Disclaimer:
This work is fiction. The work has no (intentional) relationship with any person existing at any time anywhere whether real or imaginary or copy written.
Feedback will be read, processed, and if it’s a flame it will be given the finger, then I will burst into hysterical laughter. Constructive feedback, be it criticism or praise, will be read, processed, given a smile, and filed away. To contact me, please send an email to socom.seal@(SPAM)yahoo.com. Remove (SPAM) for a valid email.
You should not read this if you are not of legal age where you reside. This work can contain rape, BDSM, cannibalism, and probably anything else my sick, twisted mind can come up with.
Note: All times are in a mix of military and standard times. For example, 1AM = 0100 hours = 1:00, while 1PM = 1300 hours = 13:00. I hope this will make it easier on readers to understand the timeline while leaving me in a format that I understand better. If it causes too much of a problem I will switch to standard.
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“<<Text>>” Means that it is being spoken in a language other than English.
“This is telepathic thought”
Chapter 13
<07:30, London>
Andrew yawned and blinked sleepily. He frowned, Lyn no longer in his arms. He sat up and scanned the room, finally seeing a pile of blankets in the corner of the room. He groaned. “Lyn? Are you ok?”
The pile shifted and Lyn’s tear-streaked face emerged. She caught sight of Andrew and shook her head. He gazed at her. “Am I moving too fast for you?” He asked quietly. Her eyes teared up again and she quickly hid her face in the blankets. “Lyn, please.” She didn’t move. Andrew thought for a moment before pushing aside the blankets and standing up, walking towards Lyn’s pile of blankets.
The pile shifted slightly as he got closer, and Andrew stopped. “Lyn, I don’t know you enough to guess at why you are acting the way you are. Please tell me something.” He held his hands out pleadingly. “Please.”
“N-no” She mumbled. Andrew’s eyes hardened and he strode forward; yanking at the blankets Lyn was hiding in.
“Lyn. You are going to tell me what is wrong, and I am going to listen. Now, come OUT.” He growled, giving one last tug and spilling Lyn onto the floor. He scowled when she made no move to get up, instead lying facedown on the floor. Andrew blinked. For some reason, Lyn was still nude and he found himself staring at her before shaking his head and turning away. “Get some clothes on. I’m going to, alright?” He grabbed his underwear and pulled it on before glancing back at Lyn, who still hadn’t moved. He sighed and walked back over to her, sitting against the wall next to her. “Lyn.” She ignored him.
He turned as Claire stuck her head through the door. “Hey, Andrew, what are we doing today?” She blinked and looked at Lyn. “Eh, is she ok?” She looked quizzically at Andrew. “Naked and lying on the floor does not usually mean someone is doing well.”
Andrew sighed and waved her away. “We’re going shopping today, but give us a few minutes, alright? Go torture Grace or something, I don’t really care. We’ll leave in a bit.”
She shrugged and ducked out as Andrew turned back towards Lyn. She was still lying motionless. Andrew deliberated a moment before attempting a different tact. “<<Lyn, talk me please.>>” He stuttered in broken Japanese. “<<I care.>>”
She sniffed and turned her head to look at him. “<<Why are you so nice?>>” She mumbled.
He sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “<<I care.>>” He looked at her helplessly. “I can’t maintain a conversation in Japanese yet. I need to find a Language T2 for myself.”
She giggled and rolled over, still nude. Andrew rolled his eyes before looking away. “I appreciate that, but I’m trying to get you to tell me why you are sad. Flashing me, as enjoyable as it is,” He winked at her, “does not tell me anything.”
She blushed and a hoodie and jeans shimmered into existence on her body. She looked at Andrew with still-red eyes. “Do you really care?” She whispered.
He nodded. “I really care. I care about you, I care about Grace, I care about Claire. I’ll care about anyone and everyone that joins my family.”
She stared at him in disbelief. “Family?”
He grinned. “Yes. Family. In case you hadn’t noticed by now, I’m not like most Tamers.”
She shook her head. “Anyone can say that.”
