The block of ice encasing the real Kiyoma was designed to thaw automatically after three months. Under the frost of Alolan Vulpix, the researcher's body would sustain no damage; to him, it would simply feel as if time had paused for a quarter of a year.
According to the memories Feng Che had extracted, the Team Plasma laboratory ship drifted at sea for a month at a time to conduct experiments, stopping in Driftveil City for only a few short days.
Today was the day Kiyoma was due to report back.
Using Ditto to replicate the man's palm prints and retinas, Feng Che donned his disguise and headed to the Driftveil docks. After passing through fingerprint and iris scanners, he successfully boarded the vessel and entered the heart of Team Plasma's research facility.
The lab was massive, spanning several decks. With Kiyoma's relatively low clearance, meeting the lead researcher, Colress, would usually be impossible. Furthermore, Kiyoma's memories confirmed that Colress's personal computer—which held the bulk of the experimental data—was air-gapped from the main system.
Copying those files won't be easy, Feng Che mused.
He spent his time observing the facility's rhythm. Every thirty minutes, a security team with Pokémon patrolled the corridors. Zeraora was held on the lowest deck; its containment cell was only opened when blood samples were scheduled to be drawn.
Feng Che was assigned to Workstation 38. His task for the day: formulating nutrient solutions for Pokémon gene cultivation.
He looked up to see a "Harley Quinn" style girl with blonde twin-tails—one streak dyed neon green—patrolling the lab. Her partner was a Solosis.
The Solosis floated in its translucent green cellular membrane, its yellow nucleus visible within.
[Solosis: I can't believe the Young Lady was bold enough to disguise herself as a Team Plasma grunt.]
Feng Che was internally stunned. Another spy? Who the hell is this?
He stared a second too long. Sensing his gaze, the hip-hop girl snapped her head toward him. Feng Che immediately lowered his eyes and returned to work.
Did that guy recognize me? No way, thought Caitlin, currently disguised as the patrol girl. Using her family's connections, she had found a guard with a similar physique and used her psychic powers to read the girl's memories before taking her place. Even someone intimate with me shouldn't be able to recognize me in this get-up.
Rumor has it Champion Alder is being held somewhere on this ship. I need to investigate, Caitlin thought, her gaze lingering on Feng Che for a moment before she moved on.
Half a month passed before the Chief Researcher, Colress, finally appeared in the common lab.
"Everyone, stop what you are doing. I have a genetic sample that needs processing. Who is available to handle it?" Colress asked sharply, holding a file.
The researchers looked at each other in silence. Colress had a notoriously short fuse; if a sample was ruined, the perpetrator might find themselves being fed to the Sharpedo in the hull.
Feng Che raised his hand. "Dr. Colress, I have the capacity to handle it." He pushed his glasses up his nose.
"Excellent. Follow me. This sample is extremely rare; the precision of the equipment in this common lab is insufficient. It requires my personal facility."
Colress led him to the lowest deck. His private laboratory was the size of a football field, located very close to where Zeraora was imprisoned. The room was bristling with cameras—not a single blind spot remained. Armed guards stood outside the heavy doors, ready to burst in at the slightest sign of trouble.
Large incubators lined the walls. Inside, Feng Che saw Volcarona, Hydreigon, Bisharp, Serperior, and Emboar. All of them bore strange black patterns on their skin.
Clones, Feng Che realized instantly.
"Here is the sample. See what you can do with it." Colress opened a briefcase, revealing a single white feather. "This is a feather from the legendary dragon, Reshiram. It was recovered at great cost to the organization. Process it for extraction."
Colress left hurriedly, taking his laptop with him. Since the room was under constant surveillance, he wasn't worried about sabotage.
In the Monitoring Room.
Colress sat before the screens, watching Feng Che's every move.
"Colress, is it really necessary to watch him like a hawk every time someone enters your lab?" the duty officer, Yamamoto, asked playfully.
"Yamamoto, appearances can be deceiving," Colress replied gravely. "Many eyes are on Team Plasma's research. I must be certain he isn't a League spy. If our data were stolen, the consequences would be catastrophic."
"Besides," Colress frowned, "my lab is full of rare resources. I won't have an 'inside job' ruining my work. It isn't paranoia; it's prudence."
"We have dozens of cameras. Your lab is the safest place on Earth," Yamamoto said dismissively. "The guards searched him; no storage devices allowed. Isn't that enough?"
Yamamoto handed a file to Colress. "Here is Kiyoma's background. Before joining us, he was a well-known geneticist. He's led several successful cloning projects, including the Starters. He's an expert in sample processing and activation."
Colress reviewed the file but found no red flags. "I'll keep watching. The Reshiram feather I gave him is a fake. If he proves his competence and loyalty, only then will I bring out the real feathers of Reshiram and Zekrom."
In the Lab.
Feng Che looked at the so-called "Reshiram feather."
Does he think I'm an amateur? This is clearly just a high-quality imitation made from Swanna feathers.
Even with the synthetic 'divine pressure' they applied, it lacks the true soul of a Legendary, Feng Che grumbled internally. Having handled multiple Legendary artifacts in the past, he saw through the forgery instantly.
Colress is testing me. But he has no idea that by bringing me here, he's let the wolf into the fold.
Security was airtight; a full-body search ensured no storage devices entered the room. But Colress couldn't have imagined that Feng Che had hidden his storage equipment inside Ditto's body. Since the Pokémon was essentially a living part of him, it bypassed the scanners entirely.
With practiced ease, Feng Che began to shred the "Reshiram" feather to extract the active cells...
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