Family Matters By: Chief Reviewer
The night was silent and peaceful in the forest, many pokemon were sleeping, others with nocturnal habits were looking for their prey, wrapped in darkness. Over the treetops, a tunnel appears in the air, quickly a small greenish-colored pokémon comes out of it flying at high speed, nimbly dodging the branches of the dense forest in front of him.
For some time, he seems to survey the area, as if he's looking for someone or some place. After a few moments of searching, he sees a clearing in the middle of that dense forest, and, in the center of this clearing, a small lake with calm and crystalline waters.
The pokémon lands near the edge of the pond and walks towards the water, stirring the water as he approachs the water looking like a mirror reflecting the night sky and shining stars.
After a few moments a bluish glow begins to form in the center, and, in an explosion of water, a small blue pokémon emerges from within the pond.
Upon opening his eyes, the mythical little pokemon looked for who disturbed his calm waters, focusing his eyes on the pokémon that had stirred the waters, he smiled and went to meet him.
{Celebi, you are back! So that means the mission you entrusted to me was successful doesn't it? Did they achieve the future you expected to achieve?}
{Not quite yet, the future is not that easy to predict, or to define…}
{What do you mean? When you told me that those two were going to show up here one night arguing with each other, and that I should find a way to make them understand how they really felt about each other… That's exactly what happened! And now you tell me that it was useless?}
{That's not what I meant! Let me try to explain it to you! Imagine that certain important moments in your life are like a room with several doors, and that each door will lead you on a path to another room with several other doors, and so on. Depending on your choices of doors in each room, you will be guided to a different destination, that is, the choice that is made in each of these important moments is what will make a certain future more plausible to happen or not...}
{Hmm I see, then by this, you mean that what happened to them here was one of those special moments, and that you needed my help to direct them to the correct door is that it?}
{Exactly, I can visualize these "rooms" but I can't force them to follow the path I need them to follow, so I depend on the help of others like you to somehow guide them to the right path...}
{Wow! must be extremely tiring for you!}
{Hahahaha! It's extremely exhausting! It's like guiding a herd of Taurus through a big crystal shop without breaking anything! But every tear, sweat and drop of blood is needed to reach the future where that person who will be a symbol of the union between humans and pokemons as equals will exist and convince everybody…}
{Woah, that looks fantastic! Can you tell me a little more about that future?}
{About the endpoint… Unfortunately it's still very hazy, even for me, but I can tell you about another important convergence point! Would you like to hear?...}
{YES!}
{So, approximately 10 years in the future….}
About 10 years in the Future
The sun was rising on the horizon, illuminating a small ranch near the base of the Crystal Cove Mountains, on the outside, a man of tall height and athletic build in his 30's to 35's stood with an axe in his hand chopping wood near the entrance to the house.
Chop! Chop! Chop!
Suddenly a three-fingered hand caresses his back, exploring every perfectly shaped muscle.
{Hey handsome. Good Morning. I see someone woke up early again. Why are you chopping wood out here? You know very well that we have electricity through solar panels, don't you?}
"Good morning to you love, sorry if the noise woke you or the girls. But breathing in the fresh morning air while exercising a little helps focus my thoughts and clear my mind."
{You're still thinking about the outcome of our last mission, aren't you?}
"Grrr, I just can't believe we let those smugglers get away! We were so close to arresting them! It was six months working undercover thrown in the trash! And the worst of it is that now they know who we are."
Scarlet, caressing Max's face gives him a small kiss, and smiling at her beloved says:
{Max… You did the right thing. None of us had any idea on that night where the trade was made, they would have a Gengar lurking in the shadows. If you and Luna hadn't acted quickly enough, that bastard could have easily taken out both Bonny and I.}
"I know… But that distraction was enough for us to lose the leader of that organization along with that Bisharp of his and another half of the cargo they stole."
{Don't be so hard on yourself, love. Even the Ranger High Command agreed that your actions were correct after reading the report.}
{We've been working with them for over 5 years now. Everyone inside knows your dedication and commitment, your record is one of the best ever. Heck, they even accept your terms of working for them with your own Pokemon team.}
{Don't worry, we'll have another chance. The Ranger Intelligence team has been looking for information on their whereabouts for almost a month. Be patient, we'll be able to catch them at one time or another.}
"It's just..."
Scarlet already knew that expression on Max's face very well, no it was just frustration, but concern, concern that he had exposed their identities without arresting the criminals, thus putting his team in real danger.
{Hey! Don't worry, nothing bad will happen to any of us. After all, we've faced much worse situations than a bunch of smugglers.} Said the Gardevoir with a smile on her face.
"Thank you, love, you always know how to bring out the best in me and calm me down."
