Poke-genetics: curiosity
«I'M SORRY! » Ash apologized for what seemed the hundredth time that day.
«Ash, this started getting old an hour ago… » Pikachu sighted.
«But… I went on a stupid rampage and tried to hurt everyone! I even attacked you! » he protested.
«We already discussed this, didn't we? »
«Yeah, but… »
«Ash! Stop it. I've already forgiven you a few hours ago ! You went on and apologized to me, to your parents, to Alexchu, to Misty and Brock, to Genno, to the few pokemon you actually injured, to their trainers, to Nurse Joy for being a pain to deal with, to Officer Jenny for breaking the law, to a few random people walking in the pokemon center, even to Stan and Helen even though they were completely out of everything that happened. Seriously, who will be next? Now, I know I wanted you to apologize after what you had done, but there are limits! » Pikachu ranted with a seriously annoyed voice.
Ash looked down. He had apologized, but he felt as if that was not enough, as if that would never be enough. He had actually snapped and attacked innocent people! Deep down, he knew that if there was to be at least one person to never forgive, and Mew knew he'd deserve it, it would be himself.
Those thoughts were cut off when Pikachu, realizing he was being ignored, had grabbed him by the shoulders and forced him to lock their gaze into one another.
«Ash! Enough of that! We both know who the true culprit behind those events is! It was Janes! She is the one that pushed you over the edge! She is a monster that takes pleasure in seeing people go mad from the suffering she inflicts on them! » he almost yelled at his trainer.
Sadly, Ash didn't seem to share his point of view.
«No… she did everything in her power to anger me, but, ultimately, I was the one that acted on that anger. It's… it's my fault! »
From this close, his best friend had no trouble seeing how badly he was trembling or how much sadness his eyes showed.
«Ash! » Pikachu called with disbelief.
«I'm… I'm scared. She brought out the worst in me! It's like looking in a mirror to find out that there is nothing but a dark beast staring back at you! And… for a few hours, that's exactly what there was! A foul beast that sought to destroy anything in its path, even the ones that it swore to protect at any cost… »
One by one, Ash's tears fell to the ground as he was finally letting go on the control he had held himself under ever since he snapped out of his rampage. He had been afraid, terribly afraid of letting that dark side of him escape all control again, but now that he was alone with his most trusted companion, he could no longer pretend.
Ash feared what had become of him when Janes had told him the truth.
And how he hated that woman, how he hated her for everything she had done, for telling him the one truth he would have preferred never hearing.
She was Alex's mother. She was the pikachu he had met in the woods. She understood him while being human, a side-effect of the transformation confirmed by Stan and the others. There was no denying it. This was exactly what her twisted mind could come up with.
His crying intensified, not out of sadness, but of shame.
He had failed his son. He had failed to honor the very first promise he ever made to Alex. His son would never meet his mother; he had to make sure of it. He had to voluntarily break that promise.
And it was killing him. He had no worth as a father. What he feared from the second he heard Genno tell him had finally happened.
«I'm sorry Alex, I'm so sorry… »
He broke down into a deep silence, only cut by a few sobs, until Pikachu finally snapped.
«Ash! Get a grip on yourself! » he said as he grabbed him by the shoulders.
«But… can't you see? » Ash's eyes locked into Pikachu's. «I'm not fit to be his father! I turned into a monster! »
«You did it out of your love for him! »
At this, Ash froze, overwhelmed by too many contradicting feelings. His face was showing nothing more than a blank confusion.
«Ash… » Pikachu began with a soft voice. «Everyone has something dark deep inside, something ugly that no one wants to reveal. You have the right to be imperfect too. No one suddenly loses all their defects the second they get some responsibilities. What will matter is what you will choose – and I mean «CHOOSE», not «be pushed into that choice » - to show the world and your son. »
These seemed to have an effect on Ash, as his eyes brightened slightly, just a little.
