When Delia had gotten home for the first time in weeks, she had crawled her way into the attic and pulled out several of Ash's old things.
In one corner there were stuffed toys that were at one point treasured friends. A closer held childish outfits, including several Pokémon themed onesies from when Ash was a toddler. The toy chest didn't hold any toys at all, instead it held several albums containing her son's various antics.
Delia took one of the books and flipped inside. Ash had just turned two and had developed the urge to punch everyone and everything for no other reason than because he could. She had remembered that it had taken quite a lot of work to curtail that bad habit.
Then, she flipped through another book and found a photograph from that last Christmas they shared together. Red, her husband, had given Ash his first cap as a present, starting a lifelong obsession with hats in the boy. Her husband was also covered in a kitchen accident of his own making, having let his excitement get the better of him. Meanwhile, Delia smiled at them both, delighting in simple pleasures of that life. Water droplets fell onto the old photographs.
Delia missed her son. She missed her husband, too. And now she was alone. She had lost everyone, once again. She should have traveled with her son, just like she should have gone with her husband. She could have gone with the two most important men in their lives on the missions they were given.
The grieving mother wiped the tears from her eyes and shook her head. No, no. She was being ridiculous. Ash was only a toddler when her husband went off on that dreadful mission of his against Team Rocket. And as to Ash's trip to the Orange Islands? She knew next to nothing about blimps altogether.
Delia took a deep breath and recollected herself. She took several of the most important photos and resolved herself to make copies. She then took some of Ash's favorite articles of clothing and lamented that the person they belonged to wouldn't be needing them again.
Ash's funeral was coming up. Much of Pallet Town knew the boy and for them, this was their chance to grieve. There would be no body, instead these belongings of his would serve as Ash's symbolic body.
But as the grieving mother cleaned the shelves, she noticed something odd glittering in the dark. She reached over and found a small necklace. It consisted of a round, iridescent gemstone that almost seemed to glow with a faint inner light.
Delia Ketchuim suddenly remembered where the necklace came from. She hadn't worn it in years, but it was the only keepsake from the life that she had forgotten. She had wondered for many years about what that life could have been, sometimes desperately wishing to reclaim it and remember what she had lost.
The woman grabbed the necklace and put it around her neck. It felt familiar, like someone she had long forgotten was in her life again.
Ash found his Gramps in what appeared to be a large museum. Its walls were lined with paintings of heroic figures, whilst its shelves were covered in small treasures behind glass cases.
The elderly lucario gazed at several of the exhibits, his mood like a furious storm directed inwards.
"What's the hold up?" Pikachu's whisper reached his ears.
"... I worry I might say the wrong thing." The riolu hesitated approaching, knowing that if he did get closer, his Gramps would sense him. "I can't just… tell him the truth."
"Ash, we can't keep tiptoeing around this forever," Pikachu glowered at him. "You have to tell him about this stuff, sooner or later."
"Easy for you to say; he's not your grandfather," Ash spat back.
Pikachu shrugged. And then he just shoved Ash forward with a flick of his tail.
The riolu stumbled on his feet and hurriedly tried to regain his balance, but when he did so, he found himself right under his grandfather's gaze.
"Ash? What are you doing here?" Gramps said, a mix of confusion and embarrassment flowed around him. "Shouldn't you be with the Emperor?"
"We were," Ash replied as he dusted himself and made sure his footing was right. "Gaozu liked listening, but his uh… babysitter wanted us out. We got through to how everyone met each other, at the very least!" He didn't really have a solid opinion on either of those people, but at least the pancham liked hearing stories. He was a good kid.
"I see," Gramps said, a small bit of pride radiated from him. "You handled yourself well, for your first meeting with the Emperor."
"Thanks." Ash replied in agreement, somewhat proud of himself for having not made a fool of himself to someone that important. His eyes then wandered over to where his grandfather was looking at prior. "What's that?"
"This?" Gramps pointed at a glass case that contained a shattered bracelet made of blackened metal. A strange, multihued gemstone sat on its fitting. Nearby, a similar cream colored gem with a pink and beige spiral sat nearby. "These were the inspiration for Mantling."
The riolu's ears perked up. Mantling was that strange power that Corviknight used on them some time ago. It made him really strong and tough to fight. Ash felt curious to know that this was the source of that power. "Really? How does it work?"
"The noble family that now resides in Heliotrope and presides over the Dojo there came from abroad and brought this object with them." Gramps replied. "While its original purpose was never determined, due to the bracelet having been shattered, the noble family's ancestors combined their knowledge of how the device was supposed to work, with an understanding of ancient Essence manipulation created the art of Mantling."
"And Mantling makes you stronger?" Ash questioned. "Like, I met a Corviiknight who had the power of… Rayquaza, and he was strong enough to nearly topple the boat I was on."
Gramps nodded his head. "Mantling is the art of drawing Essence foreign to your body and allowing it to add to your being. It makes you strong, because in a sense, a Maiju who has donned a Mantle is not fighting alone; their strength is bolstered by the assistance of another."
"So, like, if I was Mantling someone else, it'd be like if that person was… helping me out?" Ash asked, trying to puzzle it through.
"Precisely." Gramps smiled, perhaps proud of Ash figuring that out. "The first form of Mantling, the one created by the Heliotrope Dojo is about lending your power to another or drawing it from a friend or a close companion. The second is through drawing on that contains a portion of the Essence of a different being."
"... Can you teach me?" Ash's tail wagged in excitement. He liked what he was hearing, because it sounded like a way to get stronger and more powerful. But more importantly, it sounded like a way he could help out his friends when they needed it. Like, if he and his friends could combine their powers, there was very little they couldn't do.
The lucario's face contorted into a frown, as an odd feeling of buried grief washed over him. "... I would prefer you not learn, but if you must, I would advise learning from the ones who created the art. Heliotrope is not that far away, should you choose to go there." he said.
Ash immediately knew he accidently hit on a sore point and chose to simply nod his head and not ask about it further. Though as he thought about going to Heliotrope and collecting the next Emera along with learning how to use a Mantle, an odd thought crossed his mind. If the people who made up Heliotrope were descended from people outside Citrine, how likely was it that one of them might have been human? "What species make up Heliotrope's Dojo?"
