Chapter 45
“I have returned.” Andy jumped. “I have gathered information on the room we’re looking for.”
“Okay, great. What information do you have?”
“I have good news and bad news for you. The good news is that there is a quick and easy way for you to learn a new move that does not require training.”
“Oh dear, usually when people start with the good news it’s going to be ruined by the bad news.”
“The bad news is that you’ll have to get a neuro-reconstructive surgery to learn it.”
“...You must be joking. Please tell me you’re joking.”
“I am afraid not. However, it will be an automated experience, and thankfully it looks as though you will be put to sleep and will be administered painkillers before the operation begins.”
“...Well, that’s something. Do I have any other choice?”
“I suppose I could teach you a move, but the timing is unpredictable, and that is something we simply cannot afford at this time.”
“You’re right. I hate to say this, but...well, if a surgery is how it’s going to get done, then I must swallow my fear and take that risk.”
“Excellent. Now then, I could not sense any of the creatures near where we’re traveling. I would suggest taking a body anyway, as it’ll help mask your scent while we move and while you’re getting an operation. Especially since I would imagine you would become more...smelly while it is taking place.”
Andy’s heart began to beat loudly. He had never had surgery of any kind before, and he didn’t want something as invasive as that to happen to him when he was in unfamiliar territory. Especially since this was a Pokextinction ship. He tried to ignore it as he picked up a Pokextinction member. He loaded it on his back and then proceeded down the hallway.
“I will join you shortly. Would you mind waiting at the stairs?”
Andy did as he was told and waited for the Abra to join him. Soon he heard a slight creaking sound down the hall, and around the corner turned a tricycle pedaled by rain boots on each pedal, as though it were being operated by an invisible child wearing only footwear. On its seat was a backpack.
“Woah, that’s..really cool.”
“You aren’t frightened?”
“No, in fact, I saw the same thing in a Cirque du Soleil act once upon a time. If I didn’t know any better I’d say you watched it. And, what’s that backpack for? Where did you get that stuff?”
“There was a daycare for children on this floor. Since I would imagine there are no longer any children that would require this, I thought you would appreciate a more physical companion to accompany you. As for the backpack, its contents held powder, diapers and snacks. I dumped out the first two items but kept the snack for you.”
“So I’m following a tricycle while having a diaper bag. Nice, I appreciate it.”
“Was that sarcasm?”
“No. Was it? I don’t know,” Andy took the backpack and put it on before resuming his position with the Pokextinction member, “Let’s continue onward.”
They continued navigating the ship. Whenever they got to a set of stairs, tricycle would lift itself up, gently glide downards, and then settle down on the floor and continue onwards. They went down multiple floors and eventually stopped at a particular floor. The hallway had other centers available, but what they were looking for was at the end of the hallway. It was a closed double door that Andy was able to open easily.
Inside there was a split room. On one side of the room were sinks, medical cabinets, and computers, and on the other, a large table that had a hole for tails to go through. Above the table was a large, metallic machine that looked almost like a spider was attached to the ceiling, with each “arm” having separate tools. Hooks, drills, scissors, Andy had to stop looking at it to avoid freaking himself out. On the sides of the bench were a machine hooked up to a canister, most likely the gas that would put patients to sleep, as well as some dishes on the side to collect foreign objects. There was also tracks on the floor, and a hospital bed on the side of the room that was attached to the tracks.
“Drop the body at the door and come this way.” Andy did as he was told and followed the tricycle to the computer. “Input your species here. It should configure the machine to your anatomy.” Andy typed on the keys, spelling LUCARIO into the input box. He hit enter, and a loading screen popped up. In the other room mechanics began whirring and shifting. The arms went into the ceiling, and came back down with resized equipment. The table also folded to the average size of a Lucario.
Back on the display, a list appeared. After a few moments of looking, it was clear that this was the move list for a Lucario.
“Now you just need to make a selection. Look through the list carefully, I doubt I will live long enough to go trial and error with this machine.”
Andy looked over the machine. Moves of all types were listed there. If Blaze Kick was included in the list, that meant that it could even teach moves that could only be learned by breeding in the games.
“Okay, so I know I still have access to Blaze Kick, Shadow Claw and Dragon Pulse. Aura Sphere is out of the question. I need something offensive to use. Let me see here...now that I’m a Pokemon, what moves had I always wanted to learn? Well, I was content with my moves, so I didn’t really think much of this.”
