EIGHTEEN
"It was just gone?" Teleurac said incredulously to the image of the Admin on his Holo Caster.
"Y-yes . . . Zygarde was gone by the time we broke through the rocks. Must have caved itself in to gain some time to escape."
Teleurac let out an exasperated sigh. Shifting in his chair, he reached over for his cup of coffee. "I don't want to see you in person again unless you have Zygarde in a Pokeball. Search the surrounding area, search underground, under every speck of dust if you must." He looked up at Augustine, who was sitting across the breakfast table and lazily playing with the chopped fruit on top of his crepe. "Professor, how much do you know about Zygarde?"
"Legends say it reveals itself when the ecosystem falls into disarray," replied Augustine listlessly. He had once read an account of an explorer who encountered Zygarde in the cave; that explorer had witnessed Zygarde's ability to camouflage itself to avoid detection. ". . . and that's all anyone really knows about it."
"Hmm . . . ." Teleurac scratched his chin as he contemplated his next response. "My last statement still stands. Get to it." He ended the call and stashed the Holo Caster in his pocket before taking a sip of coffee.
"Pardon the interruption, Augustine. Where was I?" he asked as he speared a strawberry with his fork.
"I believe you were telling me about something you found earlier while I was in the shower," said Augustine, keeping his tone flat. A few days after he first came to Teleurac's penthouse, he went back to the ruins of his apartment and found a few items still intact: a painting done by a Smeargle that lived at the lab, a picture of himself and Diantha back in their college days, some CDs, his diary, a frying pan, a picture of himself with Serena, a few articles of his own clothing, and an old college textbook. Everything else was beyond repair. All of them were brought to the penthouse and moved into his guest bedroom, all given their special place therein (the picture of him and Serena was kept under his pillow, since Teleurac didn't know he had it and hopefully would never find out)
"Well, I was reading your diary as I always do when you're otherwise occupied," said Teleurac, watching Augustine spit his coffee back into his cup. "I didn't know you wrote poetry!"
"That's private," hissed Augustine, feeling his cheeks grow warm. He had been living in the penthouse for almost three weeks at this point, and while Teleurac went about as if they were ordinary roommates, Augustine felt suffocated. The two men went to work together in the same car, shared every meal together, went grocery shopping together, Teleurac listened in on Augustine's Holo Caster calls, and even stood outside the door while the Professor used the restroom (like he really had the capability of contacting Serena while answering nature's call) Augustine once met Trevor and his other former students for coffee, and Teleurac even tagged along to that. Instead of a somewhat pleasant evening (as pleasant as it could be when they were living in something resembling a police state and one member of their group was missing) was filled with awkward forced conversation.
It seemed like nothing was sacred anymore, and every time Augustine looked at Teleurac his blood began to boil.
Teleurac chuckled. "How cute, thinking you still have the privilege of privacy. Not as cute as your free verses you scribbled out back in November, though. Don't worry; they'll be our little secret."
Later that morning, Teleurac assembled all of Team Flare's head scientists for a meeting in a board room in the underground facility. Augustine sat at the Governor's left-hand side, now wearing a long red labcoat instead of his old white one. He had also been given a pair of wide black glasses, similar to what the other scientists wore. The electronic tablet in his hand was supposed to be for taking notes, but instead he had a drawing program open, and he doodled various Pokemon as he listened to the others talk.
"Reconstruction of our energy extractors is coming along nicely. I project we'll have thirty operational units by the end of the month. We'll spend February restocking our energy reserves, and I believe we'll be ready to run tests for Phase One by the beginning of March. Celosia, there was one modification to the device I assigned to you. How is progress on that coming about?"
"Deciphering the original blueprints was a bit of a challenge, but I've figured out what materials are needed to complete it. I'll need to go to Geosenge to retrieve them," stated the purple-haired scientist as she adjusted her goggles.
"Leave as soon as you can. It is crucial that that modification is made." Teleurac ordered.
"Sir, perhaps we should run a smaller scale test before we use the device for its secondary purpose – so, you know, it actually works," Aliana suggested.
"Its primary purpose, you mean." Teleurac snapped. "Phase One is the true secondary purpose."
"Of course, sir," said Aliana meekly.
"Professor, Monsieur Lecroux has spent the past three weeks with you. Has he been able to Mega Evolve that damned Medicham yet?" Teleurac addressed Augustine.
Augustine snapped to attention. "No he hasn't. I believe he and Medicham have the necessary strength of friendship between Trainer and Pokemon, and he has the proper Mega Stones, but he is anxious and his sloppy technique never improves. Quite frankly, I'm not the one qualified to teach him good technique."
"Make him figure it out," hissed Teleurac. He was silent for a moment. "Perhaps we could call Diantha to help – an accomplished Trainer like her, skilled with Mega Evolution, should be able to help us."
"I'll see when she can come in," said Augustine.
"Bien," said Teleurac as his mouth curved into his crooked smile.
