//------------------------------// // The fate of Vincent Nurem part 1 // Story: Building a Better World: Origins // by Cookie_Girl //------------------------------// Fox looked VERY pleased with herself as she ran down the hallway. “Just a little more. Just you wait Nurem, soon you’ll be where you belong,” she grinned, before stopping by a door. Reading it, it seemed to lead to the containment cells of the ‘subjects’. “You’re a complete piece of scum, aren’t you? Sick excuse for a scientist,” she growled, and with a quick flash, disabled the door’s locking system, forcing it to open. Walking inside, she beheld several cells, each one with a unique ‘mon behind what looked like one-way glass, otherwise they would have reacted to her presence. Each one had a door stamped with numbers, starting from one on her left and two on her right. The hallway continued on for quite a while, though the numbers stopped at thirty-six. The door at the end, though, was stamped with the number thirty-seven. Curiously, the cell for sixteen was empty, along with a few others afterwards... Walking down the hall, she was about to start busting them out...when she stopped. “Hold on a sec...bastard must have been experimenting on them for Arceus knows how long. That doesn’t exactly instill trust to humans. If I let them out now...I might end up getting mauled.” she thought. However, for some reason, something spurred her to keep looking. Before long, she came across the cell with the number thirty-seven on it at the end of the hall. Peering inside, her eyes widened when she saw not a Pokemon, but a human boy inside, curled up and fast asleep. Thinking back to what she knew from the various reports, she realized who it was. “Vincent Nurem…” she gasped, before her eyes turned determined as she started disabling the lock. “Hang on, kid. I’m getting you out of this Arceus forsaken pit,” she said, just as the lock was disabled, opening the cell. The noise startled the kid awake, revealing his green eyes and messy black hair to the phantom thief. His panic only lessened when he realized that the one in front of him wasn’t someone he knew, but spiked again when the lights failed to come on. “Who are you? What’s going on?” the boy asked, clearly nervous as he looked up at the young woman, her red hair flowing out from under her black cavalier hat, and her form concealed by the black cape she wore. He wrung his white shirt with both of his hands while his eyes darted over her form. “Relax kid,” Fox said in a reassuring tone, holding his shoulder to keep him from...well...to keep him from doing anything stupid. “I’m getting you out of here, stat.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “You didn’t tell me who you are...and how do I know this isn’t some sort of test he’s cooked up?” That had happened on more than one occasion… Fox blinked, before sighing. “Sorry, can’t help you there. Even if I said anything, I can’t prove anything. But for names...just call me Fox.” “Okay, Fox, if you’re here to get me out, answer me this question: how’d you get in? I know quite a bit about the things keeping us all here, and you’d have to do something drastic to get this far.” Vincent waved a hand at the lights that had begun to flicker on and off in demonstration. “An EMP would only work for so long. There are backups within backups here. That was made clear to me: escape was futile. Multiple times.” “Oh that? Yeah...I kinda knew that the security would be a problem so I...broke it. Funny what a few viruses, bugs, a bucket of water, and an Ice Beam can do to a mainframe,” she chuckled. Vincent, however, was not amused. In fact, he was angry. “You did what to Bit?” He stated. “Er...Bit? Who’s Bit? I shorted out a mainframe, not a person,” Fox looked honestly confused at his reaction. “Bit. Subject sixteen, as he was also called. A Porygon2 the doctor broke and forced to serve in the mainframe. And you just told me you broke him again.” Vincent had balled up his fists, shaking them slightly. Fox’s eyes widened, her pupils shrinking till they were little more than pinpricks. “Oh crap…” she groaned. “Kid, if you know anything. ANYTHING at all about the mainframe, tell me what you know if you want us to even have a CHANCE of saving your friend!” “Only that Bit was to serve as the back-up in case anything like that happened to it...but he also wasn’t supposed to be in it at the time!” Fox’s mind was running several miles per minute. “Okay...a mainframe has to link up to somewhere. It should be near the control room...with luck the guards are still either ice sculptures or mummies...Okay kid, new plan, we’re getting your friend out. If he still has some survival instincts in him, he should have gone to any secure spot in the mainframe, and if we can find it, we can remove it, hopefully with him still in there. If not...I’m really sorry. I had no idea Nurem had a Pokemon inside the mainframe,” Fox said, sounding very much apologetic. “There is one spot that is going to be secure, you know,” Vincent mused. “And it’s the most likely one for Bit to flee to, should he come under assault while he’s in the mainframe. But you’re not going to like where it is.” “I’m afraid to ask, but where is it?” Vincent sighed as he looked at his open door. “The Doctor’s terminal, of course.” Fox blinked, before sighing in relief. “Oh...I was afraid you were gonna say it was near a power reactor or something.” “He also has his own backup generator in his room, and the security systems there are controllable from either his terminal or the wider server dedicated to such,” Vincent elaborated. “Just like we couldn’t get out, none of us were ever allowed into that room.” “Not a problem anymore. When I messed up the mainframe, I left a bunch of jammers and scramblers all over the place, and a few bombs too. We also sabotaged the generator so the power distribution would go haywire in the facility. I would have set it for Self destruct too...if it weren’t for the fact that you and these Pokemon were here,” Fox sighed. “If you can let me and them all out, most of them will listen to me,” Vincent said. “And...I’m trusting you, Fox. Bring Bit back to me, please. It’s not his fault.” “Done. When this is over, all I want is to see Nurem carted off in a prison car...and to the electric chair if I’m lucky,” Fox smirked at the end. “Just make sure they actually listen. I was going to free them earlier, but...I didn’t want to get mauled.” “They listen to me or like me because I’m not them,” the boy elaborated. “And some of them I call family. The rest...well, they should like the idea that you’re not one of them, either, and that you’re getting us out. They’ll listen to the both of us, and I’ll warn you if things start turning sour.” With that, he stood up and hopped off his bed, stretching as he did. “Alright then, I’m trusting you too on this one, kid,” she smiled, before activating her ear piece. “Okay guys, I’m over in the containment area. We’re doing a rescue mission now, and we might just get some backup. Oh, and Weavile, if you provoke anyone of them, I am NOT saving your butt this time...well, I’ll make sure they don’t kill you at least…” Fox said as she walked out of the cell, before moving on to the occupied cells, Vincent following her. “These two,” he said, pointing at thirty-five and thirty-six. “Family. Close as could be. If you would?” “Gotcha,” Fox said as she went to work. Before long, the locks disengaged and the two cell doors opened, revealing a Scyther and a Riolu. Both of them had been asleep, but woke up quickly at the sounds of the doors opening. “What?” the Scyther asked in Pokespeak. “Vincent, what’s going on? Who’s that?” “Vinny, who is that strange lady?” the Riolu asked. In response, Vincent crouched down, and the Riolu jumped into his body for a hug. He then walked over to the Scyther and led the two parties together. “Fox, meet Lucy and Sam, my brother and sister. Lucy, Sam, this is Fox. She’s getting us outta here.” The Scyther and Riolu turned to look at her with hope in their eyes then, and each stuck an appendage out at her for her to shake. Fox jumped back a bit in alarm when the Scyther stuck out its arm as it was a...well...BLADE. Upon realizing it was friendly, she calmed down. “Sorry about that,” she chuckled. However, when she remembered that since this wasn’t her team, she couldn’t really understand them, she stuck a hand into her pocket. “Hold on.” and pulled out an odd looking earpiece which she affixed on her left ear. Fiddling with it a bit, she said, “Okay, could you repeat that?” “I said sorry. I forget that not everyone is Vincent and knows I can be gentle with these things,” Sam said, waving his scythe-arm around a bit. “Still, if you don’t wanna shake, I understand.” Fox frowned, since the translation was still a bit garbled, but she got the gist of it. “No problem. Can’t blame you after you all must have been through hell and back,” she said, before tapping the ear piece. “Need to get some of the bugs out of this thing…” “What is that thing?” Lucy innocently questioned. “It looks weird.” “Its a translator to let humans understand Pokemon. Its still experimental, so looks aren’t really a big concern at the moment,” Fox sighed, as she finally got it to be MOSTLY clear in its translations. “Still needs work though…” “You mean understanding Pokemon isn’t normal?” Vincent questioned with a tilt of his head. “Er...no its not. Honestly, you’re the second person I’ve met who could actually understand Pokemon...and somehow I doubt your case is...natural…” Fox sighed as she led them out. Vincent carefully set Lucy into Sam’s claws and motioned for the two of them to stand by the entrance to the rest of the compound. The two exchanged a brief