STEM SYNTHESIS: GROUND

In preparation for the synthesis project, Josh had invited illeana reyes to Mauville Gym to review his entire Pokémon armada -- all eighty of them -- to determine the candidates that would most likely survive the stem cell extraction required for synthesis. He would have used his Beedrill, King Zing, for the extreme tenacity the big bug showed, but the saddled wasp was still stuck within the League's penal system. Instead, he would have to use a Pokémon with a unique role within his squad: the ride Gliscor, Steel Needle.

Both Josh and Illeana had to wear very thick padding to protect themselves from sudden lashes with the flying ground-type's long, flexible, barbed tail. Her pincers could easily be held down, but that tail's flexibility and strength made the venomous Pokémon too dangerous to approach without appropriate safety gear. It took a bit of effort to get the unusual mount to hold still long enough for the researcher to steady the needle against Steel Needle's hardened skin for it to drop. With a push of the thumb, the contents of its ampule sunk into the predator's bloodstream.

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The moment the drain started, Steel Needle's tail went flying and flailing about, jabbing at the two several times. Even the athletic Gym Leader lacked the strength to hold the tail down, his efforts to do so in vein as he was rather quickly sent flying. The Gliscor's tail narrowly missed Illeana, Josh quick to recall his brave yet apprehensive partner as soon as the test tube containing her stem cells was filled sufficiently.

STEEL NEEDLE THE GLISCOR PERMANENTLY LOSES ONE MOVE SLOT.

STEM SYNTHESIS: FLYING

The Pokémon Josh had chosen for today's extraction was one he held near and dear to his heart. If Alexei Ivanov knew the Mauville Gym Leader was putting his Salamence through this, he would have never forgiven him were something untoward to happen. With regret, yet firm resolve, the Master of Faster clicked open the Poké Ball containing Yosei. The red-winged dragon, true to his heroic nature, put on the bravest face he could muster. Josh recognized that, giving the dragon a head rub.

The quadrupedal dragon was illeana reyes 's best patient yet, shifting his eyes away from the syringe filled with black, disgusting-looking medicine. The tough Pokémon didn't even flinch upon the needle piercing his scales, or even the dangerous cultivar entering his bloodstream. Josh was more scared than his partner was, turning away in fear of what could happen to the dragon...

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The moment the drain started, Yosei relaxed. Not one sign of pain or anger. Josh breathed a sigh of relief, giving his dragon a great big hug. "Come on, let's fly back to Mauville and celebrate!" After thanking Illeana, the Gym Leader hopped on his Salamence and squeezed the Pokémon's sides to coax him to take off. Yosei instead replied with a yawn and rolled over without warning, Josh able to slide off just in time to avoid being pinned underneath the TRUANT dragon's leg. As the dragon lazily stretched, Josh had realized what the medicine had done.

It had rendered the Salamence useless for any serious task he could employ the dragon for. While Illeana assured it would be temporary, there was no telling how long the lethargy would last for!

YOSEI THE SALAMENCE'S ABILITIES HAVE BEEN TEMPORARILY REPLACED BY THE TRUANT ABILITY. HIS ABILITY WILL REVERT AFTER BEING USED IN 130 POSTS. THIS ABILITY CANNOT BE REMOVED IN ANY OTHER WAY.

STEM SYNTHESIS: BUG

Josh had to jump through some real hoops to continue the synthesis process. It took some sweet-talking, but he was able to, with illeana reyes 's help, convince PENELOPE LIVY and the rest of the Accountability Department to give his Beedrill, King Zing, back to Josh for the purposes of the Type: Null's synthesis. Of course, as soon as the stem cells were extracted, he would have to send the Pokémon back to the League to serve the rest of his one-year sentence and rehabilitation.

The Pokémon racer released the highly aggressive Beedrill from his Poké Ball. King Zing looked strange to Josh without his riding gear. As much as he wanted to go flying on the insect's back and try to rebuild the bond with the Pokémon he had been separated from for four months, that opportunity would be short-lived. The best he would get would be a flash of the eyes that was far from menacing; after all, it was difficult for Beedrill to communicate their pleasure. Their bodies were meant to convey intimidation. Fear. Aggression. There was a reason the common bug Pokémon was highly respected and sought after by inexperienced trainers.