Grandfather took a moment to answer, as if he was considering what to say. "Avians, birds, and the occasional dragon."
Ash frowned. Sure many birds could have worn the bracelet on their legs, but he doubted that it was intended for a Pokémon to use. It might have been a leap in logic, but the bracelet seemed like it was made for human hands. He frowned as he then recalled why Pikachu had sent him here in the first place.
"Gramps, what's wrong with humans?" he started with a small question.
"This is about my outburst earlier, isn't it?" Gramps asked.
The riolu nodded his head. "I… back when I was with my mom, we met plenty of humans. Some of them were mean, but most were nice." At least, he assumed they were nice. "Some were even my friends."
The lucario bowed his head, he seemed to hesitate before coming up with a response. "Ash, I know you feel that way, but-"
"But then why did you say it would be better if humans didn't exist?" Ash demanded, raising his voice to compensate.
Gramps shook his head. "Humans don't… really have a place in this world."
Ash felt like a punch went to his gut. "... What do you mean!?" he shouted in outrage.
Gramps sighed, clearly frustrated. He looked at himself before looking around the room. "Ash, humans have done so much wrong. Both to me and all of Citrine, especially in the most recent war."
Ash frowned. He still didn't understand, though he could feel a coiling resentment and loss attached to his grandfather's heart. "Gramps, I know humans aren't all good, but… how can you say things like you wish there weren't any of them?"
"Because my grandson. I feel that the world would be a better place if we Maiju were the only ones in it." Gramps sounded guilty, saying that.
Ash felt enraged, frustrated by what he heard. He loose, without thinking. "But you'll get rid my friends!" he said.
Gramps's heart suddenly turned into a wall. "I… know what they were."
Ash froze, suddenly caught off guard.
"I also knew what you were."
"What?" Ash could only manage to say.
Gramps relaxed his body, though held an intense mix of guilt and sorrow. He shook his head and looked his grandson in the eye. He then answered in a calm voice, "Grandson, I know that you were human."
The riolu took a step back, the words sinking into his heart. He stared back at his grandfather in the eye, stunned. How long did he know?
Gramps seemed to pick up on this. He answered very bluntly. "Your mother, she told me her plans when we had our last argument. Though, I denied she succeeded until I met you and saw you dressed as an outsider."
Ash felt a tear streak down his eyes. "So, you knew the whole time?" His voice felt raw. "...T-Then, why did you take us in, if you knew we were human?" And why would he still wish humans gone knowing what they were?
The lucario shook his head. He went to look around the gallery again, before turning his gaze back to his grandson. "My grandson, there is something you must know about humans, something that I think would put into context much of… everything."
Ash narrowed his eyes. "Like what?"
But Gramps never had a chance to answer. "ASH!" Pikachu's voice rang out. "We have a problem!"
A Rapidash came into the room, dressed in full-plate armor. "Sirs, I come bearing dire news!"
"I will tell you everything after, I swear this," Gramps whispered in Ash's ear.
The riolu grunted, but accepted. His grandfather seemed like the sort of person that would be honest.
"Speak," the lucario told the horse.
The rapidash bowed his head. "I regret to inform you that your guests have been caught up in some sort of attack. One of them had been abducted, while another reports that they nearly got taken as well."
"I see," the lucario's voice grew deathly cold. "Tell me everything, starting from the location of where my guests are."
Ash felt stunned, knowing that one of his friends ended up getting captured while he wasn't around to stop it.
Pikachu walked over to the riolu. "Don't be too hard on yourself."
"I know," Ash replied. "But while we were here giving stories to the Emperor, one of our friends got captured. That's awful."
The rodent shrugged. "I know, but we'll find our friends and we'll set things right, okay? Just like we do all the time."
The riolu nodded his head, accepting that while thing were awful right now, they did have a track record for fixing things later.
At this point, Gramps broke away from the armored rapidash and turned towards his grandson. "Ash, we're about to find your friends once more. They'll be meeting with the investigator soon. Then, once we've determined the wrong doer responsible, we will ensure they regret taking one of our own."
Ash clenched his fists, agreeing every bit with that statement.
Cinder tried very hard to ignore the stench, but even for her kind and even though she wore a face mask, an entire sewer was more than she would have liked. And to think, an entire stereotype existed where it was said that spirits did not care for or even preferred horrible odors. So much for Scholar Hemlock promising that this wouldn't be their job. At least, the dark did not bother her.
"Sensei," she began. "What is the likelihood we will find what we are searching for?"
"Better, assuming my assumptions are correct," the ferrothorn answered back. Sensei Tungsten's massive spiked feet clattered against the stony floors, echoing in the distance. "My assumptions are this; if Raichu came from the sewers and was near the dockyards, our opponent likely needed to occupy a basement or cistern. Additionally, it is unlikely that our opponent dug out large tunnels to make a hideaway, since that would have required a massive amount of soil displacement and structural reinforcement to conceal."
"Assuming we have correct information and this section of the sewers is where our prey has been hiding in, either we or some of the other teams will find him." Captain Blaziken answered. He and his squad of soldiers escorted the two alchemists. "Our coordinated search pattern should in theory mean we would find something."
Cinder nodded at that assessment. The sewer system of the Capital city was multilayered, buried at the lowest depths of the great city. It was created with the intention of handling all of the waste that came out of the city, whilst also ensuring the surface level waterways were clean and fit for Maiju to travel through. Granted, it was also likely they ran into other troublemakers as the sewers were known to be frequented by criminals; though rarely did they have hideouts and secret lairs in such a rancid place.
The group continued to walk along the path as it led forward. At an intersection, Captain Blaziken took out a map and determined their route. "Hm, Hemlock's team will take that route if they haven't already. Don't think they passed through yet."
"We should keep moving then," Alchemist Tungsten asserted.
However, Cinder looked in that direction, her eyes focusing at a distant wall. She felt something. Amidst all of the rancid odors and rotting detritus, there was a hint of something not quite corporeal. Something… desperate. "... I think I can smell something."
"Smell something?" one of the soldiers asked. "Like what? Moldy noodles?"
I… I think I noticed it, too.Dexter chimed in as he floated off of her back. I… I don't know how to describe it. I don't understand… why does it make me feel… hungry?
