Chapter 18
Jon woke to Loxy spraying him with a revive. He sat up, finding himself in bed, in what might have been a department store. There were no people and so it might have been after hours, only there was daylight coming in from the window. Loxy hugged him.
“How do you feel?” Loxy asked.
“Confused,” Jon admitted.
“So, normal?” Loxy asked.
“Yeah, pretty much,” Jon said. “How are you?”
“I’m alive,” Loxy said.
“Oh, there’s a song there,” Jon agreed.
“Oh!” Loxy said, smiling. “I suddenly know that reference.” She sorted her thoughts. Her smile grew. “OMG! It’s almost like every movie you ever watched, every song you listened to or sang, is suddenly unlocked itself in my head.” She suddenly seemed sad. “Oh!” She hugged him.
“OMG, I didn’t know. I am so sorry.” Kissing him.
“Please, don’t open that door,” Jon said.
“Jon, I know everything about you. How is this possible?” Loxy asked. “It’s almost as if I grew up alongside you.”
“I hope your life was more enjoyable than that,” Jon said.
“It’s really weird sorting these memories,” Loxy said, musing further. “It’s almost like I was a ghost in your world, but now, suddenly, we’re in the same place at the same time on the same page. Oh, Gordon Lightfoot! ‘If you could read my mind, love, what a tale my thoughts could tale…’ Every time you sang along to that, it was as if you were singing it to me. How could I have forgotten it?”
“Maybe you didn’t forget, but it feels like you forgot, and it’s something that was given you when we did that mind meld with Faye,” Jon offered. “But, I really don’t want to sort my past right now. Maybe we should focus on determining where we are.”
“Done,” Loxy said. She handed him a map of Macy’s Department store, down town Manhattan, NY. The brochure broke down all 11 floors with what they had to offer, and the specials of the day.
“Oh,” Jon said. “Well, this is a game changer!”
“How so?” Loxy asked.
“Well, we’re probably thousands of miles from Upton,” Jon said.
“Roughly 300 kilometers,” Siri corrected.
“Oh, that’s a breeze of a walk,” Loxy said. “I mean, we should consider it miracle that we even arrived as close as 34th Street.”
“Judging by the level of CO2 in the air, I suspect the existence of vehicles fueled by petro,” Siri said. “If you are able to secure transportation, we could considerably shorten the time to our destination.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t drive, so, it might as well be a thousand miles,” Jon said.
“I think distance is the least of our worries,” Loxy said.
Jon sought an explanation for her remark, and she responded to his questioning look by taking his hand and leading him to the nearby window. They looked down on an unlikely scene of a deserted city landscape. A newspaper blew along the street.
“Wow,” Jon said. “Where is everyone? Are we too late? Everyone was eaten by Pokémon?!”
“I detect the presence of people in the area,” Siri said. “Loxy’s Dexter program also confirms the presence of people.”
“They’re invisible,” Loxy said.
“People are invisible?” Jon asked. “I want to be invisible!”
“But then I couldn’t see you!” Loxy protested.
“Well, I wouldn’t want to be invisible all the time,” Jon said. “But, sometimes, invisibly sneaking up on you might be fun.”
“Umm, that does sound like fun,” Loxy said. “It is likely that you and I are both invisible to the people here, just as they are to us,” Loxy said.
“Well, that’s less fun,” Jon said. “And dangerous. We might run into someone holding scissors.”
“Oh, I think we’re more than just invisible,” Loxy said.
“I don’t understand,” Jon said.
“Apparently, we only made it halfway. We’re here, on the planet, but in a pocket dimension,” Loxy said. “We could pass right through people and neither we nor they would be aware of the event. Like ghosts.”
“Ghosts! Are you sure? Maybe the teleporting process changed the frequency that our atoms resonate and so we’ve been sped up or slowed down so much so that people only seem invisible compared to our frame of reference, like that episode of original Star Trek,” Jon offered.
“I suppose that’s possible, too,” Loxy said. “But I think I should see the episode before I commit to the analogy.”
“Or maybe, we just arrived in my future when all department stores are closed due to online sales,” Jon said.
“Oh, how sad,” Loxy said.