As cruel as it was, Josh rightly anticipated the need to keep the bloodthirsty insect trapped in place while illeana reyes bravely extracted the wasp's Bug-type stem cells. As such, the two employed a sticky trap that they had to lure the Beedrill onto. Once they had succeeded, the Pokémon's wings roared at a wild volume, his instincts kicking in. It was as good of an opportunity as she was going to get, sticking the needle into the vibrating Pokémon's side and doing her beat to keep her arm steady as she performed the procedure.

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The moment the black medicine entered the Beedrill's body, the vibration intensified, the whir of the drain completely drowned out by the sound of Beedrill wings droning with power that threatened to leave the lab area in shambles. Not a moment after the scientist gave the all clear did Josh recall his Pokémon. He was fully unaware of what side effects, if any, the injection had caused the Pokémon he had become saparated from. Little did he know how much more challenging it would make the wasp's rehab...

KING ZING THE BEEDRILL PERMANENTLY LOSES ONE MOVE SLOT.

STEM SYNTHESIS: DARK

Every decision Josh had to make was incredibly difficult. He loved every single one of his Pokémon and could not bear to see them suffer like this. He didn't have a choice, though; with the war looking to escalate at any moment, especially since the discovery of Tera Tunnels throughout Hoenn, he would surely be involved in another brutal arms race. Elisabeth Fiorelli 's Wo-Chien surely wasn't the only legendary Pokémon that had recently allied with Team Rocket. As much as he loathed the idea of putting some of his prized Eeveelutions at risk, the League would force his hand eventually.

After a sleepless night of trying to decide which Dark-type Pokémon he had personally captured was to be put under the knife, he met up with illeana reyes once more in the basement of Mauville Gym's Operations Center. The Gym Leader had kept his wits about him until now. Today, he could not stop sobbing. He and his Greninja were close, having overcome many hardships to turn her into one of his fastest rides capable of both running and swimming. She was also a reliable Pokémon when stealth was needed, and stealth was very much a four letter word to Josh. "You're so brave, Winky," he sniffed, finding himself the recipient of a pat on the shoulder from one of the giant frog's feet. "I'm really pulling for you!" As soon as the science sister pointed the needle toward Winky, Josh turned around, unable to watch. He wanted to cover his ears, too, but ultimately resisted the temptation...

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Everything was going smoothly at first, the sound of the drain the only thing breaking the silence. Once the drain had stopped, Josh was about to celebrate when the sound of several of Winky's warts all bursting simultaneously made his heart skip at least one beat. Internal fluids shot out of the former warts like beams, Gym Leader and scientist frantic in performing first aid to try to save the Greninja's life. While they were able to save the amphibian's life by the skin of her teeth, it was clear that the Pokémon had suffered a major disability and would likely be reduced to a racing Pokémon only. A valuable battle partner of his would likely never see another battle again.

WINKY THE GRENINJA PERMANENTLY LOSES HER SIXTEEN-WEEK BERRY SLOT AND TWO MOVE SLOTS.

STEM SYNTHESIS: PSYCHIC

There was no putting it off any longer. With the heaviest head and the most tension he had ever felt in his life, Josh clicked the switch in the center of Janus' Poké Ball, the Espeon quick to read his trainer's mind. With a large frown on his face, the Psychic-type was quick to begin protesting, both physically and mentally. He even went as far as to put a PSYCHIC wall between himself and illeana reyes . "Janus, I'm so sorry. I didn't make this decision lightly. I know you're aware of what this has done to your friends. I care for you. I really do. This decision is out of my hands, though. The League is forcing my hand." As unethical as it was to go through with this procedure, the Gym Leader needed every powerful weapon he could get his hands on. A Type: Null would surely be one of those. An attempt to clone the Creator-God Arceus, with enough Silvally Memories, the creature could typeshift as efficiently as the divine Pokémon Himself.