He nodded. “Anyone can, true. You’ll just have to stick around for a while to find out if I’m serious.” He laughed. “By the way, you were very interested in my knife and Claire’s katana. Was that just because they were each related to Edo culture?”
Lyn gazed at him. “Your knife caught my attention, and the katana intrigued me. You said it was Claire’s. Why do you have that symbol on your knife?”
Andrew shrugged. “I’m not one, in case you were wondering. But you haven’t answered my question, either. Why were you so interested in blades? You’re a Witch. Witches are usually more interested in magic, not bladecraft.”
“I’ve always been interested in weapons. Just because I like magic now too doesn’t mean I’ve lost that interest. Is that a problem for you?”
Andrew shook his head. “I just wanted to know because you, as a Witch, have a couple of paths you can take. You can either focus on magic, or enhance items. Well, you can also do some other stuff if you really want, but if you choose to be an Enchantress you would be able to make all sorts of things, including swords, which you could also enchant. Does that interest you?”
Lyn grinned. “Obviously.” She sat up and stretched. “I still don’t trust you, but alright. Shopping?”
Andrew grunted. “Shopping.”
<11:30, London Shopping District>
“You lied to me.”
“Hmmm?” Andrew glanced over from where he was flipping through shirts. “What do you mean?”
“You lied to me yesterday.” Claire stated matter-of-factly. “I just wanted to remind you.”
Andrew sighed. “What I did was that I made a statement in which there was the possibility of falsehood. When that was proven false, yes, it became a lie.” He looked at her. “Do you want an apology?”
Claire shook her head. “I just wanted to remind you.” She tossed him a tank top. “What do you think of that?”
He held it out. It was red with a black heart-shaped design in the center. “What’s that logo? I’ve never seen it before.”
She grabbed it back. “Just a design, I think. What do you think of it?”
Andrew shrugged. “I’ve always thought that red and black worked better when it was a black background, but that heart thing is pretty cool.” He looked at her quizzically. “You summon your clothing. Why are you picking out shirts?”
“I have to imagine clothes to summon, so I’m trying to figure out stuff you like.” She explained, putting the tank top back onto a shelf. “Find anything you like?”
He nodded. “A few things. And Claire?” She turned towards him. “I promise that I will do my best to make only statements that I can uphold.” He smiled. “In other words I will do my best not to lie. At least, not to you or Grace or Lyn or anyone else in our family.”
She nodded. “Thank you.”
They both turned as the door to the shop they were in opened and Grace walked in, followed by Lyn. “Sir, we found a store that sells camping essentials. Would you like to see it?” Grace called.
“Yea, give me a minute to pay.” Andrew called back. He placed the clothing on the counter and waited for the Seamstress behind it to scan them and his pokédex, turning back towards the door once she had. “Alright Grace, lead the way.”
They had stepped onto the street before Andrew looked expectantly at Grace. She pointed to their right. “Camping essentials. And…” She grinned at him. “Me essentials?”
Andrew groaned. “Right. You need weapons. Shit.” He glared at her. “You are aware that, although the prices here will probably be the lowest we’ll find for a long time, that getting you what you need will most probably set us back at least 100,000 SLC? We have maybe 200,000 SLC to our names.” He sighed. “And I wanted to stop by an evolution store while we were here, and maybe pick up some modifiers. God damn it, this isn’t all going to happen today…” He started as Lyn grabbed his hand. He looked at her quizzically.
She stared at him from the depths of her hoodie. “Stop.”
Andrew blinked. “Stop what?”
She dropped his hand and withdrew further into her hood. “Stop trying to convince me.” She mumbled.
He looked at her in confusion for a few moments before nodding slowly. “Grace, any idea where the nearest evolution store is?”
Lyn stirred and Grace shook her head, but before she could speak Claire piped up. “Other way, a few stores past the clothing store we were in.” She smirked at the fuming Mini-Top. “I looked over a map this morning.”
Andrew nodded and turned around, grabbing Lyn’s hand in the process. “We’re going there first. Lyn is getting a necklace.” He looked at her. “Necklace good? Or would you prefer it set in something else?”
Lyn’s hood fell backwards as he pulled at her. “What are you talking about? What is ‘it’?” She exclaimed.
