Chapter 204: The Debt Paid In Full
Nurse Joy's sharp gaze didn't waver. "What do you really want, Xiu?"
Xiu met her stare directly, dropping any pretense. "The Viridian City Bug-Type Gym,"
"And the life of its current leader, Keita."
Head Nurse Joy's eyes narrowed slightly. The demand was bold, bordering on audacity. "Why?" she asked, her voice still dangerously smooth. This went far beyond assisting Professor Oak or stabilizing the city. "What's your connection to that place?"
Instead of answering directly, Xiu produced the unique, aged Poké Ball belonging to the Beedrill, placing it deliberately on the desk between the evidence and the sack of cash.
Head Nurse Joy's gaze flickered to the Poké Ball, recognition dawning in her eyes. Having managed the Viridian City Pokémon Center for years, she was undoubtedly familiar with the distinct symbols and equipment associated with local organizations. The implications of Xiu possessing this particular Poké Ball were immediate and startling.
"Who are you?" she asked, the question no longer just probing, but demanding.
Xiu allowed a faint, cold smile to touch his lips. "I," he declared, his voice steady and resonant with newfound authority, "have come to claim what is due."
Leaving Nurse Joy's office, the weight of his declaration still settling in the air, Xiu found Sachiko waiting for him outside. She guided him through the corridors, her professional demeanor back in place, though Xiu detected a subtle undercurrent of curiosity in her occasional glances. The sudden shift in Nurse Joy's attitude towards him, the implied authority he now carried, had clearly not gone unnoticed.
"I heard… you were quite exhausted earlier?" Sachiko asked tentatively as they walked, breaking the silence.
"It's fine," Xiu replied dismissively, not wanting to elaborate. "Just needed some rest."
Sachiko seemed to take this as an opening, letting some of her own fatigue show now that they were away from Nurse Joy's immediate presence. "Everyone is running on fumes," she confessed, her shoulders slumping slightly. "High intensity, round the clock… we've had three staff members collapse from exhaustion already." She sighed, rubbing her temples. "Honestly, I feel like I'm next. Haven't had a proper night's sleep in days."
"Thank you for your hard work," Xiu said, his tone softening slightly with genuine appreciation. "All of you." He had his criticisms of the Joy Family's overarching control, but the dedication and competence of the individual staff members, especially under this kind of pressure, were undeniable. They were reliable, professional, and holding the city together through sheer willpower.
They continued discussing the strain on the Pokémon Center's resources until they reached a secured wing, stopping before a specific room marked as a specialized critical care unit.
"He's in there," Sachiko stated, gesturing to the door. She remained outside, respecting the implied privacy of whatever Xiu intended to do.
Xiu gave a curt nod and entered the ward alone.
The room was sterile and functional. Basic life support monitors beeped rhythmically. And on the bed lay Keita, the disgraced Gym Leader, hooked up to various machines with bandages covering much of his visible skin. He was unconscious, breathing shallowly with the aid of a respirator.
Xiu observed him dispassionately for a moment. Then, he tossed a Poké Ball. Abra materialized silently beside him. "Let's see what memories remain," Xiu murmured, closing his eyes.
Abra's eyes glowed faintly. Outside the room, Sachiko likely heard the sudden, frantic beeping of the monitoring equipment as Abra's psychic probe bypassed Keita's conscious defenses and delved directly into his mind. She held her position, curiosity warring with professional duty.
Nearly fifteen minutes passed. The alarms inside the room eventually fell silent. Sachiko tensed, waiting, just as the door opened and Xiu stepped out, his expression neutral.
"I have other matters to attend to," Xiu said, pressing several cartons of Moomoo Milk and a bag of fresh fruit into Sachiko's surprised hands. "Please distribute these among the staff who collapsed. A small token of appreciation."
Sachiko blinked, startled by the unexpected gesture and the weight of the items. "Ah… thank you. But, the patient…?"
Xiu glanced back towards the room, a flicker of utter contempt crossing his features. "He's alive," he stated flatly. "But functionally… he's now a vegetable." Abra's probe was… thorough, ensuring no lingering secrets and no possibility of recovery. "That's all."
"Huh?" Sachiko stared, confused, glancing towards the still-functioning monitors visible through the doorway window.
But when she looked back, Xiu was already gone, disappearing around the corner at the end of the corridor. She stood there for a moment, bewildered, holding the milk and fruit, trying to process what had just happened. Shaking her head, she recalled Nurse Joy's instructions and turned to make her report.
Later that night, under the cloak of darkness, Xiu returned once more to the silent, blood-soaked grounds of the Viridian Bug-Type Gym. The bodies had been removed, yet Xiu could feel the dark stains remained etched into the earth as the faint, metallic tang of blood still fouled the air.
He ignored the grim remnants of the Outer Courtyard, heading directly for the Inner Courtyard, the ancient heart of the Gym. Standing beneath the massive, moonlit tree, he released the aged Beedrill from its unique Poké Ball.
Beedrill hovered before him, its clouded eyes holding a flicker of wary anticipation.
"I have the truth," Xiu said softly, establishing the telepathic link via Abra. "The circumstances of your master's death… and the rise of the man who replaced him. You deserve to know."
He focused his thoughts, allowing Abra to transmit the memories and information gleaned from Keita's mind directly into the Beedrill's consciousness.
The story unfolded within the Beedrill's awareness: Keita, the apprentice taken in out of pity, possessing some talent but overshadowed by ambition and resentment. His very own mentor had failed to secure the Gym Leader position, dying bitter and defeated. Keita, wasting no time, switched allegiance to a rival faction the very next day, earning contempt but securing his position through sycophancy.
Years passed. The old Gym Leader, nearing seventy, prepared to choose a successor, someone worthy of inheriting the Gym's true secrets and power. Keita, though part of the core group, was never seriously considered – his character flawed and his strength mediocre compared to others. However, he nursed his resentment quietly— like a mantis stalking a cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.
Then, the old Gym Leader died mysteriously, with no certain cause found. Chaos erupted. The designated heir, the one meant to receive the Gym's deepest knowledge and the loyalty of the Gym's ace Pokémon like this Beedrill, was unable to consolidate power before the Gym fractured. Internal conflict flared, driven by factions vying for control. Heirs died under suspicious circumstances or fled. The Gym tore itself apart.
The final designated successor, the one who inherited this Beedrill's Poké Ball after the old master's death, also died inexplicably amidst the turmoil.
In the aftermath, with the true inheritors dead or scattered, the Gym was left without a future... all except for Keita. He was overlooked and underestimated. Thus an idea, perhaps planted by outside forces or born of opportunistic greed, took root. He rallied the few remaining members, seized control of the hollowed-out Gym, and declared himself Leader. Lacking the skill, knowledge, and integrity to run it properly, he oversaw its rapid decline, selling off assets, eventually resorting to criminal enterprises to maintain his position.
The Beedrill received the flood of information, its frail body trembling. Keita hadn't directly killed the old master, perhaps. But he was a disgrace— a vulture, feasting on the corpse of the Gym, benefiting from the chaos likely orchestrated by others who used his weakness and ambition. He was a traitor to his masters, a disgrace to the core tenets of the Gym[1], complicit in the destruction of everything the Beedrill had served.
Xiu watched the aged Pokémon absorb the ugly truth. Keita wasn't the mastermind, just a pawn. A useful idiot pushed into power precisely because he was incompetent, ensuring that their true legacy remained broken.
The real culprits remained hidden, but their tool was now paying the price.
[1] Sharp Edge. Vanguard.