“That’s okay, just go with what you feel is the right move to learn. If you learn something Psychic type, I can better assist you in getting better at it, though the choice is up to you.”
“Psychic type, eh? Well, I do think it’s pretty cool. Can I even learn a Psychic type move?”
He activated the filter for Psychic type moves. A brand new list appeared.
Let me see here, Agility, Calm Mind, Zen Headbutt, Psychic, Rest, Heal Pulse, Rest...Well, I can always re-learn moves the easy way if we ever get back to our world, and I’m pretty sure there are tutors in the village I can consult if I need to change what moves I know. Still, I shouldn’t pick a throwaway move.
“I think I’ve decided. I’ll go for Psychic.”
“Excellent choice. It’s a powerful move, and can be used for convenience as I am using now.”
He selected the move, and another loading screen popped up. The tools began readjusting themselves, and an outline of a Lucario appeared on the table.
Andy took some deep breaths as he psyched himself up for the operation. His heart was racing, but this was something that needed to be done.
“It shouldn’t take long, right?”
“No, it should not take long. There will be some recovery time, and you’ll need time to sober up from the gas, but after all of that you’ll be fit and ready to go.”
Andy gulped. “O-okay.” He put the backpack on the ground and opened the door into the operating room. He laid himself down onto the table, filling in the outline.
“I will take care of the console over here.” Restraints appeared and went around Andy’s body. His heart began racing at this. He couldn’t move very well. “Just relax. Deep breaths. In, out. In, out.”
A swab appeared and rubbed fluid on the other side of Andy’s elbow. Andy donated blood before, and he knew what was going to happen next. He winced and looked away as he felt a pinch go into his arm. He looked back to see a syringe pulling out from his bloodstream. A band-aid appeared and applied itself onto the wound.
“Okay, that’s step one down.”
“That was the painkiller. Hold tight.”
He saw the mask, which had adjusted to fit his face, appear over his head and slowly descended. The mask came down firmly on Andy’s face, and he could smell a funny scent being pumped into his nostrils. He took a deep inhale. It smelled pleasant, but not identifiable. He exhaled, and then took another deep breath in.
Breathe in...breathe out…
Andy’s eyelids began drooping down as he heard the machinery powering up once more. By the next inhale, he was fast asleep.
***
The next thing he knew, he was awake in a separate bed in a different section of the medical area, in an almost hospital like area. A monitor was attached to him, and it showed a steady pulse, along with other readings Andy did not understand. He looked around the room. It was empty, except for him and the tricycle.
“Oh good, you’re awake. Well, you seem sobered up now. You definitely weren’t when you were awake before.”
“...What did I say?”
“Well, you cried somewhat, and then you were talking about some Lopunny you danced with in the past, and then you gave me a name.”
“I did?”
“Yeah. You called me Thunderchild, and said it’s a reference from something called War of the Worlds or something.”
“Huh. That’s actually really cool.”
“Can you explain to me what it means?”
“Well, in War of the Worlds, it’s about aliens from Mars invading Earth, a planet I’m from. Thunderchild is the name of the ship that comes out and actually puts up a fight against the aliens. There’s even a really cool song about it and everything.”
“That sounds amazing.”
“It’s fitting, since you’ve really saved my life. I think I’ll keep it.”
“First a blanket, and now a name. You’re really generous for having just met today.”
“The blanket was intentional, the name was just because I was high. But you can keep both.”
“Now, on to the topic at hand. Look around the room. See that can over there?” Andy sat up and looked around the room. He saw a tin can on the other side of the room.
“Yes, I see it.”
“Good. Focus on it. Really think about it. Now, try to focus on it. Command it to move.”
Andy looked hard at the can. He focused intently on it.
Alright...move!
Instead of moving, a loud crunch was heard and the can had collapsed, and fell to the floor.
“...Well,” Thunderchild said, “I suppose it moved somewhat. This could be a side effect of the surgery.”
“I thought you said that I would be able to learn it no problem.”
“I did, but I suppose that not even I could foresee this happening. Do you feel anything after having used that?”
“I feel a bit fatigued, but that could be from waking up.”
“I apologize, perhaps it was not a good idea to have you use a move that you just learned from an unnatural process. Right now, you should rest and recover.”
“But do I have time to rest? I don’t want to get eaten in my sleep, and I don’t know how long you will be alive for.”
“...You’re right. You should rest somewhere else. Not here, and not now. Can you stand up?”
