"Cedrick! Wake up! We're supposed to be getting ready!" Wyatt rips the covers off of his blonde-haired friend.
"ZZZZzzzzzz….. Huh?" Cedrick groggily lifts his head up. He stares up at Wyatt with crusty, half-lidded eyes. "Oh, is it time to go?"
"It's been 'time to go' for almost twenty minutes! I don't know about you, but I really don't want to keep Lusamine waiting.", Wyatt says, impatiently. He checks both of their backpacks to make sure all the Shadow pokeballs are accounted for.
"Yeah, I hear ya, dude." Cedrick lazily shifts around in the bed.
"Ugh. We don't even know what pokemon most of these pokeballs hold. We're gonna either sound like complete idiots or horrible liars trying to explain our situation to her.", Wyatt worriedly says.
"Well, one of the agents mentioned that Aether Foundation's dealt with these Shadow pokemon before. Surely we're not the first trainers to end up with some.", Taral says as he checks himself over in the bathroom mirror. He sees nothing out of the ordinary, but that does little to dissuade his worry.
Maybe I can ask Lusamine when we meet her? There has got to be a way to break my LINK with that damn crystal!, Taral thinks as he stares into his own eyes in the mirror.
He notices tiny little flecks of green in his otherwise bluish-gray irises. He blinks a few times and gets as close to the mirror as he can to get a closer look. They're small, but they're unmistakably there. The sight makes his heart sink with dread, but he elects to push it all to the back of his mind for now.
I'll have plenty of time to process all of this after we speak with Lusamine.
Another, louder knock rings out from the door.
"Yeah, we're almost out! Sorry for the-"
"Can I come in?" A woman's voice can be heard from the other side.
"Uh, sure-"
The door opens before Wyatt can fully respond. A tall, slender woman with flowing blonde hair walks into the room. It flows around her, almost like a cape, ending well below her waist. She sports a bright white skirt and stockings with high heels. A dark green gem can be seen embedded in her chest, pulsing with an eerie green light. Five pokeballs are clipped to her belt, along with a comically small purse.
She does not waste any time introducing herself, instead opting to get straight into the heart of the matter.
"Alright, so there's a few courses of action we can take here. We can have our expert pokemon handlers slowly gain their trust and cure their condition naturally, which could take months, if not years…" Lusamine rolls her eyes at the thought.
"Wait…. Who are you?" Cedrick rolls out of bed completely, his dusty blonde hair a twisted mess. He rubs his eyes as he tries to make sense of the tall woman who was definitely not there a few moments ago.
"Oh, where are my manners? I'm Lusamine, President of Aether Foundation. Anyway, where was I?" Lusamine thinks for a moment, trying to get back on track.
"...what's the other option?", Wyatt asks as he grabs a shadow pokeball.
"The other option? Oh, right! I'm glad you asked!" Lusamine's face lights up at his question, eager to answer. "So, we have an experimental operation running called the Delta Project. You all know how certain species have regional variants, right?"
Wyatt and Cedrick give her a confused look, but Taral doesn't hesitate to answer.
"Yes! Regional variants, like Alolan Vulpix, are pokemon that have developed drastic adaptations to survive in a new region, effectively turning them into a new species. The Alolan variant of Vulpix, for example, became an Ice type to survive in the cold mountaintops, where it hid away to avoid people."
"Indeed!" Lusamine turns to look at him, her eyes resting on his foreign garb.
"Are you from Ransei, perchance?", Lusamine asks.
Taral nods. "I am. Stowed away on a ship to get here."
"Oh?" Lusamine walks up to the window, parting the blinds to get a better view. "Can't say I blame you. Let me guess; you found the customs of your homeland suffocating and came here to live the life you wanted?"
"Um…. yeah, pretty much. I didn't aim for Alola specifically, but now that I'm here, I'm glad this is where we ended up. How did you know about all that?", Taral asks.
"Considering you clearly have an abundant knowledge of pokemon, it's not too difficult to connect the dots. We've gotten quite a few Ranseians who've transferred here from various Ranseian universities just to be literally anywhere else.", Lusamine says.
