[Animal]
G'Day, I'm PocketmonMaster and this is a story that I wrote for the Forums One-Shot contest, in which I was placed 16th out of 29 contenders. While it can certainly be counted as a One-Shot, it is verrrrrylong (30 pages+), so I will be splitting it in to three major segments to give the impression of chapters :D
Violent scenes and graphic blood exists in the later stages of this fic. If you do not like blood, read no further - There is a lot of it.
I have horribly murdered some portions of cannon and established properties of genetics.
This is heavily based (and when I say heavily based, I mean heavily based) on X-Men Comics, X-23 #2.
Chapter One: Beast
"Come on! Make sure we're in control! Those restraints must be in order! I don't want to see any slack!" Greg Harrison's voice boomed over the frantic scrambling of the dozen or so underlings before him, each of which had their own special job they had to complete with clock-work timing. While Harrison anticipated a placid subject, he would have preferred it to strike out, just so he could have the chance to severely discipline it with an array of batons and shock devices held by a number of grunts observing the unfolding operation.
Surrounded by the metallic walls that had contained his life deep underground for the past six years, and assigned to 'The Third Project' for almost eight years prior, Harrison was no ordinary person. Officially, he was missing and presumed dead since the tender age of twenty-seven, but yet here he was, in his prime professionally and making history. With blond playboy hair and a nauseous persona to match, along with his wealthy family's connections, Harrison could have done anything he wanted. Becoming the CEO of the Goldenrod Department Board just like his mother was always an option as a career in the beginning, but stocks and working for the inferior classes were never his strong suits. Instead, he willingly signed up to the illegal crime organisation known as 'Team Rocket' in which he was guaranteed a high and respectable position in one of its' Johto-based facilities – All for the low price of his soul.
Two of the black-clad men rushed to put the final touches on their task, tightening the subject's arms with a third Velcro strap, exhausting the meagre chance of a possible escape. With several of the grunts holding binding leashes around the subdued body, Harrison could now see what he had to work with, a young girl, no more than twelve stood uneasily on her bound feet. With long shoulder-length raven black hair and blank eyes that appeared to scream for blood beyond a mist of deep hazel, Harrison had always known that she was trouble.
Unexpectedly, Harrison took a step forward and knelt before the girl, intently studying her facial features for several prolonged seconds. Rashly, he grabbed the girl's cheeks, squashed her face into a goldfish-esque fashion and proceeded to stick his bare finger in her mouth in order to have a closer inspection of her dental work. Rummaging amongst the girl's teeth, the surgeon by trade was wary not to place his fingers in the empty space between the bony knobs – he knew that if she had the chance, the girl would not hesitate to clamp shut and sever his digits.
"Hmm... Teeth are in good condition," he spoke to nobody in particular, "But the gums... Not so great." each word he spoke tinged with distain. Harrison relinquished her mouth and immediately stepped back, not wishing to risk his fingers for much longer. As soon as he had released the girl, her teeth bit down with an almighty crunch and showed her pearly whites in a far stretching malicious grin. The tremendous crunch that her powerful jaws could produce was evident, along with her long known intentions towards Harrison.
Harrison gave an equally spiteful smirk, removing a single heavy leather glove from the pink and subtle skin of his right hand. His god–given right was clear: she had shown aggression, now he was permitted to punish the uncivilised cretin. Drawing the mitt across his torso in a threatening pose, Harrison promptly brought it down and slapped the girl's face with a deafening 'smack'. Her head snapped violently to the side as bloody spittle flew from her mouth, landing a little over a meter away. The panting girl painfully summoned the strength to bring her throbbing head around to glare at her assaulter with fierce eyes, demanding a long sought after revenge.
"That was for my father," Harrison condescendingly tapped the girl's face with the glove as blood began to trickle down from the corner of her mouth. "Take it to the dojo," he gruffly instructed the group of guards "I'll be there shortly."
Harrison slid his 'disciplinary' glove on, cursing the alleged abomination under his breath.
"Animal."
-=-=-=- (-o-) -=-=-=-
Hidden in the metal catacombs of the below ground base, amongst all of the rigid and soulless boxes called rooms, one stood out. Smaller than average, the Shinto designed room was meant to occupy one person; the man whom the girl was now to only refer to as 'sensei'. Less than four meters on all sides, the perfectly square enclosure contained a single bed, toilet and tap, much like a prison-cell for a convict sentenced to the harshest of punishments. While the room was metallically lined like all of the others in the hive, wooden floorboards and paper walls with various colourful imprints surreptitiously hid this fact from its spiritual prisoner.