He grinned at her. “The combination Everstone/Moon Stone that I’m getting you. That way you’ll be able to choose when you want to evolve, and if you don’t want to evolve anytime soon, it’ll still be a nice piece of jewelry to wear.”
She grew silent for a moment. “You’re really, really serious.”
Andrew nodded. “Actions speak loudest when they back up words. Or something like that.” He skidded to a halt in front of a storefront that advertised itself as “Evos ‘R Us”. “This is it, Claire?” He glanced at her nod and snorted. “Obviously.” He walked into the store and made a beeline towards the man behind what looked like the rare stone case.
The man looked up as Andrew tugged Lyn to the counter. “Hello Sir, and welcome to Evos ‘R Us. My name is Mike. What can I help you find today?”
Andrew scanned the different stones in the case before glancing back up at Mike. “Do you do custom settings?”
Mike nodded. “It’s an extra 500-10,000 SLC depending on how fancy you want it to be, with the really pricey settings being made out of enhancers.”
Andrew whistled. “What would it be to do a gold pendant to house an Everstone and a Refined Moon Stone in a totem kind of formation?”
Mike typed some numbers into his computer. “Refined Moonstone running at 8,000 SLC, Everstone at 22,500 SLC, material for the setting for that would probably cost 1,750 SLC, so 35,500 SLC total to cover work costs of 1,250 SLC.”
Andrew winced. “What’s your price on regular Moon Stone?”
Mike hit a few more keys. “6,500 SLC.”
Andrew sighed. “I take it that the extra cost is because of the glowing properties of Refined Moon Stone.”
Mike nodded. “Supply and demand. More people want Refined because it looks nicer in jewelry.”
Andrew looked at Lyn before pulling out his pokédex. “Alright. She wants it, I get it. You get paid.” He laughed. “Are you on break for lunch?”
Mike shook his head and scanned Andrew’s dex. “The workers are having lunch, I’m the owner. I take my lunch around 2PM.” He read something on his computer. “That should be done for you in an hour or so. Would you mind drawing the general idea of what you would like so I can show that to the girls when they get back?”
Andrew sketched a rough drawing and handed it to him. “I’m going to hit a few stores, maybe grab some lunch of my own, then come back. About an hour, right?”
Mike took the drawing and clipped it with Andrew’s receipt. “Yep. Just drop by and pick it up, you’re already paid for.”
Andrew thanked him and gathered Grace and Claire from the corners of the store, forcibly having to pull Lyn away from a focusing wand as they left. “Right. Camping and guns. Grace, lead the way.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<13:45, Café in London>
Andrew finished his KATTLE burger and started rifling through the bags sitting next to him. They had just finished at the survival store, spending another 20,000 SLC on a camp stove, fuel, and pre packaged MREs, as well as other items that could be useful. He looked over at Lyn beside him. “Ready?”
She nodded and they walked back to the jewelry store. This time, there was a Marble standing behind the counter that Andrew walked up to. She glanced at him before reaching under the counter and pulling out a black jewelry box. “You are Andrew?”
He nodded and she opened the box. Lyn gasped. Sitting there was a glowing purple crystal mounted in gold below an eye with a grey pupil. Andrew took the pendant and gently placed it around Lyn’s neck. “I told you I would, didn’t I?” He laughed and clapped his hands together. “Right! We need to head to an armory and get Grace some weaponry, and then we’re heading out of the city. We need money, and you,” He looked at Lyn, “Need to start training. I’ll want you at a level to at least be able to keep up with Grace before we get to Coventry.” He glanced back at the Marble. “And a quick tip? It’s more than enough to fool most everyone, but I would recommend at least moving the chip away from being visible, ‘Mike’.”
The Marble frowned and her face shifted, rearranging itself to the form of the store owner. “You’re the first one to see through me.” She/he commented.
“I have a mental pokédex. When I first saw you it set off some bells, and just now I connected the dots. I commend you on owning this store, if you really do.”
