Chapter Text
It seems as though Gladion is always angry these days. It's like everything sets him off. He can feel the anger simmering underneath him at all times, just waiting to be let out, and he feels completely helpless. The anger makes him feel out of control. He's aware that maybe he shouldn't get so angry at certain things-at how Lusamine is always trying to mold him into something he's not, at his father and Lillie's refusals to go against Lusamine, at what the kids at school say about him. But it's the fact that they all want him to stop being angry that makes him angrier. It's not like they try to comfort him. All they ever do is tell him that he shouldn't get so angry, which might be true, but it would be nice if he could be allowed to have his anger validated.
Gladion's hair whips into his face as he sits by the docks at Aether Paradise. The waves crash against them ferociously and for a moment Gladion wishes he could draw so he could capture the scene, but he can't draw. He could learn, but Lusamine would probably say it's a waste of time. And of course that would make him want to learn, just to spite Lusamine. But then he'd get frustrated when he couldn't make the images on paper appear the way it did in his head. Besides, he doesn't really want to learn to draw. He breathes in the scent of the sea and looks out over the waves. This place is like Alcatraz, he thinks. Or Azkaban. He may live in a mansion and he may have rich and influential parents, but a cage with a gold lock is still a cage. Gladion knows better than to say that, though. No one would listen to him. Lusamine would say he's being ungrateful, Mohn and Lillie would try to make him compromise with Lusamine, and any one else would look at the boy with the mansion and think ungrateful rich kid and immediately assume he had no problems.
Sometimes Gladion thinks about escaping from this place. He's considered it before, had his bag packed and everything, but he hadn't left. There are times when he hates his home-hates how he feels like he can't do anything without Lusamine lying in wait to tell him why he's an idiot, hates how cold it is, but what are his alternatives? He doesn't have any friends, so he's got nowhere to stay. He doesn't have any money, since he's not of age yet, so he can't access any of his funds. And suppose he can't cut it as a runaway? Suppose he has to come crawling back home and see the smug look in Lusamine's eyes when she sees that she was right and he can't make it in the world without her? His fists clench at the thought. And despite the fact that he doesn't feel as supported by Mohn and Lilie as she should, he'd miss them. So he decides to stay.
A voice calls out to him. Gladion turns to see Lillie. She's wearing a dress Gladion knows perfectly well she hates. He'd been there when Lusamine had presented it to Lillie, seen the distaste in Lillie's eyes and the strained smile. “You haven't gotten rid of the dress?” he asks. “You hate that dress.” Lillie fiddles with her hands. “It's not my personal style,” she hedges. “But mom thought I'd look cute in it.”
“You're not a doll for her to play with,” Gladion snaps. He didn't see why Lillie didn't see that. Lusamine had bought him something to wear, something she knew very well wasn't his style. He'd told her so and there had been an argument about how she was just trying to help him look good and how she didn't want him to be ashamed. Gladion had snapped back that it wasn't his fault she was ashamed of him.
Lillie makes a noise. “The dress isn't to my personal taste. But she picked it out for me. She's making an effort. It's just a dress, Gladion.”
Gladion doesn't feel like backing down. He knows it's stupid, knows it's Lillie's choice if she wants to wear a dress she hates, knows that sometimes people do pretend to like things to avoid hurt feelings. But honestly, how hard was it for Lusamine to be able to pick out a dress that Lillie would like? Was she completely unaware of Lillie's style? Then Gladion realizes hat the answer was yes. Despite the fact that he'd like to continue arguing, he decides to let it drop. Lillie will just get upset. “What do you want?” he asks.
“It's dinner time. Are you going to come eat with us?” Gladion usually prefers eating in his room, so he can avoid Lusamine and her criticism. But then Lusamine will make a comment about how Gladion thinks he's too good to eat with the family. Besides, Mohn is there tonight, so maybe he can keep attention off Gladion. He's been holed up doing research. Something about wormholes. Gladion isn't overly interested in it, but he sees the way Lillie's eyes light up and the way she chatters. That's right. Lillie likes space. Gladion can see the look of disapproval in Lusamine's eyes at what Lillie is saying and immediately starts an argument. He's more or less stopped giving a shit about Lusamine disapproving of his life choices, but he knows Lillie still wants her approval. Lillie shoots him a grateful smile.
Later that night, she comes into his room. “Can you believe dad is going to investigate wormholes?” she asks. Her voice is high pitched and excited. Her eyes are bright and she's babbling about stuff Gladion doesn't understand, partly because he's never been interested in space and partly because Lillie is talking too fast. But she's saying something about life in space and finding some and something about Clefairy and Clefairy being an alien and it's just a shock to see Lillie be so animated.
“Do you think you'd want to go into space one day?” Gladion asks.
Lillie immediately shakes her head. “No. I'm too much of a coward,” she says. Gladion knows he should reassure her. Should say that she isn't a coward. But Lillie can't even tell Lusamine she doesn't like a certain dress, how is she going to go into space? There's a part of Gladion that's aware he's not being very fair, but he doesn't care about that now. He thinks about how Mohn will be leaving to explore the theory about a wormholes, how he won't be around to act as a buffer between him and Lusamine. He doesn't know how long this particular trip will last, but they usually last a bit and Gladion doesn't want him to leave without saying goodbye.