{That 's why we complete each other! Now, don't delay entering the shower and change clothes. The girls should be waking up by now, and Dusk was already getting things ready for the barbecue when I stopped by the kitchen to come talk to you.}
"Hmmm… change clothes? …. Barbecue?..."
{MAX! Don't tell me you forgot what day it is?!}
"HHee… No! Of course not… but…"
Max then looks at his lover, who already knew he was lying because of the mental link between them.
"Ok I give up. Sorry, I completely forgot. What do we have scheduled for today?"
{Hmph! Lucky for you that I love you so much, and you have a sculptural body that turns me on to this day.}
{Today is Dimitri's son's 1st birthday party, and Helene made me promise her that you'd be there no matter what. After all, you are the boy's godfather.}
"True, you are right."
{Not to mention that Luna is extremely excited to see Dimitri and the baby, you know how she has a certain maternal bond with that boy.}
"Yes, especially after that mission last year involving that Hisuian Zoroark… What was his name?"
{Loki.}
"Yeah! Who could have imagined that that monster was actually the incarnation of Luna's son?"
{Tell me about. It was very difficult for her to end her own son, but he was out of control and irrational.}
"And she insisted on solving this mission on her own, without any of us intervening."
{It was a very personal matter for her…}
{Anyway, don't take too long love, I'll be transporting us in approximately 1 hour.}
After about 1 hour Max and the girls were ready, Dusk had made several special dishes to take to the party, while Luna kept pointing at the living room clock saying they were already late to see Dimitri and the others.
Then everyone gathered in the middle of the room placing their hands on Scarlet.
{Is everyone ready? If so, let's go.}
In the blink of an eye, everyone was standing in the gardens of the Spencer mansion, where several maids were preparing a beautiful birthday table in the gazebo near the garden.
Mike and Helene, who were coordinating the organization, noticed the arrival of their guests and immediately went to receive them.
"Max my boy, how good to see you again!"
"Ehh thanks Helene, but I don't think I'm a boy anymore…"
"Nonsense! For me you will always be that young man I welcomed into my home years ago."
"Hehehe yes ma'am!"
"Mr. Max, good to see you healthy and strong!"
"Mike, my old man! What medicine are you into? It feels like you never get old!"
"Thank you for your kindness, sir!"
"Scarlet! Girls! Welcome, make yourselves at home!"
Everyone thanked Helene for her hospitality, Luna in turn, was soon asking Helene about Dimitri and the baby.
"Oh my! Looks like the big mom is looking forward to seeing her puppies." said Helene laughing a little at the Zoroark's reaction.
"By the way, Dusk, the cooks are waiting for you in the kitchen. When I told them you were coming today, they were all so excited to want to learn those special recipes of yours."
"As for you girls, make yourself comfortable. Max, if you don't mind, I'll steal Scarlet a little, I'd like to talk to her a little."
"Sure Helene, is there anything I can help with?"
"No, young man, just girls talk…."
"Ehhh ok then…."
{Don't worry Master, we won't destroy your dignity… too much. Hihihihihi.}
And so, everyone went their way that morning, until everyone gathered at the large lunch table prepared in the garden next to the gazebo.
Lunch went by peacefully, with everyone talking, having a good laugh and at one point they even stopped to watch Luna who made different expressions and faces while helping Dimitri's wife to feed the baby.
A few hours after lunch, everyone gathered again in the gazebo to celebrate little Stephen's first year of life.
"…. Happy birthday to you"
"….Happy birthday to you"
"….Happy birthday, dear Stephen"
"….Happy birthday to you"
"Hey Dimitri, congratulations man! I'm proud of you! You will be a wonderful dad!"
"Gee thanks Max, I…."
KABOOOM!
"What the hell was that? What is happening?" Max asked as he saw a column of smoke rising from the back walls of the garden.
"Everyone, protect yourselves! We are being attacked!" said the security guards who were running into the garden from inside the house.
Immediately Max looked at Luna saying…
"Luna! Quickly get Dimitri and his family out of here and keep them safe inside the house."
"May, Sally, protect Helene and Mike! Dusk, Scarlet, Aurora and Bonny come with me, let's see if we can help!"
Arriving near the wall that was destroyed, Max and the girls were attacked by several hooded and armed men, working alongside pokemon, among them a Tyranitar, a Rhyhorn and a Rillaboom.
As the Mansion's security seemed to be controlling the advance of the armed invaders, Max focused his efforts on stopping the four invading Pokémon.
"Dusk, attack that Rillaboom using Flamethrower, Scarlet and Bonnie, go all out for that Tyranitar, Aurora, finish that Rhyhorn using Bone Rush."
But in the midst of all that gunfire chaos and debris Max could see a silhouette hidden in the smoke, just waiting for his pokemons to move away from him.
After the girls get far enough away from Max, a Bisharp darts at high speed through the smoke towards Max to attack him using Night Slash.
