docluna

[docluna]

Uh, I wanna put some kind of warning for this comic, but... I don't want to spoil the joke.

So all I'll say is this;

I wouldn't be surprised if Tumblr decided to eat this one. X3

There's nothing explicit or graphic, just... a bit out there for what you might be used to from me.

My, how far he's come. :3

[docluna]

Mystery Science Mewtwo 2000 (4/5)

Playing around with gradient maps in Krita. What do you think?

[docluna]

Three days after Luna had met Giovanni, she stepped back into his office with the envelope of signed papers in her hand. He sat at his desk, stroking the head and neck of a large Persian with his left hand, his right once again holding a cigarette. Before she even crossed the room to him, he crushed the cigarette out and waved away the smoke.

“Luna. Welcome back.” He said, rolling his hand around to stroke the Persian’s chin along the jawbone. “I hope you’re here to accept my offer.” Luna pulled over the chair she’d used previously, sitting down across from him and placing the envelope on the desk. She glanced at the Persian, which was entirely too occupied with the attention it was receiving to give her even a cursory look. “I hope I am, too. There’s just one thing in here that I wasn’t comfortable with.” “Oh?” Giovanni pulled the envelope over to his side of the desk, opening it one-handed and sliding the contents out before him. “I’m listening.”

The doctor crossed her arms, inhaling deeply. “It’s section five. You want commercial rights to the things I create using your equipment.”

“That is hardly abnormal,” said Giovanni, furrowing his brow. “What’s your objection?” “Most organizations that ask for that kind of thing aren’t involved in cloning living beings.” Luna replied. “I want some limitation on that part of the contract.”

“Ah, yes.” Giovanni sighed, shaking his head. “I see your point. Allow me to edit this.”

He reached into his desk drawer, producing a pen with a red cap. Without ceasing petting the Persian, his steely eyes locked on Luna, he managed to flip to the fifth section of the contract and start writing.

“I take it this will do?” He asked, handing the paper back to her.

“All non-living developments?” Luna frowned, going over everything that could possibly mean in her head. After a minute of intense thought, she nodded, taking a black pen from the desk and scribbling her signature on the line. “I think that’ll do.”

“Excellent.” Giovanni said. He stood, the Persian grumbling a mrowl when the petting stopped, and offered Luna his hand. “Welcome aboard, Doctor Wenhouse.”

Luna stood and shook his hand, taking a deep breath to settle her nerves. Giovanni could’ve told her to simply leave if she had objections, or decided she’d taken too long in the first place, and then where would she be? The idea had been terrifying, of blowing this opportunity. But she knew full well what kind of damage selling a living clone could do, especially one of this magnitude, even before the moral objection she had to the idea. “Thank you, Giovanni. I’m looking forward to working on this.” “And I look forward to your contributions.” Giovanni sat, his hand returning to the Persian’s head. The cat gave Luna a jealous glare, then settled back against its master’s leg. “Michael will show you the facility. I felt optimistic that you would join us, and took the liberty to furnish your lab with some artifacts and curiosities that you may find useful or interesting.” “Alright. I suppose I’ll see you around, then.” Luna said. She turned to find Michael already standing at the elevator, arms behind his back. As she approached the doors, he stepped aside to wave her in, the doors opening as though at his command.

“I’m glad to hear you’ll be staying.” Michael said, entering the elevator car behind her. It started for the second basement floor on its own, and he settled against the wall. “The boss was convinced you would, of course, but you seemed troubled when you left previously.”

“This is,” Luna inhaled, gesturing widely with her hands. “Quite an ambitious project. If Giovanni hadn’t shown me what he did, I wouldn’t have believed it was real, and even now it feels hard to believe.”

“Ambitious is the word.” Michael nodded, slowly. “I’ve been with the boss for the last ten years. He has always been an ambitious man. But not a foolish one. To invest what he has into this project, and into recruitment specifically, speaks to an unshakable belief that it will succeed.”

“Mhm. He seems intense about it, makes it hard not to believe in his goals yourself.” Luna sighed, then smiled. “So, now that we’re going to be working together, what do you do around here? Other than standing at the door waiting for me.”

Michael chuckled, stepping out as the elevator door opened. “Would you believe I do tech support?”

“Is there a reason I shouldn’t?” Luna asked, following him into the hallway. This hall looked much like any normal office building’s might, though it ended abruptly after twenty feet in another unmarked steel door. There were single doors to the left and right, one labeled Lab A, the other Lab B, and each featured an RFID card reader. In an effort to counteract its emptiness, the hallway was also adorned with a variety of small plants in pots.

“No, sorry. Inside joke. It’s close enough to my official title… ah, I’ll explain later.” Michael shook his head, leading her to Lab A’s door. There, he turned and crossed his arms. “This will be your workspace. Everything within is yours to use as you see fit. If you require anything else, you just need to ask me, and I’ll ensure it gets procured for you. Once you’re across the border to that lab, the only people who do not answer to you in all regards are the boss, myself, and your counterpart from across the hall. Similarly, the well-being of every individual you may bring in to help you is also your responsibility, though I imagine you will have significantly fewer safety concerns than the technical engineering lab does.”

Luna’s eyebrows rose, and she glanced behind her at Lab B’s door before turning back to face Michael, tension in her shoulders. “I suppose Giovanni did mention something along those lines. I wasn’t aware I was going to be fully in charge of a lab, though.”

“Don’t get too concerned.” Michael offered her a warm smile. “You don’t have subordinates yet. If you need them, the boss will find candidates and run them by you.”

Luna couldn’t hide the way her posture relaxed, and she gave Michael a small smile in return. “Well, that’s a relief. How’d you know that was my first worry?”

“Call it a lucky guess.” Michael said. “Now, there is one other thing. As you’re aware, the contract stipulates room and board. Dormitories provided on the floor below us, furnished and comfortably-sized. While you are welcome to stay elsewhere, the boss believed that the sensitive nature of what you’re doing here would be better suited to facility-based housing. If you find it suitable, we’ll arrange for your belongings to be brought here, pay to end any remaining housing costs you might have, and you’ll be given unit two. You don’t have to decide now, obviously, but it bears some thought.”

Luna’s eyes widened, and she crossed her arms. “That, ah, certainly bears some thought. For now I’m just going to check out the lab.”

“Of course. If you need me, the computer inside has an easy messaging system. You’ll see it.” Michael stepped aside with a sly grin, offering her an ID card on a lanyard. It had her name, though no photo as yet. “Have fun, doctor.”

