Poke-genetics: test subject
Janes entered the office, a disappointed look on her face. There, she met Jonathan who looked angrier than she had ever seen. At his feet, there was an unconscious ditto. Her expression surely showed interrogation, since Jonathan barked at her.
«Don't speak! I am not in the mood for one of your little crazy comment! »
«Actually, I was only going to report that the rest of their group escaped. »
«WHAT? » he yelled.
«That damn Sabrina… I should have knocked her out as soon as I saw her. » she said, more to herself than for her boss.
«What did she do? » Jonathan urged her to answer, his face red with anger.
«She did the same as me. » Janes explained with a disappointed sight. «When the hidden members came on my order, the leaders moved to the center of the room and made a circle, as if they were going to fight… They didn't, Sabrina used her alakazam to escape with them. We have not made a single prisoner from this assault… except… him? »
Jonathan shot a look of pure rage at Genno.
«This little… He's going to regret acting up in front of his father. »
At these words, Janes felt her mood lighten. Perhaps, with a bit of luck, she could play with the boy. Oh, she wanted it so badly. A kid with a spirit as strong as his… she wanted to see how long it would take to break him.
«Janes. » Jonathan said to get her out of her sick thoughts. «Make sure that our relocation happens faster than initially thought. »
She nodded, but without taking her eyes off of Genno.
He slowly opened his eyes. His head was spinning a bit. Everything was sort of a blur, he could not really decipher where he was. Gradually, his eyes got accustomed to the white lights.
The madness started.
Things were covered with different layers of colors and lights.
His ditto eyes! He was looking at his surrounding with his ditto eyes!
Instinctively, he changed into Ash. The familiar body helped him calm down for a second. He had to determine where he was.
It was not hard. There was a wall of glass in front of him, over him, behind him and on both sides of him.
He was in one of Team Blast's infamous glass box.
His breathing accelerated. No matter how logical it was, it had to be a joke. This was the one thing he feared the most ever since he infiltrated this place to fight them: being experimented on.
Panicked, he looked everywhere to see if there was anything to could help him get out of this cage. He started hitting the glass, hoping to break it.
«I'm sorry to tell you this kid, but it won't work. Other pokemon tried before you, most of them stronger than you, and failed miserably. I know it; I made sure it would be this way. » a mature voice echoed from behind him.
He turned around, almost jolting because of the surprise. There was another small pillar with a box on top, this one containing a red ditto.
There was a sad tone to his voice and a resigned pain on its face.
Genno stopped to look at the pokemon. He was… familiar. He knew he had seen that ditto somewhere…
«You're… Marco Blaze! » he said, unable to believe his eyes.
«I am… or was, depending on whether I want to be rhetorical or not. » he answered a bit of humorously.
The sad irony brought a hint of a nervous smile on Genno's face. He had tried that kind of joke too… they were not the ones he made when his happiness was over the top.
«That's one heck of a mess you've created. » he accused.
«That's an understatement. »
«At least someone here got his just dessert. » Genno said as he pressed his back against the wall behind him.
There was a silence between them. Marco seemed to have received a shock and Genno was pondering as to the impossible side of the thing. His father turned Marco in a pokemon and captured him. End of the line normally… but his father had shown him a human Marco sleeping in his bed. Did he figure out a way to reverse the lock of a pokeball? Was there hope for Ash? Was he periodically turning Marco in a pokemon and sometimes reversing his state, carefully drugged, so that he could keep control of Team Blast? There was a quick way to know.
«Hey, have my father changed you back? »
There was a completely incredulous look on Marco's face.
«Are you seriously asking that question? … Unless that by your father, you mean someone that isn't Jonathan Avery… »
This put a frown on Genno's face. Either his father was drugging him before and he never realized it or…
Before he could ask another question, Marco interrupted him.
«…are you a good friend of Ash Ketchum? »
«What? »
«I asked: are you a…»
«No, I got that part. I meant: why do you want to know that? »
«I'm curious. I wondered if you used someone's body and face without that person knowing. It makes a useful cover… » he explained.
«You disgust me. I could never frame someone like that. »
«Are you saying that Ash Ketchum's name is completely clear? » Marco continued.
There was something weird about the red ditto's tone.
«… No. People think he attacked Team Blast regardless of the hostages you took. They… do not like him. » Genno conceded.
«You know, he was the one person I did not want to see involved. » Marco surprisingly declared.
«You were scared? » Genno asked with a raised eyebrow.
«You could say that. » Marco admitted.
«Ha, the leader of a criminal organization was scared of one trainer? You don't sound as tough as on TV, you know? I guess even behind so many hostages, you still felt insecure. »
«I wasn't planning on using them! » Marco shouted.
