Liber Esse

[(PSN)turtletheblack]

This is a Fan Fic I wrote for one of my favourite game series of all time. Let me know what you think and enjoy!

 

Liber Esse

 

It’s been 75 years since the war. The world’s most powerful countries had been building up tensions for years, and eventually they all just snapped. Bombs went flying high into the sky and left a malicious cloud in the sky once they hit. After the ash had settled, there wasn’t much left of the world. Only so many people survived the initial blasts and many others fell to radiation poisoning. Few people anticipated the impending nuclear holocaust, but my family knew what was coming, and we were prepared. Once the alarms went off, my family grabbed some clothes and headed out to the shelter in the backyard. For 7 years, we survived off of canned goods, and water. Once my father gave the “Ok”, we emerged from the bunker into our new lives. The first thing I had noticed was the bright light in the sky. I had spent my entire life in the bunker. My mother was pregnant with me when the bombs dropped. I had only heard stories about the sun from my family but upon seeing it for the first time, I was filled with a sense of fear and wonder. Then my father spoke.

“Oh God” he said.

 His arm was outstretched, he was pointing at something. It was a small creature. It had four, stubby, green legs. It walked around inspecting various plants and occasionally yawning. My mother’s hands flew to cover her mouth and my father quickly ushered us back inside. He told us it was not safe for us to go back out yet. I was filled with a great sadness. I had finally gotten to see the world that I had only heard stories about and it was all taken from me in the blink of an eye. I was only seven then, but I knew in my heart what I had to do.

                That same night, I waited until my family was sound asleep. I crept up to the bunker door and pushed it open as slowly and as quietly as I could. Then I stepped out onto the grass and looked up at the starry night sky. The creature was nowhere to be seen but I could feel a pair of eyes watching me. Waiting for me to make a move. I silently closed the door to the bunker and took a few more steps out into the tall grass. That’s when I saw it. Flying overhead was the most beautiful bird I had ever seen. Or rather, the only bird I had ever seen. It was a bright blue and it seemed to sparkle as it flapped its wings. I began to shiver as I watched it fly above my head. The temperature seemed to have dropped dramatically. But I didn’t care, I continued to watch the majestic being until it flew out of sight. Taking in my fill for the night, I decided to head back into the bunker and go back to sleep.

                I continued to sneak out of the bunker every night for the next several weeks until one night. I was sitting in the grass watching the sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of the bird again when I heard the bunker door open.

“Giovanni!” my mother whispered.

“Giovanni, where are you! It’s not safe out here!

I crouched down in the grass, confident that she would not see me. She seemed genuinely concerned, but I decided to remain hidden. I was fascinated by these magnificent creatures. If only my parents could see the wonders they held. My mother took a few steps out into the yard still searching for me. I crouched down even lower. Then, a dim light began emanating in the distance. My mother turned her head towards the light and began calling my name once more. She began to walk towards the light, thinking it was me. As she drew closer and closer to the glow, I trailed behind her, staying out of sight. Then she gasped. A small, pink…..thing, floated out from around the corner. It was radiating light like a bulb or the moon. It smiled as it danced around my mother who stood there horrified. Then it outstretched its hand, inches from my mother’s pale face. I covered my mouth, watching and waiting to see what my mother would do. Slowly, she lifted up her arm and touched the thing. The creature smiled and made a faint sound, then it floated off into the night.

“Finally” I thought.

“I might be able to convince them to go let me go outside after all.”

I turned around the corner and hugged my mother tightly.

“Giovanni!” she whispered.

“You had me worried sick. Don’t you ever sneak out like that again, these creatures are dangerous.”

“But mother” I argued

“You know that’s not true. I saw what you did, that thing was totally harmless.

My mother looked at me and sighed. Then she took my hand and we walked back to the bunker.

“We’ll talk to your father in the morning” she said.

She was true to her word. The next morning, my mother talked to my father. Their argument seemed to go on for hours. Finally, my father agreed that we could leave the bunker and start a new life on the surface.

                Over the next few years, I grew up around these creatures. More people were starting to make themselves known and before long, the world seemed to return to a sense of normalcy. But things took a drastic turn in my household. Ever since that night, my mother had become obsessed with the creature. She and a few other humans who we bumped into on the road decided to study the new animals. She told me that they were mutations of the animals that once roamed this earth. I was fascinated at all of the knowledge my mother was bestowing upon me, but my father remained apprehensive of the creatures. He hated and feared them. He rarely left the house. My mother and father began talking less and less, and eventually she just left him all together and I went with her. But my misfortune did not end there. My mother became so caught up in her work that she neglected to feed me. She was obsessed with tracking down that creature from that night so she could research it. She called it “Mew” because of how much it reminded her of a cat. Day after day all I would hear is

“Mew, Mew, Mew”

I had begun to lose it. I was 16 years old when I left home. I was fed up with my mother’s obsession and wanted to live a life on my own. Technology had progressed so rapidly in the last few years and I hadn’t even noticed it. Everywhere I went I saw new faces, new things, I was finally free to explore just like I had always dreamed of. That’s when I found the best friend I would ever have. It was a small cat-like creature with a gold coin lodged into its forehead. It was walking with a limp and was surrounded by a pack of wild animals with long red and gold fur that seemed to exude fire. I tossed a rock near the dogs and their attention suddenly turned to me. A cacophony of angry snarls was let out by each canine and I trembled in fear. As if it knew I was in danger, the cat limped to my side and began purring at the dogs. They crept closer by the second and I feared that it might be the end for my new companion and myself. Suddenly, the cat attacked one of the dogs, biting and clawing and slashing at the dogs. One of the dogs bit at its legs and it let out a shrill screech. I pushed the dog off and realized that we were surrounded. Suddenly, the coin on the cat’s forehead began to glow and a flurry of coins began to spew out and strike the dogs. They canine’s ran off in pain and the cat and I knew that this would be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

“Persian, that’ll be your name” I said.

As time went on, Persian and I became inseparable and because I had no means to feed myself I had turned to a life of crime. Persian and I stole to keep us warm at night and to keep our bellies full. I was about 25 when I heard that people were finally accepting these creatures as partners instead of just keeping their distance. Humans had even constructed a way to capture and tame these “Pocket Monsters or Pokémon” as they called them. But there was no way I was confining Persian to a cramped little sphere like that. Persian remained free, just like me, and that was our dynamic. It was our mantra. I didn’t create Team Rocket to hurt people, to take them away from their Pokémon. I started Team Rocket to keep bad people away from Pokémon. People who were undeserving of their gifts. But somewhere along the line I got caught up in a pursuit of greed. I became power hungry and lustful in search for the ultimate Pokémon. He’s slipped from my grasp so many times, now I am but a withered old man. But even now, as I lay here in bed with Persian still by my side, I know he is still watching me, just as he was that night so many years ago.