Thick smoke rolled across the crash site, flames licking at the wreckage.
From within the fire, a tall Pokémon stepped forward, shielding Aotum as they emerged from the burning remains of the aircraft.
Aotum's face was twisted with rage, murder burning in his eyes.
The Pokémon beside him stood nearly two meters tall. Its body was massive and powerful, built like a gorilla, with thick limbs and a collar of white fur around its neck.
It was a Slaking.
But this Slaking was wrong.
A steel helm covered its head, and its eyes were completely empty, with none of the laziness or dull emotion Slaking usually had. Hard armor protected its chest, and both of its fists were fitted with heavy powered gauntlets, giving it a cold, high-tech appearance.
It no longer looked like a living Pokémon.
It looked like a weapon built from one.
...
BOOM!
Charizard landed a dozen meters away from Aotum, kicking up dust and shattered stone.
Aaron jumped down from its back.
By now, he had already returned to normal. Maintaining Super Saiyan mode drained stamina, and he had no reason to keep wasting energy before the fight began.
But the moment his gaze landed on the strange Slaking, his eyes narrowed.
"This is... Slaking?"
Aaron almost failed to recognize it.
It was nothing like the lazy Pokémon he knew.
There was no sluggishness.
No personality.
Only cold, mechanical obedience.
Aotum gave a low, mocking laugh.
"You're disgusting, brat, but I'll give you this much. You have decent eyes."
"Unfortunately, you're only half right."
"This is Slaking."
His hand brushed across the armor on Slaking's body, pride creeping into his voice.
"But not the Slaking you know."
Aaron stared at him calmly.
"What did you do to it?"
At the same time, a faint light flashed in his eyes.
For the first time in a long while, he used the system's scan function.
[Name: Cybernetic Slaking]
[Gender: Male]
[Nature: Adamant]
[Type: Normal/Steel]
[Ability: Steel Fist]
[Steel Fist: Increases the power of punching moves by 30%.]
[Base Stats Total: 680]
[Level: Champion-class (Stage Early)]
[Potential: Champion]
[Known Moves: Ice Punch (Perfect), Thunder Punch (Perfect), Fire Punch (Mastery), Drain Punch (Mastery), Hammer Arm (Mastery), Sucker Punch (Mastery), Yawn (Proficient), Slack Off (Proficient), Amnesia (Proficient), Counter (Proficient), Mega Kick (Proficient), Body Slam (Proficient), Earthquake (Proficient), Rock Slide (Proficient), Metal Claw (Proficient), Bulk Up (Proficient)...]
[Description: Cybernetic Slaking, a modified Pokémon produced through invasive mechanical enhancement. The armor installed on its body is extremely durable, and its attack power and defense are terrifying.]
...
Aaron's expression changed as he read the panel.
Cybernetic Slaking.
A modified Pokémon.
This thing had kept Slaking's absurd base strength, erased its biggest weakness, Truant, and replaced it with a custom Ability called Steel Fist.
A stronger version of Iron Fist.
From a purely technical standpoint, the modification was a success. It had dramatically increased Slaking's combat potential.
But that only made it worse.
They had erased the will of a living Pokémon just to turn its power into something they could control.
At this point, calling it a Pokémon felt wrong.
It was a machine that followed orders.
A weapon wearing a Pokémon's body.
Aaron looked at Aotum, his voice turning cold.
"This is a modified Pokémon, isn't it?"
Aotum froze for a moment, surprise flashing across his face.
Then his lips curled.
"So you really do understand."
His expression gradually turned feverish.
"That's right. This is the cutting-edge technology Corestone headquarters has been developing all along."
"Modified Pokémon."
"No... perhaps it would be more accurate to call them an entirely new species."
"Cybernetic Pokémon."
Aotum's eyes burned with madness as he spread his arms.
"Do you understand what that means?"
"The entire Pokémon world is about to change."
"A new species is being born."
"And we are its creators."
He burst into wild laughter.
In Aotum's mind, he could already see it: Ransei commanding countless cybernetic Pokémon, sweeping across every region and standing above the world.
"The Corestone Stim Serum I developed can give Pokémon immense power in a short amount of time," he continued, his voice growing more fanatical. "Yes, it strips away their sanity, but who cares?"
"We don't need them to think."
"We don't need them to feel."
"We only need them to be strong."
His hand tightened into a fist.
"With the Stim Serum and cybernetic modification combined, Ransei will rise again. We won't have to live as Auroria's lapdog anymore."
"Ransei is the nation that deserves to stand at the top of this world!"
Aotum was ranting now, his expression twisted and almost deranged.
At this point, something in his head had clearly snapped. Otherwise, why would he say something this confidential out loud?
Aaron's expression darkened.
Whether it was for the little guy's revenge or to stop research that could start a war, there was no way he could let Aotum leave.
...