nod, understanding what was about to be asked, and the boy turned to Fox again. “The rest,” he stated, sweeping back at the other cells with one hand. “If you please.” “Right, right,” Fox chuckled, as she got to work disabling the doors. However, in the middle of the way, two guards came into the room. “Hold it right there!” they shouted, guns filled with both tranq darts and bullets at the ready. “Yeaaaah...I’m kinda busy right now, so please don’t bother me, Mr. I have a bigger problem coming in two seconds,” Fox said dismissively, before both guards were violently pulled out the room, their muffled screams could be heard outside….just as Fox finished disabling several more doors, all of them opening at the same time. The small mob of surviving test subjects had gathered in front of Lucy and Sam and were milling about, all of them eager to leave, but as Sam kept emphasizing, they would all leave together. Safety in numbers in this instance. Plus, there was no chance that any of them were going to be left behind. Vincent had turned to look at the guards when they spoke up, and blinked a few times at their sudden vanishing act. “Do I...want to know? Or should I guess?” the boy asked of his savior. “Go take a guess. Its more fun for me,” Fox chuckled mischieviously. “Well,” Vincent said out loud in a mocking tone. “Considering your earlier remarks to one member of your team, along with your mention of an Ice Beam,” here his tone had turned dark at recalling what it had been used for, before resuming normal operations, “And the fact that only one non-Legendary ‘mon could possibly be that fast, and I presume I have Weavile to thank...unless said Weavile has a name, in which case, I’d ask for it and use it.” “Nice guess, little detective, but bzzzt, wrong answer. As for Weavile’s name, that...is a secret,” she said in a sing song tone as she watched the subjects mingle. “How much do you want to bet that I’ll learn it after hearing him talk for ten minutes? Assuming you don’t tell Weavile I can understand ‘mon,” Vincent shot back, an actual smile on his face. “Normally, I wouldn’t take you up on the bet. But considering what you’ve been through...I’ll give you five grand out of my own pocket if you find out,” Fox shrugged, not the least bit concerned about losing that much money. Vincent noticed that the last door had been opened by this point, and turned to the survivors. “Guys and gals, listen up please!” More than a few turned to him, and he sighed before picking up a Whismur and gently petting her. “Guys and gals, listen up please, or I’ll have Wendy start singing!” With that, the attention of everymon there was Vincent’s, and he smirked again, before turning to Fox. “The floor is yours,” Vincent said with a nod. “Don’t look at me. I’m not that great at these kinds of things, but oh well. Long story short, you are all free, and before we leave, we are gonna be getting something from the good doctor’s room, and we need your help. Feel free to horribly dismember any guards you come upon. No big loss to the world there,” Fox shrugged at the end. After everything she had heard about these facilities, as far as she’s concerned, there were no humans here...except for Vincent...the rest were just rabid animals. One of the subjects spoke up, and the question was rapidly carried around, causing her translator to short out trying to keep up with all the different voices and speed at which they were speaking. “...cousin Thomas is gonna kill me for that…” Fox groaned as she put away the now broken translator. “They want to know what you did about the security systems and Bit,” Vincent supplied. “...only if they promise not to maul me. I didn’t know for Arceus’ sake!” Fox groaned. A general noise of agreement came from the ‘mon, and Vincent nodded as well. “They promise.” One of the ones in front spoke up again, and the boy laughed. “Yeah, it would be pretty stupid to attack the first one to show us genuine kindness and a way out, wouldn’t it?” “Alright. I knew getting in here would be a problem with the mainframe online, so I...plugged in several flash drives worth of deadly computer viruses and bugs, before I doused the wiring with a bucket of water AND had my Weavile freeze it with Ice Beam. I even left scramblers and jammers all over the place. In short, I made sure to royally screw this entire facility’s systems before I got in,” Fox explained. Surprisingly, none of the ‘mon in front of her seemed to react too much to the news. One voice spoke up, and Vincent snapped his head towards it. “NO! NOT ‘GOOD’! He was as much a subject as ANY OF YOU! He was BROKEN LONG BEFORE most of you CAME HERE! I WATCHED IT HAPPEN, I KEEP SEEING IT HAPPEN! No Porygon was meant to take both disks at once! NONE OF THEM!” He was absolutely livid at this point in time, but kept going. “He was programmed to respond to the Doctor’s VOICE-!” he started, only for Fox to suddenly interrupt. “WHAT? He had voice activated systems? Oh come on, if I had known that, it would have been MUCH easier for me. Like this,” she said, changing her voice into a copy of Dr. Nurem’s at the end. “I wouldn’t have had to go through the trouble of sabotaging this place,” she finished, still in Nurem’s voice. “Considering that you likely couldn’t have perfectly imitated him, yeah, you probably made a good call in forcing him to flee from the server he was in,” Vincent said, not looking at her. “And he likely had a few routines written into him in the case of something like this happening. Regardless, Bit had no choice. Don’t blame him for doing as the Doctor bid during your experiments.” Vincent finished his rant with a look of rage at the escapees, and none of them could look him in the eyes. “I did what I could with what leeway I could. Whenever he was imprecise in ordering Bit around, I exploited it for your comfort, you thankless little- no. Fox, I’m done. They can be shown the way out. They’re no friends of mine anymore.” Vincent then turned his back on the shamed ‘mon, not capable of looking at them in his current state. “...if you wanna stick around and help, by all means. If not…” Fox sighed, before tapping her right ear piece. “Liepard, if you would?” A Liepard came walking into the room. “Anyone who wants out now, follow me. I’ll guide you to the exit...or I’ll MAKE one if needs be,” she said pleasantly, though her tone made some of them shiver. “No scaring the Pokemon we want to save,” Fox sighed. “Honestly, what am I going to do with you all sometimes…” Vincent gently set Wendy down, and the entire group of ‘mon slowly walked over to the Liepard, their head hung in shame as they realized their ‘tormentor’ had been one of them the entire time. Vincent looked up to Sam holding Lucy, the pair of which were still looking at him. They knew about Bit already and had believed him, but he still pointed at the Liepard. “I want you both out of here, now,” Vincent demanded of them. “Only if you come with us,” Sam said in just as firm a tone. Vincent shook his head in response. “I know Bit’s code better than anyone here. Once Fox leads me to his room, I can make him listen. She wouldn’t be able to. You two need to leave, now. This is our first real chance.” He then looked over to the Liepard and pointed at Sam and Lucy. “Miss, if you would make sure they’re the first ones out the door, I’d appreciate it.” “Sure thing, kiddo. I’ll have a Hyper Beam prepped and ready. Fox?” “Right,” Fox nodded, before using several X Sp.Attacks on her, boosting her power to the max...for now. “Oh that sounds like a wonderful idea,” Vincent said with a roll of his eyes. “Let the swamp in, why don’t you.” “Kid’s got a mouth does he? You obviously don’t know about the Fox gang then. We don’t do normal, while impossible is a normal day for us. Besides, Rascal will be around to use Ice Beam soon enough if I DID get a swamp area,” Liepard snorted...before Fox walked up to Vincent and handed him five thousand Poke dollars. “...I said too much didn’t I?” Fox just nodded. “To be fair, you couldn’t possibly know, miss,” Vincent replied while tucking his newly-won cash in the pocket of his pants. “Just, FYI, your trainer here ain’t the only one who understands you anymore.” Liepard blinked. “Wow, and I thought N was the only human who had that kind of gift.” “We’re in the research facility of a crazy geneticist. Not that surprising,” Fox deadpanned. “Now get going before those items wear off.” “Right! Come along everyone!” Liepard ordered as she led the Pokemon out. With a bit more vigor, the subjects followed the Liepard out of the room, though Sam cast another gaze back at Vincent. Vincent merely nodded in turn and pointed again, and Sam sighed before following the rest out. The kid then turned to Fox and cracked his knuckles. “Right. You lead, I need to go over every single instance I can think of that Bit ever alluded to that would end up with his ‘ownership’ being transferred to me if we’re to try and take him in peacefully.” “Gotcha. Next stop: The bastard king’s lair!” Fox grinned, before she led him out of the room and down the halls. All the way, Vincent saw either people who were hung upside down in sticky cocoons, or people who had been frozen solid. “My team has been busy. Good,” Fox chuckled. “So you have at least one bug-type on your team of some sort of spider,” Vincent mused. “Y’know, it’d probably save you and them a lot of embarrassment further down the line if you just tell me who and what they all are.” “Naaah, I like seeing your cute little face when you’re thinking too hard,” Fox laughed, never once losing her playful tone. “At the moment, the thing I’m ‘thinking too hard about’ is how to properly convince Bit that the Doctor is dead,” Vincent deadpanned back. “That’s the