"It's a strong negative emotion, coated in residual psychic energy." Cinder answered and then frowned. "Come to think of it, you haven't fed on Ash in a while, so this might be the first time you've felt hunger."
Dexter hovered silently for a good minute, contemplating.
Her kind and spirits in weren't powerful empaths like riolu and telepaths were. Instead, true spirits often derived a portion of their nutrition from mental energy, and as a result developed techniques and abilities that made it easier for them to find or collect when such energy was nearby, similar to how other Maiju had adaptations that led them to their preferred foods. Incidentally, this preferred diet of mental energy was one of the reasons why Ghost-types were adept at fighting not only psychics, but each other as well.
Captain Blaziken turned towards Sensei Tungsten, awaiting his suggestion. "Your command?"
"We lack a psychic to verify, but Hemlock's team also lacks any spirit kin or telepaths. If they had already passed, they might not have noticed." The ferrothorn answered. He furrowed his brow and thought out loud. "We must verify this finding."
The soldiers walked over to the wall and began to search for an entrance.
"What's the building above this location?" one of the soldiers asked.
"A gambling den," the Captain replied as he held the map. "Typical sailor's tavern. Not particularly rich. There's not supposed to be anything at this sublevel, but we can't rule out the possibility that the owners didn't make a modification to their property."
One of the soldiers tapped against the wall with open palms. "I can't find any entry point. Wall seems thick here."
Cinder continued to eye the wall, assisting in what ways she could. This close, she could practically taste the suffering through the walls. Though her instinct might have been to consume those emotions, the more rational part of her mind knew that in their current state, feeding on them would have been harmful.
"Can we smash the wall?" Tungsten determined.
"Not sure. Could be load bearing." Captain Blaziken answered back, holding a clawed hand to his beak. "But there has to be a way in…"
Cinder slid a paw against the brick. It phased through easily. "The walls are not phase proof. Maybe I can find a door or lever from the other side?" she suggested.
Sensei Tungsten furrowed his metallic brow. "Very well, but be careful."
"Can you phase someone with you?" the Captain requested. "It would be best if you had back up, since there is a chance that your suspect is inside."
"I'm not… that powerful," she bowed her head in apology. "You're all too large."
I can accompany her, but I know I am not adept in combat. Dexter frowned. Perhaps, I should be, but that's not something we can change at the moment.
Captain Blaziken frowned but nodded his head. "That will have to do. If you see any threat, I will ask that you evacuate as soon as possible."
Cinder made a brave face. "I will. I… I understand what I must do."
As do I. Dexter replied.
The two spirits leapt through the wall and into the room. It took several paces through solid rock and brick before they found themselves in a large room, one part of several.
Nearest to them were a number of scattered texts and broken lab equipment. Rusted tables and mangled appliances further emphasized destitution. The air in the place not only features the familiar odor of sewer miasma, but also the acrid stench of chemical processes. This was clearly an alchemist's laboratory, though in such poor organization and disrepair that it was a wonder any work had been done here at all.
What is the purpose of all of this stuff? Dexter replied.
"Not sure. But we can read all of this later. We need to confirm we are in the right location." Cinder walked forward into the next room over. She couldn't locate any obvious sign of a doorway in the laboratory.
As she walked in, she was engulfed by the fear, despair, and pain that saturated the room like a haze. So many Maiju were trapped in cages, most of them unconscious and unmoving. A few who were awake gazed upon her with a look of abject terror.
The zorua quietly backed away, unsettled by what she was seeing. There was little doubt in her mind that this was the right location, where the supposed Ditto had done his experiments. But if so, where was Ditto? Where was Raichu?
"... it's me…" a distant voice whispered, just barely audible to the fox's sensitive ears.
Cinder turned her head and noted a moving shape in the distance against some of the cages. While her ability to see in the dark was far better than most other Maiju, the cages in front of the shape occluded her vision of their opponent. Just in front of her, she could make out a weepinbell who had several unsightly brown spots on its body, a pair of nidorans who were both the same dull gray, and even a sandshrew covered in bruises and bandages.
You spotted someone? Dexter asked, his voice a digitized whisper.
She brought a paw to her mouth, a digit raised to signify silence. There was a very high likelihood that this was the Ditto. They needed back up, if they intended to face him. Though, if worse came to worst, she had prepared a very special concoction to buy herself time to escape if needed.
Dexter under the situation and attempted to hover backwards, to return to the lab.
Cinder, likewise, did the same and stepped in reverse.
That was when the shape against the cage suddenly moved, one figure breaking away from the others.
Something small and sharp came flying towards Zorua and before she realized it, she was hit… and the barb flew straight through her and into the wall.
Before she could process what was happening next, one of the other figures came barreling towards her, before lighting up in a discharge of sparks.
Dexter flew in the way and conjured a protective barrier, deflecting the attack.
"Whoever you are, stand down!" the one who threw the barb shouted into the air.
Cinder immediately wanted to recoil, to hide as was her nature, but there was too much on the line to allow her to do that. She reached into her pack and grabbed the bottle containing her most potent weapon here. "You back away! I'm not afraid to use this!"
"And that's supposed to scare me, Verge?" the barb thrower walked closer, his silhouette some sort of lanky, bipedal creature.
Cinder on the other hand, could only wonder why was she being called "Verge"? There was nothing as far as she could remember that could have led to that kind of association. Unless, this was a case of mistaken identity. "... Who is Verge?"
The barb thrower seemed to pause for a moment before turning to his partner. "Voltorb, give us light."
"Got it!" said the other shape. It glowed brightly, revealing itself to be a fairly typical voltorb.
To Cinder's surprise, the figure that threw the metal barb at her was none other than a sneasel, a very particular sneasel… who was also a former human. Silver walked forward and stared at the fox before turning over to Dexter. He seemed just as surprised as they were. "... What are you doing here?"
Cinder almost wanted to cut and run. Her previous experience with the sneasel was not exactly something she wanted to experience once again. If she needed to breathe, she might have held her breath.
Dexter, thankfully, stepped in. We are here on official business on behalf of Citrine's ruling party as part of consultancy on a criminal investigation. And as if to threaten the sneasel, his tone then changed. Perhaps we should ask you why you are here?