“Mm.” Luna nodded, taking the card and tapping it to the reader. “I’ll do my best. Thanks, Michael.”

And with that, she stepped inside.

Lab A was kitted to the brim with equipment, the kind Luna would’ve killed to get her hands on back at the university. Where the walls weren’t occupied by some form of equipment, they had shelving, cabinets, freezers, and a workstation with a laptop. Two additional doors adorned the far wall and the far right, one labeled Storage, the other Specimen Holding. And there, in the corner, a large device made up of two human-sized cylindrical chambers that she swore was familiar.

Her anxiety over the choice of moving in at the facility faded in the face of giddiness. She ran over to the glass-and-metal cylinders, dropping the ID card on the counter nearby, and grabbed the note taped to the front. Giovanni’s handwriting.

“Luna,

I know from skimming your paper that you based some of your work on the DNA encoding efforts of Bill Blaustein. While I only know Bill in passing, I was fortunate enough to pick up this teleportation unit prototype at a charity auction. I lack the knowledge to use it, but it appears to power on and Michael assures me it is undamaged. While I doubt it will be integral to your work, consider it a good-faith gift.

- Giovanni”

Luna gently set the note aside, grinning from ear to ear. A good faith gift of one of the most notable artifacts in the history of Pokemon genome sequencing? The infamous teleporter prototype that eventually led to the Pokemon Storage System being accessible from nearly anywhere?

“Hell of a gift.” She whispered, tapping the control unit on the front. The cylinders let out a hum as the machine came to life, and the left side door hissed as it slid open, the unit’s simple readout showing ‘READY’ in blocky LCD letters.

She hesitated, biting her lip in thought, then tapped the cancel button and let the machine power back down. No, not yet. She wanted so badly to test it, knowing that Bill had successfully teleported himself using it at least once, but it could wait.

Instead, she walked over to the laptop and opened it up, examining it. A fairly modern business-focused unit. No frills. Web access via wifi, all the scientific programs she could ask for, and the messaging application that Michael had mentioned. It seemed to be an open connection. She kept an eye on it as she took stock of the rest of the room’s equipment, humming softly to herself.

This job was already full of surprises. (Luna is now available for >asks!<)

[docluna]

Ch. 3: The Handshake

Three days after Luna had met Giovanni, she stepped back into his office with the envelope of signed papers in her hand. He sat at his desk, stroking the head and neck of a large Persian with his left hand, his right once again holding a cigarette. Before she even crossed the room to him, he crushed the cigarette out and waved away the smoke.

“Luna. Welcome back.” He said, rolling his hand around to stroke the Persian’s chin along the jawbone. “I hope you’re here to accept my offer.” Luna pulled over the chair she’d used previously, sitting down across from him and placing the envelope on the desk. She glanced at the Persian, which was entirely too occupied with the attention it was receiving to give her even a cursory look. “I hope I am, too. There’s just one thing in here that I wasn’t comfortable with.” “Oh?” Giovanni pulled the envelope over to his side of the desk, opening it one-handed and sliding the contents out before him. “I’m listening.”

The doctor crossed her arms, inhaling deeply. “It’s section five. You want commercial rights to the things I create using your equipment.”

“That is hardly abnormal,” said Giovanni, furrowing his brow. “What’s your objection?” “Most organizations that ask for that kind of thing aren’t involved in cloning living beings.” Luna replied. “I want some limitation on that part of the contract.”

“Ah, yes.” Giovanni sighed, shaking his head. “I see your point. Allow me to edit this.”

He reached into his desk drawer, producing a pen with a red cap. Without ceasing petting the Persian, his steely eyes locked on Luna, he managed to flip to the fifth section of the contract and start writing.

“I take it this will do?” He asked, handing the paper back to her.

“All non-living developments?” Luna frowned, going over everything that could possibly mean in her head. After a minute of intense thought, she nodded, taking a black pen from the desk and scribbling her signature on the line. “I think that’ll do.”

“Excellent.” Giovanni said. He stood, the Persian grumbling a mrowl when the petting stopped, and offered Luna his hand. “Welcome aboard, Doctor Wenhouse.”

Luna stood and shook his hand, taking a deep breath to settle her nerves. Giovanni could’ve told her to simply leave if she had objections, or decided she’d taken too long in the first place, and then where would she be? The idea had been terrifying, of blowing this opportunity. But she knew full well what kind of damage selling a living clone could do, especially one of this magnitude, even before the moral objection she had to the idea. “Thank you, Giovanni. I’m looking forward to working on this.” “And I look forward to your contributions.” Giovanni sat, his hand returning to the Persian’s head. The cat gave Luna a jealous glare, then settled back against its master’s leg. “Michael will show you the facility. I felt optimistic that you would join us, and took the liberty to furnish your lab with some artifacts and curiosities that you may find useful or interesting.” “Alright. I suppose I’ll see you around, then.” Luna said. She turned to find Michael already standing at the elevator, arms behind his back. As she approached the doors, he stepped aside to wave her in, the doors opening as though at his command.

“I’m glad to hear you’ll be staying.” Michael said, entering the elevator car behind her. It started for the second basement floor on its own, and he settled against the wall. “The boss was convinced you would, of course, but you seemed troubled when you left previously.”

“This is,” Luna inhaled, gesturing widely with her hands. “Quite an ambitious project. If Giovanni hadn’t shown me what he did, I wouldn’t have believed it was real, and even now it feels hard to believe.”

“Ambitious is the word.” Michael nodded, slowly. “I’ve been with the boss for the last ten years. He has always been an ambitious man. But not a foolish one. To invest what he has into this project, and into recruitment specifically, speaks to an unshakable belief that it will succeed.”

“Mhm. He seems intense about it, makes it hard not to believe in his goals yourself.” Luna sighed, then smiled. “So, now that we’re going to be working together, what do you do around here? Other than standing at the door waiting for me.”

Michael chuckled, stepping out as the elevator door opened. “Would you believe I do tech support?”

“Is there a reason I shouldn’t?” Luna asked, following him into the hallway. This hall looked much like any normal office building’s might, though it ended abruptly after twenty feet in another unmarked steel door. There were single doors to the left and right, one labeled Lab A, the other Lab B, and each featured an RFID card reader. In an effort to counteract its emptiness, the hallway was also adorned with a variety of small plants in pots.

