Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Don't Give Me Diamonds ❯ Chapter 24

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 82: Give me Enthusiasm

At his office in the Viridian gym, Giovanni looked up the security videos from the gym area. There were no cameras inside the office, but there were some hidden in the halls of the gym. According to the images on his computer, only one person had been there during the time window when he was away battling as the gym leader. That had to be the thief; there was no other logical conclusion. Giovanni was very displeased and he didn't hide his expression. Of all the possible traitors, he didn't expect Laiki to be one.

She was there at the hotel, she knew where they would be, she was a good liar. She was flirtatious and could have been using the men involved as accomplices. She had enough medical knowledge to concoct a serum that would make them faint and forget after a set amount of time. It would be just enough time to get the job done. She could have given it to them in a drink or something. Just because she was Binks' little sister and seemed to get along so well with Delia, didn't make her loyal. He couldn't let such thoughts get in the way of his judgment. It could all be an act.

"Dude, Giovanni, like what's wrong, man?" Luke didn't like the angry look on Giovanni's face and neither did Pixel.

"Laiki is a traitor," he turned the screen around for them to see the image captured by the camera. It showed someone identical to Laiki going into Giovanni's office. Given the timing, she would have plenty of time to deliver the pokemon to the assassin and even join her at the mansion if she wanted. He didn't notice the missing pokemon until Luke went to ask what he thought about them later.

"This like totally can't be!" Luke was quick to defend her. She was Binks' little sister and she had been a big sister figure to Comet. "There like has to be like a mistake, you know?"

"A picture's worth a thousand words, she's a traitor. Everything fits," Giovanni was tired of all the uncertainty that had invaded his life. He felt as if he was no longer in control of anything. It was a terrible feeling, especially for someone who was used to always being in control.

"I like don't think she would like betray Team Rocket, man!" Luke insisted firmly.

Pixel looked at the two men, it didn't seem like Giovanni was listening to Luke's defense. "Excuse me; is there something I need to do? If not I'll go continue my training."

"Go," Giovanni dismissed her.

xoxox xox xoxox

Meanwhile, in the living quarters of the rocket base, Purry watched as Comet slept. He was snoring, which prevented her from sleeping because of all the noise. Peachy's soft 'chu' sounds were nothing compared to the all out unconscious attack Comet was releasing into the sound waves. She hissed in exasperation and picked up Gyarados' pokeball. She held it above Comet's face, 'I hope you like seafood as much as I do,' Purry grinned mischievously. She released the Gyarados into the unsuspecting young man's mouth when he opened it in a loud snore.

Naturally, the water pokemon was far too large to fit in his mouth. Instead, Gyarados materialized on top of Comet suffocating him momentarily and nearly crushing him. Bumping his head on the ceiling of the room, Gyarados immediately retreated into his pokeball again before the red beam completely disappeared.

"Ow," Comet wasn't sure what just happened. He saw a flash of red and blue and felt as if he was being flattened by something very heavy. The feeling only lasted a second, but it was painful. Thankfully nothing was broken. He sat up and rubbed his aching head, carefully stretching his neck in slow circular motions. He looked at Purry, who was sitting on the bed next to him. "Did you just try to feed me Gyarados?" It was simply unbelievable. He considered it being a dream, but the pain was too real.

'Who me?' Purry gave him a look of faked innocence at first. Then she glared fiercely, 'yes I did and if you don't stop snoring I'll feed you Gyarados and Scyther together next time!'

Comet had no idea what Purry was saying in her pokemon language, but she was angry. "Peace," he tried to calm her. She had let him know that she didn't like it when he snored, but he didn't think she would take such extreme actions to stop him. "I won't snore anymore, I promise." He was determined never to snore again; it had become a matter of life or death.

By strength of will and survival instinct, Comet kept his promise. Even so, Purry was no longer in the mood for a nap and left Comet to his recovery by himself. She went out of the room and walked around the base, her sharp battle senses immediately noticing the tension in the air. Pixel ran by, dashing towards the nearest exit. Curious about what in the world she could be missing, Purry hurried after Pixel.

xoxox xox xoxox

It didn't take Pixel long to locate Laiki in Viridian City. She was at a cafe flirting with one of the waiters. Looking left and right, to make sure she wasn't followed, Pixel went in and approached Laiki. "We need to go see Delia."

"Right now?" Laiki wasn't sure what this was about, but Pixel looked ready to drag her out if she didn't hurry. "Okay, just let me get his number," she winked at the waiter. However, the young man was staring at something that was not part of Laiki's person. She pouted, 'why is he staring at Pixel? My chest is bigger!' She frowned in frustration, then realized he was actually staring at the red R on Pixel's shirt.

"Team Rocket," the waiter stammered. Unlike Pixel, Laiki was not in her uniform.