Silver didn't seem particularly impressed. He walked over, his arms crossed. Though he did seem to regard the floating Pokédex with some measure of… annoyance and confusion. Perhaps he realized that the Pokédex.
"Hey, Silver, you stopped fighting? Is everything okay?" another voice shouted. A growlithe stepped from the shadows.
"Just go back to your brother!" Silver snapped. "We're leaving as soon as you can get him out!"
The pup whimpered. "... I would, but he's scared! Nothing I can say to him is getting him to calm down!"
Cinder blinked as she assessed the situation. While the sneasel hadn't revealed anything, it certainly sounded like he was here to… retrieve someone else's kidnapped sibling. Ironic, considering how the zorua met the sneasel last time. At the very least this implied that the sneasel and his party were not their enemies at the moment. "Your brother is likely suffering some sort of linguistic impediment. If he is like another case we've assessed, he can't understand anything another Maiju says, but if he has been to school, he should still be completely literate."
"So, I have to write to him? Uh, okay?" the growlithe seemed very confused, but nodded his head and walked back to the cages.
Silver squinted an eye.
"It benefits me to allow you to leave or to incentivize you to you learn what you know about this… Verge?" Cinder said, though she wondered if her voice cracked at least once while saying that.
The sneasel simply glared at her, causing the zorua slightly flinch.
A familiar looking Totodile walked over, a perplexed gaze on his face. He looked at the Maiju trapped in their cages, many of them were terrified out of their minds. "So, you guys are going to take care of this problem, right?"
"Ideally," the fox replied as she looked at the floor. "We cannot treat their Essence sickness, we're still unsure of how to treat it, but we can treat their physical and mental health."
"Good enough." Totodile replied as he walked over the former-human. "Silver, might as well tell them what you know."
"It's unnecessary," the sneasel countered. "We can handle this problem ourselves."
The small crocodile rolled his eyes. He pointed at the rest of the room. "Do you want to take care of all of these sick Pokémon? Because I don't. And I know you don't either."
"Fine," Silver snorted. He shook his head. "Verge was created by a group called Team Rocket."
Cinder blinked, unsure of how to take this information. She knew Team Rocket, though her only experience with the group were the talented inventors that were… associated with Ash and company. Granted, they were kidnappers. "They created… Verge?"
Silver nodded. "It was a long time ago, but the idea was to synthetize a perfect being using the DNA, the blood, of numerous other Pokémon." The sneasel grimaced. "The resulting creatures were… deemed a failure and put into cold storage. Verge was the only survivor that I know of."
And somehow, that creature found its way into Citrine, perhaps the same way everyone and everything else came by.
The fox considered asking another question, only to notice the sneasel walking away. "Wait, where are you going?" she called out.
"This is your problem now." the sneasel answered, his group following after him as he climbed up some stairs, presumably to some sort of surface exit.
That was odd. He does realize there are plenty of witnesses, right? Dexter asked. And we're under no obligation to listen to him?
Cinder observed the terrified onlookers. The prisoners looked so weak, so defeated. "I think he was assuming we had bigger problems at paw." She considered reporting the mustelid's past transgressions towards the authorities, but she understood that doing that might have invited scrutiny on her own activities and relations.
She shook her head and found what she had been looking for earlier beside one of the walls. She pulled a lever and caused one of the walls to slide open.
Captain Blaziken was the first to step through. He seemed mildly surprised before he turned to the cages and their charges. "You were in there for quite a while. What was the cause of the delay?"
"We can discuss later," she said, her mind focused on the immediate. "Right now, I think there's quite a few patients in immediate need of attention."
"Agreed."
There should be surface access. Dexter chimed in. Perhaps to the gambling den you mentioned earlier.
Captain Blaziken dispatched a runner to call for more soldiers to help with the recovery efforts.
Meanwhile, Sensei Tungsten approached Cinder. "There was no sign of our perpetrator?"
Cinder shook her head. All she saw was Silver and his posse. "Only some civilians who wanted one of the victims. I couldn't stop them, but I don't believe they are a threat."
Sensei Tungsten seemed to regard that interest. "Are you sure they are no threat? What if they were our suspect or were in league with them?"
"I doubt it. I don't see a likely motive." Cinder shook her head and turned to the cages. "We have other matters to attend to."
"Indeed. Hm, iit is likely that when our suspect impersonated me, he understood that this lab would become compromised shortly afterwards. Perhaps he no longer needs it." The ferroseed snorted and made his way over to the ruined lab. "Search the lab. I'll coordinate efforts over here."
Cinder nodded her head and walked over to the ruined lab. Several of the notes and journals were full of scribings and notes. Most of the readable information consisted of observational data and experimental reports. The zorua noted with some hesitancy that many of the Maiju listed were not present. She pressed on and noted a couple of the papers emphasized a single word, one that her friends had made use of from time to time. "Why does Kanto show up so often?"
Likely because the only species that we have notes for are from Kanto? Dexter provided. It seems rather odd, but for some reason, Verge has only been targeting Kanto Pokémon. See, look at the growlithe posting. So many annotations of complains about him having the wrong affinity.
Cinder did. This was likely the growlithe that Silver and his associates had taken. Apparently, Verge was rather annoyed since the canine was partially Rock-type and not purely Fire-type like he had been expecting.
As the fox dug deeper and deeper, the fox noted a growing frustration about how none of the abductees were perfect or viable test subjects for… some sort of experiment involving mixing and recombining Essence? It was a level of alchemy she had never even heard or dreamed about. And yet Ditto was obsessed with it.
"Perfection is achievable, but only if I continue my experiments?" Cinder read aloud.
Why? What was the purpose of all of this?
"We have a message for a Cinder of Tanzanite and Dexter of Pallet!" a voice shouted. A messenger came flying into the room.
Cinder raised an eye and approached the messenger. She was rather perplexed since the soldiers had only just started taking the prisoners to the surface. "Is something the matter?"
"An incident involving the Tajiri household has occurred. Your presence is requested!" the messenger said.
Both living Pokédex and spirit fox turned to each other, knowing that that was not a good sign.
Vulpix felt awful, her body ached in places. The fox twisted herself, trying to make sense of where she was and why she hurt. Her eyes heavy, she glanced down at her belly and noted that she wore several crudely applied bandages on her side. She… was cut? Yes, that's right. That fight in the sewer. She was knocked out.