«It's the same for me, you know? » Pikachu continued. «I have my own weaknesses. When I was alone with Janes, she tried to break me too, or rather; she wanted me to break myself. »
«Huh? » Ash exclaimed with a confused voice.
«Ash, you know that I always refused to evolve. That's what she wanted me to do. I was injured at the time and if Sebastian hadn't found me, I might have died of blood loss in the woods. There was a way I could have survived though. »
His tale had caught his full attention… and caused him to feel even worse about himself. So horrified by his own actions, he had forgotten about what his best pal might have gone through.
«She gave me a thunderstone. »
«What? »
«She offered me this choice: evolve and save you or die and let you rampage as you please. »
Ash was left speechless.
«I was about to get to that stone when Sebastian, Helen and Stan found me lying in the woods. They allowed me to save you without evolving, but I was ready to do it otherwise. »
«Pikachu… » he whispered, his eyes watering with emotion.
«I never told you why I didn't want to evolve, did I?»
However, he was spared from replying to his pal, since another one entered the room.
«Oh, hi Genno. » he greeted a bit weakly. «Look… I wanted to tell you that I'm sor…»
He was cut off when his friend whispered, his eyes gazing at the floor:
«I'm sorry. »
Pikachu had the satisfaction of seeing Ash gasped and stay silent.
«It's my fault! » Genno continued, failing to notice Pikachu's groan of exasperation. «I… I lost control when we faced her, even if I said that I was going to be fine, even if I insisted on coming, I became a burden and you were forced to face… her… »
Ash took a few steps forward.
«No… no, it's not your fault! »
«I… lost consciousness! I don't even remember what happened! My mind tells me that we didn't enter those underground corridors together! It's like it's trying to stop me from remembering! » the poor teen protested while holding his head, his tears falling to the floor.
His throat seemed to tighten as his next words struggle to pass through his lips.
«W…what happened back then? Why does my mind shut down every time I try to remember?»
Stunned, both his friends looked at each other in an uncomfortable silence. He… he had forgotten?
What were they supposed to do?
After a few minutes of an increasingly thicker silence, Pikachu spoke out.
«She said… »
He bit his lips so hard that they started to bleed.
«Genno. » He called his friend's name with an extreme serious. «I want you to breathe slowly and to take it easy. She revealed something extremely troubling to us… »
Listening to his own advice, Pikachu took a deep breath before finally revealing what Genno had unconsciously repressed.
«Janes said that she was pregnant and congratulated you. »
They stared at him with fear. He had not reacted when he was told the truth. He was as still as a statue, frozen by the words spoken to him, as if at peace.
Truly, it was a frightening sight.
Her…
Making him drink something.
Her…
Cutting away his clothes.
Her…
Whispering to his ears.
HER!
Breaking his mind.
Again.
And again.
And again.
And again.
And again.
He was not frozen from the shock. He simply had no control over his own body; it was covered in shadows, crawling on his skins, creeping slowly toward his head, reaching for his face.
With difficulty, he moved a single hand and used it to hold his forehead.
«I… I… remember… » he muttered, almost too quietly to be heard.
It started with a little twitch on his right arm, too small to be noticeable. Then, it was another twitch, this time on the left cheek. Afterward, it was two twitches, on both legs. Two more twitches… three more… four more…
In a matter of second, he had lost all illusion of peace.
«I remember! I remember! I remember! » Genno repeated, with his voice more high pitch every time. « I remember! I remember! I REMEMBER! »
«Genno? » a completely incredulous and unexpected voice interrupted the screeches.
Normally, it wouldn't be enough for him to stop, but, in some sort of stroke of luck, the visitor had been followed by Milosia.
The soothing presence of the water type allowed Genno to register the entrance of the newcomer. There, he just stared in shock as the man grabbed him by the shoulders.
«S-Stan? » Genno stuttered.
The scientist's gaze was filled with worry.
«I heard your voice and I thought you were in trouble. What happened here? Are you alright? »
In front of that honest question, they realized that Stan did not know, that he had no idea of what had happened to Genno.
