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The drive had been a lot more silent than Cooper had expected. He'd thought Zephiel would be more excited to get back among familiar faces, especially since he had been in the lead-up. Now he was wondering if there wasn't something more under the surface.

“You okay, Zeph?"

“Yeah, I'm fine...just…"

“Talk to me. We can stop if you want…"

“No, it's not that. I'm just...I've got things on my mind."

Cooper spared a slight glance before getting back to the road. “If you're worried about something, we should deal with it now before it comes to a head. I'd rather not be ambushed...I've had enough of that for a while."

“No doubt." A wry chuckle escaped the Arcanine morph. Cooper was still bearing the hallmarks of the Ditto incident - unsurprising given the circumstances. Ten days of action to relieve that induced heat, involving the two of them as well as several feral Pokémon guests who were more than happy to lend something other than a hand...it wasn't exactly a mystery to them that there was going to be no quick fix. The last appointment with the specialist, coming about five weeks after the event, had been somewhat promising, suggesting a roughly 65% chance of successful reconversion after the six-month waiting period - which didn't sound high, but the usual rate was about 15%. And he was on additional medicines which could potentially boost that. That had come with a slight caveat, though…

“So let's hear it. Or is it gonna be a guessing game? Does it have anything to do with me around the other morphs?"

“Erm...kinda…"

Cooper grinned a bit in spite of himself. “Are you really worried that they'll be competition?"

Zeph was quiet for a bit. “It's...actually the opposite."

“Hm?"

“It's...I don't totally understand why it happens, so don't ask, but...there's differences in sexuality between Pokémon and humans. Humans are...arguably...more selective about their partners and more restrictive about partnerships. I mean, not naturally fully monogamous, obviously, but exclusivity is more normal. Pokémon aren't the same way - not only are they typically not exclusive, they actually have a tendency to WANT to share. Which I guess usually isn't an issue for them. I've been wondering whether I'd have any of those inclinations, but I don't with humans, and, the heat incident notwithstanding, no particular desire to share with Pokémon."

“I could actually tell. You were my big furry gatekeeper. The look on some of their faces when you said they weren't allowed to touch me, you'd think you'd refused to feed their starving baby."

“If I didn't trust them, I wasn't going to let them near you," Zeph said with a definite edge to his voice.

“And I greatly appreciate that, because I don't think I could have said no myself. But you say not with humans or Pokémon...but there's a notable exclusion there."

“Right…" Zeph sighed a bit. “The more I've thought about it, the more I've realized, I do feel that way with my morph kin. When I play over the idea in my fantasies...yeah. And I know they're not going to have any problem with that, for sure, but I'm worried I might...well, push you into it without your really wanting to."

“You know I've already said I found them attractive, right?"

“Yeah, but the state you're in right now…"

“What, you mean what the doctor said? Getting too 'settled' could affect the chances of going back to normal?" Cooper snickered. “I appreciate your concern, Zeph, but if getting railed by a few dozen Pokémon in the throes of a vicious heat didn't get me worse than 'better than half,' I don't think they're going to change that much. If anything, the bigger risk is I start to like it too much to want to."

“The more you say that, the more I worry."

“Don't. I'd rather make a decision for myself than have it imposed on me. No matter what the original circumstances were."

Zephiel nodded. “If you say so...I guess I'd rather you make the decision than have it made for you, too."

“Right. Is that all it was?"

“I guess...part of me is worried that they'll say they don't like how things have been going and try to get me to stay there again."

Cooper had a guess that that was what had REALLY been eating at Zeph from the start. “I'm sure they won't do that. What reason would they have? I thought they wanted to socialize you guys."

“That's what they say, but I know not everyone thinks that's a fantastic idea. There's some feeling that we should be secluded away from the public for our own safety, or for theirs. I don't agree, neither do most of the other morphs, but we're kind of subject to what they say - if they don't want it, we don't really have much control."

“I will give them every reason not to think that that's a problem. Besides that, they've still been working on that community center thing, right? I think that would come to a halt if they weren't still thinking about getting you guys into the city."

“I guess...I mean, maybe it's just me being paranoid. Wouldn't be the first time." Zeph sighed again. “Anyway...yeah, it's just those things, I promise."

“Got it. I'll keep that in mind...try to put them out of your head as much as possible." It wasn't really great advice, but Cooper didn't think driving down the highway was a good time to try to flex his rusty psychoanalytic skills. He wasn't any expert, he just found it interesting, it was neat to try to dig into how people thought...but that was one of those things best done when not moving at high speed.

---

The complex was one rather large building, which Cooper had more or less expected. That expectation didn't make it look any less out of place in the middle of nowhere.

The Akhenaton Medical Research Facility...the premier organization for the study of Pokémorphs. Though, it was pretty easy to have that label considering they were the ONLY organization for the study of Pokémorphs. There were a few people here and there who looked into such things on their own, but it wasn't a mainstream thing by a long shot. The fact that there weren't that many of them sort of dictated that.

Akhenaton was a familiar name to Cooper - they had health centers all over the country, including a few in his home city. That was where they were going for his own recent complication - they had a record for being on the forefront of certain conditions, including Ditto transformation conditions. The organization itself seemed to be highly multifaceted, highly involved in cutting edge research and treatment as well as community activism and development, and there were rumors that they didn't shy away from shadier business. Nothing concrete, not enough for Cooper to be dissuaded from using their services, but he was willing to be mildly wary.

He pulled into the parking lot, and exited the vehicle with Zephiel, the Arcanine looking just a touch more nervous now that they were there. Cooper took the lead bringing them to the door, a nice shiny entryway that looked more in place in the city than out in the boonies. “Nice place for being so remote," he remarked to Zephiel.

It wasn't Zephiel who answered, though - that was a woman near the entryway, a tall and very prim lady with her dark hair in a bun and sharp facial features. “It's a state-of-the-art facility, and well away from prying eyes. The city makes it very hard to watch everything all the time, and with so many people around, curious troublemakers can cause headaches. Anyone who comes out here can be clearly observed and intercepted before anything undesirable happens."

“Cooper...this is Dr. Aringulera." Zephiel motioned towards the woman. “She's, uh, very much invested in the morphs research."

“Indeed I am. And YOU, mister Admunsen, haven't been checking in as regularly as I've asked." The Arcanine flinched as the doctor turned a scrutinizing look on him. “It's very hard to get an impression of how well things are going with you in our field test when you aren't providing us the data. One might get the impression that it's NOT going well…"

“That's not the case at all, I promise. It's just...you know you make me nervous, and some of the things you've said-"

“I have to be objective. A bad idea doesn't stop being a bad idea just because I don't want it to be. And with Dr. Bonificio's continual pushing, one of us has to be the reality check."

“Are you sure you're not just trying to make it sound like a bad idea?" asked Cooper with a bit of annoyance. Not the greatest first impression, she seemed like one of those people who was a bit too overbearing about what they considered 'proper procedure.' He'd had a few more experiences with those types than he would have liked in his life.

Dr. Aringulera seemed unruffled by the remark. “I go where the data says I should go. Pilot studies are crucial. Knowing how people react and behave around Mr. Admunsen is important to knowing whether we should continue forward with proposed plans. And that includes you, Mr. de Noyes." Cooper did a slight double-take. “Yes, I've done my research on you, too. Given the amount of time you've spent around my charge, I had to be sure that there wasn't any reason to be concerned about you. Potential complicating factors need to be accounted for before they disrupt an experiment."