After a mental argument spanning minutes, Janus reluctantly agreed to go through with the operation. Letting the barrier down, he allowed Illeana to prepare the injection site in an effort to make it the least painful it would be. Of course, it wasn't the poke from the needle that would bring the true pain; it was the black, ichor-like contents within the syringe that the needle was a part of. Both trainer and Pokémon closed their eyes, unable to watch...

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Radio silence filled the makeshift lab beneath Mauville Gym as the medicine left the needle and flowed into Janus' bloodstream. The Espeon had his bravest face on, though Josh could tell the pain he was in from how severely his forked tail twitched. The whir of the drain followed, drawing a purple fluid tainted black through its long, winding tube. Just as the extraction ended, the psychic-type let out an unearthly screech, a large, black bruise appearing at the injection site, the skin around it visibly thumping. Withdrawing his Pokémon, Josh quickly left the premises, getting on his Dragonair and EXTREME SPEEDING to the nearest Pokémon Center before there was any more risk to his prized Janus bleeding out.

JANUS THE ESPEON PERMANENTLY LOSES ONE MOVE SLOT.

STEM SYNTHESIS: STEEL

It was one of the last "easy" decisions to make. Out of the Pokémon Josh had remaining, he only had two Steel-types natively captured in Hoenn. To continue this operation despite the hell it put the Pokémon through was something Josh admired illeana reyes for. While it was impossible to tell her emotions as she filled the syringe with the black, vile-looking skin cultivar, she had to have incredible fortitude to willingly put Pokémon in danger. It was a sign of truly strong loyalty to the League. Neither one of them wanted to do this. These were the types of experiments Team Rocket was known for and condemned for. Why, then, would the League force Josh to do so? Was this further punishment for the Eris incident? It seemed unfair to the Gym Leader, an otherwise nearly flawless model of the League's ideals, marred by a single, yet serious, isolated incident.

The subject would be one of Josh's more recent additions to Mauville Gym: Bora the Corviknight. While not particularly fast, the Pokémon played a vital role in Gym construction and maintenance, able to move enormous objects around the place with ease. It would be a big loss if something untoward were to happen. Shedding a tear, the Gym Leader turned away as Illeana found purchase between plates of the corvid's heavy armor, pushing the black substance into the giant bird's bloodstream.

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From the moment Illeana had finished pushing the medicine all the way into the black bird's vein, things went south. Josh had to send out several of his other Pokémon to get the flailing creature to hold still, even going as far as to loose a THUNDER WAVE. While it was drastic, the measure was enough to get the steel-type to hold still enough for her to extract cultivated stem cells from the steel-type using the drain.

Eventually, though, the seizures became so intense that not even the strength of Josh's Pokémon on top of paralysis would hold the Corviknight back. The Gym Leader tried to withdraw the steel-type, but he kept missing with the beam. After several failed attempts, the seizing stopped. Bora's beak was wide open, her eyes motionless as her wings bled from the involuntary punishment she had put them through during her violent convulsions. With a heavy heart, the scientist broke the bad news to Josh, which reduced him to tears.

Bora the Corviknight was no more.

BORA THE CORVIKNIGHT DIES.

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Stem Synthesis: 11/18

STEM SYNTHESIS: ROCK

As cruel was it was to dwell on, Josh was relieved it wasn't Pinky; he had almost chosen the Shiny Sylveon as the Fairy-type to extract Fairy stem cells from. He at least had caught a second Corviknight, Vayu, to replace Bora at the Gym. The two were almost the same size, meaning he would even be able to use Bora's saddle with Vayu as a way to remember him. Even so, Vayu would be no replacement for Bora. The slightly small Corviknight lacked the raw strength and tenacity Bora had. The steel-type's passing made every decision weigh on him more, now that he knew death was a possibility.