Candles flickering, the man knelt on his ragged ritual carpet, a beautifully woven tapestry from his native town, as he whispered the ancient language of his prophets. Like a man possessed by the spirits of his bloodline ancestors, he spoke with the efficiency and clarity as if he had been the one who had breathed life into the very scripture being recited. Had anyone gazed upon the wizened old man chanting such indecipherable words, one may have mistaken his intentions to raise the fear and demons that lined his prayer mat.
The man had once called the sacred Dragon's Den home, but for the foreseeable future, that was all behind him. Johto was in the throes of a dark age consisting terrorism and blackmail from the infamous Team Rocket, and held against his will, the Asian martial arts master had found himself an unwilling participant in what he could only describe as 'barbarity at its worst'. Many months ago, under the orders of Doctor Harrison's superiors, he and two other prominent combat expert from around Johto were spirited away from their homes, with each of the individual kidnappings occurring within an expertly co-ordinated ten minutes time-frame.
Li, head sage of Sprout Tower; Desmond, Leader of the Fighting-Pokémon based Cinnawood Gym and son of Chuck; and the chanting man himself, Nakata, leader of the Dragon Clan in Blackthorn City. The three men were subjected to weeks of brutality at the hands of Team Rocket, as they were pushed them to the limits of their knowledge, training and physical condition; all in order to discover which one of them was truly the best and most suitable for the tasks that lay ahead. Each knew what was to await them once they could push no more, as none wished to fall behind the other two combatants, lest it happen to him. Li was frail and weak in his old age, making it no surprise that he was the first to break under the strain of the demanding physical workload. Desmond held on, eventually drawing out the 'competition' to a point where a decision had to be made by their captors as to who would continue on.
Neither Li, nor Desmond's bodies were sent back to their families.
"Nakata!" Harrison called out to his cornered game, "The subject is heading to the dojo, why are you still here?" remaining in his ritual's position, Nakata spoke coolly to the man who had rudely interrupted his session.
"I am merely giving thanks to my spiritual masters, Doctor Harrison." Nakata proceeded to stand up, abandoning the half-completed prayers and smirking with his back turned to Harrison, "I'm sure that you do the same to your superiors, don't you?"
"You should be thankful that my superiors even allow you to be here. If the decision had hinged on me, you'd be dead." Nakata turned to face the doctor, picking up his mat as he did so in order to roll up the delicate fabric for later use.
"I wouldadvise you not to disrespect your elders, but I implore you to keep talking," Locking eyes with Harrison, Nakata calmly expressed the purest form of disgust that his kindling heart could muster, "I want to see how many limbs I can tear off you before your cronies come running."
"Shut it old man." Harrison slapped the prayer mat out of Nakata's hands and stiffly raised a threatening index finger in the face of the aging man, "Speak another word and I'll have your ****ing throat sliced by lunch." Nakata stood steadfast, refusing to be intimidated by a man of such an intense calibre.
Neither would break eye contact, as they attempted to ascertain their foe's readiness to see a verbal argument boil-over into a full-on brawl. Harrison knew that he had the advantage; two well armed grunts were standing on the other side of Nakata's door-frame, unbeknown to his sparring partner, ready to intervene in their boss' favour. At the slightest provocation, they would rush in and subdue the frail man at whatever the cost.
Nakata knew that something was not right, but there was no way to know if Harrison had a trick waiting up his sleeve. He could only tell one fact; there glint of smugness in the way that the doctor composed himself with, he had been planning a trap all along.
Harrison could tell that Nakata was not going to fall for such a simple deception; if the sensei had done so, he would have never been considered for the shortlist. With neither relenting from their stances, Harrison broke the continuous stalemate, leaving the ancient's room and stood in the door-frame connecting the Shinto-based room with the cold and humourless metal of the compound. Making his closing remarks, the doctor reaffirmed Nakata's position and parameters.
"Remember what I told you earlier, if you even attempt to bestow some aspect of humanity to it, I'll have your head on a platter. That means no contact beyond combat, none of your pseudo-Blackthorn-Dragon 'Enlightenment' bull**** and most importantly, absolutely no Pokémon." Leaving Nakata to gather his equipment for the approaching session, Harrison's final words echoed down the empty halls.