He finds Mohn in his lab checking over his equipment. His Zoroark sits by his side. Mohn is muttering to himself, something about Nihelego and wormholes, but he glances up when Gladion clears his throat. He grins. “Hey, Gladion. Come to see me off?” Gladion nods and reaches down to pat Zoroark, who nuzzles against his palm. “Are you taking Zoroark?” he asks. Mohn shakes his head and Gladion frowns. “Why?” he asks. “Zoroark is a competent battler. You might need him to defend you.” Competent battler isn't the word for it. Mohn doesn't talk about it much, but he did defeat a Kahuna with it. And the Kahuna was a fighting type specialist, so Zoroark had to be a formidable battler.
“I don't want to have the Pokemon get defensive,” Mohn explains. “Sometimes an agitated Pokemon will see another Pokemon as a threat. And I don't know how the wormhole will affect Pokemon.”
“You haven't done any research?” Gladion asks.
“I have, and I have theories, but I'm not comfortable putting Zoroark at risk.” Those sound like pretty weak reasons to leave a Pokemon capable of defending you at home, but Gladion doesn't think he'll be able to convince Mohn of it, so he lets it go. He doesn't feel the need to argue with Mohh. “I'm guessing Eevee's staying home?” he asks. It makes sense. There would be no reason to take Eevee, since Eevee is a house Pokemon. Mohn nods.
“Are you excited about going?” Gladion asks.
Mohn's eyes light up. “Of course I am! Just think of all the new things to discover. Things are being discovered every day, and I'll be a part of that.” His voice softens. “The world is just so wide, Gladion, so vast. There are new things to discover all the time. Just look at how we've discovered new Evee evolutions and new Pokemon types like fairy. Just imagine what's waiting to be discovered in space. Or in the ocean.” Mohn's eyes sparkle as he says this. It makes Gladion feel like there's a whole world of possibilities, makes him feel like he can do anything. He holds onto that feeling.
*
Lusamine kisses Mohn goodbye before he leaves. She's tender with him in a way she isn't with anyone else. It causes something in Gladion to twist, at seeing his mother act like a happy woman in love. He wonders why she can be affectionate with Mohn. But he's asked her and all she said was that Mohn wasn't her child. Gladion isn't sure what that means. But seeing her wistful smile as she bids Mohn farewell makes her seem a bit approachable and Gladion thinks maybe he can have a conversation with her without in delving into a yelling match. Lusamine is more subdued for a few days, although she does brighten up when Mohn sends a message. They know that service can be pretty spotty, so they don't worry too much when he doesn't message them after the first one. If he's out in the field, he might not have the chance to message them. Gladion is sure that he'll message them as soon as he gets to a place with service. Lillie speculates eagerly about the wormhole and if a Pokemon would come out.
“Did you hear the theory Clefairy is an alien?” Lillie asks. “What do you think of it?”
“I don't really care,” Gladion answers, and then curses himself as Lillie's face falls. He means it. He really doesn't care about Clefairy being an alien, but he doesn't want to outright dismiss Lillie. So he asks, “What makes you think Clefairy is an alien?” Lillie begins to explain and even though he might not completely care about Clefairy, he doesn't regret seeing Lillie so lively, pacing the floor and waving her hands. It's completely different than how she usually is. “And do you think aliens would be able to adjust to life on earth?” she asks.
Gladion hadn't actually considered it. “Probably,” he says.
*
Mohn still isn't in contact. There's a bit of a tenseness in the air, now. It's not unusual for him to go without contact for a while, but there's always the possibility that something might have happened. Gladion tries to tell himself it will be fine, that Mohn will contact them and have an exciting story to share and that this weight will finally be lifted off his shoulders. But he can't lie to himself. He can, however, lie to Lillie. Of course Lillie is too old to believe the lies, but she nods anyway when he says that Mohn is probably okay. “Do you think we're overreacting?” Lillie asks one day. “Just because he hasn't contacted us might not mean anything is wrong.” He can hear the hope in her voice.
“Better to overreact than to under react,” Gladion replies. Images of Mohn being sucked into a wormhole keep playing in his head. This isn't a science fiction movie, he scolds himself, but when he goes to sleep at night he dreams of Mohn in an alien ship. He considers going to the police. Mohn has been missing for days, almost a week. Surely that's enough for the police to investigate. It turns out it isn't. Mohn is a grown man and he'd told his family where he was going. The police say they'll keep an eye out, but they've got no actual reason to treat this as a missing persons case. Gladion almost kicks the desk and rewards himself when he doesn't. The last thing he needs is to be arrested for destruction of property. He swallows the words down, about how his father is missing, that he wouldn't be without contact for so long, that the cops are all morons, but he can feel them churning away in his stomach. He only swallows them down because he doesn't feel like getting in trouble for yelling at a cop. Although he thinks, maybe he could get away with it because his father is missing. But that thought churns his stomach even more-the thought of getting away with anger because his father is missing. He refuses to be the poor boy with the missing father. He storms out of the station, shaking with helplessness.