As illeana reyes prepared the vial and syringe for Rock-type cell extraction from the overly confident Hisuian Arcanine, Craggro, Braver popped out of his Poké Ball and immediately began protesting. He loudly barked, begging Josh not to go through with it. "Braver, I'm so sorry," he began sobbing, hugging the Kantonian Arcanine, his brother not so much as looking away as the needle pierced the rock-type's red fur. "The League has my hands tied," he sobbed, burying his face in the great dog's cream-colored fur. Craggro forced Josh to play Keep Away to ensure Illeana could finish the procedure. While the Type: Full manual made it apparent that there would be risks to the Pokémon, neither one of them expected death was one. It made both of them resent the experimentation all the more. The Kantonian Arcanine gave Josh a death stare, not needing a degree in Pokémon speech to know what he was thinking:

"If you kill my brother, I'll never, ever forgive you!"

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Once the needle pierced the Hisuian Arcanine's skin, Braver growled, barked, and lunged through Josh, ramming him to the ground and sending the scientist's equipment flying. It was too late, though; the syringe had already been emptied into the fire-type's bloodstream. She finished extracting the cells, Craggro showing no signs of immediate side effects. Both Josh and Braver breathed sighs of relief. Little did he know that the medicine's true side effects would not be immediately seen. The medicine was inducing a dangerous combination of conditions within the Arcanine: a slightly heightened appetite and greatly decreased metabolism. Within weeks, the creature's legs and belly would bulge to giant proportions...

CRAGGRO THE HISUIAN ARCANINE SUFFERS FROM TEMPORARY OBESITY. HE CANNOT USE PRIORITY MOVES OR SPEED-RAISING MOVES, AND HIS SPEED BECOMES RANK E. THIS CONDITION CAN BE REMOVED AFTER USING CRAGGRO IN 135 POSTS.

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Stem Synthesis: 12/18

STEM SYNTHESIS: FIGHTING

The Fighting-type was very tricky for Josh to find a Pokémon for, as there were only two Pokémon of that type that would be suitable for use at his Gym. The first was Kommo-o, which was a dangerous species to ride due to the threat of a sudden burst of scale vibration. Even if one didn't get pinched by the shaking scales, the intensity went beyond any massage; it was fast and powerful enough to be at the very least unpleasant for the vast majority of people. The other option, which Josh ultimately went with, was Angrath, his Paldean Tauros.

The horned fighting-type was invaluable in landscaping, his immense strength used frequently in repairing courses and moving heavy equipment to and from maintenance buildings. Josh would only race the Tauros when a challenger showed up on one. It was more than he would have liked, as Tautos were fairly common mounts for physically strong trainers. A loud moo came from the black Pokémon as illeana reyes 's needle pierced the Pokémon's leathery hide. As tense as every moment of every procedure was, Josh had become somewhat used to them by now, only being truly rattled by Bora's death.

Both of them just wanted the whole thing to be all over. Josh wanted to have a new partner and to have a powerful weapon in the war against Rocket. Illeana wanted to stop being asked to toy with the lives of a good co-worker's Pokémon. Such were the cruelties of war...

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The black liquid entered the Tauros' bloodstream without incident, his legs shaking moderately, bot there were otherwise no noteworthy side effects... at least, not until Illeana ran the drain. Pain shot outward from the injection site, the fighting-type rearing and bucking. It was a struggle for the scientist to gather the rest of the specimen while simultaneously staying out of the way of his dangerous hooves. Ultimately, Josh was forced to recall the Tauros after she had finished collecting her sample. Little did he know how impacted the black Pokémon's battle capabilities were harmed by the vile medicine...

ANGRATH THE TAUROS PERMANENTLY LOSES ALL BENEFITS OF THE SHEER FORCE ABILITY AND CANNOT GAIN ADDITIONAL ABILITIES. BECAUSE THE LOST ABILITY IS SHEER FORCE, SECONDARY EFFECTS OF HIS ATTACKS WILL NOT TRIGGER AS THOUGH HE STILL HAD THE ABILITY.

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Stem Synthesis: 13/18

STEM SYNTHESIS: POISON

The sound of flatulating came from Seizan's rear as the skittish Skuntank took her place on illeana reyes ' table, prompting the use of a fan to blow away the unpleasant odor. Seizan didn't seem traumatized by the prospects of what Josh was going to put her through. If anything, it seemed to be a rite of passage from the poison-type's perspective.