Genno's jaw dropped in shock.
«What? »
«My goal was to create a terrible threat, not destroy Kanto's demography. I would have returned them after a few accomplished tasks, with people remembering that it could happen again as a guarantee of loyalty. Sebastian was the only one that truly had to be morphed. They had to realize what it meant for their family not to obey. »
For a few moments, Genno stared at him, without uttering a word, then he talked with a dark tone.
«You should have done that before being stabbed in the back by the least trustworthy subordinate you could find. »
«Ah, I never trusted Janes. I only knew I could keep her under control with well thought plans and complicated mess. She loves those. I didn't think she'd betray me at that moment. I thought it would happen before or later. It's ironic really. »
«Good for you… » he muttered.
But it wasn't a hostile reply. For some reason, there was an aura around Marco that prevented Genno from feeling true hatred. Hostility, yes, as former enemies, but nothing as deep as what he felt for his father. It was probably because that matter was personal, while this one was purely ethical.
He sighted. His father was right; he was only devoted to this fight because there was a personal matter in it. There was truth in those words, he knew it.
A door opened at the back of the room.
His father entered.
He was no longer looking angry. Instead, there was some sort of anticipation in his eyes. This was the detail that really made Genno shiver in fear.
«Now then, son, I think we're due for a little talk. We should not lose time. »
Genno watched his father got ready in his usual way with horror.
This was a bad joke. His father was preparing to experiment on him, whistling as if he was still in their lab, with a content look on his face! This… had… to be a FREAKING JOKE!
Was it the naïve part of his mind that subconsciously thought that he would not sink that low? Probably. Jonathan experimented on Sebastian, an innocent nine year old kid. What would stop him from doing the same, or much worse, most likely, to his rebellious sixteen year old son that had insulted him? Nothing. There was nothing to stop his father.
That thought was extremely frightening.
«Let's begin, shall we? » his father said, almost politely.
Genno saw parts of the floor he was standing on slide and mechanized arms crept out of them, some holding a syringe.
Genno breathe heavily. He had to harden his mind, to ready himself for whatever would happen.
The machine moved a lot faster than he had estimated. Before he could move, three needles pierced the skin of his right arm.
«Let's see how you to this stimulus. Normally, it should… »
Genno felt the liquid poor inside his biceps and in his shoulder. More precisely, he felt the effect of the chemicals rather than the liquid itself.
His arm was aching. It was a laughable sensation.
Genno stared at his arm with a bewildered look. Was that it?
«…take a few more seconds to truly start. » finished his father.
The aching started to become more intense. It was growing in importance with each passing second. Genno suddenly felt that it was not laughable at all.
The aching turned into the maddening impression that his arm was decaying. His breathing was more of a clipped succession of inspiration than anything by now.
Genno began to lost control over that limb. At first, it twitched. He tried to stop it with his other arm… without success.
His right arm lost coherence and started to take a greenish color.
«No… » Genno whispered as he remembered his nightmare. «That… not possible! It was just a bad dream! »
His arm turned into goo similar to his ditto body… and fell.
Genno screamed.
His arm! His arm had fallen off!
«I suggest you transform before you lack the strength to do it. You'll start to lose blood in a second. »
As the vital fluid splashed the transparent walls of his cage, Genno morphed back into a ditto, deeply traumatized.
«Well, that wasn't too bad for a first try. » his father said with a grin. «Let's see if the other tests are as successful as this one. »
As his son was trying to gather his mind, Jonathan had leaned closer.
«You see, I was wondering for a long time... why aren't dittos the most sought pokemon in the world? After all, if they can turn into any pokemon there is, this should include the most powerful ones, right? Well, I was a bit disappointed when I understood that a ditto can't turn into a legendary. Apparently, it requires more energy than a ditto can naturally produce. However, there were a few things that revived my interest. For example, a newborn ditto has many times the energy of an adult one. It always has the energy to transform into a pokemon it sees, but only the first. Still, a simple calculation allowed me to determine that even that would only be enough for the third of a legendary's strength. »
Genno was not really listening; he was trying to make himself understand that he still had his right arm.
«Perhaps you're wondering why I'm telling you… or perhaps you've already understood. I'm trying to find a way to create a ditto with the natural capacities of a newborn ditto. Unfortunately, the results so far are not conclusive. Therefore, I am pleased to have a fresh new test subject in your person, son. Not to mention that the stabilizer I threw on you may affect the results positively. Isn't that interesting? Let's put my theory to test, shall we? »
An almost complete silence had fallen on the room. Jonathan had left the room after two hours of experimentation and observations.