She nodded and reset her features. “Thank you. Have a good day.” Andrew nodded and guided a still-numb Lyn out the door. As it closed behind him, the Marble turned once again to her computer, where a single flashing question mark blinked. ‘Yes’ she typed, and reset the screen as another Tamer walked in the door.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<14:30, London>
Andrew groaned and rubbed his eyes. Grace was happily bouncing in what he assumed was the direction of an armory, but for some reason he didn’t care. Or more specifically, he couldn’t find the energy to care. As soon as he had pokeballed Lyn and released Grace, his interest in the day had plummeted. Was he sick? Was he… No, he couldn’t be relapsing, right? He had grown out of that. He hadn’t felt depressed since… Since the day he began blocking his emotions. “Oh, shit.” He whispered. He had lowered some barriers, and he had been feeling a lot different lately. Ever since his initial outburst he had been feeling stronger and stronger emotional responses. If he was relapsing into depression, then he could get enraged or anything. He needed time to recompose himself. If his newly emerging power reacted to strong emotions, any mood swing was bad. He needed to find a psychologist. A good one. Someone who could help him without being killed by whatever it was that protected his brain.
Ahead, Grace had stopped outside of a nondescript building with blacked out windows. Andrew shook his head and jogged to her, pushing open the door. He would have to do something, but it could wait.
A bell chimed as Andrew and Grace stepped into the shop. Along the walls were replicas of various firearms, along with knives, magazines, and even some PSA posters. Ahead of them was a maze of aisles lined by metal guardrails, which led to a few windows set in a heavy-duty wall. Glancing up, he could see multiple security cameras pointing in all directions. They turned when a man exited a door nearby and approached them. “Sir, I’m going to have to ask you to recall your pokegirl. They are not allowed in the stock room.”
Andrew rolled his eyes. “And if she’s the customer?”
The man shrugged. “Then she can give you her specifications and you can buy it for her. Regardless, she cannot be inside the stock room.”
Andrew sighed and turned to Grace. “What do you want? AR? Pistol? Shotgun?”
Grace frowned. “AR. 18 inch barrel, dual acog/dot sight, fore grip, 5 30’s and 2 60’s and at least a thousand rounds of ammunition.”
Andrew nodded at the man. “.30 cal if you have it, .223 if you don’t. And what would the price be on something like she has described?” He glanced at the man’s nametag. “Aleck?”
Aleck manipulated a handheld for a minute before looking back up. “Stock 18 inch AR in .30 85000 SLC, heavy duty combo sight 12500 SLC, carbon fiber fore grip, 6500 SLC, 5 30 rounders at 1200 SLC each is 6000 SLC, 2 60 rounders at 1800 SLC each is 3600 SLC, and a thousand rounds of .30 is 15000 SLC. Combined total is 128600 SLC.” He glanced at Andrew. “Is that acceptable?”
Andrew groaned. “It has to be, she’s useless without a good weapon. Is there a warranty on this thing?”
Aleck shrugged. “Technically yes, but it’s also guaranteed to work for at least fifty thousand rounds before a cleaning, and can withstand most pokegirl attacks, including fire, acid, and freezing.” He tapped a few more buttons. “It also comes with a full cleaning kit. Will that all be acceptable?”
Andrew responded by recalling Grace and offering his pokédex. “Charge me and let’s go get it.”
Aleck took the offered ‘dex and scanned it, tapped a few buttons, read a screen, and waved Andrew towards the door he had come out of. “Let’s go get it then. You into firearms yourself, or just for your Mini-Top?” He asked and pulled the door open.
“I know my way around them. I’m just low on funds, or I would have gotten a shotgun for myself.” Andrew whistled as he gazed around the area they had just entered. “That is a lot of metal.”
Aleck laughed and guided him between shelving units stacked tall with gun parts, magazines, and accessories, before finally leading him to a table where a Gun Valkyrie was snapping pieces together. A half full crate of machine guns sat next to her. Aleck nodded at her. “This man just ordered the AR with accessories.” She nodded and headed into another room. Aleck turned back towards Andrew. “I saw the flag on your account. Usually we assemble the guns back here to order and then dispense them up front, but I wanted to be able to talk to you uninterrupted.” Andrew tensed. “Lets wait for Laia to get your weapon, and we’ll talk.”
