CHAPTER 12: A LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS
Mewtwo had not succumbed to his torturers' capture willingly.
Even now, as he contemplated what had led him to this point, he moaned and struggled at the piercing pain searing his flesh and bones, unwilling to allow himself to simply bend to Giovanni's will and, in exchange for an end to this agony, be molded into the obedient slave the man envisioned him to be. He would not be the pinnacle in an unnatural army, nor be used as a weapon to level the world for the crime lord to rule over. He would not give in to such perversions—and if his body perished before he could escape this hell, then he would at least die with his soul and will intact, and as such remain unbound.
Yet the thoughts of what he would leave behind haunted him…had he failed them all?
His fury was only defeated by his shame.
After the airships had eluded him, he had teleported to the shore of the island to join in the chaos. He erected barriers around his people when he sensed their lives in peril, directed his pack upon paths in which to safely transport the wounded into the complex, and he attacked, attacked, attacked, destroying weapons, damaging the airships, mangling and dispatching any of the opposing side who came within range of his powers. He tossed shadow balls at hulls, at groups of humans, even upon occasion lashed out physically with his tail and legs. His ingenious mind worked on multiple levels in tandem, as the general, the strategist, the warrior, the defender, all the while his energies being leeched from his psychical and physical cores, yet fatigue was a force he fiercely shoved away. He must keep his pack, the island, all of it safe—his strength was surely greater than that of the enemy, though their numbers larger and their nearness making it difficult for him to control this situation. In the midst of battle, random variable cropped up which might be avoided at long distance struggles: the enemy came in too close while a back was turned to fight off another, a volley could go unheard in the roar of the assault, a friend was struck down out of sight…. The enemy was too close, too close, and slowly gaining ground!
As Giovanni's own airship touched down and its cargo doors yawned open, Mewtwo spun about to face the new potential threat: from out of the dark depths of the hull, metal glinting, and sounding like a horde of agitated wasps, mechanical being the shape of spinning tops, as large as boulders and decked with spikes and single, swiveling eyes, poured from the vehicle and into the battlefield, using magnetic fields to hover into the fray. At first, they appeared benign—but soon they fire black bolts of lightning from their eyes, not unlike other machines might lasers, but these strikes were certainly more devastated. Fissures ripped into the earth where the synthetic lightning struck, the clones being hit with them left with burns across their stomachs and chests, the force of impact knocking their breath, and sometimes consciousness, from them. The alpha immediately turned his attention to these new additions—they needed to be destroyed, immediately, before they wrecked more damage than he could counter.
There were eight of them in total, and soaring over to the primary two which threatened Rapidashtwo, he unleashed shadow balls at them—the lenses of their eyes cracked, as did their hulls, but they were otherwise intact, proving they were at least somewhat immune to this partial ghost, partial psychic attack. Considering that perhaps brute force would be the way to go, he ripped from the island bed large slabs of granite with his telekinesis, and thrust them atop the machines, which made a satisfying "crunch" as they were smashed. Spying that Gyaradostwo had his own pair near his shore, the alpha called, "Thrash them, leviathan! They will crumple under your scales and fangs like tender meat!"
And as Gyarados' hide and teeth were as hard as steel, a mere husk of metal around wires and motherboards proved little match to the flying water type—he devoured them and spat them out, roaring for more. The rest, however, would not target him—instead, having learned from their counterpart error, they began encircling the alpha and flying around him rapidly—and as they began to hum with dark energy, the clone could not track them with his sixth sense, but must employ his others. He listened carefully, his eyes closed, his frame relaxed…and then locking onto the movements of two of the robots, snapped out his arms and released a volley of telekinesis. The two caught in the strike were thrust into the outcroppings of stone common to this island….
