Topic: What Really Happened [C] [AD] [P] [PW] [F]

[Wolstenholme]

The man who had admitted the Umbreon Pokemorph to the address had known his name 'Storm' this, Silver figured, went slightly ominously with the named letters. The man at the door had also rather rudely only admitted Storm and his human companion but the guy seemed friendly enough Do we all have to go in pair by pair? Silver thought, that would be a little ridiculous as with all the morphs, who had miraculously arrived with a human each, they formed quite a large collective for the small alleyway. Dag was shuffling his feet nervously, but Silver's ached, he looked her in the eye as another pair went rather hastily up to the door, the human, a young girl, seemed rather agitated... or excited? Silver didn't know, emotions weren't really her thing.

Dag spoke up: "Are we going in or are you..." he looked her up and down and smirked a little as if he had just made a joke "Chicken?" then he snorted a laugh and winked at her. "I'm not a chicken." Silver intoned, coolly and then added "And there's no 'we.'" She felt a tiny bit guilty about saying something like this to the person who had, for all she knew, saved her life, but her guilty was shadowed by the fact that she didn't want Dag to get clingy and start being some sort of limpet stuck to her side all the time.
"I'm not leaving you. You aren't completely healed yet, I don't want you to get hurt or anything." He said. It was a sweet thought but an unnecessary one, she didn't need protecting and she told him so. "Please, Silver, I don't want anything to happen to you." His eyes were big and sad as he pleaded. He looked like he would genuinely worry about her if he left. Silver sighed deeply, "All right, let's join the others." Dag had treated her wounds well, she guessed he'd be useful to her and those big muscles were sure to be helpful too. It couldn't be so bad for him to stick around, could it?
Silver stretched her wings and followed Dag over to the door where the other pair were waiting, her claws clanging on the floor as she walk/hopped. The door opened to admit them.

[kindtocrows]

The pair watched as the others were let in, first the pair with the Umbreon pokemorph, and then the pairs with the Yammega and Skarmory morphs. "No use idling out here, come on, let's go inside," Kyra said as she took the Deino morphs hand and lead her foward to the door. Spite didn't really need all this help getting around but, as long as Kyra was taking her where she wanted to go, Spite had no problem letting Kyra lead her around. In fact it was kind of nice to have a 'seeing-eye-human', as she had affectionately taken to referring to Kyra as, much to Kyra's displeasure.

Kyra knocked on the door loudly a few times, then waited. "Come on, come on, come on, hurry up," Spite mumbled while they waited for a response.

[SirBlaziken]

Chris was just trying to find seating arrangements for everyone else who should be coming when he heard frantic knocking and a girl saying, "Hello? Hellooo!! I have a boy here who got your letterr!" Chris rolled his eyes, thinking, And this is why I would've preferred that they come alone. The girl is likely attracting attention in a place like this. He started for the door and opened it, right outside was not 2 but 6 people, 3 pokemorphs and 3 humans. The pokemorphs were a deino, skarmory and  yanmega. "Rush, Sadie and Spite i'm guessing. Please come in and do make yourselves at home. We're waiting on only a few more." said Chris, ushering them inside.

Meanwhile, the awkward silence between the other 3 continued. Botm Storm and Nivi had no clue about how they know each other, and Storm's eyes had slid into a jade green. Thankfully, no one had noticed that yet, well not to Storm's knowledge. Nivi had seen it and was puzzled by this. Wait, what happened with his eyes, and why does it seem so familiar? Carmen wanted a decent conversation to start, but couldn't think of a decent topic, but Storm actually spoke first, looking at the growlithe pokemorph. "Who are you?" Nivi was actually glad to have a conversation going at last, and she responded, "I'm Nivian, but I go by Nivi. You? he answered, "Storm." and Carmen stated her name. "Well, it's nice to meet you two. So, how'd you get here?" asked Nivi. Storm and Carmen started sharing their story as the front door opened.

[The Macintosh Ninja: SOH CAH TOA]

"I'm not alone then." Minus said to himself upon seeing the other Pokémorphs enter the small shack. There seemed to be some non-Pokémorphs approaching too.
"Well, looks like there's a party! Let's go! C'mon!" Clarissa said excitedly. She ran off ahead towards the building and looked back at Minus, who walked almost robotically. The two stood a small distance from another pair.

