Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon.

"Speech"

'Telepathy'

Chapter 25- Theta's Decision

Location: Testing Facility- Many years ago…

"How many simulations have Delta gone through?" the Commander asked.

"Exactly five hundred," the Director reported from her monitor. Sigma winced as he felt the exact pain from Delta. The Director noticed this even with how hard he tried to hide it. "We've exceeded the testing limits. Not even Omega and Alpha have gone this far," she commented with concern.

"Then we'll stop with fake simulations and start with the real fire simulations," the Commander retorted. The Director gritted her teeth. Hurting Delta would also put pain on the other units he was linked to. Sigma knew the same but orders were orders…

Location: Atios Island- Several years ago…

Rei's eyes widened as she started panicking. She found that her best option would to be for her to transform into her Lati form and hide in the safe cloak of invisibility. She found that she was unable to do so. Her panicked state heightened when she saw that both the green and blue guards' optics were glowing red, preventing her from changing forms or hiding. The blue psychic glow that came from the man's eyes was holding her body in place.

"W-what do you want from me?" she stammered. She could hardly keep her teeth from clattering.

The man that took off his desert cap talked. "We want to talk to you. You must watch your brother, Blu as he will learn dark things that he will try to hide from you," he cautioned. "If he manages to hide them all, they will turn him into a monster." Rei was filled with surprise but kept a grim face. Blu was her brother?

"Who are you?" she asked as her vision began to blur white.

"Sky. Tell your friends I'm Sky," was his only response. Rei's vision went dark.

Location: Secret Garden

Hunter J worked furiously. As soon as she got the knife, she got to work pulling out the bullet, ignoring the pained grunts coming from Sigma. Since he had a direct soul connection to Blu, he felt everything he did along with many more other features that only one could imagine. Ash hurried over with all the medical supplies he could find in Brock's bag. The Director graciously took them while everyone else worriedly looked on. Sigma came hurrying back with a large black suitcase. He opened it up to reveal a white holographic disk lying inside. He pressed several buttons on the controls to make the fragile disk levitate into the air. Hunter J carefully moved to her hands close to the disk to grab it. However, as soon as she touched it, it shattered. She cursed. After five years, none of the equipment she had for the units seemed operational. All hope was lost.

Latias saw her despaired state and floated over, ignoring the protests of her brother. 'Can I help?' she asked.

Sigma shook his head while the Director slowly put on the last of the bandages around the wound. "The external wounds are healed. The bullet that entered through Blu was designed to destroy one's soul," Sigma explained. It was the perfect weapon against the units. It would also destroy any other fragments that had combined with that unit, but Sigma didn't say anything about that.

The Director suddenly stood up. "Let's go, Sigma. We're done," she grimly ordered before she started walking back towards the hovercraft. "He can't be saved." The group was silent.

"Hunter J, you've always tried your hardest in whatever you did," Ash started. "What makes you think that you can just give up on him?!" Hunter J was taken aback by the young trainer's words. She opened her mouth but no words came out. She had no excuse but what could she do? She had no power in this situation.

Suddenly, a portal opened up and out came with what gave the Director a glimmer of hope.

…

Rei was thrown into the smooth stone quite hard. It took her some time to regain her bearings. She realized that she was once more in the Secret Garden. The next thing she realized was her unconscious brother along with two other figures.

'That's Sigma and the Director!' the voice said cheerfully before disappearing once more. She stared blandly at the two figures, trying to figure out who was who.

Suddenly Sigma stood up. "Director, we have a foreign unit inbound. We need to-" he warned just before a hyper beam tore through his arm and obliterated it into millions of pieces. Sigma staggered back several steps before falling on his back.

"Sigma!" Hunter J yelled before running toward his cold, lifeless body. Rei could only stand there in shock. She had other things to worry about as a shadow ball was hurled in her direction. It made direct contact with her and she stumbled into someone's arms.

…

Theta almost took pity on Sigma and his companions. They were always so unprepared for her. She smiled as one arm grabbed Beta's waist and another held a dagger up to her throat. It was always too easy. Now to find Omega…

…

Rei tried moving but something held her still. Her own body froze stiff when she felt a sharp dagger held to her neck. She couldn't do anything now but to wait again.

…

Latios took surveyed their new intruder. It wore the same armor as the previous guards but was different in several ways. Instead of a single piece of armor, it appeared to wearing a white trench coat. Green triangular robot probes replaced the usual spherical shapes of armor that cladded the arm and leg joints. The helmet had also changed from a war helmet and gas mask to an opaque and black riot control helmet. He grimaced at what he thought the outcome could be after fighting Sigma, but this soldier was taking hostile action.