Josh just wanted the whole thing to be all over, both to have a new partner and to have a powerful weapon in the war against Rocket. That power had a great cost associated with it, and it was one he didn't have a choice in the matter to pay. The League's iron fist had the Gym Leader's hands tied. He was going to have a new weapon in the battle against Rocket, whether he wanted it or not, no matter the price...

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Seizan's nerves escalated to panic shortly after the drain started, the purple skunk sweating profusely as her heart rate maxed. She raised her tail, taking a stance as though she was going to spray everyone in sight. It was a good thing Josh had her burn off her musk in advance, otherwise there would have been serious delays, not to mention expenses, while the makeshift lab would be fumigated.

Shortly after the drain's whirring ceased and the sample had been collected, a stabbing pain shot outward from the injection site down to all four of Seizan's paws. Not wanting to risk anything, Josh withdrew the bushy-tailed Pokémon and high-tailed it to north Mauville's Pokémon Center. These emergency trips were wearing on Josh's sanity, any emergency trip to the place possibly too late to save a Pokémon that was precious to him. He just wanted it to be over.

Four more to go.

SEIZAN THE SKUNTANK PERMANENTLY LOSES HER SIXTEEN-WEEK BERRY SLOT AND TWO MOVE SLOTS.

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Stem Synthesis: 14/18

STEM SYNTHESIS: GHOST

Josh could not put it off any longer. As much as he couldn't bear the thought of losing Danjuro, his trusty sidearm after Yagyu gave her life protecting ELIO DACOSTA from a Notorious Annihilape, he had little choice. He had asked illeana reyes to do a preliminary test on Sidewinder, his Dragapult, and found that the Pokémon's body would almost certainly reject the cultivar. Not only would extraction be unlikely to be successful, it would be a death sentence for the super-fast dragon.

Regrettably, the Honedge was the best choice.

The floating blade's metal body proved to be a challenge to extract Ghost-type cells out of. The only viable entry point the one piece of "flesh" within the sentient sword: his eye. The Gym Leader turned squeamish just thinking about the immense pain the poor Honedge was to go through having that awful, awful medicine flow through its eye. Even if the operation didn't claim the Pokémon's life, the side effects could be truly dire due to the sensitive injection site...

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Once the needle was in place, Danjuro squinted as tightly as possible, doing everything he could to try to keep the visual of the needle being stuck in his eye. The injection was the easy part, though; the whirring drain quickly dried out the ghostly blade's eye as the drain's tube filled with the Ghost-type stem cells needed for synthesis. When Illeana was done, she promptly treated the extreme dry eye resulting from the procedure, letting Josh know he would need to apply eye drops to the blade's eye routinely until it was a healthy blue again.

It was something a Pokémon Center could not treat. Only time and care would see the sword back to full strength.

DANJURO THE HONEDGE PERMANENTLY LOSES ONE MOVE SLOT.

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Stem Synthesis: 15/18

STEM SYNTHESIS: FAIRY

Josh was crying.

Even with Pinky's feelers surrounding him, the Shiny Sylveon's low squeals trying to imbibe good vibes into the Gym Leader's mind, the pressure and nerves were immense. Too much for even the happy Fairy-type to overcome. To almost anyone else, perhaps even illeana reyes , it would have seemed like the two had swapped minds. As the scientist was almost certainly aware from having interacted with him so often, the Mauville Gym Leader was an amazingly empathetic trainer, to the point of taking the blame for problems he did not cause if it made others happy. He lived his life for others first, then himself. It took a tremendous mental toll on him, and that toll was catching up to him today.

Tears flowing down his cheeks before he even saw what the vile, poisonous cultivar would do to Pinky, he gave his Sylveon a great big hug, making sure to give the big, blue and white quadruped a chance to get her feelers out of the way so they wouldn't be pinched. "You don't have to do this, Pinky," he sobbed. "You... you don't have to. I'll find another Fairy-type to take your place. Just give me a little time." With another low squeal, the Sylveon let go of Josh and bravely walked toward the researcher, who already had the injection ready. "Pinky, no! Please reconsider!" he cried, his face already red as the Sylveon closed her eyes in anticipation of the needle piercing her white fur. "Pinky, pleeeeeeeeeeease!" With her eyes closed, she waved her feelers toward Josh. She knew how much Josh had sacrificed to make others happy.

