svetikya Chapter 162 The Final Solution—Allotropic Objects
Chapter 162 The Final Solution—Allotropic Objects
Chapter 172 The Final Solution—Allotropes
Apparent death, also known as mild death or deep coma.
In this state, the organism's circulation, respiration, and brain function are highly suppressed, and its vital functions are extremely weak. No vital signs can be detected by general clinical examination methods, resulting in a state where it appears to be dead but is actually still alive.
After a period of apparent death, if the organism receives active treatment, it can be temporarily or permanently revived.
No matter where in the world, there have been cases in history of humans who appeared to be dead for a long time and then "came back to life"—such as a hanged person who had lost vital signs and was buried but was accidentally revived by grave robbers; a patient who was pronounced dead by a doctor but was awakened by the low temperature when being sent to the morgue; an elderly person who was about to be pushed into the crematorium but suddenly sat up and escaped death... Such horrifying reports exist tenaciously everywhere, to the point that they have become a general understanding of the concept of "resurrection".
...However, it is precisely because of its almost miraculous randomness that people talk about it so much, isn't it?
.
"Last night, the entire Liyong Police Station worked overtime to thoroughly investigate the critical care lists of all Pokémon hospitals in Liyong City. They discovered that several Electric-type Pokémon had been found to be unconscious after being injured by powerful moves. These must be the children who escaped death from the coffins, right?"
Officer Jenny stepped slowly past the detective in the white coat, took out a paper file hidden in her coat, tapped it lightly with her fingertips, and said to Telt—
“We also retrieved the surveillance footage from the police station. Unlike that cunning executive from the Plasma Group, the footage of your colleagues coming to the police station to claim the bodies was captured clearly. The list of those power plant employees has been preliminarily compiled, and the police can question them at any time. At that time, all your actions will no longer be a secret.”
"But it doesn't really need to be that complicated, does it?"
Standing to the side, Hugo spoke lazily, echoing the policewoman's words—
"This isn't about arresting criminals. From the moment Team Plasma confessed to the crime, there was no longer any need to hide the secret. You're not so much disrupting the investigation as helping the police avoid the scandal of burying the elves alive."
“Most importantly, Mr. Telt, you played an indispensable role in this case. Without your honest testimony, this case would never be considered closed—after all, you saved the lives of all the victims.”
After a long silence, under everyone's gaze, Telt let out a wry laugh, his thick beard trembling like a little wild boar that had just woken up.
"After hearing the explosion coming from the bio-powered area, I became worried about the condition of the lightning balls, so I ran against the crowd and into the explosion site in the rain."
This breeding consultant opened up and spoke frankly.
"At the time, people inside the factory were being evacuated. The police and fire brigade were unable to reach the biomass power generation area immediately due to the crowd blocking their way. It was at this moment that I entered the scene of the explosion."
"The terrible state of the Electric-type Pokémon is now self-evident. As I told the detective at the open-air bar, they lay there, the shockwave of the 'Big Bang' pressing them firmly to the ground, so they still appeared to be in their usual orderly ranks. Seeing this, the reason was obvious—I immediately realized that those guys had collectively self-destructed in a confined space, thus suffering excessive damage from their companions' attacks."
"Out of my professional instincts as a breeder, I tried to provide first aid to a few Pokémon nearby, but it was to no avail. Judging from their injuries, even if they were taken to the Pokémon Center for treatment immediately, their chances of survival were extremely slim; they were basically beyond saving. Those Electric-type Pokémon that brought this trouble upon themselves will soon have to become Ghost-types!"
"If it were any other breeder or elf doctor, they would definitely think the same thing."
But Telt was the best Pokémon breeder in Liyong City. He devised the only life-saving emergency plan available at that moment.
“That makes sense!” Hugo nodded knowingly.
"You move the wounded out of their original positions and gather them together. Then you send out a handheld Pokémon and use a high-powered electric shock to stimulate the severely injured Electric-type Pokémon that have self-destructed. This is not to heal the Pokémon, but to awaken their survival instincts and keep them in a deep coma in a state of suspended animation. That's how the second layer of char on the Pokémon's bodies came about."
"Truly worthy of being a detective." Teld nodded and released a Poké Ball that was hanging from his waist.
A robust, electric monster appeared beside the breeding advisor, its yellow fur seemingly crackling with electricity.
"During their special work at the power plant, those Electric-type Pokémon have long been accustomed to 'big explosions' and losing consciousness. If this is considered a form of training, their training volume is several times greater than that of wild Pokémon that only occasionally explode for fun. I don't believe they would die from their own self-destruction. Therefore, I have my old partner provide them with full-power electrical energy."
As the breeding consultant, whose physique was similar to his partner's, spoke, he patted the chest of the Electrified Beast with gusto, while the latter excitedly swung its black, cable-like tail.
"According to the Pokédex, Electivire's power generation is among the highest of all Electric-type Pokémon. A single fully charged Electivire can provide all the electricity needed for a large city's buildings for a year. It seems more than enough for emergency rescue."
