Chapter 53: Bonds beyond time
Early morning
Kalos
Lumiose City, Sycamore's Laboratory
They were back in the training hall again; Green squinted at the flood lights and scowled at the echoes of shouting trainers and their pokemon. Didn't Sycamore say that they had the place to themselves? Several Kalosian species of pokemon ran a marathon on the treadmills and on the strip of moss green carpet situated on the far side of the complex. Nearer to the back doors, the older professor, Steven and himself stood in a makeshift laboratory. Some of the arenas have been shoved away to make space for a giant monitor and an entire wooden bench held an array of pipettes, ring stands, Bunsen burners and test tube racks. The liquid in the test tubes, Green suspected, contained pokemon blood and he held each cylinder of glass up to the light to examine the contents. One was a toxic shade of purplish-red whilst the other glowed a neon yellow, bioluminescent no doubt. Carefully setting them down, he weaved himself through a series of imaging equipment, his hand brushing the sides of a heart rate monitor; and squeezed in the inner circle. The Kalosian professor talked with a group of doctors and other personnel donned in starched white coats. He heard raised voices and saw a multitude of arms waving about, it appeared as if the other scientists did not approve of Sycamore's experiments and after much more civilized yelling and waving, the posse departed and the slate eyed individual's lips stretched into a wide smile.
"We are good to go!" Augustine cheerfully announced and Green suspected foul play, nonetheless, the aides set to work hooking up rubber tubes and soon, the laminated floor disappeared underneath a mess of wires and flexible pipes. Pokeballs sat cradled onto a table specifically designed to hold them and the Kanto native spied the slightly scuffed up surface of gallade's capsule. He wondered what his co-workers were doing and soon it dawned on him that he had no idea of their actions and intentions. Yesterday, his ebony haired best friend called him up in the middle of the night to beg for Charizard. Mind mulled with sleep, Oak did not have the patience to ask the over enthusiastic commander on his goals and after forking the vermillion dragon over via the PC tucked into the corner of the bedroom, Strategy's leader crawled over to bed and fell asleep. This morning, he found a tepid gallade looking at him through the clear covering of the ball and shrugging, Green pocketed the creature wondering where Red got the fight and psychic type. Now he ruminated on his friends' activities and it irritated him to be kept out of the loop. The pesky woman sure phoned him a hundred times a day, however it served only to irritate him when she blew air kisses and winks, her chthonic subordinate sometimes pitched in to offer helpful fashion advice and the spiky haired brunette switched off his poke-gear before he lost his mind.
Heedlessly, he handed over a pokeball and stewed in his musings. What was Strategy doing? Probably monitoring the internet traffic for information and signs of the police, or, they kept their base in tip top condition and tended to the legendary creatures to ensure their environment remained optimally beneficial to them...Probably...In his mind's eye, Green saw the whole lot of them kicking back and screaming their freedom to the skies. His overworked department would let loose, indulging themselves immoderately and he presumed movie and game marathons taking place instead of work. Inwardly he snorted, perhaps they deserved a break.
An hour later, Green rotated around his mega evolved scizor and felt a rush of euphoria fogging his brain, the insectoid, all gleaming red exoskeleton and bone crushing pincers, morphed into something resembling a living guillotine. The cutting appendages, marginally normal sized, elongated and gained a nasty serrated edge. Its legs, abdomen and forehead gained an extra layer of exoskeleton, coloured black and looking very much like bulletproof material. Fortunately Scizor did not go through any personality changes and remained docile as doctors subjected him to a thorough examination. The creature glanced a few times at its trainer who measured its legs and other body parts, it saw Green's lips twitch briefly and knew for some reason or the other, its master felt irritated. Meticulously returning scizor into a pokeball, the young professor grabbed another ball off the table and resumed his tasks. This time, a trainer had to be called in and instantaneously, the gengar transformed into a white ghost seemingly uglier than its pre-mega evolved form. After analysing ten or so pokemon, Green saw the outline of a major problem. Namely, the capsule monsters would uphold their mega evolved state as long as both trainer and pokemon held the respective stones. Though the process was vestigial, evolving, even temporarily took up a lot of energy and some of the weaker creatures displayed obvious fatigue whilst going through the numerous tests and differential diagnoses. If this evolved state could not be controlled, then like the human form of cancer, it will drain the pokemon of its energy and reduce its lifespan by a fraction and in the long run, the sorry creature may die before its time.