*
Their worst fears are confirmed when someone finds Mohn's bag. The police come to Lusamine to ask her to identify it. Gladion watches her slumped posture, sees her nod when she looks at the bag. They take her down to the station for questioning. Gladion keeps staring at the bag. It's confirmation of their worst fears. Where's Mohn? There had been no one around the bag. Maybe there was a logical explanation for this, Gladion thinks without much hope. Maybe he just dropped his bag. Lillie fiddles with her thumbs. “He wouldn't have forgotten his bag,” she says quietly. “It had all his research in it.” Gladion nods, trying not to think about what could have happened. He's torn between not wanting to be alone and wanting to be alone.
When Lusamine gets back, her face is pale. She doesn't talk to them, only tells them it isn't their concern when they ask. Lillie withdraws, but it's a relief for Gladion to yell, a relief to finally vent the frustration he feels, a relief to feel something other than gnawing worry. He tells Lusamine that she has no right to keep this from them. Lillie intervenes, saying that they're all stressed out and maybe Lusamine just didn't want them to worry. Gladion supposes he can be charitable. And there are other things to worry about. He asks about finding Mohn. Lusamine tells them they'll have a team there to scout the area and see if they can pick something up.
The next few days pass by in a blur. Gladion and his family are constantly being questioned. Part of Gladion knows that it's probably necessary, that the family is questioned after a disappearance, but another part of him had always thought that was for missing children. And he hates the people in his home, hates them going through their things, wondering what (false) conclusions they're drawing about his family. They go over Mohn's research, keep it for a while. Gladion can understand that they might need it for evidence, but he hates the thought of them rifling through it. They wouldn't understand his passion. They wouldn't see the countless hours of him in the lab, the enthusiasm when he talks about things to be discovered. All they would see was a possible reason for his disappearance. It had never occurred to Gladion that someone might want to harm Mohn for his research.
Eventually, they get Mohn's stuff back. Or at the very least, they get copies of his notes. Gladion pores over the notes like there'll be some sort of clue, like it will be like one of those secret adventure books where the missing parent leaves behind clues for their kids to follow and it turns out they have some big secret legacy. Gladion supposes he should be grateful that no goons come to ransack the place to get his hands on Mohn's research, but all he feels is a vague disappointment. Fighting goons would have been a great stress reliever.
Instead he reads Mohn's journal, but it doesn't offer any clues. There's some sort of theory about wormholes that he doesn't quite understand and something about a Nihilego. It provides no clues. Gladion almost rips up the notes in frustration, but it's a link to his father and just because he finds the notes useless, that doesn't someone else will. So he keeps the notes. Sometimes he'll try to decipher them, but it feels like he's pounding on a locked door. The frustration rises within him and he has to fight the urge not to break things.
*
School isn't exactly a refuge. It's more of the lesser of two evils. He'd begged to go to public school instead of being tutored at home. He didn't really want to go to public school that urgently, he just wanted to get out of the house, out of the stifling air, and be able to breathe. School isn't much better. Gladion doesn't have too much of an interest in making friends and maybe he comes off as standoffish, but he wants people to leave him alone. He didn't come to school to make friends. But he hears the talk about him. People don't even bother trying to be subtle. Usual crap about rich kids and being stuck up and being too good for the rest of them. Gladion feels like his palms are permanently scarred from clenching his fists when he hears the talk. He tells himself these people aren't worth his time.
When he goes back to school, whispers follow him again. This time it's talk about his missing father. Gladion tries to ignore it. Tries to ignore all the theories floating around, ignore the people speculating as if this was all some sort of television show and not a man with two kids, a wife, and Pokemon who miss him. He glares at people who offer their condolences. They'd never cared before, and he's not putting up with their fake sympathy now. School isn't good, but it's only marginally better than home, with the oppressive silence. People are sympathetic at first, but it doesn't take long for that sympathy to fade and rumors to start.
Gladion tries to ignore those rumors. Tries to remember that punching the idiots would mean he might be suspended. It might mean he'd be at home, with Mohn's Pokemon, who keep looking for him, with Lillie, who withdraws more and more into herself, and with Lusamine and her coldness. But then one kid says something that makes Gladion snap. It's almost a relief to punch him, a relief to feel anger instead of that all consuming helplessness. Anger makes him feel in control. But anger only makes him feel in control for a little while. After that comes the numbness and the shame and the feeling that he could have done something different.
As he suspected, he's suspended. He locks himself in his room so he doesn't have to deal with Lusamine, but Lusamine is down at the lab more often than not. “What's she doing down there?” he asks Lillie. He's enjoying the unexpected break, but a part of him thinks that maybe she should support her two kids instead of hiding out in the lab. Lillie looks at Gladion. “She has Aether things to do,” she answers. “And she has a team of scientists researching dad's notes.” Gladion has to admit it makes sense. Maybe Lusamine needs to take her mind off Mohn's disappearance, and the scientists might be able to decipher his notes. Lillie speaks suddenly. “I heard them talking,” she says. “There was an unknown Pokemon where the notes were found.”
Gladion eyes widen. “What Pokemon?” he demands.