Augustine resumed his doodling, paying close attention to Bryony's delineation of progress on her task, which was overseeing reconstruction of the device underneath Prism Tower. Now that it was the middle of January, most of the damage done by Serena and rioters had been fixed, but she explained in a self-congratulatory way how some components were cut out so that the device could run more efficiently. Just in time for Augustine to finish drawing the nose on his Fennekin sketch, Aliana presented a new design for a cannon tower. This one was taller and sleeker than what he had seen on Christmas Eve, and Aliana expressed hope in having a small-scale working model constructed in the coming week. She ended her presentation by showing a model of a cannon attachment that would go on top of Prism Tower itself.
"Any questions?" said Aliana at the conclusion of her presentation.
"Yes," said Augustine, loud and clear. "Who are we shooting at with these cannons?"
"Nobody . . . yet. This is just part of an initiative to bolster our regional defenses," explained Aliana.
"I understand," said Augustine, stunned and quizzical, "but turn Prism Tower into a weapon? For what? People are not going to be happy about this."
"As Aliana said, it's all for defending our great city. Someone will consider us an enemy worth attacking soon enough, just because of how we label ourselves," said Teleurac. "With any luck, we won't actually have to fire them."
A quick call revealed that Diantha was available to come to Augustine's lab that very afternoon. She, Augustine, Teleurac, and Bernard Lecroux all assembled in the indoor battle arena on the lab's underground level. Diantha entered the arena, greeting Augustine and Bernard and wrinkling her nose and wincing slightly after Teleurac took her hand and kissed it.
Once Bernard got over being starstruck by Diantha's presence, he let Medicham out of its Pokeball. Augustine got to work setting up the machine and computers he used to record data on Pokemon whenever they performed tests in this arena, glancing out of the corner of his eye from time to time to see if he needed to bail Diantha out of another uncomfortable situation.
"It is just splendid that you could join us today, Madame," Teleurac said suavely to Diantha.
"My pleasure," Diantha returned stiffly.
"There was actually a matter of business I hoped to discuss with you. As I am sure you are aware, the Kalos Pokemon League is currently without an eligible Champion . . . and I would like to reinstate you to the title."
"Really?" asked Diantha, pretending to be intrigued and pleased, but Augustine saw the reluctance flash across her face.
"C'est vrai, ma belle. Kalos needs a Champion with beauty, grace, poise, maturity – all qualities that you have in spades. We can discuss details of this over dinner tonight. What time shall I retrieve you?"
Diantha shook her head. "Governor, I am flattered. You say nothing but flattery. And yet, if I am once again Champion, this is news I will be celebrating with my dear Phoebe."
Augustine glanced up as she spoke, in time to see the look of shocked disappointment on Teleurac's face. He stifled a chuckle, then returned to positioning one of the machine's disc-shaped sensors so that it faced the center of the arena. Diantha must have started her relationship with Phoebe when he wasn't paying attention.
"Ah, you're seeing someone? That's wonderful, I suppose . . . surprised I haven't heard of it yet."
"She moved here from Hoenn shortly before Christmas, and I only met her last week. Anyway, enough about my personal life." She pulled a Pokeball out of her purse and tossed into the air, followed by her Gardevoir emerging in a flash of white light. While Diantha gave Bernard a brief, simple lecture about how best to conquer nerves, Augustine continued calibrating his machine, making sure the sensors were set to pick up wavelengths given off by Psychic-type moves. His mind flashed back to when Serena was in this space, allowing him to gather data on her Pokemon. It was only in October, yet it seemed like three lifetimes ago. He looked up when pink light began radiating from Diantha's Mega Charm, which was followed by light emanating from Gardevoir's Mega Stone. One explosion of light later, Mega Gardevoir stood majestically in their midst.
"Magnificent," Teleurac breathed, his eyes wide in awe. His Holo Caster beeped, and he answered it. Nobody's holographic image popped up; rather, the display showed the generic smiley face of an anonymous caller.
"Hello? Have I reached Governor Teleurac?" the voice belonged to a man, who was speaking with urgency.
"This is he. Who are you?"
"Excellent! Sir, I require just thirty seconds of your time. No – three minutes. Thirty perhaps! I am an officer of the International Police, with the codename of Looker. It has come to my attention that there is a threat to the peace in Kalos, and I feel the obligation to investigate. I am calling to ask your permission to cross the border into Kalos and look into this most pressing matter."
"A 'threat to the peace?' To whom are you referring?" asked Teleurac suspiciously.
"I heard that Team Rocket was active in Kiloude City. My former protégé and successor at the Looker Bureau, Emma, requested my help in snuffing them out."
Teleurac rolled his eyes, then made eye contact with Augustine. He nodded his head towards the Holo Caster and mouthed "He's fooling nobody." Augustine briefly wondered if Emma was still busy following the bogus trail laid out for her.
"I had all communication between Kalos and the outside world shut down. How is it you are calling me, and where are you now?" the Governor pressed.
"I am currently in Unova, and communication devices belonging to International Police officers are protected from silencing orders such as yours," answered Looker testily.
There was a beat of silence before Teleurac spoke again.
"You did a fine job training Emma, Mr. Looker. She is the finest private investigator in Lumiose City. This Team Rocket case is taking a little longer than any of us anticipated, but your help is not really necessary. Emma can handle it herself."
