Wow! A brand new fic! I'm getting really good at this! Creating more fics
before I can finish, I mean ^_^().
Okay, usual disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN POKEMON. I do own my
personal Zoo-pets which you are welcome to adopt at
www.geocities.com/cafezoo. Anyways, enough about that - now onto the
story!
**Also, all speech conducted by pokemon is in whatever pokemon
language there is out there, unless the author says otherwise**
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prologue - The Rising of the Leviathan
After the incident with the failed cloning project, Mewtwo, Team
Rocket fell into the shadows of secrecy, once again a hidden underground
agency searching for their weapon that would complete their goal. And
with a force as powerful and notorious as Team Rocket, only one goal lay
in the leviathan of an agency's path - complete domination of human and
pokemon alike.
With various task forces and research teams, the Rocket
corporation began searching for another project, with mixed hopes and
shattered ideas. Project after project were experimented and launched,
often showing little or even no success. The greatest problem lay in the
tasks designated for pokemon, as Rocket scientists soon realized the
mutual and continuous fault of all pokemon. Although highly intelligent
and capable, pokemon without trainers were only primal instinctive beasts
at best, and those with a trainer became dependent almost to the point of
being unable to fight without a trainer. This consistent result created the
archille's heel for all the Rocket plans, flawing them immensely because
of the incapacity of the pokemon to coordinate past a trainer. For what
would happen if a Rocket member became unconscious or separated from
their pokemon during battle? The results were sure to be disastrous.
Frustrated at such a flaw, the leader of Team Rocket, Giovanni,
gave up his once brilliant hopes that had initially inspired him to such
prominence. Retreating to a secluded island, he left the dazed and confused
Rocket members struggling, leaderless and alone. Eventually, the name
Team Rocket dwindled and became only a child's tale, ones that parents
would warn to their young trainers .
Four years later, Giovanni came back, as fearless and daunting as
he had once been. With renewed hopes, Team Rocket once again launched
into a fervor of excitement and success, creating new projects and
successes. And, whether by inspiration or just luck, a new revolutionary
plan fell into action. One that would change the world and recast the way
that pokemon had been looked at. One, the Rocket scientists realized, was
not flawless or overly powerful but subtle and poisonous. The plan was a
genius, and it not only promised to give Team Rocket more power but also
planned to rid the world of the rebellious and determined trainers that often
forced Team Rocket back into the shadows. Months of planning began,
turning into series and series of carefully formulated actions and
consequences. A network of darkness began to flow, the silence and
absence of Team Rocket in the normal world a prelude to the tsunami to
come.
And in the very epicenter of the growing darkness, Giovanni
smiled, and absently stroked his Persian.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And here begins this story:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fragment 1 - The Lull of the Siren
*********************************
"Tiger tiger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?..."
************************************
The alarm rang overhead, screaming an abrupt and immediate
emergency. Several building employees looked around, puzzled to see no
signs of danger. Some of them finally dismissed it as a false alarm, while
others still looked about, unable to locate the source.
"What's going on?" On worker grabbed the jacket of another
white-coated technician, who had suddenly appeared running at full speed
past their office.
The technician stopped, looking at the worker with frenzied, wild
eyes. "T-T..." He began, before yammering in a babble of nonsensical
words and running off again in full speed.
The worker was left grabbing the air, and he blinked, wondering
what sort of disaster could possibly invoke that type of fear. Little did he
know that his question would be answered in just moments.
A blast of foul smoky air suddenly erupted across the room, and
the workers inside coughed, realizing too late the mark of coughing gas.
Unknown to their teary eyes and hacking lungs, shadowy figures were
moving into the room, hiding under desks and tables away from sight.
As fast as it had appeared, the smoke cleared, and the worker
rubbed his eyes, coughing the last bit of gas from his system. "What's
going on?" He demanded, seeing several of his other fellow workers
unconscious.
Without warning, several shadowy figures leapt from their hiding
places, quickly tying the worker up until the ropes covered his body like a
strange outer shell, blocking even his mouth and eyes. With the same
deliberate ease, the figures went about and effectively tied all the other
stunned workers up, before leaping with perfect coordination into their
planned positions.
One of the figures separated from the shadows. It was only about
a foot tall, with sleek brown fur and a thick creamy-white mane, its
adorable appearance both deceptive and false. One jump was all it took for
the creature - for it was not human - to leapt onto the control panel within
the room, inserting a small disc into the disc drive with its mouth. All the
other creatures waited patiently, some tall and muscular, others sinewy and
slim. A pair of them, black canine creatures with silvery horns protruding
form their foreheads guarded the door, observing the entrance under a pair
of ruby-red eyes.
Under the influence of the disc, the screen lit up, showing a bunch
of randomly assorted characters. The pokemon on the console, commonly
classified as an Eevee, crouched by the keyboard, typing slowly and
deliberately with its dainty paws.
It - no, rather, she - paused and waited, and was rewarded by the
sign "confirmed" written in red block letters against the once-block screen.
Immediately, data began to scroll across the screen, almost too rapidly for
the human eye to follow. But the Eevee read it with ease, concentrating
intently on passing text, large dark amber eyes furrowed in intensity.
This continued for a few moments of precious time, and suddenly,
the Eevee jumped switched the machine off with one paw, clamping her
mouth down on the now-ejected disc before performing a perfect backflip
onto the ground.
With only that single cue, the rest of the pokemon retreated,
working as a team as they slid silently down the hallway.
While running, the Eevee tossed her disc to her fellow comrade, a
large bat-pokemon Crobat, whose wings reached and impressive 6-foot
wingspan.
"Number 5, get this to the headquarters ASAP." The Eevee
barked, voice surprisingly harsh for such a minuscule pokemon.
"Roger." The Crobat obliged, spreading its wings out wider and
flitting out an open window with ease, disc in one claw.
Still running at top speed, with the rest of the pokemon trailing
behind her, the Eevee turned to another pokemon, this one a ball-shaped
floating gas, purple in hue.
"Number 13," She addressed the Koffing, who puffed smoke in
reply, "I want you to give our next guest a little... welcome before our
escape."
