24: Chapter 23: Entei!
24: Chapter 23: Entei!
Chapter 23: Entei!
Late at night…
The hospital room was deathly quiet, save for the rhythmic ticking of the medical monitors.
Sean had been moved to the ICU.
Various life-support tubes were hooked up to his body, his face still dark purple, his breathing extremely faint.
Lyra sat on a chair by the bedside, staying up with him, while Quilava, Gengar, and Larvitar curled up in the corner, thoroughly exhausted as they drifted off into a daze.
A chilly night breeze rustled the thin curtains through the wide-open window, casting cold moonlight across Sean’s face and adding an extra layer of bleakness to the room.
Suddenly!
A majestic figure resembling a lion, radiating a divine aura, silently leaped through the window and landed gracefully inside the ward.
Its mane floated like dancing flames, and the temperature in the room gradually began to rise.
Entei’s overwhelming aura—one unique strictly to Legendary Pokémon—instantly startled the sleeping trio in the corner awake!
“Ke-giah!” “Wuuu-ma!” “Larvi!” They dropped into battle stances immediately, glaring guardedly at this uninvited guest.
Woken up by the sudden commotion as well, Lyra rubbed her sleepy eyes, staring in absolute shock at the Pokémon before her—one that was supposed to exist only in Pokédexes and ancient myths!
However, an even more terrifying sight unfolded right before her eyes: Entei actually opened its maw and spat golden flames, burning Sean on his hospital bed!
The trio’s pupils shrunk to pinpricks as they charged frantically at Entei like mad.
A purple glow flared in Entei’s calm eyes as it unleashed Extrasensory.
In an instant, a thin film of purple psychic energy blanketed the bodies of the trio, locking them firmly in place and rendering them unable to budge.
“KE-GIAH!!” The eerie, ancient blue runes across Gengar’s body surfaced once more, the Ghost-type energy within it surging wildly!
“WUUU-MA!!” The fiery flames on Quilava’s back exploded instantly, blazing straight up toward the ward’s ceiling!
Entei’s eyes widened, genuinely shocked by the power of these two forces!
*Hold on, are these two Pokémon even legal?!* *CRACK!* The purple psychic barrier shattered instantly.
Driven by towering rage, Gengar and Quilava rocketed forward!
“Stop!” Lyra spread her arms, stepping directly in front of Gengar and Quilava, explaining frantically: “Entei doesn’t mean any harm!
It’s trying to save Sean!
Look closely!” Quilava and Gengar came to an abrupt halt, following the direction of Lyra’s pointing finger.
Sure enough, those golden flames were not hurting Sean at all.
Even more miraculously, the dark purple toxin coating his skin was actually fading away under the golden fire!
Entei appropriately dialed back its intimidating presence, nodding politely toward Lyra and the two Pokémon.
Quilava and Gengar exchanged a glance, their rage rapidly dissolving into overwhelming surprise and disbelief!
“Larvi-larvi!
(Get me down already!)” Larvitar was still pinned by Extrasensory, crying out for help non-stop, but Entei acted as if it heard nothing, continuing to breathe its sacred fire.
Containing a peculiar power of purification and regeneration, the golden holy fire not only purged the venom, but also nourished Sean’s damaged internal organs and meridians.
His purplish-black skin regained a healthy flush at a speed visible to the naked eye, his faint breathing grew steady and strong, and his heart resumed a normal, steady rhythm.
“Thank goodness!
Oh, thank goodness!” Lyra wept tears of joy.
“Wuuu-ma!” “Ke-giah!” Quilava and Gengar embraced each other in sheer excitement.
Once the treatment concluded, Entei drew back its flames.
It cast a deep, meaningful look at Sean on the bed, then carefully pulled out a single feather from the brown mane wrapped around its neck.
It was a iridescent feather, shimmering with a sacred, rainbow-like brilliance, possessing an indescribable beauty.
Placing the exquisite Rainbow Wing gently on Sean’s chest, Entei lingered no longer, leaping out the window and disappearing into the moonlight.
