Lysandre watched the Professor fret over Frita, who seemed completely fine for the most part. 'How strange. The poison doesn't seemed to have affected her all that much, and yet...the way her body reacts to it. It simply isn't a human reaction. However, that would mean…' He frowned in thought and decided to improvise for a minute. While they weren't paying attention, he took out a device and quickly scanned the Grand Champion before slipping it back into his suit pocket to examine later. His plans were going perfectly, even to the point of getting Alain to do what he wanted and gather as much data as possible and he couldn't afford a wild card at the moment.

Despite it having nearly killed the boy, his battle with Frita's Charizard was quite helpful. His Mega Ring had gathered a large amount of useful data about Mega Evolution, and had provided good info on the Charizard as well. It would seem that he had undergone an exceptionally unusual amount of growth in his evolution from a Charmeleon into a Charizard, and seemed to have some other strange abilities. He was faster than average, very fast in fact and very strong as well. Not only that, but he seemed to have an Ability that Lysandre couldn't for all his searching identify.

He offered Frita his help in dealing with the poison, but she declined as she and Sycamore seemed to have gotten into an argument and he quietly excused himself. 'That was quite close. She nearly saw the hidden laboratory. Her poisoning was not intended, but it may lead to something I should look into. He took the device to one of his henchmen and told him to have the scientists analyze the data he had collected on it. He made some calls and checked on a few other things before heading to another Cafe to have a small drink. It was rather ironic, his sitting in someone else's Cafe after everything that had just happened in his own. After a while, he considered checking on Frita and decided to call Sycamore.

The Professor answered on the second ring. "Hello?" Lysandre cleared his throat. "Hello, Professor. I was wondering if perhaps the Grand Champion was doing better?" Sycamore sighed. "Yes, she seems to be doing fine. We forced her to eat a Pecha Berry and her poisoning has been cured, I think. She's a stubborn one. Absolutely insisted that poison was no big deal. Honestly, poison! I still have a hard time believing anyone would want to poison her in the first place." He sounded upset. 'I didn't want him involved in any of this. I must remember to try my absolute best to keep him clear of everything I do.' "I'm glad to hear she's doing better. That's certainly good news." His phone beeped and he bid the Professor farewell before answering the incoming call. "Yes?" Lainey was on the other end of the phone. "Sir, our other scientists have told me there's something here you should see. It's regarding the Grand Champion." Lysandre's eyes darted to the side. "Thank you for telling me, I'll be right there."

He got up to leave and paused, looking behind him. 'I could swear someone was following me…' He grunted. 'No matter. I have more important things to do than chase some imaginary eavesdropper.' He left the Cafe and got into a car, making his way to Lysandre Labs. When he arrived, Lainey was waiting for him. "They refused to tell me what it was they wanted to show you, said they wanted you to see it first." Lysandre frowned and followed her to one of the lab rooms where his team of scientists had put several charts and other things up on the large video screens.

The data from his device had been projected on each of them. "Sir, we've come to a rather unsettling conclusion." One of the scientists was saying. "We analyzed the data you collected," she pressed a button, "and this is what we found about her physical makeup." On the screen was a silhouette of Frita with her arms at her sides. Over top of the silhouette were several images of what appeared to be internal organs. Lysandre frowned, confused. "What exactly am I looking at?" The scientist nodded. "That's just it sir, this appears to be Frita Warmhart's entire internal biological system. It seems she has most of the usual organs a human has, except…" Based on the diagram, Frita's lungs and stomach took up most of her body, and she seemed to lack intestines and kidneys, among other things. "But how…?" The scientist turned to him. "Her stomach apparently contains a raging fire that seems to burn up everything she eats or drinks, even the ash it's turned into. From there it looks like it's turned into smoke or steam and sucked into her lungs, then expelled through her nose or mouth." Lysandre was shocked.