Andrew turned as the Gun Valkyrie emerged carrying an assault rifle, magazine, and poképack. She took the digitizing wand and materialized multiple boxes of ammo, 6 more magazines and two boxes that Andrew guessed held the accessories. She then went back to assembling. Aleck nodded at the pile. “Digitize everything but the gun and one 30. The gun comes with irons, and I want to see you shoot it.”
Andrew did as he was told and followed Aleck to a range on the far wall of the building. “You wanted to talk. What do you want to tell me?”
Aleck reached under a counter and withdrew another box of .30 ammo. “Your account was flagged with a special remark. It said that you hold a gun permit for anything but forbidden tech, and that you will never have to take a license test, or psyche eval when buying a firearm. I want to see the score of a man who warrants that kind of access.”
Andrew chuckled. “I haven’t shot in about a year, so I may be a bit lower than what you expect.” He picked up the magazine and began loading rounds. “One or three?”
Aleck toggled a control and a Damsel materialized. “You may have never seen one of these before. It’s a live-combat simulator. Targets will be firing at you at various distances, which you have to account for. Kill two with one mag and without getting disabled, and you would have qualified for boot.”
Andrew shrugged. “And if I kill 30?”
Aleck snickered. “Once you kill 5 the targets stop being Bunnygirls and Peekabus and become more powerful. All of them are disabled, or at least slowed, by shots to the head, but some are better to be shot elsewhere – You’ll understand once I start.” He motioned down the counter. “Move back and forth as you will, but you cannot retreat more than 2 meters before you are disabled. Iron sights, simulating urban engagements, the max range will be 100 meters.” He backed away from the counter and nodded at the Damsel. “That’s a civilian. Shooting one of those at any point, anywhere, count as a disable.” He laughed. “No tricks in this one, though I really want to run you through the spec ops sim. That one is so much fun.”
Andrew sighed and popped his magazine in. “Lets get on with it.”
The lights dimmed and a town materialized in front of Andrew. He cautiously took a step forward, and when the view changed, took a step sideways. Looking down, he noticed that the floor he was standing on was actually moving under him as he walked. Straightening back up, he made his way towards an alleyway. Entering it, he rounded a corner and jumped as a Bunnygirl was thrown into the wall beside him. Glancing at it, he popped a round into its head and turned the corner, intent on neutralizing whatever had attacked the Bunnygirl. He brought the AR up before cursing and lowering it, staring at the cowering Damsel in front of him. He cautiously advanced through the demolished house, putting another round into the skull of a Growlie who leapt at him through a window. Behind him Aleck clapped. “Hello, Soldier!” He called. Andrew shook his head.
“That was simple!” He yelled back. Surveying the room, he decided to make his way onto the street. He stepped out of the building and cursed, immediately jumping backwards, barely avoiding the feather shuriken that peppered the area in front of him. Inching his way forward, he took a deep breath. He quickly stepped outside, triggering two shots into the chest of the circling Pidgy, watching as she screamed and dropped in front of him. He put one more bullet through her head before quickly advancing across the street. As he approached the entrance to the next house, a screaming tauric pokegirl rushed him from down the street. Andrew grit his teeth and shot the charging Ponytaur, then again as she twitched on the ground. Slowly he stepped inside the house.
Looking around, there were broken stairs and two doors. He decided to take the one that ran parallel to the street. Inching towards it, he peeked inside. He could see a Damsel propped against the far wall, with a Naga coiling herself nearby. Slowly raising his gun, he whistled softly.
The Naga whirled around and came racing towards him, low to the ground. Andrew put four shots into her body before finally lining the fifth on her head. The Naga collapsed and he slowly approached the body of the damsel. Halfway across the room, the floor collapsed underneath him. Cursing, he watched as his view fell, then stabilized in what had to be the sewers. Breathing slowly, he advanced. Unexpectedly the water next to him exploded and a Whoretortle slammed into him. Andrew winced as a small indicator showed yellow around his ribs, and the simulation paused. “Careful there, Andrew!” Aleck called. “One more hit and you’ll be dead!”