"Oh? Is this place also an institution of learning?", Taral asks.
"Indeed. We don't just accept people with degrees obtained elsewhere. The only way to earn a position here at Aether Foundation is to pass our internal courses." She smiles as she looks down at Taral.
"We're always accepting new applicants."
Taral blinks a few times, realizing the meaning behind her words. "Good to know! I'll have to take some time to think about it, though. I'm not completely sure what I want to do yet." He backs off while averting his gaze, unable to meet hers.
"Well, the offer's always there, in case you change your mind. Anyway, back to the Delta Project. By exposing pokemon to the Essence of other types, we can essentially force a spontaneous, but permanent, change in typing. I won't bore you with the specifics, but this very same process can banish the Malignant Aether within them, purifying their hearts. Obviously, this is not an intended effect of the Delta Project but is more of a byproduct.", Lusamine says.
"So, it permanently changes their typing at random, but lt'll get rid of all the condensed evil they've been injected with?", Cedrick asks, fully awake.
"It's not 'Evil', per se. It's…. Well, we call it 'Aether'." Lusamine walks up to the backpack lying in the middle of the room, grabbing one of the pokeballs.
"This is one of the Shadow Pokemon, correct?", she asks.
Wyatt nods. "We're, uh, not sure what most of them contain."
Lusamine stares into the glossy reflective surface, watching as the button pulses red.
"Hmm. These must be a newer generation of Shadow pokemon. Cypher has always used modified pokeballs to contain their experiments, but the modifications were always obvious. But these are absolutely immaculate. No discerning tool marks or anything. Just this ominous red glow on the button." She makes her way toward the door, keeping the pokeball clutched tightly in her hand.
"Follow me, please. It's about time we found out what each of these pokeballs contain. Don't worry, we'll be doing it safely."
The four of them follow closely behind her. Wyatt picks up the backpack, slinging it around his shoulders.
"Oh, hello!" Lusamine notices Stella, and holds her hand out towards her. "It's not often you see a Smeargle. Is this your starter?" She looks at Taral.
"Uh, yeah. You can say that. I rescued her from a neglectful owner." He keeps a close eye on Stella, not sure how she'll react. She backs away from the strange woman, unwilling to extend any degree of trust.
"Sorry, she's kind of shy.", Taral says.
Lusamime pulls her hand away. "It's fine. She seems very healthy. I can tell you're taking good care of her."
Lusamine continues her explanation as she leads them down the sterile white halls of the Aether Foundation HQ. "So, one thing I should mention is that the mutation process is not random. We have full control over what alternative types we can inject into them, but we'll have to run each one through a special machine to determine what types they would be most compatible with."
Cedrick smiles as he listens. "So…. you're saying we get to pick?"
Lusamine nods. "The lower compatibility options will be out of the question, but you'll likely have at least 3 or so to choose from. And yes, dual type Deltas are entirely doable. Even single-type species can take on two completely foreign typings, erasing their original typing completely. The opposite is also possible."
"Are there any side effects we should look out for?", Taral asks.
"Well, generally Delta's can't produce offspring, except with a Ditto that's undergone the Delta conversion process. Other than that, they're generally pretty healthy. Sometimes, you'll get one that has some minor complications controlling their powers, but we have the proper facilities onsite to care for any of them if any such complications crop up." Lusamine's voice is smooth and intelligent, like that of a salesperson.
"You said that purifying Shadow pokemon was only an unintended consequence of the Delta Project. What's the primary objective?", Wyatt asks.
There is a long silence before Lusamine forms a response. "I'm afraid the details are confidential information. While I want to see these pokemon purified just as much as you do, I also have obligations to Aether Foundation as a company, and keeping sensitive information a secret is one of them." She looks down at the seemingly innocuous pokeball.
"...but the gist of it is that the Delta Project is meant to help us understand Pokemon. That's all you need to know."
She leads them down a flight of stairs down into the lower levels of the facility. While the white and gold ascetic is maintained, the decor is notably less flashy. The floors are not pristinely polished, but are more of a dull, off-white. The Aether Foundation logo embossed on the floor in a pattern has lost its sheen. Various agents in white jumpsuits roam about the halls, going about their business. A few of them give Lusamine a surprised look as she walks past, but Lusamine pays them no mind.