He had already turned invisible some time ago. He tried to stay as silent as possible as he crept around to her back. Theta smirked at the tactic. A holographic screen ran all the equipment she needed for any situation. She didn't move a muscle as her future sight rammed into him, causing him to yelp and lose his invisibility. With a simple thought, she hurled him to the other side of the garden with psychic, immediately fainting him.

Theta didn't even bother as Pikachu's thunderbolt came flying at her with its electricity lighting up the dark area. The robotic drone on her elbow detached and levitated briefly to absorb the bolt before reattaching. Pikachu's jaw dropped. Bianca glanced over at her grandfather, hoping it was another messed up greeting. His grimace told her otherwise.

Latias had flown over to her brother and started to use recover on him. The eyes behind Theta's riot helmet glowed blue briefly before stopping. The psychic attack had forced her into a deep sleep.

"Alright Director, you have one chance to tell me what I want to know," Theta demanded coolly. "Where's Omega?"

Hunter J pointed at Blu. Theta's sympathy kicked in but was quickly ignored by her training. She did feel enough to make a decision. She released her grip around Rei. "Hurry up and do what you have to," she ordered. The Director quickly called for Rei to come to her. She was stunned at first but then quickly obliged.

She knelt beside the Director, who motioned for her to put her hands on the white triangle on Blu's back. "Just focus your energy into your hands. Have them spread apart," Hunter J directed. Rei did just that and was surprised to see a ball of aura forming. "Good, Rei, good. Now try to meld that into the triangle." With a little more effort, the white ball of energy was forced into Blu's back. His entire body shot up and started gasping for breath.

Theta watched in amusement as she also reconsidered what the Director had said. "So that's Beta's new name. I wonder what Delta's is," she thought to herself.

Rei leaned back and panted several times in exhaustion. Once Blu has sat up, he was immediately engulfed in Rei's hug. He hugged her back as several tears fell onto his back, knowing that she could've lost her brother just then. Theta smiled at the sight but remembered her mission. She was to kill Omega and anyone else that got in her way. She knew that both Alpha and Omega were currently residing inside Delta's soul. She lifted her dagger to prepare to throw the killing blow but then stopped. A wave of both an unfamiliar and familiar emotion washed through her. Was it… love? No, it couldn't be. She had been through enough simulations to forget it… right? Uncertainty flooded her mind as she pondered on what to do next.

Theta bit her lip and dropped the dagger. In an instant she was gone and running, wishing that her own father had shown her the same feeling.

…

The Director heard the clink of metal hitting stone and turned to see that Theta had gone. She smiled sadly. Theta still had several things to learn about emotion. Perhaps one day when she wasn't so hostile, Beta and Alpha could help. She turned around and to her surprise, saw new recovery disk lying in the suitcase. Alongside it read a note:

...

I don't think I'm ready. No, not yet. Give me some time to think myself over, and then maybe I'll come to complete my mission and face Omega.

...

Hunter J smiled. She took the new disk and carefully placed it into Sigma's chest. His body glowed for a brief moment before time began to reverse and his arm was as it once was. His optics shone with the familiar green once more, lighting up the unknown journey that was laid before both of them.

…

Blu rubbed the back of his head several times and then his arm. It felt sour for some reason.

'You got hit by a bullet,' the blue guard informed him. Then, in a more cheerful manner, he explained, 'The Director came and then there was this ambush and then-'

'I believe that's enough. I don't think he likes for you to fill up his thoughts,' the green guard chided him. Blu couldn't help but chuckle to himself while the blue guard pouted once more.

"Is something wrong? You seem a little dazed," Rei asked worriedly as she hurried over and put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm fine," Blu replied with a warm smile before gently brushing her hand aside. Meanwhile, the guardians of Alto Mare began to stir.

The Director got up. "I believe that now our job here is done," Hunter J stated. Sigma had already packed up the suitcase and was heading toward the hovercraft.

Blu's concern shot up. "What about the retrieval team?" he asked in concern. He didn't want them to be lurking around in the city.

Sigma closed his eyes and quickly teleported them back to where they came from. He nodded back to Hunter J. She looked back at the disguised Eon. "They've been handled," she replied before heading off with Sigma.

Blu felt a sudden pain come from his chest as if something was trying to get out. Suddenly the pain eased for a moment as a blue flash of light appeared next to him to form a holographic version of the blue guard. "Have a nice trip, Director!" he called out as the smaller hovercraft sunk back into the canals.

"Alpha," the green guard's voice spoke. "What do you think you're doing?"

The blue guard, Alpha, opened his mouth to respond but was cut off by everyone staring at him. He knew he had screwed up big time. A green light appeared as a holographic form of the green guard appeared. Judging from his state, he wasn't very happy.