Lillie looks away. “I don't know. I didn't go see.” Right. Lillie wouldn't go down to the lab. She's afraid of Pokemon. But Gladion wants to see the new Pokemon, so he goes down to the lab. The Pokemon looks like a floating puffball. “Do you know what happened to my dad?” he asks. The Pokemon just floats around and Gladion resists the urge to yell. He might yell at idiots who don't know when to shut up, but he's not going to yell at an innocent Pokemon. He's never seen that Pokemon before. He wonders if that Pokemon came from the wormhole and feels a pang at how his father would have reacted. Then Lusamine is there, grabbing his arm roughly and yelling at him and dragging him away. Gladion is too stunned to do anything but go along with it. Lusamine had never touched him before. Why would she want him out of the lab? They'd always had full access with Mohn, and he'd always told them about his projects, even if they don't fully understand the specifics. Gladion wonders if he should be worried.
It turns out the answer is yes. Lusamine holes up in the lab with Faba. She barely speaks to anyone but him. Gladion tries to eavesdrop, but all he can make out are words like beast killer and Nihilego. Of course when Lusamine comes up from the lab, Gladion wishes she'd go back down. Nothing he does is right. She's like a predator, waiting to pounce on a prey. His hair is wrong, his clothes are wrong, his voice is wrong, the way he walks is wrong. Gladion can't do anything without Lusamine criticizing him and acting like he's existing just to spite her. Gladion's spine is constantly stiff now. When he tries to protest what Lusamine's saying, her only reply is that she's trying to teach him, to show him the right way. Gladion retorts that her way isn't the only way and she just chuckles and says she can't expect children to know what's best for them.
*
Gladion decides not to go back to school. He's sick of his tragedy being made a spectacle of. He locks himself in his room and spends most of his time reading and doing schoolwork. Sometimes he'll attempt to draw something, and he'll feel calm for a little bit, but then he'll see the clumsy lines of the drawing and anger will spike in him and he'll crumple the drawing up. Lusamine is on his case more than ever. He argues back with her, tells her that she's full of shit, but there's a tiny part of him that wonders if she's right, a tiny part of him that can't help but feel hurt by her words. He considers reaching out for help, but what would he say? His mom is saying things that hurt his feelings? He's read Series of Unfortunate Events and he keeps having the image of someone being like Mr. Poe and saying his mother can raise him however she sees fit. What does he really expect anyone to do? Come in, guns blazing? No one ever really stands up for him. Mohn will try to talk Lusamine down, but he doesn't do it with enough force. And then he'll go to Gladion and ask him to be a bit more understanding, that Lusamine just wants what's best for him. And Lillie-well he doesn't really expect anything from Lillie. Lillie will come into his room to talk after, but Gladion wants more than that. He wants people actually say the words this is wrong, instead of trying to force him to make peace.
*
Gladion begins spending time with Mohn's Pokemon. Part of it is that he feels they're the only good company. Another part of him understands their loneliness. Lusamine is too busy to take them on and Lillie is scared of Pokemon. There's a restless energy to Zoroark that Gladion understands. He thinks that if Zoroark could leave, he would. He thinks about releasing Zoroark, but he hates the thought of Mohn coming home and finding his beloved Pokemon gone. Evee is more affectionate, following Gladion around wherever he goes.
Life settles into a sort of tense pattern. Lusamine spends all her time in the lab, only emerging to throw criticism at Gladion. Lillie keeps to herself. Gladion does the same, but sometimes he'll take Zoroark and Eevee out on the grounds and take a walk, pretending he's somewhere other than here. Sometimes he can trick himself into thinking it's not so bad. But as the days go by, as the chances of finding Mohn alive dwindle and Lusamine becomes more distant and crueler, Gladion thinks something will have to give eventually. He just doesn't expect what happened to push him over the edge.
If pressed, he couldn't say why he went down to the lab. Maybe it was instinct, maybe it was some sort of destiny. Maybe it was one of those random things in the universe, where things just worked out and the right people were there at the right time. The point is, Gladion is in the lab. He can see Lusamine surrounded by scientists. He remains hidden, remembering the last time he'd been down here. He isn't exactly sure why he stays. Maybe he just wants to know what Lusamine is doing. Maybe he just wants to have something to throw in her face, to ask her what's so important that she can't be with her kids. Then Gladion imagines how it would go if he actually said that. He imagines feeling powerful, throwing the words at Lusamine like a weapon. But then Lusamine would turn it on him, making it seem like Gladion is just too stupid to understand what she's doing, that it's for his own good. So Gladion doesn't reveal himself.
As Lusamine talks to the scientists, it occurs to Gladion that it doesn't really matter if he's caught. It's not like he understands enough to know what they're talking about. He hears the words RKS system and something about the experiment being null and terminating it. They leave, and Gladion emerges from his hiding place. He's heard enough to know that Lusamine was working on a project that failed.
Maybe he should be empathetic. No one likes to put their heart and soul into a project only to fail. But Gladion thinks of the constant criticisms she's leveled his way and feels a wave of spite. Let Lusamine see how it was to fail at something. He goes to look at the experiment and feels himself freeze. He doesn't know what he was expecting. He'd expected weapons, maybe some sort of complicated machine. But what he sees is a Pokemon asleep in a glass tube. He's never seen this Pokemon before, but he thinks he can recognize parts of other Pokemon all cobbled together. What is this?” Gladion thinks. He feels numb. Were they experimenting with Pokemon? He has the horrible image of Lusamine and the scientists slicing off parts of the Pokemon that they wanted and cobbling them together.