This time, it would be Pinky's turn to sacrifice something to make Josh happy.

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Once the needle was in place and the medicine began to flow into Pinky's veins, she let out an immediate squeal even before the entire vial had been injected. Perhaps the medicine had a Poison-type affinity to it - the Sylveon's reaction was harsh. "PIIIIINKY!!!" Josh cried as illeana reyes lifted the needle out, swapping it with the drain. Her feelers and legs trembled, looking like she could seize up at any moment. It would be particularly dangerous for the Sylveon. Though her feelers were strong, they could still easily be pierced by a sharp object.

Not long after the procedure was over, the trembling stopped. "Are... are you okay, Pinky?" Josh slowly asked. While the Sylveon had no energy to run, the saddled Fairy-type walked toward her trainer and gave him a hug with her feelers. "You're... you're gonna be okay, aren't you?" With a squeal that was her normal pitch and volume, she smiled. Josh's frown started to turn upside down, his tears of sorrow turning to ones of joy. "I'b just glad you're ogay, Pingy!" he continued, though it may have been difficult for others to understand him through his plugged nose. One thing about her had changed, though.

Her pink glow was gone. She was completely white and blue now.

PINKY THE SHINY SYLVEON PERMANENTLY LOSES ALL BENEFITS OF THE PIXILATE ABILITY AND CANNOT GAIN ADDITIONAL ABILITIES. BECAUSE THE LOST ABILITY WAS PIXILATE, PINKY'S NORMAL-TYPE MOVES WILL DEAL HALF DAMAGE TO FAIRY-RESISTANT TARGETS.

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Stem Synthesis: 16/18

STEM SYNTHESIS: DRAGON

Valoo was the ultimate aerial mount for beginners. Though Josh's was not as docile as most, he was still gentle enough and stable enough for even the most skittish rider to handle. Every single one of Josh's other dragons was either too moody, too excitable, or too hard to hold onto. The combination of relatively low speed, mild undulations in flight, and a placid demeanor meant even kindergarteners could brag that they rode the fastest Drampa in the world.

A truly one of a kind specimen.

It was that reason that Josh watched illeana reyes with bated breath as the Pokémon subject himself to unknowing uncertainty; unlike with every other patient the scientest had performed the extraction on, Valoo was blissfully unaware of what was to come. The dragon-type couldn't figure out why his trainer was so sad. It would not be until the contents of the scientist's black ampule entered Valoo's bloodstream that he would know the reason for Josh's sorrow and tension.

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Everything appeared to be going well. There was no reaction at first, not even a pang of pain evidenced from the Drampa. The injection had gone smoothly. Josh inhaled deeply when he saw a twitch fly from the injection site as the drain started. Exhaling when the extraction was complete, the Gym Leader pulled out Valoo's Poké Ball to withdraw him. The red beam bounced off the caring Pokémon's body, which promptly fell limp on the table.

"Valoo?"

Josh's first instinct was to check for a heartbeat, Illeana quick to beat him to it. There was no pulse. The medicine had stopped Valoo's heart completely. Time was of the essence, doing all she could to reverse its effects with what little equipment she had with her.

"Valoo..."

Try as she might, even with all the technology she had access to, illeana reyes could not restart the dragon's heart. Desperate, she even called upon her supernatural healing powers. Even they failed to bring back the dying Drampa from cardiac arrest. With even her healing powers failing to revive the undeserving dragon, she explained to Josh that she could no longer proceed with these unethical experiments in good faith. With how frustrated she looked, who could blame her? The League was almost certainly going to get an earful about it, whether from her or from Josh. He would have to find someone else to finish the job.

"VALOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

How would he explain to all the young children that Valoo was no longer of this world?

VALOO THE DRAMPA DIES.

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Stem Synthesis: 17/18

STEM SYNTHESIS: ICE

illeana reyes could no longer in good faith help directly with the extraction. Seeing Valoo perish was too much for her to continue helping. At least she had sent out one of her lab assistants to help out with the extraction of the freshly-caught Isu's Ice-type stem cells. At first, the ice-type was completely oblivious to what was going on, unable to feel the needle pierce the thick fat that kept her warm in arctic environments. It made the process of finding a vein to be a bit challenging.