"It is not a child."
-=-=-=- (-o-) -=-=-=-
The monitor flickered with the girl's visage as she sweated it out with Nakata in the base's dojo, performing a mock battle as cameras buzzed and caught every display. A flurry of lightning-fast punches kept Nakata on his toes, but to the keen-eyed observers it was obvious that he was the one in control of the fight. With so much as a well timed wave of his hand or an inconspicuous shift in footing, the girl was unable to land a single blow on her new sensei. No matter how determined she was to knock him down, those who intently followed each move knew that the girl's few years of intense training was nothing when compared to Nakata's decades of mastery.
Casting the long shadows of three onlookers to the back of the darkened boardroom, the screen relayed the intense fight which only succeeded in captivating two viewers. Both Professor Debbie Andreas and her superior, Robert Keane, sat with Harrison as they watched the faux blood-sport unfold, Andreas in horror, Keane with pure delight. Each move that the combatants made was quickly being mentally noted for the upcoming discussion: Whether the girl was ready to progress to the teachings of a fully-fledged martial arts master. The stalling debate had been locked for several weeks at this point, with Andreas and Harrison cancelling each other out, whilst Keane wished to see how the girl would fare in combat with a true fighter before declaring his stance on the issue.
If one were to go by her personality, ending up with Team Rocket would have been the last port of call on her mind. Generally a mild-mannered and compassionate soul, Professor Andreas never came around to the side of Team Rocket due to her demeanour, nor the allure of money; she wished to push the boundaries of genetics even further than any scientist before her had done. As head-geneticist and registered child-therapist of the Rocket facility, Professor Andreas had been with the girl since she had first been 'conceived' artificially, had been intrepid enough to make a name for herself and attract enough attention from her superiors, quickly climbing ranks.
In a heated discussion session several years earlier, she pushed to become the girl's personal therapist in order to regularly gain updates as to the treatment of her creation, defeating Harrison's calls for 'tough love' in the process. While content with the girl's progression up to this point, Andreas knew not all was rosy under the streets of Mahogany, especially with Harrison's constant outburst of violence set to derail years of hard work.
"See?" Harrison raised a coy grin, his yellowing teeth clearly visible despite the modest level of light present, "She can hold herself just fine, that's why we need to have her under the tutelage of a master, not a slightly-above average grunt." Harrison directed his statement to the as yet undecided member of the party, his direct superior, Robert Keane.
"Ah-huh..." Keane unsurprisingly trailed off, far more interested in the evolving battle emblazoned on the monitor than Harrison's cocky attitude.
Being the forty-something head of the heavily disguised Mahogany-based facility, Keane was privy to more information concerning Johto than any other Administrator of his standing; if a tree was to fall in Azalea Forest, he would be the first to know. Always secretive man, what passed his eyes was rarely shared with others. This trait was exemplified in a particularly prickly incident in which he held an incoming letter containing the death of a worker's son for three months, as it would 'distract him from work'.
"You can't seriously be thinking about allowing this, can you?" Andreas eyed Keane with a furious death-glare "She was never meant to become a machine; EN-34's purpose was to prove that human cloning was viable. Now that we've done that, why are you bringing her into a life of violence? Is she an assassin to you? I only consented to preliminary training for exercise and to break the monotony of life underground."
"Hah!" Harrison threw his head back in laughter, quickly spinning his plush office chair to face Andreas "You consented? When did you become its mother?"
"Since I cracked Giovanni's cell coding, that's when."
"Speaking of Giovanni's coding, what happened to it? We were assigned to give him an heir to follow in his footsteps but right now there is little relationship between them, from both a genetic and physical standpoint. I mean, come on! He's never seen her for-God's sake!"
I toiled long and hard to get us to the point where we could even create an exact clone of Giovanni, but that wasn't enough. Both of you had me tailor every conceivable aspect to your exact specifications, transforming him from a clone into the 'perfect' human varient. Hell, I had to replace his 'Y' chromosome with another 'X' just to make sure that it could be used as a fail-safe in the case that something went drastically wrong in the coding," Andreas ignored Harrison's faltering attempts to stifle his laughter, instead focusing her attention on Keane, searching for a sign of professional decency in return for the outpouring of her heart. "Did Giovanni even know that I corrupted his cells to play your game of God? He wanted a successor, not a super-human."