"Come on, come on, come on, hurry up" the Pokémorph ahead of them mumbled. An odd one. Looked fierce. Powerful. Minus couldn't put his finger on the species of Pokémon, but suspected a Dragon type. The door swung open and voices could be heard inside. Perhaps they were discussing the incident at the lab? Perhaps this was a trap?
"Stay alert." Minus warned Clarissa quietly.
"Why? You'll protect me, right?" Clarissa replied jokingly.

[OpalRhea]

"Uh... they're going in. Should we?"
 "Yeah. ...Although I swear I know that guy..." Art murmured, as he and Aya walked towards the open door.

After everyone was inside and settled in some kind of seat (perhaps a precarious one in the case of Aya), Chris looked at each person in his living room intently. All of the morphs were familiar to him, as were some of the humans present. The radio droned in the background, and Chris listened to it carefully, hoping not to hear what he knew was coming...
 "... You're wondering why I called you here. All of you know about the explosions at the shack in the woods. Half of you here, know that the shack hid a complex of laboratories, where some... Dramatic experiments took place, originally in the interest of helping mankind. The most relevant of these is the one half of you directly experienced. The original drive behind it was to help children survive diseases that would otherwise kill them. Not just survive, but recover from. Pokemon are hardier than humans, able to deal with, and adapt to, any conditions they're exposed to. The original head scientist, a man named Anton Renwick just wanted to bring these elements to humans, without any harm to either the Pokemon, or the human test subjects. Part way through testing of one of the earlier stabilizing formula, he died, and control transferred to a scientist who had recently joined the project. All anyone knew him by was Professor Del. Then, next thing we knew, the project was no longer privately funded. It had become military. They wanted weapons, and bio-engineered humans with Pokemon abilities met their requirements. Testing became more aggressive. Every other day, the techs, myself included, were told to mix a new stabilizing formula and another neutralizing one. Del wasn't as careful. Many volunteers were killed. But they kept coming. I suspect he told them that they accepted money from the project, so they were obliged to come in when called." Chris paused, as the radio crackled.
 "More on the explosion of what is now known to have been a lab experimenting with Pokemon and human research for medical purposes. It is believed that the results of these experiments, called 'Pokehumans' by the only survivor of the event, blew up the laboratory, killing dozens of staff members, several volunteers, and many of their own kind. These creatures are considered extremely dangerous. For the most part, they appear human, although each carries distinctive Pokemon features. If you see one of these 'Pokehumans', do not approach. The police have been equipped with measures to stop these abominations. Please, if you encounter one, call the police immediately." When the report finished, Chris swore rather colorfully.
 
"Whadit mean we set the explosion? That stupid lovely person Del's the one who did it. Project wasn't going how he wanted it to, so he shut it down." Aya protested, and Chris sighed.
 "I know. Believe me. I know. The problem is, as far as they're concerned, the only survivors are Del, and you guys. He's made it so nobody will believe you, think you're lying even. And I'm betting their 'measures' to stop you guys are Lot 26." Without realizing it, Chris winced at the mention of Lot 26.
 "'Scuse me, but what's Lot 26?" Nivi asked, and Chris sighed.
"The latest neutralizer that had been created. If no Pokemon DNA is present when injected, all it does is prevent the body accepting the DNA, no harm done. If Pokemon DNA is present... Lot 26 tricks the body into recognizing the invading DNA, and attacking. It... makes the subject's body tear itself apart. It and Lot 27 were made at the same time. Lot 27 was our most successful stabilizer, allowing almost perfect DNA fusion. With a bit of refining, there wouldn't have been the defects, and you all would have been able to choose to appear fully human, while retaining Pokemon traits. But Professor Del got impatient. There was going to be an evaluation soon, and the results weren't good enough. They would have cut the funding, and ruined his reputation forever. So he axed the project. He can blame the explosion on rogue morphs, and blame them on sloppy psychological evaluations. And nobody can question him." Chris said, at first hesitant, then sheepish, almost proud when talking about Lot 27.  Then he sounded ashamed.
 "What about you? You said you were a lab tech? Were you there when he decided to 'axe the project' as you put it?" Art asked, and Chris smiled wanly.
 "I was just a tech. Nobody'll take my word over a full fledged Professor. I'm sorry I called you all here for nothing."
 
"It's not nothing you stupid git. You called us here to try and save our lives."
 "...My reasons aren't that noble. I want retribution for all the lives, and all the knowledge that were lost in that explosion. The project had the potential to advance humans so much, both in survival, and in our interactions with the world. ...and it's gone now. I want Del to pay for that." Chris murmured, and Aya shrugged.
 "Reasons are reasons. You called us here, and told us what we're up against. You told us things that are probably so illegal it's not even funny. I remember you from the lab. You treated us morphs with kindness, and you never took part in some of those cruelties if you could avoid them. None of that sounds like nothing, you git."