"Now, with that being said, I would like you all to keep the existence of these Shadow pokemon a secret. While we understand the nature of your situation, there are others, namely those that enforce the League Sovereignity's laws, that would consider you suspect for even knowing these exist. As you surely understand, this is for your safety as much as it is for ours." Lusamine looks at the three of them.
"Can you promise me that? Even if it seems like informing third parties of these pokemon would be a good idea, I can assure you it would do more harm than good."
"I get ya! We promise not to tell anyone.", Cedrick says, speaking for the group.
Lusamine looks to the other two, expectantly.
"Yes. Of course. We promise." Wyatt says. Taral nods, too. "Yeah. We promise."
Lusamine smiles. "Good. There is one more thing I want to clear up, in regards to how you got these." Lusamine walks up to a heavy-duty mechanical security door. She puts her pokegear up to the keypad, and a small jolt of electricity arcs from the device to the keypad itself. A small light flashes green, and the doors open with a pneumatic hiss.
As they walk in, the lights automatically flip on, bathing the room in a harsh, fluorescent white light. A table rests in an empty room with several chairs. The opposite wall is made of thick glass, and another empty room rests on the other side.
"The agent that notified me of your situation mentioned you spoke with a man named Wes. I'd like to know everything that happened leading up to how you ended up in Alola with these pokemon; especially anything related to this man." Lusamine sits on the other end of the table, gesturing for them to sit with her.
"Let me start from the beginning, then." Wyatt takes a seat in the middle chair, dropping the backpack on the table. "So, Cedrick and I are from Orre. I don't know if you've been there, but there isn't really much to do. We had talked about getting off Orre since we were kids to become pokemon trainers, but we'd never really considered going through with it. That was, until Cedrick found out a ship was docking in a nearby pier that would be stopping at another region. He stocked up on enough food and water for the both of us, and we snuck on."
Lusamine nods as he speaks, listening intently.
Cedrick follows up, finishing the story. "We hid in a cargo crate and that 'Wes' guy found us. He gave us instructions to wait until the boat crossed into this weird multi-colored storm, at which point the boat was attacked by these strange pokemon we've never seen before. We had to sneak into the lower deck of the boat and retrieve these shadow pokeballs from two briefcases. We were told to keep them, but he didn't mention why. He just wanted the Shadow pokemon out of the picture, I guess."
Lusamine pulls a notepad and pencil out of her purse, writing a few things down. "So, going back to the strange storm and pokemon that attacked, you mentioned you didn't recognize them. Can you describe them to me?"
Stella rapidly slaps the table to get everyone's attention. She holds her paws out for the notepad.
"...alright." Lusamine tears off a couple sheets of blank paper and hands her a pen.
"So, in the meantime, I'd like to ask a question regarding Wes." Lusamine boots up her pokedex.
"Mobius, pull up the picture of Wes that was taken by one of our agents."
A robotic voice buzzes from the device. "Here you go, miss Lusamine."
"So, the man you met looked like this, correct?" She shows them her pokegear, pointing to a slightly blurry image of a man in a long blue coat with a chromed metallic apparatus on his head. A holographic HUD can be seen in front of his face, but it only faintly shows up on the picture. His left arm is normal. No cybernetics whatsoever.
"That definitely looks like the guy we met, but something's off…." Cedrick rubs his chin as he stares at the image on the screen.
"When we met him he had some sort of…. I believe the term would be a 'prosthetic'? His left arm was made of metal and machinery."
Lusamine smiles, jotting something down in her notebook. "Understood. Anything else you feel should be mentioned?"
The three of them go silent, trying to think of anything else to say. The sound of Stella's frantic scribbling fills the room.
"Um… one of the pokeballs houses a Rockruff. It wasn't originally a Shadow pokemon. Well, I guess none of them were, but the Rockruff in particular used to be mine. I got it off of an old merchant lady who stopped by Orre one day. It ran off and for a while I assumed I would never see it again. I don't know how Cypher managed to get a hold of it, but I wanted it to be my starter, and still do. I just hope it doesn't run away this time.", Wyatt says.