only way I can get him to agree to transfer ownership of himself to me.” “...that, or I could go stuff him in a ball. I have a few Ultraballs. I even have a Master ball on me right now,” Fox commented. “As for dead...no thanks. I don’t care much for killing.” “For the things he’s done, if I had any of his damn concoctions in hand, I’d do it myself,” the boy hissed between his teeth. “And good luck with the balls: Bit was balled before he was brought here. He’s just...never used it since. I don’t even know where it is anymore.” “Okay, one, no can do. I am NOT letting a kid like you commit murder. I’m going to catch him, leave him to the police, and let THEM do the dirty work. He’s a dead man anyway. Second, is that all? I have some criminal balls on me too. Those can catch already caught Pokemon too, hence why they’re called criminal balls,” Fox said as they moved down the hall. “Then you better make sure he’s not in there,” Vincent said darkly. “Or so help me, I will strangle him. I was forced to watch everything. And I want him to suffer for it.” “Yeeaaah...word of advice, don’t talk like that when the cops arrive. Wouldn’t want you to go to a mental institute for anything OTHER than therapy. Sides, I can easily stop you from doing anything stupid. I’ll just wrap you in a nice web cocoon and haul you out of here with your friend...though if you want, I do have a taser or two on me. Feel free to use em,” Fox chuckled at the end. “On who?” Vincent said with a gesture at the bound guards. “Your team has done a remarkable job leaving them unfit-” here he gasped as an idea struck him. “That’s it.” “Got an idea?” “One of the protocols states that in the event of the Doctor being declared dead or unfit for duty, that ownership of this facility and all within shall pass to the next in line, and so on and so forth,” Vincent explained rapidly. “All it needs is two people to agree that he isn’t fit. The problem has been that there hasn’t been two humans at this facility who weren’t on his payroll...until right now.” At his words, Vincent promptly found Fox shoving him 2 tasers, and several small balls. “When we get in there, feel free to go crazy. Its all non-lethal. Debilitating though…” Fox offered him an almost malicious grin. “There’s only one I’d use this on,” Vincent said, sticking the balls and one of the tasers in his front pockets after moving his won cash to one of the back ones. “And nothing is non-lethal if you have the know-how. But you’ve already stated you’re going to stop me. So I question why you gave it to me in the first place.” “Eh, I honestly don’t care much if old Nurem kicks the bucket. Once the cops get him, the only place he could possibly go with all his crimes, is the executioner. I just don’t care much for actually doing it. And consider this a test of character,” she said. “The real test would begin once I had Bit,” Vincent stated. “I need you up until then. After that, I’m willing to trust you until we get out. But I’d keep an eye on him if I were you. He’s...always been a stickler for rules.” “Meh, fine by me. Once this is all over, you probably won’t see me...except on the news and on wanted posters,” Fox shrugged nonchalantly. Vincent blinked a few times and shrugged as well. “You’re helping me get out, and you aren’t him. Frankly, they could decry your name from the mountaintops, and I’d ignore it.” “Fair enough. Now then, let’s go see the good doctor,” Fox chuckled, as she set a device on a large metal door, before pulling Vincent into a corner...right before the door exploded. The room beyond was spartan and neat, except for the recently-added rubble to the floor. Everything seemed to have been placed just so, and just bespoke of a mind beset by some form of OCD. A terminal in the corner was softly glowing, and the image of a Porygon2’s head was on it, though slightly glitching every now and again. All in all, it looked more like a place that was used, not lived in. There was no real warmth to it at all. “Nice place he’s got here,” Fox commented sarcastically. “Quick,” Vincent said, pulling out the chair in front of the desk and sitting himself down in front of it. “Just follow my lead. Subject sixteen, activate Delta protocol, version five zero two.” The computer whirred for a few moments, before a mechanical voice spoke up from it. “Delta pro-pro-protocol requires TWO humaaaaaans to verify-fy-fy that the DOCtor is unfit. You only couuuuuuunt for ONE, Vincent.” “Then I second him. Dr. Nurem is NOT fit for control!” Fox quickly said. With that, the computer whirred again. “Identify yoursel-sel-self,” it said. “Okay...now what?” Fox asked. Sure she could answer, but she doubted a Phantom Thief was in the list, and neither was her real name. “If you are hu-hu-human and can testiFY to the doctooooor’s state, that is all DELTA protocol requi-qui-quires,” the computer responded. “Bit actually wants to be free,” Vincent said. “He just has to go through all the hoops. Just...tell him who you are and how you know that he’s unfit.” “Fine. I’m Fox. Phantom Thief Fox. Dr. Nurem is unfit to lead on accounts of insanity, immorality, and if he comes in here, broken bones,” Fox stated. The computer beeped a few times before the screen lit up green. “ConTROL transferring...error, cannot-not-not contact any in the neeeeext of line...Greetings, MASTER Vincent. How may I hellllp you?” Vincent smiled a bit at that, happy it had actually worked. “Bit, we’re leaving this place behind. I’m ordering you to come with me.” The terminal sparked a few times before the glitchy, erratic Porygon2’s form rose from it. He nodded once at both of them and turned to stare at Vincent. “I am at-at-at your disposal, MasTER.” “Well, we got what we came for. Let’s get out of here,” Fox said. “Not quite,” Vincent said. “Bit, where is your ball?” In response, Bit pointed his head at the Doctor’s bed. “It is kept neaaaaarby.” “...Under the mattress? Really? That’s like...the oldest hiding place in the book, next to under the pillow,” Fox deadpanned. Once she lifted up the mattress, though, a floor-safe made itself evident to her eyes. “The Doc-doc-doctor did not want to TAKE any chaaaaances with the security of this facility,” Bit explained. “Well...at least he added a spin to the cliche. Fine, then, let’s just crack this thing open,” Fox simply said, before she started fiddling with the safe. Not long after, it opened. “Jackpot,” she said as she pulled out a Pokeball. “I’ll take that, if you don’t mind,” Vincent said, holding his hand out. “Here ya go. Not interested in this kind of treasure anyway,” Fox shrugged as she tossed him the ball. Vincent caught the thing and turned to Bit with a raised eyebrow. “Anything you think we need while we’re still here, Bit?” The program whirred a few times before shaking his head. “NEGatory. You have fr-fr-freed the other subjeeeeects, and myself as well. All that REMAINS is to get me out-out-outside, and the arrrrchives I contain will put the DOCtor away for all tiiiiime.” “Bit says we’re good,” Vincent translated for Fox. “Hold it,” Fox said. “What was that last thing he said? It sounded important.” “Something about how the information he has will put the Doctor away forever,” Vincent expounded with a shrug. “All by itself? No need to give it to the press or something?” Fox asked, her eyes narrowing. Something wasn’t right here… Bit dinged a few times as he explained. “In the event of a to-to-total escape or SYStem failure, the arrrrrchives are to be se-se-sent to Hoenn News, and to every other NEWS network. They contain informaaaaaation about everything the Doc-Doc-Doctor has done in the past sixteen YEARS.” “Once we get out, all the information in the archives will be sent to the news networks. It has things from…” Vincent sobered a bit before continuing. “Sixteen years ago? Hang on, that was before I was born…” “That...makes absolutely no sense. Why on Earth would Nurem include a protocol that basically puts himself in line for the firing squad?” Fox mused. “Unless…” The sound of rapid footsteps coming down the hallway snapped the party of humans and ‘mon out of their thinking states. “Which can wait till later. Let’s get out of here,” Fox quickly said, as she grabbed the Pokeball, returned Bit into it, and promptly scooped Vincent into her arms. “Exit: up!” she chuckled, before dropping a smoke bomb, filling the room with smoke, just as the owner of the footsteps entered. But when the smoke cleared, there was no one there. “Subject sixteen, respond,” a familiar, cold voice said. “...Subject sixteen, this is the Doctor. Respond,” it reiterated, and Vincent had to force himself to breathe normally. “...I see. All the subjects are free, including that one, then. Perhaps it is time we turned the defenses on automatic anyways. I dislike it for the time it takes to boot up, but needs must.” There was the sound of clicking noises then, as the Doctor began activating the defenses himself. “Not on your life, dirt bag,” Fox snickered from her hiding spot in the vents, before she pulled out a switch, and pushed the button on it. The moment she pressed it, a few explosions went off, shaking the facility, before the systems went haywire, as controls sparked, screens were covered in static, before finally, all the screen changed to show a single emblem. A symbol shaped like a black Zoroark head. “...Phantom Thief Fox, then. I had suspected as such. Truly an interesting match of intellects this was. I look forward to our next meeting, for I have no doubts that even from this, I can recover.” Meanwhile, on the roof of the facility, a hole was being carved open with a blow torch, before it was pushed open. “Fresh air. Finally,” Fox gasped. It was getting stuffy in there… “Well...this is