But in the precise moment which Mewtwo executed his assault and dispatched the pair, the other two lashed out at him, catching him in dual blows—and this, ultimately, was how the alpha would be taken in battle. Instead of the black bolt simply impacting him and rendering him unconscious, they instead combined around him and morphed, blooming into a sphere of bloody light which seeped into and fired at his nerves as jolts raced through the orb, through him. In blind anguish the alpha thrashed with both his body and psychical powers, attempting to destroy the machines and escape their beams, but with no success. Entrapped in their fields he was at their mercy—and they, without hearts, possessed none. For all to see they flung him into the air and intensified their assault, the charges running through him and causing his spine to arc, his muscles seizes, his limbs go ramrod straight. He looked all the part of the crucified warrior, punished for fighting for the losing/wrong side. And as his followers saw him being so abused, they began to race to his aid, intent on destroying the machines for him—but as Mewtwo had dropped their protection and they their guard, they were swiftly defeated and captured by the enemy, who were unaffected by the mistreatment of the alpha and hence still functional. The alpha, sensing his comrades fall, opened his eyes, searching for one who escaped the onslaught—and he found her at the mouth of the cave, ready to dart out and fight!
"No, Vulpixtwo! Go to the spring, warn the others!" he called to her privately, imploringly. They were falling, but if the others could still manage to escape…!
"But Mewtwo-!"
"Do not argue—go! You must make certain they are safe…make certain that she…."
As another bolt lashed him, he howled, and then, as the worst of the pain faded, he murmured, "Do whatever you can to keep her and the child safe for me…."
And the fox ran, trying with all of her being to do just that. Yet in the end, she failed.
Within minutes of the fall, a handful of clones, two naturally born pokémon, three children, and Briar were led onto the clearing battlefield by Domino and her agents. Mewtwo had watched helplessly as the grunts had seeped into the caves like oil through a glass bottleneck, and had sensed the frenzy near the mineral spring and had prayed Briar would be among those who had escaped into the marina…but he was a clone, and so his prayer went unanswered. His heart sinking, he watched as she collapsed upon the sight of her captured pack members being abused and then felt her horror as she saw him and heard his moans and grunts of pain. She began to scream, the horrible anguish in her voice at seeing the suffering around her only intensifying Mewtwo's own hurt. He wished he could hold her, comfort her, whisper things would be alright…but they had lost, Giovanni had won, and their sole triumph was that some of the others had escaped, or at least had a place to hide…for now.
Briar too had seemed to realize this…nonetheless, she begged for mercy, not for herself but for the pack…and for him. "Let him go…please, let him go, you're hurting him…you're hurting them all…please, stop, please, please just stop! They've done nothing to deserve this!"
"As touching as your pleas are, young woman, they will not change the sentence I have decided for them…either they cooperate and live, or they struggle and die, most likely in some very painful experiments befitting of their kind. Mewtwo is already learning the price to disobedience—if he keeps this struggle up, however, his body may not be all he will lose. Perhaps watching his little friends die would convince him to submit?"
Briar immediately rebelled against the idea. "You wouldn't—you can't-!"
"I can and I will if he continues to test my patience," Giovanni growled, stepping from the podium of his personal airship where he had been watching the physiological and brainwave patterns of the clone in question. He approached the kneeling woman with his arms clasped behind his back, and stopping before her he said, "However, I suspect I may have the ultimate source of leverage against him to persuade him to comply. Tell me, who are you, girl?"
Briar struggled to her feet and backed away somewhat, unnerved by how the man gazed at her. Then, gathering her courage, she straightened her back and began to growl, "I'm—"
Yet Mewtwo aware of the danger Giovanni was luring her into, shouted out, "She is no one of consequence, Giovanni—merely a girl who fled here to escape the responsibilities of life and ultimately enlisted into assisting my people. She does not concern you."
"And has she been 'assisting' you in any way, dear boy? Perhaps performing services that keep you from frustration?"
"What you are implying revolts me—while I am certain her current condition is of her giving such services to others, she and I are not engaged in such disgusting behavior."
Briar's reaction swam between confusion and offense—much to Giovanni's pleasure. Mewtwo, spying this, swiftly murmured to Briar, "Guard your emotions, Briar—if he realizes what we are, what that child is, he will use that to destroy us!"
Giovanni interrupted however by saying, "I see. Well, then, if she is not an intimate/important acquaintance of yours, you will not begrudge me getting to know her a little better, would you, Mewtwo?" Before the clone could reply, the crime lord smiled and asked. "So, girl, what is your name? I'm quite curious to know what I should call the sole human who Mewtwo as allowed to care for the needs of his kind—you must be something special for his to trust you with such an important role."