"But that would mean…" The scientist nodded again. "Yes sir. Frita Warmhart...isn't human." 'Not human. I suspected it might be possible. But then what is she?!' As if she could read his mind, the scientist continued. "Her body isn't made of flesh exactly. It appears she's composed of a magma like substance that is warm to the touch on the outside and is malleable enough to make her appear human. However, it was not quite malleable enough to cover up the fact that she has a tail, sir." Lysandre pondered this. "I suppose that would be why she wears that long coat everywhere." He looked back up as the scientist resumed speaking. "Her heart pumps magma through her veins to regulate her body temperature. We analyzed the DNA sample you brought us from the cup at the Cafe, and she appears to have a similar biological composition to Pokemon. However, her energy levels are through the roof. She has far more power than even the Pokemon of Legend here in the Kalos Region." Lysandre's eyes widened.

"She's more powerful than a Legendary Pokemon?! How is that possible?!" He had risen to his feet, surprise and shock written all over his face. "We did extensive research sir, we found only one source and it's very, very old." She pulled up pictures of pages from an ancient book. Next to them were translations from the original language. "It says here that this creature," she pointed to an image of a beast that looked similar to a Pokemon, "was called a Golem. It was a fierce being of elemental power that was hunted nearly to extinction out of humans' fear of it. It also says that from these beasts there came smaller creatures. We've traced the history of the text, and it seems these smaller monsters became known as what are today, Pokemon." Lysandre's eyes widened. "You mean to tell me that these creatures," he gestured toward the picture, "are the predecessors of Pokemon?"

The scientist nodded. "We believe so, yes. We also believe, that Frita Warmhart is one of these Golems." Lysandre turned to her. "But that would mean she's thousands of years old, correct?" The scientist nodded. "That's what we first thought too, but it seems that the power for Pokemon to evolve came from the Golems. Based on this, we've determined that the Golems also evolved. Meaning it's likely that miss Warmhart is actually a new age Golem descended from other Golems who survived humans' initial fear of them." Lysandre held up a hand to stop her. "But if this is true, then why is it that all Golems didn't simply become Pokemon?" She turned toward the screen again. "We believe that the Golems were a sentient race with free will. It's likely that some of them didn't wish to change into smaller forms, as they would lose some of their power. We believe that Golems simply found a way of evolving to minimize their size, but retain their massive stores of power. Which is why we believe that Frita Warmhart is a Golem. She seems to have a massive power source that we can't identify. We also believe that the elements associated with the Golems became the modern day Pokemon Types, with the exception of Fairy. This would explain why miss Warmhart could survive being attacked by her Charizard and how she could lift him off the ground."

Lysandre frowned. "That would certainly explain it." The scientist nodded. "We've also determined that with such a massive power source, she would need an enormous amount of food to sustain herself." Lysandre looked up. 'That would explain how she managed to eat all that leftover food from the day she made us breakfast.' Now that he thought about it, Lysandre remembered her doing some peculiar things. "And you said she was more powerful than a Legendary Pokemon?" The scientist nodded. "Absolutely." A wicked smile came across Lysandre's face. "That might be just what we need. Can you design something to hold her?" The scientist looked confused. "Hold her, sir?" Lysandre nodded. "We were planning on using Zygarde to power the machine, but Frita Warmhart is a far stronger power source." The scientist grinned and nodded to him. "I see, sir. We'll come up with something as quickly as possible."

Lainey was eyeing the screen with obvious surprise. It appeared she had never suspected the Grand Champion of being anything other than normal. She looked considerably alarmed when Lysandre stated what he intended to do with the woman. "Are you feeling alright?" Lainey jumped at his question. "Yes, I'm fine. It's just...a new species? No, an undiscovered one. Amazing. What would you like me to do, sir?" Lysandre turned to her. "Stay here and help the others create the capture device. There is no room for error with this one. It must be perfect." With that, he strode away.


Meanwhile, Frita had gotten into a huge argument with Sycamore who was fretting about her terribly. She growled. "Stop it!" He had insisted on her getting some form of medical attention, and had dragged her back to the lab. When she got there, she was greeted by her Pokemon and Steven, who had taken the headphones off. She stopped, staring straight at him. He seemed to have recovered from his concussion, at least enough to be semi normal now anyway. He smiled at her and her eyes widened. It wasn't the fact that he smiled at her that surprised her. It was the WAY he smiled. She hadn't seen that smile in a long time. He had apparently also changed back into his typical suit and tie attire, though where he had gotten that from was a mystery considering the rest of his stuff was in her house in Anistar City. She flinched, the poison acting up again and narrowed her eyes before it wore off again. Steven looked concerned. "Are you alright? What happened?!"