The Fire-type rapidly fluttered her eyes to refocus them. She noted she was in some sort of cage. The area was dimly lit, though she could make out some stone walls. There were few other cages in her vicinity, though the other Pokémon there seemed to still be sleeping. A familiar looking Raichu sat in the open, strapped down to some sort of steel slab. She did not move beyond breathing.
Vulpix rose to her feet and approached the edge of her cage. She touched one of the bars, only to feel some sort of force pushing against her. The fox retracted her leg, realizing she was likely trapped here for the time being.
"You are awake, at last," a voice called out.
The fox turned her head towards the speaker.
Slowking approached, his eyes looking down at her with curiosity.
Having been the victim of kidnapping attempts multiple times before, Vulpix was not easily shaken. She slammed against the metallic floor of her cage, letting loose a chatter. "Who are you?" she demanded. "Why do you have me captive?"
Slowking observed her, as if trying to get a read. "You intruded. You attempted to seize test subject. You were captured. That is all," his voice was strictly monotone, almost devoid of feeling. It was like listening to an actor pretending to be a machine in some Unovan movie. It honestly felt unnerving.
The fox growled, agitated. "You captured someone, dragged them with you!"
"Recovered test subject. This is true," Slowking replied in his calm monotone. He brought a hand to his shellder crown. "Experiments may now resume."
Vulpix glared, not liking what she was hearing. The fact that Raichu was bound to a slab did not help matter. "What kind of test subject? What kind of experiments."
At that, Slowking seemed to shift ever so slightly. "Important experiments to improve and empower Pokémon as a whole. Painstaking work, but perfection is achievable." While Vulpix couldn't necessarily understand his body language, she could make out a slightly change in the tenor of his voice. There was also the fact he used "Pokémon" as opposed to "Maiju", which implied all sorts of things."
"Perfection?" Vulpix asked.
"Perfection. Yes. Each iteration, each subject brings us closer to that the elusive goal," Then Slowking did the unexpected and fell into himself. In a split second, he lost all sorts of mass and transformed … into another Vulpix.
Stunned, Vulpix staggered back as she observed the newly changed… other. She did not know what to make of this observer, but then she remembered that Slowking had been a different Pokémon in their last meeting before he changed.
The new fire fox was male and with deformed and damaged legs. Large sections of hair had been peeled off and both of his eyes were missing. Despite lacking eyes, he stared at her very intently, still as a stone.
Vulpix shook her head and dug her feet in. "Is that supposed to scare me?"
"No," the former Slowking replied. Then, just as abruptly, the new fire-fox's hair started to knit and reform, the cuts and abrasions all over his body restoring a bit at a time. The missing eye regrew in a manner of seconds. The shape of his body slightly changed, too, transforming from a male fox to one that was female.
"What is that about?" Vulpix asked, almost uncertain if she wanted the answer.
"It was to mend myself," the other vulpix replied, in a voice that perfectly matched the actual fox's voice. "Your example benefited me."
"You're… welcome?" Vulpix answered, feeling rather disrupted at being… emulated like this. "You're a ditto?" she asked, thinking that this was the simplest explanation she had already experienced. Not many Pokémon had these specific abilities.
The other fox tilted his… her head, considering whether to answer or not. Eventually, the… creature decided. "I am."
Surprised that he… she was being so forthcoming, Vulpix wondered just much longer this generosity would take. But she wanted to know more, needed to know more. She was kidnapped for a reason: why? "Do you have a name?"
The disguised ditto narrowed its gaze. "I am called 'Verge', itself a contraction of the word 'converge', the joining of many disparate parts." Thus question then was; what was converging?
"But… why are you taking Pokémon? Why are you kidnapping them for your experiments?" Vulpix asked.
"To achieve perfection," Verge stated again. "I will be perfect. Then others may become perfect. But for that to happen, I must acquire more data, complete more experiments."
Vulpix did not understand what perfection even meant in this case, as she had little idea what the context that meant was. If this was all about a fashion show or dress up, she could have had a good answer. "But why? Why is perfect so important to you? What's wrong with being imperfect?"
Verge's expression darkened and he then slammed himself against the cage. "I must be perfect!" he stated again, his tone laced with not so subtle agitation. "Perfection is the only thing that matters. It must be achieved, anything is a failure of the project."
Vulpix relief back, her body brushing against the opposite side of the cage. There was definitely something there, an unreasonable deep seated desire that allowed Verge to justify anything.
Then, just as suddenly as Verge lunged for the attack, the disguised ditto leaned away. "It is… understandable that you do not understand. However, I respect your attempt at comprehension."
"... uh, you're welcome?" Vulpix said, though she worried that now the ditto was planning something she would not approve of.
Verge tilted her head and then looked at one of its paws. The fur on it started to turn white with a slight bluish shade. The ditto looked at Vulpix with a menacing grin. "I believe I have a satisfactory experiment. Please hold still."
"Why can't you let me through!?" Brock shouted at the top of his lungs. He to go through, to do something!
The Pokémon in front of him, two brown quadruped variants of quagsire, stood their ground and shook their heads. "Sorry, Sir. But the sewers are closed off for the investigation. We can't let you through!"
The lycanroc growled, frustrated with how things turned out, but he saw little point in fighting through. The city watch and army were far too large for any one Pokémon to just battle their way through. And besides, they were working to actively make the situation better. "...Just, please tell me if you find her!" Brock nearly pleaded.
The two guards nodded their heads. "If we find her, we'll inform you."
Seeing that he had done all he could, Brock turned his back and walked away from the back alley.
An espeon shopkeeper continued to relay her testimony to an investigator, on how Vulpix had attempted to buy a Fire Stone, only to not use it when she had heard someone cry out in distress.
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE IS NO TRACE!?" Kyuko, the ninetales priestess, shouted at a greninja. This all started when the fox walked out of some alleyway, covered in sludge and bruises. She claimed she had been attacked, prompting a mass cavalcade of soldiers to invade the marketplace to find the perpetrator.
The frog took out a sheet of paper and presented it to the ninetales. "I am sorry, Priestess, but we cannot find neither scent trail nor physical marking. It is as though they disappeared."