With her enhanced peripheral vision, Scarlet realizes what is about to happen and tries to alert Max by screaming.
{MAX! WATCH OUT!}
Realizing that there would be no time for Max to dodge in time, Scarlet teleported instantly….
…SLASH…
Splash… a burst of blood spreads across Max's clothes, staining his chest and face.
"….Argh! N No! No! NO! Dusk HELLLP …."
Upon hearing Max's cry for help and seeing the Bisharp in front of him, the Delphox instantly launches a blast of Mystical Fire, seriously injuring the Pokémon, causing it to flee immediately.
{MASTER! Are you okay? Are you hurt?} Asked Dusk, running towards Max who was already on his knees on the floor.
Getting close to Max, Dusk looks at his Master, but horrified by what she sees, she screams so loud that it draws the attention of not only Bonny and Aurora who had scared away the invading Pokemon, but also May, Sally, Helene and Mike.
KYY AAAAAAAAAAA!
Everyone then runs towards Dusk who was paralyzed beside Max with her face frozen in panic.
Within seconds Aurora and Bonnie arrived, followed moments later by May, Sally, Helene and Mike.
Everyone remained frozen there in the midst of the terror scene.
Kneeled on the floor Max was in shock, with his shirt and face covered in blood. In his lap, Scarlet was lying, coughing up blood and with her abdomen completely ripped open of the attack she received from Bisharp while protecting her lover, as she teleported herself directly in front of him.
With his voice trembling and muffled, Max barely had the strength to say….
"s.. somebody… h.. help her please!"
Taking control of the situation, Helene then snaps everyone out of their trance.
"Dusk! Quick, use your Psychic to keep the wound closed and Scarlet immobilized…."
"Aurora and Bonnie, get the base from one of those tables and the tablecloths to wrap around her abdomen so we can move her…"
"Mike contact Carlos on the radio now and tells him to get the high-speed Helicopter ready."
"Now let's take her to the east courtyard where the helicopter is, we don't have time to waste."
"Hey Chief!" Helene said to the security commander who was still dealing with the invaders. "Get rid of those intruders, and make sure no one follows us."
Dusk then used her powers, gently lifted Scarlet from Max's lap, placing the Gardevoir on top of the improvised stretcher and everyone headed for the helicopter that had its engines running.
Entering the helicopter, Mike sat next to the pilot, while Max and Helene sat in the back along with Dusk, who supported Scarlet on the floor of the aircraft.
"Bonny, May and Aurora, you'd better stay to help security if necessary and inform Luna and Dimitri of the whole thing." Said the old lady.
{B..But Master!} The girls said in unisom!
"Please girls do as Helene ordered, don't worry. We will give you news as soon as possible."
As soon as the aircraft took off, Helene gave Mike instructions.
"Mike, contact Sector 22 and inform Director Wu that we have an Omega code, inform him that we need a specialist team and an intensive care unit. Say the individual is a Gardevoir with a deep abdominal laceration!"
"Yes ma'am! immediately!"
Turning her attention to the pilot, Helene asked…
"Carlos what is our ETA until Sector 22?"
"On our course, and current speed, we should reach Sector 22 in approximately 7 minutes ma'am."
"Great. Mike, pass this information along to Director Wu!"
"Ehh, Helene, what is this Sector 22 thing? I vaguely remember hearing this term on our old Module a long time ago." Asked Max, still with his clothes stained with blood and visibly shaken by the state of his beloved who was breathing with difficulty on the floor of the aircraft.
"Well, young man, it's an Institute for genetic research, diseases and medicines, maintained by the Spencer Foundation and other companies. This complex is at the forefront of research for the well-being of humans and pokemons!"
"Keep calm and have faith Max, if there's one place where Scarlet has a good chance of surviving, it's Sector 22."
"But now tell me, who were these people who attacked us? And why were they after you and Scarlet?"
In the next few minutes Max explained the details of the failure of his last mission, which resulted in the escape of the leader of a large criminal organization.
"Oh my God, that's a horrible story young man, and you spent 6 months undercover with these criminals? Probably they have contacts spread throughout the Rados region, since most of the merchants in our city knew that you would be present today in the celebration of my grandson's birthday."
Max remained thoughtful for a few seconds, but his thoughts were interrupted by Mike informing him that the Institute was already in sight.
"Ma'am, the team is already on the landing area with a bio-bed ready to take Miss Scarlet to the operating room."
"Perfect, thank you Mike, Carlos put us down!"
"Yes ma'am!"
Upon landing, Max couldn't help but be impressed by the size of the Institute, where humans and Pokemon seemed to work together on site, both wearing a sort of white protective suit. A situation that greatly intrigued the boy, since he was not used to seeing pokemons wearing any type of clothing.