"What's wrong?" Jethro asked, jogging over to them from the pond. "Frita's been poisoned!" Sycamore said, fretting. Jethro went from a jog to a sprint instantly. "How many times do I have to tell you I'm fine before you just calm down and admit that I'M FINE?" Frita seemed even more irritated than before. "Stop lying to yourself, Frita, you're poisoned," Jethro said. "No one's ever 'fine' when poisoned. Now, please, let me help an old friend out and don't fight this. I know you get irritated when everyone frets over your health when it's nothing you don't think is serious," he said as he went to his backpack and began to dig through a certain pocket, "but believe me, this is more serious than you're treating it." He procured a few Pecha Berries from the pocket, as well as a medicine bowl and grinder. He then dug through his medicine pocket and brought out a water bottle. Working deftly, he ground up the Pecha Berries into a paste and put some on his fingers. "Now Frita, please," he said, looking her right in the eyes, "let me help. Leave this stuff on your face for a few minutes until the poison has completely dissipated."

Frita leaned back, away from his hands and glared at him. "I'M. FINE." She took a few more steps back. "I don't need your Pecha Berry paste." Jethro sighed and looked at Steven. He shook his head and looked back at her for a minute. "Frita-" Jethro started, but she cut him off. "I said I'M FINE!" She stomped her foot so hard she shook the building and shattered one of the floor tiles. Steam shot from her nose and her eyes lit up like fireworks. Her shoulders were hunched in a defensive position and she was almost snarling. "I'm fine."

Everyone's faces lit up in shock. Jethro took a few steps back while Steven walked over to Jethro's bag and dug in it. He pulled out a few Pecha Berries and rubbed them on his shirt before walking rather calmly over to Frita. It wasn't the first time he'd seen her act out in such an unusual way, but it still unnerved him to some degree. She glared at him and he held out a Pecha Berry. "Here. They're sweet. I know you love sweet things." She looked down at the berry and back at Steven before slowly taking it. Her eyes dimmed and she seemed to calm down some as she took a bite.

Jethro sighed and put a hand to his forehead. "I was going to ask you to give her the paste instead of me," he said to Steven, "but you have known her for a much longer time than I have. I should've asked your advice first." He looked down at his finger and licked the paste. He stuck out his tongue in disgust and scraped the paste on the edge of the bowl, smacking his lips. "I forgot… I had some Nomel Berries mixed in this thing last time. Didn't wash it out beforehand." He spit the paste out of his mouth and poured water in the bowl, washing it out.

Frita had finished the first berry and was eyeing Steven's hand, which held the other. He handed it to her and she nibbled it. Sycamore came walking quietly over to them. "Is that normal? Because I feel like that was inhuman." Steven looked over at him. "It's not the first time I've seen her act like this," he said. "But that is most definitely not a normal human ability Professor. When was the last time you shattered a marble tile and shook a building by stomping?" Sycamore nodded. "Fair enough. I thought that was extremely odd. And the steam..."

"Even for as long as I've known her, I've never seen her do quite that. And is it just me, or did her eyes actually…y'know…glow? As in 'nightlight in the dark' glow?" Jethro asked as he and his cousin approached them. "I know she can be incredibly defensive, especially of others, but…to behave like that when offered help? To me, that just seems...illogical. Rash. Slightly inhuman, actually, like you said, Professor. Like some kind of wild Pokemon backed in a corner, afraid and snarling to keep any chance of harm from coming near."

"To be fair, she was poisoned," Valin said. "That can cause some people to act erratically." Steven nodded. "She acted this way the last time she was poisoned too. However, I've seen her act out like this when she's not poisoned as well. When she gets her feelings hurt she'll push everyone away, literally. She'll throw things too. Things no ordinary human could lift, to try to scare everyone off." Jethro looked at him in shock. "It's a good thing I'm not her bodyguard or anything, I could never handle that correctly," he said. "Is there anyone who can calm her down, or does everyone just evacuate and wait for her to do it herself?"