“Change is change,” Jon said. “I don’t miss rotary phones. Then again, the world was much slower then. Before, mom’s might say just wait till your dad gets home, which was a really mean thing to say since I didn’t have a dad and waiting would have been forever, but now it’s more like, ‘don’t make me text your dad.’”
“You have all of that in your head?” Loxy asked.
“All the time, and it’s very confusing, and I wonder if I did wait for my dad, what would he be like,” Jon said.
“Does anyone really know anyone?” Loxy asked. “I mean you could have actually known him but not known him.”
“Oh, that’s very profound,” Jon said.
“Why, thank you. If it’s any consolation, I didn’t know either of my parents,” Loxy said.
“You didn’t know them or you knew them without knowing them?” Jon asked.
“Both,” Loxy said. “It’s almost like I just one day woke up to a world already in progress. Maybe that’s why the character Rey is so appealing to me. It’s like I can relate to her story.”
“Oh,” Jon said. “That’s kind of sad. I so hope you’re not another Skywalker.”
“You’d turn me down if I was?” Loxy asked.
“No, it’s just, they tend be a bunch whiny bitches and I really don’t want to have a whiny bitch kid that ends up stabbing me in the back or taking me out with a lightsaber. I had enough family drama in the past, and I am not looking for more.”
“That makes sense, but I don’t think we can avoid drama. The only thing that matters is that I have you, and you have me,” Loxy said. “And, together, we have our Pokémon.”
“Which reminds me, where’s Nissa and Faye?” Jon asked.
“I don’t know. I woke up next to you in that bed, so they must have delivered us, but that’s the thing,” Loxy said. “They could be right next to us and we not even know it. Like ghosts.”
“You seem stuck on this ghost analogy,” Jon said.
Loxy looked around, scooting closer to Jon, tightening her grip. “It’s just as this place is creeping on me a bit. I feel like we’re being watched.”
“Like on television?” Jon asked. “We might be on a security camera somewhere.”
“No, both of those options would be okay with me,” Loxy said. “Even being on someone’s handheld gaming system would be okay with me.” She looked seriously around and then whispered. “I think there might be ghost present.”
Jon laughed. Loxy looked at him puzzled, then angry.
“There could be!” Loxy said.
“I don’t believe in ghosts,” Jon said.
“OMG,” Loxy protested, scooting away from him.
“I am sorry, I just don’t,” Jon said. “We are not ghosts, our Pokémon are not ghost, and the people here, if there are people, are not ghosts.”
“First off, I said like ghost, not that they were ghost or that we are ghosts, but OMG, how can you say you don’t believe in ghosts!”
“It’s just something moms tell their kids to scare them into compliance,” Jon said.
“And saying you don’t believe is just something kids rationalize to try avoid compliance,” Loxy said.
“That is a really interesting point that I hadn’t considered,” Jon said.
“And you have Pokémon ghost experiences, which means, you should believe in ghosts,” Loxy said.
“Pokémon ghosts aren’t really ghost, they’re just Pokémon that have ghost type classifications and abilities,” Jon said.
“No, they’re actually ghosts,” Loxy said. “Humans die and become Pokémon ghosts all the time.”
“Listen to your own words, Loxy. You didn’t say they just become ghosts, they become Pokémon ghosts, which means, there are no ghosts per say, but sure, Pokémon ghosts, I will grant you,” Jon said. “And maybe people don’t really die, they just become Pokémon, and that sounds much better than ghosts.”
“I can’t even talk to you right now,” Loxy said, getting up and walking away.
Jon had to scoot and bounce to get off the bed, having been centered on it, and then he followed. “Really?”
“Yeah, give me a moment, while I cool off,” Loxy said.
“I never seen you so mad,” Jon said.
“I said give me a moment!” Loxy said.
“Okay, but we are in strange, new world and we should stick together,” Jon said.
Loxy positioned him four steps behind him, returned to her spot, pointing warningly, then proceeded to walk. He followed her down the lift. On the next floor, she walked across a keyboard that made music. She paused. Walked backwards. She walked forwards. She stepped off. She stepped on. She ran across the board. She ran back, sliding on the board. She slid to a stop, arms out, looking at Jon.
“What is this?!” Loxy asked, excited.
“It’s not a ghost,” Jon said.
“OMG, I was just getting over that, you really want to carry that further?” Loxy said.
“Sorry,” Jon said.