"Be careful, Briar…."
Gritting her teeth momentarily, the woman said, "He allows me to stay because I know pokémon—that's all. As for my name, it's Briar—"
"Really? But you look more like a Rose, my dear."
Ice flooded both Briar's and her mate's veins. Oh god, he knew!
Giovanni, seeing they understood, dropped the pleasant façade and growled, "The first note to follow in my presence if you want to survive: don't lie to me. Your name is not Briar, but Rose Pyrite, an anti-social, breeder-in-training who ran away from home almost a year ago, and has not been seen since then—and considering how desperately you were searched for, how much your picture was passed around, you would have been spotted if you'd entered into any town, so I find it doubtful you came to be in your condition through the manner your leader implied. No, you became impregnated in a far less natural way, did you not?"
Briar didn't, couldn't, answer. Vaguely, she noted that the others were edging away from her as if she were diseased. They were beginning to see where this was heading….
"That's not to say I am not impressed. As sexually stunted as the father is, it must have taken quite a bit of coaxing to arouse him, little Jezebel…I admit I am rather curious about your methods to accomplish that—"
Mewtwo interrupted with a snarl, "You are deluded, Giovanni, to consider that. You have no proof that she and I—"
Giovanni's smirk only grew on his face, "Quite the contrary, Mewtwo—I do, and it's quite compelling evidence." And he turned, the screen behind him swiveling and a heat signature recording playing for everyone to see: it showed Mewtwo and his mate laying in bed together, occasionally sharing a gentle touch, nothing being too sensual, but it exposed them nonetheless. Seeing that, Briar paled and knew it was over—whether they could conceive of an argument or not, this man had made up his mind about what they were and would condemn them for it. However, as those around her edged away from her in disgust, her beloved attempted to result even this.
"That was done to comfort her—so far from other humans, she sometimes gets lonely—"
Giovanni laughed, "Oh, I'm quite sure—and I am willing to bet she has taken it upon herself to sooth your 'loneliness' too. Yet if you insist that we find even more concrete proof, fine. Domino, if you would?"
The Black Tulip walked up to the woman, who retreated at her approach—but the blonde leapt forward, one hand clasping Briar's shoulder, while the other plunged forward. A pinching sensation erupted from her belly.
"BRIAR!"
And as the Team Rocket agent leapt back, the needle she'd thrust into Briar slide out, carrying in its shaft the fetal blood that would undo all the deception Mewtwo tried to weave. As the mother-to-be collapsed on her knees behind her, she merely injected the blood into a DNA analyzer the size of her palm, and all the results flashed on the screen, she cast Giovanni a satisfied look and said, "The reading bewilders the device: it can't make sense of a genome with mixed human and pokémon genes—and those pokémon genes have the genetic markers of a Mew. Seems that Mewtwo's been taking VERY good care of this girl."
Briar barely heard any of this—shock and pain made her body shudder, hard, and as her frame began to quiver. She wrapped her arms around her stomach, feeling sharp pangs every few moments…they'd stabbed her, they'd taken blood from the baby, Mewtwo couldn't do anything, her pack had fallen, and they knew about what her child was, what was going to happen now, what…?
"…Well, Mewtwo, congratulations—I didn't know you had it in you. Had I realized you were capable of breeding successfully, I would have provided you a harem in order to gain some of your kits—perhaps that might have convinced you to remain a loyal member of the organization, but alas…at least I have not been deprived of this fortune. A human-Mew hybrid? I frankly feel quite spoiled! So many options to choose. Dissect it to see how it works? Clone it to gain more of its ilk? Experiment with its genome to manufacture a new breed of soldiers? And what about its mother, this woman you seduced? Shall I allow you to continue breeding with her naturally, or should I attempt to discover what, if anything, allowed her to conceive with your seed? Perhaps, if she truly is something special, she could breed with other powerful creatures…I am certain they would not mind trying her…she a bit scrawny for my tastes, but if you taught her anything, I imagine she could prove quite wild while mating."
"You will not touch either my child or my mate! If you dare harm them, I will not rest until I have freed myself and destroyed you in the most agonizing ways imaginable!"
