Poke-genetics: passive
«It won't work. » stated Janes as she leaned on the wall.
«Why are you saying that? » wondered Jonathan.
«Your son can turn into anything. He'll just stop using that form and be done with it. » she answered, bothered by this turn of events.
«Don't be petty Janes. I know you only say that because you wanted to be the one doing the hunting. »
The woman kept her smile to herself. She could not deny that and her new boss knew her quite well.
«This is not a problem. » the scientist said, not caring about his subordinate's thoughts.
«Really? »
«While he can change, his friends can't. I want them to be more cautious. They won't get too close to towns now. Any place with humans might host enemies; any place he has ever been in his life is potentially the home of people that'll capture him for us. They'll grow suspicious of anyone. They'll isolate themselves to be safe. They won't gather allies. If they try to fight us, they'll never be strong enough if it goes like this. Knowing my son, he'll break down soon. He is weak. »
«That's insensitive coming from a father. » she said with fake disapproval.
«Don't say that if you like it. »
«Awww, you're no fun when you're like that. » she whined.
«You'll have plenty of funs in the next few weeks. How is the preparation for the plan? »
«It could be worse. »
«What do you mean by that? »
«Your little university buddy is interfering with the research. »
«Stan? »
«That's the one. Greenwood caught him sabotaging an experience. »
Surprisingly, Jonathan began laughing.
«Ah, this dear Stan, he hasn't changed a bit. He was always so righteous. Did he receive punishment? »
«Of course, he should be unable to take part in the studies for a few days. »
«Good, what about the policeman? »
«Jerry? He hasn't said anything yet. Unfortunately, he was a bit tougher than I thought and he didn't say a word. He's been sent to the regular cells until he wakes up. »
«Don't kill him until he talks. With Jenny gone, he's the only one with the information. »
Obediently, she nodded and left the office. She would have to wait for the police officer to be conscious, otherwise he wouldn't beg.
There was nothing she could do for now, but she promised herself that later would not be a waste of time.
Ash swallowed slowly. He was still unsure about it. How could he be? He was trying to keep his nervousness on track, but he was not really successful.
He was listening to a bunch of mothers giving him advices on how to take care of a child. When the rumor that one of the three newcomers had disappeared for a night and came back with an egg, the females on the island decided to help the poor kid. Right now, Ash was not really convinced that their constant blabbering would be of any help. As they enumerate weird things over weirder things, he was getting more and more incredulous. That was just a joke, wasn't it? There was no way that all those things they were telling him were real, right?
He shot a pleading look at Pikachu, who had come back quickly from his researches and was sitting on a rock nearby. His best friend was holding his urge to laugh quite well, even if Ash could clearly see it.
«Hey! We're doing it for you, so don't lose focus. » scolded a venomoth with dark pink wings.
«Oh, sorry. I was just… look, I know you all want to help, but… » he stopped, unable to find the right way to express his concerns.
«But what? » asked a graceful wigglytuff.
«It's just that I'm not sure if it is really useful to know what to do when a baby tries to use Sing or wants to catch smaller bugs. My child will be a pichu and it won't be able to do anything like that… »
The few mothers assembled looked somewhat hurt, but at least one or two showed some compassion and were understanding.
«Very well. » a butterfree declared. «Instead of us telling you everything we know about taking care of our species babies, we will leave you alone for now and if you can think of questions you think we can answer, just ask. Is that better? »
«Much better. Thank you. » he said, grateful.
As the females went away, Ash reached his friend.
«Pikachu, when I listen to them, I feel like I won't be able to raise a child properly. »
«Calm down, Ash. » Pikachu ordered gently. «Besides, I'll be there to help you. »
«You've taken care of pichus before? »
«No, but I've been one myself. Ask me anything you want. »
Ash, somewhat skeptical, pondered a bit before saying:
«How long until solid food? »
«Wait until it shows interest for it, but not before three weeks. If it doesn't, which I'd be surprised, give it some in the second month. »
«Hum… what to do when its first teeth appears? »
«Nothing to do about it, just comfort it and be around. For mouse pokemon like us, it will be painful. The best is to stop him from gnawing everything in his sight until his teeth are big enough. Otherwise, it'll hurt his mouth. »
Ash gulped.
«What about… talking? »
«It'll come naturally if you don't stay silent all the time. » Pikachu assured.
Shocked, Ash asked.
«How do you know all those things? »
«You could say I had some interest in the thing from times to times. »
He didn't know how to answer. His pikachu had always been at his side, but he never knew that part of him. Was that the reason he almost left with the other pikachus that time? Because he wanted to have a family? Because he wanted to be… a father?
«Pikachu… » he began.
«What? It's not like I have regrets, you know? Our time together has been incredible. And it still is. Besides, I'm not an old man yet. » he replied with a laugh.
Ash was moved by this new token of friendship.
And it was only because he was a pikachu that he could hear it. The feeling rang a bell.
«Ash, is it normal for me to enjoy being a pokemon more than being human? » Genno's word echoed in his mind.