Opening the doors of the aircraft, the team quickly evacuated Scarlet with the help of Dusk and her psychic power, they then layed the Gardevoir in the bio-bed and rushed inside the institute towards the operating room.
"Scarlet! wai…." Max said, trying to keep up with the team.
"Don't worry sir, she will be in good hands!" Said an elderly man with an oriental appearance.
"Max! I want you to meet Dr. Wu, the Director of this research complex."
"Ehh. Nice to meet you Doc, but… I would like to be with my mate… ehh pokemon!"
"Don't worry Mr. Max, here in Sector 22 we don't judge any interaction between humans and pokemons. We both work for the well being and union of all!"
"But I think it would be better if you go to one of our dormitories to take a shower and change your dirty clothes. If you want, your Delphox can accompany you, since she also has several bloodstains."
"This gentleman will accompany you to the dormitory, and when you are ready, you can meet us in my office, in the meantime I will discuss some matters with Mrs. Helene."
Saying goodbye to Helene and Wu, Max accompanied the Institute employee to one of the dormitories, which looked a lot like a hotel room, with a large bed in the center with a TV in front, a table and a small wardrobe on the right and an entrance door to a relatively spacious bathroom on the left.
Upon handing them the room keys, the employee said goodbye to them by informing…
"Mr Max, inside the wardrobe you will find a pair of our standard work uniforms. You can leave your dirty clothes in the basket described as Biohazard inside the bathroom, our team will take care of cleaning them"
"I'm sorry about that, but I'll need to ask you that after you clean up your companion she will need to wear one of the uniforms too, once that we have a very strict level of biological control in this place"
"As soon as you are ready, you can meet me in the entrance hall we passed through, I will be waiting for you there to accompany you to Dr. Wu office."
Then, after a brief bow, the employee headed for the lobby, leaving Max and Dusk alone to clean up.
{Wow, Master, apparently their level of concern with cleanliness here is almost an exaggeration.}
"Not so much my love. If you imagine all kinds of diseases research with contaminating materials that they must do here, you can't be too careful."
"After all, no one wants to leave a laboratory and unintentionally spread some kind of deadly bacteria or virus."
{M.. Master, this way you make me scared…}
"Don't worry, let's just protect ourselves by wearing these clothes and not touching anything we shouldn't. But now let's try to clean up, and find Helene as soon as possible."
{Right…}
Max and Dusk then entered the shower, which comfortably accommodated two people, where they both removed all the blood that had already dried on Max's skin and Dusk's fur,
which wasn't so pleasant for the Delphox, as several tufts of her fur stuck together because of the dried blood, and she hated the medicine smell of the shampoo that was available to them.
"Yes, it seems that in an environment like this, what matters is the effectiveness of hygiene and not the scent it leaves." Max said, also a little annoyed with the smell the products left on their bodies.
After they dried off completely and donned the protective clothing, Max couldn't help but notice how sexy Dusk's figure looked under the garment.
{What happened? Did the outfit look weird on me?}
"Errr.. No. On the contrary. Maybe I should think about buying you some clothes for your girls to wear once in a while…."
Leaving the room, Max and Dusk headed to the entrance hall, where they were reunited with the Institute employee who had accompanied them to Dr. Wu office. Along the way, Max and Dusk crossed paths with several Institute employees, both humans and Pokémon, all of whom showed a friendly attitude, but seemed extremely focused on their tasks.
"Wow, that's what I call professionalism!" Max said.
When they arrived at the entrance to the Office, the employee opened the door for them, and once again, bowing briefly, said goodbye and left the place.
"Helene! Dr. Wu! Do you have any news of Scarlet's condition yet?"
"We've just received a preliminary medical report, and it looks like we have two entire teams in the operating room right now, but they still haven't informed us of her physical condition, we can only wait now."
Max, Dusk and Helene remained waiting in the Office along with Dr. Wu for over 6 hours when the Chief Surgeon arrived with the news that the surgery was over and had a new medical report to share with them.
Hastily Max got up questioning the doctor about Scarlet's condition.
"So doctor… How is my Scarlet?"
"Well, gentlemen, first I would like to inform you that the surgery was a success! She is out of danger, we will keep her in an induced coma for the next 48 hours to aid her recovery and spare her the pain."
"This... This is... WONDERFUL! Thank you, thank you so much doctor!"
"Ahem… However, we have a complication to discuss at the moment…" said the Chief Surgeon, maintaining his serious posture.
"In fact, as I just informed you, the patient is not running any chance of death, however, the injuries she received were extensive and deep. The lacerations permanently compromised her reproductive system. We had to remove her womb, her left ovary was completely destroyed, and her right ovary was severely damaged and contaminated by blood. We were able to save only 3 eggs from the patient before we removed the right ovary, in order to avoid septicemia in her system."