Andrew nodded and the simulation resumed with the ‘girl on top of him. Andrew put three rounds into her stomach before pushing his arms at it, the Whoretortle getting thrown off of him. Andrew put another two bullets into her head before continuing forward to an area that dead ended at a doorway. He crept forward and peered inside. He counted at least six large pokégirls before a Peekabu near the back of the group fired a lightningbolt in his direction. Cursing, he sprang backwards and the simulation paused again. “Can’t retreat, Andrew!” Aleck called. “There is always a solution!”
Andrew grimaced and stepped forwards again, putting a few rounds into the Peekabu. Quickly glancing at the other enemies, he noted that all were close range combatants. Scanning the group, he found what he was looking for and emptied the remainder of his magazine into her head. As soon as she collapsed, he jumped to the side. The room exploded outwards and collapsed. Andrew breathed out and placed the AR onto the counter, shaking. Behind him, he heard clapping.
Aleck walked up to him and clasped his shoulder. “You personally shot and killed seven, and in all you killed twelve. Congratulations. You just justified that flag tenfold.”
Andrew attempted to compose himself as Aleck continued. “Very good thinking on the Bombshell, by the way. Most people just spray that room or get disabled.” He paused when he noticed Andrew shaking. “Hey, are you alright?”
Andrew nodded and pushed himself off the counter. “Fine. I’m fine. PTSD is a hell of a drug.”
Aleck nodded slowly. “Your score would have qualified you to go into SpecOps, so I won’t pry.” He clapped Andrew on the back and handed him the rifle. “Good luck out there.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Andrew walked onto the sidewalk and triggered Grace’s pokeball, tossing her the AR. “Here. Accessories are in the pack, and it shoots damned well. Aleck coerced me into running a mag through it.”
She nodded and grabbed the pokepack off of Andrews shoulders. “I’ll need some practice, too.” She remarked, scanning for the gun parts.
Andrew sighed. “Yea. We’re headed back into the wilderness, since I want to go to Coventry. Mostly to keep moving, but also because I want to get out of London. The larger the city, the more people that see me, the more chances I have of being spotted by someone who’s looking for me. Additionally, I want you to train with Lyn.”
Grace finished securing the fore grip to the AR’s under barrel. “You want me to train with her? Seriously? I’d shoot her head off.” Her mouth twitched. “I’d like to do that anyway, but I don’t know who you would let me obliterate.”
Andrew glared at her. “If they are a part of this family, you will not hurt them. Period.” He winced and grabbed his temples as a bolt of pain shot through his skull. “OW. We’re going to a Pokécenter for the night. I need to get a good rest.”
Grace shrugged. “Got a sling for this thing?”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<21:00, London Pokecenter>
Andrew groaned and collapsed on the queen sized bed that took up most of the overnight room he had ‘rented’ from the Rapha on duty. Grace had conceded the night to him, and he was all alone. His head ached and he ached and he just needed rest… Slowing his breathing, he closed his eyes and – The gremlin hung above the doorway, watching him – he bolted upright and stared wide eyed at the doorway. Nothing. There was nothing there.
Slowing his breathing again, he tried to fall asleep – the creature was there, staring into his eyes, and before Andrew could move it grabbed his head in its hands. It had claws. Oh so long claws and they hurt and he couldn’t move and it hurt, it hurt-!
Andrew’s eyes snapped open and he threw himself sideways with a scream, clawing at the three pokéballs next to the bed, one rolled out of reach but he managed to hit the release button on one-! – Another creature leapt past his outstretched hand and sank its teeth into his shoulder! It was stabbing him in the chest with it’s feet and he couldn’t breathe, he couldn’t BREATHE!!!
Claire materialized and blinked in the darkness. “Wha-?” She mumbled before she noticed Andrew convulsing on the ground. “ANDREW!” She screamed and dove at him, trying to pull his hands away from his head and chest.
“Li- Light!” Andrew gasped before screaming again and clutching his head in his hands. Claire looked about wildly and lunged towards a switch on the wall. Light filled the room and she spun back towards Andrew, who was still grabbing wildly at his head and shoulder. Claire’s eyes widened when he pulled two shadows with baleful red eyes off of him, which dissolved into smoke as she watched. Andrew slid up against the wall, panting.
