The New Normal - 8-8 - Interlude - Proton

The New Normal – 8-8 – Interlude – Proton

It had taken some time for them to settle into Sinnoh, mostly because their ‘mysterious’ backer was not so keen on their intrusion into their territory. But a promise was a promise, and so whoever their backer was very reluctantly allowed their teams access to their resources.

Of course, they immediately revealed their cowardly nature by firmly warning everyone not to make a fuss, which really infuriated Proton.

Who were these cowards to say what he could or could not do? They who had not done a single thing besides throwing money at the people doing the REAL work. They were just the moneybags; him and his team were the truly capable, the people who were actually fighting on the front lines.

Still, Proton kept his mouth shut regarding their cowardice. He didn’t need to be told to not anger their ‘kind hosts’. Ultimately, they were still dependent on their backer for access to their resources and facilities, especially after they had lost most of their resources after their hasty escape from Hoenn.

And what a backer they were. Proton laughed when he found out that their mysterious backer turned out to be the number one most dominant business in Sinnoh, Galactic Company. What a joke that was. It was like finding out Silph Co was being run by a terrorist. Truly, it could only happen in such a backward region like Sinnoh.

But Proton wouldn’t complain. Their backer being as rich as they were allowed him access to so many more resources than he thought capable. No wonder they seemingly had an unlimited supply of money to use.

Unfortunately, he saw that most of that money was being dumped into stupid R&D projects. He wasn’t privy to those conversations, only the bosses were, but all Proton knew that tons of resources were being wasted by those eggheads instead of being put to actual practical use, like purchasing better Pokémon and equipment for the grunts.

He supposed that was why he was being called into a meeting with the bosses right now. He and Matt, alongside the fat lard and the creepy girl under Maxie, headed into a heavily secured meeting room that used airlocks as doors. Proton rolled his eyes at all this ‘protection’. They only LOOKED strong and sturdy, but it wasn’t like they could withstand a hit from a truly strong Pokémon. He was sure his Pokémon could bust through if needed.

He kept those thoughts to himself as he entered the room, and his eyes locked onto the man at the end of the table, surrounded what must have been 3 of his subordinates. The first thing he noticed was their hair. What the fuck was wrong with them?!

The girls he could forgive; colourful hair was not an entirely unusual sight. But that last guy, with the weird blue hair. What the fuck was he thinking?! Firstly, how the fuck did he get his hair to stand up like that? And secondly, why would he get his hair to stand up like that? No true criminal would be stupid enough to have that kind of haircut; they’d be laugh out of any meeting!

He wanted to laugh too, but he suddenly felt a harsh and piercing gaze fall on him, and he quickly swallowed that humour. He turned to meet the stare, and suddenly found a monster facing him.

Blue, inhuman eyes met his own. With a face completely devoid of any emotion, like a corpse had taken control of a person. The man was completely still, his eyes unblinking as they continued to stare a hole into Proton.

Proton had seen many criminals over his career. Many of them tried to posture or look tough. Others tried to act like your friends or suck up to you to get you to lower your guard. Some had charisma, like his boss did.

But none were like this man. Despite Proton letting out a snarl, trying to maintain his tough persona, the man didn’t even react. Proton couldn’t help but wonder what kind of life that that man must have lived to become like that. And considering that he wanted to remake the world…what kind of warped mindset did that require? It was truly unnerving.

Was he the only one that could see it? Why was no one else reacting?

Fortunately, the man moved on from Proton, choosing to stare at his other companions. Archie gestured for him and Matt to sit next to them.

A moment later, after they were all seated, the man finally spoke up. Yet, unlike what his appearance might suggest, his voice was calm and measured, but also with a distinct hint of charisma and passion.

“Welcome, dear friends. We thank you for your successes in bringing us the key data needed to continue our research.” He began, “As you may know, I am Cyrus. These are my subordinates, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn respectively.” He gestured to his three subordinates, who didn’t react. Proton had fight down another smirk; what the fuck were those names?!

“We have invited you here today to discuss the changes in our organisational structure, as agreed upon by myself and your bosses.” He continued, and Proton leaned forwards. “Your bosses will be joining me in planning out the future strategy of the Team. As for the rest of you, you will all be deployed as field agents, instructors, or intelligence, depending on where your talents lie.” Proton nodded; this was acceptable. The more freedom he had to beat up some fools, the happier he was.

“As for the direction this Team will be taking, thanks to the research you have developed, our goals are ever closer to success!” Cyrus stood up from his seat, arms spread wide, “With the data from the orbs, and our own research, we now know that there IS a method possible to control the Legendaries! And wield their power for our own! The very idea of godhood is now potentially within our grasp!”

Proton’s eyes widened then, as did many others in the room who hadn’t already heard the news. He never truly believed in the final goal of his team, more so using them for convenience rather than anything. But to hear such a thing…to be able to control the Legendaries...the possibilities with that power were endless.

Cyrus wasn’t done yet, “But! That research is not complete yet. There are still many important components that we currently lack. Which is why our R&D team are working overtime to discover what that might be. I can only ask you for your patience, because obtaining the power of Legendaries is a delicate and slow process.”

“But with their power, we will become GODS! The very world will be ours to mould, to control, and to use as we liked! You could shape, not just this world, but any number of worlds to your perfect ideal of your very own personal paradise! And with their power, there will be NONE that could stop us! ETERNAL POWER! ETERNAL CONTROL! ETERNAL FREEDOM! ALL OURS TO USE!”

The meeting room erupted into cheers of support, roused up by the sheer passion and determination in Cyrus’ speech, and Proton wasn’t ashamed to admit that he joined in at first. The very idea of having control of a Legendary’s powers was too appealing even for a cynic like him. If such a goal could actually be brought to reality, then Proton would happily follow along.

As Cyrus then began talking about their long term plans, something caught Proton’s eye, and he stared at Cyrus one more time. Only to realize the truth.

Cyrus’ eyes were still as blank as they were before. His passionate smile was nothing more than a façade. And then the image of a charismatic leader faded away, once again revealing the truth to Proton.

Cyrus was not a fanatic like Archie and Maxie were. No, he was a true madman. One that walked towards a goal without any reason for why he wanted to achieve it, lacking any sort of passion or emotion. A man who wanted nothing but the emptiness that he possessed in his eyes.

Not that such a revelation really changed anything for Proton; he still thought the idea of creating a world for him to indulge in his desires was too good to pass up.

But what did it say about them, that they willingly followed such a madman and his plans?

A.N. I felt that considering all of the thoughts John has had regarding Team Galactic, it was about time to have a POV chapter from Proton again. This time, I wanted to introduce Cyrus into the story properly, and I hope I have done him justice to what we saw in the games. A complete lunatic that has a talent for manipulation.