"Oh My God! But we can freeze them for storage, can't we doc?" said Helene.
"Unfortunately, as the envelope of the right ovary has been ruptured and the patient's blood has contaminated its interior, it is not possible to perform a cryonics procedure. In fact, if these eggs are not fertilized within the next 2 hours they will completely degrade… I'm sorry."
"Does this mean that any chance Scarlet could have a child is lost forever?" Max asked mostly to himself.
"Ehh. This is quite ironic. I never worried about being a father, because we always knew that there was no possibility of having a family, since I'm human and she's a pokémon. We even discussed her getting pregnant with a Gallade or adopting a child, whether human or pokemon. But Scarlet has always been against these options…"
"And now I can't help but feel a deep emptiness inside me, as if a part of my life can't be completed anymore… This… is… is… it sucks!"
Helene then watched the deep sadness in the soul of that man, who, in her eyes, remained that young boy she had welcomed and cared for years ago. Made the old lady thank the head surgeon for the information and politely asked him to leave them alone.
With the surgeon out of the room, Helene immediately turns her attention to Dr. Wu and questions him.
"Doctor, according to the Spencer Foundation funding reports for Sector 22, what is the current state of research on the Artemis project?"
Hearing Helene's questioning, the old researcher's eastern eyes opened wide.
"Ma'am, you are mad! We've just finished mapping the genomes and we've barely completed the phase 2 tests, we don't even know if the procedure will actually succeed! You cannot be serious."
"Dr. Wu, I can't just stand here and watch the lives of two people I love being destroyed, knowing that there may be a solution to the problem, even if the chances are slim!"
Max and Dusk, who watched the heated argument between the two without understanding anything, then asked.
"Excuse our ignorance, but what is this "Project Artemis"?"
Doctor Wu, then looking at Max and Dusk's confused faces, tries to explain as simply as possible.
"Try to understand, in recent years our society has been increasingly tolerant of relationships between humans and pokemons, and for this reason many unions between humans and pokemons have taken place. But as you yourself said, we are not genetically compatible to generate children between us. And because of that, many couples seek adoption or assisted pregnancy by another human or pokemon. But unfortunately our laws still do not recognize the rights of these human or pokemon children, as a true fruit of these relationships…
"For this reason we created the Artemis Project, which aims to add part of the human genome to the pokemon DNA, so that after a simple DNA test in the child, it is possible to map both the genome of the father and the mother, thus guaranteeing all the rights established by law for children conceived on legitimate marriages."
"Wait a moment! Are you trying to tell me that your intention is to create hybrid babies between humans and pokemons?" Max asked, startled by the possibilities.
"No, you misunderstood, our intention is not to develop hybrids, in fact the dominant base genome will always be the pokemon, our objective is to be able to implant part of the human DNA in order to create genetic markers that prove the paternity of the couple. In short, the baby will always be a Pokemon, but with genetic markers from its human parents. So much so that this entire fertilization process is done in laboratories, and the embryo develops in an incubator chamber that we developed."
….
Max remained thoughtful and couldn't answer the Doctor's explanations.
"My young man, this may be the last chance for both of you, is it not worth the attempt?" Helene said putting her hand on one of Max's shoulders.
"… I…."
"Mr. Max, I would just like to make it very clear that we cannot guarantee that the procedure will either work!" Informed the old researcher.
"I… I wish I could discuss this possibility with Scarlet before making a decision…."
"I'm sorry young man, but I'm afraid it won't be possible, as she will remain in an induced coma for 2 days, and we have a maximum of 2 hours to be able to fertilize the eggs before we miss the opportunity."
Max then looked at Dusk, who was smiling at him and said…
{Master, if the situation were the other way around, I'm sure Scarlet would do anything to have a chance to have a baby with you.}
"Wise words my beautiful Delphox…."
"Okay, I accept, tell me what I have to do Dr. Wu!"
Immediately Dr. Wu calls two nurses into her office and gives the following information…
"Nurse Audrey please bring a semen collection kit immediately!
Nurse Caroline goes to lab 16 and informs Dr. Yoshida and his team that we will begin proceedings for a Project Artemis attempt in less than 2 hours, under my direct authority!"
In less than 5 minutes the first nurse was back with an orange capped bottle in her hands.
Doctor Wu then handed the vial to Max and instructed him to go into the next room and provide a semen sample.
As he headed for the room across the hall, Dusk started following him in order to help his master get the semen sample. But she was stopped by Dr. Wu who informed her that Max should do the collection himself to avoid any kind of contamination.
After about 15 minutes Max returned from the next room carrying the vial with his precious seeds inside, handing it back to Dr. Wu.