It was Art who asked the question that was on Nivi, Aya, and even Chris' minds. "So what do we do now with all this knowledge? And before any of you morphs says we humans should butt out, you're getting a firm no from my end. Clearly you need us. And I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm not abandoning these people in need."

((Yes, I have Blaze's permission for this stuff. I've been talking to him on IRC and in PM))

[The Macintosh Ninja: SOH CAH TOA]

"They wouldn't use such a fraile body to cure disease, so I must be a soldier. Bred for combat. But I can barely remember anything from before the explosion. It feels like reaching out at something that is too far to grasp." Minus thought quietly. He was leaning against a wall with his arms crossed and brow furrowed.
"We're criminals in the eyes of the public. Hiding won't help most of us; our features are too strong. If we turn ourselves in we'll be tried for arson and terrorism, lined up against a wall, and shot." Minus spoke. His voice was flat; no inflection to reflect the group's apparently hopeless state.
"It can't be that bad! I mean, there had to be people who skipped work that day, right? Someone called in sick and can help you guys out?" Clarissa chimed in, standing up from her chair. She was being her usual optimistic self.
"What if…what if there's something at the place that exploded that can help us! Paper or…proof! Yeah!"

[Danatales]

Anna eagerly dragged Rush inside as soon as the door was opened, and soon after the two were sitting on the couch amongst the others, as their host soon explained to the the reason they'd been gathered.

Rush leaned forward, elbows on his knees, eyes widening behind his sunglasses. "We're getting...blamed..." he said quietly, trying to take it all in. So the constant pain he was in was the result of trying to breed some kind of perfect disease curing body. He gritted his teeth a bit. Obviously that didn't work. He took the time to view the others in the room, eyes catching on the young man leaning against the wall and looking rather deep in thought. Something in his appearance seemed insectoid to Rush, and he almost smiled. Another Bug morph, maybe..?

Anna, meanwhile, frowned deeply. "That's so unfair!" She cried "You guys didn't even do anything! And now they're going to try and kill you?" She was almost red in the face, heavily upset with what she was hearing. She turned her head suddenly, listening to another girl who'd spoke up, suggesting there was maybe proof somewhere to claim the morph's innocence, "Y..yeah! What she said!" Anna said, pointing, "There's gotta be some record somewhere in all that rubble!"

[SirBlaziken]

Storm and Carmen heard Minus' words about everyone being lined up against the wall and shot if caught. "That's true, plus if the police found out that the full humans were helping us..." Storm gulped and continued, "The full humans would likely be charged with treason, and then be lined up and shot like us." The umbreon pokemorph was obviously clueless about what to say next, but then got something, he turned to Carmen "Are you sure that you want to continue helping me? I wouldn't want to get you killed." Carmen then realized everything about everything that had been said. "And I think that goes for all the humans, we shouldn't force them to come along. This is dangerous for everyone here, but especially them." Storm said. Carmen thought about this then said, "Are you saying the we can't handle ourselves?" she asked, very slightly annoyed. However, she continued, "This room could be bugged, although not likely, plus he's told us everything already. I'm sure I want to to this."

[Wolstenholme]

Hearing the other's words was daunting for Dag, he didn't want to believe that all these 'pokehumans' even Silver who had been injured and weak when he found her, would be responsible for their own destruction. Looking around at the other 'subjects,' he wondered how many of them had perished in the rubble and ruin. He knew in that moment that whether Silver liked it or not, he would stay and support this group in whatever they came up against because the accusatory party were wrong, Dag stood with the innocent party.
Silver's face remained unreadable, she was clearly a very passive person as she had never shown Dag much regard but he could sense that underneath her hardened exterior was a human as emotional as any other human. Maybe it was her experience in the lab or her steel typing, but something made her detach her emotions from her actions. "I'm also certain that supporting you guys" he gestured to the collective "is the right thing to do." He smiled at Silver. The pair of them were stood at the edge of the room, Silver's posture was terse. She said nothing.