Sycamore nodded at Green's observation, "I've been thinking about the same problem since the beginning of my mega-evolution findings and I've come up with what I deem is a suitable solution...Only, it works erratically." The professor ran a hand through uncombed hair and settled for stroking his stubble whilst thoughtfully boring into the opposite wall, "I thought about how to stop and start the process of mega evolution and make it a controlled state. Do you know about human cell division Green?" The spiky haired brunette nodded and expertly rattled off the five phases of mitosis and the black haired man agreed. "Proto-onco genes..." here the Kalosian native paused, "are the codes prompting the start of cell division, similarly, tumour suppressor cells halt cell division and prevents the cell from becoming cancerous." The man turned and rummaged in the pockets of his lab coat, he extracted a coffee stained piece of paper and handed it over to Green, "I have been developing a code similarly to the above method and you can see the fruit of my efforts." Oak stared blankly at the paper, paragraphs of gibberish and strings of numbers mocked him. "It doesn't make any sense on paper but each time, I alter a paragraph and shoot it into the DNA contained within a mega-stone, so far there have been unsatisfactory results." Pulling up a window on the screen, Augustine showed a few photos and videos of the pokemon tested with new mega stones. Some of the monsters failed to evolve; others evolved partially, some parts of their body parts morphed whilst others stayed the same. Then there were those deemed as failed. Green could not tear his eyes off the monitor, he watched with a mixture of awe and revulsion as a houndoom oscillated between the two forms and eventually died a frothing and twitching mess. Sycamore sure didn't try glossing over his mistakes.
A few hours later Steven and Green found themselves outside the laboratory as the professor waved genially at them from the foyer. After articulating a hurried goodbye, the slate eyed man retreated back into the air-conditioned interior leaving his two guests sweating on the sidewalk and cursing the hot afternoon sun. Green felt stuffy in a long sleeved t-shirt and wished to go back and change, instead and to his alarm, the perpetually well-dressed Steven, who sported a striped dress shirt today, took a few steps forward and stumbled when a litten crashed into his legs. The fire cat's trainer, a child, came screaming several seconds later and bowed several apologies.
"I wonder why Augustine told me to go with you..." Steven turned around and talked to a lamp post, "I would be more of a hindrance than anything else...Beldum come here." The psychic hovered near his hand and Green allowed himself to vent internally for a few minutes before joining the grey haired male on the colourful pavement. How was the handicapped man supposed to travel through the bustling city filled with crowds and the occasional pickpocket? Studying the electronic map displayed near the laboratory, Green traced a route all the way to Shalour City. He scrutinized the routes leading to the coastal town and weighed the best options in his head. Frankly, he was not fond of the gogoat shuttle service and preferred to take motorized vehicles instead. Locating a bus stand in the outer south boulevard, he set out only to spin around and see a missing Steven.
"Steven Stone...Where are you?" he mumbled venomously and spared a glance at his watch, maybe he should've asked Sycamore for a tracker, ducking into one of the narrow alleys lining the laboratory, Green saw the ex-champion confusedly running his ringed hand down brick faces. Sighing, he called out to the older male and grabbed Beldum by its head. Hissing a few threats at the naughty natured pokemon, he explained the way to the bus stop and strode away without looking back.
Afternoon
Sinnoh
Resort area, Constellate's base
Platina marched into the white washed room and beheld her commander deep into a conversation with the two convicts. Bypassing them, she walked over to the three pedestals fixed in the centre of the room and peered into the glass domes. A silver of worry and anxiety crossed her irises, however the emotions swirled away as soon as they came. Uxie, its eyes still in the closed state, angled its head up on hearing noise and the noble retreated, unable to watch the pitiful forms in which the legendary creatures had succumbed to. Blue-grey fur matted with blood and the psychics sat in a pool of their own fluids. Crimson life drained from them and steadily dripped into a ceramic plate, the drops coagulating into glistening crystals. Behind Platinum, Cyrus and Charon raised their voices against Blue, the subordinate heard the hiss and growl of a granbull and the workers delved into silence.