Fury, disgust, but most of all, fear: the clone conveyed all of that as he stared at the demon in a man's skin, who merely grinned up at him as if amused. In defiance, Giovanni walked up the kneeling Briar and crouched, his arm snapping out as his fingers gripped her shin and yanked her face upwards, his fingers forceful enough to prove/bruise? Mewtwo howled in rage at this, and thrash fiercely against the invisible forces containing him as Giovanni said, "Well, dear Rose, your lover had quite the hostile attitude towards the notion of sharing you with others like a polite man would…but how about you? While I am certain mating an animal proved invigorating, being with an actual man is something altogether more fitting for a woman, as such, more thrilling. So what do you say? Tell me, what methods did he use to excite you in the first place? Did he bite you, take you from behind, battle for the right to—"
She spit in his face.
"THAT is none of your concern! Our activities are strictly private between us! And I would never, ever, not even to save my life, let you inside of me—Mewtwo is the only one who has that right!"
"You're willful, girl, but even the wildest horses will be broken and tamed with enough abuse—but go ahead and fight me all you want after that abomination in your womb is born! A little struggle will only make the experience more appealing in my eyes…after all, it will kill two birds with one stone: for nothing destroys a husband more than watching, helpless, as his wife is violated, and I doubt that clone is different! Of course, we could always cut the monstrosity from you to speed up the process, but for now I'll be content tossing you where there's no chance he'll reach you…." He stood, walking away and calling over to Domino, "I believe you told me there is a prison cell in the caverns? Take these trainers and Mewtwo's little whore there—we'll fetch them after we're finished with the other clones."
Yet as he shouted out more orders, Briar merely shook on her knees in the spot he'd left her at…brave as she attempted to be, the terror of the threat of rape decimated her soul, already sending echoes of ghostly pain into her core. If they did not find a way to escape, the baby would be made to endure monstrous things and her mate would be forced to watch as that crime lord raped her until he broke her spirit utterly. Oh god…oh god…please, god, no…!
Tears trickled down her face, and she jumped an inch as a hand fell on her shoulder. It was the redheaded girl, Misty. "Don't…don't worry, we'll find a way to get us all out of here. We won't let these bastards hurt you or your baby."
A shred of relief entered her, not penetrating, but making the moment more bearable. "…Thank you—"
"GET UP AND MOVE! We have a place all prepared for you four!"
The Pikachus and Meowths were torn from their group then—another blow to an already low morale. As the Team Rocket agents encircled them and began prodding them forward with the barrels of their weapons, Ash strode close to Briar and, seeing her staring up at Mewtwo with one final, lingering, desperate look, asked her in a low murmur, "You really love that guy, Mewtwo, don't you?"
Briar thought about that, thought about all the months that had passed as they'd grown closer, thought about the little moments they shared and the life they made…and in a certain, and carrying voice, said, "Yes—I love him more than anything."
Mewtwo's muzzle snapped up and his eyes widened…she had said it, said the words, even now in this horrible, dismal hour…she loved him.
"Then I swear we'll rescue him too! You have my word."
And a hint of a smile, despite the crushing weight of hopelessness over her and the pain racing through her core, crossed her face—even if it could not be done, she was grateful he would try. That's more than most would do….
"You're a kind child…I hope you can keep your word…and if not, just get out of here safely. One of us should…."
And then the discussion was over—the Team Rocket agent would no longer tolerate them talking. They hustled their captives down into the caves, and as they navigated their way towards the cell, the despair and pain in Briar grew worse—perhaps losing the sunlight and the sight of her beloved did that. At times she had to stagger to a halt to catch her breath, cold sweat trickling down the plane of her skin, her hand clutching at her midriff as the flashes of pain worsened. At one point in the walk, she became aware of a warm fluid trickling from her through her undergarments, the wetness unnoticed beneath her outer cloak and unobserved in the dim light of the cave. Yet had they seen it, the agents would have assumed that Briar had urinated down her leg in few and edged further from her—as it was, she and only she realized what Domino's assault had triggered on her body: she had gone into labor prematurely. Her child, at the most risk now as it would ever be, was soon going to enter into a world which conspired to destroy it…and with that knowledge in mind, Briar suffered in silence as they trekked to the cell, and once they were showed inside, retreated into the back corner, hoping to conceal her condition until the agents disappeared down the tunnels…which, excluding the duo who had already been in here, was precisely what they did after locking the cell door behind them.