The whir of the drain spooked the giant, tusked ice Pokémon; though she for the most part held still, she made a lot of loud noises that rumbled through the enclosed area, causing a small bag to fall off an end table and onto the floor. Josh had promised the Mamoswine a trip to the Silent Icelands after recovering from the extraction, and he wanted to be able to make good on that promise. He crossed his fingers that nothing horrible would happen to one of the few ice-type ride Pokémon on his squad...

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After a harrowing minute of wondering whether the squinting Mamoswine would lash out with her powerful tusks, the sound of the drain powering down left Josh breathing a sigh of relief. Isu appeared to be okay; if anything, the extraction had somehow made her even more aware than she should have otherwise been. It was a double-edged sword: while the loss of her OBLIVIOUSNESS would make her susceptible to moves like CONFUSE RAY again, the improved cognizance may have been more of a blessing than a curse.

ISU THE MAMOSWINE PERMANENTLY LOSES THE OBLIVIOUS ABILITY AND CANNOT GAIN ADDITIONAL ABILITIES.

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With the stem cells of a Pokémon of every type gathered in one place, Josh did what he could to help out with the genetic recombination process. There was little he could do, though; his hands were not steady enough to help out greatly with the delicate process. Once all the cells had been arranged according to the recipe, illeana reyes ' assistant closed the door to the synthesis pod, flipping the switch soon after. An unearthly moan came from the machine as large amounts of INFINITY ENERGY leaked from the doors. At the very end of the process, the doors blew open with great force, but not enough to knock them off their sturdy hinges.

From behind the steam emerged a terrifying-looking Pokémon: an axe-blade adoring its head, a feline and canine pair of rear paws, bird-like talons adorning its front feet, an aquatic tail fin, and a brown helmet with four blades protruding from its corners.

Aleph had been born.

Once the newly-born Pokémon had stepped away from the steaming chamber, Josh ran up to give the creature a big hug. He was instead met by the creature casting him aside, cutting into his chest with one of its helmet's blades. In a panic, he withdrew the Pokémon back into the Poké Ball that had been designated for it. Was it true? Was this Pokémon designed solely to take on the Ultra Beasts? Everything seemed to circle back to the rifts.

As harrowing of a journey as it was to get this far, the true journey began now.

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TAMING ALEPH THE TYPE: NULL

As a Pokémon created solely to battle the Ultra Beasts, Josh cannot immediately control Aleph the Type: Null. Currently, he will only be obedient when battling an Ultra Beast. When used for any other actions, you must ROLL. The results of the roll will determine Aleph's actions. As he is used in more posts, more actions will unlock for him to take without requiring a roll.

• 1-10: Aleph attacks Josh directly (or one of Josh's allies, with the writer's permission).
• 11-20: Aleph attacks one of Josh's other Pokémon (or a Pokémon controlled by one of Josh's allies, with the writer's permission).
• 21-30: Aleph takes a nap and falls under the SLEEP status condition for two posts.
• 31-40: Aleph ignores orders and does not act during the following post.
• 41-50: Aleph interacts with a different target than the one ordered to.
• 51-60: Aleph interacts with the target in a different way than the action ordered.
• 61-100: Aleph acts as ordered.

Aleph will automatically refuse to perform the following actions. These actions can be unlocked by using Aleph in the indicated number of posts. A record of posts must be logged in the first post of Josh's Exhibit documenting every thread Aleph is used in.

• Aleph will refuse to battle in organized settings. (144 posts to unlock)
• Aleph will refuse to take direct non-battle orders of any kind. (288 posts to unlock)
• Aleph will refuse to be ridden under any circumstance. (432 posts to unlock)
• Aleph will refuse to be friendly toward other Pokémon. (576 posts to unlock)
• Aleph will refuse to have items of any kind, including move-teaching items, Berries of any kind, and Legendary Candy, used on him. (720 posts to unlock)