“No, sorry. Inside joke. It’s close enough to my official title… ah, I’ll explain later.” Michael shook his head, leading her to Lab A’s door. There, he turned and crossed his arms. “This will be your workspace. Everything within is yours to use as you see fit. If you require anything else, you just need to ask me, and I’ll ensure it gets procured for you. Once you’re across the border to that lab, the only people who do not answer to you in all regards are the boss, myself, and your counterpart from across the hall. Similarly, the well-being of every individual you may bring in to help you is also your responsibility, though I imagine you will have significantly fewer safety concerns than the technical engineering lab does.”

Luna’s eyebrows rose, and she glanced behind her at Lab B’s door before turning back to face Michael, tension in her shoulders. “I suppose Giovanni did mention something along those lines. I wasn’t aware I was going to be fully in charge of a lab, though.”

“Don’t get too concerned.” Michael offered her a warm smile. “You don’t have subordinates yet. If you need them, the boss will find candidates and run them by you.”

Luna couldn’t hide the way her posture relaxed, and she gave Michael a small smile in return. “Well, that’s a relief. How’d you know that was my first worry?”

“Call it a lucky guess.” Michael said. “Now, there is one other thing. As you’re aware, the contract stipulates room and board. Dormitories provided on the floor below us, furnished and comfortably-sized. While you are welcome to stay elsewhere, the boss believed that the sensitive nature of what you’re doing here would be better suited to facility-based housing. If you find it suitable, we’ll arrange for your belongings to be brought here, pay to end any remaining housing costs you might have, and you’ll be given unit two. You don’t have to decide now, obviously, but it bears some thought.”

Luna’s eyes widened, and she crossed her arms. “That, ah, certainly bears some thought. For now I’m just going to check out the lab.”

“Of course. If you need me, the computer inside has an easy messaging system. You’ll see it.” Michael stepped aside with a sly grin, offering her an ID card on a lanyard. It had her name, though no photo as yet. “Have fun, doctor.”

“Mm.” Luna nodded, taking the card and tapping it to the reader. “I’ll do my best. Thanks, Michael.”

And with that, she stepped inside.

Lab A was kitted to the brim with equipment, the kind Luna would’ve killed to get her hands on back at the university. Where the walls weren’t occupied by some form of equipment, they had shelving, cabinets, freezers, and a workstation with a laptop. Two additional doors adorned the far wall and the far right, one labeled Storage, the other Specimen Holding. And there, in the corner, a large device made up of two human-sized cylindrical chambers that she swore was familiar.

Her anxiety over the choice of moving in at the facility faded in the face of giddiness. She ran over to the glass-and-metal cylinders, dropping the ID card on the counter nearby, and grabbed the note taped to the front. Giovanni’s handwriting.

“Luna,

I know from skimming your paper that you based some of your work on the DNA encoding efforts of Bill Blaustein. While I only know Bill in passing, I was fortunate enough to pick up this teleportation unit prototype at a charity auction. I lack the knowledge to use it, but it appears to power on and Michael assures me it is undamaged. While I doubt it will be integral to your work, consider it a good-faith gift.

- Giovanni”

Luna gently set the note aside, grinning from ear to ear. A good faith gift of one of the most notable artifacts in the history of Pokemon genome sequencing? The infamous teleporter prototype that eventually led to the Pokemon Storage System being accessible from nearly anywhere?

“Hell of a gift.” She whispered, tapping the control unit on the front. The cylinders let out a hum as the machine came to life, and the left side door hissed as it slid open, the unit’s simple readout showing ‘READY’ in blocky LCD letters.

She hesitated, biting her lip in thought, then tapped the cancel button and let the machine power back down. No, not yet. She wanted so badly to test it, knowing that Bill had successfully teleported himself using it at least once, but it could wait.

Instead, she walked over to the laptop and opened it up, examining it. A fairly modern business-focused unit. No frills. Web access via wifi, all the scientific programs she could ask for, and the messaging application that Michael had mentioned. It seemed to be an open connection. She kept an eye on it as she took stock of the rest of the room’s equipment, humming softly to herself.

This job was already full of surprises. (Luna is now available for >asks!<)

[docluna]

[docluna]

“Curious happenings have been spotted atop Mt. Coronet…”

This painting was done for Eclipse: A Dark Type Pokemon Zine! I was very happy to be given the opportunity to illustrate one of my favorite Pokemon 🖤

[docluna]

Fuji stood in silence, the two Mews and the little Mewtwo floating in front of him. Randy's widened, horrified eyes locked onto Fuji's, neither seeming sure how to go on.

Finally, Fuji shook his head lightly and turned away. No... It... I-It has to be a dream... It's too... too surreal... Another Mewtwo, with Mo of all Mews... It has to be a dream...

Lavender floated toward him, casting a nervous look at her parents. I-It's not... I'm sorry... She gently reached out and touched his arm. We're real, and we're here...

Fuji steadily met her gaze. Then the gentle man turned from her to Randy. He looked long and hard at the pink Mew, and in the little bit of his consciousness that wasn't panicking or wishing to wake from this sudden nightmare, Randy thought he saw a lifetime flash in the man's eyes.

Finally, Fuji spoke. You aren't Mo, are you...

Randy felt as if his heart had been stabbed, and his blood went cold. Thoughts flooded uninvited into his mind.

How many times had he tried to convince himself that over the last five years?

How many times had he looked at himself in the mirror, wishing he would one day wake up with his old brown eyes, to find it had all been a cruel dream?

How many times had he been fine, only to be slammed with the fact that he was Mo...?

In his hesitation, Akoya answered for him. He's not... But we knew him...

Fuji's gaze darkened. Suddenly it makes sense why you'd know about Nico...

Randy, who could feel his attention being washed away by his anxiety, snapped back at those words. He vaguely noticed his wife's pelt puff up again.

His voice shook. ...What do you mean...?

Fuji looked at him questioningly. ...Wait, you didn't learn about him from Mo?

Randy felt a twinge in his mind. Mo... hadn't told him... right?

Surly he would remember that...

He... never mentioned him, no....

Fuji's eyes grew sad. I guess that makes sense too... He wasn't exactly happy about Nico...

So Mo knew him? How?

Fuji's gaze drifted into a time long passed. He took a breath and closed his eyes. Mo's DNA was used to create Nico... As an attempt to find a way to bring Mews back from extinction...

But... when he saw what was coming from it... He left...

And... I don't blame him...

His eyes bore into Randy. Are you related to him, at least? You look so much like him...

Randy's ears fell back, and his brows creased together. His voice was was shaky and hoarse. ...I.... ah....