«Maybe it is… » he said in a whisper.
«What? » asked Pikachu.
«Oh, I just thought about Genno… »
«It's true it's been a long time since he was gone. I expected him to be back before I was. Fortunately for me, I found a nice place quickly. »
«Yeah… do you think that something happened to him? »
«I doubt it. He should be able to avoid wild pokemon and they tend to be surprise when he turns into them. I don't see any reason for people to attack him… except Team Blast. »
«If we could just count them out, there would be no problem at all. »
As Pikachu was about to reply, he was cut off by a growing shadow. The two pikachus didn't have the time to dodge that a fearow fell on them.
«Woah! » Ash could barely articulate.
«Talk about déjà vu. » muttered Pikachu, stuck under the bird.
«Sorry about that, I'm really bad at flying I guess. » apologized the pokemon.
«Coming from a flying type, that's surprising. » stated Ash.
«Ash. It's me. »
«Genno? But you had no trouble landing as a pidgeot! »
«I know! It just doesn't feel right being in this form. A pidgey was half-way manageable, but I just can't with this one. »
As he explained, he turned into a pikachu.
«That's much better. » he exclaimed.
«Great, now why don't you move away from on top of us? » Ash asked with growing impatience.
Ashamed, Genno jumped away from them with his plastic bag. He took a quick look at his purchases inside and was relieved when he saw that they were still intact. He handed the bag to his friend.
«Here, Ash. I bought some things that might come in handy. »
Ash gratefully took it.
«It took you longer than we thought it would. Did something happen on the way? »
«I got lost. » he stated as he looked away.
Pikachu and Ash looked at each other and chuckled. They should have guessed. If they had the time, they'd buy him a pokenav. He had some serious direction issues.
They missed the hint of pain in his expression. Genno decided while flying this way. He would not tell them until it would be necessary. Right now, Ash had to focus on something much more important than a move from Team Blast. Besides, they would be fine here. Humans weren't allowed on this island. They were out of Team Blast reach right now.
«Genno… » Ash gasped as he took a closer look to the content of the bag. «Those are… »
«Yes. I know, but it could be used as a last resort or something like that. »
Ash eyed the items cautiously and he reached for the food inside.
«… okay then. Just… don't ask me to transport them. »
«No, I'll handle that part. »
Ash seemed a bit less disturbed and he grabbed a snack.
«Anyone else is hungry? » he asked around.
His two friends smiled. He was quick to recover today.
He was sure that this time, he would not recover.
Stan was nauseous. He had been beaten up again. Only this time, he was not sure if the ones behind it cared if he survived or not. He was lying on the uncomfortable bed in his cell, trying not to move and reawaken the pain of his mistreated body. That damn Greenwood! If only he had acted as his regular arrogant self, he would not have noticed him meddling with the solutions.
Now he was left alone again, wondering what he could do to prevent the monstrosities that were being performed in that lab.
He was still thinking about it when a groan of pain was heard next to him. His new cell partner had woken up for the first time since they dragged him here.
«Where am I? » the man asked with a feeble voice.
«Inside a lair of monsters, locked in a cage. »
The man tried to stand up, but his legs betrayed him.
«Take it easy. You don't seem like you could take a lot right now. »
«That woman… she's a monster. She's… taking pleasure in it… She wants to see me resist, to see me struggle… She wants to have an excuse to torture me… but I'm sure that she would anyway…» the poor guy whispered as he remembered the traumatizing experience.
His voice became much more firm and burned from his emotions.
« Why should I give that monster an answer in that case? She'll have some fun, but I won't give them what they want! »
Stan didn't answer. He knew that kind of determination all too well.
«What's your name? »
«Jerry. I was the one leading the failed assault on this place. »
«What happened to your men? »
«…They keep us in another chamber like this, only much bigger. It's on the third floor. Some of us were… taken for some experiments. »
Stan felt his anger being given new life.
«When they bring them back… most are pokemon. »
Jerry couldn't identify the source of that weird noise that echoed in the cell. Had he been in a better shape, he'd have understood that it was Stan gritting his teeth.
«How many of you are there down there? » Stan wondered, anger being hinted by his tone.
«A little more than an hundred. A quarter of us are not in the form they entered this place with.»
Stan, closed his eyes, wanting to keep the suffering at bay, but it would be for the best in the end. Slowly, he moved his right arm and plunged his hand in his pocket.
«What are you doing? » Jerry asked.
«Take this… and use it when the time is right. I think… it'll be much more useful in your hands than in mine. » he said as he gave him a small object.
«That's… »
«Yes, someone pretending to be a member gave it to me. »
Jerry hid the item in his pocket when he heard footsteps. It was a footstep he had learned to recognize and his body wanted him to hide, but his dignity prevented him from doing that. Instead, he stayed where he was, next to Stan Folklow, waiting for a monster to show up.
One did.
«Hello, Jerry! » she saluted cheerfully. «Are you ready for a little trip with me to the torture chamber? »
He hardened his mind. He'd never give in to that woman. He wouldn't. He swore.