The Koffing, like the Crobat, followed the orders of the evolution
pokemon, moving faster to get a lead in its task.
A canine Houdour ran beside the Eevee, its tongue lolling out of
its jaws. "Wow... I can't believe that this was so easy!" She proclaimed,
bringing her jaws into a toothy lopsided grin. "I mean, I thought that Silph
would at least be more guarded!"
The Eevee nodded. "If it pleases you, Number 9, we only got our
task finished because we didn't have any of the human Rocket goofs with
us. Their clumsiness last time almost resulted in failure."
"Careful what you say," The Houndour, Number 9, warned,
chuckling a bit, "If you remember, the Boss is a human, so you better
respect them."
"The Boss might be human," Responded the Eevee, looking at her
comrade, "But he is not as foolish or as excessively vain as most I have
observed."
The pair and the rest of the Team Rocket pokemon had finally
reached the doorstep, coming to a stop.
"You might be right, Number 1," The Houndour re-stated,
"Humans might seem foolish, but they are also the ones who gave us this
intelligence and this power. Without the aid of those Rocket humans, we
would be nothing but the average incompetent pokemon."
The Rocket's Secret Weapon, Number 1, had nothing to say to
that.
*********************************************
By the time the pokemon infiltrators had arrived at the scene, the
humans and workers who resided there were well unconscious, almost to
the point of barely breathing. Number 1 sneered at the sight, baring her
teeth at the weakness of the humans.
'Idiots', she thought, while sending her team to quickly execute
their given tasks, 'They sleep like weak baby cubs, unaware of this
wretched world that threatens to betray them'.
She remembered, how long ago, she had been abandoned at the
feet of her trainer, left to the sewers and rat-infested streets until one day,
the Boss of Team Rocket had found her, by some miracle or another, and
had promised to raise her and train her. Just the memory of that past had
hurt her so much, that it had blotted from her mind like a blank slate,
although her consistent talks with the Boss and her determination to reach
her position had left Number 1 remembering the stories told of her past.
But she didn't care anymore; she was now part of a force, a force that
would, one day, sweep the weak and defenseless against a dark tide. And
she would ride that dark tide, laughing, because of the cruelty that the
humans had given her when they had laughed at her state. Yes, they would
pay.
Seeing that there was no one else in sight, Number 1 nodded a
dismissal to the rest of the pokemon in her crew, watching as they pried
the emergency doors open, fleeing towards escape, or rather, returning
from their mission.
Like the rest of the pokemon, the Eevee would have left, had she
not noticed something extremely threatening, lodged against the top corner
of the room.
"Number 9, tell the Boss that I will be arriving a bit later than
planned." The Eevee shouted at the Houndour, "Looks like I've got a little
bit of security to clear."
The existence of these secret Rocket pokemon were meant to be
kept secret, and it was Number 1's task, as the leader of this force, to keep
it that way.
Number 9, nodded, inky black head looking at her comrade
slightly before leaving with the rest.
Watching them leave, Number 1 began her task. Coiling her
muscles, she leapt gracefully at the security camera, clamping her jaws not
onto the lens out of her reach but the wiring that connected the lens.
Immediately, she began gnawing on the wire, oblivious to the tiny
shooting pain of the electricity running down her jaws.
Once disabled, the Eevee turned to her second task, heading into
the depths of the buildings once again until she reached the security room.
She smiled. It was good thing that she had memorized the map the Boss
had given her of this place before they had come here. Either way, though,
she would not have failed.
Once again, the Eevee found the main control room, and leapt
onto the console of the gigantic computer, ignoring the still tied up and
somewhat struggling employees on the ground. Oh well - it looked like the
poison was wearing off.
Then, she began typing again, this time working from scratch as
she worked to delete the footage of the last security camera, which she had
somehow missed during their initial scan. After several minutes - and
some slight pokemon cursing at the size of the keyboard in comparison to
her paws - Number 1 finally rose from her task, a slight smirk imprinted
on her small muzzle.
Suddenly, the door slammed shut, and the Eevee jerked back in
surprise, muscles coiled and tense. By the doorway stood what seemed like
a human doctor or scientist in a lab coat, sporting balding white hair and
sunglasses that hid his true facial appearance. And behind him stood
another man, this one wearing a professional-style jacket, with also grisly
grey-white hair and a rather worn look.
Number 1 glared menacingly at the pair, a low growl working
into her throat.
The one with the grey-white hair and professorate look came a bit
closer, hands help up in a non-threatening position. "Easy, girl, we won't
hurt you. We just want to know why you're here."
As the pair neared towards her, she backed up as far as possible,
until she realized that they had efficiently backed her against the wall. The
Boss had said that she was to injure no one, but this was beginning to
prove very difficult to do.
The second man, the scientist, turned towards the first,
contemplating. "Its strange professor, but if you haven't noticed already,
this Eevee doesn't have a trainer." He paused, still thinking. "I wonder,
what is it doing here? Wild pokemon don't just wander into the security
control area."
'No, you're right', Number 1 thought to herself, 'wild pokemon
don't'. Yet, they had no clue of what she really was.
"Maybe the people who infiltrated Silph abandoned her." The
first reasoned, still assuming a non-threatening stance.
"You mean, Team Rocket." The second confirmed, pushing up
his sunglasses a bit.
Number 1 hesitated. How did they know it was Team Rocket?
Then again, Team Rocket was notorious for such escapades, although the
humans outside Team Rocket only knew half the story...
"I suggest we should capture her first, if she doesn't have an
owner." The balding man concluded, bringing out a pokeball of his own.
The Eevee's eyes narrowed. They wouldn't dare.
A split second later, she realized that they did. A creamy-white
pokemon of four to five feet, fox-like and bearing nine beautiful tails,
stood, facing her.
Number 1 glared, half-sneering at her new opponent.
"Look," She began, "If you and your trainer here actually want to
make it out here alive, I suggest you just leave and forget about this."
The Ninetales looked unperturbed. "I never do what my Trainer
doesn't want me to."