“Carol! How many times do I have to I have to tell you not to reduce people to complicating factors to their faces?" Another doctor had walked in, and though her face was in a frown towards the first specialist Cooper got an immediate sense of a much warmer personality behind it. “You know how that comes off. I know you're not insensitive to it, and you know how off-putting it is to everyone. Plus, you know it's damaging to be too cold when studying people."

“This interaction isn't a study, Olivia. I'm concerned about the way things are going here. Mr. Admunsen has been less than forthcoming lately, and we can't make good decisions without good information."

“Well, then, now seems like a good time to get good information. And I don't think you'll do that if you come at them like an enemy." The new arrival turned towards Cooper and smiled at him, offering her hand for a shake. “Olivia Bonificio. It's nice to meet you...I'm glad someone really took to our friend here, I think that's a key development in our understanding of how people will respond to the morphs."

“I think it's helped him a little bit, at least as far as I can see," agreed Cooper. “I think it could get even better."

“As do we both, despite how Dr. Aringulera comes off. Her approach is a bit...different from mine, but we're both of similar minds, I assure you." She gave a quick glance over to Dr. Aringulera, who rolled her eyes but said nothing. “Anyway, I'm sure we have a good bit of discuss, but perhaps it would be better to let you get familiar with the compound for a bit. After all, we have a good bit of time and I know Zeph's been chomping at the bit to see his buddies again, and probably introduce you to them."

“I'll be happy to help however I can, but yeah, maybe that would be a good place to start. I can tell he's getting antsy."

“I'm trying not to," grumbled Zephiel, looking a bit embarrassed.

“It's only natural," Dr. Bonificio stated. “I think we can take some time to work on what things we might want to ask anyway. So go on ahead, and don't worry about taking your time."

“I'm more worried about him taking OUR time," Dr. Aringulera remarked. “But very well, I suppose it's for the best that you're in a good mood." Cooper was hoping she'd be in a better mood as well by the time he got to talking to them...then again, he didn't know yet if she had one. Only time would tell…

---

Being in 'heat', in that way, was something that Cooper hadn't thought he'd want to ever relive. That had been pretty rough on him, his body wracked with insatiable need that only ever softened when he was getting pounded hard. To be sure, it was hard to argue that the actual getting railed wasn't a hell of a lot of pleasure - just as that Ditto had intended, no doubt - but the interim periods were torture, and that more than offset any perceived advantage. Without a doubt, he was glad he'd gotten out of it, even if it had been the riskier way.

But with that many Pokémorphs in front of him, with forms that enticed the hell out of him, he almost wished he could get another round of that.

Zephiel had taken him out to their 'grove', which was a fenced-in outdoors area in the back of the complex, a wooded space for the morphs to enjoy. According to the Arcanine, an absolute necessity - he wasn't the only morph who pined for nature, it was pretty much part and parcel of the change, a feeling of comfort in the wilds that could never be fully dismissed. Of course, a bunch of the morphs had been waiting for them, knowing that Zephiel was coming back that day, and they crowded around quickly the moment the two arrived.

“Furball! About damn time!" Giger, the big Nidoking morph who was one of Zephiel's closest buddies, wasted no time getting him into a enormous bear hug, lifting the canine off the ground. “Been way too long! We all've been missing you like nobody's business!"

“And this is the guy we keep hearing about, isn't it?" Rian, the Raichu morph who rounded out that trio, was much more interested in Cooper, as were many of the others. “Cooper, was it? Thanks for keeping his fuzzy butt outta trouble, I always hoped he'd find an ally, especially a sexy one!"

“Ah, I...I'm not really that sexy…" Cooper demurred, face going red - that was definitely NOT the first thing he expected to hear out of one of them about him. “But it's nice to meet you all...I mean, in person, anyway."

“In person is SO much better," exclaimed Bryce, the Grovyle morph. “You can't smell anyone through a screen, and it's really incredible how much you can tell from scent."

“Shit, yeah, if there's one thing I know I would miss if I went back to being human, it'd be scent cues," agreed Tanner, the Charmeleon morph next to Bryce.

“Your scent smells kinda weird," observed Dorian, the Dewott morph. “Almost like-"

“Hey, hey, let's not be rude about anyone here!" Felix, the Heliolisk morph, quickly clamped down onto Dorian's muzzle. “Remember, some things you shouldn't just blurt out like that!"

“Mmrph. Sorry."

“It's pretty nice to have someone coming here who isn't trying to poke and prod at us," said Tristan, the Abra morph, whose relief was palpable enough that even Cooper could feel it. “Though I guess we should probably promise we won't do the same to you."

Cooper was tempted to remark that there was one way they could poke and prod at him all they wanted...it was tough to bite that one back, and he hoped he wasn't projecting too much. This, too, was the Ditto's work...he'd certainly found them all attractive before, but after his sudden change, they'd become a lot more enticing and he'd found his fantasies including them more and more. Which had been compounded with a noticeably amplified sex drive that resisted his efforts to tone down, and an enhanced response to Pokémon that he couldn't quite explain - and the morphs were absolutely close enough to trigger it. He'd promised he'd maintain his self-control as much as he could, though, not wanting to seem like he only was interested for sexual reasons...though, whether that would be hidden well enough to a psychic like Tristan or the very good noses of the morphs was hard to tell. “I don't mind a bit of interest...it sounds like you guys don't get social visits very often."

“We don't even get the CHANCE at them," growled Yuko, the Hakamo-o morph. “Like, okay, the doctors want to keep their eye on us, sure, but would it kill us to see ANYONE else? It's so boring with all these people around who just see us as their subjects."

“They're worried about people reacting badly to us, but I know there's people out there who have an interest in people who look like us," agreed Kyle, the Krokorok morph. “Wouldn't it be better for us to have some friends among the people we're eventually gonna have to be living around?"

“I don't think they want us to be living around them," sighed Kalvin, the Scyther morph.

“Doesn't matter, they can't keep us squirreled away forever. Either we're gonna bust out on our own or they're gonna have to let us out, and we need human interaction."

“Good luck getting them to agree to that," griped Adam, the Quilava morph. “They always say they know better than we do...I don't think they even do. I mean, do they forget that we all used to be human? Why wouldn't we need just as much of a life as a human would?"

“Easy, Adam." Kieran, the Lucario morph, put his hand on the fire badger's shoulder. “They're not doing it maliciously...they're simply concerned about our well-being around people who might not understand who or what we are. We know that we're not that different, inside, but not everyone else would believe that...that's why Zephiel was sent out in the first place."

“Yeah, well, if he can find someone to fuck, it can't be that bad!"

“Jeez, settle down, man, we're here to enjoy this, not stress out!" exclaimed Bryce. “But yeah, we gotta know the story with you and Zeph! Like, from your perspective!"

“Yeah, and you gotta tell us all the embarrassing stories about him that he won't!" added Kyle with a cackle.

“O-kay, a bit too much going on right now!" Suddenly Zephiel shoved in, putting an arm around Connor possessively. “I know you all wanna have your time with him, but he's gonna be here for a few days, I promise we'll get around to you all! Let's give him a little bit of time to get settled in at least!"

“Suuuure, that's what you want, not to prevent him from divulging the juicy stuff," Tanner remarked, sticking his tongue out at the Arcanine. “You know we'll get it out of him sooner or later, right?"

“That's...not...what I'm talking about! Now, settle down and give him some space, I promise you'll all get time with him!"