Akoya floated close to him and placed her hand on his shoulder. He turned to her, fighting his daze of rising anguish, and anchored himself in her rich, sapphire eyes.

As he took a reassuring breath, Akoya turned back to Fuji. Are we still welcome to stay in your guest room? Or has that offer changed, now that you've seen what we are?

Fuji gave her a warm smile, though his eyes were still clouded with questions and his old memories. My arms and house are open to those in need. People and Pokemon alike. An eyebrow raised questioningly. Or... In between...? He shook off that train of thought. And I'd say you guys are in need of at least a place to rest.

Here you are.

The room was pleasant. A good sized bed loomed in the center, painfully inviting, with a short dresser at the foot of it. Two side tables flanked the head.

There are extra blankets and pillows in the dresser there. Make yourselves comfortable.

He gave them a deep, finalizing nod.

Have a good rest.

Akoya smiled at him. Thank you so much, Mr. Fuji. We really do appreciate it. It's just a... Well, it's been a weird day for us, too.

Fuji smiled back at her. He waved farewell, and they close the door.

Randy, now in human form, trudged over to the bed, leaning heavily on his cane. He fell onto it without a word and lay still.

Akoya, still in Mew form, hovered over and psychically repositioned him to be more comfortable. By the time she covered him with the blanket, he was fast asleep.

Lav, also still in her Mewtwo form, asked her mom quietly, Where are the twins?

Akoya looked at her, filled with a warm love and encouragement that Lav hadn't felt in quite awhile. They're with Persim, outside of Lavender. She thought for a moment and giggled. ...I'm not used to saying that word and not having it be about you.

Lav gave a light chuckle, but her mood wasn't lifted. She hugged herself, her tail resting on the floor around her feet. Her expression dropping, Akoya floated over to her.

I messed up, Mom... I didn't want you and Dad to get hurt... She looked at Randy, sleeping soundly on the bed. But he's still the one paying for it.

Akoya wrapped her tail around her daughter's two necks and gave her a hug on the head. She sighed. We all make mistakes, Lav. Some bring more weight than others. But we'll bare it together, okay? We'll work through this. Just remember, we've got your back. She glanced at her mate. And we've got his back.

Lavender gave a small scared smile and nodded.

Akoya pecked her on the cheek and floated away from Lav, toward where her best friend lay sleeping. She stopped and turned to Lav. You're welcome to join us on the bed, if you want.

Lav's tail flicked, and her ears went back. Thanks, Mom, but I think I'll pass...

Akoya gave her a sad but understanding look. Okay. Hey... We love you. Both of us. Very much.

Lav smiled, half-forced. I love you too, Mom.

She watched her mom fly over and disappear behind her dad. She hesitated, then floated over to him herself. She gave him a small kiss on his head, though she wasn't sure he would be aware of it.

Then she gathered some extra blankets and pillows, and floated over to the corner of the room, where she curled up in a makeshift fort and drifted off to sleep.

~~~~~~

PREVIOUS NEXT

ARC START

[docluna]

*Ahem*

Happy Halloween!! ^w^

Bug Fables.

It's my current favorite video game, and actually, you can thank it for Linden Roots existing~

I'll explain, but in order to do so I have to dive into spoilers for one of my absolute favorite plots for one of my absolute favorite characters, so I need to slap on a;

MASSIVE SPOILER WARNING!

In my opinion, this game is best experienced SPOILER FREE, so if you haven't played it and want to some day, I recommend skipping my info dump below. (This info can be acquired before beating the main game though. :>)

You're okay with spoilers? Yes? Okay, carry on.

So.

Those who are familiar with Leif's story will probably see how Bug Fables influenced the creation of Linden Roots.

A long while ago, I mentioned Randy being inspired by my favorite fictional character.

That's Leif.

Leif is a moth who is ancient.

And dead.

Loooooong before the game takes place (I can't find an exact timeframe; it's like a generation or two), Leif went with a team of bugs to explore a cave, but ended up dying in there. In that same cave, a group of scientists later experimented on cordyceps. Now, as soon as they became relevant to the story I was HOOKED.

I learned about cordyceps as a kid, and they scared the crap out of me. But it also was one of those morbidly fascinating things I'd look into once in a while. (Before anyone tells me, yes, I know that's what's in The Last of Us.)

If you don't know, IRL cordyceps basically turn bugs into zombies.

Anyway, the scientists were trying to find a way to create eternal life (what else is new lol), and did this through cordyceps. Which, as one could guess when dealing with zombie fungus, ended up going badly for the scientists.

One of the "failed" experimental fungi was thrown out, and found its way to the deceased Leif, and brought him back to life. It took on his memories, and Leif woke up without knowing what happened, until you dig into his story during the game. So the "Leif" we know in the game isn't truly Leif, but is the fungus living as him.

Now... I'm sure that sounds a bit familiar...

This idea of a character being dead-but-not struck a chord with me. It fascinated me to no end.

But there's more to it.

As one might expect, Leif has some tragedy surrounding him.

While playing the game, you can stumble upon his decedents.

This here is Muze. With a 'z'

This is Leif's great great however-many-greats grand-daughter, who you meet in the game's present day.

When he was alive, he had a wife.

His wife was Muse. With an 's'.

We never get to see what Muse looked like, but he says in-game that Muze is a spitting image of her. Hence why Akoya is dressed as she is in my pic. She's dressed as Muse.

Now, according to the developers, Muse was pregnant when Leif went into the cave where he died.

And he didn't know.

There are several moments in the game that show Leif's potential as a father, but one in particular stood out to me.

(Note for the images; Leif refers to himself as "We/Us".)

Oops, I forgot one. Vi finishes by shouting "I said it's not happening!"

The text in the last shot bounces/wiggles in-game, indicating playfulness or joking.

If you're familiar with Goombario and Goombella in the Paper Mario games, this dialogue is this game's version of that. You can have the main characters give flavor text on any area and most characters in the game. (And I recommend doing it often, as it adds SOOO much to the game! ^v^)

This bit takes place in the first room after Kabbu and Vi meet Leif. And at the end of the room, an event happens to change what's said for the rest of the game. Meaning, the only time you see it is RIGHT after they meet; He was getting playful with these two bugs he'd met only moments ago.

I'm sure it can just be seen as sarcasm, but having found this dialogue after learning about Leif missing out on raising a child, I saw it as a clue that he would've been a great dad. And it shattered me. ;w;

Randy and Akoya are wish-fulfillment. They're my version of Leif and Muse. They're my way of giving Leif and Muse what I'm sad they missed out on, while also keeping some of the angst, lol. Thankfully, they've evolved into their own separate characters that I feel I can be proud of, but Leif's story and tragedy still has a deep, well-protected place in my heart.

Anyway, thanks for checking out my ramble. I accept no blame for any potential spoiler you might've seen against your will. XD

[docluna]

He doesn't understand why she doesn't see herself as amazing as he sees her.

[docluna]

Got my beginners needle felting kit and I made a couple of fellas

[docluna]

Autism dog

[docluna]

So I’ve been messing with that floofer I made a while ago behind the scenes, ended up naming them Icarus.

[docluna]

He is so inebriated that... He doesn't... realize... -- -- -- -- [ Anon ]

[docluna]

This part got extremely long, so... you know. XD

I was thinking of splitting it into two parts, but I had already written it all out on one post, and didn't feel like putting in the effort to copy/paste and recolor the necessary text. So, long part for y'all

Hope you enjoy it. :3

PREVIOUS NEXT (Not yet)

ARC START