novel,” Vincent commented as he pulled himself out of the air vent. “I’ve heard about these sorts of things, but this is the first I’ve gotten to actually see them.” “Take it easy with your fill, kid. Cause this is your new life now,” Fox chuckled as she pulled herself out. “And here comes the cavalry,” she added as she noticed several people: Police Officers, surrounding the facility. “Guess Johnny-boy finally managed to get them to move,” she chuckled. “...What took them so long?” Vincent whispered. He seemed to be both angry and resigned at the same time. “Eh, forms, bureaucrats, and politics. The ick of any authority,” Fox chuckled, sticking her tongue out playfully. “But don’t be too hard on them. Some like Johnny-boy really do try their hardest.” “...They’ll have to work to earn my trust,” Vincent proclaimed before looking over to Fox and holding his hand out. “If you would?” “Hm? Oh right, Bit. Here ya go. Take good care of him. Also, here,” she added, before handing him two empty Pokeballs. “For Sam and Lucy. I don’t think you’ve seen the last of those two,” Fox chuckled, as she got up to leave. “Fair enough, but what now? I’m...free for the first time...and I have no idea what to do.” The boy laid back on the roof and looked up to the sky above, sighing wistfully. Fox smiled slightly. “Tell ya what kid. I kinda like you. Let’s meet up again in a few days, and I promise I’ll help you sort some things out,” she chuckled, before leaning down upon him. “I guarantee you’ll know its me when the time comes,” she whispered into his ear, before standing up. “Well, show’s over,” she chuckled, before her cape wrapped around her in a spiral, before seemingly vanishing into thin air. Just as she disappeared, Vincent heard something from the side, and turned to see two Spinarak crawling on the roof, a rope of webbing behind them as they stuck it to the roof. “And you would be the ones responsible for quite a few webbed guards,” Vincent deduced. “Well that, or you have a bigger brother I should be worried about. Thank you.” “You’re-” “-welcome,” the two Spinaraks said, the male talking first, followed by the female. “It was our pleasure,” they finished together in perfect synch. “...Okay, that could get freaky or annoying real fast,” the boy said. “And I dealt with a Whismur with a Jigglypuff’s voice. So. Is there a reason you two came up here besides for me to thank you?” Both Spinaraks just gestured to the trail of webbing, as two familiar appendages climbed on to the roof. “No way. You brought them here?” Vincent wasn’t quite sure he could believe what he was seeing at the moment. “Again, you’re welcome,” the Spinaraks said in synch, before crawling off, no doubt back to their Trainer. “Wait, can I at least know your names?” the boy called after them. “Spinner.” “Charlotte.” Vincent nodded as they crawled off, before Sam pulled himself up, Lucy riding his shoulders. “And there you are!” the Scyther crowed as his form finally crested the roof. “Good to see you again kid, especially on the outside!” Vincent rushed the Scyther and hugged him. A heartwarming scene that only got more so when Lucy jumped down and joined in. “I’m glad you two are safe,” Vincent whispered, before remembering Fox’s gifts to him. “I have something here for the both of you,” he said, pulling back and revealing the two empty Pokeballs. “Now I promise you that-” He was cut off by both Scyther and Riolu pressing the buttons on the displayed balls near instantly, followed by the balls only wobbling slightly and clicking just as quickly. With a befuddled expression on his face, Vincent opened the balls and released his brother and sister from them. “You...didn’t let me finish,” he stated. “Doesn’t matter,” Sam said. “I trust you.” “Same here!” Lucy said before resuming her hug. The scene was interrupted when a Noibat flew up. “Noi!” she called out, before flying back down. Shortly after, a young man with a Combusken by his side climbed up to the roof. “Hey, I found more survivors up here. One of them’s a human boy in his early teens, likely Vincent Nurem!” the man called out to below, before he walked over to them. Once he drew close, however, the three there flinched. Vincent spoke for the group. “What took you so long?” Jonathan for his part looked taken aback by the question...until he realized what Vincent was likely talking about...and his expression grew guilty, as even them being here was all because Fox had left them a trail of breadcrumbs to follow. “I’m really sorry...I have no excuse to give you, and no words to defend our failure,” he said, bowing in apology. Sam looked to Vincent and nodded once, and Lucy did the same. Vincent sighed and rolled his eyes. “Admitting your failure is a start,” the boy said. “Just promise me he’ll fry for what he’s done to them all.” “That I can guarantee. The bastard who did this to you can only hang for what he has done,” Jonathan nodded. “Now then, let’s get you all down. I’ll take you to the station in Laverre, and we can sort things out from there,” he said, smiling gently. “There, ah, is a rope over there,” Sam said, pointing at where he and Lucy had come up. “Granted, it’s made of Spinarak webs, but it’d work.” Seeing it, Jonathan only gave them a flat stare. “...Fox?” he deadpanned. “Considering she got me, them, the rest, and even Bit out,” Vincent deadpanned back, “I’m more inclined to trust her than you at this point.” “...fair enough,” Jonathan sighed. “Honestly sometimes...I really wonder what you’re doing on the wrong side of the law with how much good you do sometimes…” Jonathan mentally sighed as he helped them down. No matter how he sliced it, the fact remained that the real hero here was...Phantom Thief Fox. The irony was almost too much. Once the small family was down (Vincent having put Lucy and Sam in their newly-acquired balls beforehand and letting them go once they were on the ground), they looked at the small horde of other survivors and nodded once. “Just...ask me or Bit about what they can do. And especially don’t let the Whismur talk,” Vincent informed Jonathan. “Duly noted,” Jonathan nodded as a small sheet was draped over Vincent. “Now let’s get you out of here. I doubt you want to stay in the swamps for longer than necessary,” Jonathan chuckled as a bunch of Quagsire walked by. “Then again, if you like Pokemon a lot…” “I don’t have a problem with ‘mon,” Vincent stated, before looking at the Combusken. “And usually, they don’t have a problem with me, either. Your partner’s been pretty quiet, though, so I don’t know…” “Just wondering why I see a human, but keep smelling a Psychic,” Heat commented, as a Mightyena, Howl, trotted up next to him. “He’s right. I’m smelling an Abra off the kid,” Howl commented. In response, Vincent reached over and gave the Dark-type a rub behind the ears, much to the Mightyena’s enjoyment if the whimpers he gave were any indication. “Blame the Doctor for that one. What I got out of those very few times I could from Bit, that’s what I’m spliced with,” Vincent said in response to both ‘mon’s statements. “Okay...that’s a new one. Didn’t know you COULD splice Pokemon DNA into a human,” Jonathan whistled. “Okay, let’s get you all out of here. The paper work this is gonna give us is NOT going to be fun, but we gotta do it. Better sooner than later,” he groaned. Paper work was, and always will be, the bane of his existence. Fox could never compare to the terror that is paper work. “Guess that also explains why I think the kid can understand us. All Pokemon can understand each other. Guess adding Pokemon DNA does that to humans,” Heat commented as he and Howl walked back to Jonathan’s side. “Yeah, Vinny always could understand us,” Lucy commented, not letting up from her hug for a second. “Is it really that weird?” After Heat translated for him, Jonathan just groaned. Suddenly he had a feeling this was gonna be more trouble than he thought. “Yeah, it is. Now let’s get you all out of here. For real this time,” he sighed, before picking Vincent and Lucy up and carrying them down the path towards Laverre City. “...If anything happens, I will not be pleased,” Sam stated as he stalked after the human that had his younger brother and sister. “If anything happened to them on his watch, Jonathan might not bother dodging,” Echo piped up as she flew alongside him. “He’ll make the third human I’ve ever trusted,” Sam retorted. “And that’s stretching the word ‘trust.’ You’d best be right, little bat.” Echo just shrugged and flew after her Trainer. After an hour, all of them entered into Laverre City. “Welcome to Laverre City. Otherwise known as the City of Otherworldly Dreams,” Jonathan said as he put Vincent and Lucy down. Shortly after, Sam walked up and stood next to his ‘brother’, and Vincent looked around with wide eyes. “Okay, the pictures Bit snuck out? One thing. Seeing it for myself? Another thing entirely.” He actually had a smile on as he took in the sensations. “I...think I’m going to like it out here.” “Glad to hear it. Since you just got out, I doubt you want to be stuck in the station for what might be hours,” Jonathan said. “Sam,” Vincent said, turning to the Scyther, “Any idea how much a typical room in a hotel would cost?” The Scyther just shrugged. “I stayed with an old man until he passed away in his sleep before I met you guys. We didn’t, ah, exactly touch on that subject.” Here he blushed and looked away. Vincent shrugged again and looked to John. “I have a little money. Is there a good hotel in this town I could use for the duration?” “Well...yeah, you could find one or two,” Jonathan started. “But...you know what, I’m probably gonna get into trouble for this, but what the heck,” he smiled slightly. “Tell ya what, you go with Heat, Howl, and Echo and see the town. When you’re done, follow them back to my place. Its not much, since I’m also only renting a place here temporarily, but it’ll do. And its free of charge,” Jonathan smiled, before adding, “Though...where did you get… FIVE THOUSAND?!!” he gasped in surprise when he saw the amount of money Vincent had. He was expecting a hundred at most, if not at all, but this...took the cake. “Oh, I won a bet with Fox. She bet I couldn’t guess the name of one of her team, and another one all but told me, so…” Vincent smiled before putting the money back in his back pocket. “Thank you for the offer, mister...I don’t believe we ever were properly introduced,” Vincent observed. “Jonathan. Jonathan Trace. I’m the officer in charge of Fox’s case...speaking of which, I don’t suppose you could tell me what the names of any of her Pokemon were, could you?” he said. “Why yes, I do possess basic communication skills,” Vincent observed. “However, seeing as she got to me first…” With that, he turned to the town and waved a hand behind him. “C’mon you three, or else I’ll never find your Trainer’s home in this mess!” Jonathan just looked at him with a bemused expression. “Alright, I get it. Considering she did save you...I’ll let it slide,” Jonathan smiled slightly. “Fair warning though, DON’T tell any of the other officers that you have any clues on Fox. They’re not as...understanding as I am…” he sighed. He wished more officers were more...honorable sometimes. “Fair enough,” Vincent said with a nod. “And unless they know exactly how to ask, I doubt I’ll have to give any exact answers.” He hoped that was enough of a clue to the detective as to how his own mind worked before he began walking off. Jonathan did understand the meaning behind the statement. Vincent was basically saying that as long as he specified which one he wanted to know about, he would answer but… “If my grandparents saw this, they’d be rolling in their graves. But…” he sighed before looking at the sky. “You did good today, Fox. I’ll leave this be for now,” he smiled, before turning to his Pokemon. “Go on, get. I’ll deal with the paperwork,” he smiled, as the three of them went after the boy. “Oh hey there, finally decided to join us on our little jaunt?” Sam questioned as he gave Lucy a piggy-back ride. “Don’t push us, bug,” Heat jabbed in bemusement. “We’re the guides here, so keep up,” Echo chuckled, before they led them around town. “And here we have Laverre City Gym,” Howl said as they walked by the building built into the massive tree. “Current Gym Leader is Miss Valerie, and her specialty is Fairy-type Pokemon. Not the best matchup for you guys at the moment,” he chuckled at the end. Sam merely fluttered his wings, which had suddenly gained a metallic quality to them. “So you say.” Vincent, however, was lost in thought. “For what basis does the one-Type-per-Gym system come from?” he pondered aloud. “Clearly, I would need to befriend and capture half-a-dozen Pokemon at best, a dozen at worst, and make certain they learned the correct moves, and there would not be a Gym I could not best with one or another by my side.” “Not that simple. Aside from types, each Gym Leader has their own ‘style’ of battle. So just knowing the right moves and the right type matchups won’t be enough. As for why the singular type specialties...I honestly don’t know,” Heat explained. “I personally always thought it was a mix of preference for each Gym Leader, and as preparation for any trainers aiming for the top,” at this, he turned towards the general direction of where the Kalos Pokemon League was located. “Ah yeah, that championship thing,” Sam said. “Doesn’t the Champion only ever get there with a team sorta like what little Vincent here just described?” “Fifteen, not little,” the boy groused. “Well, yes. But just because a person has a type specialty, doesn’t mean they ONLY use that type. It’s complicated really,” Echo said, scratching the back of her head. “Oh really? Valerie, Fairy…” Vincent leaned back onto his ‘older brother’ with a smug expression. “Tell me, what ‘mon partners does she have that wouldn’t be vulnerable to Sam’s Steel Wing?” “...her Mawile,” Howl simply said. “Her strongest is her Sylveon though. Most likely it was her starter.” “Hey Lucy, how good are you at punching things?” Vincent asked idly. In response, Lucy found a nearby rock, lifted one foot, and brought it down on the rock...which split in two, and it had been her size to begin with. “Ookay...so you’ve got some surprises too,” Heat blinked, before an idea crossed his mind. “If you’re so confident, how about you give it a shot. All gym leaders are required to choose their teams according to the level of the challengers, and in your case...it’d be a 2 on 2 Pokemon battle at most. Wanna try?” Vincent pulled out Bit’s ball from behind him and held it up to refute one part of what Heat had said. “Not yet,” the boy replied. “And maybe not ever. I want to see these three safe at least, but Bit is going to need...work. Lots of work and deprogramming.” “Oh boy...you should have left him with Jonathan then. If you did, he’d have given Bit to his bosses, and they would have had your friend...fixed,” Howl sighed, though he was careful on his choice of words. “I was talking literally; Bit’s a Porygon2,” Vincent retorted before putting the ball back where he’d gotten it from. “And tell me they know him as well as I do, I dare you.” “Fair enough. But unless you’re a computer wiz or something, you’re gonna need help in that department,” Heat said, scratching the back of his head. “Eh, with Fox’s help, I got Bit to transfer his perceived ownership of himself to me, so he’ll answer all of my inquiries.” Vincent shrugged before finishing. “It’ll only take me five minutes at most to figure out if I need help.” “Then why not do it now? Not like you’re gonna get anything from waiting. Sides, if this gets messy, I’d rather we do this outside,” Howl suggested. “...Fair enough,” Vincent replied, before taking the ball out again and tossing it in the air. With a click, Bit’s erratic and glitchy form was in front of them. “Greetings, MASter Vincent. How may I-I-I help yooooooou?” the Porygon2 said. “...okay, no offense, but that is just wrong,” Howl shuddered. “Yeah, that is just not right. How did he get that way?” Heat gulped. “Do we even want to know for that matter?” Echo fluttered behind Heat. “The Doctor made a Dubious Up-Grade; combined both of a Porygon’s Evolution disks, and fed it to him. He Evolved, but I can tell you right now, it hurt,” Vincent elaborated. “I was right, we didn’t want to know…” Echo groaned. “How the hell does someone make an evolution hurt?! That’s just...not natural,” Heat sighed, while Howl nodded in agreement. “Whiiiich defines most of us that survived,” Sam said. “The only unnatural thing here is how messed up it is that it took the world so long to finally save you guys,” Howl growled. “And to think the higher ups keep putting focus on stuff like Pokephilia too…” he muttered under his breath. “Bit, do you have a self-diagnosis or self-repair function?” the boy asked of the program. The Program ticked a few times before dinging in response. “This UNIT does po-po-possess those functions, maaaaaster VINCENT.” “Excellent,” Vincent said, rubbing his hands together in glee. “Bit, perform self-diagnosis and self-repair. Find out what’s wrong with yourself, then fix yourself.” The Porygon2 locked up for a moment before speaking up again. “Processes started. Estimated time until scan finishes: eight hours. Estimated time until repairs finish: unknown. Please return this unit to its ball or to a computer to facilitate repairs.” Vincent pointed Bit’s ball at the hovering mess of a Pokemon, and with a beam of red, Bit was sucked back in. “Well...that’s a thing,” the boy commented. “At least you got that taken care of easily enough though,” Echo simply said. “True enough, at least something was simple in our favor,” Sam agreed with a nod. “So...while we’re here, do you want to go in anyway? You know, maybe check out the gym...maybe catch some poor trainer getting pummeled along the way,” Heat suggested. “Battle nut,” Howl and Echo deadpanned. “Yeah, like I’m the only one who likes to watch a gym battle,” Heat rolled his eyes. “I...don’t think so,” Vincent replied. “These guys are essentially my family, plus, hearing others in pain…” Here the boy trailed off before raising a hand to his head. “Always made the headaches worse.” “That’s...gonna be a problem,” Howl sighed. “Now that you’re out of the facility, truth is, Pokemon battles are a normal thing here. And since you’re technically a trainer now, there WILL be some people who will challenge you to a battle, so…” Vincent seemed to grow sad for a moment, before he looked down at the ball in his hands and smiled. “Oh, is that so?” he said in a too-sweet voice. “I’ll keep that in mind. Sam, remind me, what’s the usual forfeit for losing a battle?” “A good chunk of change,” Sam replied instantly, before taking notice of where Vincent was looking. “No. No, you do not get to use Bit when he’s fixed. That is just unfair, and you know it.” “Nobody is gonna say anything though. As far as we know, a Porygon is a Porygon. Heck, if he’s as strong as you seem to say he is, you SHOULD have him as a signature Pokemon,” Heat shrugged. “Bit was the backup for everything and ran the security systems,” Sam explained. “He was also the trainer in the simulator room. All that time, working on his special attack...Pray he doesn’t know a move you’re weak to if you face him.” Sam shuddered at the thought of his ‘sessions’ with Bit and Charge Beam. The three police Pokemon just shrugged. To them, it sounded like as long as Vincent kept a leash on Bit, he