“What… What were those?” She whispered.
Andrew moaned. “Night terrors. Literally, in this case.” He stared hopelessly at her. “I need help, Claire. I wanted to put it off, but I can’t anymore. I need it. Now.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<11:00, London>
Andrew watched Claire as she scanned the buildings ahead of them. She had decided that the best thing for him was to be enfolded by positive energy, and so he had Grace on his left and Lyn on his right. He laughed softly. After his imagination had tried to kill him the night before, Claire had insisted on a taming to relieve stress. At first he had guessed it was her stress, but the one on one had quickly become a group taming that had left him sedated and happy. After it, he had slept for a solid period without incident. This morning they had gone to the Nurse on duty and asked for directions to the best psychologist for special cases that she knew. Apparently they were on their way to a pair of pokégirls who never had a dissatisfied customer, and Andrew was hoping that they could help.
They stopped in front of a door decorated with a glowing eye. Andrew stared at it. “Mental and Magical psychiatry? What does that mean?”
Claire shrugged and pulled the door open. “Hopefully it means ‘We can fix you so you don’t kill yourself in your sleep.’”
Andrew snorted and walked into a well-furnished lounge. Claire approached a Ka-D-Bra behind a receptionist’s desk while he sat down and attempted to relax. After a few moments, Claire walked back to him. “She says that there are two pokégirls that run this place, and that they will probably be able to help. I told her about your mental defense and she was confident that one or the other would be able to do something for you.”
Andrew sighed in relief. “Thank goodness. Did she say when we could be seen?”
Claire shrugged. “She said she sent a message to someone, but I think we just have to wait.”
Andrew nodded and attempted to compose himself. After a few minutes a door opened and a Megami motioned them in. They followed her into a room with a leather couch and two armchairs. Sitting in one was a Megami-Sama, and an Alakawham in the other. The Megami-Sama was the first to rise, and motioned for Andrew to sit on the couch. “My name is Arya. My partner is Alya. Please sit, Andrew.”
Andrew collapsed onto the couch. “What about my Harem?”
Alya’s antennae twitched. Claire turned to Andrew. “She asked if we could wait outside. Yell if you need us.” She remarked and motioned Grace and Lyn out, the door closing behind them.
Arya sat back down and pulled out a notepad. “First, can you tell us what the problem is, Andrew?”
He sighed. “First, neither of you can attempt to root in my head for the problem. I will actually have to describe it to you verbally, as I have an uncontrollable mental defense that kills anyone who attempts to access my mind.” He watched as Alya’s antennae twitched again. “If you can project your communications on a blanket frequency, I should be able to hear you. Or you can talk.”
Alya stared at him for a few seconds. “I have already attempted to breach your defense. You have an incredibly complex structure.”
Andrew blanched. “You did? How did you not get attacked?”
“I never attempted my way through, I merely attempted to ascertain the nature of the defense. When I realized it was an autonomous structure that I have never encountered, I retreated.”
Andrew sighed in relief. “The fact that you could do something that precise gives me hope that you can help me.” He looked back at Arya. “The problem is that I have various psychic abilities, one of which allows me to bring constructs to life.” He sighed again. “I can’t control it.”
Arya nodded. “By constructs, what do you mean exactly? You can animate objects?”
Andrew shook his head. “I mean that if I imagine something, and the ability triggers, that thing appears. Anything. I have been able to control it to a minor extent, but the construct I created exploded shortly thereafter.”
Arya nodded. “And you are seeking help now because the ability is maturing?”
Andrew shrugged. “Actually it’s because I didn’t have this ability a few months ago. It manifested during a time when my existence was threatened.”
She nodded again. “Is the mental defense a result of this same event?” Alya asked.
“Yes. During that time I received four things. A mental pokédex, a mental defense, this ability, and a Slicer whom I named Hauteclere.” He grinned. “You know her as the Valkyrie, Claire.”
Arya frowned. “A mental… pokédex?”
“I can identify pokégirls on sight.”