He stares at the Pokemon for a minute. He wonders how long it's been asleep, what made Lusamine and the scientists decide to scrap the project. He wonders what they wanted to use the Pokemon for. Then he feels the blood in his veins turn to ice and he remembered what they said about terminating the project. His legs are trembling. He feels a roaring in his ears as he storms off to find Lusamine. He finds her in her office and slams the door open. “What are you going to do with that chimera Pokemon? He hurls the question into Lusamine's face. Lusamine just raises her eyebrows, like Gladion is a child throwing a tantrum.
“You shouldn't have seen that,” Lusamine says calmly, as though they're just gossiping over tea. Gladion clenches his fists. Lusamine isn't going to evade the question. “What is that Pokemon? What are you going to do to them?” he demands.
Lusamine still speaks calmly. “Type: Null is a failed experiment. It must be terminated.” Gladion feels himself trembling. “What do you mean, terminated?” Lusamine simply looks at Gladion, like he should already know the answer and he's stupid for not figuring it out. “What-you're going to kill it?” he asks, his voice rising.
“The experiment failed,” Lusamine repeats. “You have to discard failures.” She gives him a look that might be trying to be comforting. “It will be painless,” she assures him, but there's no warmth in her statement. “You can't do that!” Gladion yells. “You can't just terminate Null because your experiment failed. They're a Pokemon with feelings, for fuck's sake!”
Lusamine doesn't react to the profanity. That makes Gladion feel even more helpless. He feels himself spiraling. He tries to pull himself together. Maybe if he calms down, he can reason this out with Lusamine. But he doesn't have any reasons. All he has is that Null is a Pokemon, a living Pokemon, and they deserve better than to be terminated because they didn't live up to their purpose. That should be the only reason Lusamine needs-that it's wrong to kill a Pokemon or a person because they've outlived their usefulness, but she needs another reason. Gladion tries to calm himself down enough to think.
“What was the experiment for?” he asks. “Just because Null failed doesn't mean they can't be useful some other way.” He hates this, hates that he has to argue to give the Pokemon the chance to make themselves useful for Lusamine to consider sparing them. Lusamine doesn't answer. Then she seems to relent. “Type: Null was created to fight Ultra Beasts.” Gladion falters at the unfamiliar word. Lusamine sees his hesitation and sighs impatiently. “Ultra Beasts! They're out there, Gladion. They'll come for us.” Lusamine talks some more, but Gladion isn't listening. “And Type: Null was created to fight these Ultra Beasts?” he asks. “And they can't fight them? Why are you just shutting down the experiment? Can't you collaborate with other scientists?”
Lusamine shoots Gladion a look. “We don't need to collaborate with other scientists. The experiment is a failure and will be terminated.”
Gladion feels himself go limp. He can't change Lusamine's mind. Null is a failure and she's just going to toss Null away like he tosses his messed up drawings away. At least Gladion has the excuse of frustration and the fact that the drawings are just pieces of paper. Null is an experiment, but they're a living creature. He thinks of begging Lusamine, of raging and yelling, of offering up alternatives, but he knows that Lusamine will just ignore anything he can come up with. “I'll go to the cops,” he tells her, and his voice isn't as steady as he would like. Lusamine picks up on the uncertainty like a shark scenting blood. “And tell them what? You forget that I'm in good standing.” That's right. Lusamine is the beloved President of Aether Paradise. No one wants to believe the organization can be doing something shady. Lusamine continues. “And you don't have any proof. You just heard us talking. Do you think they'd take your word for it?” Each word is like a blow, but Lusamine keeps hammering the point home. “And Null is an experiment. There's some debate on whether or not experiments like Null have rights.” Rage threatens to choke Gladion. “Why?” his voice comes out thick. “Why are you so eager to discard Null?”
Lusamine eyes Gladion calmly. “Why are you so determined to protect Null?” she asks.
Gladion can't process the question. Why shouldn't he want to protect Null? Null is vulnerable and needs help. What other reason could he possibly have? He just glares incredulously at Lusamine. “Maybe you emphasize with Null?” she suggests. Gladion simply storms off. He can't reason with Lusamine, probably can't reason with the scientists and Faba. He'll have to get Null out himself. He feels the adrenaline coursing through him, feels the sense of a purpose, feels steady in a way he hasn't since before Mohn disappeared.
*
Maybe Lusamine underestimates Gladion. Maybe she thinks Null isn't worth her time. At any rate, Type: Null is unguarded. Gladion stares at the controls. He feels like those people in movies where they have to cut the wire to detonate the bomb. He searches the shelves for instructions on how to turn off the chamber. He scans the shelves for anything that might be of use, but the problem is he isn't sure of what exactly is useful and what isn't. Finally, he figures out what to do and presses a button. Gladion isn't really sure what he was expecting. It had never fully occurred to him to wonder why Type: Null was considered a failure. Type: Null lunges at him. It's all Gladion can do to dodge, but he's not so lucky a second time around and Null slams into him. Gladion can feel the wind knocked out of him, feel the ache in his bones, and lashes out frantically. He doesn't want to die.