The researcher then invited Helene, Max, and Dusk to accompany him to Lab 16 to deliver the samples to Dr. Yoshida, who already had Scarlet's eggs and was preparing all the equipment to carry out both the genetic mapping and DNA splicing necessary to match the DNA of both in order to achieve successful fertilization.
Arriving in front of a large door that gave access to the laboratory, Dr. Wu passed on some information about how the guests should behave within the sterile environment of the experiment area.
"All right ladies and gentlemen, we're going to go through a decontamination chamber now, please don't be alarmed by the jets of decontaminating gasses. Once they're done, you all have to put on the environmental suits present in the chamber and connect the yellow air hoses that will be suspended from the ceiling."
Even though they had been warned about the decontamination, the force of the blasts of air were enough to scare Dusk and Helene, causing both of them to jump as the procedure began.
Once the procedure was completed, everyone put on their environmental suits and entered the gigantic oval-shaped laboratory, which had on its walls all kinds of equipment, monitoring stations and pipes that connect to a metallic sphere in the center, and was open at the moment, divided into two parts.
Doctor Wu then asked everyone to wait for him by the front door while he went to deliver the vial to Dr. Yoshida.
He then walked away and went towards a man who was also in an environmental suit, but red in color with two black stripes on the left side. The two then exchanged bows and Dr. Wu handed over the vial.
Max then couldn't help but notice that the researcher in the red suit seemed very annoyed with Dr. Wu, demonstrating that he did not agree with the attempt to perform the procedure at such an early point in the research.
The two researchers then return to where Max and the others were, and Dr. Wu introduces his colleague to his guests.
"Dr. Yoshida, this is Ma'am Helene, our sponsor and representative of the Spencer Foundation, and this is Max, our research subject in this experiment and his companion Pokémon Dusk."
Max politely reached out to shake hands with Dr. Yoshida, but was completely ignored by the researcher who looked him straight in the eye and said.
"You are aware that this is a procedure whose research is years away from being perfected, and that for this reason we cannot promise you any success or guarantee that whatever comes out of that sphere will survive, understood? Mr… Max?"
Max felt a chill down his spine, due to the insensitive and harsh way in which Yoshida spoke to him. Making him just nod his head, demonstrating that he accepted the risks.
"Well then. Once we're all in agreement, let's get down to business! As I was informed by our Chief Surgeon, we only have three eggs and they cannot be stored. For this reason, I suggest we fertilize all three simultaneously…"
Hearing this, Max immediately asked Dr. Yoshida.
"Does this mean I will have 3 children ?" Max asked, thinking about the situation of becoming a father of 3 right away!
"No Mr. Max, as I was saying before I was rudely interrupted, this means that we will have 3 chances to try to achieve at least one viable fertilization."
"Now, if you'll excuse me, I ask you to step out of the way and remain seated in my office next door."
"Ow! This one deserved the title of Mister Sympathy, Max said to Dusk, as they made their way to the office that was separated from the lab by another decontamination room."
For the next hour, they watched through a glass as Dr. Yoshida works, running a series of tests and analyzing procedures on several of the equipment. Until, after a while, one of the researchers catches Yoshida's attention, informing the doctor about some data on a computer screen, and soon after opening a machine and removing a round vial containing a purple gelatinous material, which they put inside the sphere in the center of the laboratory.
As they move away from the mechanism, the sphere begins to close, and large screens throughout the laboratory begin to transmit various information and graphics of DNA structures.
A few minutes later Doctor Yoshida enters his office to report on the progress of the proceedings.
"Ahem! Well, as I had previously mentioned to you, my team could not promise any concrete results coming from such an experimental procedure…"
"My assistant called to my attention that one of the eggs did not support insemination and had completely ruptured, for this reason. We insert the other two inseminated eggs inside the incubator, where enzymes will carry the genetic changes programmed by my team, altering the DNA double helix, thus allowing the compatibility of fertilization by human DNA, while maintaining all the characteristics of the pokemon egg."
"So we only have two chances of success now." Max said a little sad to hear about the loss of one of the eggs.
"I suggest that now you take some time to eat something at the Institute's restaurant and rest, we will only know if the fertilization will be successful and if the cell division starts, at least 4 hours from now." Yoshida said.
Hours later, Wu, Helene, Max and Dusk were talking in the restaurant after they had eaten, when Wu's phone rang, requesting that they go to Lab 16 immediately.
Upon arrival, they entered directly into Yoshida's office, where he was apparently stressed and talking to different members of his team.
"Say Yoshida? What happened?" Wu asked his colleague.
"I warned you! I said we were a long way from a stable change in DNA structure! The suppressors that prevent human DNA from blending dominantly with Pokémon DNA are degenerating the structure of the protein. We just lost another egg!..."
"And what can we do?" Wu asked.
"Nothing, absolutely nothing! Without further research on the suppressors enzymes, we have no way of stabilizing Human DNA in a recessive manner!"