The morphs scattered, with a few mumbles about holding Zeph to that promise. The two who didn't were Giger and Rian, who stuck around with Zephiel and Connor. Connor halfway expected this - they were the ones closest to Zephiel, certainly they were the ones the Arcanine would want to spend time with most immediately. “Guess we kinda swarmed you a bit, didn't we?" Rian chuckled apologetically.

“It's all right...I guess I'm the odd one out here," Connor replied. “Interesting being on the other side...ah, nice to meet you in the flesh, Rian, Giger."

“Likewise!" guffawed the big Nidoking; Connor had already gotten a sense of the big guy's energy and joviality from the couple of times they'd talked while he was with Zephiel, but it was so much more present in person. “I'm glad to finally come face-to-face with the guy who makes my buddy's eyes light up like nothing else!"

“Oh, is that what I do?"

“Giger…" Zephiel covered his face with his hands; his blush wasn't visible, but the steam rising off his face was.

“What, you're embarrassed? This is just the start of it, bud, I guarantee it!"

“Let's get somewhere a bit more comfortable and familiar," suggested Rian. “Come on, I wanna get to know you a whole lot better!"

Connor was good with that - he had a feeling he'd be getting to know them a LOT better very quickly.

---

More comfortable and familiar turned out to be more for Zephiel than Connor - then again, just about anything would be new for him. But when he was taken to the quarters that the three of them had shared for a long time, he had a feeling that it was more than just wanting to avoid a whole lot of extra attention.

Indeed, the Arcanine immediately seemed a lot more relaxed as he took a seat on his bed. “Ah, man...I missed this scent. Much as I'm glad to be out on the world again, this is just so...cozy."

“Just another place to call home, and glad ya still do." Giger was laying on his side, grinning out at Zeph and Cooper. “It's good to see and smell ya again, Zeph. Just ain't the same around here without you."

“Agreed," Rian chimed in; the Raichu morph had one foot on his bed and one off, one hand planted on the covers while his other arm balanced on his upraised knee. “The room feels kinda empty with just the two of us. Great for privacy, but it gets oddly lonely sometimes."

“I thought there was another, uh, one of you morphs who had the whole stone thing?" Cooper asked.

“Yeah, Marlee, but she doesn't bunk with us. She's over on the other side of the complex with the other females. We meet up in common areas sometimes, but the males and females have a tendency to be a bit more separate in general."

“Oh? I thought it was awfully tilted towards guys out there. Is that by design, or…"

Giger snickered a bit. “Whose design would you think?"

“Well...one of the doctors seems a bit…"

“Frosty? To put it lightly, she'd make a good Weavile, she would. But Doc A ain't bad, she's just waaaaay too proper for her own good. Could stand ta loosen up a good bit, but she's as devoted to our being safe and healthy as anything. She's that kind that acts like there's some big distance but you can see it here and there when she lets down her guard, she cares about us a lot."

Cooper wasn't quite sure he'd gotten that impression, but they knew her better than he did. “So she doesn't enforce that kind of separation?"

“Enforce? Nah, but she 'encourages' it. As do the others."

“It's not why you might think," explained Rian. “It's...well, I don't think we have to be shy here. We're all kinda horny. It waxes and wanes, but those urges come harder than when we were humans. You've been with Zeph a while, I'm sure you've noticed."

“Oh, yeah," Cooper replied with a grin. “Some days I walk in the door only to get insta-stripped and humped before I can say hello."

“At least I don't torch your clothes," snarked back the Arcanine. “And you know full well that I could."

“He threatens that all the time, but I never got any clothes roasted," remarked Giger.

“Like you would, it's a huge effort for you to keep them on! I see you pawing at them right now, you can't wait to get them off, I'm shocked you're not naked already!"

“Gotta build things up for the reveal, eh?" Giger's eyes darted over to Cooper, who flushed a bit; it was becoming more and more clear than he wasn't leaving this room without probably a trio of cocks invading his body. And the wetness between his legs was definitely telling him he was fine with that.

“Anyway," continued Rian, with a cheeky grin, “We have our moments. Or days. Or weeks. And while the docs don't explicitly say we CAN'T fuck - as if they could stop us - they have concerns...namely, offspring. There's a lot that isn't known about us yet, including our capacity to breed. Like, are we fertile, do we cross by egg groups or is it broader, how does being Ditto-transformed affect things, yada yada yada. But the big one is, they're not sure a child would survive, and they don't want to have a risk of us trying to breed and coming up with some...unpleasant experience."

“They're especially worried about me," remarked Giger.

Cooper nodded. “Oh, yeah...Nidokings can make just about any female fertile, can't they? Even overriding birth control if they want to."

“You got it. They've had me really working on controlling stuff like that...it's oddly natural and weirdly hard at the same time. They really don't want me taking the risk if I can avoid it, so they push me to let off my steam with guys. Not that I mind that, mind…"

“This was pretty much the way they decided to go," said Zephiel. “By bunking males with males and females with females...well, you can enjoy yourself without risking pregnancy. The options were that or birth control for the females, but they rejected that, and I don't blame them - wasn't anything comparable they could give us, and they didn't want to be medded while we weren't."

“But you could have a go at each other if you really wanted to...I mean, it would just be a matter of going somewhere private and having at it, right?" asked Cooper.

“Sure, and it ain't like it's never happened," affirmed Giger. “But we aren't really picky, us guys are happy with the other guys and the gals are plenty creative. Makes it a lot less likely something will happen when they aren't prepared for it to."

“Eventually we're gonna have to find this stuff out, but there aren't enough of us to make it matter at the moment," added Rian. “For now they want to make sure we're stable enough ourselves. Though, honestly, I think they're overdoing it a bit...haven't heard of anyone's body NOT being stable yet, at least when things are settled in. Getting futzed with by a Ditto, though, it's hard not to be a bit worried."

“Yeah...I know that a little too well from personal experience. Though, I wasn't changed in quite the same way…"

“I thought I smelled something unexpected," remarked Giger with a grin. “The famous Ditto Body Fuckery, right?"

“Yeah, apparently it's more common than I thought. Dittos are kind of weird, kinky freaks, aren't they?"

“When you eat, sleep, and breathe sex, you probably get that way," sighed Zephiel.

“It's definitely obvious on your scent," agreed Rian. “Especially when you're drooling hard enough that I can see it in your pants." Cooper flushed again, looking down and seeing that his groin indeed had a wet patch. “Looks like we're not the only horny ones around here, eh?"

“What's the extent of it?" asked Giger, sounding curious and eager; his hand was definitely toying more with the band of his shorts. “Partial, full? Fertile, not?"

“Ah...well, they said it's full change, I'm, uh, anatomically complete as far as they can tell. They're less certain about fertility, because that's not as easy to test. The Ditto sort of hinted that it was possible, but...well, Zeph here reckons I got nailed by eighty-seven different Pokémon during my heat, and that didn't count all the times he nutted in me. If that didn't get me pregnant, I'm rather inclined to think I can't."

“And I don't suppose our fuzzy fireball's shown any restraint despite that uncertainty," laughed Rian.

“As if he would let me!" Zephiel snorted. “I spend more nights knotted in him than not. I'd hold back if I was really worried, but like he said, after he came out of the heat without getting plump on anything other than cum, I'm pretty satisfied he's not getting any pups from me. No matter how much he teases me with the idea."

“I only tease you with it because you like the fantasy," remarked Cooper as he playfully booped Zeph's nose. “And because I kinda do, too. I don't think either one of us would dig the reality so much, I'm definitely not ready to be thinking about kids."