At that comment, Number one snorted. "That's what they all
say." Her voice dripped with venom, "The complete idiocy and weakness
of all pokemon."
"I don't know who you are," The Ninetales began, rage working
into her voice, "But speaking like that is not acceptable, and the likes of
you should deserve some punishment."
Number 1 kept her sneer, "Big words," She mocked, firmly
rooted into her battle stance, "But how well can you keep them? You'll
soon realize that in this pathetic world, nothing is what it seems."
"Ninetales, execute a fire-spin attack!" The balding man
commanded, as if sensing the tension between the two pokemon.
"Careful, Blaine." The first figure interrupted. "We only want this
pokemon weak enough to capture, but not severely hurt."
The Eevee's eyes shimmered in amusement. Kind of that old man
to worry, really, she thought. But she wasn't called the Secret Weapon for
nothing. She watched the Ninetales begin executing the attack, almost as if
in slow motion. And she stayed; paws firmly rooted onto the ground as the
fire-fox pokemon unleashed the attack, her eyes analyzing every gesture
and movement.
The ground immediately was consumed in a vortex of flames,
ones that trapped Number 1, and threatened to prevent her escape. And
still, the Eevee stayed firm, watching, waiting.
"Ninetales, move into an iron tail attack!" The trainer, Blaine,
commanded.
The fire fox pokemon's bushy tails stiffened, a dull metal sheen
covering them protectively through the attack initiation phase. With a
graceful leap, the fire-fox pokemon swung her tails down at Number 1,
anticipating a recoil.
But none came. Number 1 wasn't slow or stupid. She was
watching and analyzing. Now she knew, concluding from the nuances of
body motion that her opponent had displayed. And she was ready.
With lightning-fast reflexes that a Rapidash would have envied,
Number 1 rolled against the ground, leaping out of the ring of fire,
unsinged.
The pair of humans gaped, unbelieving.
And before anyone else could react, Number 1 was upon the
Ninetales, creating a storm of a sand-attack that swept against the large
fox-pokemon's eyes, blinding her. Not missing a step, the Eevee quickly
followed through with a Swift attack, the attacking stars streaming and
pinning the large fire-fox right in its weak spot, the middle joint of the
lower hind-leg. The Ninetales went down like a lump of coal.
Blaine hissed, and brought out another pokemon. The one seemed
to be a cousin of the first, although a good seven or eight feet tall,
resembling a bushy tiger with a ferocious gleam in its eyes.
Number 1 immediately began assessing, from the way the new
opponent, Arcanine, held its posture to the very appearance of it. And
already, her mind was formulating a mental image and a plan.
Suddenly, a hidden communications device hidden in her ear
began buzzing, and Number 1 knew that she was out of time. If she didn't
confirm her safety, the Rocket Boss would take her absence as failure, and
demote her or punish her severely. And Number 1's greatest fear lay in her
pride.
So, she delved into her mind, triggering one of her genetically
enhanced essences that made her so different and special from the others.
She immediately commanded her mind into the task, and felt her body
literally shift and change, like she had been trained to do time over time.
Her very anatomical form began to dissolve, melding into a misty
liquid state. It was first soft and almost vulnerable, before extending in
height and length, the liquid forming into sinewy muscle and blue-tinted
flesh. Number 1's once-bushy tail extended some into a curved arc,
hardening and coiling into a long mermaid-like tail, adorned with strangely
fish-like fins. The mane grew stiff and flattened until it was a circular ridge
of fins as similar changes and adjustments ran along her new body.
And staring at her opponent with the same flat, cold eyes,
Number 1, now a water-element type Vaporeon, glared at her opponent.
Both human's eyes grew wide, speechless and in awe.
"That's impossible!" The professor cried, trembling hands
reflecting his shock. "Eevee can't evolve to a Vaporeon unless it has a
water stone."
The other human, Blaine, however, seemed less shocked put more
pensive. "This can't be natural. This pokemon must be the key to some
hidden secret."
Number 1 bared her jaws. 'Like I'd ever tell you', she thought,
letting her senses adjust to the new body and element. And, in that moment
that the two humans hesitated, she invoked the acid armor attack, letting
her Vaporeon-body dissolve into fine mist until she seemed to have
disappeared. Sure, her actual form was still solid, but very invisible to the
human eye.
"Damn!" Blaine swore, trying to locate the reality-warping Eevee.
"Arcanine, sniff the Ee-I mean- Vaporeon's scent!"
The Arcanine, half-canine in form, complied immediately. Yet,
by the time he located the scent, Number 1 had already snuck behind the
two humans, until she reached the closed door. Of course, there was
always the difficulty of opening the door without them noticing. The
difficulty was immediately solved as Number 1 released an icy cold mist
attack, leaving her opponents trapped in the fog. And, without another
thought, she fled out the doorway and away from the Silph building, task
completed at last.
Finding the tail and bulk of a Vaporeon cumbersome on land,
Number 1 shifted back into her regular Eevee form, instincts immediately
guiding her back to the Rocket base, not that far away from the place of
her mission.
At the gateway of the Rocket Headquarters, two guards stood
ever-so cautious, and nodded slightly at the sight of Number 1.
*****************************************
Number 1 peeked at the half-open door, wondering if she should
go in. Just moments after her arrival and report back on the base, the Boss
had wanted to see her. Not sure if he was about to condemn her or speak of
other more important affairs, the Eevee slowly nudged the door open.
"Come in, Number 1." Rang the sibilant deep voice of the Team
Rocket boss, his figure, as always, half-hidden behind the shadows, a
Persian at his side.
Upon seeing the Eevee enter the room, the Persian hissed, rather
fiercely and jealously. Number 1 smirked - such petty rivalry, and the
Persian was just a normal, stupid pokemon.
{You called for me, Boss?} Number 1's voice translated through
the chip embedded in her ear, the translation resounding as sound waves
that only the Boss's mind could hear.
"Yes," he nodded, smiling and folding his fingers against his lap
as to better see the small Eevee on the ground. "I commend you for your
success on your previous mission."
At his compliment, the Persain glared at Number 1, who smugly
smirked back, enjoying the idiotic jealousy.