"THEN SEARCH AGAIN!" she commanded. "They can't have gone too far!"
Brock idly wondered if the army wouldn't have been involved if a priestess wasn't attacked. Then again, there might not have been any attack or abduction if they had remembered to stick together or had chosen any other place to visit.
"Brock," a loud voice reached Brock's ears.
The lycanroc twisted his body in surprise, only to suddenly calm down when he realized it was Onix yet again. "Oh. It's just you. It's surprising how silent you could be for something so big."
A gravely laugh escaped Onix's throat. "Hmph! Practice."
Brock felt the tension in his body recede in the presence of his oldest friend. His ears fell, as he confided in the oversized snake, as he was prone to do in times of duress; the only change was the Onix could now talk back. "... Hey, Onix. What do we do now?"
Onix shifted his head slightly as he bent it down to meet the lycanroc on his nose. "Be patient. Be calm. Learn what can."
Brock frowned, not necessarily liking the answer. "I mean, I know we should do that, but I can't help but worry. Vulpix has been taken from us when I wasn't even there."
"Vulpix acted on own. Vulpix wanted be alone. Vulpix pressed for time. All factors," Onix answered.
Brock still felt guilty, still felt responsible for where Vulpix might have been right now. What was he going to tell Suzie?
"Not your fault," Onix reprimanded.
Brock blinked, not expecting a direct call out.
"I know you," Onix simply replied, because anything else was irrelevant to bring up. "You take responsibility. Expect it. Always have."
Brock let out a sigh. Of course, Onix was right. He had always been the responsible one and had always felt responsible for the well being of those around him. Whether it be his siblings, his Pokémon, his friends, that had always been true. "It's just, I don't like being here, being stuck waiting for the investigators to figure out something."
"Rarely used to this. Attacks usually direct. Easy to fight. No questions," Onix commented. "Usually, Team Rocket."
And yet, that didn't make Brock feel any better. He wanted to grind whoever was responsible for taking Vulpix away in his teeth.
Onix shifted his weight ever so slightly and gently nudged Brock back. "Perhaps, rest? Relax. No point in worrying."
Brock growled. "I can't just sit still!" Even if the entire marketplace closed down and everyone was trapped by the investigators.
Onix stared back, unperturbed. "Yes. But, wait. Need information. Also, we are trapped. No choice."
Brock growled and turned his head away. From where he stood, the lycanroc noted that several of his companions were doing something to spend time while the investigation was still ongoing. Perhaps they might have done something, but the army and the city's guard have likely told them to stay away.
Zubat, Geodude, and Misty tended over towards Togepi's needs, reciting some sort of story. Weezing babysat Psyduck.. Meanwhile, Cyclizar met with Jessie and James overhauling some crates, some of which looked like they were full of metal. Meanwhile, Meowth, Arbok, and Victribeel played a card game against Goldeen; given the size of the pile of coins on her side, the fish was winning quite handily.
"No help to anyone. Must gather self," Onix repeated. "Rest. Recover. Then we fight."
The wolf groaned, agitated, but the rock snake had a point. This was all a matter for the city's guard now. They had better find Vulpix. "I just.. .I don't like the fact that this is all I can do. What if something goes wrong? What if we're too late?" Suddenly, he had a whole lot more sympathy and respect for why Ash would also dive head first into danger without thinking whenever someone he knew was threatened.
"Then. Nothing we could do. No point worrying." Onix answered sagely. "We must persevere. We must endure."
Brock felt uneasy, but then again, Onix was right. Even if it hurts. If something wrong happened, there was little point in worrying about it now.
But as the lycanroc calmed himself, he noticed a shadow fall over him. He looked up and noticed one very particular Charizard swooping down at them.
The fire dragon turned on a dime mid air and landed right in front of them with a loud thud. He then set down a large cloth sack that was in his grasp.
Mister Tajiri dismounted from the Fire-type. He turned to the Fire-type. "Thank you for your services, young one."
Charizard grunted. "Yeah, I'm awesome, right?"
Other people turned their attention to Mister Tajiri. Some of the nearby guards turned to look at him for a moment and then promptly returned to their business, seemingly upon realizing he was a lucario. Others like Misty's group or the Rockets were interested in the elder, though most did not approach. Civilians who had no business or knowledge of the situation simply kept to themselves.
Ash and Pikachu stumbled out from the bag, both looking quite disoriented.
"Ash? Pikachu?" Brock stuttered, not expecting the jackal pup or the rodent to arrive in this exact way.
"Hey, Brock," Ash groaned as he struggled to keep himself from collapsing to the floor. "We got here as fast we could."
Pikachu stumbled over to the fire dragon and lightly kicked his shin. "Why, oh why did you say that flying would be faster than walking?"
"Because it was?" Charizard offered. Meanwhile, Bulbasaur and Squirtle fell out of a different sack upon Charizard's back; both of them were also disoriented. "Of course, maybe I should have waited for those birds… or could have tried to avoid that bit of turbulence."
"Or not carry us!" Pikachu said.
"Hey, it's not my fault most of you are too small to grab on without falling off!"
"Mommy, I don't want to wear those stupid goggles…" Squirtle muttered as Bulbasaur fought to keep the turtle standing.
Onix grunted in an amused tone. "Must be fun."
Bulbasaur shrugged. "It's… efficient."
Brock shocked his head and focused on Ash. "I'm glad you're here. How much do you know?"
"Not much," Ash answered. "We just… know someone has been taken."
"Yes, that's true," Brock replied, his tone gruff. He patted the ground. "Someone took Vulpix, but we don't know why."
Ash made an uncomfortable face, understanding.
"And that is why we must learn more," Mister Tajiri answered. "Do you know where the highest ranking official is?"
"If you mean the guy with the fanciest outfit or headwear, he's taken over a nearby pub to use as a headquarters," Brock answered as he pointed at a direction with one paw.
"Good." The lucario nodded head. He turned to the others present. "I suggest that you children stay behind. This is an official matter now. Come, Ash. You must see this for yourself, as my heir."
Ash nodded solemnly.
"Hey, wait! I'm following Ash!" Pikachu complained.