"Tell me..." Blue smoothed out the wrinkles in her leather skirt with deliberate slowness and looked at her manicured nails, "about the Azure flute, I came across the term whilst reading about the time, space and griseous orbs. Apparently this relic is tied with the creator of the universe, Lord Arceus isn't it? I've scoured the internet and even ancient tomes to search for its significance and location...Unfortunately I came up with nothing other than a bare mention of its magnificence." The Kanto native smiled, snowy teeth frightening the daylights out of Charon, "Since you were also studying the creation trio, I am absolutely positive you know more about this artefact than I do so please," she shook her mane of hair backwards, "enlighten me."
Cyrus supressed a tremor wracking his body and proceeded to deny knowing anything about the elusive Azure flute other than that the treasure can and will open up the path to the Hall of Origin. The Hall of Origin is a specific dimension which the unown created by the will of Arceus. It is said that the Original one resides there. On questioning the location of the Hall of Origin Cyrus responded:
"Previously, I traced all myths to the summit of Mount Coronet, which is Spear Pillar...However, on conducting some investigations...this location is not the entrance to the Hall of Origin, it may have been once a gateway to the heavens and other portals but now it simply opens up to the dimensions of three different legendary pokemon. I think...the entrance of the Hall of Origin is situated in Ransei."
"Ransei. Tsk." The brown haired woman uttered a terse sound and lapsed into a contemplative silence. "And the other legendary pokemon you mentioned...Let me guess Giratina, Dialga and Palkia right?" The Galactic leader replied in affirmative. "Hmm...Of all the places in the Poke-verse, it had to be the region ruled by contemptuous nobles and egotistical morons. It's a region wreathed in secrecy and shadows and unless you have a clearance decreed by the King of the region, you cannot get in, even if you happened to be Professor Samuel Oak!" She blew a strand of hair away from her face. "Well, I guess it's a rather obscure topic to talk about, but our dear Red is too short sighted to come up with a plan B should this one fail and so it is up to me to search for a different way. Get back to work and toodles!" Blue got up, more cheerful than before she entered the room; and sashayed out of the chamber with Platina following regally behind her. The aristocrat gazed at the two prisoners with mild contempt and Charon got the feeling that she reminded them of their place. If wearing striped uniforms and being forced to do back breaking research weren't enough reminders...
The sharp taps of Blue's heels muffled when she stepped on the velvet carpet in Constellate's common room. Silver sat hunched with a laptop on the coffee table and held a video call with someone else. On seeing his sister enter, the red head spun the device around and Emerald piped a hello from the screen.
"Hi Emerald" Blue greeted and lowered herself on the white divan whilst Platina placed a few books on the table, taking her place opposite Ruby, the two sifted through old documents and ancient texts in order to find worthy information on the elusive Azure flute. "How is the rest of the team doing?" Constellate's commander waved at several others who tried to join the conversation, alas, the miniscule blonde pushed them back.
"We are doing fine...More importantly, Silver asked me to search the web for mentions of the Azure Flute...Unfortunately, I found nothing in mainstream internet so I had to get my hands dirty. First things first...how much are you gonna pay me?" The brown haired woman chortled and the two shared a devious grin whilst Silver snarled and urged them to hurry up. "Sorry, that was a joke, but seriously, I almost busted my computer trying to secure these snippets of classified stuff. Gah, the deep web crawls with nasty viruses and Trojans. Anyway, I've already e-mailed the contents to you, the info is secured by a straightforward encryption which I'm sure Silver can solve and I've even gone and researched up on the locations associated with the Azure Flute. I hacked into two of those websites and downloaded detailed maps of the buildings. Good luck on whatever you want to do and by the way...does senior Green or Red know about this?"
Blue confirmed everything Emerald told her and started downloading the several files emailed to her account, "Of course not, I'm doing this as a side project...well I actually wanted to use the Azure Flute as a secondary plan but first I need to have the artefact in my hands to confirm its use. Do you think they will let me do this? Red would fuss over the dangers and other un-necessities whilst Green will recite a list of one hundred and one reasons on why my project is a total waste of time." She snorted and rolled her eyes expressively, "Now that I'm free from their nagging and over-shadowing, I'll go ahead and see what I'm capable of. Ooohhh! I'm getting excited." Blue rubbed her hands akin to an evil mastermind and Silver smiled on seeing her back into the thick of things. "Thanks for all the information Rald, I'll be sure to get you something you like!" The call ended, Silver took the laptop from his sister and immediately began working on the encryption code, as the strategy member promised, it was fairly easy and before long, the brother and sister duo stared at the picture of what was supposed to be a legendary flute and the object capable of hauling Lord Arceus into their dimension.