Zoroark is there suddenly, like an avenging angel. He lunges at Null, grabs them by the scruff of their neck, slashes ferociously. Gladion stands up unsteadily. “No,” he orders. Zoroark has Type: Null subdued for now, but with the way their thrashing, he can tell they won't be subdued for long. “It's okay,” he says. He keeps his body language and his tone nonthreatening. “You're safe with me.” Type: Null doesn't listen. Gladion continues talking, but his hand is reaching for a Pokeball. Then Type:Null breaks free from Zoroark and lunges at Gladion. He doesn't have time to dodge and goes sailing. He watches in fascination as Type: Null trashes the lab.
Gladion belated realizes that this racket must have alerted security, if it hadn't already. Security will come and they'll subdue Type: Null and they'll probably take it as conformation that they have to kill Null. “Knock it out!” Gladion orders Zoroark. He can hear footsteps and yelling and a hysterical part of him thinks it's about time. Zoroark manages to knock Type: Null out, and Gladion hurriedly puts them into a Pokeball. He suddenly finds himself surrounded by people and tenses, unsure of what to do.
The crowd parts and Lusamine steps forward. Gladion tenses. “You aren't hurting Null,” he snarls. “I won't let you.”
Lusamine sighs, that put upon parental sigh when their child is throwing a tantrum. “Type Null is a failed experiment,” she repeats and damn Gladion wishes he had a flask so he could take a shot every time Lusamine says that. He wonders if he'd be drunk by now. “I don't see why you're so invested.” Gladion's eyes scan the room, trying to find a way out. The exits are blocked. If he can create a diversion, would he be fast enough to escape? “Why do you care whether or not I get involved with a failed experiment?” he asks. “What difference does it make to you?” Before Lusamine can answer, Gladion yells at Zoroark to create a diversion. Zoroark does, and there's suddenly the sound of machines exploding, of glass and debris raining on his head and Gladion crouches down to protect himself but Zoroark is nudging his leg and Gladion realizes what that means, puts Null into a Pokeball, and dashes past the security and out the door. He doesn't know how long Zoroark can hold the illusion.
He has to escape. Maybe he would have left sooner, maybe he would have stuck it out. But he definitely can't stay now, not when he knows what they're planning to do to Null. Adrenaline pumps through him as he runs. Where can he go? He doesn't know. All he knows is that he can't stay here. Does he have time to run to his room and grab things? No, he can't risk that. He has to escape. He has to make sure he and Null get away from here. But Aether Paradise is an island, is Alcatraz, Azkban. Sirius Black escaped, Gladion thinks, but he can't transform into a dog and he's an okay swimmer. Definitely not good enough to swim to land. Other workers used Charizards to get to and from the islands, but Gladion doesn't have a pager. Fear begins to war with adrenaline. He feels like he's been chased into an alleyway and the killer is closing in on him. He has to think. There has to be a way out of here, he thinks.
Gladion manages to find the elevator. He hesitates, sure that Zoroark was probably defeated and that people would be after him any moment. How long has it been? It can't have been that long. Gladion scans over the options frantically. What if he chooses the wrong one and becomes trapped? He sees the one marked entrance and pushes the button frantically. The elevator takes forever to arrive. Gladion isn't sure if it's his imagination. Any moment now he expects to be grabbed, but he isn't and he hurries into the elevator, jabbing at the button over and over again as though that will get the elevator to go faster. He almost expects to be surrounded by people when he gets to the entrance, but the place is deserted. Gladion is too full of adrenaline, too full of worry for Zoroark and too full of anger and a whole host of other feelings to wonder why no one is there when he stumbles out of the elevator. Maybe it's just luck. Maybe it's just luck that he sees a boat. It's like finding water after being starving in a desert. Relief shoots through Gladion so sharply he almost stumbles. He manages to catch himself and hurry into the boat. He stares at the controls, trying to figure out how to work them.
He hears more yelling, sees the workers pouring out. Shit. He suddenly finds the switch to turn on the boat, yanks on a lever, and nearly falls when he crashes. Shit. His heart thudding, he manages to turn the boat around and get it in open water. He feels as though he's moving underwater. He watches Lusamine come up, Lillie at her side. Lusamine's face is cold. Lillie's eyes are wide, pleading. Gladion wishes he could tell her goodbye, wishes he could explain, tell her that he loves her, but there's no time. He keeps expecting for someone to stop him, but no one does. He wonders if there was some compassion in Lusamine left at all.
*
By some miracle, Gladion doesn't hit any more property or injure Pokemon and manages to find land. It's a miracle. He lies on the boat, trembling. His wounds throb and there's a bone deep exhaustion in him. He wants to sleep, but he doesn't feel like being caught sleeping in a boat and having to answer questions. He just needs to....he doesn't know what he needs to do. He feels like he's observing everything from a distance, like he's a passenger in his own body. He gets off the boat. Maybe people call out to him. He doesn't really know. It hurts to walk. He feels a hand on his shoulder and nearly lashes out. The man holds up his hands in a placating gesture. He says something, but Gladion shrugs him off. He doesn't need their help. He just needs-he sees the Pokemon Center like a beacon. Pokemon Center. He could get Null healed. But what if they refused to heal them because he was an experiment? What if they reported Null and Lusamine asks for them back? What if she claims that Null is her experiment and therefore her property and asks for Null back? Pokemon Center-Zoroark! What if Zoroark was hurt? Gladion can't stop trembling.
