, "a...friend gave me a bunch of Pokémon when he retired from training, and I'm looking to auction them off, as I may be retiring soon as well..." "I'm sure I can find buyers for them," Bill assured him. "Give them to me, and I'll have the money waiting for you in five years." Jessica raised an eyebrow as Kyle called forth a bevy of Pokéballs and rolled them to Bill. "Your eagerness...was this not your plan all along, Bill?" Bill sweatdropped as he piled the Pokéballs on the stage. "Uh..." "So we were to be your guinea pigs again, eh?" Kyle said with an accusing glance. "All right, I admit it," Bill conceded. "I had an ulterior motive in getting you here..." He paused. "But this time I'm very confident my machine will work! I've tested it on Edison dozens of times!" He picked the Eevee up off of the ground. "You tested the Telepods on Pokémon too," Kyle pointed out. "But its effect on humans was very different, wasn't it?" "The time machine has nothing to do with genetics," Bill defended himself. "Absolutely nothing can go wrong this time." He did not look as confident as he sounded. "But if you still don't believe me, I'll...send myself one minute into the future." "Go ahead then," Kyle challenged. Bill got back up on the stage and adjusted a few settings at a console attached to the time machine. "See you in sixty seconds!" he said. Then he swallowed hard, stepped into the cylinder, and closed the door. A blinding flash of light came from the cylinder's single blurred window, and Bill disappeared. One long minute later, there was another flash of light. Kyle heard Bill's voice in the cylinder: "Wow, what a ride! I think I'll - oh!" "What is it?" Jessica wondered. "Well, uh...it seems that non-living material can't make the time-jump!" Bill said sheepishly. "Uh, would you fetch me a towel? There should be one at the top of the stairs in my house..." Jessica ran into the lighthouse and ascended the spiral staircase to Bill's disorganized bedroom, where a towel lay on the floor. She took the towel outside to the time machine. The cylinder's door opened a crack, and with an Arbok-like motion, a hand quickly reached out, snatched the towel, and went back inside. Seconds later Bill emerged shirtless, with the towel wrapped around his waist. "Looks like you'll have to leave all of your Pokéballs with me," he said. "And, uh, your clothes." Kyle finally stood up. "All right, fine," he said grudgingly, hoping Bill would have a very good amount of money waiting for him in the future. He and Jessica stepped up on stage and handed Bill their Pokéball belts. "Take good care of them," Kyle and Jessica said in unison. They waved goodbye to Grendel and Thanatos. Then together they stepped into the time machine and closed the door most of the way, leaving a crack just large enough for them to slide their clothes through. Over the course of three minutes, clothes spilled out of the cylinder. "All done!" Jessica eventually said. Bill started up the time machine. Right before the couple vanished, Bill heard Jessica's muffled voice: "Trust me, that's nothing to be ashamed of, Kyle." (OOC: Okay...that's really the last we'll see of Enzo. Though not necessarily the last Grendel will see of him... ^_^;) -------------------------------------- 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"