"It looks ugly." Silver intoned and Ruby, who squeezed himself next to the red head, grimaced.
The flute did not look like one at all, instead, it resembled a hollow lump with smaller tubes set into it. The pipes looked like the ones that grew out of explouds' head, Platina pointed out, and the rest agreed. For a royal artefact, the Azure Flute, also known as the Heaven flute, did not appear the least bit magnificent or awe-inspiring. And the material of the flute...judging by the brown tones, Platina suggested it was made out of clay.
"Alright, time to gear up for a mission people" Blue announced and the rest of the team moved with soldier like accuracy and took their place around the glass topped coffee table. The commander printed out the sheets and distributed them. The members picked their documents up, skimmed through the contents and before she could initialize the meeting; her subordinates already memorized the core requirements of the mission and Silver, the most experienced of them, had the map of the Veilstone building flashing in his head. "We still have a lot we don't know about the Azure Flute. What we do know is that this object is extremely valuable and much sought after and even if it fails in its original purpose, we can sell it to the black markets for an exorbitant amount of money." None of the Dex-criminals twitched, "Emerald sent me a whole bunch of myths and legends and we need to confirm what is true and what is utter rubbish." Blue tapped her nails on the table and waited for a question and as expected, none came. "The first mission is to gather intel...Who wants to go?" Ruby and Platina raised their hands and the blue eyed leader nodded. "Platina, I'll leave the planning up to you" Saying this, Blue nodded and motioned for her brother to follow her. Leaving the two teenagers engrossed in their preparation, the Kanto and Johto natives huddled near the back of the room and spoke in hushed tones.
"You want me to secure the area and provide back up if necessary?" Silver asked incredulously and tangled his fingers in the chain around his neck. "Why? They are almost as good as I am."
"Hush!" His sister fiercely whispered in return, "Yes I know they are more than adequate but...I'm worried about Ruby, this is the first major mission he is going on after his father's paralysis and I'm just...Worried about his mental state you know. He might give the impression that he does not care but deep down inside it may eat him alive." She quickly glanced at the fashionista and watched him as he checked the equipment and gadgets needed for their mission tonight. "Out of all of us, Ruby has the most fighting potential and the only reason he made it into Constellate is because he hates battling. Monitor him closely please; I don't want one of my best agents getting caught by the police simply because he had a panic attack in the middle of the mission. If you notice any weird signs, evacuate him immediately and explain the situation to Platina afterwards. Understood?"
"Roger sis...I understand."
Late afternoon
Kalos
Outskirts of Shalour City
Steven could hear enthralled gasps from the people around him as they neared the coastal metropolis. He sat ramrod straight in his seat and clutched beldum close to him. With so many people sitting on the bus, an accident may happen and it made him nervous. He could feel Green's tension and irritation and the brunette slowly eased into relaxation as the walled city loomed up. The ex-champion smiled involuntarily, Shalour City painted the perfect picture of what a coastal town should look like, the entire community was cordoned off from the sea by the presence of a large stone wall. The ancient structure had eroded in some places and Steven recalled scrutinizing the grey rock to determine the composition of the wall. Beyond the city, the sea spread out into a vast carpet of blue and white waves. The man fidgeted with his tie and listened to the rumbling of the bus coupled with muted, exited conversation. Of course he couldn't see the beautiful views everyone else held their breath for, but he remembered them and he comforted himself with images conjured up in his mind.
What did blind people see?
Totally blind people saw nothing.
Like him.
Not even black.
Researchers could argue about him being able to perceive light and they did, when his Dad took long vacations from his work and shunned important meetings; Mr Stone deemed his son more important than politics and discussing the latest profit goals. Steven had been flown from one institution to the other as his father struggled to understand the concept of being blind. No, one specialist told him, your son can't see anything, he sees nothing. Nothing, not even the colour black. Others argued, yes! Of course your Steven Stone can see! Just not like normal people...Look, he can perceive very bright light in the form of lighter bands.
The truth? Steven didn't know himself, he didn't know what he saw.
Nothing.
And he hated himself for it.