~~~~~~

Lavender almost felt like she was drowning in the sudden torrent of emotion that enveloped her. She fought the urge to push him away. To break free from the suffocating bubble he'd inadvertently encased her in.

And at the same time... She was home.

Wrapped in her daddy's arms, where she always felt safest. And even if she and him both had become sacks of indiscernible feelings, for just this moment, she was home.

She wrapped her own arms around him, as best she could. Her voice was muffled as she buried her face in his sweater. Dad...

Lav... He gently placed his hands on her shoulders and held her so their eyes could meet. She felt a fresh wave of guilt at the sight of him.

Be careful, it’s hot.

Fuji handed Akoya her drink. He spoke with a laugh in his voice. You all are a challenging bunch. Hot coco, tea, and coffee!

I would’ve gone with coffee too, but I need whatever calm tea can provide…

I’m sure. I’m vaguely aware that you’re daughter here left home unannounced. That's sure to be a major stressor!

The three Lindens sat on a couch in Mr. Fuji's house, Lav nestled between her parents. Akoya sniffed at coffee, impatiently waiting for it to cool enough to drink. Lav looked at her hot coco, her mind clouded with guilt. Randy looked at Fuji, his expression that of blank exhaustion.

Please forgive our, uh... abrupt invasion of your life, Mr. Fuji. We'll get out of your hair as soon as we can.

Fuji waved his hand. It's really no big deal. I live to help folks in need, wherever I'm capable. I'm no therapist, but I can lend a listening ear or a safe household to work things out amongst yourselves! I'll leave you alone to it, if need be. I have a guest room you can stay in.

Randy sighed. Thank you, Mr. Fuji. We really appreciate it.

He nodded, his face soft and understanding. No trouble at all, Mr. Linden!

Oh. Sorry, we didn't introduce ourselves. I'm Randall, and this is my wife Akoya. Akoya raised her hand in a casual greeting, trying and failing to sip her too-hot coffee. I'm guessing Lav gave you our last name...

She did, yes. He gave them a warm smile. My name is Itsuki Fuji. But given the circumstances, you're free to call me as you see fit.

Anyway, if there's anything you need of me, feel free to ask. I'm happy to help in any way I can. Just respect my household and property, and you're free to come and go as you need.

Akoya looked up from blowing on her drink. She turned smoothly to him. Mr. Fuji... Do you know Nico?

Randy and Lav turned to her in shock.

Fuji himself gave her a stunned look, his eyes suddenly swimming with barely unseen emotions. He was silent for a few seconds before responding.

[docluna]

On a scale of one to ten how much fun are you having plotting out these AGONIZING cliffhangers?

It was a good run but alas, nothing is more dangerous than a cornered animal

my patreon

my kofi

[docluna]

The elevator doors opened after what Luna felt was a suspiciously long travel time for four floors downward. The room within, at first, seemed to be a narrow but long office with dim lighting in place. Its floor was marble tile, so well polished that it might as well have been mirrored. The lights on the ceiling, turned down though they were, gave off a warmth that was almost reassuring after the florescent buzzing of the elevator.

At the other end of the room stood a cheri wood desk, expertly engraved with patterns that were clearly inspired by the flowing lines of Kanto’s only native dragon-type Pokemon family. A grid of nine monitors lit up the wall, showing graphs and talking heads and lists of prices that were well outside of the doctor’s understanding. And silhouetted by those screens, a haze of cigarette smoke rising from his right hand, sat a man that could only be Giovanni.

He reached forward, and the screens flicked into darkness as one. As they did, and the lights came up over the desk, he turned around to face the elevator door. Even seated, he cut an imposing figure. He wore a perfectly tailored black suit and tie over a spotless white shirt, which did little to disguise his muscular build. His short coal-black hair was slicked back and trimmed to precision, and though he smiled, his sharp features and stormy-gray eyes felt no less intimidating for it.

“You must be Doctor Wenhouse.” He said, waving her closer. “Please, come and sit. I’ve been eager to meet you.”

The deep sound of his voice snapped Luna back to the moment, and she realized she’d been holding her breath. She forced herself to start breathing again, offering a shaky smile in return, and made her way across the tile. “Thank you. Mister Giovanni, right?”

He chuckled. “No need for the formality, Doctor, especially not with my first name. Just Giovanni will be fine. Do you smoke?”

Luna pulled another chair around from beside the desk, shaking her head as she sat down. “No, never have. And since we’re foregoing titles, call me Luna.”

Giovanni nodded, then stamped out the cigarette in an ashtray built into the desk. “Wise of you, Luna. I shouldn’t, myself, but I do anyway. I suppose we all have our vices. I hope your trip was smooth?”

“It was, yeah. Honestly, I haven’t ridden the inter-regional magnet line in a year or so, but it’s always been a nice time.” Luna replied. She looked down at her hands, took a deep breath, then returned her gaze to his. That steely gaze was so focused, she felt like he could see right through her, and it set her nerves sliding toward the anxiety she’d been so desperately trying to avoid. “Listen, I appreciate the politeness, but can you please explain what’s going on? I feel like I stumbled into some kind of spy thriller or sci-fi film.”

“Mm. I can understand that. To business then.” Giovanni crossed his hands on the desk, leaning forward. “Your thesis document was quite an impressive work, though I admit I only understand enough to scratch the surface. Human and Pokemon DNA compatibility is an underappreciated field of study, and ties quite closely to something of a personal project I’ve long had an interest in seeing through.”