{Thank you very much, my Master. I live to serve and work
under your desires.} She replied, bringing every bit of sugar-coated
sweetness into her words.
The Boss, known to humans as Giovanni, only laughed. "No need
for such formality. You and I are on good terms you know, and you should
treat me as an equal."
Upon hearing those words, Number 1's mind froze, almost in
shock. {B-but you're human!} She finally spluttered.
Giovanni nodded. "I once didn't treat a pokemon with enough
respect, and it, in the end, betrayed me, because I had failed to recognize
its genius. But you - you are different and special. You are not JUST any
normal pokemon but the final fruits of my creation, along with your other
comrades."
The Eevee digested that thought. {I... appreciate that, Master. No
human has ever given me that type of equality before.}
"Then enjoy it." The Boss's eyes seem to gleam with anticipation.
"And soon, the world will bow down to us, and then the power will be
ours."
Number 1 bowed to her master. {I look forward to that day.}
Giovanni regarded that comment as a dismissal of discussion. "I
have something else to speak about to you." He leaned forward against his
desk, taking out a few photos. "I want you to analyze these people, and
memorize their appearances."
Knowing that a greater task lay ahead then just simply
memorizing, the Eevee obliged, looking down at the somewhat worn
photos. Each one showed a different scene, but the same person was on the
center of each picture, always laughing, always smiling. The person was a
boy, possibly around the age of fifteen or sixteen, with unruly black hair,
half tamed under a white and red cap, emblazoned with the Pokemon
League logo. He consistently wore the same clothing - blue jeans and a
black t-shirt, overlapped by a simple white and blue jacket and fingerless
green gloves. A Pikachu was also beside this boy, often perched on his
arms or shoulders. There were other people too - a girl with bright orange
hair, another trainer with tanned skin almost half-shut eyes, and a woman
whom Number 1 assumed was the Pikachu trainer's mom, carrying a
broom, and adorning a frilly pink apron.
Number 1 finally pushed the pictures away, looking back up.
{These people have been embedded into my memory Master. What is it
that you wish of me to do with them?}
Smiling, Giovanni leaned over and picked the pictures up, putting
them away. "These people - the boy with the Pikachu in particular - have a
small, sentimental value to me."
If she could raise an eyebrow, Number 1 would. {Sentimental
value?} Number 1 did not recall her Master ever having any family or
close relations.
Giovanni patted his Persian absently. "Yes. I, like any foolish
human, had my age where I too was in love. The boy you see there is my
son."
Number 1 stifled a gasp. {But he- he's a...}
The Rocket leader nodded. "I know. He is a very powerful trainer
with lots of potential." Here, Giovanni sighed, rubbing his temples. "But
he also is very meddlesome and excessively stubborn. I know he will never
want to join Team Rocket, but I also need him to keep out of trouble, and
most importantly, stop meddling with Rocket affairs."
{I see} Number 1 responded, contemplating in a neutral manner.
"That's where you come in." Giovanni leaned forward, eyes
eager. "I want you to be one of his pokemon, by... oh, let's say, getting
caught or something. Then, you can keep and eye on him and report to me
on his progress and such."
Number 1 stiffened. She hated the confinements of a pokeball, as
they consistently reminded her of a separation from freedom. Even worse,
she hated being inferior to another human, especially one that she didn't
even know. {If I became his... pokemon... wont my own freedom and
genetic pattern rebel, since I am designed to be a trainer-less pokemon and
work without human support?}
"Yes, that could be a problem." Giovanni admitted. "Since you
are designed to work through free will, your bonds as a trainer's pokemon
have been severed. That doesn't mean, however, that catching you is
impossible. Any trainer can still catch you. The only problem is whether or
not you want to listen to them, since you are by no means obligated."
{So... you want this son of yours to catch me and train me, so
that I am obedient to his command?} Number 1 paraphrased, agitation
working into her tone.
"I'm not asking you to follow his every whim, but just to...
follow along with him. At least, just prevent him from getting into too
much trouble or meddling with our affairs, which he seems to do too
often." Giovanni sighed. "I'm tired of bailing him out every single time
Team Rocket has located and threatened to either capture or kill him, so
I'm trusting his security to you instead."
Number 1 nodded. {Fine, I'll accept that, Master. I shall be his
bodyguard.}
Giovanni leaned back on his chair, satisfied at last. His perfect
face smiled, eyes always the same cold glare. "You shall begin your new
mission tomorrow, although I believe that you will not need any
assistance."
{No, I wont} The Eevee confirmed.
The Boss of Team Rocket nodded in dismissal. "Good. That is
all. I shall call you and inform you on a few safety preparations and
precautions in the morning. And, by the way, it is best that you do not shift
forms in front of him unless he deliberately tries to evolve you. If he does
so, that form will remain your permanent form until the mission is
complete."
Number 1 bowed in acceptance. {I understand} And then, she
left, leaving the Rocket Boss still stroking his Persian while she fumed
about her new mission.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's Notes:
Yay! Done! Stay in tune for chapter 2!
I had a really hard time trying to make a reason for why an Eevee would
be part of Team Rocket, and even more why it would be the leader of such.
The shifting forms idea came to me when I was reading a pokemon manga,
where Red (Ash) captured an Eevee able to shift forms into a Jolteon,
Flareon, or Vaporeon. Of course, in my story, Number 1 is able to shift
into all five evolutions (Jolteon, Flareon, Vaporeon, Espeon, Umbreon)
because of its superior genetic code and also because of the release of
Gold/Silver versions some time ago (^_^)
And the boy with the Pikachu - gee, I wonder who he is? (sarcasm here).
This is my first attempt at a purely pokemon fic (being an avid fan of the
Pokemon game who has bred WAY too many Eevees for her own good )
so be nice. Reviews are always accepted (and I will answer questions
within them) but flames will be promptly doused by my Vaporeon.
And thanks go out to Myst_Lady, who is my very human muse, and
supporters such as Kuro who, although an avid Eevee-maniac, enjoys
drawing over writing, as well as Pei-pei (how could I forget you?), who
would promptly kill me for calling her that.
before I can finish, I mean ^_^().