«I… » the teen was left speechless, unable to explain, to admit, to that man he admired how little of a human he felt like.
Ash, of course, approached the man, but his words were not ones Stan could understand. With a pinch to his heart, he cursed once more the fact that he was stuck as a pokemon.
If Stan was to know the truth, it would have to come from Genno himself.
Pikachu had also wanted to jump in, pushed by the same impulse Ash had followed. Having a human-formed ditto for a friend had given him the reflex to talk to humans as naturally as pokemon, only to be bitterly reminded of their defective ears.
Truly, it was lucky that Misty's milotic had felt the need of the poor teen for he would have been stunned beyond reach.
«You… you didn't hear about what happened when we freed the hostages? » Genno asked, his voice almost timid.
With a firm movement, Stan shook his head and encouraged Genno to go on.
«The… the plan was a success… we freed the officers and the children… and almost everyone escaped… »
The choice of words alerted the poke-geneticist.
«You said… «almost everyone»… » he started, starting to understand.
Genno could only nod in shame.
«I didn't escape… right away… Jonathan was… angry… »
Stan was holding his breath.
«He needed more test subjects… we took his away before… »
The mute sound that Ash suddenly started hearing was the noise of Stan gritting his teeth.
«…he gave me to… her… to… tame me… » Genno's voice broke on those last words.
Gone the rage, gone the anger, only utter shock and horror was reflected by Stan's expression now.
In a fierce embrace, Stan protectively hugged Genno and whispered these few words to him.
«Don't worry. I'll take care of you. I promise. »
And under Milosia's peaceful influence, they sounded like an offering of salvation. Genno let go of his worries as well as his secrets so that, for the first time since he had become a ditto, he felt truly protected.
After a little while, Stan finally turned his attention to the two electric types that were witnessing the scene.
«You two should head to the center's entrance, Officer Jenny is waiting for the rest of the gym leaders to gather there. She said she had something crucial to tell them. »
Taking that as their signal to leave, both pikachus left without protesting, although they did shoot a worried glance at Genno before going.
«What is it, Stan? S-Shouldn't we follow them? » Genno asked, full of hesitation.
Those vanished when the scientist gave him a warm smile.
«Don't worry. I'll tell you afterward. Right now, I think it would be best for you if we just talked. We have a lot to tell each other, don't we? »
Respecting their intimacy, Milosia decided to leave. For the moment, the ditto seemed stable enough. If anything was to happen, she'd come back swiftly.
The silence was broken by some quick-paced footsteps. Every single one was comparable to the thunder in such a peaceful place.
Not that it had any reason to be peaceful for it held within its walls some of the most hated criminals in all Kanto.
There was a reason Stan had arrived in the normally secluded room Ash and Pikachu had been given at the pokemon center. He had been looking for them after receiving a report from the Officer Jenny.
Of course, what was exchanged between him and Genno changed his mind about telling the three of them, but he, himself, had to come here.
After all, this was the place in which Jonathan Avery had just been imprisoned.
He reached for a particular door, followed by the blue-haired leader of the police force. Her sole presence was enough for the officers stationed there to let them in. They barely nodded to acknowledge their presence.
The room was dark, almost no light reached it. A simple bed was on one side of the room and, sitting with his head between his hands, Jonathan was waiting.
Their entrance did not go unnoticed. The fallen leader of Team Blast slowly raised his head to face his visitors. When his eyes fell on them, an arrogant smirk crept to his face.
«Are my eyes seeing wrong or is that really my old friend, Stan Folklow? »
«You are seeing wrong, Jonathan. No one here is your friend. » Stan replied with a hiss.
«Oh, such a nice way with words you have. » the prisoner replied mockingly.
«I've talked to Genno. I know what you did to him. »
His voice was seething anger and the hatred behind it was terrifying.
