Pokémon: Out of the Woods | A Galar, Unova & Sinnoh Fanfiction

Chapter 40: Control

Jahzeel was startled when the young man spun to face him.

'Just what have you convinced me to do?!'

'Your Majesty, I... I am afraid I have no idea this happened.'

That was true. This wasn't supposed to happen. Jahzeel wasn't a scientist. He genuinely had no idea how their experiments caused this.

'Is this something to do with–?'

'I doubt it has anything to do with Volo.'

'How do I stop this...? The Pokémon are suffering! What were you thinking?! Did you really have no idea this could happen?'

'I swear I did not.'

'There's something you're not telling me! Why are people talking about Team Plasma like we're bad guys? Like we're making those Shadow Pokémon? You – you're lying to me! You're still in league with Tance!'

'Your Majesty, I cannot control the uneducated masses. They believe such things because they have been brainwashed by years of propaganda from disgusting people like Pokémon Professors and Gym Leaders, whose careers revolve around collecting and harming Pokémon!'

Now, that was an outright lie, like most things Jahzeel said to that man.

'As you know, we are in the process of erasing Cipher entirely and taking their resources for Team Plasma...'

That was partly true, or at least Jahzeel thought it was. One day, he would erase every mention of Tance's Cipher from Team Plasma's history. For now, however, keeping a division of Team Plasma named Cipher was convenient. It confused their enemies and the people in Team Plasma that Jahzeel had to lie to in order to achieve his goals.

'But it is not going well...'

'I've allowed my Pokémon friends to be hurt by battling hundreds of those Peons! I've destroyed their factory! Someone is propping them up! And it must be you! You or – or – or my own...'

'It is not either of us. You know this place like the back of your hand. You know we are not creating Shadow Pokémon.'

The door slid open again, but much more calmly this time. Jahzeel scowled at the head peering around the door.

'Be gone, Volo!'

Outside, the Isle of Armor was safe in the hands of the Dojo Master Bea and her students. Most cities were safe. Gym Leaders in the minor division protected citizens while those in the major division fought the rampaging Pokémon. Milo and Yarden rushed out to protect Turffield in Vega's place. The most terrifying place to be was undoubtedly where the most inexperienced lone Trainers were: the Wild Area.

Heather's Raboot had just evolved into Cinderace after battling a Pokémon Breeder. They even managed to win a Max Raid Battle. Now her weak new Pokémon desperately surrounded her to protect her from the thousands of Dynamax Pokémon that threatened to accidentally crush anyone in their paths. Even her strong Pokémon couldn't fight them all. There were too many. Vega's Charizard knocked out a Snorlax before it crushed Bard, but she couldn't even see the other challengers from the air. There were too many huge Pokémon. The dark clouds were as thick as the suffocating fog of the Slumbering Weald.

The last person Vega wanted to request backup from was Khalid. Just the sight of his silhouette made her angry. She went out of her way to ignore him and talk to everyone else, because she had never been jealous in her life, but she had to admit she was jealous of whoever his latest lover was. Then again, she didn't want to go out with him. She couldn't beat him. His face would always make her angry, or at least she thought it would. No-one was supposed to be that beautiful. Even his half-Motostoke, half-Hammerlocke accent made her heart race faster than she wanted it to. She didn't believe in Arceus, but if it existed, where did it get off creating someone who made her feel that way?