"Cosplay!" Pixel loudly exclaimed, she didn't have time to change. The waiter calmed down, as did the random customers and other employees who had noticed her presence. "Let's go," Pixel began to drag Laiki away by the arm, taking her out of the cafe.

"Ouch, wait, what kind of emergency are we dealing with here?" Laiki protested as they left the infatuated waiter to deal with the bill.

"You were framed, there's no time to explain," Pixel insisted. "Drop your cell phone so they can't track it."

"Framed? How was I framed? What was I framed for? I didn't do anything!" Laiki began getting upset, which would not help their situation.

"Calm down, I'll explain things when we're in the clear. Delia will understand, let's find her before anyone finds out I'm helping you and I get into trouble," Pixel urged. The two young women hurried to Giovanni's mansion. Fortunately, the taxi driver seemed to believe the cosplay story too.

xoxox xox xoxox

Time passed and the sun sunk in the horizon, not that Ash could see it beyond the wall of trees surrounding the mansion. He did notice the light becoming dimmer as he looked out the window. Realizations were indeed exhausting. He decided to rest a little more after that second talk with his mother. His mind was tired, but his body was not. He couldn't fall asleep, though he wanted to. Instead, he thought about all the things he learned that day.

What would Misty say? She had to find out at some point. For how long was he to keep the secret? How could things work out now if they didn't in the past? It was true that his mother no longer had a baby to raise. Was that all there was to it, or was that simply the last drop that pushed the flood of choices along?

A black limousine arrived at the mansion. Ash watched from the window as Giovanni exited it and headed for the mansion's front door. He stood frozen at the window, before finally backing away a few steps. He wasn't ready for this, he wanted to think, to let it all sink in. His memories of his time with Giovanni and all the things they talked about felt nearly unreal. It was almost like a dream he had woken up from. Ash felt as if he had lost control of his life, even if the things he found out about were never in his control to begin with.

His eyes traveled to the desk in the corner of the room. There was a notepad on top of the golden lined indigo furniture. He picked up the black pen with a green leaf on it. The notepad had a faded green leaf watermark to match. They both looked like the Earth badge, the symbol of the good gym leader who was in fact a mafia lord. Ash's messy penmanship flooded the notepad with black ink scribbles. He tore off the top sheet and crumpled it in his hand, squeezing the paper into a tight ball.

Pikachu watched as Ash threw the paper ball into the waste basket and once again, put pen to paper. He had enjoyed his time with Giovanni, but his perception of the gym leader was drastically changed all of a sudden. Ash didn't know what to think, he wasn't one to hate, but he was confused. He was afraid he might make a mess of everything if he said the wrong thing to Giovanni. He simply couldn't face him yet. With his short note finished, Ash gestured for Pikachu to climb on his shoulder and hurried away silently with his other pokemon in their pokeballs.

He exited the room without making a sound and snuck towards the back door. There were less Rockets around by then. Ash saw a few Rocket grunts on his way out, but they all identified him as the boss' special guest and didn't try to get in his way. He was able to exit the mansion easily. Once outside, he released Charizard and climbed on his back, "I need to go to... home, to Pallet Town." The powerful fire pokemon took off towards the Pallet House.

xoxox xox xoxox

Delia sat looking at a laptop in one of the mansion's living rooms. She read through the reports and looked at the videos from Razzo Albergo's security system. Recently added to the collection of evidence, were the videos from the mansion before the cameras were deactivated. Only certain parts of the mansion had hidden cameras, such as some of the halls and the area surrounding it outside. The entire place had motion sensors able to identify the presence of practically anything anywhere in the large structure.

Both the men that had deactivated the respective security systems at the hotel and mansion had passed out soon after. They both looked lost, similar to zombies. They had no memory of their traitorous actions; it was as if someone was controlling them. The women involved in the case all looked different. Blond, blue eyes, white skin, red hair, unknown eye color, tan skin, faded pink hair, brown eyes, olive skin. The last two had a taste for big thick looking boots and they were all out to kill Delia. She wondered if the same person was controlling them all. The women were much more aware than the men involved.

The butler entered the living room in relative silence. His soft footsteps were just loud enough to hint at his arrival so that his sudden voice wouldn't startle Delia. "Milady, Lord Roketto has returned," his dark violet eyes seemed to scan the room searching for anything suspicious. His face looked serene, but he was still alarmed by the recent happenings.

"Thank you, Rex," Delia smiled politely as the butler bowed; a single strand of auburn hair fell out of place as he did. She closed the laptop. Nothing seemed to stand out about the files she had been looking at. She still couldn't make sense of why the third would-be assassin had said she was her rival.

Delia followed the butler towards Giovanni, who was in the main room near the entrance talking to some Rockets. The Rockets dispersed soon after and Delia approached. The butler quietly excused himself, disappearing from sight at the same time as the Rockets.

"Did you tell him?" Giovanni wasn't even sure why he bothered to voice the question. Delia's expression already gave him the news.