The chatter in the bus swelled in volume and he tensed as Green shifted next to him. After Archie slashed his eyes, the grey haired man noticed his increased perception in other areas. He could feel things at a more acute level and his hearing seemed to have magnified to epic proportions. A sigh told him a million things, the crinkle of material whispered a thousand possibilities when before, they only gave off the faintest impression that someone moved. His sense of smell also sharpened and Steven lamented the fact when he walked into his elite four compound. The cloying smell of Sidney's aftershave did not blend well with the tart aroma of Phoebe's cinnamon cookies. And the dark skinned girl made sure she baked a batch of them every day in order to donate them to a charity home for blind people. At first, Steven felt humiliated by her gesture but later on realized that it was a roundabout way of showing her support.
"You are now entering Shalour City! Welcome to the city of awakening!" A smooth robotic voice droned and all around Steven, the passengers gathered their things as the vehicle ambled its way to the terminal. The once international officer let beldum go and the metal beast levitated in the air. The bus came to a complete halt and the crowd vacated in an orderly manner. Once again, Steven tasted irritation from the male seated next to him, after everyone else exited; he got up and put his hands out. Beldum slid under one hand whilst he used the other to feel his surroundings, with uncharacteristic slowness; he fumbled his way across the short aisle and to the door. Standing on the threshold, he prepared to step out when another voice alerted him:
"Be careful, there are three steps leading down." Nodding a thanks, he departed from the bus without incident and waited for Green to do the same. For some reason, hearing young Oak's voice put him on an edge; he had never heard the prodigy's voice before however it seemed very familiar...In a cave? The younger male pulled him across to an information board and somehow the Hoenn native stared straight ahead and imagined himself studying the words displayed on the electronic pane.
"Why don't you use a cane?" Oak set off and dragged him along with one hand, the grip hurt.
"I'm not sure." The steel eyed man answered and tried to keep up with the brisk pace. They were in one of the streets leading to the gym and he tried to remember the layout and surroundings. The bustling street was lined with tall French houses on either side, some of the buildings sported tiles and others had the traditional sunshades in eye watering colours of bright red, white and blue. Quaint cafes and boutiques bordered the road and Steven wrinkled his nose on catching the whiff of fabric softener intermingled with the warm smell of coffee and the pungent stench of over ripe fruit. A fruit stall? Was it here the last time he came? "I'm not sure why I don't use a cane..." he repeated and Oak slowed down, "although I can assure you, it's not to protect my already wounded pride. I might end up whacking people with it." He laughed laconically.
Green stopped abruptly at a cross road. "This city is beautiful" he added and the blind man agreed solemnly.
Even though he could see nothing.
Turning left into one of the quieter streets in town, the professor twisted backwards and spoke: "The gym is up ahead...Should I...Uh...Guide you to it or are you fine on your own?" The spiky haired brunette squirmed in discomfort and the older male gave him a genial smile.
"No thanks, I'll manage on my own."
"You are talking to a bush..." Green whispered under his breath, out loud he said: "You should consider using your own pokemon as a guide because this government issued beldum is having a field day by leading you astray." Strategy's leader drew in a breath and his arm shot out, catching the snickering beldum between the ball of its head and the rest of the body. A vicious chop to its spindly neck sent the metal beast smacking downwards on the paved path and it guaranteed an instant coma. The man breathed a sigh of relief, one annoyance out of the way. Lowering his arm, Oak instantly regretted his actions as the ex-champion stared forlornly at the beldum crashed on the pavement; the cyborg emitted faint sparks and leaked a dark fluid. Steven...Couldn't see right? So why did his face twist with such pain?
Seconds later, the two men meandered down the path and Green occasionally glanced back to check the grey haired male's progress. Metagross did a far better job than that nuisance of a beldum and the duo alighted before the engraved doors of a rather lavish looking gym. A maroon dome had a golden rod attached to it and a flag fluttered from the spire. On seeing the crest, the Kanto native stopped cold, fortunately his companion didn't bump into him. Good old metagross did his work impeccably.
"Is there anything wrong?"
"No..." Green answered, "I'm simply surprised to know that Gym leader Korrina is part of the Elite nobles of Ransei...Why is she here in Kalos? I thought the blue bloods did not mingle with ordinary people."