"If you're the mother, I guess that means my dad was the father," Harrison butted in, ignoring the basis of Andreas' points and stealing the spotlight from a mildly aware Keane, still entrenched in the displayed combat "Besides, just look at how well you've done, its only nine years old and already working at the peak physical condition of a woman twice its age. I'd call that pretty much perfect."
Harrison stretched his arms and fell into a relaxed position with his hand behind his head, confident that his horrendously sarcastic position had been made clear. Andreas redirected her attention to Harrison, attempting to swat him away like the pesky fly she perceived him to be, before once again looking to Keane for support.
"That's not the point, you had me create a little girl, I should have a say in how she is brought up. That means no martial arts training with Master Nakata."
"So, you want to have more influence on its life–" Harrison was quickly cut off by his superior, reversing the usual situation for the first time in a long while.
"Why do you think you're up here rather than down in the labs, Debbie? Hmm...?" Keane leaned forward, eager to express his loud-mouthed views as usual, "Just so you can have a first-hand look what we're deciding? No, we've relented to your beliefs time and time again in our discussions; you have power, but you also have responsibilities. You are to come here and comment on her mental status, which allows us to make the best decisions for her."
"Fine, I'll play it your way," Andreas took in a deep breath, composed herself and put on the most intelligent sounding voice she could muster, "The belief that the proceedings of the operation in question will detrimentally affect the emotional health and well-being of the subject, NE-34, are well founded in my opinion. And... Uh... It is due to this credence that I request that all events comprising the um, aforementioned operation be halted until an inquest as to their practicality can be carried out."
"Don't get fresh with me," Keane once again spoke up again, beating Harrison to the punch, "A month ago you decided that she was emotionally ready to handle a sudden influx of demands placed on her. You said it yourself: She is stable and you will be able to maintain that stability."
"But your plan to re-assigning me to her for only five hours a week is no way keep her mind in the right state of balance," Andreas rose to her feet, adamant that if her pleas were to be rejected, they would not do so sitting down, "The limited time that I already spend with EN-34 is necessary for her development; even your own psychologists tell you that. By restricting my access, you're only digging your own grave for the future. " Harrison cracked a sly smile. Andreas' viewpoint was becoming clearer by the minute.
"It sounds like 'mommy' doesn't want to leave her precious little pet."
"That's enough, Greg," Keane sensed that the discussion was becoming more tense chose to wisely nip it in the bud "If we're finished here, I need to raise an issue concerning the project, so please, listen closely," Keane motioned for Andreas to return to her seat which she did with full compliance, though still visibly ticked off with Harrison's attitude.
"As I am of no doubt that you are aware, Giovanni has been missing for a year to this very day, and our brothers in Kanto still have no leads as to even hazard a guess about his location. This, coupled with the fact that EN-34 is the only person of direct genetic heritage to Giovanni has led us into a difficult position," Keane shifted uncomfortably, "Following his family's dynastic rule over the Rocket Corporation for the last three generations, EN-34 is the rightful successor and heir of all of Giovanni's assets–" Harrison's eyes widened as each sound spelt out the deadly facts..
"Holy ****, it owns us?" Harrison bit his lip, nervously anticipating the worst.
"Yes, I'm afraid she does."
"So... ****," Beads of sweat slowly conjoined and glistened on Harrison's fretting brow, "We're screwed?"
"Nah, I'd consider you particularly lucky, Greg," Keane's face lit up with anticipative glee on Harrison's part, "I've raised this issue with the other Admins dotted around the regions, and we have come to the decision that she is not to know of these developments." Harrison relaxed noticeably upon hearing this saving grace, his heart still pounding from the pre-emptive shock. His mind racing with the new revelations, Harrison thought of what might have been if that facts revealed in that split moment were to implemented for the rest of was what was to become a very short career under NE-34.
Reacting in a completely different fashion to her colleague, Andreas despondently bowed her head, pondering what was to become of the precious EN-34? Would other Rocket Admins attempt to discontinue her project and break the fragile stalemate between the other heads in an attempt to secure power?
"This is not because other Admins wish to keep the door to power open," Keane continued, either ignorant or indifferent to Andreas' rapidly depressing stance, "but due to fact she is a human varient and there being no legal leeway to her kind."
"So... She can't even be treated as a person?" Andreas silently whispered to herself, inaudible to both Keane and Harrison.