Andy threw away the covers and got on his feet. He felt a little wobbly, and had to hold on to something to brace for support.
“I see,” said the Abra, “Perhaps this was a mistake after all.”
“Don’t be upset. It would not do to assume that anyone besides us were still alive. And besides, I’m fully confident that this may just be a temporary thing. After all, why would any of the Pokextinction members use that machine if it were going to leave the patient worse for wear? They have the benefit of time, and we do not.”
“That is true. However, I do not think it wise to charge out of the room at this point. Get back into bed. I will keep you company by reading some interesting notes on the science behind the surgery you went through and why it functions the way it does.”
“...Well, the worst of it is probably behind me, so let’s hear it.”
After a pause the tricycle came into the room, with the backpack on its seat. The backpack unzipped, and a binder floated out of the backpack and into Andy’s lap.
“You may read along if you wish.”
Andy opened the binder and began reading the highlighted part.
“Mew is debated to be the ancestor of all Pokemon. This is reinforced by the fact that it can learn just about every move. Therefore it would be logical to assume that the same potential can be reached with the limited moveset of a standard Pokemon by use of neuro-reconstructive surgery. If a Pokemon has the ability in their DNA to learn the move, it can be brought out of dormancy by rewiring the parts of the brain. As humans, when we learn something new, we form new neurotransmitter links in our brain, and when they are forgotten those links are destroyed. The same goes for Pokemon and for learning moves. My theory is that the moves a Pokemon learn is encoded in their DNA and is simply lying dormant, and can be brought out by rearranging the neurotransmitter links in the brain.
“Now, there are plenty of questions that are unanswered for this theory. For example, why are Pokemon limited to only four moves? My theory is that it’s because there is a section of the Pokemon brain that has it’s exclusive purpose of communicating the moves that can be used to the Pokemon body. So, each move is just a combination of existing neurotransmitters that link and de-link when a moves is learned and forgotten respectively. We are still learning about the brain to this day. Maybe one day we will breach the limitations of the four move limit. However, it seems like the only way for that to happen is by divine intervention, if that should ever happen, and even then it would be highly unlikely. Not even Arceus is able to learn more than four moves, so for now it seems unlikely.”
“I have returned.” Andy jumped. “I have gathered information on the room we’re looking for.”
“Okay, great. What information do you have?”
“I have good news and bad news for you. The good news is that there is a quick and easy way for you to learn a new move that does not require training.”
“Oh dear, usually when people start with the good news it’s going to be ruined by the bad news.”
“The bad news is that you’ll have to get a neuro-reconstructive surgery to learn it.”
“...You must be joking. Please tell me you’re joking.”
“I am afraid not. However, it will be an automated experience, and thankfully it looks as though you will be put to sleep and will be administered painkillers before the operation begins.”
“...Well, that’s something. Do I have any other choice?”
“I suppose I could teach you a move, but the timing is unpredictable, and that is something we simply cannot afford at this time.”
“You’re right. I hate to say this, but...well, if a surgery is how it’s going to get done, then I must swallow my fear and take that risk.”
“Excellent. Now then, I could not sense any of the creatures near where we’re traveling. I would suggest taking a body anyway, as it’ll help mask your scent while we move and while you’re getting an operation. Especially since I would imagine you would become more...smelly while it is taking place.”
Andy’s heart began to beat loudly. He had never had surgery of any kind before, and he didn’t want something as invasive as that to happen to him when he was in unfamiliar territory. Especially since this was a Pokextinction ship. He tried to ignore it as he picked up a Pokextinction member. He loaded it on his back and then proceeded down the hallway.
“I will join you shortly. Would you mind waiting at the stairs?”
Andy did as he was told and waited for the Abra to join him. Soon he heard a slight creaking sound down the hall, and around the corner turned a tricycle pedaled by rain boots on each pedal, as though it were being operated by an invisible child wearing only footwear. On its seat was a backpack.
“Woah, that’s..really cool.”
“You aren’t frightened?”
“No, in fact, I saw the same thing in a Cirque du Soleil act once upon a time. If I didn’t know any better I’d say you watched it. And, what’s that backpack for? Where did you get that stuff?”
“There was a daycare for children on this floor. Since I would imagine there are no longer any children that would require this, I thought you would appreciate a more physical companion to accompany you. As for the backpack, its contents held powder, diapers and snacks. I dumped out the first two items but kept the snack for you.”