"Oh...I'm sorry, did my status as a Ransei noble scare you?" The doors opened of their own accord and Strategy's commander hastily sidestepped to avoid a lemon-yellow blur of hair. The teenager girl half crashed into Steven Stone who, understandably, could not move in time. Despite her ungainly introduction, the girl picked herself up with grace befitting a noble and swept her voluminous shock of hair away to reveal a petite face and smiled. "Sycamore sent you here didn't he? The old coot never knows when to give up!" Unstrapping the pair of rollerblades glued to her feet, she beckoned them inside. "Pardon my language, I'm tired of people wanting to know about mega-evolution...however, the Pokemon association of this region made an appeal and I am bound by it. Come on in, I'll explain to you everything you need to know about mega evolution.
Well, Steven thought, that was easy.
When he stepped inside, the hum of machinery greeted him and the ex-officer stood still. Metagross still gripped him comfortably but Steven felt utterly lost. The building closed in on him and such unfamiliar surroundings sent a tingle up his spine. Senses on high alert, he followed Korrina and Green's footsteps as the ascended on what felt like a platform. The gym remained eerily quiet, no one apart from the three of them were in here. After crossing the rail, Korrina peered backwards to see one of her guests teetering dangerously close to the edge. The half psychic and metal monster who guided him appeared disorientated by its surroundings and the teen inwardly grinned. Battle tactics, her gym had been equipped with psychic ability jammers enclosed within the plastic traffic cones situated around the rails and anyone who came in here entertaining the thought of an easy victory, got their inflated egos smacked back to them. The Hoenn native safely made it over the metal catwalk and joined the posse at the back of the gym.
"Are you really blind?" the fight type gym leader quizzed as she busied herself in punching a password, a section of the back wall slid apart to reveal an extravagantly decorated chamber. A piece of Ransei no doubt.
"Should I walk into a wall to prove my disability to you?" Steven snarked in return, he got tired of the questions, the suspicions and pity people heaved on him. He could feel both of them tensing with a mixture of sympathy and guilt. "Could we get a move on?" His tone turned crisp, "I want to return to Lumiose City before the day ends." Brushing past them, he entered the enclosed room, pulled out a throne-esque chair and sat in it. Green and Korrina followed, the former slightly taken aback by the grandeur of the chamber.
"Mega evolution..." The blonde began and dropped a few tomes on the walnut table placed between her and the guests, "is a condition which triggers when a pokemon is in a dire state. Since ancient times, this phase functioned as a defensive or offensive mechanism, depending on the creature; and allowed the beasts to bring out their full potential." Flipping through a book, she ran her hand down a row of antediluvian words and passed the tome to Green who blanked out on seeing such ancient scriptures, ignoring the vacuous expression on his face, the girl pointed to a picture stained with age and continued speaking, "this evolution process is as old as time itself. It is suspected that having the Original one rest in Ransei somehow altered their DNA. All legendary pokemon radiate different frequencies of power and this has effects on the living things around them. As for Arceus, he allowed the beasts to temporarily morph into a state which pushes pokemon to their limits and bestows them capabilities beyond their own." She stopped speaking and nodded to them and made sure they kept up with her words, "Professor Sycamore already told you all of this right?"
The two males nodded their heads.
"I see, so let me tell you why the pokemon of Ransei still retain this vestigial evolution." Opening another leather bound scripture, Korrina waved a cloud of dust away and skimmed past several pages. "One of the main reasons is that-"
"What?" Steven and Green burst out together, "The pokemon of Ransei can mega evolve without aid?" the younger of the two quizzed with incredulity lacing his voice.
"Yes-"
"How?" they cut in again, their visages twisted with surprise and the faintest hint of disbelief.
"If you will let me explain, then I'd happily inform you." She inhaled and added, "The main reason why Ransei's pokemon can evolve without the use of...Mega stones...Is because we don't force our pokemon into pokeballs and we only have two partners at most. The ancient warring times have long since died out and due to this, pokemon do not have the constant threat to their survival and so they do not have much need for mega evolving. Consorting with humans gave them a new purpose and they will gladly fight till the death for someone they hold high esteem for. The bond between a trainer and their pokemon is the first and most surest trigger for a modern day mega evolution to take place and this fact also holds true for the monsters in Ransei...However, ours is an already controlled, no aid process whilst down here people are still struggling to understand how and why it works. Mega evolution first came into being when the first pokemon who roamed Ransei were irradiated by Arceus' power, from there, breeding and evolution spread pokemon far and wide and only those who stayed in the Original one's resting place were still capable of mega evolution." She closed her book and beheld them, "This is all simple and I'm sure Sycamore knows all of this and yet he pesters me for more information."