“Play with me!” Loxy said.
“Tom Hanks already did it,” Jon said.
“Did what?” Loxy asked.
“What you’re asking me to do,” Jon said.
“So, you’re telling me, just because Tom Hanks already did it, you’re not going to play with me?” Loxy asked.
“Um…”
“You do movie quotes all the time and you’re not willing to duplicate a scene of playing a floor keyboard with me because someone else already did it?” Loxy said.
“Well, to be honest, I am still kind of feeling sore about you being sore, and I’m not feeling the music in me,” Jon said.
“You need to work on leveling up your resilience. Meanwhile, what would you rather do?
Continue for you and me to sulk around the store not talking, play the keyboard with me, or find a pottery wheel and make some pots?” Loxy said.
“Oh, nice jab,” Jon said.
“How is that a jab? I am serious, music or pot making,” Loxy said.
“You’re seriously not making fun of me right now?” Jon asked.
“Jon, I am sorry if I was unnecessarily rude to you while I was angry, but I would seriously never make fun of you,” Loxy said.
“You make fun of me all the time!” Jon said.
“When I have ever made fun of you?” Loxy asked.
“How about every time I try and tell a joke,” Jon said.
“Oh, dear, that’s not making fun of you,” Loxy assured him, the softest, kindest voice she could muster. “I’m just trying to help you not embarrass yourself in public.”
“Will you try to laugh at my jokes?” Jon asked.
“I am seriously reconsidering my statement about never making fun of you,” Loxy said.
“Music it is, then,” Jon said.
A little music making is good for the soul, even if it’s just heart and souls. They pushed on each other, tried stepping past each other without causing each other to fall as they switched places, and eventually fell over each other, in a tumble, kissing, as keys lit up under Loxy’s hands as she hovered over him. They both paused, as if they both were experiencing that ‘creeping’ feeling simultaneously, looked about to see if they could see something, then Jon, due to his position saw it first and Loxy had to turn her head and look up before seeing the Haunter staring down at them. It licked its lips and said “Haunter.”
“Was that in the Tom Hanks scene?” Loxy asked.
“Nope!” Jon said.
“Run!” Loxy said, getting up and pulling Jon with her.
Haunter chased. Jon pulled Loxy right, down an escalator, and into the center of a circular clothes rack.
“This is cozy, warm. Almost like a womb,” Loxy whispered, holding Jon tight. “But are you sure we’re safe here?”
“I use to hide here all the time,” Jon admitted. “Just outside of mom’s grasp, and a nice view of all the lady’s feet and legs.”
“That explains so much,” Loxy said.
The clothes rack rose straight up, clothes falling off, leaving Jon and Loxy exposed as Haunter gazed down at them. “Haunter!” it said, throwing the clothes and the rack altogether. Jon and Loxy screamed and ran together. Haunter took a moment to laugh, a good old belly laugh, before proceeding to chase its only victim. As Haunter comes around the corner, he paused, trying to locate his prey. It passed a full size, fake RV Bus, and mannequins dressed like Scooby Doo characters. Haunter turned left, then right. It stared at Fred, seriously disturbed by the mannequin and knocked it off the stand. It threw Shaggy and roared “Haunter.” It turned to look back the way it came and Jon jumped out of the van scaring it. Meanwhile, the mannequin dressed as “Daphne” turned out to be Loxy dressed as ‘Daphne.’ She struck Haunter from the side with a Poké ball. The ball captured the Haunter, fell to the floor, and shook. And then finally gave up the ghost, or ‘pinged’ in with the ghost, depending on your metaphor.
“I got him!” Loxy said, coming down from the display. “How did you know that would work?”
“I saw it in a movie once,” Jon said.
“Humans hiding from ghost masquerading as mannequins?” Loxy asked.
“No, an extraterrestrial hiding from a human in a tumble of stuffed animals,” Jon said.
“That’s pretty clever,” Loxy said.
“How did you change into Daphne so fast?” Jon asked.
“I am really quick dresser,” Loxy said.
“No, really, how did you do that?” Jon asked.
“Magic,” Loxy said, still not wanting to give up her secret. “Why are you looking at me like that? You want me to change back? It’ll just take a moment.”
“No, no, just thinking, you look kind of hot dressed as Daphne,” Jon said.