“Oh, is that so?" growled Giger, with a definite lusty weight. “You like the thought of one of us big, inhuman beasts pounding you hard, pumping you full, and making you swell up with our whelps, do you?"

“Nnnh…" Cooper shivered a bit at the pretty blatant come-on. Giger had turned the screws hard, the Nidoking was probably itching to get at him…no, no probably about it, there was a pretty significant tent in those shorts. And the scent of lust had kicked up a few more notches with his more explicit arousal, which Cooper knew was registering with Zephiel, too, judging by the Arcane morph's heavier breathing. “You guys can't wait any longer, can you? Neither can I."

“You're not gonna actually try to do that, are you?" Zephiel asked warningly - though given how he was working his way out of his shorts with a swelling erection, it seemed he had no real intent to stop things from proceeding.

“Course not, last thing I need is a kid complicating things. But I'm sure as hell gonna pump that cunt full like I meant to." Giger yanked his own shorts down, hard enough that Cooper was impressed they held together. That thick, deep purple cock was holding nothing back, it was a touch bigger than Zeph's, more in girth than length, and dotted with barbs that oozed dark, viscous fluid. It wouldn't be the first time Cooper felt those sharp embellishments inside him, a few Pokémon back during the heat had had them, but these ones looked a bit larger…he wondered how they'd feel compared to the others. Without a doubt, he was going to find out, and stripping off his own clothes in a hurry, it was clear how eager he was for that.

And the feeling was omni-mutual, clearly, as Rian was the first over to him, the Raichu morph’s toned body sparking eagerly. He was starting a hard-on that was quite impressive in its own right, if somewhat overshadowed by the other two - moderately shorter and thinner than the two bigger morphs, but still a fair ways in excess of a human’s, and smooth with a pointed tip but buzzing with electricity. It wouldn’t be Cooper’s first time with that, either, not after multiple Luxray and an Electivire during his heat period...that only meant he knew what to look forward to, though, and he was certainly doing so. “Think you’re ready for three on one?”

“Ready or not, you'd better do it anyway."

“Ooh, feisty one. We'll see how much of that spunk you have left after we've spent ourselves."

“You'd be surprised," snickered Zephiel as he grabbed Cooper from behind and pulled the human back down onto him as he laid on the floor. “He's got a pretty good drive. Did even before he got toyed with, for that matter."

“And that blobby fuck no doubt ramped it up a few notches," surmised Giger as he joined the party, licking his chops as he eyed the soggy opening between Cooper's legs. “You're gonna need our all to be properly satisfied after huffing our scents for so long. And we're gonna give it to you for sure."

He'd happily accept that any day, for sure…and they weren't wasting time, as everyone seemed to be getting into position. Zeph moved his hands to his legs, getting a nice tight grip on Cooper's thighs and spreading them nice and wide. He felt the Arcanine's spire rub at his rear for a moment, wetting it up with that fierce heat before driving in hard, getting a lusty grunt out of the human. That familiar heat was so satisfying, and this time only the start…Rian kept him from getting too lost in it, though, as he snatched up Cooper's arms and brought them up above him, holding them firmly to the ground over Zephiel's head. That sparking cock was suddenly in his vision, drooling pre eagerly. “Hee hee, open wide, Coop, you're gonna feel more alive then ever with this zappin' ya!"

Cooper obliged, letting his jaw drop and allowing Rian at thrust in. Quite the mouthful, and would turn into quite the throatful, but definitely not about to challenge Zephiel knotting his jaw, so he knew he could handle whatever Rian threw at him. And Rian clearly knew that too. “Hoo, damn, you handle that well…guess I shouldn't be surprised, though, since fuzzbutt down there ties you up."

Cooper obviously couldn't respond beyond a well-muffled moan, but he didn't feel he needed to say anything to that - his permissive throat spoke volumes. Next up, though, was the tip of that Nidoking cock playing at his front entrance…he twitched and squirmed a bit, and felt another shiver rush through him as he realized that, between Zeph's hold on his legs and Rian's grip on his wrists, he essentially couldn't move. Giger had free reign, he was defenseless, and if the Nidoking did by chance have something sneaky planned, he was utterly incapable of stopping it. And that had him ever so much more aroused…it was weird, helplessness and risk hadn't used to thrill him so much, but since the change, he'd found himself more and more drawn to it. And he couldn't very well blame the Ditto for that, the fucker had only played with his body, not his mind.

Before he could spend too long ruminating on that, Giger thrust, and all thought took a back seat. Cooper jerked a bit as he wes suddenly stretched beyond the usual, feeling that thickness surge into his cunt and pry him open until the Nidoking's slit met his flesh. So huge, but the real spark was the lines of sharpness that had trailed through him with the barbs raking his inner lining. He'd gushed a little already just from that, and even now the clenching reflex made the points poke in a bit, harsh but scintillating.

“Hoo…yeah, he's milking me hard already…" rumbled Giger with glee. “Jealous as fuck that you get this all the time, Zeph…"

“Make the most of it, umph, while you can…the others aren't gonna be letting themselves be left out, you might not have time for more," purred the Arcanine.

“Will do. Let's have at 'em, boys!"

Cooper's body was suddenly assailed by a trio of morphs invading him in the most wonderful way. His pussy and ass were stretched tautly, he swore the two cocks were touching inside him with how thick they were, making the tightness even stronger and the rubbing even more intense. And it was hard to tell whether the raking barbs or the searing heat was more stimulating, leaving Cooper to just leave it at both of them being wildly effective. Up front, Rian was making use of his position well to push his cock down into Cooper's throat, the sparking sensations leaving a buzz through his head that blurred his vision and made him tingle all over his upper half. It was a salty and fresh taste that washed his tongue, the staticky pre constantly flooding his mouth - Rian shot pretty vigorously, and he pulled out as far as he could without leaving Cooper's mouth entirely, providing ample opportunity for the human to taste it.

It was as wild a ride as he had been expecting, and Cooper was reveling in it. Moans were escaping his mouth regularly, even in spite of the exercise his throat was getting, and his body was squirming around under the grips of the three morphs, clenching around their cocks as much as possible. Laying on his hot fluffy boy was pleasant as always, and the tight holds that Giger and Rian had on him were enticing just for their firmness and the impact it had on his mindset. Completely at their mercy, just how he wanted it…he shuddered as another orgasm raced through him, this one stronger than before, promising good things to come.

“Fuuuck…this guy REALLY enjoys this," growled Giger as he slammed in harder, picking up the pace and intensity to fight through Cooper's clenching around him. “Sure we can't clone him and keep one around, Zeph? Or maybe have him stay here while you go back out…"

“Mine," snapped back the Arcanine, with a grunt as his knot slapped against Cooper's rear. “Get your own boyfriend."

“I'd love to, if they'd let us outta here."

“Haah, you don't seem to mind settling when it's my tailhole you're plowing," teased Rian, swaying his rear and tail in front of Giger. “What, I'm not enough for you?"

“Guess he's trying to replace you," cracked Zeph. “Or maybe he just can't be satisfied with one, got that Nidoking horniness going."

“Watch your traps, or you'll find I've got plenty more to give!" clapped back the big purple beast gruffly. “Would be perfectly fine making it three filled by one instead of three on one!"

Rian was about to reply cheekily to that, but that was staved off by Cooper cumming again, the human's cries muffled by his shaft but definitely picking up in force. “Heh, I don't think Cooper agrees, I think he wants us to keep him the center of attention. So why don't you put that effort into plumping him up with that cannon of yours?"