"We have also agreed that our care-taking policies, here in Johto at least, will remain operational for at least two more years before we even consider taking on a new leader." Keane reassured the two that the long-lasting power vacuum would remain, with nothing had changing in the foreseeable future.
Andreas sniffed, trying to digest the theoretical events which had unfolded before her, catching Keane's attention out the corner of his eye. He breathed deeply, his suspicions were turning true – if she was not psychologically ready to accept EN-34's broken rules that meant only one thing; she had become emotionally involved. There was still much to discuss, but having an unstable woman was no way to professionally proceed. She needed to leave.
"Debbie, I'd like to have a private word with Greg." Keane calmly stated, "Would you–"
"Get out?" Andreas snapped, springing out of her seat with teary eyes and tightened fists, ready to sock anyone who stood in her way.
"I was actually going to say that you spend time with her." Keane expressed serenely, noting that Andrea's clenched hands loosened lightly upon hearing his suggestion. Andreas took one last look at the two men on opposite sides of the table, both of who were slowly but surely transforming into disembodied elements of domination. She turned stiffly and made a beeline for the heavy security door, ignoring Harrison's sarcastic "Have nice day," upon exiting.
Keane pulled out a remote simultaneously flicking the lights in to action and turning off the monitor that was still running the mock battle between NE-34 and Nakata. Revived from the cold shadows that had consumed it moments before, aspects of the boardroom that were obscured by darkness now lay in full view; an array of small plants sat atop the filing cabinets that lined the long stretching walls of the meeting room, whilst in the corner furthest from the door, a resting raven-like bird was perched on a specially built wooden pedestal. The bird's eyes flickered awake in the bright light and cawed as it let out a deep yawn before hopping off the stand and into a soft glide. Gracefully landing in front of a serious-faced Keane, the bird rubbed its hat shaped head against his shoulder in a blurry-eyed attempt to receive awareness from its' master.
"Enough, Murkrow," Keane sternly shifted his shoulder, knocking the small bird off its footing, "I have serious business to attend to." The ebony Murkrow shook itself off and gruffly flitted back to the dais it was sleeping on, allowing Keane to begin his delicate conversation with Harrison.
"Everyone here knows that you don't treat EN-34 with the greatest respect and I'm starting to become concerned about the severity of your dealings with her. She's moving into a difficult period, so I need you to lay off aggravating her." Keane's bargaining language and tone imitated aspects a businessman with a proposition to sell; he was either going to make a sale or walk away empty-handed.
"Heh, heh." Harrison let slip a wry grin as he thought up a multitude of possible rebuttals that emphasized his position. What harassment? She's a beast, nothing more than an animal.
"Listen, I'm taking this very seriously." Keane continued, mildly concerned that Harrison was not taking this event as seriously as he should have been. "You either quit the harassment, or I'll be forced to remove you from the project. If you were to do any of the things you do to her to the average Joe on the streets, you'd be doing twenty-to-life right now."
"Nice bluff." For all of Harrison hard-headedness, Keane never would have pegged him to be the type to make light of a situation when his esteemed employment was possibly on the line. Keane sighed sensing that Harrison was not going to lead the conversation anywhere it had not gone before. Learning from experience with Harrison's difficult-at-best personality, he knew that it was best to quit while ahead.
"I've given it some thought, but I didn't wish to say it Debbie, not like this." A noticeably more irritated Keane began, "Start laying the groundwork for EN-34's further training, we can afford to sacrifice time with Debbie in order for her to become more adept in combat."
"If we can do that, then why the hell do we even keep Professor Andreas around now? Just look at her, she's a wreck." Waving his hand in the general direction of the door, Harrison vainly attempted to emphasize his point.
"Control, Greg. Control the mother and you control the child."
"But if we–"
"Just shut it Greg," Keane rubbed his eyebrows in frustration, it had been a long day and a private session with Harrison was hardly a pleasure in itself, "I've had enough for the night. Just quickly tell me how work on the 'Marauder Scent' is progressing and then we can both get out of here."
"It's going better than expected."
-=-=-=- (-o-) -=-=-=-
There you go, the end of Chapter One. Reviewing is fun, so you should try it by specifically reviewing this.
I do not own Pokemon, GameFreak, Nintendo or any other third-party companies. I don't own any companies period, so I guess I won't be getting a large bill from Mr. Taxman at any rate.