Loxy turned to show off her outfit, spinning rising her dress to show off legs in purple hose. “It is, isn’t it?”
“There’s a van here, want to play, Scooby Scooby doo!?”
“How do we play?” Loxy asked.
“You offer me a Scooby snack and…”
“Wait wait wait. You want to play because you have thing for Daphne?” Loxy asked.
Jon scratched his ear, not sure what the correct answer was. He went with honesty: “Well, I’ve always been partial to Daphne,” Jon said. “Then again, there are times when I am more inclined to give Thelma a whirl. And, sometimes, I am thinking both together…”
“OMG, Jon! They’re cartoons,” Loxy said.
“Yeah, cartoons, live action, anime, manga, definitely manga,” Jon said. “All the same. So, what do you say?”
“Shouldn’t we like be trying to save the earth?” Loxy asked.
“If we don’t have time to play, then maybe we should play, because, well, is there any better way to end this?” Jon asked.
“Okay, so we’re on the same page,” Loxy agreed, looking into the van. “Does it have to be the van?”
“You don’t like the van?” Jon asked.
“I don’t like this van,” Loxy said. “I’m not sure it’s at all structurally sound. It seems a bit flimsy and hastily assembled. It might not stand up to some rocking.”
“Which means, we could really rock this van till it comes apart, which would be a memory,” Jon said.
“True. But then, we do also have a whole department store of possible memories at our disposal,” Loxy said.
“We do,” Jon said, contemplatively. “We may have to have multiple play sessions.”
“Oh, this could be really fun day,” Loxy said. “And we do seem to have the world all to ourselves…”
“Ever rode the mechanical horse in the store?’ Jon asked.
“No! Do they have one here?” Loxy asked.
“It would be a real shame if they didn’t,” Jon said.
“Why are we even still talking?” Loxy asked.
“I don’t know,” Jon said. “May I have permission to tackle you now?”
“Only if it’s into a large pile of clothes to tumble through,” Loxy said.
“Oh, I think I could provide you one,” Jon said.
Loxy offered her hand. A montage began under the guiding of music; “I think we’re alone now,” a Tiffany version, began to play.
“Jon? Loxy, can you hear me?”
Jon came partially out of a pile of coats, looking around. Loxy emerged next.
“Did you hear that?” Jon asked.
“Hear what?” Loxy asked.
A nearby, life size, R2D2 near a Lego display, began projecting a small, holographic projection of Reese. Jon had to look twice to confirm and he looked at Loxy who was pulling up a coat so only her shoulder were exposed, also, now seeing it.
“It’s a real R2?” Jon asked.
“Don’t be silly! It’s coming from the BB unit,” Loxy said.
“No, I’m coming from Jon’s Pokédex,” Reese said.
Jon got up, walked over towards the image, and leaned down to get a better idea where it was coming from. Loxy stood as well, joining Jon near the miniature Reese hologram.
“You’re calling us all the way from home?” Loxy asked.
“No, we’re in orbit, with Willow and Team Rocket,” Reese said. “Whatever you do, don’t deploy the portal closing tech.”
“Okay,” Jon said.
“And you might want to get dressed,” Reese said.
“You can see us?” Loxy asked.
“All of you. We’ve just been waiting for an opportune time to interrupt,” Reese said.
“Ummm,” Jon said. “How long have you been watching?”
“Long enough to wonder if either of you were going to get around to saving the world,” Willow said, stepping up into the screen. Reese faded and his hologram became prominent. “Not that I am mad. It’s just some people just really aren’t agent material.”
“Really?” Jon asked. “James Bond does this all the time.”
“You’re not James Bond,” Willow said.
“Oh, I don’t know,” Loxy said, giving Jon that look.
“And, you do make a great Daphne, and Thelma, and Rey…”
“Oh, I loved dressing up as Rey and using the Force on you!” Loxy said. “I can’t wait till we have time to binge watch Star Wars together.”
“Yeah, speaking of time, we need you to help catch some Pokémon,” Willow said.
“There’s no way we can catch them all!” Loxy said. “The agency didn’t give us enough Master Balls.”
“I don’t need you to catch them all,” Willow said. “Just a few, particularly troublesome Pokémon. We have detected several in your area that pose an immediate threat to you and the world at large.”
