• Warning: Language!


    Nearly a year had passed. Some of the creatures were allowed more freedom, than others. Bruce, Lash, and CT all roamed about. Others, like Ahti and Musashi, were deemed more dangerous and confined to their rooms for the most part.

    CT even worked with them. Helped them gather more subjects, helped them with research and was even a handler for one or two. He stayed there. Gained their trust. Learned from them. Stealing as much data, as he could sneak. There was enough. The time was right. God, he had to get out of here.

    He stood next to Blackstone. The man had been the one who had done this to him. He had been his handler, for a year. They worked together. Shared the same views. But with him out of the way, things would go a lot smoother.

    "Ah, CT. Things went well with the new subjects, I take it?" Blackstone said, not once looking up from his notes. Silence. Blackstone looked up. CT was fast. Really fast. His hand wrapped around Blackstone's throat, within the blink of an eye.

    "You really thought," he said, pure hate in his voice. "that I would sit here, letting you order me around? I don't take orders from anybody. Not anymore." he tightened his grip. "I've worked with you as long as could stand. I've gotten all I need." he said, holding up a hard drive. "Everything. It's on here. I know your secrets. You're no longer needed." he pocketed the data in his jacket, and whipped Blackstone around, both hands gripping his head. "It's been a real pleasure, Mr. Blackstone. But I'm afraid this is where we part ways."

    With a quick and flawless movement, Blackstone's neck snapped. He fell limply to the floor, eyes glassy. CT stepped over him, and calmly walked toward the other containment units where his allies were, humming the whole way.


    Bruce stood in one of the main chambers. He sighed as he flexed his muscles. Three more going berserk after the transformation.

    "Still more going nuts." he said as an Onix, Granull, and Bouffalant...well, former ones anyway, charged at him.

    With quick movements, Bruce knocked them all away. In his time as a human hybrid he developed his fighting skills to an amazing level, making the greatest of karate masters pale in comparison. He cracked his neck, and spotted CT.

    "Hey kid, did you finish your report? Any mention of when we're going to be integrated already?" he asked. He hoped it was soon. There was a female Machoke that got transformed into an Amazon of a woman, and Bruce was wondering when she'd be let out and they could get a house or something.

    "This lab is far too dreary for us all, not the kind of life we want any children raised in." he said as he started to walk beside CT. Bruce felt slightly guilty at taking CT and Blackstone's side, but he felt he needed to be there to keep watch over CT; to protect him from himself, not to mention Lash.

    Musashi paced his room, several slashes and gashes in the walls from his blades. All this time and CT was getting control, he hoped CT went crazy on them all so they learned their horrible mistake. The worst was Bruce. Bruce sided with him!! Musashi felt such a betrayal from Bruce, he was one of Pen's team!! Pen raised them all better than that. He fumed as he slashed more at the walls, imagining they were CT.

    Meanwhile, Porter moved Clementine to Ahti's room, where she snuggled against him happily as she slept.

    Avenger was granted the privilege of a window in his room. He missed Moe and Pen, they were both his master once. He sighed as he stared at the window, watching the clouds pass by. He wanted to soar and fly. Man, talk about a major grounding.

    Jean managed to gain a sense of self, but he always felt like 2/3 of him had died when he was forced to fuse so quickly. He had gained a speech impediment and a knack of referring to himself as 'this one' as if he was never a whole person. The scientists lined his room in metals that did not conduct electricity as well as placing rubber rings on his wrists.



    CT's devious smirk never once faded, as he started to walk alongside Bruce. "Don't worry about that. We're leaving." he said, heading for Lash's room. The door slid open, and Lash walked out. CT showed her the hard drive, full of research data. "Everything went smoothly then, I take it?" she purred, latching on to his arm.

    She had known about the plan, for a while. CT never said it outright, but the way he talked, she knew. "It," CT grinned. There was an opportunity here, and he wasn't going to waste it. "Was a snap." Lash rolled her eyes. "So, what about the others?"
    "What about them? We have what we need. They're of no use, to us. Let them stay here and rot, for all I care." he tucked the data back into his jacket.

    Porter stopped by Blackstone's lab. He hadn't been answering. He could have just been really focused on research, but something felt off. The door creaked open. "Dr. Blackstone?" he said, scanning the room. Nobody was there. He walked in, further. Blackstone lay still, on the floor.