Okay, usual disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN POKEMON. I do own my
personal Zoo-pets which you are welcome to adopt at
www.geocities.com/cafezoo. Anyways, enough about that - now onto the
story!
**Also, all speech conducted by pokemon is in whatever pokemon
language there is out there, unless the author says otherwise**
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Prologue - The Rising of the Leviathan
After the incident with the failed cloning project, Mewtwo, Team
Rocket fell into the shadows of secrecy, once again a hidden underground
agency searching for their weapon that would complete their goal. And
with a force as powerful and notorious as Team Rocket, only one goal lay
in the leviathan of an agency's path - complete domination of human and
pokemon alike.
With various task forces and research teams, the Rocket
corporation began searching for another project, with mixed hopes and
shattered ideas. Project after project were experimented and launched,
often showing little or even no success. The greatest problem lay in the
tasks designated for pokemon, as Rocket scientists soon realized the
mutual and continuous fault of all pokemon. Although highly intelligent
and capable, pokemon without trainers were only primal instinctive beasts
at best, and those with a trainer became dependent almost to the point of
being unable to fight without a trainer. This consistent result created the
archille's heel for all the Rocket plans, flawing them immensely because
of the incapacity of the pokemon to coordinate past a trainer. For what
would happen if a Rocket member became unconscious or separated from
their pokemon during battle? The results were sure to be disastrous.
Frustrated at such a flaw, the leader of Team Rocket, Giovanni,
gave up his once brilliant hopes that had initially inspired him to such
prominence. Retreating to a secluded island, he left the dazed and confused
Rocket members struggling, leaderless and alone. Eventually, the name
Team Rocket dwindled and became only a child's tale, ones that parents
would warn to their young trainers .
Four years later, Giovanni came back, as fearless and daunting as
he had once been. With renewed hopes, Team Rocket once again launched
into a fervor of excitement and success, creating new projects and
successes. And, whether by inspiration or just luck, a new revolutionary
plan fell into action. One that would change the world and recast the way
that pokemon had been looked at. One, the Rocket scientists realized, was
not flawless or overly powerful but subtle and poisonous. The plan was a
genius, and it not only promised to give Team Rocket more power but also
planned to rid the world of the rebellious and determined trainers that often
forced Team Rocket back into the shadows. Months of planning began,
turning into series and series of carefully formulated actions and
consequences. A network of darkness began to flow, the silence and
absence of Team Rocket in the normal world a prelude to the tsunami to
come.
And in the very epicenter of the growing darkness, Giovanni
smiled, and absently stroked his Persian.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
And here begins this story:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fragment 1 - The Lull of the Siren
*********************************
"Tiger tiger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night;
What immortal hand or eye,
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?..."
************************************
The alarm rang overhead, screaming an abrupt and immediate
emergency. Several building employees looked around, puzzled to see no
signs of danger. Some of them finally dismissed it as a false alarm, while
others still looked about, unable to locate the source.
"What's going on?" On worker grabbed the jacket of another
white-coated technician, who had suddenly appeared running at full speed
past their office.
The technician stopped, looking at the worker with frenzied, wild
eyes. "T-T..." He began, before yammering in a babble of nonsensical
words and running off again in full speed.
The worker was left grabbing the air, and he blinked, wondering
what sort of disaster could possibly invoke that type of fear. Little did he
know that his question would be answered in just moments.
A blast of foul smoky air suddenly erupted across the room, and
the workers inside coughed, realizing too late the mark of coughing gas.
Unknown to their teary eyes and hacking lungs, shadowy figures were
moving into the room, hiding under desks and tables away from sight.
As fast as it had appeared, the smoke cleared, and the worker
rubbed his eyes, coughing the last bit of gas from his system. "What's
going on?" He demanded, seeing several of his other fellow workers
unconscious.
Without warning, several shadowy figures leapt from their hiding
places, quickly tying the worker up until the ropes covered his body like a
strange outer shell, blocking even his mouth and eyes. With the same
deliberate ease, the figures went about and effectively tied all the other
stunned workers up, before leaping with perfect coordination into their
planned positions.
One of the figures separated from the shadows. It was only about
a foot tall, with sleek brown fur and a thick creamy-white mane, its
adorable appearance both deceptive and false. One jump was all it took for
the creature - for it was not human - to leapt onto the control panel within
the room, inserting a small disc into the disc drive with its mouth. All the
other creatures waited patiently, some tall and muscular, others sinewy and
slim. A pair of them, black canine creatures with silvery horns protruding
form their foreheads guarded the door, observing the entrance under a pair
of ruby-red eyes.
Under the influence of the disc, the screen lit up, showing a bunch
of randomly assorted characters. The pokemon on the console, commonly
classified as an Eevee, crouched by the keyboard, typing slowly and
deliberately with its dainty paws.
It - no, rather, she - paused and waited, and was rewarded by the
sign "confirmed" written in red block letters against the once-block screen.
Immediately, data began to scroll across the screen, almost too rapidly for
the human eye to follow. But the Eevee read it with ease, concentrating
intently on passing text, large dark amber eyes furrowed in intensity.
This continued for a few moments of precious time, and suddenly,
the Eevee jumped switched the machine off with one paw, clamping her
mouth down on the now-ejected disc before performing a perfect backflip
onto the ground.
With only that single cue, the rest of the pokemon retreated,
working as a team as they slid silently down the hallway.
While running, the Eevee tossed her disc to her fellow comrade, a
large bat-pokemon Crobat, whose wings reached and impressive 6-foot
wingspan.
"Number 5, get this to the headquarters ASAP." The Eevee
barked, voice surprisingly harsh for such a minuscule pokemon.
"Roger." The Crobat obliged, spreading its wings out wider and
flitting out an open window with ease, disc in one claw.
Still running at top speed, with the rest of the pokemon trailing
behind her, the Eevee turned to another pokemon, this one a ball-shaped
floating gas, purple in hue.
"Number 13," She addressed the Koffing, who puffed smoke in
reply, "I want you to give our next guest a little... welcome before our
escape."
