Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Hands of Creation

Chapter 79 - A New Day

They were like transparent pillars in a great, unholy palace. The dark gray plating on the floor and ceiling greatly contrasted the white tile that the rest of the facility displayed. Most of them were empty, but several of them bubbled ominously with lumps in varying levels of development floating inside.

A long hall of green cylinders greeted Step upon entering the main lab. Ten floors underground, past a long hallway, into a dimly lit room. Step looked between the empty cylinders, a scowl on her face. The urge to destroy every last one made her tail twitch and her claws flex, but her daughters and her mate kept telling her to hold off and focus on what mattered.

One of the cylinders was full of a thick liquid. Floating inside, curled with its wings wrapped around its tiny body, was a Noibat. She puffed a small cloud of ice at the container, enough to get his attention. But it didn't care, curling back up.

"So, this is another mutant, still in its larval stage? Is that what you are?" Step asked, but it either did not hear or did not care. "Fine, ignore me." And it did.

Mom, are you okay? Cent asked. You've been really... um, you know, agitated. Like, craaazy agitated.

It's not that bad, is it? Kana added. Like, we cheat death all the time, kinda. We should be across the aura sea.

Ra was next. Step, what are you trying to accomplish by going down here? Destroying these things wouldn't help anyone right now. We could use this army to fight Dark Matter.

That, Step said, is why they still stand. The sole reason I have not reduced the entire southeast of Kilo into a new tundra.

Geez, Mom, bring it down a few notches, Kana said. This is all kinds of extra.

I just need to see what we're dealing with, and—Step abruptly stopped and turned her attention to the right. The aura felt familiar, but two things were odd about it. Firstly, unlike all of the other Pokémon in these incubation cylinders, this Pokémon was being formed into a fully evolved state. And second, the aura suggested there was a piece of Mysticism already within it—but a small amount. A Hunter.

It was small and lumpy, more like something vaguely plant-like. Draped in a thick, purple veil and hiding some vulnerable center, it vaguely reminded Step of a Cheri Berry.

Step approached the cylinder to get a closer look, making sure the tiny form wasn't actually of something familiar. She wasn't that knowledgeable about all the species of the land; this one, perhaps she'd encountered one long ago, but the name escaped her.

Thankfully, Cent knew. What's so special about that Cherrim, Mom?

It's a Hunter, I think.

Eh? In there? Weird.

"Step?"

Nevren walked down the hall, head cocked to the side.

Step grumbled and backed away from the cylinder. "Who is this?"

"Hm? Just another mutant, I imagine," Nevren said, and then motioned behind him. "I finished my headcount, if you'd like a report."

Step eyed the cylinder suspiciously, but with everything going on, this was the least of her problems. And he was right—she wanted to know if there were any mutants she would have to take care of. "Go on."

Nevren motioned for her to follow, which she did, out of the cylinder chambers and back into the halls of Quartz HQ. "Seven mutants are still unaccounted for," Nevren said. "A trio and two duos."