Lorenzo pinched his eyebrows. "Blu, what is going on?" he asked.

"Can we talk about this later?" Blu asked, desperate to avoid another argument. Lorenzo sighed but agreed. They were all pretty tired after what had happened. They unanimously agreed that everything would be explained tomorrow. Ash's stomach rumbled loudly and everyone laughed. Perhaps the first thing they could worry about was dinner.

Location: Testing Facility- Many years ago…

"Lock Beta up in sector A-5. Don't let Delta get anywhere near her," the Commander ordered. "Prepare Delta for transport to the testing chamber,"

The tube opened and Delta stepped out. It had been years since he had experienced the open air. The armed escorts led him to the electrically activated titanium doors. They opened and Delta was forced through.

The entire room was lined with large white tiles. On the side opposite of him stood two other units who returned his steely gaze. Overhead was a digital scoreboard and an observation room for the Councilman, Sigma, the Director, and the Commander.

There was a whine of the microphone before the Commander spoke. "There is a thirty second delay time for each side to choose their weapons. Delta, your skills will be tested against Omega-2 and Alpha-2. Do not disappoint me," he informed before sitting back into his chair. Everyone else in the room was standing monitoring the stats of every decision Delta made. The future of the project rode on his success.

As usual, Alpha and Omega both drew their favorite weapons. The aura bone rush staff and energy blades, respectively.

Delta looked down at his weapons selection and picked up the pistol. It would be all he needed for his plan. The alarm sounded, signaling the beginning of the match.

Alpha and Omega both rushed toward him, zigzagging at high speeds. Delta knelt down and fired a few shots from his pistol. The bullets simply bounced off of their reinforced armor but it would serve its purpose. He quickly emptied the clip and threw the weapon away.

Inside the observation room, the Commander's raised his eyebrow in surprise. "Sigma, what is he doing?" he asked.

Sigma scrolled through the rows of information on his tablet. "None of our tactics, sir. I think he's making his own," he replied. The Commander frowned at this revelation.

Omega was the first to charge at Delta. His arm shot out with the blade, threatening to cut his throat. Delta back flipped onto the wall. He then used it as a springboard to launch himself back at his attacker. Right at the moment of impact, Delta used Omega's shock to steal one of his blades from him. Both of them landed on their feet.

Alpha came charging at him from the side. Delta raised his hand and a psychic attack broke the bone rush staff and sent him flying back into the wall. Omega took this chance to try to attack, but Delta had seen this coming and quickly dodged out of the way. The two dueled with the same weapons. Neither side gained or lost any ground for a while. Suddenly, Omega lost his grip and as a consequence, received a blade through the chest. His unconscious body slumped to the ground.

Back in the observation room, the Commander was smiling with glee. They had found their perfect soldier at last.

The perfect soldier, however, wasn't going to stay perfect for long. Delta quickly ripped apart the energy blades and took out their main power source. He then ran to the titanium doors and clipped them on. They would serve as EMPs. With a small crackle, the doors opened. The Commander's face fell. Delta was trying to escape again.

With a single code, the entire facility was under lockdown. All the doors leading to the outside world were sealed shut. However, Delta wasn't going to the outside world. He was going to sector A-5. The makeshift EMPs overloaded and fried all the electronics within the facility, forcing the backup generators to turn on. The entire facility was filled with an eerie red glow that night as riot control teams rushed through the hallways hunting down Delta.

…

Delta ran from shadow to shadow, trying his hardest not to be spotted. There! He found the room that held his dear sister, Beta. He moaned in despair when he realized that it was locked by another titanium door and psychic shield created by one of the backup generators. It didn't matter now. He had come too far to stop. He tried his psychic attack but found himself repelled by the shield. He kicked himself for not taking a stronger weapon to blast down the door. He knew that he still couldn't leave for his own escape. His sister would be trapped in the cryogenic chamber forever, waiting for someone to free her from her icy prison. He couldn't bear to think of it like that. He simply couldn't and wouldn't live with that. They both had to be free.

He charged up from the wall and tackled against the door. The force of impact was great enough to just open the door a creak. Delta smiled and took his mask off to wipe the blood from his face. He charged up another tackle and rammed into door once more. After the repeated nightmares in all the simulations he was trapped in, this felt like nothing. He rammed the door again. It bulged a little. He smiled as he felt the cold bite his body. He rammed again. And again. And again. And many more times. The toll of exhaustion was starting to add up. He heard shouts coming from the riot teams as they rushed toward his position.

All his muscles ached. He sighed and leaned against the broken door as he saw 4 figures rushing towards him. He tried to stand up but found that he had lost all energy to do so. His mind slipped into the void of unconsciousness once more.