The Koffing, like the Crobat, followed the orders of the evolution
pokemon, moving faster to get a lead in its task.
A canine Houdour ran beside the Eevee, its tongue lolling out of
its jaws. "Wow... I can't believe that this was so easy!" She proclaimed,
bringing her jaws into a toothy lopsided grin. "I mean, I thought that Silph
would at least be more guarded!"
The Eevee nodded. "If it pleases you, Number 9, we only got our
task finished because we didn't have any of the human Rocket goofs with
us. Their clumsiness last time almost resulted in failure."
"Careful what you say," The Houndour, Number 9, warned,
chuckling a bit, "If you remember, the Boss is a human, so you better
respect them."
"The Boss might be human," Responded the Eevee, looking at her
comrade, "But he is not as foolish or as excessively vain as most I have
observed."
The pair and the rest of the Team Rocket pokemon had finally
reached the doorstep, coming to a stop.
"You might be right, Number 1," The Houndour re-stated,
"Humans might seem foolish, but they are also the ones who gave us this
intelligence and this power. Without the aid of those Rocket humans, we
would be nothing but the average incompetent pokemon."
The Rocket's Secret Weapon, Number 1, had nothing to say to
that.
*********************************************
By the time the pokemon infiltrators had arrived at the scene, the
humans and workers who resided there were well unconscious, almost to
the point of barely breathing. Number 1 sneered at the sight, baring her
teeth at the weakness of the humans.
'Idiots', she thought, while sending her team to quickly execute
their given tasks, 'They sleep like weak baby cubs, unaware of this
wretched world that threatens to betray them'.
She remembered, how long ago, she had been abandoned at the
feet of her trainer, left to the sewers and rat-infested streets until one day,
the Boss of Team Rocket had found her, by some miracle or another, and
had promised to raise her and train her. Just the memory of that past had
hurt her so much, that it had blotted from her mind like a blank slate,
although her consistent talks with the Boss and her determination to reach
her position had left Number 1 remembering the stories told of her past.
But she didn't care anymore; she was now part of a force, a force that
would, one day, sweep the weak and defenseless against a dark tide. And
she would ride that dark tide, laughing, because of the cruelty that the
humans had given her when they had laughed at her state. Yes, they would
pay.
Seeing that there was no one else in sight, Number 1 nodded a
dismissal to the rest of the pokemon in her crew, watching as they pried
the emergency doors open, fleeing towards escape, or rather, returning
from their mission.
Like the rest of the pokemon, the Eevee would have left, had she
not noticed something extremely threatening, lodged against the top corner
of the room.
"Number 9, tell the Boss that I will be arriving a bit later than
planned." The Eevee shouted at the Houndour, "Looks like I've got a little
bit of security to clear."
The existence of these secret Rocket pokemon were meant to be
kept secret, and it was Number 1's task, as the leader of this force, to keep
it that way.
Number 9, nodded, inky black head looking at her comrade
slightly before leaving with the rest.
Watching them leave, Number 1 began her task. Coiling her
muscles, she leapt gracefully at the security camera, clamping her jaws not
onto the lens out of her reach but the wiring that connected the lens.
Immediately, she began gnawing on the wire, oblivious to the tiny
shooting pain of the electricity running down her jaws.
Once disabled, the Eevee turned to her second task, heading into
the depths of the buildings once again until she reached the security room.
She smiled. It was good thing that she had memorized the map the Boss
had given her of this place before they had come here. Either way, though,
she would not have failed.
Once again, the Eevee found the main control room, and leapt
onto the console of the gigantic computer, ignoring the still tied up and
somewhat struggling employees on the ground. Oh well - it looked like the
poison was wearing off.
Then, she began typing again, this time working from scratch as
she worked to delete the footage of the last security camera, which she had
somehow missed during their initial scan. After several minutes - and
some slight pokemon cursing at the size of the keyboard in comparison to
her paws - Number 1 finally rose from her task, a slight smirk imprinted
on her small muzzle.
Suddenly, the door slammed shut, and the Eevee jerked back in
surprise, muscles coiled and tense. By the doorway stood what seemed like
a human doctor or scientist in a lab coat, sporting balding white hair and
sunglasses that hid his true facial appearance. And behind him stood
another man, this one wearing a professional-style jacket, with also grisly
grey-white hair and a rather worn look.
Number 1 glared menacingly at the pair, a low growl working
into her throat.
The one with the grey-white hair and professorate look came a bit
closer, hands help up in a non-threatening position. "Easy, girl, we won't
hurt you. We just want to know why you're here."
As the pair neared towards her, she backed up as far as possible,
until she realized that they had efficiently backed her against the wall. The
Boss had said that she was to injure no one, but this was beginning to
prove very difficult to do.
The second man, the scientist, turned towards the first,
contemplating. "Its strange professor, but if you haven't noticed already,
this Eevee doesn't have a trainer." He paused, still thinking. "I wonder,
what is it doing here? Wild pokemon don't just wander into the security
control area."
'No, you're right', Number 1 thought to herself, 'wild pokemon
don't'. Yet, they had no clue of what she really was.
"Maybe the people who infiltrated Silph abandoned her." The
first reasoned, still assuming a non-threatening stance.
"You mean, Team Rocket." The second confirmed, pushing up
his sunglasses a bit.
Number 1 hesitated. How did they know it was Team Rocket?
Then again, Team Rocket was notorious for such escapades, although the
humans outside Team Rocket only knew half the story...
"I suggest we should capture her first, if she doesn't have an
owner." The balding man concluded, bringing out a pokeball of his own.
The Eevee's eyes narrowed. They wouldn't dare.
A split second later, she realized that they did. A creamy-white
pokemon of four to five feet, fox-like and bearing nine beautiful tails,
stood, facing her.
Number 1 glared, half-sneering at her new opponent.
"Look," She began, "If you and your trainer here actually want to
make it out here alive, I suggest you just leave and forget about this."
The Ninetales looked unperturbed. "I never do what my Trainer
doesn't want me to."
At that comment, Number one snorted. "That's what they all
say." Her voice dripped with venom, "The complete idiocy and weakness
of all pokemon."