    "Oh god," Porter whimpered. "Oh god." he rushed to him, immediately checking for a pulse. He was cold. "s**t!" Ahti and Musashi were right. Over the last year, he had befriended both of them. They both warned him that CT was dangerous. It had to have been him. Porter scrambled to sound the alarms. He couldn't let him leave. The only option was a lockdown, and if they went down with him, so be it.


    "Kid." Bruce said, sternly. "It's just one press of a button to release all of them from their rooms, the least we can do is give them a chance at breaking out of here. I don't wanna hear anymore crap about who betrayed who, now. If you want my cooperation, I need a clear enough conscious. I'm going to open the rooms, and if anyone tries to stop me, I'm cracking their head open like a pistachio." He knew CT wouldn't argue with him, not at this stage. They all had what they wanted, there was no reason to continue with this attitude of his.

    Then the siren went off.

    "s**t...kid, someone is starting the alarm. Won't be long until someone sets this place on lockdown, and I'm guessing that someone might set Ahti and Musashi on you with no time to get out of here." Bruce said.


    "All the more reason to forget about them!" CT snarled. "And if you insist, then you can stay here with them!" he growled, starting to get nervous about the situation, for the first time. The plan was going so smoothly. If Bruce released the other subjects, they would all turn on him. He hadn't planned on dealing with an angry mob.

    He sprinted down the hallway. He couldn't let the place go into lockdown. That would just mean that there would be an angry mob, and no place to hide. At the end of the hallway, Porter appeared. He stepped in front of CT. "I can't let you leave, CT. God, you killed Blackstone, didn't you?"

    "Step aside." CT growled.

    "You're insane!"

    "You thought by turning me into a human, it would make everything sunshine and rainbows? You did your research. You knew I was dangerous, from the start. Gunpowder and Musashi both warned you about me, yet you did nothing about it. This is on your hands. Now, step aside."

    "I'm not letting you leave." Porter said, sternly. CT's eyes were filled with rage, and flames flickered around his hands, dancing across his fingers like glowing ribbon. "Last chance. Step. Aside." Porter took a deep breath, and stood firmly in place. "No."

    "Very well." Flames were thrown into Porter's face, so quickly and precise that he could barely dodge the second. He fell over, screaming in agony. CT kicked him in the ribs, and shoved him aside. "Oh, god..." Lash whispered. She knew CT was brutal, but she had never actually seen his ruthlessness, herself. CT knelt down, next to Porter. "I suggest you stay out of the way, Mr. Porter." he growled. He stood, fire still dancing across his hands, and he threw streams of flames out into the hallways and labs, setting fire to both.

    "Right." he said, straightening his jacket. "Best be off, then."


    Bruce stared at the atrocity that happened before him. CT was out of control, he needed Bruce to keep him in line. However...the others needed Bruce to save them from death. CT would never go for it.

    Bruce let out a long sigh.

    "You go ahead kid. Get away so the mob won't get ya...it'll be you, they're after. I have to stay, I have to free them so they at least have a chance at living. You get on ahead I'll meet up with you, in Castelia." he said, slowly heading back into the lab. The control room. He inhaled as he smelled smoke. "Well, here goes nothing," he thought as he pulled the switch.

    Musashi smelled fire and heard the alarm, seeing his door open. Perfect! "Now to find CT and slaughter him!" He thought as he rushed out. "Where are you, traitor?!"he shouted as he brandished his swords.

    The others piled out of their rooms, smelling smoke and hearing the alarm sound off. Most went for an escape while others gathered together, vengeance against CT on their minds.


    CT heard doors from another hall slide open. "Blast it all!!" he snarled. He really wished Bruce hadn't done that. He had to get out. Fast. He grabbed Lash's hand and headed straight for the exit.

    Ahti didn't go after CT. He wanted to. Badly. But there wasn't anything he could do. Talking obviously wasn't going to resolve anything, and beating him up would make things worse. True, it would make Ahti feel better, but only for a moment. Smoke rushed in, and he held tightly onto little Clem. Ahti rushed out of the door, and almost ran right into Zero.

    "Take her!" he shouted. Zero took the little Furret girl in her arms. "What about you?" she almost had to yell, over the sound of the screeching alarm, and the roaring flames. "I'll be fine, I can douse some of these flames! Just get the girl out! I need to make sure the others get out, safely!" Ahti leaned over, to give his wife what could be their last kiss, and she ran out, with Clem.