"Dr. Yoshida, what if... we remove the Human DNA suppressors?" Wu asked in a serious tone.
"IT'S MADNESS! This is precisely what we swore not to create here! You know very well that without the suppressors we'll have a hybrid on our hands, and who knows what will come out of that incubator, I won't be responsible for creating a freak."
A freak... A freak... A freak...
That word echoed inside Max mind who remembered how, for a long time, his beloved Scarlet considered herself a freak because of her color, and how it took several years of great care and love for her to accept herself, and that, in reality she was just "unique".
In that moment Max's heart was filled with love and compassion for that little life that could come to represent the love between him and Scarlet. And with eyes full of hope, he asked Helene, Wu and Yoshida to try the solution presented.
"Please try this last solution! At least give it a chance! I promise that regardless of the outcome, or whatever comes out of that sphere, we will be gone and you will never hear from us again. I am already eternally grateful that you saved my Scarlet's life, but please don't waste the last one seed of my beloved!"
Wu, along with Helene look at Yoshida, who visibly annoyed replies.
"Let it be recorded in our journals that the decision to continue along this path came directly from our Institute Director and his sponsor. I exclude myself from all legal and juridical responsibility arising from this experiment!"
Yoshida then calls his assistant into his room and passes the following information to him.
"Start the procedure on the third egg, stop the suppressor enzyme insertion, and introduce protein stabilizing and compatibilizing enzymes."
"May Arceus forgive us…"
The assistant then leaves the room and joins the team members, relaying the researcher's orders. Some showed some discomfort with the orders but carried them out anyway.
Within minutes the lab monitors begin displaying thousands of information from proteins belonging to both DNA, as well graphs of the construction of a new DNA spiral.
Human DNA Helix Proteins
A-G-T-C-A-A
G-T-A-T-A-G
T-A-C-C-G-A
Pokemon DNA Helix Proteins
S-H-S-L-O-S
O-S-S-L-S-H
H-H-S-L-O-L
Analyzing Combined DNA Helix Proteins
A-S-T-L-G-O
G-G-S-L-A-C
A-G-T-C-A-A
G-T-A-T-A-G
L-H-A-T-T-C
H-H-S-L-O-L
After approximately 50 minutes several text messages appear on all displays.
— CONSTRUCTION AND COMPATIBILITY OF GENETIC CHAIN SUCCESSFULLY PERFORMED —
— SUCCESSFUL FERTILIZATION —
— CELL DIVISION STARTED —
"Well! I believe that my work is done, now we just have to wait for the accelerated maturation of the embryo inside the sphere in the next 5 days…"
"As for you, Max, I hope you don't regret the decision made here today! Because you will have to carry it for the rest of your lives! Have a good night…."
2 DAYS LATER
"Mr Max, good morning…"
"Good morning Nurse Audrey…"
"Sorry to disturb you and your partner's breakfast, but I would like to let you know that the doctors have removed the sedatives and Ms. Scarlet should regain consciousness in the next few hours. I believe you want to be there when she wakes up."
"That's great news, we'll go to her room as soon as we finish our meal."
Max and Dusk after some time arrived at Scarlet's room, who was still unconscious in a bed with several monitoring devices and bags of IV and medication attached to her arms.
The two approach the bed and take a close look at the Gardevoir.
"Look at her Dusk. If it weren't for all these gadgets connected to her and this thin scar on her abdomen, I would never have said that we almost lost our Scarlet."
{It's true, Master. It even looks like she's just getting a normal night's sleep.}
{…. Um… Who… Who's there? M… Master? i.. it's you?...} Scarlet slowly begins to regain consciousness.
"Shsss. My love, take it easy. you've been through a lot…"
{W… What happened… to me?}
"What's the last thing you remember?"
{... I remember... a mess in the mansion... some humans and pokemons invading... and... THAT BISHARP! Master! Are you okay? Are you hurt?...}
"Calm down, Scarlet! Everything is fine! you saved me, you teleported in front of me just when that damn thing was going to attack me. But unfortunately you didn't have time to put up your defenses and received that blow at point blank range." Said Max, feeling great sadness as he placed his hand over the scar on Scarlet's abdomen.
{... What's up, Master? Why are you so sad? don't worry, I'm fine now...}
"My love, that's not entirely true… You lost more than you think on that attack …."
Max then calmly explains to Scarlet everything that happened during her time in the Operation Room.
{Oh! So you mean…} She broke off her speech as she ran her hands over her scar.
"Unfortunately yes, my love. You can't be a mother … anymore…"
{But Master, ever since I accepted being by your side I knew I could never be a mother…}
"Yes I know that, Scarlet, but until recent events you still had a choice. But now that has been taken from you…. "
{Max! I… I didn't know you had started to care so much about being a father… I… I'm sorry… if I had known it was something so important to you, we would have talked more about adoption or maybe even assisted pregnancy… Once more I ended your dreams…}
"No! Don't think like that, my love, you are the fulfillment of all my dreams, I couldn't want a better life by your side!"