“So I’m following a tricycle while having a diaper bag. Nice, I appreciate it.”
“Was that sarcasm?”
“No. Was it? I don’t know,” Andy took the backpack and put it on before resuming his position with the Pokextinction member, “Let’s continue onward.”
They continued navigating the ship. Whenever they got to a set of stairs, tricycle would lift itself up, gently glide downards, and then settle down on the floor and continue onwards. They went down multiple floors and eventually stopped at a particular floor. The hallway had other centers available, but what they were looking for was at the end of the hallway. It was a closed double door that Andy was able to open easily.
Inside there was a split room. On one side of the room were sinks, medical cabinets, and computers, and on the other, a large table that had a hole for tails to go through. Above the table was a large, metallic machine that looked almost like a spider was attached to the ceiling, with each “arm” having separate tools. Hooks, drills, scissors, Andy had to stop looking at it to avoid freaking himself out. On the sides of the bench were a machine hooked up to a canister, most likely the gas that would put patients to sleep, as well as some dishes on the side to collect foreign objects. There was also tracks on the floor, and a hospital bed on the side of the room that was attached to the tracks.
“Drop the body at the door and come this way.” Andy did as he was told and followed the tricycle to the computer. “Input your species here. It should configure the machine to your anatomy.” Andy typed on the keys, spelling LUCARIO into the input box. He hit enter, and a loading screen popped up. In the other room mechanics began whirring and shifting. The arms went into the ceiling, and came back down with resized equipment. The table also folded to the average size of a Lucario.
Back on the display, a list appeared. After a few moments of looking, it was clear that this was the move list for a Lucario.
“Now you just need to make a selection. Look through the list carefully, I doubt I will live long enough to go trial and error with this machine.”
Andy looked over the machine. Moves of all types were listed there. If Blaze Kick was included in the list, that meant that it could even teach moves that could only be learned by breeding in the games.
“Okay, so I know I still have access to Blaze Kick, Shadow Claw and Dragon Pulse. Aura Sphere is out of the question. I need something offensive to use. Let me see here...now that I’m a Pokemon, what moves had I always wanted to learn? Well, I was content with my moves, so I didn’t really think much of this.”
“That’s okay, just go with what you feel is the right move to learn. If you learn something Psychic type, I can better assist you in getting better at it, though the choice is up to you.”
“Psychic type, eh? Well, I do think it’s pretty cool. Can I even learn a Psychic type move?”
He activated the filter for Psychic type moves. A brand new list appeared.
Let me see here, Agility, Calm Mind, Zen Headbutt, Psychic, Rest, Heal Pulse, Rest...Well, I can always re-learn moves the easy way if we ever get back to our world, and I’m pretty sure there are tutors in the village I can consult if I need to change what moves I know. Still, I shouldn’t pick a throwaway move.
“I think I’ve decided. I’ll go for Psychic.”
“Excellent choice. It’s a powerful move, and can be used for convenience as I am using now.”
He selected the move, and another loading screen popped up. The tools began readjusting themselves, and an outline of a Lucario appeared on the table.
Andy took some deep breaths as he psyched himself up for the operation. His heart was racing, but this was something that needed to be done.
“It shouldn’t take long, right?”
“No, it should not take long. There will be some recovery time, and you’ll need time to sober up from the gas, but after all of that you’ll be fit and ready to go.”
Andy gulped. “O-okay.” He put the backpack on the ground and opened the door into the operating room. He laid himself down onto the table, filling in the outline.
“I will take care of the console over here.” Restraints appeared and went around Andy’s body. His heart began racing at this. He couldn’t move very well. “Just relax. Deep breaths. In, out. In, out.”
A swab appeared and rubbed fluid on the other side of Andy’s elbow. Andy donated blood before, and he knew what was going to happen next. He winced and looked away as he felt a pinch go into his arm. He looked back to see a syringe pulling out from his bloodstream. A band-aid appeared and applied itself onto the wound.
“Okay, that’s step one down.”
“That was the painkiller. Hold tight.”
He saw the mask, which had adjusted to fit his face, appear over his head and slowly descended. The mask came down firmly on Andy’s face, and he could smell a funny scent being pumped into his nostrils. He took a deep inhale. It smelled pleasant, but not identifiable. He exhaled, and then took another deep breath in.
Breathe in...breathe out…
Andy’s eyelids began drooping down as he heard the machinery powering up once more. By the next inhale, he was fast asleep.