"And Vulpix was… someone I cared about," Brock muttered, a slight growl in his throat. "I want to know what happened here."
Bulbasaur, Charizard, and Squirtle lingered behind. None of them complained.
The lucario inclined his head, he seemed a little bothered. "Very well then. Come." He then walked towards the direction Brock recommended to him.
Brock followed behind him, eager to see if the lucario's involvement would change things for the better. Onix went after him to provide morale support, though it was clear to everyone he would only be outside the building. Ash walked besides his grandfather, with Pikachu behind them.
"Follow my lead," the elder said to them.
They walked over to a small drinking establishment that had been rapidly converted into a temporary command center. Pokémon of all sorts walked in and out of the building to relay findings and aggregate reports from across the entire marketplace. At the head of it all, sat a single absol dressed in a long coat and a wooden cubic hat. He barked orders to his subordinate, but as soon as he noticed people that weren't his direct charges walk in, he stopped and inclined his head over to the elder lucario in the room. "General," the white furred canine said with a reverent tone. "It has been… many, many Moons."
Brock squinted his eyes at Mister Tajiri. He supposed it made sense that the Tajiri family was essentially a military family given what the house was stuffed with.
"Magistrate, is it now?" the jackal responded. "You've done well for yourself. Though I must reiterate that I have retired."
The absol nodded his head. "Perhaps, but humor me." He then turned his head towards Ash. "Ah, you there. Do you remember me? I apologize for our first meeting, but it seems you have done well despite that misunderstanding."
Ash nodded his head. "Magistrate Sora?"
"Souta," the absol corrected. He shook his head. "But I digress. We could converse more casually some other time. We have business to discuss."
"Yes," Brock growled with slight impatience.
The absol and the soldiers by his side seemed to stare at the lycanroc. While as Ash, Pikachu and Mister Tajiri were given a slight form of deference, Brock could almost tell that the soldiers did not regard him the same way. He supposed the answer to that was obvious; he wasn't part of the Tajiri clan.
"Can you advise us on the situation that has befallen my guests?" Mister Tajiri requested.
"I am sorry to say that we do not have much information regarding the… shapeshifter who attacked members of your house." Souta shook his head. "We had been informed by another team that suspect is a species that Citrine has never encountered before."
"A Ditto," Brock muttered. When Kyuko had stumbled out of the sewers and related her story, that was the lycanroc and everyone else who was from Kanto came to.
"Yes, we did not believe it at first, but another group has informed us this is likely the case." Souta frowned. "We do not have a reliable set of information to detect the ditto, though. We simply lack the knowledge of their capabilities. Though, I am informed that more information was being gathered by our most learned."
A small bit of relief fell over Brock. If there was any evidence that could be used to save Vulpix she was there for it.
The absol then looked out the window, as if examining something ahead. "I believe we have guests."
Then, as if predicting it, landing impacts and gusts of wind billowed from outside.
Two newcomers stepped into the building, both of which Brock hadn't seen in some time. It was a pleasant surprise to see familiar faces that helped brighten the dark mood of the day.
"Cinder? Dexter?" Ash was the one to say that, though everyone else was thinking it too. "What are you doing here?"
Dexter floated over to Ash, who simply hugged him back.
"I mean, we knew Vulpix, too," the fox answered. "Not too well, but she was nice.""
"It is a coincidence that she was on the team of alchemists tasked to investigate the matter," replied Magistrate Souta. "Though, I would ask where Sensei Tungsten is."
"He didn't want to fly," Cinder replied. "He intends to come, though it will take him a while before he feels satisfied with investigating the lab we discovered an hour or two ago."
"Ah, that is fortunate news, then. Your team has been reportedly making major strides in the investigation," said the absol.
"Wh-What lab?" Brock asked, a slight panic in his voice.
After some investigation, we have encountered a laboratory that the suspect has abandoned. Dexter answered in Ash's arms. We understand he is a ditto that has been experimenting with the Essence of other Pokémon, though we are not sure for the purpose other than a desire to become more perfect.
"His notes were esoteric, but it also does not resemble any form of alchemy that I or anyone else were familiar with," Cinder agreed. "It's also likely he has not fully mastered standard alchemy either, as whatever potions we were able to salvage seemed to be only partially transmuted."
Brock balked. He did not like the implication that Vulpix was now in the hands of some sort of experimenter, especially one who did not fully master their craft. "But why Vulpix? What could this whoever it is, want with her!?"
She is of a species of Pokémon that is found in Kanto. That is all.
Brock stared.
It is an odd fixation. The suspect, who we have been informed who is named "Verge" is only targeting species that are not listed in the original one hundred and fifty. All others, including evolutions of Pokémon from the Kanto region or alternate variants of existing Kanto species are not what he is after.
"But why?" Brock found himself asking.
We do not know.
"Kanto species?" the Magistrate asked.
"You know, the first one hundred in the Pokédex, because that's where Professor Oak lives!" Ash answered as a matter of factly.
"... Why are Pokémon listed in the order?" the lucario asked.
"Uh, because that's when Professor Oak put them in?" Ash shrugged.
The lucario seemed rather upset by that. "... I do not understand why that is significant, but the fact that this 'Verge' is utilizing that kind of listing, implies that he is aware of its existence." He narrowed his eyes. "Could he be an outsider, a foreigner."
"I have reason to believe that might be the case," Cinder winced.
Despite this confusion, Brock zeroed in on the bit of information they had. He couldn't even begin to understand whatever this "Verge" wanted or why, but if there was a finite number of species he preferred to capture, well, what did he want to find. "... what species have already been accounted for?" he said coldly.
Cinder winced. She dug into a satchel by her side and pulled out a small roll of parchment. "Quite a lot. We've accounted for many of the victims. He's gone through many species already, though he rarely if ever goes for duplicates."
"Hm, in theory this will allow us to better protect and warn potential victims if we know who he is targetting.," the absol stated. He then frowned. "Though from the sound of things, he has already become aware of us being on his trail and getting closer by the day."
"Indeed, but that will not stop his rampage unless action is taken," the lucario. "Being on the defensive, while often inevitable, is not ideal. You concede mobility and momentum to your adversary. We must be proactive."
Brock grunted in agreement. Ditto or not, he wanted to tear him to pieces for having taken one of his own.