“We still need more supplies,” Loxy said.
“I am working on that part,” Willow said. “Meanwhile, I need you both dressed and out on the streets. You’re the only agents in field, and you’re being deployed.”
“Yeah, but we’re not even in the real world with everyone else,” Jon said.
“You’re exactly where you need to be. You’re in a pocket dimension, somewhere between the actual physical plane and the etheric,” Willow said.
“But it looks exactly like the earth, only without people, how can it be another dimension of time and space but look almost exactly the same minus people?” Jon asked.
“Jon, think of it like this,” Willow said. Jon and Loxy both decided to dress while the explanation was provided. Jon’s Poke belt was on top of his clothes, and when he picked up to put it aside, he accidentally triggered the full release, and the balls rolled off the belt, and as he scrambled to keep them all together and put them back on the belt, he released Loxy’s but mostly, he was doing a Jim Carey of put in the camera, only minus clothes. “Imagine you are a single photon within a beam of pure white light. The entire rainbow is contained in that beam of white light, but red frequency photons will never touch the violet frequency photons, even though they occupy the exact same space. It’s the same Earth, it’s technically the same spatial time and dimension, only you’re accessing it through a very narrow frequency that doesn’t allow for you to interact with most other beings. You will find plants and ghost dominate this particular region. Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending of your view point, all of the Pokémon that were unloaded into your world are occupying the same pocket universe you presently reside in. It is up to you to contain this outbreak of Pokémon, or they will eventually spill over into the other dimensions of this world, where they will wreak havoc upon your society.”
Loxy emerged from the pile of clothes, dressed as Rey, showing off. In the background, Reese said, “Sweet. Any adult hello Kitty’s down there?’ Jon secured Loy’s Pokémon belt around her waist, and admired how the belt actually seemed to go with the outfit. The Rey mannequin had been stripped of clothing, but because Jon had kept staring at it, Loxy had given her a coat. Loxy found herself looking at the mannequin again, thought she needed something, so Loxy gave the Indiana Jones’ hat they had borrowed from another display to her.
“I was thinking of keeping that,” Jon said, whispered.
“It’s not you,” Loxy said, side hugging him.
“Are you both listening? This is important!” Willow interrupted.
“We can’t find Nissa and Faye,” Jon said, slipping his bracelet on. The holographic image orientated away from Jon, flipping around and over to optimum view angle for the tech wearer.
“According to your telemetry feed, they have retired to their designated Poké balls to rest,” Willow said. “They are mentally and physically exhausted from their journey. I don’t recommend using them in battle until Nurse Joy can attend to them.”
“Oh, I should have considered that,” Loxy said. “Those poor girls.”
“I told you they weren’t ghost,” Jon said.
“I said like ghost, not actual ghosts,” Loxy said.
“I need you to proceed to street level,” Willow said.
“I am just saying,” Jon said.
“No, you’re not saying anything,” Loxy said, slinging her Rey pack that held her clothes and a few shopping items she had accepted in trade for saving the world in advance. Finally, she took up the Rey staff, and planted boldly in front of her to make a statement. “I am saying. And you still haven’t apologized.”
“Apologized?” Jon asked.
“Please, proceed to the street level,” Willow repeated his instructions.
“You saw a ghost,” Loxy said.
“No, I saw a Haunter,” Jon said.
“Haunter is a ghost!” Loxy said. “You ran from a ghost!”
“No,” Jon said. “I ran from a Pokémon, a ghost ‘type’ Pokémon, not an actual ghost.”
“You so ran from a ghost!” Loxy said.
“No, you ran from a Pokémon and I ran because you said run,” Jon said.
“OMG, you and I are so going to tussle,” Loxy said.
“Could you both please proceed to street level while you discuss this,” Willow said.
“And I would so enjoy another good tussle, Miss Loxy Daphne Rey,” Jon said. Loxy nearly laughed, she caught it at just a mild smirk.
“Wait wait wait,” Jon said.
Loxy gave him a warning finger.
“You were so about to laugh,” Jon said.
“No, I wasn’t,” Loxy said.
“I need you both on the street, please,” Willow said, patiently.
“Wait wait wait. Should we clean this up before we go?” Jon asked.