He feels hands on his body, guiding him inside. His limbs suddenly feel like lead, otherwise he would have swatted at them. Nurse Joy's face comes into focus. He concentrates enough to make out the word help. What does she need his help with? Why should he help her? No, wait, she's asking if he needs help. That makes more sense. “What can you do?” he asks. “You're a Pokemon nurse. You don't know how to treat humans.” Did that sound rude? Gladion isn't sure. But Nurse Joy doesn't look angry. She just says how she has a little bit of training patching up humans as well. She asks again if he needs help. Gladion says no. He doesn't need help. Doesn't want Nurse Joy seeing the bruises, doesn't want to deal with her questions and figuring out what he should say. He just wants to sleep. “Do you have a room?” he asks. He could deal with everything else later.
Nurse Joy leads him to a room, and Gladion collapses on the bed. His mind is racing. He's stolen a Pokemon. He's stolen a boat. He's left home. He's on his own. The thought should make him feel something like relief or regret. But he feels like a prisoner escaping and looking around, unsure of which way to run. I can deal with whatever in the morning. He tries to get his mind to shut off, tries to calm down. But he jumps at every shadow on the wall, at every noise, worried that it might be Lusamine come to drag him back home. When he finally closes his eyes, his dreams are fitful, dreams about Null and Zoroark dying and Gladion forced to watch. When he wakes up, his breath comes in shallow gasps. He has to find out if Zoroark is okay.
He stumbles out of bed and heads to the phones by the computer and shoves the person using it aside. “Family emergency,” he snaps. “I need the phone.” The guy leaves without protest and Gladion feels a pang of guilt and then irritation at the guy for giving in so easily. But he ignores it and dials Lillie's number. The phone keeps ringing and Gladion isn't sure what to feel. He feels like he's stuck in limbo. Relief shoots through him when he hears Lillie's voice. “Gladion!” she exclaims. “Thank goodness, I've been so worried.”
“How's Zoroark?” Gladion demands. “Is he hurt?” Zoroark had fought Null for him. Had distracted the workers for him. If he'd been hurt on Gladion's orders...
“Zoroark is fine,” Lillie assures him, but his voice lacks certainty. “Gladion, what happened? Why did you run away?” Gladion doesn't want to explain here, where people could overhear him. But he knows Lillie deserves an explanation. He keeps it short. “Lusamine was going to hurt a Pokemon. I couldn't let that happen.”
“She was saying something about an experiment,” Lillie's voice is hesitant.
“Null's a Pokemon, not an experiment. He barely refrains from snapping, both because Lillie doesn't deserve it and because he doesn't want to draw attention to himself.
“Okay, okay. And you ran away to save them?”
“Yes.”
Lillie is silent for a moment. Her voice is resigned when she asks, “So that means you aren't coming home?” Gladion doesn't know how to handle that tone. He tries to think of an answer to assure Lillie, but maybe Lillie doesn't need assurance. “I don't think it's safe there,” he says at least. His home is unsafe, but he doubts anyone would care enough to intervene.
“So what are you going to do?” Lillie asks and Gladion doesn't have an answer. He'd been running on desperation, determined to save Null. He hadn't thought of what he would do after. Uncertainty causes him to be irritated and he snaps at Lillie, saying he doesn't know. Lillie remains silent and for once Gladion would like her to yell back, wants her to fight back so he doesn't have to feel like an asshole for yelling at her. He clenches his fists, feels his nails digging into his palms until his anger drains. Lillie doesn't deserve to have his frustration taken out on her. It's not her fault Lusamine is a shit parent and that Gladion didn't think things through. It suddenly hits Gladion that he's away from home with nothing but the clothes on his back and a volatile Pokemon. He swallows back a wave of fear. He won't be weak.
“Did Lusamine say anything?” Gladion asks. He hopes she threw a fit, but he doubts he'd be so lucky. “She doesn't really care,” Lillie's tone is apologetic. “She said you were always ungrateful and sooner or later you'd come crawling back to her.” The words don't hurt.
“Did she say anything about Null?” he asks.
“No. She says the experiment was a waste of time and she's washed her hands of it.” Fury surges through Gladion. Of course. It was so easy to just discard something like trash the second it didn't work out the way Lusamine thought it should. And it figures after all the bullshit Gladion went through, Lusamine would just wash her hands of them. Gladion supposes he should be grateful that Lusamine doesn't give enough of a shit about him and Null to try and bring them in.
“Where are you?” Lillie asks. “Are you okay? What are you going to do?”
“I'm at the Pokemon Center. I don't know what island I'm on. I don't know what I'm going to do. I'll figure something out.”
“But you've got no money and no clothes. What are you going to do?” Gladion knows this. He's thought of this himself. But just because he's wondered the same thing doesn't mean he wants Lillie asking those questions. “I'll figure it out,” he snaps, and hangs up. The anger rises and Gladion welcomes it. Did Lillie think he was stupid? That he just ran away without a plan? That he couldn't figure things out? He didn't need Lillie to worry about him. But the reality is that he's far from home, with no money and he isn't sure how long he can stay in the Pokemon Center. He feels like freezing every time he thinks about the reality of the situation, that he's technically homeless with no one to help him, so he clings to anger, clings to the idea that Lillie is underestimating him. He storms out of the Pokemon Center and goes to take a walk.