The man sighed, shaking his head and clenching one hand into a fist. “Unfortunately, as I believe you learned, those who research this kind of thing are shunned and insulted at best. Don’t think I didn’t see the remarks that were made about you, while I was doing my research. Since I have no interest in seeing my project assailed by the same short-sighted morons, and I’m storing some very valuable artifacts and equipment here, the utmost secrecy was necessary.”

Luna grimaced, teeth grinding at the memories. If it hadn’t been people calling her a pervert, assuming her research was in the interest of cross-species breeding, it was people calling her a psychopath who wanted to create abominations. Even those she considered otherwise level-headed seemed to believe the theories on gene therapy and beneficial sequence splicing she proposed were simply steps on the path to one outrage or another. It was hard not to recall having to deal with anonymous threats from supposed moral crusaders, some far more graphic than others. “In that case,” she began, voice shaking a bit. A pause. She swallowed the lump in her throat, and nodded to him. “In that case, I think I kind of get it.”

Giovanni frowned, leaning back slightly. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to distress you. I should have known that this topic might. Do you need a moment?”

Luna shook her head firmly, focusing on his face again. Cast against the people she’d clashed with so frequently while working on her thesis, his fair skin and dramatic features somehow seemed less severe than before.

The man breathed a relieved sigh, then reached into one of his desk drawers and produced a thick unmarked manila envelope. With a glint in his eye, he slid it across the desk to her. “Good. Let me cut to the chase, then. To make sure you understand how serious I am, let me begin with compensation and work backwards. I am prepared to offer you a salary of twenty million dollars, room and board, and an unlimited equipment and resource fund subject to approval. The details are in this envelope, as well as the unsigned contract forms.”

Luna couldn’t stop herself from gasping, staring at Giovanni wide-eyed. The salary was more than enough for her to live comfortably on its face. Room and board? An equipment and resource fund with no cap? This had to be some kind of prank. She watched his eyes, sure that at any second he’d burst into laughter. But the laughter never came. He simply smirked, as though he was satisfied by the moment for some other reason.

“Supposing you find those terms agreeable enough to go on for now,” he said, pulling a pen from his coat pocket, “and you go ahead and sign the non-disclosure agreements within, I’ll be happy to explain just what is worth so much to me. Once you know the details, we may renegotiate any aspect of the compensation package you wish to address.”

Luna looked down at the envelope as he placed the pen beside it. Impossible as it seemed, the man was somehow serious. Words failing her, she opened the envelope and pulled out the small stack of papers it held, scanning the contract that sat on top.

Finally, she looked up and met his eyes again. “Could I show this to a lawyer? No offense, this is just hard to believe.”

“Naturally.” Giovanni nodded once. “In your position, I doubt I would do any differently. I just ask that you keep in mind the secrecy I’ve worked so hard on. If they ask where you got the contract, it would be preferential if you told them as little as possible. Information is a hot commodity in Saffron City, and it grows more valuable the more notable the subjects involved. It would pain me greatly to have this place’s privacy ruined by the wrong word to the wrong person.”

The doctor nodded mutely, sliding the contract back into the envelope. In the moment, with her thoughts already trying to pull her focus in too many directions at once, she simply had no room to spare to decide if this too made sense or raised a red flag. Instead, she turned what remained of her focus to the NDA that appeared next in the stack.

She’d signed dozens of these in the past. This was far more expansive than she was used to, but it was at least familiar. The single page that declared nearly everything about the project, including its location and the names of the people involved, to be a protected secret. She signed it without a second thought, slid it to him, and crossed her arms in an attempt to steady herself. The rest of the papers loomed, but she ignored them, pushing the whirlwind of concerns down in her head to focus on the question at hand. “Okay. You said details after I signed that. Let’s talk details.”

Giovanni nodded, placing the paper back into the desk drawer it came from. He drew himself up in his seat, then stood, smoothing his suit with one hand. “Let’s talk details, indeed. Let me show you the key to all of this, the most valuable object I, or perhaps anyone, has ever owned.”

Luna’s brow furrowed as she stood, arms tight against her. “That’s a pretty bold claim.”

“It is,” Giovanni said, walking toward the left third of the room. As he walked, lights came up around a glass-covered display that sat prominently in his path. “But I think you’ll agree, once you understand.”

Luna followed him with hesitant steps, though once the lights came up her stride became more purposeful. While Giovanni walked around to the other side of the case, she gazed down upon its contents and frowned deeply at the categorization label of No. 150 next to them. Instantly, all of the chaotic thoughts in her head vanished in favor of one simple truth.

“No offense, Giovanni, but you must have been scammed.” She offered, after a moment of contemplation. “This has to be a fake, just like every other one that’s supposedly been found. I’m sure it’s a very convincing one, though.” “Mm. None taken.” Giovanni said, placing his hand in his pocket with a knowing smile. “I would say the same thing, if our positions were reversed. Would you like to see what I had extracted, on my dime, by someone I trust, from this sample?” Luna lifted her gaze from the single strand of bright pink hair, suspended in its vacuum prison. It simply couldn’t be possible that this was anything more than a ruse. No legitimate sample of anything from the mythical species 150 had been found, ever, and it would’ve been international news if one had. It was only in the last fifty years that the scientific community had even begun to consider its existence as anything more than another legend, after photographic evidence of it was finally published, and even that was still met with intense skepticism.

Still, the idea that it might be real tugged at the part of her brain that wanted so badly to believe. Against her better judgment, she sighed and nodded. “Fine. Hit me.”

Giovanni pressed a button hidden on the case’s metal support, and the glass top went opaque save for the view of the sample itself. A second passed, and the display lit up with a document that nearly stopped the doctor’s breathing.

The name at the top alone would’ve been enough to give her goosebumps. The legendary Doctor Philip Fuji himself, the enigmatic master of the remote Cinnabar Island Research Lab, had signed off on this. Certainly, it could be faked, but the way the report was written was a perfect mirror of the many papers she’d spent sleepless nights thumbing through. To complicate matters further, the report was co-authored by the fiery scientist and leader of the Cinnabar Island Gym, Roger Blaine. She scanned through the report wordlessly, scarcely remembering to breathe. Genetic code of unthinkable complexity, on the order of eight separate strands at least. While it was somewhat damaged, sampling intact sequences created 100% base matches in over half of known species just from one week of computerized searching. Perhaps most alarming, more than any other Pokemon, the DNA racked up matches for human sequences in spades. The pair differed on the practical applications of the discovery, Blaine considering the potential of the DNA as a blueprint for understanding the propagation of different abilities while Fuji candidly stated that it may have extensive use in the field of medicine. The one thing they both agreed upon, in the end, was that the sample was legitimate.