"Don't worry. I'm sure once it's cured it'll be much friendlier. Rockruffs are extremely loyal pokemon when raised with care. Treat it right and it'll return the favor." Lusamine says, reassuringly.
Stella places the pencil down on the table and slides a piece of paper towards Lusamine.
"Hm?" She picks up the paper, holding it up for the others to see. It depicts the Guzzlord fighting off the crew's pokemon with various Poipole flying about. Lusamine's eyes light up with recognition, but she does not elaborate on their details.
"Interesting. Are these meant to be accurate depictions or did you take some artistic liberties with this drawing?"
Stella frowns and huffs, her tail twitching in frustration.
Lusamine giggles, unable to hide her laughter. "Don't worry, I'm just kidding. In all seriousness, these creatures are incredibly dangerous. They're known as Ultra Beasts and they don't belong to this world. We're not entirely sure where they come from, but one thing's for certain; that storm you went through while on that ship was no normal storm. If you ever see weather like that again, avoid it at all costs." Her voice is dead serious as she stares at the three of them from across the table.
"Am I understood?"
They all nod yes, including Stella.
"Very good. Now, with all that out of the way, it's time to find out what these pokeballs contain."
She gets up, pointing a thumb towards the glass wall behind her. "This glass is special. Not only is it highly resistant to attacks, it also allows pokemon to be released and retrieved through it. We use these rooms to examine dangerous pokemon safely."
She grabs one of the Shadow balls at random and presses the button.
A crimson red light extends from the ball, phasing through the glass. It coalesces into a Ralts with dark purple hair. Two piercing red eyes glow from underneath. Its head slowly swivels around as it scans the room, stopping when its gaze meets Lusamine.
"Don't worry, the glass only allows light through one-way-"
A loud thump can be heard as a small burst of shadow-tinged violet energy impacts the glass. A wave of vibration reverberates from the point of impact, making the table shake.
The other four practically jump out of their chairs, but Lusamine remains unfazed. "Alright. A Ralts." She pulls a black marker out of her bag.
"Mind if I mark the pokeball? It'll make keeping track of them easier."
Wyatt nods. "Uh, sure."
She quickly jots down the pokemon's name on the surface of the ball with the words 'highly aggressive 'on the bottom half. The Ralts is readying another blast as she retrieves it.
"Are you sure that glass is only one-way?", Taral asks.
"It is, but it only blocks sight. I suspect that Ralts was using its Aura sense to detect us from the other side." Lusamine places the ball back onto the table.
"Anyway, onto the next pokemon." She pulls another ball out of the bag, pressing the button. A Darumaka pops out with a wide, toothy grin. It jumps around energetically, taking in its surroundings with beady red eyes.
"Ah, a Darumaka.", Lusamine says, writing the name on the pokeball with the word 'energetic' on the bottom half.
"That one didn't look as mean as the others.", Wyatt says.
"Don't let its demeanor fool you; these Shadow pokemon are incredibly dangerous and unpredictable. They have a knack for waiting until your guard is down before lashing out.", Lusamine says as she retrieves the pokemon and sets the pokeball down.
She picks up the third ball, releasing the pokemon within. A Tangela appears in the middle of the room. It extends a few of its vines out like feelers, probing the empty space around it. Its eyes are two crimson lights peering from within the tangled mass of vines.
"A Tangela." Lusamine writes its name down on its ball.
The Tangela continues its probing, slithering its vines through the air until one of them bumps into a nearby wall. The vine starts writhing around violently, making loud thuds as it slams into the metal surface.
Lusamine writes the word 'rapacious' on the bottom half.
Cedrick points to the minor dents it left in the metal wall. "I, uh, think we should keep that one away from furniture. Or people. Or anything, really."
"Oh, don't worry. That aggressive behavior should go away once they're purified." Lusamine looks at the small dents in the wall but pays them little mind. "Alright, onto the next pokemon."
She grabs another ball, and releases what's inside. Wyatt's Rockruff appears out of the red light. It looks around the empty room with a cruel gaze, ready to pounce on the first thing it sees.