Augustine missed the next part of the conversation; his attention was stolen by bright pink light swirling around Bernard's Medicham. Diantha was standing behind him, saying words of encouragement, and watched proudly as the light exploded to reveal Mega Medicham.
"I did it!" Bernard exclaimed, slapping a hand to the top of his dark, short-haired head. "Did you see that, Professor Sycamore?" he continued excitedly, turning to Augustine and pointing at his Pokemon. His eyes were wide with awe and pride.
"Yes. Excellent work!" replied Augustine, his own face breaking into a grin. Even if it was for a less-than-benign purpose, watching a first-time Mega Evolution filled him with joy. "Now, I want you and Medicham to have a battle with Diantha and Gardevoir, just so you can get a feel of working with your Pokemon while Mega Evolved. Try to use Psychic-type moves only, please." He shifted his focus to Diantha. "Go easy on him."
His joyful feeling went away when he heard Teleurac's next words to Looker.
"You are not welcome in Kalos, Mr. Looker. Not now, and perhaps not ever. Did you really think you could call me unannounced, lie to me about why you want to come back, and expect to get your way? I am not a forgetful man. Dr. Xerosic is in prison because of you, and you are one of Serena Carlyle's allies. If I catch you trying to enter Kalos, or if you even try to contact anyone here again, I will send my operatives after you." He hung up and thrust the Holo Caster back into his pocket, then turned his attention to the battle between Diantha and Bernard. Gardevoir launched one last powerful, blinding Moonblast that fainted Medicham.
"I thought I told you to go easy on him!" said Augustine jokingly.
"It's all right, Professor, really," Bernard piped up. "How'd I do?"
"You did very well!" Diantha said encouragingly as she recalled Gardevoir.
"Perhaps, but he's not here to battle his Pokemon," said Teleurac coolly. Augustine glared at him briefly, then inspected the numbers generated by his computer during the battle.
"The raw data for Medicham looks good," he commented, scanning the display on the computer monitor. "Once I do some statistical analysis, I'll know how it compares to the numbers I already have on file, and whether or not it will be worth considering future tests with this Medicham." It was time to remember those careless mistakes he made in his university statistics class, he told himself.
"Let me see." Teleurac crossed over to where Augustine stood, leaning over the Professor's shoulder and scanning the numbers. Augustine stepped away slightly, not wanting the Governor in his personal space.
"Of course, I'll want to capture several sets of data," added Augustine, stepping around his equipment and approaching Bernard. "Go upstairs to the second floor and have Cosette heal Medicham. While you're gone, I'll have some targets set up for Medicham to physically attack, as well as a larger sensor for Psychic-type moves. We'll do maybe three or four runs before we're done for the day, all right?"
"Sure," said Bernard, still visibly hyped. With a spring in his step, he exited the arena and went to the elevator.
Teleurac's Holo Caster beeped again. When it saw that President Oria was calling him, he looked at Diantha and pointed to the door; she nodded and did not hesitate to scurry out of the arena. Augustine remained to work on data analysis, finding places to create small errors in math that would drastically affect the end results. He also listened in on Teleurac's conversation.
"Ah, President Oria! We haven't spoken since before Christmas! How are you doing?"
"Yes, only because Looker just now showed me how to bypass your Holo Caster restrictions on my own device." Oria did not sound like she was in a good mood. "And don't give me that polite 'it's-good-to-see-you' malarkey. I suspected something was going on with your administration the moment you were elected, and now I know I'm right."
"Just what do you plan to do about it?" asked Teleurac, dropping his false congeniality.
"For starters, I will grant asylum to any Kalosian citizen who wants it."
"And how do you plan to inform my constituency of such a generous act?" Teleurac asked, cocking an eyebrow. "And how will you ensure that people can actually take advantage of your generosity, when I have oceans, skies, and land borders patrolled constantly so that nobody can leave Kalos?"
Oria's face hardened, her eyes narrowing into an icy glower.
"Governor, you and your administration are not only a threat to your own people, but I believe you endanger the other regions. I don't care how you want to present yourself as the new, reformed Team Flare. And if the people of Kalos can't find a way to help themselves be rid of you, I will. You will be child's play compared to Team Plasma."
"Was that a threat?" Teleurac sounded amused, yet taken aback.
"Perhaps it was."
"Well, Madame President . . . should you make any attempt to fulfill that 'threat,' I will consider it an act of aggression, and my retaliation will be tenfold of what you give me!"
"I know a Trainer who befriended the legendary Pokemon Reshiram, a very powerful Dragon. There's also another Trainer out there somewhere who has the legendary Zekrom, also a powerful Dragon. Zekrom and Reshiram are extremely dangerous together. Your move." Oria ended the call.
"And I will steal those Pokemon from their Trainers and use them against you," Teleurac muttered angrily. He looked over to Augustine. "Why does Unova feel like it needs to be the Six Regions' police, making sure everyone behaves according to their standards?! Opposing me and everything I'm working to accomplish - she practically declared war on us!"
Augustine did not respond. He imagined that there was soon going to be a use for those cannon towers, and the thought of it filled him with dread.
"You wanted to know who I want to save Kalos from, Professor? Well, now you have your answer."