Giger gave a deep grunt, as the clenching of Cooper's cunt around his cock coupled with the splash of fluid to warm him further. “Rgh, no intentions of stopping now…you'll just have to sub in once he's busy elsewhere." He kept amping it up, and below him Zeph was trying to match him, mashing his knot more and more against Cooper's rear. Giger was getting in deeper, lacking the knot to hold him out, but he wouldn't get the fun of a tie, and Zeph was eager to reach that point and ensure he kept his claim staked nice and firmly on the human. Rian was humping harder, too, though not going terribly much deeper, his angle limiting how far in he could get - more than deep enough as far as Cooper was concerned.

And in the center of it all, Cooper was having the time of his life. He hadn't been triple-teamed like this since his heat, and even without that driving rampant lust, he was being tossed around in a wild storm of pleasure that he never wanted to leave. Each thrust from every end made the euphoria creep higher, and his brain was fuzzing over enough that everything was just starting to blend together in a blissful haze, one he could do nothing but revel in. He was dimly aware of the cocks in him starting to throb and leak more and more, know that they were getting close, but it really didn't change anything, he was too lost in it to try to work them up more and get them past that edge…his own body was on the verge as well, a monster orgasm ready to rear its head and crash into him with at least as much force as the three morphs were doing right then. And he was pleading for it, beckoning it to hurry along and throw him into heaven.

What sent it over was Zephiel driving his knot forcefully through Cooper's pucker, tying him and tightening things so much that Giger could barely move himself. Cooper's eyes rolled back as the wild rush of orgasm claimed him, bucking and writhing mindlessly as each wave rocked him to his core. Soon enough, the first of the morphs joined him, Zephiel letting out a tense cry of his own as his heat pulsed into Cooper's ass, rushing through him with a wonderful burn that twisted and flowed within him. Giger was next, the Nidoking morph roaring out as his last few quick humps, barely moving him in and out, finally got him to the pinnacle, and that thick, chemical-laden spunk pumped into his waiting cunt, coming in so hard and fast that Cooper felt it might swell up him like a balloon. Rian was last, but not by long, releasing his shocking jizz with his own cry, pulled out enough that the first shot sent the salty buzzing fluid all through his mouth, Cooper barely having the wherewithal to swallow any of it before his throat was plugged up again. The bolts of seed sent bolts of charge through him, distorting his vision rhythmically throughout the Raichu morph's release and making his head spin even harder. The radical ravaging and fantastic filling kept his climax going quite a long time, his overstimulated body rushing to process all these wonderful sensations as they kept piling up, pushing him to the absolute limit.

It took a good while, but Cooper finally felt that high recede…he was the last one, the morphs tapering off before him. Rian helpfully freed his mouth, letting him draw in air more easily and release quiet yet husky moans of raw delight. The other two weren't going anywhere so soon, it seemed…Giger was shifting position a bit, apparently in it for the long haul while Zephiel's knot kept him locked in as well. “Damn, is this what being tied is like? Can't barely move like this…"

“Didn't think you'd get caught up with me…this the first time we've had the chance to do something like this?" asked Zephiel, rubbing a bit at the well-stretched vulva and making Cooper's moans tick up a little louder.

“Yeah, I don't think we ever doubled-up like this with one of the females. Not many chances to anyway. Not that I mind, he feels fucking amazing…but, uh, how long does this last?"

“Depends. Don't move around and it'll likely end quicker. I'm sure Cooper's enjoying us…aren't you?"

The human nodded. “Yeah…ah, it feels really good…I'm stuffed so full…"

“Heh, all that big talk earlier but you sound wiped right now," cackled Rian. “Well, you did tell us to keep giving it to you, and I'm sure as hell not gonna miss out on that end. Once that knot's out, you'd best be ready…"

Blankly, Cooper nodded. They definitely weren't going to be satisfied with just one round…and, for that matter, neither was he, regardless of whether his body wanted to agree. By the time they were done, he wanted to be as well-fucked as he could imagine, and he was sure they'd spare no effort getting him there.

---

And they certainly didn't. All three of them had had at least one crack at each hole by the time Cooper could handle no more, and he was as much a mess as he could remember being. It wasn't all just getting their dicks into him, either, they played with him a lot more, Giger making him extra sensitive with various mild drugs and Rian showing him a lot of fun with his electric stimulation. The lust that had clung to him had been very effectively sated when all was said and done, and he slept better than he had in weeks.

All in all, Cooper was pretty nicely relaxed by the time he went into his interview with the head researchers. A good thing, because he didn't particularly enjoy interviews like this...facing down two people when he was one was always a nerve-wracking thing for him. But he was trying to keep calm about this - after all, it wasn't like he was being graded or had a job riding on it or anything.

“We have to say, Cooper, we didn't expect someone to have this sort of reaction to Zephiel," Dr. Bonificio stated, glancing here and there at her notes. “I mean, I'm well aware that there are...fantastic elements out there that have a theme around this, but my research suggested that most people wouldn't respond the same way when confronted with the reality. So it was quite a surprise when we heard that Zeph had hooked up with someone."

“It was kind of a surprise to me, too," admitted Cooper. “Considering, well, I'd never actually HAD inclinations like that."

“Hm. It seems the conclusion of the research might have had a missing element to it." It almost sounded like Dr. Aringulera was amused by this. “But then what was it that drew you to him?"

“Curiosity, mostly. He was...unusual. I wanted to know more. And...well, take away the Arcanine part, and he did fit my mold. Though, it didn't take long before the Arcanine part was part of that mold."

“I see...unusual. Do you believe that there have been any significant issues with Zephiel's interactions with other people? Both in the way they act towards him and the way he acts towards them. It's difficult to gauge how accurately he perceives this from his reports."

Cooper thought on that a moment, wondering how to say it more than what to say. “It...varies? Zeph's generally nice to people. He only gets hostile when someone's doing something wrong. But...I guess he comes off as a bit tense...he doesn't know how they're going to react and that makes him nervous. The fact that he's kind of isolated, in a way...it makes him wary of people, because they could gang up on him and he's not sure how much he trusts getting a fair shake. Other people...well, they run the gamut. Kids mostly find him adorable, he's got the big fluffy puppy thing going for them, adults can be anywhere from the same to downright hateful. There's tension there, too, they're probably worried that he's a lot stronger and could do some real damage if he attacked...and the way he's tense maybe makes them think he could lash out if they say the wrong thing. There's a few places where they know Zephiel better, like the gym we regularly go to...the regulars there are pretty much totally cool with him now, and he's a lot more relaxed when he's there. So I think that's important...a lot of the tenser interactions are with strangers, neither one of them knows what to make of the other so they're awkward and evasive until it's over."

Both doctors were looking at him strangely as he finished up. “That was...quite a bit more thorough than I expected," remarked Dr. Aringulera. “Mr. de Noyes, do you have a background in psychology, by any chance?"

“Eh? Well, I don't know that I'd go that far, but I did minor in it in school...just something I always found interesting. Mostly the weirder stuff, but it was fun trying to figure out what people were thinking, too."

“You've got a better grasp on the observation of behavior than a lot of people, I'd say," said Dr. Bonificio. “Perhaps you can give us some additional insights. What do you think is the biggest roadblock to people accepting Zephiel? If you had to guess why they have a negative impression, what would you say it was?"

“That's quite the question you're posing, Dr. Bonificio," said Dr. Aringulera with some surprise.

