Glitched

16 - Binary Code

A/N - In case you haven't noticed yet, I've set up a book club just for Pokemon Fanfiction called Pikachu's Reading Corner. If you're interested, you might want to have a little look =D

...

Retro nibbled on a pen – the eraser long since whittled away – while she stared somewhat perplexed at the map of black lines. Something had disturbed them, but she couldn't quite put her claw on it. It was different somehow.

Three more eyes peered over her shoulders at the computer monitor, having abandoned their own scrutiny of the maps on their screens. Each one showed a different section of the Binary Jungle via external cameras, but it appeared only Retro's camera had picked up on this anomaly.

"Pardon my assumption, ma'am," said Amp, "but could it be that one of the lines has vanished?"

"That's what I thought," she replied. "But which one?"

Alarm let out two short screams, putting Retro's fur on end. She glanced back at the unown A and raised an eyebrow, but before she could open her mouth, the unown scooted closer to her screen and pointed with one of her tendrils.

"What's that?!"

Retro and the other two unown leant in closer to the screen, but whatever Alarm had seen was miniscule. Retro clicked her mouse over the area to zoom in and all of them let out simultaneous gasps.

Amp's eye widened so much it almost consumed his body. "Are those-?"

"Eggs?" X nodded. "Eggs-actly."

"Why are there eggs in the middle of the jungle?" Retro scratched her head and frowned at the computer. "It doesn't make sense. They're normally laid indoors."

"Maybe they were laid in a hurry?" said X.

"And left behind?" Retro shook her head. "That doesn't seem right. Parent pokemon would take their eggs with them."

"Not if they were tiny," said X.

"Tiny pokemon lay tiny eggs," said Amp. "Use your common sense, X."

"I can't." X closed his eye. "I left it in my sock drawer this morning."

"You don't even wear socks!"

"I could wear socks. Besides, whether or not I wear socks would not disprove that I'm in the possession of a drawer to store said socks."

Amp seethed silently, causing the very walls to shudder.

"I have to say," X continued, "that your assumption is absol-utely preposterous."

"You're preposterous!"

"Boys!" Retro rounded on them, causing them to freeze and blink at her. "You're frightening Alarm."

The unown A shivered behind Retro's right shoulder.

"I am so terribly sorry," said Amp as quietly as he could to the timid unown, "that my unwarranted outburst caused your immediate discomfort."

Retro smiled and nodded. "Good. Now let's put an end to the arguing while we suss this out. Eggs are in the jungle. It should be added to our list of anomalies." She turned back to the computer and commenced nibbling her pencil again. "The question is – why? Why has a crack vanished and revealed those eggs?"

"I'd like to know why it vanished in the first place," said Amp. "Evidence suggests these things multiply, not vanish!"

"I agree," said X. "It is x-tremely fascinating. And rather quite terrifying."