Kyo stepped out of the elevator as the doors opened in front of her. Setting her shoulders back, she proceeded forward at an even pace, not acknowledging those she walked past as they saluted her. She stopped in front of a glass door, taking her keycard from her pocket and swiping it. The door slid open with a long hiss. Kyo stepped inside and quickly scanned the room.
There was lab equipment pressed against every wall, with cables covering the floor in a system that could only be described as organized chaos. They all lead to a device in the center of the room, a tall glass tube with a pedestal inside. A scientist stood next to it, his attention fully directed at the computer in front of him as he pecked away at the keys.*
Kyo approached him, standing a few feet away before clearing her through. “Doctor Iroh,” she said. The man snapped out of his focus and quickly stood at attention. Kyo scanned him up and down. He was less than presentable to her tastes, but he got results. Despite his small stature and sniveling appearance, this man had cracked the code to unlocking a Pokémon’s true power. Or so she had been told. Her visit today was to observe the results of this so-called untapped potential.
“General Writer, thank you for coming. As the superiors requested, I have been working endlessly on the Fantome Project, and after several successful trials, I believe I have succeeded in achieving the potential power levels you seek,” Iroh said as he gestured to the large tube. Kyo raised her eyebrows and waited with a neutral expression for Iroh to continue. He seemed a bit flustered by the lack of a response, sputtering out, “P-Please, follow me, I will explain.”
Iroh turned and began to lead Kyo to the other side of the lab where he opened the door into a long hallway. The hallway itself was narrow with two guards stationed at the far end, but most noticeable were a large number of doors and large windows staggered along the wall. These, Kyo knew, were containment units for experiments such as the one Doctor Iroh was working on.
“There have always been theories as to what can unlock a Pokémon’s true potential. Many claim it is friendship and partnership, but oftentimes we see some of the most powerful beasts are owned or created by tyrants who have lusted for power and treat their Pokémon not as living creatures but as too for their gain. It’s this complete disregard for their feelings th-“
“Please, spare me the backstory, Doctor,” Kyo interrupted in a slightly annoyed tone. “I am here for results, not a philosophy course at Driftveil University.”
Iroh shrunk down a little as if the words inflicted physical pain. “R-Right, of course, General Writer.” He gestured to one of the containment units. “We have been attempting to recreate the Shadow Theory Effect on these Pokémon using a mixture of those that were wild, stolen from trainers, or volunteered by members of the White Rocket organization. After many trial and errors, I believe we have succeeded in closing off the Pokémon’s heart completely, allowing for true power levels to be achieved that instincts such as loyalty or compassion might impede.”
Kyo peered into the containment unit. Iroh typed a code into a keypad next to the door, unlocking it. Opening it slightly, Iroh opened a pokéball and cast a Rattata inside before quickly shutting the door. Kyo watched as a Croconaw devoured a Rattata, tearing apart the smaller mouse Pokémon and casting the various parts everywhere, only to then gorge itself on the rodent’s flesh. Aside from all the blood, it appeared to look like a normal Pokémon. The Croconaw looked over at Kyo and growled, its eyes consumed by a deep red color as it lunged at the glass, beating against it as it attempted to attack its onlookers.*
Iroh started to speak again, but Kyo held up her hand to indicate he remain silent. Walking around deep in thought, Kyo peered into a few more of the units to find similar scenes of blood and gore before her. This was a good sign. Approaching Iroh again, she said, “Show me their battle statistics. How successful are they compared to others of their species.”
Iroh gave a quick nod before leading her out of the hallway, taking her back into the room they had just been in. Typing away at his computer, Iroh pulled up several screens involving the Croconaw and other Shadow Pokémon’s stats compared to before their transformation and compared to others of their species. Kyo leaned forward to look at the data. She smiled.*
“Impressive.” She looked at Iroh, “My bosses will be pleased. How soon before this technology can be used again?”*
“The machine can be used again immediately after it is used, sir,” Iroh replied.*
Kyo took a pokéball off her belt and held it out to Iroh. “I would like a demonstration, then.”
Iroh took the pokéball before giving Kyo a look of concern. “With all due respect, sir, are you sure? There have been some concerns of disobedience and-“
Kyo held up her hand to cut off Iroh again. “Just do your job, Doctor.”
Iroh nodded and opened the glass tube, placing the pokéball inside. He shut the glass tube again and several wires quickly connected themselves to the ball. An image of Kyo’s Meowstic appeared on Iroh’s computer. Beside the image, several bars appeared, reading “Door to Heart”, “Stress”, “Health”, as well as various other vital signs.*
“Initiating Shadow Process… now.” Iroh pushed a button and purple sparks began to engulf her pokéball inside the tube. Meowstic’s vitals began to go wild, with her stress bar spiking rapidly. However, unlike all the other bars and vital signs, the “Door to Heart” gauge slowly began to fill. Kyo watched it, a bit mesmerized as she felt an intense dark aura emanating from the tube. She could see Iroh’s hand hovering over the button he pushed to start this process as if he was ready to stop it anytime, but Kyo didn’t want it to stop. Her partner would soon be one of the most powerful Pokémon alive, how could she not give her partner such a beautiful opportunity?
Slowly the gauge continued to fill until it was full. Meowstic’s vitals stabilized and the stress bar emptied. Iroh hit the button again and the wires retracted from the pokéball. He opened the tube and plucked the ball from the pedestal. Holding it out to Kyo, he said, “She may be a bit disoriented when you first use it, but the process is complete.”*
Kyo smiled as she took the pokéball back. Iroh jumped back as she opened it, unleashing Meowstic onto the floor in front of her. A dark presence seemed to swirl around Meowstic as she stood up and turned to face Kyo. Her eyes gleamed a bright red, no hint of affection behind them. Good. “Meowstic, Shadow Ball on the wall over there,” she commanded.*
“Wait wait we have-“ Iroh started, only to dive when Meowstic launched a Shadow Ball at the wall. The ball of energy blasted through the steel wall, leaving a gaping hole into the hallway next door. Kyo approached it to inspect the damage when she noticed a commotion on the other side of the wall.*
The two guards from before were currently opening the door to the Croconaw’s chamber and returning it to a pokéball along with several of the other shadow experiments. At the sound of the steel breaking, they had also turned to look into Kyo’s direction, making eye contact with her before making a break in the other direction.*
“Sound the alarm! The experiments are being taken!” Kyo shouted at Iroh before opening the door into the hallway. “Meowstic, with me!” She ran after the two guards with her Meowstic by her side. They would not get away, not with the new weapon of mass destruction that was her partner in pursuit of them.
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