The report ended with an appeal to Giovanni, their client and apparent friend. The sample should stay hidden, the research unpublished. The scientific community would fall upon it in a frenzy, they argued, and more sinister minds than theirs would inevitably find a darker purpose for it. Whatever else he chose to do with it, they insisted, it should be his choice. Especially, Blaine added, as Giovanni had just announced his retirement from the public life of the Viridian City Gym.

“Holy shit.” Luna breathed, lifting her head for the first time in fifteen minutes. Giovanni was watching her with an amused smirk, seemingly unbothered by the wait. She cleared her throat, standing up fully again. “Giovanni, this is impossible.”

“You know,” he said, glancing down at the report himself, “Phil said the same thing, back then. Roger’s cursing about it was, we’ll say, inventive. If you still doubted my need for secrecy before, surely you understand it fully now.”

“Yeah. Fuck, yeah, I do.” Luna said. She thought for a moment more, then focused on his eyes again. “Okay. So. You’ve got a real sample of 150. As real as they get. What’s this got to do with me?”

“In other words, the job itself. As you saw, the sample is corroded.” Giovanni said, placing a hand on the displayed report. “As it is now, any real application of it would be difficult, at best. You are going to analyze it yourself, using the equipment I will provide you. You are going to be given access to a war chest that I have been building for twenty years for this very purpose. And using the splicing techniques you theorized about, you will take human and Pokemon DNA and repair the damage into a viable sample for cloning. And then.” Giovanni’s hand closed, and he inhaled deeply. Luna’s head swam from the implications of what she was hearing, but she hung on every word.

“And then, alongside one of the most brilliant technicians living today, you will change the world.”

[docluna]

Ch. 2: The Offer

The elevator doors opened after what Luna felt was a suspiciously long travel time for four floors downward. The room within, at first, seemed to be a narrow but long office with dim lighting in place. Its floor was marble tile, so well polished that it might as well have been mirrored. The lights on the ceiling, turned down though they were, gave off a warmth that was almost reassuring after the florescent buzzing of the elevator.

At the other end of the room stood a cheri wood desk, expertly engraved with patterns that were clearly inspired by the flowing lines of Kanto’s only native dragon-type Pokemon family. A grid of nine monitors lit up the wall, showing graphs and talking heads and lists of prices that were well outside of the doctor’s understanding. And silhouetted by those screens, a haze of cigarette smoke rising from his right hand, sat a man that could only be Giovanni.

He reached forward, and the screens flicked into darkness as one. As they did, and the lights came up over the desk, he turned around to face the elevator door. Even seated, he cut an imposing figure. He wore a perfectly tailored black suit and tie over a spotless white shirt, which did little to disguise his muscular build. His short coal-black hair was slicked back and trimmed to precision, and though he smiled, his sharp features and stormy-gray eyes felt no less intimidating for it.

“You must be Doctor Wenhouse.” He said, waving her closer. “Please, come and sit. I’ve been eager to meet you.”

The deep sound of his voice snapped Luna back to the moment, and she realized she’d been holding her breath. She forced herself to start breathing again, offering a shaky smile in return, and made her way across the tile. “Thank you. Mister Giovanni, right?”

He chuckled. “No need for the formality, Doctor, especially not with my first name. Just Giovanni will be fine. Do you smoke?”

Luna pulled another chair around from beside the desk, shaking her head as she sat down. “No, never have. And since we’re foregoing titles, call me Luna.”

Giovanni nodded, then stamped out the cigarette in an ashtray built into the desk. “Wise of you, Luna. I shouldn’t, myself, but I do anyway. I suppose we all have our vices. I hope your trip was smooth?”

“It was, yeah. Honestly, I haven’t ridden the inter-regional magnet line in a year or so, but it’s always been a nice time.” Luna replied. She looked down at her hands, took a deep breath, then returned her gaze to his. That steely gaze was so focused, she felt like he could see right through her, and it set her nerves sliding toward the anxiety she’d been so desperately trying to avoid. “Listen, I appreciate the politeness, but can you please explain what’s going on? I feel like I stumbled into some kind of spy thriller or sci-fi film.”

“Mm. I can understand that. To business then.” Giovanni crossed his hands on the desk, leaning forward. “Your thesis document was quite an impressive work, though I admit I only understand enough to scratch the surface. Human and Pokemon DNA compatibility is an underappreciated field of study, and ties quite closely to something of a personal project I’ve long had an interest in seeing through.”

The man sighed, shaking his head and clenching one hand into a fist. “Unfortunately, as I believe you learned, those who research this kind of thing are shunned and insulted at best. Don’t think I didn’t see the remarks that were made about you, while I was doing my research. Since I have no interest in seeing my project assailed by the same short-sighted morons, and I’m storing some very valuable artifacts and equipment here, the utmost secrecy was necessary.”

Luna grimaced, teeth grinding at the memories. If it hadn’t been people calling her a pervert, assuming her research was in the interest of cross-species breeding, it was people calling her a psychopath who wanted to create abominations. Even those she considered otherwise level-headed seemed to believe the theories on gene therapy and beneficial sequence splicing she proposed were simply steps on the path to one outrage or another. It was hard not to recall having to deal with anonymous threats from supposed moral crusaders, some far more graphic than others. “In that case,” she began, voice shaking a bit. A pause. She swallowed the lump in her throat, and nodded to him. “In that case, I think I kind of get it.”

Giovanni frowned, leaning back slightly. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to distress you. I should have known that this topic might. Do you need a moment?”

Luna shook her head firmly, focusing on his face again. Cast against the people she’d clashed with so frequently while working on her thesis, his fair skin and dramatic features somehow seemed less severe than before.

The man breathed a relieved sigh, then reached into one of his desk drawers and produced a thick unmarked manila envelope. With a glint in his eye, he slid it across the desk to her. “Good. Let me cut to the chase, then. To make sure you understand how serious I am, let me begin with compensation and work backwards. I am prepared to offer you a salary of twenty million dollars, room and board, and an unlimited equipment and resource fund subject to approval. The details are in this envelope, as well as the unsigned contract forms.”

Luna couldn’t stop herself from gasping, staring at Giovanni wide-eyed. The salary was more than enough for her to live comfortably on its face. Room and board? An equipment and resource fund with no cap? This had to be some kind of prank. She watched his eyes, sure that at any second he’d burst into laughter. But the laughter never came. He simply smirked, as though he was satisfied by the moment for some other reason.