"We didn't know that mega evolution stemmed from Arceus..." Steven rubbed the bridge of is scarred nose, "Augustine suspected a link between Ransei and mega evolution and you gave us more than we bargained for. Now we know that Arceus is responsible for mega evolution and pokemon who live in Ransei are more powerful than most. How do they co-exist with humans outside of capsules?" Even though he was blind, Korrina could see the inquisitive gleam in his dulled irises.
"Do not ask any more questions, I told you what you wanted to know and now you have to return. Hopefully this bit of information will stay in the laboratory and not get blown to the media. Please," her voice quivered ever so slightly, "you have to understand that the nobles of Ransei will do anything to keep their pride and secrets behind locked rooms and dead bodies." Her light grey irises shifted to Green, "you can be the son of a famous professor and if they found out that you know the origin of mega evolution...they won't hesitate to assassinate you and make the incident look like an accident. You have been warned."
"I'm Samuel Oak's grandson actually" Green corrected her.
A chill ran down Steven's spine and he gripped the plush couch with one hand to steady himself...Something lurked in the shadows, a beast of enormous power and he sensed it. The invisible energy pounded his cranium like a hammer and the monster prowled around the room, hiding itself behind intricately woven silk screens and slinking along in the alcoves.
"Thank you very much" The ex-champion got up, he wanted to leave as soon as possible, "we will make sure none of this ever leaks out." Pushing back the chairs, metagross guided him and as he stepped out of the exuberant room, he heard it.
A faint murderous growl.
Evening
Sinnoh
Eterna Laboratory
No one spared her a glance as she waltzed through the double glass sliding doors with the tail end of her high-low dress flaring out behind her. The georgette material swirled around her like mauve liquid as she came to a stop before an ornate reception desk. Accepting a card, the inattentive receptionist snapped to attention and quickly gave her clearance. Moments later, another individual walked into the lobby carrying a luxurious trolley and glanced around, spying the stiff faced female, he saluted and hurried after her as she turned around and made for the elevator situated in the far corner of the lobby. Two cameras followed their every move and a third one monitored them closely as the elevator doors hissed shut. Platina and Ruby relaxed their rigid stances and used the brief, undisturbed ride upwards to confirm their plan.
"Well, being your servant certainly has its merits...I feel rich." Ruby piped and examined his reflection on the steel surface, tipping his courier hat which he embellished with jewels and a fancy silver chain. The rest of his servant's outfit consisted of a pressed short sleeved shirt and loose fitting slacks. A thick belt looped around his waist and the fashionista spent no time in pinning up badges and sticking fake semi-precious stones on it. "You are absolutely sure they won't double check us? And this meeting, a large scale information trade is it?" The male brushed his fringe to the side taking great care to hide his scar, "We are lucky it took place today, I know your family deals with such things but you don't make much of a public appearance, won't the people be suspicious?"
"No they will not" Platina carefully arranged the string of sparkling stones around her neck, "the Berlitz family owns information trading on most of the regions and I have the power and authority to bankrupt anyone who thinks otherwise...My appearance will raise some questions but I have the angles covered, besides, few people will dare question me and with a servant around, it adds more credit to my presence." Ruby snorted and gave her a lopsided smile. "Please remember our mission begins at night, I am positive we will not procure any information on the Azure Flute in this gathering. When the meeting begins, slip out with some excuse, find a guard and steal their key card...I'm sure you know what to do next." Her senior nodded and the inky haired girl glanced upwards to see them nearing their destination. "Stand up straight and please remember to keep tight lipped at all times." She herself angled her face upwards in a perfect show of arrogance and elegantly stepped out into a carpeted hallway. As expected, the attendance of the esteemed heir of the Berlitz family caused a ripple of commotion and several well-dressed young men, all around her age, made a move towards her and whipped out flowers and other presents faster than Ruby could blink. Snickering silently, the crimson eyed teenager posted himself in front of an impassive looking Platina and stared the other aristocrats down. The males eyed him snobbishly before backing down and the two criminals shared a knowing look. Five minutes later, Platinum Berlitz became the sole centre of interest as the members of the information trade all vied for her approval on several juicy and borderline illegal bits of information. When the commotion reached its peak, Ruby, who stood faithfully next to her at all times, went close to her and whispered a few words. She nodded her consent and he extracted himself from the money reeking crowd and slunk to the door.