Brock, having noticed Briar's behavior, went to her even as Ash growled, "Those morons left us with our pokémon! We can bust out of here easy, all we need is Onix and-!"
"We can't do that, not yet," Brock said, putting an arm around Briar's shoulders—her front was pressed against the back wall and she was quivering violently.
"But why can't we-?"
"Obviously, twerp, something is wrong with the woman over there! Honestly, don't you use your eyes?" Jessie drawled.
"Yeah, plenty, but that doesn't mean-!"
"Misty, do you have some towels in your pack?"
She nodded. "Of course, Brock, but why…?"
"Briar…Rose…whatever her name is, has just gone into labor, and among other things, we need some fresh towels."
This stunned the other occupants of the cell, but as Briar laid out with a soft moan they sprang into action—and verbal sparring. With Brock, Ash helped Briar to lie down on the earthen ground, while Misty pulled out clean towels from her sack and set them beside her. She also rummaged through the Pewter Gym Leader's pack and pulled out his cooking pots and pans, and thankful that Briar didn't seem squeamish, released one of the water pokémon of her arsenal and filled the pots with water. Although Brock at first lamented that how his supplies were going to be used ("I'll never be able to use those for cooking again if they're tainted with-!"), he understood the necessity of having hot water on hand, and ordered Ash to release his Cyndaquil to begin the process of bringing the water to a boil As flames began to lick at the utensils, the first true stumble in the situation began.
Brock, forgetting his overactive libido due to the seriousness of the situation and Briar's relationship status, was nonetheless effectively knocked out via blood loss from the nostrils after he lay his eyes on Briar's exposed sex after pushing up her robes and pulling away the sullied material in the way of the birthing. True, he had maintained professionalism as long as possible, and the sight which he uncovered was not particularly pleasant and sexually enticing. Yet to a young man who had never so much as been kissed, this sudden exposure to the human female genitalia was too much to endure. As the most "capable" medic there fell over backwards, Jessie merely flung him aside, muttering obscenities, and growled, "James, get over here to help the girl!"
Ash, standing back from all of this, looked on in confusion as James and his counterpart began to place bowls beneath the girl and clean away the amniotic fluids and blood. Glancing at Brock, who he'd always believed the most grounded of the bunch, he asked, "Hey, how come James get to-?"
"Because unlike you friend, twerp, James, A.) has seen a woman unclothed before, and B.) had medical classes when he was still living with his folks, s this doesn't come as a-!"
"He's seen a woman WHAT before? Oh my god, Jessie, how long have you two been-?!" Misty shrieked.
"Shut up, carrot-head, it's none of your god-damned business. Focus on the issue! This girl is dilating at warp speed!"
Ash, not understand what was going on, peered over her shoulder, "Dilating, what's…?"
But then he saw, and scrambling away he clawed at his eyes and shrieked, "AH! Oh, god, get the image out of my eyes, it BURNS…! Never again, I never ever want to see underneath a girl's skirt again! It's so nasty…!"
"Well, Misty, there goes your chance of getting some from your crush—he's too traumatized to endure another glimpse! I'll bet he goes after that spikey-haired rival of his from now on!"
This made Misty turn red and Ash stared in shock and horror, "What, GARY? Oh god no, worser images—and what do you mean, Misty's crush-?"
"Ash, SHUT UP! God, if we ever have kids, which is seeming less and less likely by the second considering your shocking lack of sexual maturity for a fifteen-year-old boy, I'm sending you out of the room!"
"What do you mean, if we have kids?! If anyone's going to get saddled with one, it'll be these two—hell, they'll probably be married and expecting before we even consider something like…like…you know, the shit Brock's into—"
"It's called sex, you stupid brat, and if you don't shut your trap, we'll permanently make you into an Ashley!" Jessie yelled, tossing a rag at him.
"You wouldn't…! Misty, would go homicide on your-!"
"WHY THE HELL WOULD YOU THINK I'D KILL OVER THEM CUTTING OFF YOUR BALLS?!"