“I know, I wasn't going to ask it, but I think he might have something useful given that he's got a better grasp of this subject than we expected."

Cooper was glad they had a positive impression, but it was a pretty daunting question...on the spot, he probably would have struggled to come up with anything. Fortunately, this wasn't something that he hadn't thought about before, and while he couldn't prove anything, he had an idea.

“People don't know what to make of him. They don't have any general conception of what a morph is like. He doesn't have a precedent or a category, so they don't know how to treat him. I think people would be able to form an impression a lot more easily if he was one of a group - if people know more morphs and had the ability to, uh, label them, in a sense. Not everyone is going to be accepting when they do, but I think a lot of them will, especially if there's a good impression made at the outset."

“So...you believe that, were we to move forward with this intended course of action we have, that it would benefit the morphs to be seen as a collective thing, rather than one isolated individual," surmised Dr. Aringulera.

“Yeah...I would think so." Cooper frowned a bit. “Not to be rude, but...I'm not sure how this hasn't been presented to you before."

“Neither Dr, Aringulera nor I are exactly psychologists," explained Dr. Bonificio. “We study morphs more than people. And that's not trying to say morphs AREN'T people, but we're more attuned to the morph side than the person side."

“I guess, but you'd have to have a psychologist of some sort, someone who deals with the morphs and their adjustment to how they are...right?"

Cooper really didn't like the exchange of looks between the doctors, especially Dr. Aringulera's darkened expression. It was she who spoke next. “Unfortunately not, and that has been one of the biggest frustrations we've had to deal with. We did have one, and he was exceptional...however, he took a prestigious position at a different institution. He had a replacement lined up, but personal issues forced her to leave the job...and since then, the administration has been trying to bring in candidates without success."

“What? Really? Why? You'd think there'd be plenty of people in that field…"

“Unfortunately, it's not easy to find people who are qualified for a task like this," Dr. Bonificio sighed. “First and foremost, it's...an investment. We live in this complex...there's not a whole lot of contact with people outside it. And we're not just punching in and out, it's pretty much on demand round-the-clock. It's a lot of work...the two of us are the leads here, and it's by far the most exhausting thing I've ever done in my life. If you're not 110% dedicated to the work, there's not much that'll save you from going round the bend. Then there's the fact that we need to screen out people who might have any poor preconceptions of morphs, and there's a lot more of those than you might think. We can't have people threatening the well-being of our charges here - these are people, and need to be treated as such."

“And to top it off, the compensation is not commensurate to the workload," added Dr. Aringulera. “This is a field that should demand top dollar pay, but Akhenaton doesn't allocate an enormous amount of resources to this, for the simple reason that the yield is subpar. They can do more good, and receive more return, when their endeavors are focused towards the general public, not a couple dozen unfortunate victims who have no actual prospect of reversing their state. I can hardly blame people for feeling like it's not worth it."

“Jeez...that sounds like a pretty bad state of affairs," agreed Cooper. “Though, I think one of those issues might go away if you keep going as you plan to...if they go to a facility in the middle of the city, then you guys aren't going to be so isolated either. You might get to have lives outsides of this place, and that would have to be good for you as well."

“I feel that certain similar sentiments might have been behind that initial push," Dr. Aringulera noted. “But we have to consider the well-being of the morphs, even if no one else does. Bringing them to the thick of the city...are you unconvinced that they would be in danger? Unusual people who are admittedly more threatening than the average human in appearance and ability, even if not in attitude?"

“I don't know for sure, but if anything, I can't remember an instance where Zeph actually got attacked by anyone. Bad looks, aggressive words, some underhanded attempts to make things difficult for him, but no one's thrown a punch at him, tried to ambush him, anything like that. And he's never let himself be goaded into a fight, either. I don't know that he's really in any more danger than I would be." He didn't add that he wondered if his recent change didn't put him in more danger from some meathead who found out about his change and decided any port in a storm - that was a thing he didn't like to think about.

“I see...hm. Perhaps my concerns would not be realized after all...however, all it takes are a few nutcases to ruin everything, and the city has no shortage of nutcases. I fear all it would take was the wrong kind of attention and everything would blow up in our faces. And if we cannot protect them…"

“Which is a valid concern," agreed Dr. Bonificio, “but I fear we're doing more damage to them here that we're just not seeing. You can tell they all want to leave...they all want to be around people again. If we don't do this, I wonder if we're not just going to have a breakout, a mass exodus that leaves us even further behind, because we'd be part of the group of people they see as enemies. That would leave them with NO support network...and probably even greater stigma because there's no control over who sees them and how. The chance of a bad interaction shoots up into the sky."

“And I think if they're visible and people learn about them, they get normalized and there's a lot less danger," added Cooper. “You're always going to have nuts, but those nuts can get the edge if they're the only source of information."

“There is a degree of truth to that, I suppose," conceded Dr. Aringulera. “There's already a fair bit of misinformation out there from all the scurrilous rumors about human/Pokémon hybrids from the past. Already we have a lot of that sort of thing to overcome…perhaps I was hoping that that could be addressed before we introduced them. But…I suppose the main problem driving those rumors is a lack of actuality, they only speak of the beings without true proof of their existence. That allows the mind to fill in whatever gap they want…and for people with agendas to spread the worst kind of misinformation to advance them to our detriment."

Cooper nodded. “It's harder to hold misconceptions when you see someone standing right before you. Especially when they can talk to you and tell you the truth to your face."

“Your perspective has been more informative that I expected, Mr. De Noyes." Cooper supposed that was what passed for high praise with Dr. Aringulera. “I still believe, however, that the issue of threat has not been fully ascertained. If the prior is that they may be dangerous, how do we defuse tensions that might arise because of those assumptions. That would make getting to the 'truth to your face' phase significantly more perilous."

Cooper rolled his eyes. “With all due respect, doc, I think you're overthinking it. Maybe being this far away from society has gotten you out of touch, but there are pre-teens out there wandering around with literally half a dozen dangerous creatures strapped to their belts. A morph is no more a threat than a typical Pokémon is. Heck, Pokémon could be the mediators for interactions between humans and morphs if things were just that tense, they'd have the strength and the trust to put humans at ease. And we can't forget that more and more Pokémon are living on their own in cities as well…if people can accept Urban Pokémon, which are just as capable of performing the fears you think people will deem dangerous, what's to stop them from accepting morphs, beyond the fact that they just haven't put that together yet?"

“…I don't know whether I'm more annoyed at you for your blatant impertinence, or myself and everyone else here for failing to bring that to attention."

“I can't believe none of us thought about that," Dr. Bonificio added, rubbing her head and looking a bit stricken. “We've spent so much time trying to figure out comparatives between morphs and Pokémon, how did it not cross our minds that people are familiar with all of these very same traits already? Our threat assessment went off the rails somewhere."

“The wages of insularity, I suppose…perhaps our research is, indeed, suffering for the lack of outside voices." Dr. Aringulera made a few more notes. “There can be no doubt that the variables of the equation have been significantly altered as a result of this…I think our report will be more illuminating than usual. Akhenaton will be very interested in this."

“You've been a huge help, Cooper," said Dr, Bonificio with a huge smile. “Carol's right, this'll influence a lot of thinking. And I can see why Zeph's so fond of you, you probably help him feel a lot more like he belongs."

