Chapter 124: Evolutionary Crisis
After completing the rigorous physical tests on Scyther, Professor Oak immediately took the collected data and the broken scythe fragments back up to the second-floor lab for detailed analysis.
Xiu, having ensured Scyther was comfortable and resting after the strenuous session, followed shortly after, eager to see the results.
He found Professor Oak already hunched over the main console, comparing the new test results with the baseline data from the initial fragment analysis. The printer beside the console whirred to life, spitting out several pages of dense reports.
"Professor?" Xiu asked tentatively. "Any findings?"
Oak didn't look up immediately, still scrutinizing the printed sheets. "Here," he finally said, gesturing towards the printer without turning around. "See for yourself."
Xiu retrieved the three-page report, his stomach tightening slightly with apprehension. He quickly scanned the contents – graphs depicting stress tolerance, charts showing impact resistance, notes on fracture patterns…
"Well?" Oak prompted, finally turning away from his console.
"I… I understand the basic metrics, Professor," Xiu admitted, "but the deeper analysis… the comparison to the fragment data…" He handed the report back to Oak, feeling out of his depth.
Oak took the report, flipped through it casually, then tossed it back onto the desk. "Indeed," he confirmed, a satisfied gleam in his eyes. "Just as suspected. The metallic integration process… it's not just coating the exoskeleton; it's fundamentally transforming it at a molecular level."
He elaborated, "The data confirms what we observed physically. Increased hardness, yes, significantly so. Enhanced resistance to certain types of impact. But," he tapped the report, "also increased brittleness under specific stress, explaining the fracture during the tungsten carbide test. And the energy conductivity readings are… fascinating. Completely altered."
Xiu listened intently, absorbing the information. 'So, the process wasn't just adding metal; it was creating a new bio-metallic substance with unique properties, both beneficial and potentially detrimental (like increased brittleness).'
"It confirms my hypothesis," Oak continued, clearly pleased with the results. "The Scyther line possesses an innate biological mechanism to not just absorb, but metabolize and integrate metallic elements, restructuring them into a composite material. The Metal Coat likely just acts as a concentrated catalyst and delivery system for this natural process."
He looked thoughtful. "This explains the ancient murals, the possibility of 'wild' Scizor…"
— — —
A short while later, during Scyther's next immersion session
Xiu sat beside the glass tank, dutifully monitoring Scyther's vital signs on a portable console, recording the data every five minutes as instructed. Scyther itself seemed relaxed, almost dozing in the warm, rust-colored metallic bath. Professor Oak was working at the main console nearby, analyzing the ongoing data streams.
Suddenly, without warning, Scyther's body jerked violently within the tank. Its limbs spasmed, its head thrashed weakly side-to-side. Its eyes snapped open, wide with panic and pain, before rolling back into its head. It went limp, unconscious, though its body continued to twitch sporadically.
"Professor!" Xiu yelled, instantly on his feet. "Scyther! Something's wrong!"
Oak was beside the tank in an instant, his earlier academic calm replaced by urgent focus. He ran a quick diagnostic scan over Scyther's submerged form. "Vitals are crashing… neurological activity spiking erratically… core temperature skyrocketing!" He looked grimly at Xiu. "It's rejecting the current metallic concentration!"
"What do we do?!" Xiu asked, panic rising.
"Get it out! Now!" Oak commanded. "We need to stabilize it!"
Xiu immediately signaled Abra, who had been meditating nearby. Abra's eyes snapped open. With a surge of Telekinesis, Scyther's unconscious form was lifted carefully but quickly out of the metallic bath, excess liquid draining away, and deposited gently onto a nearby padded examination platform Oak had prepared for emergencies.
Oak was already there, connecting more advanced life-support monitors, preparing injections. Scyther's reddish carapace now seemed almost feverishly bright, hot to the touch. Its breathing was shallow, ragged. Ripples of uncontrollable muscle spasms ran beneath its shell.
"Is it… is it because the absorption exceeded its body's processing capacity?" Xiu asked frantically, watching Oak work.
