Pokemon: The Scientist’s Rebirth

—Professor Oak's POV—

The door clicked shut behind Oak as he left the room, staring pensively into the empty space before him, his brow furrowed in contemplation. "Was the boy telling the truth?" he mumbled aloud, carefully weighing the child's words.

A shimmering distortion formed in the air, resolving into the imposing form of an Alakazam, the powerful psychic Pokémon. It communicated not through speech but by projecting thoughts directly into Oak's mind.

"Yes," Alakazam confirmed. "There were no blatant falsehoods detected in his surface thoughts. However, his mindscape is still developing, and a deeper probe could be risky, especially considering his recent head injury."

A grave expression settled upon the aged professor's face as the implications sank in. "It seems Team Rocket has become brazen enough to start targeting our children," he said, fury lacing his words as he clenched a withered fist. Visions of the nefarious organization's crimes flashed through his mind

"Go connect a call with Lance," Oak commanded, his voice steely with resolve. "This situation demands the immediate attention of the Pokémon League. We must locate and rescue the other children with all haste."

Alakazam inclined its head in solemn understanding and vanished with a crackle of psychic energy to fulfill its master's orders.

—Ethan's POV—

Ethan bolted upright in bed and hurried into the attached bathroom, shutting the door firmly behind him. He settled on the commode and began organizing his thoughts.

"The first meeting with Professor Oak was a bit nerve-wracking," he muttered, running a hand through his disheveled hair.

A frown creased his face as he analyzed Oak's visit. "The Professor entered the room mere moments after I regained consciousness...the timing was too perfect to be a coincidence. I was definitely being monitored somehow."

"Since there didn't seem to be any CCTV in the room, I was probably being observed by a Pokemon. Most likely a powerful psychic pokemon, and if the fanfiction tropes hold true, it's most likely a champion-level Alakazam." Ethan mused, piecing together the clues.

Ethan exhaled slowly, relieved he had quickly realized that he was under psychic scrutiny and kept his deeper thoughts and memories of his past life shielded during the conversation with the professor. A tremor passed through him as he imagined the ramifications if his true identity from another world had been psychically uncovered. His adventure in this world would have been over before it began.

"At least in the bathroom, I should be safe, right? No self-respecting Pokémon would try to pry into someone's thoughts while they're using the facilities, right? Yeah, I should be safe from prying here," he concluded, leaning back on the toilet seat and feeling a sliver of security in the confines of the bathroom

He exhaled slowly, reflecting on his conversation with the professor. Hopefully, he bought my story. He'd tried to present himself as a decent kid with a sense of justice, shaping his words to sound like a 12-year-old rather than the mature adult he truly was. I just hope it worked.

"I also didn't risk an outright lie in my recollection for fear of being caught. No telling what abilities a powerful psychic Pokémon possesses in this world," Ethan sighed.

Ethan couldn't help but wonder if his knowledge of Pokémon had impressed the esteemed researcher. "I mentioned the names of the Pokémon I encountered, even adding minor details like Gengar being the evolution of Haunter. Was that enough to impress him?"

He shook his head doubtfully. "Probably not. But I couldn't flaunt too much meta-knowledge to try and appear impressive without raising suspicion. Especially since I have no idea about the average intelligence level of a young teenager in this world."

"But, at least the Pokemon I named should have directed him towards Team Rocket right. Yeah, it should keep him busy for some time giving me more breathing room to figure out my next move." Ethan analyzed.

Despite his Pokemon knowledge not being showcased as noteworthy, Ethan hoped his analytical skills had at least left an impression on the professor. "No kid should normally notice that Gengar didn't belong to one of the men but appeared from elsewhere to help with the smuggling of the kids. Also, which child can analyze the possible move that almost killed him while being blinded, confused, and scared?"

His inquisitive nature and questions about Gengar's move should also have piqued the Professor's interest, triggering his desire to impart knowledge, as evidenced by his detailed explanation of Night Shade.

"Most elders with vast knowledge have a strong urge to share it with someone who appreciates it," Ethan mused. "It's just basic human psychology. Hopefully, with that and by expressing my desire to become a researcher just like him, I was able to at least subconsciously ignite a desire in him to take me on as a disciple or an apprentice of sorts."

Ethan resolved to further nurture this subconscious psychological nudging during their next meeting. "I should learn enough about the common knowledge of this world so that I can impress him with my Pokémon knowledge without seeming suspicious."

Since Professor Oak's lab represented the best possible starting point for a world-class scientist like himself to begin his journey in this new world, Ethan couldn't afford to be dismissed from here. He had to showcase his value and pave the way for the Professor to accept him as a junior researcher.

He knew that simply asking to stay wouldn't be enough to convince the Professor. "This isn't some fictional story where the hero gets everything, they want just by luck. This is the real world. Unless Oak sees some potential in me, why would he burden himself with some random kid when he could just as easily send me away to some random orphanage and be done with it?"

A sly grin spread across his face. "Call it a game of psychological warfare through subtle suggestion and strategic positioning. I'll make sure Oak want to take me on as a prodigy even before I ask him directly."

His course of action was clear: impress the Professor before even broaching the subject of staying. To achieve this, he needed knowledge. And he knew exactly where to find it.

"I think I saw a computer terminal in the room. It should allow me to access the internet (or the Pokenet, as they call it here)."

"But I'll have to be extra cautious about guarding any controversial thoughts from potential psychic eavesdropping once I leave the bathroom, at least until I understand how these psychic Pokémon work."

"Also, I can't obviously start searching 'how do psychic Pokémon read minds' as my first query in the web. I should be more discreet and subtle to avoid leaving a trail of suspicious search history, especially since I'm unsure if a Porygon might be monitoring the network.

With a decisive flush, Ethan emerged from the bathroom, his eyes immediately falling on the computer in the corner.

Settling down in front of it, Ethan's fingers danced across the keys, his mind focused on enriching his knowledge of this extraordinary Pokémon world. A satisfied grin tugged at his lips as the first streams of data began to flicker across the screen.