Burly guards eyeballed him and he held up his hand, "I have permission to leave the room from Miss Berlitz" Ruby said and they ignored him, "if anyone of you wants to escort me to the toilet I'd be happy to oblige...that or," his mien took a sadistic grin, "you can tell my master why you refused to let me go." The armed personnel shifted uncomfortably before politely allowing him to exit the room. Outside, the blood eyed adolescent located the nearest bathroom and pulled the trolley with him. Ducking into a cubicle, he stripped off his designer uniform and opted for the drab outfit of a cleaner. Slapping on a peak cap to half hide his face, he took off the outer covering of the trolley and threw it outside a window. Dragging the plain case behind him, he set off for the lower floors and halted on spying a guard lazily twirling a baton.
The man looked bored beyond words.
Leaving the carrier, he approached the half asleep individual and asked for directions. "Tch! Cleaners these days have no respect for the guards who keep this place safe!" the warden grumbled and pointed him to the right, "Take a right laddie and the next time you sign up for a job, make sure you know your location th-" Ruby delicately pulled out a syringe and swiped the keycard peeking temptingly out of the top pocket. Bowing to the unconscious guard, he grabbed his trolley again and confirmed his destination on the palmtop concealed in his hand.
The guardsman crowded in the monitor room all jumped up when a cleaner carrying a luggage case entered the highly protected chamber. The steel door hissed shut behind the lone adolescent and at once several of the security leapt up, aimed weapons at him and simultaneously released their pokemon. Tiny gible bared their teeth along with hawk eyed luxios and growling sheildons. The shield pokemon made a barricade between the intruder and the rest of the room. Between his legs, a feline pokemon fondly rubbed against the trespasser and he intoned something in a low voice. Instantaneously, delacatty yowled out a melodious, mournful tune and before anyone had the sense to attack the creature, they all keeled over like dominoes and fell into a comatose sleep.
Ruby took out the earplugs and tossed them into the nearest bin. Going over to the pile of bodies, he checked the pockets of each of them before selecting the master keycard and letting his Nana chew the rest. Wiring himself with a microphone and earpiece, he spoke:
"All clear, I'm in the monitoring room and I'm setting up the laptop so that Rald can hack into the security...And by the way, there is a dude sneaking up from behind you."
Twenty floors above, a voice layered with static bled through her earrings and she whisked around and pinned the low-life human with an accusatory gaze. The flabbergasted man wisely retreated backwards and took his seat at the far end of the table. A ghost of a smile formed on her lips, before midnight, they would be the owners of a horde of priceless information.
A/N: Much gratitude to DarkusThunder for alerting the story, hopefully the story continues to be a pleasant read. At Guest: I don't mind at all! It's interesting to see what speculations the readers come up with. And I didn't actually read the B2/W2 arc in the manga, in fact I didn't finish the B/W arc. I read up on key points and characters while I was planning this story. As for Whi-2, she's an ordinary girl. About Lack-2, if I say anymore, it's going to end up as spoilers. And Red, lol, lets first see how things play out :P I don't dislike Lack-2 and when writing, I try to portray the characters true to their personalities and the way I view them. Sometimes this gets very difficult as a writer generally doesn't want to show their characters in bad light. Then I go back and read their personality sketches so that I can get a wake-up call. I also like to write characters from an introspective view as it gives reasons to why they do certain things. At Jack54311: Lack-2 said he wanted to be a cop when he grows up and Blue thought there is plenty of time to egg him down another, less respectable profession. Kidnapping Lack-2 isn't the only stupid thing Blue is going to do. At Eevee: Heh, I'm happy thanks to your review :D and I wish you the same. Be happy and stay awesome! At AceTrainerLeaf: The reason for Red wanting to burn down the league will be revealed in the next chapter, I actually like samurott, I associate it with noblesse and having it freeze like that also made for a funny mental image. Ah, Red is OP as usual :) At Professor Oak: Good one! This totally made my day :P
Virtual cookies and cake for all. Leave a line to tell me your thoughts and much gratitude for all those who read and reviewed.