"I presume this is your Rockruff?", Lusamine asks.
"Yeah, that's him." Wyatt points to his right ear, which is missing its tip. "Although, it doesn't seem to recognize me anymore."
Lusamine writes 'Rockruff' on the top and the word 'fierce' on the bottom. "Don't worry. Regaining its trust will be much easier after it's cured. Cypher's experiments render even the most docile of pokemon hateful and merciless. They're obsessed with making the most powerful pokemon possible."
Wyatt gives the Rockruff a concerned look as she recalls it. "And no one's stopping them?"
"Oh, they've been stopped before. They were thought to be disbanded for the past ten or so years, but it seems that they're back. I have personally been keeping tabs on their activities with the hope of putting them out of commission for good. However, they're much more clever this time around." She puts the Rockruff ball down and grabs another.
"But don't worry. Cypher has a lot of enemies, including us and Sylph Co. Some of their most brilliant minds are ex-Sylph Co. researchers. And, as far as Sylph Co. is concerned, their research is still company property. And it goes without saying that the Pokemon League Sovereignty wants to see them behind bars. They would have been apprehended long ago if they weren't so clever." Lusamine releases the next pokemon.
A Mime Jr. appears from the red light. Its eyes glow a deep red as it looks around.
"Recall that one quickly! Its barriers prevent the pokeball from recalling it!", Taral yells, pointing to the pokeball.
Lusamine raises an eyebrow but does not press the issue. She recalls it before it can set up any barriers.
"You say it can block the recall function of a pokeball?", Lusamine asks.
"Yeah, we had trouble with it when we first let it out. It made a box around itself and we couldn't recall it until the barriers were gone.", Wyatt says.
Lusamine nods as she writes the pokemon's name on the top of the ball, along with the words 'barriers block recall' on the bottom. "I'll keep that in mind. We'll have to see if it retains this property after purification."
She picks up the 6th ball and presses the button. A LItwick with a deep red flame appears in the middle of the room. It floats up into the air, examining the confines of its chamber.
"A Litwick. An interesting choice-"
The pokemon begins shooting fire at the ceiling in one concentrated spot, causing the metal to glow a bright orange.
Lusamine frantically presses the button, recalling it. "Don't leave this one near anything flammable. Duly noted." She writes its name on the pokeball with the word 'vandalist' on the bottom. "It should be noted that Litwicks have a reputation for being mischievous. Don't be surprised if that pokemon causes you trouble even after it's purified."
She grabs the 7th pokeball. "Let's see what this one contains."
She presses the button, releasing a sickly Buneary into the room. Unlike the other ones, its eyes are closed. It slumps over shortly after being released. Its chest barely moves as it sucks in fast, shallow breaths.
Lusamine's still demeanor cracks a bit from seeing the pokemon in such a state. She puts her hand up to the glass and taps a few times. The Buneary practically jumps out of its skin, hopping to the other side of the room in fear. Its fur is thin and wiry in patches, and its paw pads are scratched up.
She recalls the sickly pokemon, writing its name and the words 'needs treatment' on the bottom.
"It's moments like these that drove me to create this company.", Lusamine says as she gently places the ball down. A slight frown grows on her face and her words echo throughout the room with a determined intensity. She picks up the 8th ball, taking a moment to stare into its mirror-like surface.
"We've almost checked all of them. We'll be getting to the next step soon." She releases the 8th ball, revealing a very angry-looking Shroomish. It stares at its surroundings with a deep scowl as it walks around. Eventually, its gaze rests on its own reflection in the polished metal floor in front of it. It goes extremely still, briefly, before expelling a cloud of purple spores that obscure its form.
"Hmm. This one doesn't seem too different from others of its kind in the wild." She recalls the pokemon, causing it to disperse into red light as it's sucked back into the ball. The purple spores slowly settle down to the floor.
"Omega, can you clean that up for me?", Lusamine asks.
"Of course, miss Lusamine." A robotic voice emanates from her Pokegear as a small ghost leaps out of the device. Two bolt-shaped ethereal arms extend from its orange body.
