HUMAN POKEMON 9

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

"Regrettably, Master Ryder, we were infiltrated and our body-swapping machines were destroyed. The plan has come to a complete standstill until the machines can be repaired," Lily explained.

"No! There's no time left! We don't need to make more Human Pokémon! We just need to brainwash the Human Pokémon that are against us!"

"Very well, Master Ryder. I'll prepare a team to—"

"No! I can't allow your teams to set us back any further with their failures."

"Master Ryder, does this mean—"

"Yes. To get this done right, I'm going to have to get involved with this myself."

(At Professor Oak's Lab)

Ash had started to get drowsy after a strange and eventful day. After returning from training in the Sevii Islands for a year with his good buddy Pikachu, he got caught in the middle of a crazy plan. His friend Iris told him a scientist from the old days of Team Rocket had started switching humans with Pokémon. His ultimate goal was to use these "Human Pokémon" to win back Team Rocket from its current executives.

Several of Ash's friends, including Iris, Misty, May, Dawn and his mother, had fallen victim to this plan and now possessed the bodies of Pokémon while their human bodies were inhabited by Pokémon who served the scientist who started it all.

Desperate to at least get a few moments of sleep, Ash closed his eyes and huddled in a corner of the lab. He heard a large commotion outside, but wanted to squeeze in a few more minutes of sleep.

As he turned over to his side to drown out the noise, Ash's eyes fell upon an object on Professor Oak's desk. Letting curiosity get the better of him, he got up and examined it further.

It was a picture of Professor Oak, surrounded by several Pokémon and one little boy. Professor Oak looked to be younger, since his wrinkles hadn't become as pronounced as they were now. The boy was what caught Ash's attention. He had glasses, a small scar below his right ear and messy brown hair, and he was carrying a Ditto on his left shoulder.

Ash put the picture back when he heard the door to the room he was in open. He saw Bayleef, now a Human Pokémon, walk into the room and walk up to him. "Ash, Pikachu and Zoey have come back with more victims," Bayleef told him.

"Thanks for letting me know, Bayleef," Ash said as he went past Bayleef and went to the lobby. Bayleef stood in place a while, thinking, "I know he was Ash's first Pokémon, but still, why does Pikachu get to be around him all the time? When can I go on year-long training trips with him?" Bottling up her emotions, Bayleef went to join Ash.

Ash stood stunned at what he saw. First, he noticed 10 more Pokémon, most likely the latest victims of Ryder's scheme. The second was one of the Pokémon, Haunter, acting shy and scared around everyone. The last thing that took him by surprise was the appearance of three new Human Pokémon. One of them was tied up and flung over the shoulder of the other.

Wanting answers, Ash walked over to the group and asked, "Hey, what's going on? Pikachu, what happened?"

"It's a long story, I'm afraid," Pikachu said, startling Ash with the fact that he was now a Human Pokémon.

"Pikachu…you're one of them now? How did—"

"WE'RE BACK!!"

Everyone looked over and saw Dawn, Piplup and Dawn's mother in a Piplup costume burst through the door of the lab. Dawn's mother had struck a heroic pose, leading Ash to assume that it was really Piplup in her body.

Sure enough, Dawn turned and said, "Piplup, I told you to stop grandstanding."

Piplup hung his (Johanna's) head again and said, "Sorry, force of habit."

Ash turned his attention to Pikachu, now with Elesa's body, and asked, "Buddy, what happened?"

"I'm sorry, Ash," Pikachu said, "I just wasn't as careful as I should have been. This swap was one big accident, I swear."

"Hey, I'm not blaming you for anything. And don't worry, we'll find a way to reverse this whole thing, not just for you, but for everyone here."

Unnoticed by Pikachu and Ash, Bayleef held herself and even shed a tear. "I…I know I shouldn't have this body, but…Ash, I…"

"Hey, aren't you goin' to say anythin' about me?"

Ash looked to the bespectacled woman in the purple suit and gloves walking up to them. "Jeesh, I go out of my way to help you out and you repay me by ignoring me? That's some gratitude you've got, ya yellow rat."

Pikachu stomped over and said, "Trust me, if it weren't for our past history, I'd be a little more enthusiastic about you helping us."

Ash asked, "What's wrong? Who's our new friend?"

"This is no friend. Just an ally, at best. This is Haunter, the same one who possessed Beauty and tried to sabotage us."

"WHAT? What are you doing here? And why are you a Human Pokémon?"

"The fact that I'm a Human Pokémon is the reason I'm helping you. I agreed to help Ryder with his plan, but only under the condition that I not become one of these…things!"

"If you didn't like the idea of Human Pokémon to begin with, why help Ryder?" Iris asked.

"Because I like a little chaos here and there. This just gave me an excuse to mess with you humans. Of course, now that I'm like this, I want to set things right."

"So you're only playing sides, joining whatever side suits your desires best?"

"Hey, it's not ideal, but it's a good enough life for me. Besides, as a sign of goodwill, I gave your Professor friend blueprints to the swapping machines Ryder used and I got you a hostage."

Haunter threw the woman she was carrying over her shoulder on the ground, surprising everyone with her appearance

Bound and gagged on the floor was Iris's body wearing an Emolga suit. She had a defiant look in her eyes, one Ash had never seen her body make before.

Haunter said. "Guys, meet your hostage, Emmy. She's super loyal to Ryder, but she's just a pushover. A little Hypnosis and she's easy to subdue."

Ash knelt down and removed the gag from Emmy's mouth, asking, "Why would you help Ryder with this insane plan?"

Emmy spat in Ash's face and said, "You can stop trying to get me to soften up. Ryder's my Pokémon Master, and what he says goes. That's the way it is, right?"

"No, it's not. Pokémon and humans are supposed to coexist with each other, but one can't be a slave to the other."