“Someone in the other dimensional frame work will likely take care of it,” Willow said.
“They’re probably blaming it on ghosts,” Jon said.
“There are ghosts!” Loxy said.
“And I suppose that’s ectoplasm that we left as evidence?” Jon asked.
“If you like,” Loxy asked. “Someone up there help me out. Ghost or no ghosts?”
“Hi Loxy,” came a voice. “This is Gisselle. I am your designated handler. And I am on your side.”
“See, Gisselle believes in ghost,” Loxy said.
“No, that’s not what she said,” Jon corrected. “She said she’s on your side. I am on your side, too, just saying no to ghosts.”
“Gisselle, say there are ghosts,” Loxy said.
“There are ghosts,” Gisselle said.
“Gisselle, are you saying that because she asked you to say that, or because you believe in ghost?” Jon asked.
“I am really uncomfortable being drawn into your argument,” Gisselle said.
“We’re not arguing,” Loxy said.
“Yes, we are,” Jon said.
“I do not argue,” Loxy said.
“So your argument is that this debate doesn’t count as an argument, but using the dictionary definition of an argument, our discussion, heated though it may be, fully falls under the common vernacular domain of an argument, as well as the more precise, academic dialectical protocol that we are engaging in; the very definition of argument.”
“All I want is an apology,” Loxy said.
“I have already given you two,” Jon said. She seemed confused. He explained: “I consider myself an apologist, proselyting the correct use of the word argument, as well as enthusiastically apologizing for their not being ghosts. Shall I iterate? Notice, I did not say reiterate, because that’s not a word. If I retell you something, I have iterated my point, but reiteration would be me retelling my retelling which is beyond redundant and useless and a terribly lazy way of speaking.”
“I do have a Doctorate, Jon, and I find you are being particularly, and unnecessarily, obtuse,” Loxy said.
“Well, I was never very good in geometry,” Jon said. “Probably why I got kicked out of the Masons.”
“Not funny,” Loxy said.
“Professor?” Jon asked.
“I agree, it really wasn’t funny,” Willow said.
“No, weigh in on the ghost,” Jon said.
“Do ghost weigh anything?” Loxy asked.
“Exactly my point! Haunter weighs like what, 0.1 kilograms, which means, he has substance, which means, he is not a ghost,” Jon said. “By definition.”
“Jon, I have a three doctorates, one in physics, one in biology, and one in Pokémon,” Willow said. “And I believe in ghosts.”
“See! If the good professor believe in ghost…” Loxy said.
“Then he’s not a good professor, by academic, materialistic definition!” Jon said.
“OMG, why can’t you admit to loosing this argument?” Loxy asked.
“So you agree this is an argument?” Jon asked.
“You may be arguing, but I am not arguing…”
“A contradiction isn’t an argument! Look, kid,” Jon said.
“You didn’t just call me kid,” Loxy snapped.
“It’s how the line starts,” Jon explained. Somewhere on the ship people were dropping heads into their hands or looking uncomfortable.
“Oh, you’re quoting Trek again?” Loxy asked.
“Not Trek, Wars,” Jon said.
“Oh, well, I really do like Rey, so, please continue,” Loxy said.
“Kid, I've flown from one side of this galaxy to the other. (Which is sort of true for me now, btw.) I've seen a lot of strange stuff, (beyond true, btw,) but I've never seen anything to make me believe there's one all-powerful force controlling everything. There's no mystical energy field that controls my destiny,” Jon said. “Oh, and one small addendum, hashtag, no ghosts.”
“There are forces controlling us all the time!” Loxy said. “You just heard Gisselle say she’s my handler.”
“I don’t have a handler,” Jon said.
“Yeah, you do, sweetie, that would be me,” Reese said.
“Haha,” Loxy said.
“OMG, are you even qualified to be a handler?” Jon asked.
“You didn’t question my qualifications when I leveled you up the other day!” Reese pointed out. “Speaking of which, we really need to talk.”
“Can all of this wait?” Willow asked.
“Do you need some privacy?” Loxy asked.
“Oh, no, you might as well hear it, too,” Reese said.
“I don’t know. Your tone sounded like it’s seriously personal,” Loxy said.
“Yeah, it was, but the only thing faster than light is gossip on a spaceship: translation, I’m afraid that Meow is alre