***
The next thing he knew, he was awake in a separate bed in a different section of the medical area, in an almost hospital like area. A monitor was attached to him, and it showed a steady pulse, along with other readings Andy did not understand. He looked around the room. It was empty, except for him and the tricycle.
“Oh good, you’re awake. Well, you seem sobered up now. You definitely weren’t when you were awake before.”
“...What did I say?”
“Well, you cried somewhat, and then you were talking about some Lopunny you danced with in the past, and then you gave me a name.”
“I did?”
“Yeah. You called me Thunderchild, and said it’s a reference from something called War of the Worlds or something.”
“Huh. That’s actually really cool.”
“Can you explain to me what it means?”
“Well, in War of the Worlds, it’s about aliens from Mars invading Earth, a planet I’m from. Thunderchild is the name of the ship that comes out and actually puts up a fight against the aliens. There’s even a really cool song about it and everything.”
“That sounds amazing.”
“It’s fitting, since you’ve really saved my life. I think I’ll keep it.”
“First a blanket, and now a name. You’re really generous for having just met today.”
“The blanket was intentional, the name was just because I was high. But you can keep both.”
“Now, on to the topic at hand. Look around the room. See that can over there?” Andy sat up and looked around the room. He saw a tin can on the other side of the room.
“Yes, I see it.”
“Good. Focus on it. Really think about it. Now, try to focus on it. Command it to move.”
Andy looked hard at the can. He focused intently on it.
Alright...move!
Instead of moving, a loud crunch was heard and the can had collapsed, and fell to the floor.
“...Well,” Thunderchild said, “I suppose it moved somewhat. This could be a side effect of the surgery.”
“I thought you said that I would be able to learn it no problem.”
“I did, but I suppose that not even I could foresee this happening. Do you feel anything after having used that?”
“I feel a bit fatigued, but that could be from waking up.”
“I apologize, perhaps it was not a good idea to have you use a move that you just learned from an unnatural process. Right now, you should rest and recover.”
“But do I have time to rest? I don’t want to get eaten in my sleep, and I don’t know how long you will be alive for.”
“...You’re right. You should rest somewhere else. Not here, and not now. Can you stand up?”
Andy threw away the covers and got on his feet. He felt a little wobbly, and had to hold on to something to brace for support.
“I see,” said the Abra, “Perhaps this was a mistake after all.”
“Don’t be upset. It would not do to assume that anyone besides us were still alive. And besides, I’m fully confident that this may just be a temporary thing. After all, why would any of the Pokextinction members use that machine if it were going to leave the patient worse for wear? They have the benefit of time, and we do not.”
“That is true. However, I do not think it wise to charge out of the room at this point. Get back into bed. I will keep you company by reading some interesting notes on the science behind the surgery you went through and why it functions the way it does.”
“...Well, the worst of it is probably behind me, so let’s hear it.”
After a pause the tricycle came into the room, with the backpack on its seat. The backpack unzipped, and a binder floated out of the backpack and into Andy’s lap.
“You may read along if you wish.”
Andy opened the binder and began reading the highlighted part.
“Mew is debated to be the ancestor of all Pokemon. This is reinforced by the fact that it can learn just about every move. Therefore it would be logical to assume that the same potential can be reached with the limited moveset of a standard Pokemon by use of neuro-reconstructive surgery. If a Pokemon has the ability in their DNA to learn the move, it can be brought out of dormancy by rewiring the parts of the brain. As humans, when we learn something new, we form new neurotransmitter links in our brain, and when they are forgotten those links are destroyed. The same goes for Pokemon and for learning moves. My theory is that the moves a Pokemon learn is encoded in their DNA and is simply lying dormant, and can be brought out by rearranging the neurotransmitter links in the brain.
“Now, there are plenty of questions that are unanswered for this theory. For example, why are Pokemon limited to only four moves? My theory is that it’s because there is a section of the Pokemon brain that has it’s exclusive purpose of communicating the moves that can be used to the Pokemon body. So, each move is just a combination of existing neurotransmitters that link and de-link when a moves is learned and forgotten respectively. We are still learning about the brain to this day. Maybe one day we will breach the limitations of the four move limit. However, it seems like the only way for that to happen is by divine intervention, if that should ever happen, and even then it would be highly unlikely. Not even Arceus is able to learn more than four moves, so for now it seems unlikely.”
