Professor Oak didn't elaborate further on the restricted areas. "Forget that for now," he said dismissively, already heading towards the computer console. "Time is limited. Let's get this scan started." He sat down, fingers poised over the keyboard.
He typed rapidly for about ten seconds, monitoring the readouts on the screen. Then, he stopped. "Alright. Scan complete. Next station."
Xiu, still standing inside the glass capsule, blinked in confusion. (O_O)?
'That's it? It's done?' He looked down at the sensor pads still attached to his body. 'No whirring sounds? No flashing lights? No strange sensations?' He'd undergone medical scans before – X-rays, MRIs – there was always some indication the machine was active. 'This felt… anticlimactic.'
"Well? What are you daydreaming for now?" Professor Oak's impatient voice broke through his thoughts. Xiu looked up to see the Professor regarding him with mild exasperation. "Were you expecting strobe lights? Maybe a dramatic musical score? Get out of the machine!"
"But Professor," Xiu protested mildly, still puzzled, "shouldn't there have been… something? A noise? A power indicator light, at least?"
"Nonsense!" Oak retorted sharply. "I designed and built this apparatus myself! You think you know its operational parameters better than I do?" He glared at Xiu. "Now hurry up! Move!"
"Yes, sir!" Chastized, Xiu quickly detached the sensor pads, stepped out of the capsule as the glass cylinder retracted, and followed Oak's instructions, moving to the next designated instrument for a different set of diagnostic readings.
Professor Oak, fully immersed in his research state, seemed like a different person – intense, demanding, his earlier amiability completely vanished— replaced by focused, almost obsessive energy.
Xiu found himself hustled from one strange machine to another, attaching sensors, standing perfectly still, following curt instructions. The entire process, despite involving multiple complex-looking devices, was surprisingly quick. All the various scans and readings were completed in less than ten minutes.
'Two hours of setup and calibration for five minutes of actual scanning?' Xiu thought, slightly bewildered by the efficiency, or perhaps inefficiency, depending on how you looked at it.
"Alright," Professor Oak finally announced, leaning back in his computer chair, the intense focus finally receding slightly. "Basic diagnostics complete. Now we just wait for the computer to process the data. Should give us a clear picture of your specific condition and the extent of the psychic energy contamination." He turned his attention to the main screen, where complex waveforms and strings of alphanumeric data were already scrolling rapidly.
"How long will that take?" Xiu asked, leaning closer, trying to make sense of the dense information flashing across the screen. After a few seconds, his eyes started to blur; it was completely incomprehensible.
"You understand any of this?" Oak asked, noticing Xiu's intense stare, initially assuming comprehension. Then, seeing Xiu's confused expression, he chuckled.
"No," Xiu admitted honestly, shaking his head.
"Neither do I," Professor Oak replied cheerfully.
"..."
Seeing Xiu's baffled look, Oak laughed again. "Hahaha! Relax, boy! This is raw biodata, terabytes of it. The computer is running complex algorithms, cross-referencing against baseline Kanto physiology databases, and analyzing energy signatures… only the machine can process it meaningfully at this speed. Even if I tried to analyze it manually, I couldn't possibly keep up."
"Oh," Xiu murmured, feeling slightly foolish.
"Right," Oak waved a dismissive hand towards the door. "No point hovering here. Go downstairs, find something to eat. You look like you're about to keel over. I'll stay here and monitor the analysis."
"Okay," Xiu readily agreed. The intense morning, combined with skipping lunch, had left him hungy— and his own Pokémon still needed their midday meal. "Do you want me to bring something up for you, Professor?"
"Hmm? Oh, just see what's in the kitchen. Whatever's easy," Oak replied distractedly, his attention already drifting back to the data streams on the screen, lost in thought again.
Xiu headed downstairs. Entering the Institute's kitchen area, however, his stomach sank. The only readily edible items were several packets of instant noodles sitting forlornly on a shelf. 'No seasoning packets included. Just… plain noodles. Seriously?' It felt depressingly like being back in his impoverished university dorm days.
Fortunately, he still had some leftover supplies from his recent camping trip – dried meat, preserved fruit, and energy bars. Enough for a meal or two for himself and his Pokémon.
'Looks like grocery shopping needs to be added to the budget.' He'd assumed, perhaps naively, that Professor Oak, running a world-renowned institute, would at least have a stocked pantry. Apparently, the Professor's focus was solely on research, not on cooking or shopping. 'Good thing he can make instant noodles, I suppose.'
The state of the kitchen itself was equally disheartening. While equipped with decent appliances – stove, refrigerator, sink – everything looked like it hadn't been properly cleaned in weeks, maybe even months.