[kindtocrows]

Kyra sat quietly and listened to Chris' explanation of what was happening. This all sounded dangerous and she wanted no part of it."Speak for yourself. The only reason I came this far was to make sure my efforts in helping this girl earlier were not a complete waste. I'm sure you are all more the capable of taking care of her from now on, so I'll just leave you all alone and get back to my own life. Don't worry, I won't turn any of you in." she said as she got up to leave. She began to head for the door, until she felt something tug at her sleeve.
"No!" Spite yelled as she pulled Kyra back down to her seat.
Kyra tried to pull her arm free from the little Dragon type's strong grip, but Spite refused to let go. She glared at the Deino morph, looking straight into where she assumed her eyes were. Upon closer inspection, she actually could partially see Spites's eyes through her thick hair. They looked almost like a Hydreion's eyes, but a little lighter, larger, and... fearful? Was Spite afraid? Well, the poor girl did go through a lot today, and who wouldn't be afraid upon learning what they had learned? Kyra felt a small pang of guilt for trying to abandon the young girl. Her expression changed from one of annoyance to one of apology. It was then that she remembered Spite was blind and her own expressions meant nothing. Kyra sighed, "Fine, I'll stay." Spite grinned.
Kyra stood up again, or tried at least, Spite was still holding on to her sleeve, causing Kyra to stumble backward and fall back down to her seat. "You can let go now," she said as she gently pulled Spites hand from her sleeve. Spite obliged. Kyra walked over to where one of the other girls, Anna, was pointing. "If you don't mind, I think I'll try and look for anything here that may help," she said while looking at their host, Chris.

[SirBlaziken]

Carmen smiled, "Looks like i'm your problem." she said. "Depends on your definition of problem." Storm said. Then came the situation with Spite and Kyra. The little dragon pokemorph practically,  scratch that, actually begged for her to stay. Kyra relented. "Well, looks like that decided." Said the umbreon pokemorph, then he turned to Anna, Clarissa and Art. "How about you lot? Will you stay with us?" Storm asked.

Meanwhile, Carmen heard Kyra say she was going to look for something useful. "Could I help?" she asked.

[OpalRhea]

"I've said my bit. I'm staying. No matter what. None of you deserve to die for what's been done to you. And the only way to prevent that is to disprove Del." Art shrugged.

Aya meanwhile was following the conversation involving the human girls. "They're right. If we want evidence, we'll need to search the ruins. ...But there's one problem. A group of people rummaging through what is probably a police, or even military investigation site is gonna cause problems. Especially if any of us go with you."

"...maybe not. Hey, can I use your phone?" Art said, directing the question at Chris.

"Sure. It's on the wall in the kitchen." Chris murmured, biting his lip in thought.

"Thanks." Art nodded, then stepped into the kitchen. For a few minutes furious arguing could be heard. Then Art came out of the kitchen, smiling grimly. "We've got an hour. Two conditions though. Only five people can go. Two of those need to be myself and you." Art pointed at Chris. "And, anything significant we find, we need to give to Inspector Williams. But we've got an hour at the site. Starting in half an hour to give us time to get there. So who's staying, and who's going?"

[SirBlaziken]

"To be honest, we should have the humans outnumber the pokemorphs because we'll likely have to go through a number of people, well if any pokemorphs go. If so, they should be the most fit of the group." Storm said. "I'm no tactician, but that seems to be a wise thing to do." Carmen seemed to agree. "However, the question is, who's the most fit of us?"

[Danatales]

Anna folded her arms, puffing out her chest, "I'll stay with you guys as long as I need! You guys don't deserve to treated like...criminals! It's awful!" She cried, nodding to drive home her point and determination. Rush glanced at her and had to smile a little at her strong will. Things were sounding pretty grim for him and the other Morphs, so support was really nice.

When Art went and came back a few moments later explaining only five people could go investigate the ruins of the laboratory. He sat down and let out a heavy sigh, "Well, count me out of that." He remarked, "With my luck I'd just get a headache even trying to lift any heavy rubble." He rubbed his temples as he spoke, "Also, I'm not the most inconspicuous looking of us." He flicked his sunglasses down, blinking his compound eyes.

Anna pursed her lips and nodded at her new Yanmega morph friend, "Well, if Art and Chris are going, that's two right there." She looked around, "Maybe I'll stay here? Especially if Rush is going to stay...'Sides, there's a lot of us, so us who hang back won't be too lonely!"

[SirBlaziken]

"I think I can make it. The only thing really wrong with me is the fact my arms are cut up a bit. Other than that, I'm good." Storm said, standing up. "Storm, should I stay back?" Carmen asked. Storm nodded and added, "I think you'd be of better use here at the moment." The girl nodded. Chris then said, "Then we only need two more. The rest of us should likely stay behind and prepare for whatever comes. So, who else is coming?"