"That's not what I've seen," Emmy said as she looked hatefully at the people around her. "Only Ryder's treated me with the respect and recognition I deserve. Other trainers abandon their Pokémon or go about tearing apart Pokémon families just so they can add another 'trophy' to their collection; just like you did with my family."

Iris walked over to Emmy and said, "Is that why you're so against humans? Because your family was captured by humans?"

"That's right. Up until then, we were all living peacefully in the forest. However, one day, a whole bunch of trainers started training in our home. My mother was the first to get captured and enslaved to them, and I was determined to keep my younger siblings from sharing the same fate. But I was too weak to do anything. Before I even knew it, I was all alone."

Iris paused a moment before saying, "I'm sorry about your family, really."

"Save it!" Emmy snapped. "You don't care about anything than inflating your own egos."

"Well, aren't you being hypocritical of yourself?" Cynthia asked. "You claim to hate humans, and yet you're helping a human in his own plans."

"That's only because Ryder's not like you. You need Pokémon as a testament to your own power. Ryder connects with us; understands our pain. We help him because he helped us."

"Emmy," Beauty said as she walked over to the front, "Ryder's not the man you think he is. Whatever he said to you to get you to join him, it was a lie. He cares only for his own goal: the taking-over of Team Rocket."

Emmy sat still for a moment before saying, "What? N…No, you're lying! Master Ryder's not like that. He wouldn't let himself be with those monsters!"

"I didn't want to believe it either," Beauty admitted, "but it's the truth. All Ryder cares about is securing a seat of power within a new Team Rocket once again run by Giovanni. Nothing else matters to him."

Before Emmy could protest more, a crash sounded from the front of the lab. Everyone turned around to see two Human Pokémon standing over the broken glass of the lab door. Ash recognized the bodies of Flannery and Skyla, but they were just Human Pokémon now. Flannery's body was outfitted with a Rapidash-style performance suit while Skyla was wearing a performance suit with a Swanna motif.

Emmy got excited and said, "Rory, Sylvia, am I glad you're here! Help me out of here so we can—"

"Just shut up, Emmy," Flannery's body retorted. "We're here to deliver a message, not free anyone."

"What?" Emmy said, slightly shocked by the response. "Rory, I—"

"I said, SHUT UP!" Rory yelled, causing the mane and tail of her outfit to flare up. After a few seconds, though, she cooled down and said, "Sylvia, just show them the message so we can get out of here. If we stay too long, Master Ryder might consider us traitors as well."

Sylvia took a few steps forward and set up a holographic projector in the middle of the space. As soon as the device was activated, everyone saw the man responsible for the current crisis. Unlike how he originally appeared, he was dressed in a turquoise dress suit, complete with silver gloves and shoes. He wore black sunglasses with a red tint and silver framing over his eyes, while his brown hair was kept combed over, giving him the appearance of a well-dressed gentleman.

"Good evening, everyone. My name is Ryder, and this message is for you who have betrayed me and ruined my plan to take over Team Rocket for Boss Giovanni. This includes the Bayleef, Myranda, Beauty, Patty, Haunter and Emmy, who have defected to the losing side."

Emmy stared at the hologram, tears falling from her eyes, desperately saying, "No…no…you're wrong! I didn't defect! I was kidnapped and brought here against my will. Please, listen to me!"

"It's pointless, traitor," Sylvia coldly said. "This message is one way only. He can't hear you."

Meanwhile, Mimey stood next to Delia, looking at the man's hologram in anger. "I'm not your Myranda; I'm Lady Delia's Mimey!" he thought.

The hologram continued. "You may think that you have a chance to stand against me, but you couldn't be any further from reality. The truth of the matter is that all you've done was incur my wrath, and my revenge will arrive quickly. Tomorrow at dawn, my army of Human Pokémon and I will attack your lab and put you into submission. Then we will reprogram the traitorous Human Pokémon to be my loyal soldiers once again."

Patty hugged Beauty tightly and cried, prompting Beauty to hold her close and comfort her. Emmy continued to stare at the hologram in shock. "He…he actually believes I'm a traitor. I thought I was more to him. He…he's no better than those monsters who tore my family apart."

"Remember, you have until dawn to prepare. I hope you're capable of at least putting up a little fight." Ryder's hologram turned and started walking away, indicating he was done talking. Ash, however, picked up on a small, almost unnoticeable detail.

"His right ear…there's a scar under it!"

After Sylvia and Rory struck down the hologram projector and fled the premises, Ash ran to Professor Oak's office, grabbed the picture and showed it to Professor Oak. "Professor, who is this kid?"

Professor Oak took a while, but eventually smiled and said, "That's Flynn, one of my best students. He would've been my best if Professor Elm hadn't been my student at the same time. They were always quarreling about different theories about Pokémon, which usually Elm won."

"Professor, I think Flynn's now become Ryder! I saw this same scar below Ryder's ear."

"Impossible! Flynn wouldn't belittle himself to working with such horrible people as Team Rocket. He was all about peaceful communion with Pokémon, always trying to understand them as if they were human."

"Nonetheless, Professor, I know what I saw. However, if Flynn's being used, then there's something going on behind the scenes."

Haunter interrupted by saying, "Come to think of it, Ryder's never let anyone in his actual room before. We've only seen him either in his office or one of the labs overseeing the production of Human Pokémon. I bet that's where his darkest secrets are."

"Weren't you just paying attention to what that message said?" Iris interrupted. "There's a war coming! We have no time to be investigating whoever this Ryder or Flynn guy is!"

"Maybe we can take advantage of the war, though," Ash said. "While everyone's distracted with it, we can sneak in Ryder's room and figure out what he's hiding. I'll need some help to pull this off, though. So, who wants to help?"