Only one small saucepan near the sink showed signs of recent use, containing the sad, dried residue of previous instant noodle meals and a single pair of chopsticks lay abandoned diagonally across the pot's rim as strange, fuzzy cultures grew contentedly on unwashed plates stacked nearby.
"Oh, trouble," Xiu sighed, surveying the mess. He released Abra, Happiny, and Scyther. Priority one: feed the Pokémon. He quickly prepared their specialized rations using his own supplies. "Alright, you guys eat first," he instructed them. "I've got some work to do here." While they ate, Xiu rolled up his sleeves and started the unpleasant but necessary task of cleaning the neglected kitchen.
— — —
One hour later.
"Professor? Lunch is ready," Xiu called up the stairs.
"Took you long enough!" Professor Oak's voice replied, sounding slightly grumpy. "What takes so long just to boil water?" He appeared at the top of the stairs, presumably having taken a break from monitoring the data analysis.
"Had to clean up a bit first," Xiu explained diplomatically, resisting the urge to retort, 'Maybe if you didn't live like a student cramming for exams…'
"Come on down, let's eat." Professor Oak descended the stairs and entered the now sparkling clean kitchen. His eyes widened slightly as he saw the simple but appealing meal Xiu had prepared and laid out on the small kitchen table: pan-fried slices of preserved meat, reconstituted dried vegetables, steamed rice, and a simple broth. Not fancy, but substantial, nutritious, and a vast improvement over instant noodles.
"Where did all this come from?" Oak asked, surprised. "Don't remember having these ingredients stocked."
"Ah, just some supplies I had leftover from my travels," Xiu explained casually. "Mostly canned and dried goods, so maybe a little bland. And fresh vegetables are hard to come by out here without a proper market trip. Hope you don't mind. Just make do for now."
"Mind? Not at all!" Professor Oak declared heartily, already sitting down and eagerly picking up a pair of chopsticks Xiu had washed. "Haven't had a proper home-cooked meal like this in ages!" He gestured for Xiu to sit. "Don't stand on ceremony. No fussy rules here."
"Yes, Professor." Xiu sat down as Oak began eating with surprising speed and gusto. Xiu found himself eating quickly too, driven by his own hunger and the pace set by the Professor. Even so, Oak was already finishing his first bowl of rice and reaching for seconds by the time Xiu was only halfway through his own.
'Scary appetite for an old man,' Xiu noted silently.
After the meal, Professor Oak leaned back, sipping a cup of tea Xiu had brewed, looking content. "Excellent meal, Xiu," he declared. "Very well done. From now on, you're officially in charge of cooking."
"Okay, no problem," Xiu agreed readily. He had to cook for himself and his Pokémon anyway; adding one more portion wasn't a major burden— and anything was better than plain instant noodles.
"Right then," Oak said, setting down his teacup, his expression turning serious again. "The preliminary data analysis from your scan just finished processing. Some basic results are in." He paused, meeting Xiu's gaze. "Physiologically… aside from being somewhat underweight, which is likely due to prior malnutrition, your body shows no major abnormalities. No significant cellular damage, no tumors, no gross mutations. The psychic energy's impact on your physical systems seems… minimal. So far."
He paused again, letting that sink in. "However," he continued, his tone grave, "the readings from your neurological scans… particularly brainwave activity and psychic resonance levels… show significant irregularities. The impact on your brain, Xiu, appears to be substantial. Far more pronounced than on the rest of your body."
He let the silence hang for a moment. "Based purely on this preliminary data, I can only speculate. The full analysis, considering everything, will take the computer several more hours, maybe even a day. But," he looked Xiu directly in the eye, "you need to be prepared. The results might not be… reassuring."
Hearing this, Xiu, who had been mid-chew on a piece of fruit, froze. The food suddenly tasted like ash in his mouth. After a couple of seconds, he forced himself to swallow, then nodded slowly, absorbing the grim news. "Hmm~"
Professor Oak watched his reaction closely, then added, "We'll need to run similar diagnostics on your Pokémon as well, over the next couple of days. Especially Abra."
Xiu looked up, a flicker of concern returning. "My staying here… Abra being here… will it affect you, Professor? Your research?"
Oak chuckled lightly, waving a dismissive hand. "Worried about me? Please. Aside from perhaps Alakazam and a handful of specialists within the Joy Family or certain esoteric League divisions, few people in the world understand psychic phenomena – or its dangers – better than I do. I began researching psychics over twenty years ago, long before it was fashionable." He leaned forward slightly, a confident gleam in his eyes.
"Worry about yourself, young man. Not me."