"You're the one saying we're going to have children, so I figure me being whole is kind important for-!"
"Would you lovebirds shut up? You're going to attract the guards!" James snapped, measuring the dilation with a measuring tape. Not there yet….
"Tell that to your life partner, Ja—"
"His what? Just because we cross-dress doesn't mean we're queer—"
"Well considering you two sleep together, I thought girlfriend was too casual—"
"Oh, fuck, you four, quit yelling, you're interrupting such lovely dreams with my new acquirement in my archive of sensual delights…."
The four turned to stare at the semi-conscious gym leader who was, to their horror, fingering his belt buckle. Misty, sensing impending doom, rocketed up from her seat on the ground and pummeled him into oblivion via her seven-foot-tall-mallet. As she settled back down, the Team Rocket duo and the most betted on future couple of Kanto and the Orange Islands decided to resume their bickering in hisses so as not to rose the perverted breeder-to-be. Briar, who had shut her eyes and winced at the contractions, vaguely realized as she listened to this exchange that it must be one of the most bizarre experiences she'd ever undergone—and that included being seduced by the alpha thanks to Mew's intervention. For the next few hours she listened to them argue, realizing it was their way to relieve stress, and heard them discuss what had occurred out on the shores. As Jessie and James heard how Briar and her child had been treated, their eyes became hard and distant, and as they looked at one another, they conveyed a sort of silent communication which Briar recognized—Mewtwo and she sometimes did the same, especially when making difficult decisions. At the thought of her mate, she looked over at the redhead and the boy, who were just beginning to enter into a realm where physical and emotional attraction played a role in their lives. If they escaped, maybe someday….
Another contraction, much more forceful than before, brought a moan from her throat. The foursome turned to her and rolled up their sleeves to begin the next stage: James, after checking, confirmed that Briar had dilated the full ten centimeters, and with the others watching over them, began to instruct the young woman on how to breathe and when to push. Briar, being a breeder-in-training, and a midwife on more than one occasion, was well aware of how this process went, but was nonetheless grateful to have a guide. As the baby's head began to press into her cervix, she grasped the hand of the redhead hard—she and the boy were both near her head, unable to watch from below. As Jessie patted her exposed skin with a rag of, thankfully, cool water, she murmured, "He should be here…he promised he'd be with me when our baby…argh!"
All sense of frivolousness was lost in the others. Ash glanced away, not knowing what to say; Misty, her mouth opening and closing, stared and struggled for words; James was concentrating on his task; Brock was only now stirring against from his stupor…Jessie, the only candidate remaining, said, "I'm sure he'd be here if he could."
Briar's eyes welled with tears. "He would be…but instead he's being tortured. He might die, and then this child will never have its father…it might…."
"What might happen isn't certain—try to calm down, Briar. We have to get through this one step at a time—now the baby's head has crowned, so on my order, push hard!"
And when the command came, that was precisely what Briar did. Her muscles coiled, blood seeped, contractions wracked her, she groaned in the exertion, then repeated until, at last, the infant slid free from her…and it began mewling. As she lay down, she opened her eyes slightly, watching Jessie take the squirming bundle into her arms, covered with a towel, and carefully snipped through the umbilical cord with a pocket knife, and disinfect and bandage it. As the placenta was expelled whole, James nodded in satisfaction and began the process of cleaning her gently. He would have become a good doctor, she mused…faintly she saw Brock stagger up and cross over to Jessie. The woman had asked if he could recognize the gender—after some looking over and prodding, the recovered Gym Leader stated that the kit was male. He also added that it was strange the child took after the father…usually it occurred along the maternal line….
"A woman has a pokémon's baby and you're concerned about what species it takes after? You are unbelievable, twerp senior."
Briar smiled weakly, tiredly. "The father's genetics have anomalies, just like the other clones…but I imagine his genes still conquer mine without issue."
Misty, considerably brightened at looking into the face of a newborn baby, chattered happily, "Well, whatever the case is, this little guy sure is a cutie!" She cried, getting the chance to carry him.
Ash, beside her, muttered, "I still can't get over the fact that a cat came out of her—"
"Well, first, one had to go in her—"
Briar shut that trail of thought down immediately. "Stop…no more talking about that. Can you all just let me hold my son, now?"