"To this end, I propose that since we know what he wants, we simply give him wants," Mister Tajiri said.
"Uh, what?" Ash stuttered.
"I don't intend to actually give our opponent a new victim. Rather, I intend to lure him with the prospect to where we can be ready to ambush him," the lucario confirmed.
"Ah, I see, General. This is like at the battle of Malachite Mountain," the absol muttered.
Ash winced. "I don't like the idea about using someone as live bait. Like, what if we make a mistake."
"Yeah, like, being captured is not fun at all!" Pikachu commented.
Brock narrowed his eyes and lowered his head. He saw the obvious advantage posed by the place, but at the same time, it was putting someone they knew in danger. Still, a more rational part of him knew that he should at least seek alternatives. "Are we the volunteers?"
"There are plenty of people willing to volunteer, if it meant an end to this trouble maker," Absol coughed. "I see no problem with the plan, other than this. How do we guarantee that Ditto will actively want to seek out our designated target? He already knows that we are trailing him."
"Perhaps if we had multiple subjects that he might be willing to capture all at once?" Cinder proposed. "Or perhaps even novel or unusual variants of a standard Kantonese Maiju? I am only guessing however."
The lycanroc brought a paw to his chin as he thought it over. With Vulpix's life on the line, the lycanroc knew he had to take drastic measures. Though as thought it through, he realized that baiting a trap was just not something he excelled in. Instead, he realized one very important thing. "You know, if we're going to make a trap, we know some people who are very good at doing this."
"Did we have to buy so many bundles of cloth?" Jessie shrieked at the top of her lungs from atop the crate.
"I need them!" James countered below. "I need more clothes. And there's not many tailors who have clothes on stock and on a budget!"
Meowth sat nearby, letting out a sigh as he patted the large backpack next to him. "Ya knows we supposta buy more parts, right? We can hardly carrys all dis stuff already!"
Jessie groaned and flicked her tail up in defiance. She got no respect from these… heathens! "We can always make another trip." She then remembered that the market place was blockaded by lots of Pokémon. "Once this matter blows over!"
"You're not carrying anything!" James complained, slamming one yellow foot onto the ground.
"... Uh yeah Jessie, I hate to tell you this, but you… this is alot of work," Arbok said apologetically.
Jessie rolled her eyes. They seriously expected her to do back breaking labor at her small and delicate size!? Though she supposed Arbok was wearing himself out having to slither everywhere without arms.
"Well, I suppose you do need a break while these two brutes go back to work once we're allowed to leave." Jessie commented.
"Uh, thank you?" Arbok said, almost confused.
Weezing and Victrebeel turned to look at James, though their expressions were unreadable.
James the pikachu groaned. "You like that snake more than you like me!"
"Well, of course!" Jessie said as a matter of factly. She flicked her tail for extra emphasis.
James the pikachu began to spark. Jessie leapt off the crate and flexed her body to prepare for a fight. Only to stop when a shadow fell over her.
All of Team Rocket turned to see quite a few Pokémon looking at them, a good dozen or so wearing uniforms and body armor. Even the Twerp was there and…a lycanroc who had outgrown being a twerp.
What was going on? These were the police of this country and they were gathered all around her!
Mister Tajiri, their host, seemed to regard them with some curiosity. "So, you're also… trapping specialists in addition to …machinists?" he said. "You must be… incredibly multi-talented." He sounded like he actually meant something else, but chose to hide it.
"Yes. That we are!" Jessie said almost nervously.
"Uh, we've got plenty of experience!" James added.
"I can testify to that!" Pikachu said, almost laughing.
Jessie glared at the rodent.
An absol stepped over, one who clearly had to be someone very important if he wore fancy clothing. "The Imperial Court requests your services and you will be rewarded handsomely if you can help us capture a criminal."
Jessie blinked, not expecting that.
"Normally, it is… not popular for the Court to hire mercenaries, but have gained some notoriety when you took down that pirate captain," the finely absol continued.
Oh, now it suddenly made sense. Jessie puffed up her chest and raised her collar. That fight against that disrespectful serperior was one of her favorite moments. "Well, if you want to hire Team Rocket… we're very skilled at capturing Po… our target."
Pikachu looked like he wanted to giggle and did a bad job hiding it.
Meowth scowled and turned to the finely dressed absol. "We's gonna need some details. Like, who we catchin'? Or what's the da budget?"
"We can arrange the specifics later. Are you interested?" said the absol.
Lycanroc Tw- just lycanroc silently gave Team Rocket a look that basically … encouraged the small band to consider taking this job.
Jessie turned to James and Meowth, who both the same idea. Victreebel looked like he wanted to wither, whilst Arbok seemed quite intrigued.
"Of course!" Jessie finally said.
"We just… need to make sure our things are in order first!" James outright lied.
"Uh… mind waiting?" Meowth concurred.
The absol nodded his head. "If feel that is appropriate, then so be it." He swiveled his head to the side and turned to a nearby location. "Once you're ready, we can discuss what will be needed."
All of Team Rocket breathed a sigh of relief; all of the soldiers and Twerps all went back inside of the small establishment they were in. Lycanroc Brock was the last one to turn his head, his green eyes narrowed in an almost predatory stare.
Once they were gone, James practically collapsed, falling face first. "Oh, this is bad! Now they want us to capture Pokémon!"
"I mean, we've captured all sorts of Pokémon before!" Jessie replied, though she could tell her confidence in this was… lacking.
"For five minutes at a time!" Meowth groaned. "And most of them were da same pikachu!"
"I mean, it's nothing we haven't done before, right? Like, it's just like an order from the the boss!" Once again, Arbok showed exactly why he was a valuable member of Team Rocket.
Jessie rose to her feet. "Yes. And without those Twerps interfering, we don't have to worry about them ruining everything! And we'll get paid at last!"
"Yeah!" the rest of Team Rocket rose at once, now motivated to do what was in their job description: to scheme and capture unsuspecting Pokémon and turning them over to much wealthier people who would do with them as they saw fit!
"And I'll have the perfect outfit for the job!" James added.
Jessie used Tail Whip. It's super effective!
Sorry this was relatively late. I had trouble conveying and defining the antagonist of this arc in as many words as I was given.