Genno was sobbing in his cage, on his knees, holding his stomach as if that could stop him from throwing up. He was trying not to remember those traumatizing moments; his nausea would never go away otherwise.
His tears kept flowing even after the pain had started to subdue.
«It'll be okay. It gets easier to endure after a while. » someone encouraged him.
«Marco? » he said hesitantly.
«He wanted to frighten you. »
«He succeeded. »
«Things will get better. Don't worry. »
It was a lie, they both knew it, but the paternal tone Marco had taken had a strange effect on Genno. A little bit of fear disappeared and was replaced by warmth.
«Thanks… »
«Who said that? » a stranger's voice interrupted.
Genno turned around. He hadn't notice that pokemon before. Had he stayed silent the whole time… unless he had been put into some sort of artificial coma.
It was another ditto, of the usual pink color this time.
A real pokemon. Was it the one that he caught a glimpse of when he infiltrated?
«It's me. I was captured recently. My name's Genno. »
«That's weird… that's my trainer's name. » it said with a confused tone.
Genno's heart skipped a beat. It was his ditto! The one he caught two years ago. The pokemon he presented to his father so that they could put his theories to test.
Here it was, looking sick, tired, in a lab, experimented on by a man with no moral.
He felt his eyes become wet again.
«I'm sorry. It's my fault you're here. I shouldn't have caught you. I'm responsible for all that happened to you. »
«Awwwww, that's cute. » cut a familiar voice.
Genno jolted in surprise. When did she get here?
«Oh, don't stop for me. Continue that grand friendship declaration of yours. I'm waiting for the touching «I wish I could make all your troubles disappear» part. » Janes urged with a sick smile.
Genno and Marco shot death glare at her.
«Oh, don't look at me this way. » she said with her joyful tone.
All of a sudden, her posture straightened and her eyes showed a very serious threat.
«I mean it. Don't look at me this way. »
That was enough to make Genno lose his rage. Instead, there was an horrified fear crawling under his skin. Hiding it the best he could, he asked:
«Why are you here? »
«Your father said he needed to discipline you… and I offered my help. »
They stopped breathing. Genno gulped loudly.
«You're coming with me, boy. »
They were in a small room, just as metallic and cold as the rest of Team Blast's headquarter. Genno walked in it, followed by Janes.
«Here is the place we'll spend our time together. Aren't you thrilled? » she said.
«…a lot… »
«Oh, you're not really enthusiastic, are you? Don't worry; I'll make sure you'll never forget this place. »
As she closed the door, Genno felt a shiver run down his spine. This had to be a bad joke! He couldn't be alone in a room with JANES!
«It is… just like the joke dad did to your arm, just like the one about the stabilizer. Hey, he's not even the head of Team Blast, that's just an actor. » his ironic side helpfully reminded him.
«Now, if you'll be nice enough to lie down on that table, we'll be able to start. »
Something snapped inside of Genno. He pushed her as hard as he could and ran for the closed door. He frantically tried to turn the locket, which was refusing to move even an inch.
Behind him, Janes stood up slowly, as if putting the emphasis on the difference of strength. She slid a knife under his throat and grabbed him by the hair.
«That's not a nice thing to do. » she stated.
She placed him on the table and tied him up with strange puffy handcuffs.
«These are to make sure you don't roll down to the floor… and that even if you transform, they won't loosen. Plus… there's another little something, but I wouldn't want to spoil everything so early, would I? » Janes explained nicely.
He stared at her. She was really going to do that. He… he… didn't know what would happen, but he had rarely felt this scared.
«Oh my, I almost forgot. Everything here can be seen from your father's desk. He'll look at everything and is the one to tell me to stop. Who knows, maybe he won't like seeing what I planned. »
She leaned and whispered to his ears alone.
«But I seriously doubt it. »
She took back her normal stance and clapped her hands.
«Okay, let's start. First of all, let me present you my tools. » She said as she took three knives out of her belt.
«These three are called Stan, Ash and Pikachu. Hello Genno. »
Her last sentence was pronounced as if she was a puppeteer and her knives were her puppets talking.
Genno was stunned by surprise. He stayed silent with his mouth wide open.
A look of deception passed on Janes's face. She stabbed him on the left leg with Stan.
The pain was so sudden that he started screaming.
«They are so polite to you, Genno. You should reply. »
As she talked, she pushed her knife deeper into his leg.
«Don't be so rude… » she scolded.
«He… Hello. » he managed to say.
«Much better. Okay, it's really simple. We're going to play for a while and since I'm the game master, you must follow my instruction, okay? »
Seeing as he was hesitant, she used the Ash knife to tickle his cheeks.