They all blinked at her, looked at one another, and sheepishly grinned. "Oh…okay…err, no problem. Here you go." And Misty handed over the little one to its mother, who, with the help of James, had sat up. Once her baby was in her arms, oxytocin made the rest of them fade away. The little Mewtwo kitten, bundled in a pale, fluffy towel, squirmed in her arm towards her warmth. Its fur, of cinnamon hues, was warm, yet still slightly damp, and its features round and scrunched, and its eyes clenched shut…it mewled against her as she nuzzled its face with her nose and kissed at its small muzzle and paws. For a moment, she let the thought of the danger they were in slip away…her son was soft, warm, healthy, wonderful…she tugged open her cloak with one hand, slipping away the fabric beneath to expose a breast, which she led him to wordlessly. As he swiftly latched on, his chirps quieted by suckling noises, she contemplated the off sensation whilst stroking his forehead: so strange…yet somehow, good. Her heart, it seemed, filled with warmth, expanding several sizes…this was her son, who she'd conceived with the one she loved, who she'd carried, who she'd give anything, even her life, to protect. As she murmured to him a welcome into the world, she yearned for his father to be beside them now…and her soul became steel as she determined that even in her frail state, she would do everything in her power to bring Mewtwo back to his son. Cradling the babe closer, she swore it….
Beyond her, Ash looked on to the heartening sight and murmured to no one, "Now this isn't so bad…."
Misty lifted an eyebrow at him. "What, the bare breast doesn't scare you?"
He flushed and sputtered, "Well, the kid kind of obscures…I mean, this is natural, so…I don't mind…"
Misty reached over and, for a moment, squeezed his hand. "Good to know, Ash. I'm proud of you for that."
"Th-thanks, Misty."
A bit away from them, Jessie nudged her partner and said, "You did good today, James."
"Well, those lessons had to have some effect…now, when it's our kid—"
"Oh? So certain it'll be us, are you? Don't we have a duty to the criminal organization to uphold?" She half-teased, half-warned. There were lines they had never before thought to cross….
His gaze hardened as he glanced down the hallway. "…Do we, Jessie?"
She did not know hoe to respond to that.
Yet leaning against the wall, watching the kitten nurse, Brock was far more concerned with their next steps to take. Obviously, they needed to get out of here before the time Team Rocket agents returned. If they found Briar and her child in this status, separated and weakened, the mother and child would undoubtedly be torn apart by force and subjected to heinous crimes. What would happen to her and his friends, including Jessie and James, was entirely up to chance. Yet if they wanted to walk away from this unscathed, escape was imperative…before the criminals returned.
Misty, by that time, was no longer able to resist the kitten. "So, what are you going to name him, Briar?" she asked, stepped over to the woman, her eyes glittering.
Briar, having discussed the matter at length with her mate, murmured, "Acacio…his name is Acacio."
A few feet away, James snorted. As everyone glared at him, he said, "What? You understand what 'Acacio' refers to, right?"
"Er…." Ash, of course.
James sighed. "The acacio is a Spanish thorn-tree—the gal is alluding to her own name in it."
"Wait, how did you know what an 'acacio' is?" Ash asked.
James rolled his eyes. "Before you three came along, Jessie, Meowth, and I were formidable members of Team Rocket. We used to be paid to travel to Europe and steal from the aristocracy/fat cats there," his eyes glowed with delight at the reminiscence, looking from the rich was his not-so-guilty pleasure. "Of course, the mountains over there are nasty, so on occasion our balloon went down in the forests…hence over experience with acacio trees. Not fun, let me tell you...I had thorns in my uniform for a week—"
Briar, amused, interrupted him, "You're only half right, James—when you have a chance, look up with the branches represent."
For Mewtwo and she had agreed upon the name for what it symbolized: innocence. Innocence despite the nature of its birth, innocence from the lingering darkness of their pasts, innocence in its very soul…it was pure, unfettered, a blessed byproduct of their ardor, and their ultimate treasure…their sweet Acacio, the thorn that drew no blood….
Yet the peace of that moment would not last.
