Chapter Sixty-One
Bruno sensed two packs crossing the river, one off to the north, and another south. The hordes loitered on the west bank, waiting for orders. Any further, and it's likely the other Lucario would discover them, but once they were distracted, the jaws of his trap would close around them.
He swung his gaze through the castle hall. Though the roof hadn't been fully shingled and most of the windows were missing glass, the walls and domed roof loomed over him. He felt his strength woven into the mortar. It pulsed with each beat of his heart, emanating his power over the land. Now he didn't need to send out recruiters. Pokémon, drawn to the light like moths, flocked from every corner of the land untouched by humans.
Preston stood three steps below him. He stared at the open doors, out to the encampment of Pokémon huddled around fires.
"It is time," he said.
Bruno stared out an empty window near the ceiling. The sun's edge rimmed the edge of the blunt, rough masonry.
"Give it another hour," Bruno said. "Waiting in the city would be dangerous."
"Being caught en route would be more dangerous," Preston replied. "It will also take time to bring the plates."
Thirty metal plates, each twenty feet long and a foot thick, circled the camp. Much of the metal his Pokémon had gathered went into the scaffolding supporting the stone walls from the inside, forging rudimentary arms and armor for his Pokémon, and crafting his throne. The rest was melted down and cast in rock-lined holes to make a mobile fortress. Grooves and pits ran along the length of each wall. Streaks of copper, silver, and brass wove through the metal like strokes of paint.
"Then have the plates sent out. The rest will follow after."
Preston nodded and relayed the order. The scrape of metal on stone heralded the departure of the plates. It took two dozen Pokémon to lift each one, but far more remained by the fires, eating hot berry mash and roasted fish.
"Have the armories sent too. They can arm themselves when they get there."
Clanking metal echoed through the hall. Outside, Pokémon heaved wooden crates onto their backs and marched after the plates.
As Bruno studied the march, the purple glow drew his gaze westward, toward the city. The second sun burning in the afternoon sky filled him with a sudden chill dread. He would have to get much, much closer to that alluring flame. Leaving wasn't an option, he reminded himself. Without him, his forces would be crushed by the Lucario. But could he stand to be any closer? Would she be there, on the battlefield? Could he kill her?
Preston climbed the stairs. The aura within the Alakazam had receded, until it was but an oil slick on the pool of his mind, holding him without touching him.
"It isn't too late to stop this," he said. "Arrange a peace treaty and move all the Pokémon far to the south. You can build your kingdom there, without the bloodshed."
Bruno set a paw on Preston. The Alakazam twitched and sank to its knees, overwhelmed by the aura pouring into him. When he stood again, his eyes were glazed over and unfocused.
"I will see to the remaining preparations, my lord."
Even then, he sensed that untouchable pool within him. Once it settled and pushed the aura from itself, he would have to repeat the process. Bruno didn't understand how or why he resisted. It had started after the loss of Benign - a remark about the number of casualties here, possible locations for a more secluded citadel there. He had almost considered it until he had noticed his weakened grip on the Alakazam's aura. Since then, keeping Preston controlled was like holding a greased balloon underwater.
"Were it not for your strength and insight," Bruno growled, "I would have you killed."
Preston inclined his head. "Forgive me, I will try to do better."
Bruno leaned back in his chair and stared out a west window, squinting in vain effort to shut out the distant violet glow. "What is the situation in the city?"
Preston closed his eyes. The hairs on his head waved in unfelt breezes, and wisps of stinging jade, emanations of his psychic power, wafted from his soul.
"Mass evacuation of the city is nearly complete," he said. "They're loading civilians into vans and boats, sending them all to a nearby town. The rest are hiding underground."
Bruno waved the information away. "What about the Rockets and the Lucario?"
Preston frowned. "I can't tell. There is a powerful psychic presence in the area."
"How powerful?"
"Powerful enough to tear me to pieces from the city," Preston said. He opened his eyes and slumped to his knees. "I never felt anything like it before."
Bruno tensed, and the bones of his throne creaked beneath his grip. "Why haven't you said anything about this until now?"
"It hasn't been there until now." Preston took sharp, shallow breaths and pushed himself to his feet. "You can't challenge it. You have a hard enough time keeping me in line, how do you hope to-"
Preston howled and clutched at its head. Bruno stood over him and doubled the pressure. The Alakazam writhed on the floor, gasping for air and soaking his fur with his tears.
"You have only felt a fraction of my power," Bruno said. "It would be far too easy for me to destroy you."
Behind the cold steel in his voice, doubt roiled in his gut. He felt it now, a green haze smothering the purple glow. While it was a relief to have that old temptation alleviated, the anxiety that replaced it left a bone-deep chill that the bonds of aura shared with all his underlings.