"Only people she completely trusts. Myself, though Keith and Wallace are both better at it than me. Given time she'd probably trust you enough too." He looked back over at her. She was sitting on a padded bench and had finished the berry. She yawned and looked at him and he nodded at her ever so slightly and smiled. Her chest widened as she sucked in a breath, and a plume black smoke came out of her mouth, still trailing at the edges. She blinked slowly before curling up with her back to them. Her long coat fell over the edge of the bench, revealing her back. Steven started in surprise.

Running down her back, and starting from what he guessed were her shoulder blades, were two good sized stone ridges. They weren't very high though, and were actually almost flat. Poking out above the waistline of her jeans was a stubby little tail with one tiny ridged bump on it. It wiggled a little before she let out a deep breath and sunk into sleep.

Jethro looked at Steven's expression with a confused look. He followed his gaze and had to put a hand over his mouth to keep from gasping too loud. He squeezed his eyes shut and put a hand on Steven's shoulder, eventually getting his bearings again. "Please tell me I'm dreaming," he muttered. He opened his eyes, his face solemn. "There's gotta be a Darkrai or a Hypno around here somewhere, and this has got to be some kind of...illusion…" he trailed off, hanging his head. "'Fraid not. I see it too," Sycamore said, staring at Frita. "She's got a tail and stone plates on her back." Jethro halfheartedly glared at him. "Thank you, Captain Obvious." Sycamore shot him a look and quietly walked closer to Frita to look at her back. Steven followed him and they both crouched down to take a look at the stone plates.

"I thought her shoulder felt unnaturally hard," Jethro muttered. "And even when I gave her that back rub last night, her shoulder blades seemed...well, I thought they were her shoulder blades poking out." He put a hand to his mouth and shifted his weight. Steven put a hand on her back for a minute and then his eyes widened. He grabbed her now limp wrist and put two fingers to it. "How…?!" Sycamore stood, looking at him. "What's wrong?" Steven turned back to him, completely flabbergasted. "She's not breathing, but her pulse hasn't changed at all." As he finished, he put her arm back down and frowned. "And she's ridiculously warm."

"So we were pretty much on the mark with 'inhuman', it seems," Jethro muttered. "So what exactly is she, if not human?" Sycamore looked up at him. "That seems to be the question of the hour. I'll go down to the library and see what I might be able to dig up based on her reactions to things." He got up and left. He had been gone for less than five minutes when a large group of people in ridiculous red costumes showed up. They were all dressed identically and wore sunglasses. Jethro and his cousin both drew their swords, taking defensive positions in front of Steven and Frita, their Pokemon gathering next to them.

"Valin?" Jethro asked his cousin. "Yeah?" Jethro glanced at him."These the guys you were talking about earlier?" Valin nodded. "Yeah, these be the ones." Jethro turned his attention back to them. "Figured as much." The grunts released every Pokemon they had, sending them all into battle against the entire group. Steven unleashed his own Pokemon and stood beside Jethro and Valin. "If you want anything, you'll have to go through us!" he bellowed. "You've got three Champions standing between you and whatever it is you want, folks!" Jethro roared. "You're biting off more than you can chew!" The newcomers unleashed a barrage of attacks, throwing up a huge cloud of dust at them. Jethro side-stepped in front of Steven and tapped the armor on his shoulder. A small force field appeared around them, preventing dust from getting in their eyes.

"Nice touch," Steven said. "I tinker in my spare time," Jethro smirked. The dust cleared, and Jethro straightened up, deactivating the force field. There was no one there. All the intruders had disappeared. "Don't tell me. I know," he said, returning his Pokemon. He looked up slightly and slumped his weight on one leg. "That was all a diversion and something's gone, right?" Steven looked at him like he was speaking an alien language, and then turned around. His eyes widened and he barreled out of the front doors, his fists clenched in fury. Jethro and Valin followed him out and looked up and down the street, but the goons seemed to have disappeared into thin air. "They took Frita!"