Her eyes widened. “Ah. Has this ability given you any trouble?”
Andrew shook his head. “I don’t think it has the capability to. But last night, I manifested my nightmare, which tried to kill me.”
Alya turned to Arya, who nodded and turned to Andrew. “I am going to read your aura.” Arya explained. “Alya will interpret it and try to make sense out of your defenses using what I find. If she is successful, we can attempt entry into your mind, and then we can try to control these manifestations.”
Andrew shrugged. “What should I think about?”
Arya closed her eyes and grasped his hands. “A strong emotion. Lust is an easy one for most Tamers, so maybe-“
Andrew gripped her hands. “What about Love?”
She sighed. “I truly doubt that you can generate a feeling of love powerful enough –“ She gasped.
Andrew chuckled. “Does that work?”
Arya nodded mutely. Alya looked at Andrew. “I have seen a pattern in your emotion that ought to allow us to at least attempt an entry into your consciousness. Are you ready?”
Andrew gently disentangled himself from the stunned Megami-Sama. “I don’t know if I will be able to generate an avatar outside of my defenses. That means that I will probably not be able to help you.”
Alya shrugged. “I will make sure to disengage if I am unsuccessful. Are you ready?”
Andrew nodded and Alya leaned forward until her antennae touched his forehead, closing her eyes and delving into his swirling consciousness.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
<??:??, PLC Building ???, Office ??, ??????>
Braxton strode down the hall, nodding to the guards he passed. Rounding a corner, he straightened his suit before knocking on the door in front of him. At the muffled ‘Enter’, he pushed it open and made his way to the single chair. “Agent Braxton, reporting, Sir.”
The shadowy figure in front of him made no response but a wave of his hand, which prompted Braxton to sit. “He needs a closer watch. Get someone close to him, now.”
Braxton shifted uneasily. “Andrew is a smart man, Sir. The only reason we have the amount of information on him that we do is because he allows our bugged equipment in his presence.”
The shadow motioned and another door opened, admitting the same Guntit that had given Andrew his Com. “Get her into his harem. I don’t care how you do it, get it done.”
Braxton eyed the Guntit uneasily but nodded. “I would like to go on record that if this is accomplished, I cannot be confident in the integrity of any information from this source.”
The shadow turned slowly. “What exactly do you mean by that?”
Braxton gulped. “This man has shown the capability of completely changing the nature of three pokégirls. He has made two ignore the very traits that make their breeds, and another to almost instantly change her personality. I cannot be confident that this, ‘corruption’ won’t be forced onto her.”
The shadow grunted. “Duly noted. Now get it done.”
Braxton nodded. “Yes sir.” He motioned at the Guntit and stood, moving quickly out the door with her following.
The shadow waited a few moments before pressing a button, opening another, hidden door beside the one the Guntit had emerged from. A small, lithe pokegirl covered in tattoos stepped slowly towards the shadowy figure. “We are still too weak to retake him. While I commend your organization on its efficiency, would it be possible not to destroy so much valuable machinery next time?”
The shadow bowed slightly. “I apologize, Mistress. As you are aware, I can only barely control those under me. They are still their own entity, and they operate under every rule that binds them as an operative of the PLC. They did, as you said, an extremely efficient job. I cannot change that without more support, or exposing myself.” It sighed. “The PLC is too large for me to enact any real change in line with our goals. However, I am still powerful enough to keep The Soldier under surveillance.”
The S-Goth frowned. “The Soldier? When, might I ask, did he acquire that name?”
The shadow backed away from her slightly. “A name is just a name, Mistress, but if you must know, Braxton tagged him with it, and it has stuck.”
The S-Goth hissed. “Braxton. That man needs to be eliminated. He is much too meddlesome.”
The shadow bowed. “Yes Mistress. It will be done.” It grinned. “Soon.”
Andrew Ranger
Age: 27
Licenses:
Tamer: Y
Master Tamer: N
Researcher: N
Watcher: N
Breeder: N
Active Harem:
Hauteclere – Valkyrie, Level 19 (Alpha)
Grace – Mini-Top, Level 24
Lyn – Witch, Level 10