"No," Oak replied curtly, administering an injection. "The absorption levels were within projected tolerance. This feels different. More like… conflicting energy signatures. The integration process… it's triggering some kind of internal energy failure." He frowned, analyzing the monitor readouts. "This instability… it's dangerously close to the patterns observed just before uncontrolled evolutionary bursts. Or," he added grimly, "complete systemic collapse."
"Evolution?" Xiu latched onto the word. "Could this be…?"
"Possibly a precursor," Oak clarified cautiously, still working rapidly. "An uncontrolled, unstable attempt at evolution, triggered prematurely by the intense metabolic stress. Dangerous." He looked up at Xiu, his expression deadly serious. "Right now, Scyther's conscious mind is overwhelmed, lost in the chaotic energy surge. If it loses consciousness completely and slips into a coma… the body's autonomic systems might shut down entirely. We need to keep it anchored, keep its mind fighting."
"How?" Xiu asked desperately.
"Telepathic contact!" Oak instructed urgently. "Reach out to it! Establish a link! Talk to it, reassure it! Don't let it succumb to sleep!"
"Understood!" Xiu didn't hesitate. He turned to Abra. "Abra! Now! Link us!"
Abra nodded silently, closing its eyes, focusing its psychic power. Xiu closed his own eyes, bracing himself, reaching out mentally towards Scyther's fading consciousness.
The connection slammed into place, far more intense, more violent, than any previous link.
Heat! Blinding, searing heat flooded Xiu's senses, as if he'd been plunged into molten metal. Pain followed instantly – raw, overwhelming, feeling like every nerve ending in his body was simultaneously on fire.
He felt Scyther's panic, its confusion, the terrifying sensation of its own body turning against it, energy surging uncontrollably, threatening to tear it apart from the inside out. He could almost see the chaotic energy swirling, building towards a critical mass, an imminent explosion.
He understood immediately why Oak wanted Scyther kept conscious. 'If that energy surge peaked… Scyther would explode, literally.' He had to help it regain control, dampen the surge, guide the energy safely.
He focused his own mind, pushing past the searing pain, projecting calming thoughts, reassurance, strength through the psychic link. "Scyther! Hear me! Fight it! Don't let go! I'm here!"
He felt Scyther's consciousness flicker, latching onto his familiar mental voice like a drowning swimmer grabbing a lifeline. The psychic pressure lessened fractionally, just enough for Scyther to regain a sliver of awareness amidst the internal storm.
Outside, Professor Oak watched Xiu's physical reaction with growing alarm. The boy stood rigid beside the platform, body trembling violently, face contorted in an inhuman mask of agony. Sweat poured down his face, soaking his clothes.
Yet, he remained standing, consciously sharing, absorbing, buffering the catastrophic energy surge threatening to consume his Pokémon. 'He's not just communicating, Oak realized with horrified awe. He's acting as a psychic conduit, trying to manually regulate the overload!'
Oak knew the risks. The human mind wasn't designed to handle raw, uncontrolled Pokémon energy, especially not of this magnitude. Telepathic contact carried inherent dangers; shared trauma, psychic feedback, even mental collapse were possibilities. Fainting was the mildest protective shutdown mechanism. Direct shock and sudden death… were not unheard of in cases of extreme psychic overload.
And Xiu wasn't just experiencing the pain; he was actively fighting it, sharing it, forcing himself to remain conscious, trying to guide Scyther through the storm, even as his own body screamed in protest.
'He's killing himself!' Oak thought, shocked by the boy's reckless self-sacrifice. His admiration warred with professional concern. He thought he could handle this kind of pressure, but Xiu… just a child…
He watched Xiu sway, his legs buckling, face turning deathly pale, yet somehow remaining upright through sheer willpower. "Xiu! That's enough!" Oak shouted, ready to intervene, perhaps sever the link forcefully. "Stop! You've done enough!"
"It's okay… Professor…" Xiu gasped out loud, his voice strained, barely recognizable. His body shuddered violently. "I… I feel it… I can… share the burden… help Scyther ride this one out…" He swayed again, on the verge of collapse, but refused to break the connection— refused to abandon his partner.