Had he not been so eager for anything to take his mind off his defeat, Jonathan might have taken the hint. However, he needed to think of something else before the anger made him mad. If playing with his old friend from college was his only alternative, he certainly would take it.
«Really? Did he tell you absolutely everything? »
«Yes! He emptied his heart to me, told me all the things that you, as a father, should have done for him, instead of what you did to him! »
«So he went and complained about his dad to his friend? This is not the Genno I remember. » he stated, his tone showing a hint of disdain.
«The Genno you remember did not have to live through what he did! He did not have to be tortured by a monster of a human and a monster of a father! He came running to the first person that could offer him a decent life! » Stan finally exploded.
«If you are such a better role model than I am, where is he? Why did you leave him alone to visit a monster like me? » Jonathan said with a condescending tone.
«You lost your right to know as his father, Jonathan. You threw that away a long time ago, it seems. »
This time, Jonathan even let out a small chuckle.
«That's right, you really seem to be a better man than I am, aren't you, Stan? You always were more righteous, more morally right than I could ever hope to be. It always dragged you down when we were doing researches while I was surpassing everyone's expectations. The truth is staring at you Stan. My way is the only path to the truth. »
«What truth? What is worth what you are doing? »
«THE TRUTH! I WANT THE TRUTH OF THIS WORLD AND I GOT IT! I KNOW THE TRUTH AND I MADE IT DANCE WITHIN MY PALM! » Jonathan suddenly yelled, his passion taking over.
He was stopped by a punch to his face.
«You… crazy… moronic… pathetic… excuse… of a man! » Stan hissed, punctuating each word with a new hit.
He heard Jenny clear her throat.
«Of course, brutality against imprisoned criminals is not tolerated. » She stated with a very calm voice.
Taking a few deep breaths, Stan managed to calm himself enough not to jump at Jonathan again.
«However, since I was admiring the walls of this cell just a second ago, I have no way of knowing what you did to him. Besides, with the number of bruises he boasts from that little mutiny he went through, there is no proof either. » she continued with a sly smile.
«How honorable, Jenny. » Jonathan could not help but comment as he was rubbing the now painful bruises he just got.
«I do not care for what you think of me, Mr. Avery. What I care about, however, is the thing you created. »
If anything, Jonathan's arrogance increased even more.
«Oh yes, my supreme creation. I do hope you're taking great care of it. After all, I did everything I did just to get a chance to create that. It was for the sake of showing the world the extent of my knowledge. »
Stan stuttered for words. He could barely restrain himself from beating that man to a bloody pulp. Luckily, the woman next to him had a lot of self-control when it came to handling criminals.
«Call it whatever you want, I do not care about that. I want you to give us the method to stop it.»
A dark light seemed to glitter in Jonathan's eyes, as if he realized something.
«You've read my notes Stan. I know you did. »
The anger in his former friend's face was all the answer he needed.
«You know what it is, right? You know exactly what I've done. You know its strength, its power, its origin… yet you don't know how to prevent it from hatching. » Jonathan gloated at his visitors.
A simple look at them was more than enough to realize it that Jonathan was right. They did not know how to stop that thing from seeing the light of the day.
However, Jenny took a step forward.
«Why? »
For a second, Jonathan stopped laughing and stared at the officer. What did she mean?
«Do you not have a way to stop it? If you don't, then you might be one of its victims. Don't you want to live? » she asked, her voice cold, but, at the same time, curious.
It was as if she had said something incredibly boring. Jonathan's expression lost all trace of joy or arrogance, it was just… blank.
«Let me tell you a little story. Once upon a time, a god created a world that was beautiful and peaceful. On those lands were legions of people all living happily, enjoying what had been offered to them. However, one day, the god decided to leave the world to his children and locked all his power behind a door. To open this door would mean the end of the world and all that was needed to open that door was to pull a simple lever. Of course, those that knew about that door never tried to pull the lever and they were wise enough not to reveal that secret. With time, people forgot about the door altogether. »
Jonathan's expression suddenly twisted in a deranged smile.