*THUD!* With Entei’s departure, the Extrasensory binding Larvitar vanished as well, sending it crashing heavily onto the floorboards.
“Larvi!” Larvitar rubbed its rear in a fit of embarrassed rage.
…
…
By noon the following day, the gentle sunlight spilled through the wide-open window, warming the blanket covering Sean.
Sean’s eyelids fluttered.
He sat up in his hospital bed and let out a massive stretch.
“Phew~” He exhaled deeply, feeling fully energized, as if he had just enjoyed the best sleep of his entire life.
Then his gaze sharpened.
Memories of everything that had transpired instantly flooded back—the Team Rocket base, the chimeras…
His pupils shrunk to pinpricks as he frantically surveyed his surroundings, only to see a pristine white hospital ward bathed in bright sunshine and fresh air, accompanied by the steady mechanical ticking of medical monitors.
Sean instinctively felt his body, utterly bewildered…
*Wasn’t I impaled by spider silk?
Is this…
the afterlife?* As confusion swirled in his mind, Sean noticed Lyra slumped against the edge of the bed.
It looked like she had fallen asleep while keeping watch over him, her smooth long hair falling softly across the sheets.
Meanwhile, in the corner of the room, three Pokémon were huddled in a circle, fiercely engaged in a game of landlord with a deck of playing cards they had gotten from who-knows-where.
Gengar: “Ke-giah~ (You little scrub~)” Holding his final four cards, Larvitar dropped some trash talk: “Larvi-larvi-larvi…
(Hmph, you think you can OTK me with seventeen cards?
You really think you can wipe me out?
If you can OTK me, Larvitar, with seventeen cards today, I’ll eat this hospital on the spot!)” However, Gengar played an airplane plus a straight and a bomb, instantly ending the game.
Larvitar froze on the spot, while Quilava was thoroughly shocked.
“Wuuu-ma wuuu-ma!
(I demand an audit!
*in a French accent*)” “Ke-giah!
(Shine my shoes!)” Sean couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
His brain’s wrinkles felt gently smoothed out, as if he were taking a peaceful stroll through a Norwegian forest—it felt so absurdly comfortable…
He slapped himself across the face, trying to snap himself out of it.
“Ouch!
That hurts—wait, so this is reality?!” Noticing the movement on the bed, Quilava snapped its head up, locking eyes with Sean.
“WUUU-MA!!!” The next second, Quilava exploded with terrifying speed, diving headfirst right into Sean’s chest!
“Ugh!” Caught completely off guard, the impact nearly made Sean’s eyes go dark, almost knocking him back into unconsciousness.
But now he was 100% certain: this really was the real world!
“You little rascal!” Sean was both furious and thrilled, rubbing Quilava’s head with wild affection!
“You evolved into a Quilava!
No wonder you pack such a punch!
Were you trying to murder your trainer?!” The commotion on the bed woke Lyra up.
She raised her head and saw Sean and Quilava horsing around.
“Sean!
You’re finally awake!
How do you feel?
Does anything hurt?” Lyra asked frantically.
Rubbing Quilava’s head while taking in Lyra’s panicked expression, Sean’s playful streak kicked in.
He rested a hand against his forehead, squinting his eyes as he asked back in an exceptionally weak, bewildered tone: “Who…
are you…?” Those three short words hit Lyra like a bolt out of the blue!
Shocked out of her mind, countless melodramatic TV drama plots flashed through her head…
After waking up from a severe injury, the main character always suffers from amnesia!
Lyra lowered her head in utter devastation, a trace of tears choking her voice: “I see…
So there really were side effects…” “Pfft, hahaha!
I gotcha!
Stop watching so many soap operas!” Sean couldn’t hold it in any longer.
Lyra: “?” She froze for a second, instantly realizing she had been played for a fool!
All her worry and devastation turned into sheer embarrassment and rage, her cheeks flushing bright red in a flash.
“You idiot!!” Furious, Lyra grabbed the pillow off the bed and threw it at Sean with all her might.