After hours of leaving the six, now seven, in isolation, Domino and her underlings began to storm down towards their cell, their purpose ambiguous and ultimately dashed aside as they realized the situation in the tiny prison. As their steps neared, Briar struggled to her feet and tucked the now resting Acacio beneath the folds of her cloak as she clutched him to her breast, hoping to shield him from sight. The others, with the same intent in mind, stood in front of her, hoping to block the view. Dirtied supplies were stuffed into packs, Cyndaquil returned, and all faces grim-set as the enemy approached. When the blond bitch of Team Rocket entered the room, smiling widely, she called out to the concealed Briar, "Oh little slut, who hides her face, you mate will die at dawn, just wait. You know, I almost feel bad for him—he is putting up an admirable fight, but if he keeps this up, the exertion will kill him. Now, considering it would take ages to recreate him, it'd be such a shame for his stubbornness to result in his death. Perhaps you might persuade him…?"
At their silence, she purred, "No? Well, maybe if you had a taste of what he's going through, you'd be a little…more…willing…TO HELP!" she snarled, and she tossed one of her black tulips amongst them—it erupted into whipping bolts of electricity which lashed at them, and even as Briar tried to shield her little one, the painful bolts struck him, shocking him into wakefulness. As they all crumpled to their knees, gasping, the child squirmed and then began to howl in shock and hurt. The sound of an infant wailing brought Domino and her minions up short. They stepped back, mouths agape, and stared at the cell. Briar, terror infusing her, knew it was too late to conceal her son, but she nonetheless tried to husk him as she glared at the blond murderously. First her pack, then her mate…then her and her child? She would not let this stand!
Domino, coming to her senses, crowed. "Oh ho! So the babe was born while we had our backs turns, eh? How fortuitous for us! Is it a male or female?"
Briar, knowing which would have been preferred due to the typical laws of pokémon breeding, proudly growled, "Male." They would not get an incubator of her child…not this child.
Domino, for a moment, frowned, but then radioed Giovanni. "Boss, you might want to know that…." And she repeated the situation in full, and after listening to the reply, gathered for force and, whilst leaving, glanced back and said, "Make sure the little monstrosity's diaper is secure—we'll be back with the proper tools to extract it shortly."
As their steps faded, the group all mouthed the word in question: "extract"? Understanding that it would probably be detrimental to stay, the group backed up as Brock released his Onix and as the rock serpent threw itself into the bars of the prison. As they cared beneath his diamond-hard segments like twigs, the metal screeching and snapping with resounding twangs, the group flinched but nonetheless raced from the enclosure. As the stony leviathan was returned, the question lingered in the air: now what?
Ash, taking up himself his usual role as hero, said, "I think Brock, Misty, and I should go try to help Mewtwo and the other clones. No offense, Jessie, James, but your firepower is kind of limited—"
"That, and its their organization," Misty reminded him.
"Right, that too."
Briar, at this point, cut in, "I'm going with you three."
Protest immediately rose at that. "Briar, you can't! You just gave birth, you should be resting, and the baby—"
"Acacio can go with Jessie and James for the time being. They brought him into the world, they can guard over him for a few—"
"But they're a part of Team Rocket! For all we know, they might turn him in to get into their leader's good graces!"
Jessie promptly snarled and smacked that idea down. "Twerp, just what kind of criminals do you take us for? We're thieves, not baby-killers—the kitten will be fine with us. We'd never willingly hand a child over to someone who would…would torture its father, violate its mother, and cut it up just to…to…."
James put an arm around her shoulder, saying, "What she means to say is that there are lines we won't cross—and we likely won't associate long with those who do. Don't worry, we know how to hide well after all these years of scheming, so the kitten will be safe with us. Just hurry back, would you? And bring Meowth, we need him for our motto!"
Nodding to each other, the noted how Briar carefully handed over her little one to what could have been any enemy—but despite their uniforms, she trusted them because she sensed that, deep inside, they were good, even noble people. Kissing her baby goodbye for now, she murmured that she would return to it soon and pleaded for it not to fuss…and then the parties went their separate ways. The duo and the child headed into the deserted spring, rife with foliage and cover from assaults, while the trio and the mother raced to the shores, preparing to fight to banish Giovanni and his forces, to liberate the clones….
And ultimately, to reunite their families.