«But, one day, a man found out about the door and he pulled the lever. Why? He did not want the power of the god for himself, he did not want the world to be destroyed, no, what he wanted was to see. »
Stan and Jenny had equally surprised expressions.
«Just to see. Just to know about the power of the god, he doomed his whole world. » the scientist rose up to his feet and claimed to the sky. «OUT OF THE WHOLE DESTROYED WORLD, HE WAS THE ONLY ONE TO BE HAPPY FOR HE HAD KNOWN WHAT OTHERS WOULD NEVER SEE!»
A thick silence filled the room. Jonathan seemed lost in his dreams and his two interlocutors were too stunned to say anything.
Slowly, the mad scientist came back from his daydream and looked down on them. With an arrogance that surpassed everything he had showed before, Jonathan stared at them with a delighted grin.
«That story is the story of our world and I am the man who pulled that lever. I will be the only one to die happy, for I will have gotten what I wanted while you will all die miserably. »
Those words seemed to have slapped Jenny in the face as she approached the man with a dark glare.
When he saw her determined expression, Jonathan let out a savage laugher.
«YOU WILL ALL DIE! NONE OF YOU CAN DEFEAT MY CREATION! AS SOON AS IT'S BORN, THIS WOLRD WILL BE AGONER! » he shouted, feeling like a victorious conqueror.
«A… lever? » Stan thought out loud.
It was as if the world had frozen still. Jonathan stared at the other poke-geneticist in shock and Jenny had lost her capacity for coherent speech.
They kept quiet as Stan started muttering unintelligible sentences. As time passed, his eyes showed more and more comprehension until he paused, frozen too, by the process of his own thoughts, no less.
Both Jonathan and Jenny jumped in surprised when Stan began to laugh loudly, almost like a child. They stood as they were; confusion showing in their body languages as they witnessed what seemed like an inappropriate expression of joy.
«Mr. Folklow? » Jenny tried, not sure of what else she could do.
Finally wiping the tears that had been rolling down his cheeks, Stan took a deep breath.
«Oh Mew, how long has it been since I laughed like that? It feels like it's been decades since it last happened. » he said, trying to hold back the hiccups his body was still subject to.
«What was so funny? » the officer asked, this time a bit bothered by the scientist's antics.
His eyes glistening, Stan showed them a grin that had nothing to envy to Jonathan's previous ones.
«Oh, I just realized how simple the solution was. All this time, it's been staring at my face like a couple of neon telling me «Helloooo? We're HERE! » and then, Jonathan told us his silly little story that was exactly what I needed to hear to understand. The irony was just so… appropriate. You see, if, like he had never been able to do about anything even close to poke-genetics, he had just shut up, I might have never got it. Thanks, Jonathan. » Stan ended, having trouble controlling his hilarity.
The look of disbelief that painted itself on Jonathan's face was beyond all words.
Just as slowly as Jonathan had expressed his triumph earlier, Stan stood up and talked to Jenny.
«Let's go, we got what we came for. »
With a smile of her own, Jenny nodded and led him out of the cell.
However, just as she was about to ask the guard to close it behind them, Stan stopped and turned around.
«Oh, there's something I forgot to say! »
His expression suddenly thoughtful, he turned around and placed himself between the door and the frame. Frowning, he massaged his chin, as if troubled by something.
«What was it already…? » he asked out loud. «There's something I meant to tell you after I talked with Genno earlier today. »
His frown then turned into a smug grin.
«Oh yes, I remember. You were beaten up by your subordinates and your old friend from college whom you've always thought as a lesser scientist than yourself, you are currently held within a prison and will never leave it for the rest of your life and, most importantly, you were stupid enough to give me a way to destroy your «perfect creation». Let me say this: if there's a loser somewhere, it is definitely you. »
Jonathan's cell was from that point on and for as long as it held a prisoner filled with screams of impotent rage.