«OKAY! » Genno replied as fast as he could.
«Good, let's start. »
Her pleasure not even hidden, she drove her first knife under the skin of his right cheek.
Genno reacted normally, which was the worst thing he could have done. He yelled in pain… and the knife pierced through. The metallic taste that invaded his mouth was only partially because of the sudden flow of blood.
Janes, while trying to stop shivering of pleasure under the screams, tried to sound disappointed.
«Shoot, I didn't think he'd react so strongly. So much for skinning him… maybe later, now, he is in trouble of choking with the blood. Genno, transform immediately! »
Too happy to obey, his shape became that of a ditto. The pain gone, he sighted in relief.
His sight was cut short as a powerful electric current passed through his body.
«I didn't authorize you to stay like that for so long. Turn back into a human now. »
If he didn't find a way to stop this now, he was going to lose his mind. He obeyed, but with a small twist.
Janes was surprised to see a clone of herself tied to the table.
«How original, I've never tried that before. Now seems like a good moment to try. »
«Where have I lost myself? »
The question had erupted from her toy's lips with her voice.
Genno saw her stop for a second. Her eyes were distant, as if she was looking at her memories. He was not the only one to suddenly become more attentive; a man behind a screen approached his listening device.
«Was it that time? » Janes asked with a fragile, shaking voice.
The change of tone was completely unexpected.
«It was a long time ago… back when I was just a seven year old girl. My dear growlithe and me were taking a walk in town. It was such a loyal pokemon. It was my best friend, it listened to me, it consoled me when I was sad, played with me when I was happy. We were just walking together. Why did that truck had to run over my growlithe? »
She broke down in tears, her face hidden behind her hands and her shoulders shaking.
Genno's jaw could not hit the floor, but I probably would have in any other situation. THAT'S IT? She was a crazy sadistic murderer and torturer because her DOG died?
Janes probably felt the look he sent her. Her gloves moved toward her hips and her psycho smile was just where it should have been.
«The answer is: because I pushed it in front of the car. It made a pathetic wimpy noise as it died and the driver was astonished. The police did not believe him. They thought he was trying to escape punishment by blaming a heart-broken kid. It was so fun to see him get taken away by the police while I was laughing in his face. »
Genno felt like throwing up. What was she? Definitely not a human!
«So, can we go back to work now? » she asked. «First, I need to get those away. They're in my way. »
As she cut the clothes he was wearing, she noticed the slight blush that came to his face.
«Oh, is there something wrong? » she questioned maliciously. «Could it be that you don't like being exposed like that? Turn into Ash! »
Genno obeyed reluctantly; there was something suspicious about this sudden change of mind.
«Good. Now, let's take them away. »
Genno blushed even more.
Her knives cut through the clothes as if it was butter. With but a few movements, she had taken them all away.
«Oh, that's it. You are ashamed of taking someone else's body. You always hated it when you had to transform into Ash in front of him. It didn't felt right, as if you were stealing from him. Am I wrong? »
Genno tried to hide his surprise. How could she have known that?
«Just because I'm different doesn't mean I can't understand someone else. In fact, I'm rather good when it comes to psychology. For example, I'm sure there's nothing that would break you more surely than this. »
Janes took a bottle from under the table and made him drink its content.
Genno's eyes were wide open as he felt the change in his body… more precisely his lower body.
«No… you're not… »
«Is that a protest? »
Her knives pierced his hands and glued them to the table. Under the waves of pain, he heard her talk.
«New rule: every time we play, you have to take off all your clothes. You have no right to even the slightest bit of dignity. »
Amused by his panicked expression, she leaned on him. Her gloves even stroke his cheeks, sensually.
«No transforming allowed either. »
A syringe found its way into her other hand and she injected the product in his veins.
«This should paralyze you for a while. »
As she took off her uniform, she whispered to his ears.
«Remember, your father's still watching. He hasn't stopped me yet. »
If he could have thrown up, Genno would have emptied his stomach… but even that had been taken away from him... and she intended to take much more.
She climbed on the table, moving over him. She put a poisonous kiss on his lips, savoring the flavor of shame and fear. Afterward, Janes took a look at the unmoving teen under her.
«Ah, that poor Ash, he may even have a second child. Wouldn't it be a nice surprise? »
The sheer idea was making him sick.
«Why don't we have fun with your friend's body for a while? » she suggested.
As she followed her suggestion, Genno heard a distant noise in a corner of his mind. It was akin to a breaking vase.
«Ah, I know. » he exclaimed mentally. «That's my mind breaking into pieces. »