“Supposing you find those terms agreeable enough to go on for now,” he said, pulling a pen from his coat pocket, “and you go ahead and sign the non-disclosure agreements within, I’ll be happy to explain just what is worth so much to me. Once you know the details, we may renegotiate any aspect of the compensation package you wish to address.”

Luna looked down at the envelope as he placed the pen beside it. Impossible as it seemed, the man was somehow serious. Words failing her, she opened the envelope and pulled out the small stack of papers it held, scanning the contract that sat on top.

Finally, she looked up and met his eyes again. “Could I show this to a lawyer? No offense, this is just hard to believe.”

“Naturally.” Giovanni nodded once. “In your position, I doubt I would do any differently. I just ask that you keep in mind the secrecy I’ve worked so hard on. If they ask where you got the contract, it would be preferential if you told them as little as possible. Information is a hot commodity in Saffron City, and it grows more valuable the more notable the subjects involved. It would pain me greatly to have this place’s privacy ruined by the wrong word to the wrong person.”

The doctor nodded mutely, sliding the contract back into the envelope. In the moment, with her thoughts already trying to pull her focus in too many directions at once, she simply had no room to spare to decide if this too made sense or raised a red flag. Instead, she turned what remained of her focus to the NDA that appeared next in the stack.

She’d signed dozens of these in the past. This was far more expansive than she was used to, but it was at least familiar. The single page that declared nearly everything about the project, including its location and the names of the people involved, to be a protected secret. She signed it without a second thought, slid it to him, and crossed her arms in an attempt to steady herself. The rest of the papers loomed, but she ignored them, pushing the whirlwind of concerns down in her head to focus on the question at hand. “Okay. You said details after I signed that. Let’s talk details.”

Giovanni nodded, placing the paper back into the desk drawer it came from. He drew himself up in his seat, then stood, smoothing his suit with one hand. “Let’s talk details, indeed. Let me show you the key to all of this, the most valuable object I, or perhaps anyone, has ever owned.”

Luna’s brow furrowed as she stood, arms tight against her. “That’s a pretty bold claim.”

“It is,” Giovanni said, walking toward the left third of the room. As he walked, lights came up around a glass-covered display that sat prominently in his path. “But I think you’ll agree, once you understand.”

Luna followed him with hesitant steps, though once the lights came up her stride became more purposeful. While Giovanni walked around to the other side of the case, she gazed down upon its contents and frowned deeply at the categorization label of No. 150 next to them. Instantly, all of the chaotic thoughts in her head vanished in favor of one simple truth.

“No offense, Giovanni, but you must have been scammed.” She offered, after a moment of contemplation. “This has to be a fake, just like every other one that’s supposedly been found. I’m sure it’s a very convincing one, though.” “Mm. None taken.” Giovanni said, placing his hand in his pocket with a knowing smile. “I would say the same thing, if our positions were reversed. Would you like to see what I had extracted, on my dime, by someone I trust, from this sample?” Luna lifted her gaze from the single strand of bright pink hair, suspended in its vacuum prison. It simply couldn’t be possible that this was anything more than a ruse. No legitimate sample of anything from the mythical species 150 had been found, ever, and it would’ve been international news if one had. It was only in the last fifty years that the scientific community had even begun to consider its existence as anything more than another legend, after photographic evidence of it was finally published, and even that was still met with intense skepticism.

Still, the idea that it might be real tugged at the part of her brain that wanted so badly to believe. Against her better judgment, she sighed and nodded. “Fine. Hit me.”

Giovanni pressed a button hidden on the case’s metal support, and the glass top went opaque save for the view of the sample itself. A second passed, and the display lit up with a document that nearly stopped the doctor’s breathing.

The name at the top alone would’ve been enough to give her goosebumps. The legendary Doctor Philip Fuji himself, the enigmatic master of the remote Cinnabar Island Research Lab, had signed off on this. Certainly, it could be faked, but the way the report was written was a perfect mirror of the many papers she’d spent sleepless nights thumbing through. To complicate matters further, the report was co-authored by the fiery scientist and leader of the Cinnabar Island Gym, Roger Blaine. She scanned through the report wordlessly, scarcely remembering to breathe. Genetic code of unthinkable complexity, on the order of eight separate strands at least. While it was somewhat damaged, sampling intact sequences created 100% base matches in over half of known species just from one week of computerized searching. Perhaps most alarming, more than any other Pokemon, the DNA racked up matches for human sequences in spades. The pair differed on the practical applications of the discovery, Blaine considering the potential of the DNA as a blueprint for understanding the propagation of different abilities while Fuji candidly stated that it may have extensive use in the field of medicine. The one thing they both agreed upon, in the end, was that the sample was legitimate.

The report ended with an appeal to Giovanni, their client and apparent friend. The sample should stay hidden, the research unpublished. The scientific community would fall upon it in a frenzy, they argued, and more sinister minds than theirs would inevitably find a darker purpose for it. Whatever else he chose to do with it, they insisted, it should be his choice. Especially, Blaine added, as Giovanni had just announced his retirement from the public life of the Viridian City Gym.

“Holy shit.” Luna breathed, lifting her head for the first time in fifteen minutes. Giovanni was watching her with an amused smirk, seemingly unbothered by the wait. She cleared her throat, standing up fully again. “Giovanni, this is impossible.”

“You know,” he said, glancing down at the report himself, “Phil said the same thing, back then. Roger’s cursing about it was, we’ll say, inventive. If you still doubted my need for secrecy before, surely you understand it fully now.”

“Yeah. Fuck, yeah, I do.” Luna said. She thought for a moment more, then focused on his eyes again. “Okay. So. You’ve got a real sample of 150. As real as they get. What’s this got to do with me?”

“In other words, the job itself. As you saw, the sample is corroded.” Giovanni said, placing a hand on the displayed report. “As it is now, any real application of it would be difficult, at best. You are going to analyze it yourself, using the equipment I will provide you. You are going to be given access to a war chest that I have been building for twenty years for this very purpose. And using the splicing techniques you theorized about, you will take human and Pokemon DNA and repair the damage into a viable sample for cloning. And then.” Giovanni’s hand closed, and he inhaled deeply. Luna’s head swam from the implications of what she was hearing, but she hung on every word.

“And then, alongside one of the most brilliant technicians living today, you will change the world.”