shouldn’t cause any problems if he were used in a battle. “Plus,” Sam tacked on, “You don’t know what his state is going to be like once he is fixed.” Vincent sobered a bit at the thought. “Hadn’t considered that,” the boy said with a slight nod. “Still, his wide array of moves and his Download ability…” “Well...we’re not gonna force you to do anything. But all the same, it wouldn’t hurt if you and your family...trained up a bit. Its definitely better than relying on only one Pokemon...or watching them get pummeled in a fight,” Heat sighed. “Aaaanyway, on a more cheery note, I say we go to the Pokemon fan club next!” Howl suggested. “Sounds like a fine idea!” Sam said in response. Lucy jumped into Vincent’s arms and pointed in a random direction. “Mush!” she commanded. “You don’t know where it is any more than I do,” Vincent deadpanned. “...Mush!” she commanded again. “Yep, she doesn’t know,” Echo chuckled, before they led them towards the right direction. “Sorry about that. We didn’t know the local kindergarten was having a field trip,” Howl said apologetically. When they had gotten to the fanclub, they were all but swarmed by a horde of kids. “Eh, you couldn’t have known,” Sam replied with a wave of a scythe. “And at least the boys were mostly gentle with me.” It was close, though, even with his thick exoskeleton. “Speak for yourself,” Echo grumbled. Unfortunately, some of the kids who STILL needed to learn more about Pokemon got her and well...being treated like a stuffed animal was NOT fun. “I got to sit on Vinny’s shoulders!” Lucy said, still on her new perch. “It’s fun up here! Looks like I can see more from up here too!” “Yeah, it probably looks like that,” Howl smiled. “Well, since we’ve more or less seen the whole town, let’s head back,” Heat suggested. “We can do that,” Vincent agreed. “...Still, why was it important they not know about my...ability?” “Well...for the police, its more that you know a clue about Fox. Jonathan would rather catch her fair and square, and not resort to taking advantage of her kindness...other officers though...let’s just say they’re not as honorable. As for in general...your dad is unfortunately NOT the only crazy scientist out there. A LOT of people might be interested in figuring out how to re-create what you can do,” Heat sighed, before shuddering at the end. “Plus, did you want to be there any longer?” Sam questioned. “They’d have kept you there for hours if they realized you were actually talking to us and hearing us.” “And that’s a no, so let’s get going,” Vincent replied only quickening his walk in response afterwards. The small group walked for a while, before coming upon an apartment building. Walking up to the front desk, Heat dinged the bell. “Yes?” one of the staff asked, before seeing Heat. “Ah yes, I assume Mr. Trace will be coming back late today again?” Heat nodded, before the staff sighed. “Very well, I’ll open the door for you,” he sighed, before noticing the new additions. “Friends of yours?” Another nod. “Very well, they may come as well.” “My thanks,” Vincent said with a nod, following the Combusken onwards. The apartment they came upon was...simple to say the least. Two bedrooms, one clearly a guest room, a bathroom, a living room, and a kitchen. “Its not much, but Jonathan likes to have apartments like this in every City in case he has to spend a long time in any City. Normally, we live in Anistar city,” Heat explained. Vincent, Sam, and Lucy all made a beeline for the couch and sighed in relief as they managed to get some rest for their feet. “Hang on a tic, you’ve been carried this whole day,” Sam pointed out, turning to Lucy’s form. “Can’t talk, comfy,” she retorted, working herself in deeper on the couch. “Make yourselves at home. It’ll probably be a while before Jonathan comes home,” Echo smiled. Vincent took note of the computer screen nearby and fingered Bit’s ball, thinking about letting the program at some hardware...and deciding against it. He didn’t want the officer to come back to a non-functional computer for however long Bit took. “Yeaaah...please don’t let the Porygon mess with Jonathan’s computer. That thing is connected to all his computers in each city. All of them have all his data he’s gathered on Phantom Thief Fox. That’s five years worth of work,” Howl sighed. He had gotten worried when the boy eyed the Pokeball, but was glad that he decide not to. “I will admit I was tempted, but it’d be a poor repayment for his kindness so far to put Bit in his network,” Vincent retorted. “At least, until Bit is fixed anyways. Then he might want a Porygon to help him out.” “Maybe, but Bit is your Pokemon. Besides, all we can do now is wait. So...tv anyone?” Heat offered, picking up the remote. At the mention of the device, Sam turned red and decided to monitor the viewing for tonight, whereas Lucy and Vincent were curious right off the bat. “Didn’t you tell us about this, Sam?” “Ah, yeah,” the Scyther replied, turning more and more red. “Just...it’s been...a while since I’ve seen one. So it might take...some time to get reacquainted with…” “Awesome. Okay, I know the perfect movie we can watch. It should be starting soon. So...I’ll go get dinner ready. So...Pokemon food or human food?” Heat said. At that, the three rescuees adopted a dead look and recited in monotone their diet for the past few years. “You will eat this nutrient paste full of vital vitamins and minerals, containing everything a body could need without sacrificing any taste. You will drink this water filled with the same. You will partake of this routine every day.” And the three stuck their tongues out at the conjured memories. “BLEH!” they stated in unison. “Hard to sacrifice what you never had,” Vincent commented. By the time they were done, the three Police Pokemon had stepped back. A few feet back. “Oookay...Burgers and Fries it is,” Howl deadpanned. “That’s not very healthy,” Echo commented. “I think healthy food is the last thing they want right now,” Heat deadpanned as the three of them went to work in the kitchen. Jonathan yawned as he got home. Once again, after filling in his paperwork, he got grilled. AGAIN. About how Fox got away. “Moron. I don’t see him chasing after her,” he grumbled. He loved his job and what he did, but he could do without the annoying bosses. “I’m home,” he said, not expecting anyone to be awake. The peaceful sight of the three he’d picked up dozing on his couch lasted for all of a second as the sound of an opening door reached them and triggered their reflexes. Instantly, they were up and in fight-or-flight mode. Sam stood protectively over Vincent, who was holding Lucy close to himself as their brains all slowly rebooted. “This...this isn’t there,” the boy whispered. “Yeah, this isn’t. Its not a dream, and if it is, then Darkrai just sunk to a new low,” Jonathan sighed as he took off his vest and tie, before plopping down on a chair. “Pass me one of the Instant Ramen cups, please,” he sighed tiredly. Sam did him one better: there had been one too many burgers and some leftover fries, which he put on a plate and passed over to the detective. “Better than ramen, though still not good for you,” the Scyther observed. “I’ll burn it off the next time Fox decides to come out,” he simply said, before taking a bite. It was cold, but to the tired officer, it was one of the best things he had ever tasted. “So...mister Trace, I think there are two things you should know,” Vincent said, slowly leaning forward and prying Lucy off of himself. “...what did Heat burn this time?” Jonathan deadpanned. He wouldn’t trade Heat for anyone, but sometimes the Combusken was just too enthusiastic for his own good. “Oh, just the first few burgers, which he ate himself, but that’s not the important part,” Vincent commented before pulling Bit’s ball out from behind himself and putting it in his lap. “This is Bit...a Porygon2 that was meant to serve as the backup for everything from...there. He’s currently fixing himself as best as he can, and I’ll check on him when I wake up...but I figured you should know he’s an option.” “An option to what? Unless he still has problems after he’s done, he’s your Pokemon as far as I’m concerned. The Nurem case is all but closed now too, since every media provider in the world just got a special delivery. Anyone who supports Nurem now is just ASKING to be on death row next to him,” Jonathan sighed tiredly. He was happy, yes he was that Nurem could never harm another Pokemon again without SEVERE repercussions, but still, he had a long day. “...Guess we missed it then,” Vincent said, before taking the money out next. “And second...I want you to have this...if you’ll let me give it to you, of course.” “Eh, you won it from Fox more or less fair and square. Besides, you’re not exactly a member of the Rich family. Keep it, you’ll need it,” Jonathan simply said, pushing the money back. “True,” Vincent said, pushing it forward again, “But I don’t know how to properly use it. I want you to use it, to help not only me...but yourself as well. I think...Fox knew something like this might happen anyways when she gave it to me.” “Kid. Fox is a whimsical as they come. Personally I think she just wanted to give you something so you wouldn’t find yourself on the streets when you got out. But, if you’d like...I’ll give you a hand. First thing tomorrow, I’ll get you to the Pokemon Center. From there, we can get you an official trainers license, which will give you access to a trainer account, as well as the free services from the Pokemon Centers. After that...I think I know a few funds we could invest some of the money in,” Jonathan smiled slightly. “I’m still going to repay you for this kindness you’ve shown me,” Vincent replied, finally taking the money