The interview had influenced Cooper's thinking, too…now he was starting to get what had been going on. It was another case of smart people being too removed from the regular world for their own good, lacking competing perspectives to help them rethink and reframe their hypotheses. Part of the reason he'd never gotten beyond the casual interest phase of psychology, he felt it was too easy for him to lose sight of things and get the wrong ideas as a result. But he was more assured now that there was nothing about the researchers that was malicious or hostile…they were looking out for what they thought were the best interests of their wards, and were simply lacking in information about what that really was. And if he could be the one to provide the information that helped them get to the correct conclusion, then he'd done his part.

---

“Thanks for helping me find my way out…this place is kind of a maze to navigate." The two doctors were taking Cooper back to the grove so he could meet up with Zephiel and whoever he was hanging out with at the moment. The hallways were not very clear about where to go…which he'd found out trying to get to the interview in the first place, he'd almost been late because he'd gotten lost.

“There were some flaws in the design concept," Dr. Aringulera stated in her usual blunt fashion. “Too much interspersing of rooms of different sizes. All necessary, but the layout was not optimal. It's not a problem once you get used to it, but I don't imagine you'll have much need for that."

“What she's trying to say is, it's unlikely we'll need to do any more interviews," offered Dr. Bonificio. “I think we probably got enough out of you for-ah!" She was cut off as another researcher hurried up and grabbed her arm, also spooking Cooper. “Justin! I told you not to do that! Words, not touches!"

“Sorry, sorry!" Justin seemed to be on the younger side compared to the two head researchers, more around Cooper's age. “I needed to make sure I caught up to you. Percy's refusing to eat again, and there's signs that he might be sinking back into self-harm. We need to know what to do before it his crisis mode this time!"

“Oh, lord. All right, schedule a meeting for this afternoon. We'll sit down and get an action plan going, but I'm not sure how much more we can do compared to last time…if you can think of anything at all that we haven't tried, lay it out and bring it to me then."

“Yes, ma'am!" Justin hurried off, and Dr, Bonificio let out a deep sigh. Dr. Aringulera was also observing, and Cooper had a chance to see exactly what Giger had been saying before - that look of deep concern that slipped through her guard.

“As I feared…unless we can get through to him, it's going to continue…"

“I know! But I'm at my wits' end, Carol! I've tried everything I can think of! He doesn't respond to any overture, and every time I think we might have something, it just…goes the other way! That tortured look in his eyes just crushes my heart whenever I see it, and I don't know what to do about it!"

“It's our worst-case scenario. We're on the verge of losing him…it would crush the morale of everyone here if that happened, they're already anxious over just the fact that he's been suicidal."

That triggered a memory for Cooper. “Suicidal? Is this the Taillow morph that had that incident that delayed our visit before?"

“Yes. Percy has been…a challenge. It would be improper to go into too many details with you, but he did have an episode of that before, and we're doing our best to keep him from having another. He's non-communicative, so that complicates our efforts…I'm sure there's a way, though."

“Can I try talking to him?"

Both researchers did a double-take to stare at him. “You?"

“Yeah. I mean...I know I'm not an expert or anything, but…maybe a fresh set of eyes can be helpful here, too. Maybe he's terrified of doctors or something, due to what changed him or something that happened before?"

Dr. Bonificio frowned. “I…suppose that's possible...but he doesn't communicate with other morphs, either."

“Bad experiences with them, too? Or maybe just seeing a normal, regular human will remind him of something from his past. It's worth a shot, isn't it?"

The two researchers exchanged uncertain glances. “I guess it probably couldn't hurt…" Dr. Aringulera ventured, sounding uncertain but with the hint that she was reaching for anything that might help. “What makes you think you'll be able to have any more success, though? He's been very resistant to anyone so far."

“Well…I might not, but…I've got this weird feeling, I can't put my finger on it. Something that's nagging at my mind that feels like it's relevant, and I'm not sure why. Maybe if I go in it'll come to me. And if not, at the very least, I don't know what I'm looking for, so maybe I can kind of probe to see what gets a response out of him. I remember from my studies a fair bit about unconscious reactions, I always liked looking for those and they can tell you a lot about people's feelings."

“Almost certainly. All right, let's bring you there. I hope your experience connecting with one morph can translate to another…this one might be even more critical."

---

Hopefully Zephiel would forgive him for being waylaid. Cooper had been brought to the infirmary bay, to enter a room that was barely lit at all, only a small night light plugged into the wall. It felt a little creepy, but he didn't turn on the lights - it was clear that Percy had made it this way, and anything that maybe made the morph a bit more comfortable would help him open up. He was alone, the doctors staying back to help ensure that their presence didn't intimidate…more and more, though, Cooper was feeling like there was more to it than that. He wasn't sure what was leading him to feel that way, it was like his mind was trying to tell him something, he couldn't quite catch what.

Percy was curled up on the bed, almost like he was trying to hide away in the darkness. He was another one of the morphs on the smaller side, which made sense since the original Pokémon was a smaller one as well…that alone might have added to his fear, Cooper realized, so he tried to make himself smaller as he approached. It didn't seem to help much, Percy's eyes looked fearful as he stepped forward, and the morph shrank away a bit, prompting Cooper to hold his hands up. “It's okay...I'm not here to hurt you, or do anything to you. They just wanted me to try to talk."

A slight relaxation, though Percy still didn't look at ease. Just as they suggested, he remained utterly mute, not providing any physical response even. But Cooper wasn't deterred - unconscious cues would come through even if Percy tried to remain silent. He kept his eyes on Percy's face, hoping that he'd be able to recognize them - he was more familiar with human faces, but morphs were human once, so he hoped they would translate.

“I heard you've been here about a year. You don't seem like you're very happy." Little reaction, not unexpected. It was probably true.

“I hear you've been having some trouble. They're really worried about you...they want to help but they don't know how." Once again, he didn't see very much change, maybe a little more despondence in those eyes. Maybe he wants to be helped...but with what?

“I've been getting to know these guys around here...it's rough, going through a change you have no control over. I've had that happen too...not quite as drastic, but still pretty significant. But I've made friends with people here, and I know that people like me can get used to you." He watched carefully...although Percy seemed slightly less apprehensive about him than when he first came in, he still didn't seem heartened by this. His face seemed...tired, hopeless. Trying to commiserate and reassure was providing nothing…maybe even depressing Percy…

He doesn't want to be reassured. Then what…

And then...an inkling of a thought. “But...that's not what's bothering you, is it?" THAT got a reaction - a small one, but Percy's face lit up just the tiniest bit. Engaging him. Cooper felt his heart rise again. “You...aren't bothered by the transformation. You're bothered by something else. Something that's bigger than changing or being stuck here, aren't you?"

Percy was outwardly unmoving, but the twitches in his face were beyond revealing - Cooper could almost feel Percy's desire to nod yes. Holy shit...the researchers thought he was depressed over the change, over losing some part of his life. It never occurred to them that the problem could be something else entirely. Smart people too far removed again, their work colors their everything.

“So something else is bothering you. But you won't talk about it…" Percy's face twitched again, in a sadder way, and Cooper immediately picked up on that. “No, that can't be right. It's something you want to talk about." Rebound. Cooper was feeling his heart start to pound. “You do want to talk about it...so if you're not...it's because you can't. Wait a second…you can't…that…"

Cooper had always found the mind fascinating. Not enough to want a job in it, for a variety of reasons, but enough to want to read about it and learn a few things. His minor in psychology was a reflection of that - he had less interest in the mundanities and more in the peculiarities. Reading about what could go wrong and the ways people came up with to try to fix it were particularly intriguing. The reality was that no one understood the mind better than Psychic-type Pokémon, and even they didn't understand it fully...but they understood enough to be dangerous. They were capable of finding ways to shut down just about any individual part of the brain, disrupting their foes in ways that were often well beyond their means to fight.