"I don't know who you are," The Ninetales began, rage working
into her voice, "But speaking like that is not acceptable, and the likes of
you should deserve some punishment."
Number 1 kept her sneer, "Big words," She mocked, firmly
rooted into her battle stance, "But how well can you keep them? You'll
soon realize that in this pathetic world, nothing is what it seems."
"Ninetales, execute a fire-spin attack!" The balding man
commanded, as if sensing the tension between the two pokemon.
"Careful, Blaine." The first figure interrupted. "We only want this
pokemon weak enough to capture, but not severely hurt."
The Eevee's eyes shimmered in amusement. Kind of that old man
to worry, really, she thought. But she wasn't called the Secret Weapon for
nothing. She watched the Ninetales begin executing the attack, almost as if
in slow motion. And she stayed; paws firmly rooted onto the ground as the
fire-fox pokemon unleashed the attack, her eyes analyzing every gesture
and movement.
The ground immediately was consumed in a vortex of flames,
ones that trapped Number 1, and threatened to prevent her escape. And
still, the Eevee stayed firm, watching, waiting.
"Ninetales, move into an iron tail attack!" The trainer, Blaine,
commanded.
The fire fox pokemon's bushy tails stiffened, a dull metal sheen
covering them protectively through the attack initiation phase. With a
graceful leap, the fire-fox pokemon swung her tails down at Number 1,
anticipating a recoil.
But none came. Number 1 wasn't slow or stupid. She was
watching and analyzing. Now she knew, concluding from the nuances of
body motion that her opponent had displayed. And she was ready.
With lightning-fast reflexes that a Rapidash would have envied,
Number 1 rolled against the ground, leaping out of the ring of fire,
unsinged.
The pair of humans gaped, unbelieving.
And before anyone else could react, Number 1 was upon the
Ninetales, creating a storm of a sand-attack that swept against the large
fox-pokemon's eyes, blinding her. Not missing a step, the Eevee quickly
followed through with a Swift attack, the attacking stars streaming and
pinning the large fire-fox right in its weak spot, the middle joint of the
lower hind-leg. The Ninetales went down like a lump of coal.
Blaine hissed, and brought out another pokemon. The one seemed
to be a cousin of the first, although a good seven or eight feet tall,
resembling a bushy tiger with a ferocious gleam in its eyes.
Number 1 immediately began assessing, from the way the new
opponent, Arcanine, held its posture to the very appearance of it. And
already, her mind was formulating a mental image and a plan.
Suddenly, a hidden communications device hidden in her ear
began buzzing, and Number 1 knew that she was out of time. If she didn't
confirm her safety, the Rocket Boss would take her absence as failure, and
demote her or punish her severely. And Number 1's greatest fear lay in her
pride.
So, she delved into her mind, triggering one of her genetically
enhanced essences that made her so different and special from the others.
She immediately commanded her mind into the task, and felt her body
literally shift and change, like she had been trained to do time over time.
Her very anatomical form began to dissolve, melding into a misty
liquid state. It was first soft and almost vulnerable, before extending in
height and length, the liquid forming into sinewy muscle and blue-tinted
flesh. Number 1's once-bushy tail extended some into a curved arc,
hardening and coiling into a long mermaid-like tail, adorned with strangely
fish-like fins. The mane grew stiff and flattened until it was a circular ridge
of fins as similar changes and adjustments ran along her new body.
And staring at her opponent with the same flat, cold eyes,
Number 1, now a water-element type Vaporeon, glared at her opponent.
Both human's eyes grew wide, speechless and in awe.
"That's impossible!" The professor cried, trembling hands
reflecting his shock. "Eevee can't evolve to a Vaporeon unless it has a
water stone."
The other human, Blaine, however, seemed less shocked put more
pensive. "This can't be natural. This pokemon must be the key to some
hidden secret."
Number 1 bared her jaws. 'Like I'd ever tell you', she thought,
letting her senses adjust to the new body and element. And, in that moment
that the two humans hesitated, she invoked the acid armor attack, letting
her Vaporeon-body dissolve into fine mist until she seemed to have
disappeared. Sure, her actual form was still solid, but very invisible to the
human eye.
"Damn!" Blaine swore, trying to locate the reality-warping Eevee.
"Arcanine, sniff the Ee-I mean- Vaporeon's scent!"
The Arcanine, half-canine in form, complied immediately. Yet,
by the time he located the scent, Number 1 had already snuck behind the
two humans, until she reached the closed door. Of course, there was
always the difficulty of opening the door without them noticing. The
difficulty was immediately solved as Number 1 released an icy cold mist
attack, leaving her opponents trapped in the fog. And, without another
thought, she fled out the doorway and away from the Silph building, task
completed at last.
Finding the tail and bulk of a Vaporeon cumbersome on land,
Number 1 shifted back into her regular Eevee form, instincts immediately
guiding her back to the Rocket base, not that far away from the place of
her mission.
At the gateway of the Rocket Headquarters, two guards stood
ever-so cautious, and nodded slightly at the sight of Number 1.
*****************************************
Number 1 peeked at the half-open door, wondering if she should
go in. Just moments after her arrival and report back on the base, the Boss
had wanted to see her. Not sure if he was about to condemn her or speak of
other more important affairs, the Eevee slowly nudged the door open.
"Come in, Number 1." Rang the sibilant deep voice of the Team
Rocket boss, his figure, as always, half-hidden behind the shadows, a
Persian at his side.
Upon seeing the Eevee enter the room, the Persian hissed, rather
fiercely and jealously. Number 1 smirked - such petty rivalry, and the
Persian was just a normal, stupid pokemon.
{You called for me, Boss?} Number 1's voice translated through
the chip embedded in her ear, the translation resounding as sound waves
that only the Boss's mind could hear.
"Yes," he nodded, smiling and folding his fingers against his lap
as to better see the small Eevee on the ground. "I commend you for your
success on your previous mission."
At his compliment, the Persain glared at Number 1, who smugly
smirked back, enjoying the idiotic jealousy.