back and putting it away in his pocket. “Vincent. Just live. The nightmare is over. All I want is for you to live life like any other kid your age, and we’ll call it even. Speaking of which, I got some info you might want to know,” he said, as he pulled out a folder with a picture of a woman on it. “See this? Apparently, she’s your mother. Your biological mother. She’s been spending the last fourteen years looking for you after...you know.” Vincent looked at the folder and gently took it, not quite sure what to make of it. “I...Do you know where she is right now?” To say he was stunned would be a slight understatement. “Last records of her were in Kanto a few weeks ago. Apparently she’s been following any and all leads she could to find you since you were kidnapped. She’s also a well known Pokemon rights activist, though part of the reason was to rally more people to help in her search,” Jonathan smiled. “You’ve got one hell of a mom, kid.” Vincent blinked a few times before he realized that his vision was blurry, and he wiped away the sudden tears. “Huh...thought I stopped doing that a while ago,” he commented idly as he noticed the moisture on his sleeve. “Well...thanks, mister Trace.” “Just call me Jonathan, or Jon if you’d like. Mr. Trace makes me feel like my dad,” Jonathan chuckled. “As for your mother, unfortunately at the moment nobody really knows where she is, since many of the places she looks are a bit...off the grid. Until we can contact her again, I’ve volunteered to take care of you till then. Its the least I can do after fourteen years of hell you had to deal with. And don’t worry. Its no big deal for me. My family is by no means rich, but we’re...comfortable,” Jonathan said. “Yeah, just, as I’m sure you noticed,” Vincent said with a weak smile and chuckle, “please, please try to avoid startling us again? For most of us, it’d not be an issue if you were outside of arm’s reach, but for someone like Bit...there’s no telling what he’d do when he’s fixed and out of the ball.” “Yeah...I think I should add therapy to the list after all,” Jonathan blinked. “Speaking of which, since the Nurem case is closed more or less, I’ve been ordered to go back to my main branch tomorrow. So yeah...sorry for the sudden info, but I hope you enjoyed your short stay here.” “Actually,” Sam mused as he thought aloud, “It’d probably be a good idea to get further away from here. Might help you recover more if you’re not as close.” Vincent thought about what Sam had said before nodding slowly. “Eh, fair point. Maybe a change of scenery will help.” “Great. It’ll take us two days to get back to HQ, so we’ll be stopping by one of the nearby towns first. That would be Dendemille town. Hope you like snow,”Jonathan smiled, before a thought crossed his mind. “Speaking of snow...a good friend of mine is over there right now for her research. Maybe we’ll bump into her along the way.” Vincent shuddered at the mention of snow, along with Sam. “Not a big fan of cold,” the boy explained. “Oh boy, that could be a small problem. Anistar is close to Snowbelle, and while we’re nowhere near as cold as Snowbelle, its often snowing there,” Jonathan scratched his head. Vincent thought for a moment, before he patted the pocket the money he’d been given was in. “How much would warm clothing cost, do you think?” “Laverre doesn’t see much need for it...so...actually, you’d be better off buying it in Dendemille. Here, people don’t really need warm clothing, so the price is higher...maybe 2000 poke dollars per jacket. But In Dendemille, that would only cost you about 1500 poke dollars,” Jonathan suggested. “So a quick stop there to outfit me, maybe for you to see your friend,” Vincent supplied. “And then on to the main HQ.” “Yeah, that’ll work...provided Alice isn’t in Frost Cavern...knowing her, that’s probably where she’ll be. Looking for frozen fossils and stuff no doubt,” Jonathan sighed. “And once we get there, you can put me right in that ball,” Sam said. “I’m not sticking around cold if I can avoid it.” Lucy merely hopped back in Vincent’s lap. “I’m stayin’ with Vinny. I have a coat of fur, anyways.” “Plus the stopover will give me time to check on Bit,” Vincent finished. “Yeah, sounds like a plan. Alright, then I think its time you all turned in. We’ve got a long day of traveling tomorrow,” Jonathan smiled. The next morning, Jonathan brought Vincent to the Pokemon Center, along with Sam, Lucy, and Bit. “Good morning, welcome to the Pokemon Center,” the Nurse Joy running the center greeted pleasantly. “Ah, Officer Trace. Are you here to give your Pokemon a check up?” “Nothing like that, Nurse Joy. I’m here to get Vincent here registered for an official trainer license,” Jonathan smiled back as he motioned to Vincent. The boy stepped forward a few paces, stopping still well away from the desk. He...wasn’t fond of doctors or nurses, and with good reason. “Good morning,” he said nonetheless. “Is...something wrong?” Nurse Joy asked, a little worried by his reaction. At this point, Jonathan stepped forward and whispered to Nurse Joy, “Yeah...about that. Let me explain. This is Vincent Nurem. We only just saved him yesterday.” Upon hearing the name, Nurse Joy’s eyes widened at the implication. “Ah...I see...the poor boy. I understand,” she nodded, having heard reports on the infamous doctor, one of which being him kidnapping his own son. “Well...Vincent does get along with Pokemon more easily,” Jonathan idly commented as a hint. “Ah, that’s a good idea. Wigglytuff, could you please come here,” Nurse Joy called to the back. Shortly after, a Wigglytuff wearing a nurse hat and apron walked out. “Ah. Hello there,” Vincent greeted the fairy. “Hello!” the Wigglytuff said happily with a big smile. “Welcome!” “Well she’s certainly energetic,” Vincent commented with a slight smile, taking a small step forwards, Sam and Lucy following. “I’m here to get registered as an official Trainer.” “Ah yes, I’ll take care of that immediately. All I need is your name and age, but Officer Trace already told me your name, so all I need is your age, and I can take care of the rest,” Nurse Joy smiled, happy to see the boy getting more comfortable. “I...think I’m fifteen? I’d need to see the records to be sure,” Vincent commented scratching his head. “Alright, I’ll write down fifteen for now. Please wait right here. I won’t be long,” Nurse Joy smiled, before walking to the back. “So, how you feeling about being a trainer?” Jonathan idly asked. “Not sure yet,” the boy commented. “I’m more into the aspect where nobody will be able to take my family from me.” “Fair enough,” he nodded. “Don’t you worry. Once your license is done, you and your family can be together forever!” Wigglytuff said with her big smile again. “And how long does it typically take?” Vincent asked of the fairy, causing her to stop for a moment as she realized the boy had heard and understood her. “Did you...actually understand what I said?” she asked in surprise. Normally, only Nurse Joy could really understand what she was saying, since they had been together for a long time. Most other trainers could only understand the general feelings she was trying to project. “I think I’ll start labelling these stages in reaction to this,” the kid mused. “Stage one, denial. Not sure about stage two. Maybe relief?” “I dunno about that,” Jonathan chuckled, before kneeling down in front of the fairy. “Could you please not tell anyone about this. If word gets out, the kid’ll have more problems than he already had, especially if the wrong people hear of this.” “Oh...okay,” Wigglytuff stuttered, not sure what to say. “Look, Jon, I’m happy you’re looking out for me, really I am, but to me, this is just something I do. I’m not going to be able to hide it easily for a while...or ever. Why not tell people? They’ll find out anyways. Sooner we tell them, the better. Especially if you say I’m in police protection at the same time.” Vincent questioned the detective bluntly. “Well...alright. I just thought we’d at least try to keep any...unwanted attention off of you first, especially since you just got out of that place. Alright kid, its your...gift...so if you want to show it, I won’t stop you,” Jonathan said, scratching the back of his head. “Best to get it all done at once rather than drag it out,” the former-lab-Rattata commented, speaking both wise words...and from experience. “Plus, given time, people might forget about it to some degree, or not even believe it if it’s such a weird or rare thing. Meaning it won’t really matter until the moments like this one happen.” Jonathan couldn’t help but be surprised again by the boy. Despite living an...isolated life, he seemed very intelligent. Not at all like what he had expected to see. “Alright Vincent, you win,” Jonathan chuckled, raising his arms in mock surrender. “Guess I was wrong to think you needed any protection...other than physical ones.” “Which we have handled already,” Sam stated with a nod. Lucy gave off a positive-sounding hum at the Scyther’s statement. “Especially if Bit really fixes himself,” the little Riolu added. “Fair point. But just watch yourselves. You might do fine against normal trainers, but if you get any of the Evil Teams on your backs, well...don’t get cocky,” Jonathan sighed in amusement. As he finished saying that, Nurse Joy came back with a device in her hand. A Pokedex. “Sorry for the wait. Your Pokedex and license are ready,” she said, before placing the Pokedex on a panel on the desk. “Please place your Pokeballs on this panel too, so we can register your Pokemon as well,” she said, motioning to the place for the Pokeballs. Vincent slowly stepped forward and brought out Lucy and Sam’s balls. “Do they have to be in them at the moment, or…?” he