Every living being possesses the ability to adapt to its environment. Whether it's humans or Pokémon, they are surprisingly adept at "habits," to the point that they become accustomed to the habits themselves.
Although it wasn't out of the Pokémon's own volition, the enormous workload, while altering their spirits, also strengthened their physiques, making them more adept at protecting themselves from massive impacts.
"Has the fact that we've become less concerned about 'life' also made us better at dealing with 'death'? The facts have proven your guess."
The detective nodded approvingly.
"According to the information the police found at the hospital, those Pokémon are recovering very well and should be able to be discharged next month. Mr. Telt, you did a fantastic job."
The mentor crossed his arms, looking smug and as if to say, "Who do you think I am?"
"But why didn't you explain the situation to the police?" Officer Jenny couldn't help but ask. "Why did you go through so much trouble to cover it up and deliberately create the illusion that the Electric-type Pokémon was dead?"
It's fortunate that the Pokémon were brought back to life, but why do all those unnecessary things? Unlike cold corpses, revived Pokémon can identify the culprit. The case could be solved quickly just by questioning the children, so why do these people insist on hiding the truth?
The sheriff simply didn't understand Telt's logic.
"Not only did you re-fake the scene after the emergency treatment, but you also gathered a group of colleagues to claim the 'corpses' and buried them in empty coffins. Why did you go to such lengths? Were you also instigated by the Plasma Group?"
"Uh...no." Telt scratched his head sheepishly. "Well, how should I put it? It's probably because we felt guilty that things have come to this point..."
"What does this mean..."
"Officer Jenny, you've overlooked a fact."
Before Officer Jenny could ask further, Hugo had already answered for Telt—
"The factory employees on the list who participated in the operation have one thing in common: their jobs all involved direct contact with the bio-power generation blocks. This means that they are privy to the truth about spontaneous combustion."
Seeing Officer Jenny's gradually realizing the truth, Hugo continued to explain: "In the eyes of these people in the know, the factory explosion must have been caused by the self-destructing Electric-type Pokémon. If they confessed everything to the police, the truth about the power plant explosion would be exposed as the factory abusing Pokémon and suffering a backlash. At that time, everyone would be subjected to a fierce attack from public opinion, and they might even lose their newly found jobs."
With the deliberate instigation of a certain group, or rather, an elderly person, the mass media in the Unova region has long become a monstrous flood that constantly devours people—nurtured by malice, driven by interests, armed with prejudice, mob-like within groups, and unintentionally entrenched in a complex web of connections.
Faced with this ferocious beast that even its breeders could not fully control, even an organization like Fengyuan Media, which was backed by an evil organization, could only be discarded, betrayed, and devoured like bait when it touched the interests of this behemoth. Not to mention the laid-off employees of the power plant.
"Interests from all sides are intertwined and misunderstandings are common. A slight deviation could lead to an abyss of no return, forcing even those with good intentions to walk in the shadows. In this sense, only N truly broke the deadlock that Smura left in Liyong City."
Thinking of this, Hugo helplessly twitched the corners of his mouth.
A realistic detective's meticulous investigation may dispel the fog obscuring the truth, but the actions of an idealist genuinely change reality with every step.
In the end, we could never become companions. Although I never even hoped for it.
A seemingly plausible will, a seemingly plausible ideal, a seemingly plausible talent.
A person who once refused to use Pokémon, now determined to liberate all Pokémon.
These two monsters, who were like alien creatures, naturally went down different paths.
Or perhaps there are no identical paths in the world.
.
Hugo faced the crowd again, dressed in a white coat, and humbly bowed in the morning light—
To the assistants and clients' representatives, to the diligent but incompetent Liyong police who failed to see the truth, to the breeding consultant who provided timely treatment but concealed the truth, to the electrical engineer who cared about the spirits but almost indirectly caused their deaths, and to the power plant manager who aimed for justice but wore tinted glasses—
"At this point, all the answers to the Liyong Power Plant explosion incident have been released. Are there any questions that still remain unanswered?"
“And another one.” Officer Jenny raised her right arm.
"Please speak."
"How could you tell from the stench at the crime scene that the elves were still alive?" the sheriff asked clearly.
Douzi and some of the police officers at the scene became curious at the same time—they had all arrived at the explosion site immediately.
They could all smell that unpleasant stench.
“Magnemite and Voltorb wouldn’t emit a stench from burns, so there must be another reason for the odor at the scene. And there were raging fires everywhere outside the bio-powered area, and the thick smoke must have been even more pungent and unbearable under the rainy weather at the time—the odor that could still be smelled in that kind of air couldn’t just be the smell of burning wood or rubber, but some other kind of special smell.”
"What was that? There was nothing else left at the scene." Officer Jenny was still puzzled.
“Yes.” Hugo shook his head. “Something that fills the heavens and earth and covers everything changes its properties in a huge electric shock, thus creating the odor.”
The detective in the white coat slowly uttered two words—
"ozone."
Allotropes of oxygen.