"And in fact this accident ended up making this dream come true indirectly…"
{...Sorry. I'm not following you. What do you mean by your dream coming true indirectly?}
Max sat on the side of the bed, held his beloved's hand and looked into her sapphire blue eyes, took a deep breath and started to tell about the whole situation involving Project Artemis ….
{... … WHAAAT! You mean that I'm going to… be… a mother?!...}
{And that you're the father!}
{And the child is ours, not adopted, not from any Gallade! He's made of you and me!}
"Yep! that's right, and he or she will be born in 3 days according to Dr. Yoshida. The only catch is that due to the circumstances I've told you about, we have no idea what he'll look like…"
{Max, I don't care! He could have 3 legs, 5 eyes and horns! being ours! Whatever it is, I will love him or her unconditionally! You're right, it's a dream come true….}
{... A child of ours…} Scarlet kept repeating it until she fell asleep again due to so much emotion.
3 DAYS LATER
In the middle of the afternoon Helene and Mike came to visit Scarlet, and knowing that this was the big day, she brought along Luna, Aurora, Bonny, May and Sally, who had already been informed about what had happened at the Institute in the previous days, and were super excited about the news.
When they entered Scarlet's room, who was already sitting on the bed without all those devices, and was accompanied by Max and Dusk, they ran to hug the Gardevoir they loved so much.
Amidst the hugs and girl talk, Sally was the most excited about the idea of being an aunt and couldn't stop making plans with her future nephew or niece.
Everyone continued talking for several hours, until Dr. Wu knocked on the bedroom door along with Dr. Yoshida and his entire team. Asking permission to enter, Dr. Wu carried in his arms a tiny being wrapped in a small lilac blanket with butterfree embroidered on the side.
A silence then took over the room. And as Dr. Wu approached, everyone else moved away a little, leaving only Scarlet and Max sitting on the bed.
Wu then performed a typical oriental salute and stretched out his arms to deliver the baby to its parents.
Max held the child and placed it in Scarlet's arms, who with tears of happiness, carefully unrolled part of the blanket revealing her face.
"She is a beautiful and healthy girl!" Said Dr. Wu, walking away from the couple.
Gently Scarlet unrolled the blanket that covered her daughter further, finally revealing her tiny body in full.
Physically she looked like a Ralts, except that her hair was dark like Max's, the horn on her head was blue like Scarlet's, her skin had a color that was somewhere between the white of a Ralts and the beige color of the human skin, and finally her hands…
{MAX! Look at this ! Her hands… She has five fingers!…. She is… PERFECT} Scarlet said through tears of joy.
The Doctor. Yoshida then briefly interrupted the couple by informing…
"Mr. Max and Mrs. Scarlet, we analyzed your daughter's DNA and found that the percentage of Human Material in her DNA is approximately 35% and the other 65% corresponds to her Pokemon lineage. We also verified several similarities in her digestive system with the human, which leads us to believe that she will have eating habits closer to ours. For that reason, we recommend that you feed her with baby formula until she can eat more solid foods…."
"Another thing that our tests indicated is that she will cross-growth between a human and pokemon evolution. With that, we believe that she will grow in size for a while as a Ralts until she undergoes a bodily evolution into Kirlia, then again she will undergo a size development as a Kirlia, until it again Evolves into Gardevoir."
"For these reasons, we ask that you allow us to examine her from time to time, in order to monitor her development and health…"
Closing his recommendations, Dr. Yoshida walked away, allowing Helene and the girls to enjoy their niece!
- THE END -
Bonus Info:
12 years into the future
Ranger High Command personal report
Name: Lydia.
Aliases: "Trouble Maker";"Little Brat".
Species: Human/Gardevoir hybrid.
Origin: Unauthorized early experiment of Project Artemis - By Sector 22.
Age: 12.
Evolutionary Status: Second Stage growth of the Kirlia evolution.
Relatives:
Father: Max - Human - Ranger Commander Special Ops.
Mother: Scarlet - Gardevoir - Intelligence Expert.
Aunties: Aurora / Dusk / Sally / Bonny / May / Luna.
Affiliations: Pokémon Ranger Special Ops.
Abilities: SuperHuman Intelligence.
Full speech capabilities in human languages.
Well trained in hand to hand combat situations.
Full control over pokemon powers.
Shadow ball.
Gravity.
Psychic.
Teleport.
Healing Pulse.
Protect.
Recover.
Psybeam.
Telekinesis.
Flash.
Hypnosis.
Current Status: Attending School to learn how to socialize.