{Thank you very much, my Master. I live to serve and work
under your desires.} She replied, bringing every bit of sugar-coated
sweetness into her words.
The Boss, known to humans as Giovanni, only laughed. "No need
for such formality. You and I are on good terms you know, and you should
treat me as an equal."
Upon hearing those words, Number 1's mind froze, almost in
shock. {B-but you're human!} She finally spluttered.
Giovanni nodded. "I once didn't treat a pokemon with enough
respect, and it, in the end, betrayed me, because I had failed to recognize
its genius. But you - you are different and special. You are not JUST any
normal pokemon but the final fruits of my creation, along with your other
comrades."
The Eevee digested that thought. {I... appreciate that, Master. No
human has ever given me that type of equality before.}
"Then enjoy it." The Boss's eyes seem to gleam with anticipation.
"And soon, the world will bow down to us, and then the power will be
ours."
Number 1 bowed to her master. {I look forward to that day.}
Giovanni regarded that comment as a dismissal of discussion. "I
have something else to speak about to you." He leaned forward against his
desk, taking out a few photos. "I want you to analyze these people, and
memorize their appearances."
Knowing that a greater task lay ahead then just simply
memorizing, the Eevee obliged, looking down at the somewhat worn
photos. Each one showed a different scene, but the same person was on the
center of each picture, always laughing, always smiling. The person was a
boy, possibly around the age of fifteen or sixteen, with unruly black hair,
half tamed under a white and red cap, emblazoned with the Pokemon
League logo. He consistently wore the same clothing - blue jeans and a
black t-shirt, overlapped by a simple white and blue jacket and fingerless
green gloves. A Pikachu was also beside this boy, often perched on his
arms or shoulders. There were other people too - a girl with bright orange
hair, another trainer with tanned skin almost half-shut eyes, and a woman
whom Number 1 assumed was the Pikachu trainer's mom, carrying a
broom, and adorning a frilly pink apron.
Number 1 finally pushed the pictures away, looking back up.
{These people have been embedded into my memory Master. What is it
that you wish of me to do with them?}
Smiling, Giovanni leaned over and picked the pictures up, putting
them away. "These people - the boy with the Pikachu in particular - have a
small, sentimental value to me."
If she could raise an eyebrow, Number 1 would. {Sentimental
value?} Number 1 did not recall her Master ever having any family or
close relations.
Giovanni patted his Persian absently. "Yes. I, like any foolish
human, had my age where I too was in love. The boy you see there is my
son."
Number 1 stifled a gasp. {But he- he's a...}
The Rocket leader nodded. "I know. He is a very powerful trainer
with lots of potential." Here, Giovanni sighed, rubbing his temples. "But
he also is very meddlesome and excessively stubborn. I know he will never
want to join Team Rocket, but I also need him to keep out of trouble, and
most importantly, stop meddling with Rocket affairs."
{I see} Number 1 responded, contemplating in a neutral manner.
"That's where you come in." Giovanni leaned forward, eyes
eager. "I want you to be one of his pokemon, by... oh, let's say, getting
caught or something. Then, you can keep and eye on him and report to me
on his progress and such."
Number 1 stiffened. She hated the confinements of a pokeball, as
they consistently reminded her of a separation from freedom. Even worse,
she hated being inferior to another human, especially one that she didn't
even know. {If I became his... pokemon... wont my own freedom and
genetic pattern rebel, since I am designed to be a trainer-less pokemon and
work without human support?}
"Yes, that could be a problem." Giovanni admitted. "Since you
are designed to work through free will, your bonds as a trainer's pokemon
have been severed. That doesn't mean, however, that catching you is
impossible. Any trainer can still catch you. The only problem is whether or
not you want to listen to them, since you are by no means obligated."
{So... you want this son of yours to catch me and train me, so
that I am obedient to his command?} Number 1 paraphrased, agitation
working into her tone.
"I'm not asking you to follow his every whim, but just to...
follow along with him. At least, just prevent him from getting into too
much trouble or meddling with our affairs, which he seems to do too
often." Giovanni sighed. "I'm tired of bailing him out every single time
Team Rocket has located and threatened to either capture or kill him, so
I'm trusting his security to you instead."
Number 1 nodded. {Fine, I'll accept that, Master. I shall be his
bodyguard.}
Giovanni leaned back on his chair, satisfied at last. His perfect
face smiled, eyes always the same cold glare. "You shall begin your new
mission tomorrow, although I believe that you will not need any
assistance."
{No, I wont} The Eevee confirmed.
The Boss of Team Rocket nodded in dismissal. "Good. That is
all. I shall call you and inform you on a few safety preparations and
precautions in the morning. And, by the way, it is best that you do not shift
forms in front of him unless he deliberately tries to evolve you. If he does
so, that form will remain your permanent form until the mission is
complete."
Number 1 bowed in acceptance. {I understand} And then, she
left, leaving the Rocket Boss still stroking his Persian while she fumed
about her new mission.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Author's Notes:
Yay! Done! Stay in tune for chapter 2!
I had a really hard time trying to make a reason for why an Eevee would
be part of Team Rocket, and even more why it would be the leader of such.
The shifting forms idea came to me when I was reading a pokemon manga,
where Red (Ash) captured an Eevee able to shift forms into a Jolteon,
Flareon, or Vaporeon. Of course, in my story, Number 1 is able to shift
into all five evolutions (Jolteon, Flareon, Vaporeon, Espeon, Umbreon)
because of its superior genetic code and also because of the release of
Gold/Silver versions some time ago (^_^)
And the boy with the Pikachu - gee, I wonder who he is? (sarcasm here).
This is my first attempt at a purely pokemon fic (being an avid fan of the
Pokemon game who has bred WAY too many Eevees for her own good )
so be nice. Reviews are always accepted (and I will answer questions
within them) but flames will be promptly doused by my Vaporeon.
And thanks go out to Myst_Lady, who is my very human muse, and
supporters such as Kuro who, although an avid Eevee-maniac, enjoys
drawing over writing, as well as Pei-pei (how could I forget you?), who
would promptly kill me for calling her that.