trailed off, unsure. “Not to worry. They’re already locked to the balls. Just placing the empty balls will do,” she said. Vincent nodded and placed the balls of his family next to the ‘dex, before reaching and snagging Bit’s ball as well and holding it in front of him. “I...don’t think Bit’s ready yet,” he said, before putting the Porygon2 back where he’d gotten him from. “Alright. But please register him as soon as you can. Any other Pokemon you catch after this will automatically be registered to your ownership,” Nurse Joy explained. “Have a nice day. We hope to see you again,” she smiled and bowed. Vincent softly smiled in return, before reclaiming the balls and taking the ‘dex. Upon getting his new gear, he realized a problem, and turned to Jon. “I...am going to need something to carry this all with at this rate,” the boy wryly observed. “Well...we’ll see about getting you a backpack for this then. For now, just hold on to them. We’ll get you a backpack when we get to Dendemille. Until then, I can hang on to your Pokedex for you if you’d like,” Jonathan nodded. “I think I can manage,” Vincent said, his pockets bulging. “Barely. Sooner we get to that town, the better.” “Alright then, let’s get going. Would you like to go by foot or by vehicle? I was thinking we could go by foot so you could take in more sights along the way,” Jonathan smiled. “Fair enough,” Vincent said, before Lucy climbed over his head and sat on his shoulders. “But we’re taking shifts with this little height maniac on the way.” “Mush!” she ordered. “Fair enough,” Jonathan sweat dropped. Later, they were all on the road, taking the path towards Dendemille Town. “Huh,” Vincent said, looking at the leaves crunching underfoot. “Is it always autumn here?” “More or less. Its all thanks to the climate,” Jonathan nodded. “Even this is more chill than I like,” Sam said, now the one carrying Lucy. “Pretty!” she commented, looking around. “It’s real nice here. Colorful.” “It sure is!” Echo chimed in. She always did enjoy the routes around their home. “Just watch out for some of the trainers around here. There are a few weirdos every now and then,” Howl commented, while Heat nodded in agreement. “Be nice you two. Some people are just a little...eccentric,” Jonathan chided. “I think we can handle eccentric,” Vincent deadpanned. “Doesn’t get much weirder than us.” Jonathan just chuckled in response as they walked through the path. Along the way, several trainers challenged Jonathan to a battle. Apparently he was pretty well known around these parts. “Heat, end it. Overheat,” Jonathan calmly ordered, as Heat fired the flames at his opponent, a Bannet. The attack hit, and after the ensuing explosion, the Bannet collapsed, its eyes swirly. “Dang, you really don’t let up, Officer,” The Hex Maniac that had challenged him whistled. “Thank you for the battle,” she said as she paid him his winnings, and recalled her Pokemon. “...Something tells me I’m safer sticking with you for as long as possible,” Vincent commented. “Just, watch it, will ya? I felt the heat on that one,” Sam said with a slight wince. “As long as you stay a good distance away, its no problem,” Heat chuckled, quite satisfied with the battle. “As for the fight...yeah, I am pretty strong,” Jonathan chuckled, as he pulled out a case, and showed Vincent the inside. There were 5 badges pinned inside it, from the Bug Badge to the Voltage Badge. “That isn’t bad,” Vincent admitted with a nod. “I might try something similar one day...assuming I can find partners as strong as yours that get along well with my family.” “Don’t force it. Trust me, its better to only have a few Pokemon who you can really bond with, rather than having a hundred that you can’t connect with,” Jonathan smiled as he put the badges away. “Why do you think I only have 3 Pokemon?” “Because only three would put up with you?” Vincent snarked. “Seriously, good on you for taking as good care of them as you have...and vice versa,” he said, winking at Jon’s partner ‘mon. “You’re a good kid, Vincent. Trust me, be true to yourself and you’ll be just fine,” Jonathan smiled before they resumed their travelling. Once they had gotten to the ruined buildings, Vincent turned to look at them, only slowing down slightly. “What’s the story behind these?” he questioned. “That’s the Lost Hotel. Apparently, there used to be a successful Hotel, but something happened years ago that left it in ruins. This is all that’s left,” Jonathan sighed. “Be careful though, that place has become a popular hang out for gangs and stuff, and even a few mercenaries have been known to use it as a meeting point,” Jonathan warned. “So avoid creepy places, because they’re home to creepy people,” Vincent summarized. “Sounds logical and reasonable.” “That and Ghost-types tend to live in areas like that a lot. Course, I’m not worried, since I’ve got Howl with me, and as you saw, Heat can deal with them well enough too,” Jonathan nodded. In response, Sam lifted a claw that now seemed to be edged with shadows, and Lucy’s arms seemed to be darker as well for some reason. “Y’all should really stop underestimating his educational programs,” Vincent commented without turning around, knowing what his siblings would be showing off. “And you two, put the Dark-type moves down.” Sam and Lucy returned to normal with a grin on their faces. “Fair enough,” Jonathan shrugged. “I’m just doing my job and at least giving you a warning.” “Appreciated,” Vincent said with a nod. “But we can hold our own in a few situations, and that might expand rapidly, depending on if our third member is salvageable.” “Just being here so you know I got your back,” Jonathan simply said. “Speaking of which, I can see the town now.” The chill had finally gotten to be too much for the Scyther, so he passed Lucy off to Vincent and nodded twice. “Okay, ready. Lemme out when we’re somewhere warmer.” In response, Vincent pulled out Sam’s ball and returned his brother to its interior. By that point in time, Lucy had climbed up onto his shoulders. “Onwards!” she demanded. “She’s cute. But I hope she gets a bit more mature when she Evolves,” Heat smiled wryly. “I hope for quite a few things when she Evolves,” Vincent said, staring off into the distance for a moment before shaking his head and smiling wryly. “We have shopping to do if I’m not mistaken,” the boy then reminded his escorts. “Yeah, let’s get going,” Jon nodded, before leading them to the clothing store. Once inside, they quickly picked out warmer clothing for Vincent. “Well this feels much warmer,” the boy commented as he tried on a fluffy coat, before taking notice of something. “Um. Where’s Lucy?” “Huh? I thought she was with you just a moment ago,” Howl blinked. “Well she’s not here now,” the boy pointed out, looking around for his wayward sister. “Well, she had to have gone somewhere...let’s go find some young ladies. Maybe they caught her to huggle her or something,” Heat suggested, before deadpanning at the end. The moment Vincent moved to follow Heat, his coat giggled, causing the boy to freeze and sigh. “Found her,” he stated, before the Riolu’s head poked out from the coat in front of his own. “Hi!” Lucy said before ducking back into the coat. “...no sugar for the Riolu,” Echo deadpanned. “Or else she’d be bouncing off the walls.” The rest of her team and her trainer nodded in agreement. “And that’d be without any help in launching her at those walls,” Vincent stated with a wry smile, recalling an incident from not too long ago. “Comfy in there, Lucy?” “Warm in here! I like it. Gonna nap now.” “Quick, let’s pay for that coat and get to the hotel before she wakes up. I don’t feel like keeping track of an almost hyper Riolu in this town,” Howl quickly said. “Would you prefer the alternative?” Vincent bluntly questioned before taking his cash out and handing it to Jon. “What alternative?” Heat blinked as Jon paid for the coat. “She could be acting like the things that happened to her in there affected her,” the boy elaborated. “I prefer this version of her rather than the one that she could be.” “...suddenly I don’t mind dealing with a hyper Riolu,” all three Pokemon deadpanned. “Sounds like a good idea to me,” Jonathan chuckled, as he handed Vincent his change back. Vincent put it in one of the coat’s pockets, along with the Pokedex, making the load easier on his poor pants. “Just one more thing to take care of before we can be going, Jon,” Vincent said. “I’d like to borrow Heat for it if I may, seeing as how he’s likely to know Fighting moves if worst comes to worst.” “...why would you want to go into Frost Cavern? The only reason I wanted to go there is in the event Alice isn’t in town, she’d likely be there,” Jonathan stated. “You misunderstand,” Vincent said, pulling out Bit’s ball to make his point clearer. “Lucy’s napping, so I need someone else...and she might not like the idea of hurting him, even if we have to.” “...alright. Tell ya what, I’ll give you a hand too. Take Bit to the northern exit of town. There’s an open field where nobody will get hurt,” Jonathan said. “Thank you,” Vincent said before looking at Heat with a raised eyebrow. “If you want to, of course,” he amended. “Meh, I don’t see why not. Sides, I always like testing myself against strong opponents,” he grinned. “And this is why I wonder how you’re not a Blaziken yet,” Jonathan deadpanned, especially since Heat was his main Pokemon for battle. Heat just shrugged in response. “In that case, we’ll be off for...hopefully not long,” Vincent said. “Why don’t you call your friend while we check up on Bit?” “Sounds like a plan. I’ll book a room in the hotel for us. Just tell them you’re with me, and they’ll show you the room,” Jonathan nodded, before heading for the hotel.