"It will only be a moment." It says as it phases through the glass wall, using its ghostly powers to push the spores into a neat clump. "Disposing now." It gathers the spores up into a ball and opens a heavy-duty door on the far side of the left wall, disappearing from view.
"There's only two left. Do any of you have any plans for these pokemon once they're purified?", Lusamine asks.
"Well, I was gonna train some of them up as part of my team. Dunno about either of you.", Cedrick says.
"Same here. I figured we would divvy them up as starters, essentially.", Wyatt adds.
"That is certainly an option. However, I should warn you there's no guarantee that all of them will be capable of, or want to, fight once they're purified. Which brings me to my next question."
Lusamine turns to meet their gaze as she speaks. "If there are any that are unfit for battle for one reason or another, would you be comfortable with leaving them under our care? I can assure you you'll find no one else better suited for the task."
"I'm totally okay with that. If it weren't for you these creatures would've killed us by now!", Cedrick says.
"Same here. I could rest easy knowing they're in your hands.", Wyatt says.
Taral nods. "I'm glad you're willing to accept the responsibility, if we cannot care for them."
Lusamine smiles. "I'm happy to hear that."
The door in the other room closes as Omega returns, phasing back through the glass wall.
"I disposed of the spores in the nearest biohazardous material waste reciprocal, as per standard protocol." Omega's words are stiff and monotone, and his eyes stare off into the distance.
"Thank you, Omega." Lusamine holds the Pokegear up towards him. "If you will?"
He jumps back into the device, causing its screen to light back up with his face before going back into sleep mode.
Lusamine picks up the 9th pokeball. "Let's not waste any more time." She presses the button, revealing a cluster of pink egg-shaped seeds with splotches of shadowy coloration. Each one looks in a different direction with crimson eyes, searching for hostiles. A few of them are cracked, and one is completely broken.
"Ah, an Exeggcute. Interesting." She writes its species name on the ball, with the word 'observant' on the bottom.
"Is it just me, or does Cypher seem to prefer Psychic types?", Taral asks.
"You are correct. Psychic, Fairy, and Ghost types are often targeted by them, namely for their strange and often destructive powers. But, at the end of the day, they'll take whoever they can get.", Lusamine says.
She grabs the 10th and last pokeball, pressing the button on the front. A Phantump appears in the room. Its body is extremely thin and withered. Two faint red lights pierce the darkness from within its wooden helmet. The woodland spirit stares off into space with a blank stare, still as a statue.
"Hmm. A Phantump." She taps the glass a few times, trying to garner a reaction from it. It doesn't even twitch, maintaining its unblinking stare.
"Omega, can you try and interact with this pokemon for me? If it so much as blinks I want you to come right back."
"Absolutely, miss Lusamine." Omega leaps back out of the Pokegear, carefully approaching the other ghost. He waves one of his ethereal arms in front of its face. It either doesn't notice or refuses to react. Omega takes things a step further, tapping on its wood helmet with the tip of its arm.
Still no reaction.
"Alright, Omega. Come back."
The Rotom does as it's told, possessing the Pokegear once again.
"Out of all the Shadow Pokemon, this one worries me the most. Fear and aggression can be treated, given enough time. But a complete lack of responsiveness such as this is a different matter altogether. Now, I'm not saying there's no chance for it to be usable as part of your team, but don't be surprised if it remains unresponsive even after purification.", Lusamine says as she recalls the Phantump.
"Is this a known occurrence with these Shadow pokemon?", Taral asks.
"Unfortunately, yes. Some of them are simply beyond recovery. The process for making them puts a lot of stress on their minds and bodies, and it is inevitable to find the occasional Shadow pokemon that just…. doesn't bounce back. Luckily, it's a ghost, so it doesn't need to be fed or cared for in the same way other living pokemon do. Caring for it would be a fairly simple matter, worst-case-scenario."
Taral frowns as he looks down at the pokeball. "Hopefully, it doesn't come to that. I would hate to see any pokemon reduced to such a state."
Lusamine takes a moment to write 'Phantump' on the top of the ball, with the words 'vegetative state' on the bottom.
"The only way to know is to find out. Come with me. We'll conduct the second step now."