He walks fast, as if he can outrun his anger. He knows that Lillie is right. That he has no money, no clothes, and a volatile Pokemon. But if he thinks about it, the fear rises up and chokes him, so he just goes ahead and thinks that Lillie is just being condescending, even if he knows she's right. It suddenly occurs to him to wonder if Lusamine had asked about him. He'll ask Lillie when he calls her again, and he'll apologize. His injuries ache, but they don't impede his movement, so Gladion counts that as a win. He wonders if part of the reason they considered the experiment a failure was because of how Null had attacked him. Had Null done that to the other scientists? Gladion wishes he'd thought to grab some of the research papers. What's done is done, he tells himself, but that doesn't reassure him.
*
It turns out out he's washed up on Melemele Island. He comes to an area called Big Wave Beach. The sun is shining and the water is a beautiful sparkling blue. Palm trees sway in the breeze. He can hear the happy chatter of tourists and locals, see them running along the beach or lining up to go surfing or Mantine riding. He feels like he's standing out in his all black clothes, but aside from a glance or so, no one pays him much mind. Right. People are too caught up in their own lives to care about anything else. Why do I care? Gladion thinks. It's not that I want people to approach me. It's better this way, better to be anonymous. But he hears the shrieks of laughter, sees the children running up to their parents and the parents greeting them warmly, and feels a pang. He pushes the pang away ruthlessly.
I should probably talk to Null, he thinks. But suppose Null goes berserk again? It's not their fault, but if people see them, who knows what they'll do. He needs to find an isolated area. Luckily, he finds a cave and slips inside. The tide is high and the bottom on his pants become soaked as he wades to a dry spot. Gladion takes a deep breath and tosses Null's pokeball. There's a flash of light and Gladion tenses, ready to run. But Null just looks around. Their body language is more relaxed. Gladion suddenly thinks that maybe he should have been talking to Null in the Pokeball all this time, like how people spoke to a baby when they were inside the womb.
Gladion keeps his voice and posturing non threatening. “Hey, Null. My name's Gladion. You saw me earlier, remember?” Did they? Gladion isn't sure. Null is looking around. Gladion keeps talking. He isn't sure if it's because he's nervous, or because he's trying to prevent Null from going on a rampage. “So, we're in a cave. Have you ever been in a cave?” Gladion realizes how idiotic that question is. He highly doubts the scientists at Aether were taking Null out on field trips to view the natural world. Yet again, it occurs to Gladion what deep shit he's in. How is he supposed to help Null? He doesn't know anything about the experiment. And even if he did, how is he supposed to give Null sympathy? He doesn't know how to comfort people. Frustration surges in him and he punches the ground. Pain shoots through him. “I'm sorry,” he grits out to Null. “You deserve someone who knows what they're doing but you're stuck with me.” Gladion trembles. He has no idea what to do and no one to help him. He feels a shifting behind his back and Null nudges him. Despite himself, Gladion smiles and pets Null. “I suppose we're stuck with each other,” he says.
*
When Gladion returns to the Pokemon Center he's calmer. He calls Lillie and apologizes. “I'm just worried about you,” she says.
“Don't be. I'll figure something out. Maybe there are odd jobs or something I can do.”
Lillie doesn't let up. “And where are you going to sleep?” she asks. “Or get food? Or clothes?”
This time Gladion is calmer. “I can sleep in Pokemon Centers,” he replies. “I can probably get away with it for a night or so. And there are always places outside to sleep.”
“Outside?”
“Yeah, lots of trainers do it when they're traveling for the island challenge.”
“Next I suppose you'll tell me you can live off the land.”
Gladion must have hesitated too long because Lillie exclaims, “You don't know which plants are poisonous and which ones aren't!”
“Neither do you,” Gladion feels compelled to point out. “But I'm not dumb enough to go putting random berries in my mouth. Has Lusamine said anything yet? How's Zoroark?” He hopes Lillie doesn't point out that she's already answered at least one of these questions.
“I checked on Zoroark,” Lillie answers. “He's fine. I don't think mom will do anything to Zoroark if that's what you're wondering about.” It had never occurred to Gladion that Lusamine might have done something to Zoroark and he goes cold at the thought. If Zoroark had gotten hurt, it would have been because of him. He's the one who ordered Zoroark to cause a distraction. It takes him a minute to realize that Lillie is still talking. “Mom didn't exactly tell me her plans for you. But she seems unconcerned, so I don't think she's sending the cops after you. She doesn't seem to care either way.”
“Of course,” Gladion snaps bitterly. “A failure of a son and a failure of an experiment. Why would she give a shit?” Lillie doesn't bother to reassure him. Gladion sighs. “I suppose this means she won't send the cops after me?” It suddenly occurs to him that he's stolen a boat and fled with an experiment. He wonders how Lusamine will spin that, then decides it's better for him not to know. As long as Lusamine leaves him and Null alone, he doesn't give a shit about her.