    Ahti knew a few Water type moves, but the only water he had at his disposal was from the sprinkler system, which wasn't doing much good to put out the growing flames. He gathered as much water as he could, and used Water Pulse to put out as much of the hall as he could, and also clear out some smoke. Others, further down the hallway that had been trapped, poured out of their rooms and rushed down the hall.

    There were still others. Other hallways, other rooms, and a lot of fire. Ahti couldn't do it all himself, and he knew that. He had to get out, and get as many others out, on the way, as he could. To hell with this place. He wished it would just burn. But there were people in here and, no matter what they did to him, nobody deserves to die.


    Musashi, blinded by his rage, rushed through the flames that licked at his body. He rushed past Ahti, growling as he hunted after CT's trail.

    "Traitor! I'll find you! I'll kill you!" he shouted as he ran onward towards the exit. Several Pokemon panicked as the flames grew.

    Ahti wasn't going to be able to do this alone. A burst of flame got in Avenger's path. He let out a cry of panic until a large piece of stone crashed and smothered the flames. Bruce came out of the hallway, seeing Ahti.

    "I didn't want it to go like this you know...I had to free the rest of you." he said. He knew Ahti was probably mad at him, but they were both older Pokemon. They knew there were more important things to do than feud.

    "I'll take this side and try and smother the flames, if we can get the flames headed towards each other they'll run out of oxygen and burn out."


    Ahti covered his face. The smoke burned his eyes and throat. He wasn't mad, at Bruce. Hurt, but not mad. He would gladly have fought, by his side.

    "We can't do this!" Ahti coughed. "This place probably stretches at least a mile, maybe more, and there are other exits! We'll help others on the way out, but we can't save everybody!" he coughed again. There was so much smoke. And what happened, to Porter? He was the one friend Ahti had made, in that place. He couldn't leave him, either.

    More fire roared, and parts of the ceiling crashed down. They had to get out. Now. Ahti sent more Water Pulses down the hallway, clearing the way out. "Let's go!" he shouted, at Bruce.


    Bruce didn't want to leave. Damn it, why didn't he have the right moves for this? All his moves were for battle, not for this. He got out with Ahti.

    "Damn it. I didn't mean for this. Why did he set fire to the place? I told him to just get out." he said, sighing. "This is terrible." he said as he watched the place burn. "What if a young one didn't make it out, Ahti? I'm older... I have no one. If anyone should die in that fire it should be me."

    He stared as the flames engulfed the lab. He then turned and started to walk away.

    "The kid has no control of himself. He's frightened of the world. He needs someone to protect him from himself, and I will follow him in order to do so. " he said, looking at Ahti.
    "He's scared and alone. He's done wrong, and he doesn't even realize the consequences of his behavior." the flames reflected off his eyes.

    "Porter...he tried to stop us from leaving. The kid..." he sighed "Struck him down. He warned him to move, but Porter wouldn't budge. For what it's worth, I'm sorry."

    Musashi sat not too far away, coughing, as the flames had exhausted him.

    "Fero..vax....you traitor...I'll kill you...." he gasped out.


    Ahti gasped, as they got outside. He felt terrible. He got as many people out as he could, but dammit, there were only two of them. Two people can only do so much.

    "I know, Bruce." he panted. "We did what we could. The rest of the wing looked clear, but I can't say for sure. That is something that will always be on my conscience, as well."

    Ahti sat down, next to Zero and a frightened little Clem. "I'm not mad, Bruce." he finally said, quietly. "I was never angry, at you. Disappointed, that you took his side...but never mad. This wasn't your fault." he took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh air. "He's not afraid of the world, Bruce. He doesn't fear anything. That is his problem, and that makes him even more dangerous and unpredictable. It will also be his downfall, one day."

    Zero leaned on his shoulder, Clementine still firmly latched on to her. Ahti sighed, and closed his eyes. Porter had befriended them. He tried to help them, and now he was gone. The last year was a living nightmare, he wished he had woken up from a long time ago. After a long silence, he finally spoke. "I'm going back. They at least deserve to know the truth."


    CT stood in the distance, as he held up the hard drive full of years' worth of data that the scientists had gathered. "Castelia. That sounds like the perfect place to start a new life." he said, grinning, as he watched smoke pillar up, from the underground lab.