Including communication. My god, that's what it was, that's what my mind was telling me. The Psychic Cage. A total block on the ability to communicate consciously. Voice, words, pantomime, even nonverbal cues, a control thorough as to keep them from conveying any precise ideas whatsoever. It's been used by dictators to keep their enemies from speaking out, and criminal organizations against witnesses to try to block them from testifying. Almost no one suspects it because it doesn't LOOK involuntary...they can do anything else just fine, so people think they're just being stubborn. But it's been described as a completely harrowing experience, almost like locked-in syndrome…no wonder he's been so despondent, it's almost like torture. But there's one thing that can't be blocked, the unconscious reactions…

Suddenly Cooper stood up, and extended a hand out. “Come on. We're going to get you talking again. I promise."

Percy stared at him, and then, hesitantly, took his hand.

---

Minutes later, they were in one of the exam rooms. Cooper, Percy, Dr. Aringulera, Dr. Bonificio, and one other important assistant.

“Dark Pulse?" Kyle looked blankly between the three humans. “Yeah, I think so...that was one you tested on me to see if TMs still worked. But why that all of a sudden? You had me try it out and then were never interested again."

“Have you used it any?" asked Dr. Bonificio.

“Well, yeah. It's kinda fun to play with. And...uhm."

“You can tell us anything, Kyle, you're not going to be in trouble," said Dr. Aringulera.

“Well...I...um...sometimes Tristan likes...uh...having a bit of a break from all the stuff that's rushing through his head...it helps him relax a lot more, especially when we, uh…"

“Understood," Dr. Bonificio replied quickly, but in as professional a tone as possible. “Actually, this is useful...we, ah...have had a request. Mr. de Noyes?"

“Right," Cooper nodded to Kyle. “I need you to give a light charge of that to Percy's head. Light as you'd use it with Tristan, or maybe lighter."

“Huh? Why?"

“Because I think a Psychic Pokémon has messed with his brain, and this is the only way to disrupt that without risking more damage. It think it's a Psychic Cage."

Kyle regarded Cooper uneasily. “You 'think?'"

“After what he told us, we think it's as plausible an explanation as any other," asserted Dr. Aringulera. “If true, then it's an active psychic induction on Percy's brain, which would be disrupted by the presence of Dark-type energies."

“Cooper's taught me a lot about how you morphs can work with move energies," continued Cooper. “If you do it light enough, it shouldn't really affect Percy in a painful or unpleasant way, right?"

The Krokorok morph still looked apprehensive. “I...it shouldn't? It doesn't hurt Tristan, and he's pretty sensitive to it...at least, it doesn't now that I know how to do it easy enough…you sure he's all right with this?"

“You're authorized to do so, Kyle," Dr. Aringulera declared, almost as if it was an order rather than a request. “If this is true, then we cannot actually obtain explicit consent from him. But I think the fact that he's not trying to run away in terror might be indicative of his feelings." Indeed, Percy, far from trying to escape, was clutching the exam bed, eyes closed, bracing himself as best he could.

Even though Kyle still didn't look fully comfortable, he eventually nodded and turned to the Taillow morph. Raising his hands and holding them apart in front of him, he concentrated and his eyes started to glow darkly. A miasmic darkness enveloped Percy's head, twisting and writhing in a loose sphere, a chaotic energy wringing through it. At first Percy didn't seem to be reacting, but then he toppled forward, falling off the bed and barely catching himself on his feet before going to his knees, panting raggedly.

“Shit!" Kyle swore in alarm. “Sorry, that wasn't...I shoulda had you get down more! Are you-"

“FUCK!" The loud exhortation dropped everyone else to silence - it was the first word any of them had heard out of Percy's beak, a shrill yet hoarse sound that rang through the room. Slowly the Taillow morph pulled himself upright, looking even more overwhelmed than before.

“Percy?! Are you…"

“God...it's been...too long, so long, I don't...you've got to stop them! They're-"

“Slow down, slow down!" Dr. Bonificio exclaimed, rushing over to Percy and helping him back on the bed. “We need the full story. Cooper, how much time do we have?"

“Ah, uh, I think…" Cooper scrambled to do so, trying to remember what he could. “It's a passive thing, I think, so unless it gets put back on, it should be gone completely, I think."

“Okay, then, let's take it nice and easy, and don't rush it, Percy. What's going on?"

Percy took a deep breath, then let it out shakily. “They...I don't know who they are. They just...they came, and they took away the camp group I was with. I ran, but...they...that Alakazam...it...it turned me...into this...and...it...it made it so I couldn't talk or anything…"

“Turned by an Alakazam?" For the first time, Cooper saw Dr. Aringulera legitimately break from composure, even if only slightly. “Where was this?"

“I don't know...I...I was just running, I don't know where...it was just...woods all around, until you found me…"

Dr. Bonificio looked at Dr. Aringulera urgently. “It must be Ten Dial Forest. That's where his records say he was found."

“Don't be absurd. Ten Dial Forest is completely empty." Dr. Aringulera paused after saying that. “...Wait. Why do I feel so certain about that?"

“...You're right. I...I feel it, too. Like just saying that, my own mind's trying to dispute it."

“Do you think-" Cooper was cut off by a sudden buzzing in his head, and the room going a bit darker. His body felt a pressure running through it, mild but not exactly comfortable...but his head was suddenly clear of the idea that there was absolutely nothing of note in Ten Dial Forest, a location he had never even heard of before and had no reason to have any preconception about. And then the darkness faded, the sensations ceased, and he started to feel that way again...but he knew better than to trust it.

“Did that help?" Kyle asked, panting a bit hard himself; there were no mysteries about what he'd done, and Cooper was glad he'd realized something was off and intervened.

“You...that was a Dark Pulse again, wasn't it?" Dr. Bonificio asked. “It did...I still have that feeling, but I'm aware of it so much more, and know that it's not right. My god, what kind of immensely powerful Psychic Pokémon can have a projection that reaches this far, and touches people who aren't even supposed to be aware of the input?"

“One that is probably powerful enough to rewrite reality at its whim, and easily turn humans into Pokémorphs," replied Dr. Aringulera dreadfully. “And to make it so that the people it takes in aren't ever missed. We need to contact the Major Incidents Unit, NOW. There's no telling how many people have already been taken in..."

“YES!" Percy almost shouted. “They have...I didn't see it, but I felt it, there's lots of them!"

“There's no time to waste. Percy, we'll need you to tell them everything you can remember, whether you saw it or felt it or whatever it is you can offer."

“Please, I've been kept from talking for too long, I want to get it all out!"

“Right." Dr. Bonificio turned to Cooper, with as anxious an expression as he'd seen on her. “Cooper…I can't thank you enough for what you've done here. But we need you to stay here. I don't trust that someone hasn't already been alerted to this, and I don't know if they're going to zero in on this place or on you, but you're in more danger anywhere where you're on your own. Until we've figure out what's going on, please don't go far."

Cooper nodded. He didn't know fully what was going on, but the way they were treating it with such gravity made him inclined not to argue. “Okay. I'll lie so low you'll think I was a Stunfisk."

“Try to remain human, if at all possible." He couldn't tell if that was a hasty effort at a joke or a warning that he was really in over his head.