Preston regained his footing and propped himself up with psychic power. He looked into Bruno's eyes and said, "It's still not too late to leave this madness behind."
Bruno took a deep breath, drowned his anxiety, and smacked Preston across the face.
"Even if I run, they will hunt me down. I will fight them, and I will win."
Giovanni kept one finger over the button of a remote on his hand. Across the desk, in his office, his creation flexed its bulbous fingers and felt at the collar around its neck.
"I can sever the connection, you know," Mewtwo said.
"The metal alloy resists psychic manipulation," Giovanni countered. "Go ahead and try."
"The device works by transmitting radio waves. I could and already am blocking those signals." It smiled and said, "Go ahead and try."
Anger bubbled up inside of him, but Giovanni kept his face a cold mask. "Seven could fix that."
"I suppose she could," Mewtwo said. It sat down and picked a berry out of the platter on Giovanni's desk. Juice dribbled down its chin and onto the floor as it ate. "I have no intention of betraying you. All I want is to be left alone."
"You will have that, after you help me deal with the current situation."
"You intend to have me killed." Mewtwo wiped its chin. "I know you. You dispose of tools that no longer serve you, that they may not be used against you. You would have destroyed me already, were I not a valuable specimen to study."
Giovanni transferred the remote to his left hand and pumped sanitizer into his right. He struggled to rub it into his hands around the remote.
"What do you really want?" he asked. "Don't think I'm foolish enough to believe you'll just leave once it's all over. Not after what happened."
"You would have done the same were you in my situation."
Giovanni shrugged. "You may have noticed that I'm not exactly a pillar of morality."
Mewtwo chuckled. "True. Then let's say a saint would have done as I did. I was created, stuffed into a restraining suit, pumped full of painful fluids, carved up, examined…" Mewtwo grimaced. It reached for another berry, but it slipped out of Mewtwo's juice-slick fingers.
"You never stopped trying to escape."
"I didn't stop wanting to," it admitted, "But I didn't dare try anything with Ghetsis around." Mewtwo picked up another berry and crushed it in its hand. Pulp and juice spurted out from between its fingers. "You did kill him, correct?"
Giovanni took a deep breath. "That depends on your definition of dead."
Mewtwo slammed the table. Berries bounced off of the platter and rolled onto the floor. A thin crack ran through the wood.
"Answer the question," it hissed.
Giovanni flinched and pressed the button. Nothing happened. The muscles in his face twitched, itching to change his expression, but his stony mask remained unbroken.
"In body, he is dead, and has been for decades. In mind, he lives through an AI. Its main computer was harbored in a server room beneath Harmonia Labs, which I had destroyed, but one copy remains within his eyepiece. That eyepiece is currently in the hands of N, who is masquerading as Ghetsis."
"You must destroy it before it can copy itself!"
"I've taken precautions against that." Giovanni leaned back in his chair, but the muscles in his back remained tense. "There are only a handful of computers in the world capable of operating a program as sophisticated as his AI, and until all of this is over, I have them shut down, disconnected, and disassembled. He has nowhere to run."
Mewtwo studied the desk. It ran a hand over the crack, and it fused back together. "Fine, but destroying that eyepiece comes first."
"It cannot. Bruno is the bigger threat, and until he is dealt with, I cannot move against N and the other Lucario." Giovanni forced a slight upward curl of his lips. "Rest assured that I have no intention of leaving a trace of Ghetsis."
"On that we can agree." Mewtwo tilted its head up and stared at a point beyond the ceiling. "There is a psychic presence over the city. It's scanning the area, but it isn't coming any closer. It knows I am here."
"Can you destroy the source?"
Mewtwo squinted. "Perhaps, but it left. Reaching it would take a lot of effort." It shook its head. "It may be a trap. If I reach out that far, my power could be severed. It would mean I'd be useless for the battle."
"Don't risk it. Whatever it is, it couldn't possibly be more powerful than you."
"Are you praising me or yourself?"
Giovanni set the remote on his desk. "The button on the left removes the collar," he said. "If it doesn't work, you may as well have it off."
Without taking its eyes off of him, Mewtwo reached for the remote. Its finger hovered over the button on the left. Juice dripped from its finger.
The collar clicked and fell apart.
"I know better than to trust you after this," it said.
"Don't get the wrong idea. I just didn't want it distracting you during the battle." He glanced down at the tablet and squeezed more sanitizer onto his hands. "Get going. Their main force is on the move."
Mewtwo went to the door, opened it, and paused under the frame.
"I told you what I want, but I still don't know what you want."
"You haven't read my mind?"
"I'd rather not."
Giovanni looked down at his hands. They glistened from the alcohol evaporating on his skin.
"I want what Ghetsis had."
Changelog
12/28/18 – minor edits