"Yes," Delia confirmed. "Ash is resting upstairs right now. I'm sure he has a lot of things he wants to ask you. You'll take some time to talk to him now, right?"

Busy as he was, Giovanni knew Delia wouldn't have it any other way, "yes." Besides, the executives and the high ranked Rockets could keep the organization running while he took some time off. It was something he wouldn't normally do, especially given the recent happenings, but he felt that he had to. He couldn't deny that he wondered what kind of reaction Ash had to learning the truth of his origins and his father.

Giovanni and Delia went to Ash's room. They found it quiet and empty. As Delia searched for any signs of her son, she spotted the notepad on the desk. It had been propped up against the wall at the desk's edge, instead of laying flat on its surface. That made it appear prominent and easy to see. Delia picked up the notepad, recognizing her son's handwriting. "I need to think. Don't worry, I'll be back soon. -Ash"

"So you both have a knack for running away," Giovanni wasn't sure if he should be annoyed, or disappointed that Ash didn't seem to have the courage to face him. Whatever his opinion of the situation was, he couldn't decide on it, but it wasn't indifference, it bothered him.

Delia's expression saddened, "it was too much all at once," she hugged the notepad as she felt guilt build up inside her. "I should have found a way to tell him more gently."

Delia was guilt tripping herself again, Ash had ran away, nothing was simple in Giovanni's life anymore. It had not been simple for years, but it was still rarely this complicated in such a way. All the betrayal around him reminded him of his least favorite parts of the past. "Forget it; let him do what he wants. I have other things to think about than the mood swings of some boy."

"Giovanni!" Delia could say nothing more than his name in a mixture of upset and sadness. She wished Ash would have at least spoken to her before leaving. He probably knew she would talk him into staying. She could understand his wish for some space, even if he had been waiting for answers for so long. Delia could relate; she too took some time before telling Giovanni the truth after they were reunited. She had to sort things out before she felt she knew what to say and how to say it.

She didn't stop Giovanni from walking away. She couldn't fully blame him for not interpreting Ash's sudden departure in the best way. She couldn't blame Ash for needing time either. After Giovanni had left her alone in Ash's room, Delia called Ash. She had to know he was alright, even if she was aware he knew how to take care of himself. The possibility of him being targeted by an assassin still bothered her.

"Mom..." Delia breathed in relief when she heard Ash's voice coming from her cell phone. "I'm sorry I left like that."

"It's okay; I understand that you need time to think. I won't try to rush things. Where are you right now?" Delia hoped he wasn't too out in the open.

"At home," Ash replied, he was in the little house where he lived for the first ten, nearly eleven, years of his life.

"Let your pokemon out, I'm sure you'll feel better with them around," plus they could make sure Ash was safe. "I'll be there soon-"

"Don't worry," Ash interrupted, "you don't have to rush over. You should stay there; I'll be alright on my own. I just need some time to think. Tell Gio-um... father... I'm not mad at him," or at least he thought he wasn't, he wasn't sure. Referring to Giovanni as his father still felt very odd. Ash wondered if Giovanni thought of him as a son or if he was still allowing the fact to sink in. "I just need to sort my thoughts." The situation was complicated; Ash knew that, it was more complicated than words could say. "Mom, I'm not mad at you either, just so you know."

"That's good to know," Delia tried to keep her voice steady. She was determined to keep things as stable as possible so that Ash didn't find too much drama when he returned.

xoxox xox xoxox

On her way walking down the hall, off to find Giovanni, Delia saw Iblis. "Delia, there you are. Did you have a chance to study the files? Are there any clues you could point out?"

"Iblis, I thought you went home to rest," Delia had assumed Iblis was no longer in the mansion. The injured woman really needed to take some time off to recover. "I didn't notice anything in particular. Maybe if we looked at the videos together and discussed it we could come up with something. I'm sorry, I know this is urgent, but I need to talk to Giovanni right now. Plus you need to get some rest so you can have a full recovery from your injuries."

"Don't worry about me," Iblis insisted with a smile and adjusted her weight on the crutch. "Giovanni left a minute ago. I saw him on his way to the main front doors and tried to report a few things about the investigation. He didn't seem to be in the mood to talk to anyone. He left, looking quite angry. I'm not sure where he went, perhaps headquarters. I know it's none of my business, but did you two have a fight?"

"No, it's... well, I guess a little tension is to be expected. I'm sure things will sort themselves out," Delia wondered if she should go after Giovanni or give him some time to cool off first.

"Ash?" Iblis didn't need to wait for an answer as Delia's expression gave it away. "It is only natural for a mother to put her child before anything else in the world. Even if he is a young man, he's still your son." What Iblis was hinting at was different from how Delia interpreted her words. Iblis was encouraging her to leave, but Delia was more determined to stay.

"Yes, you're right," Delia nodded, finding a little bit of hope in Iblis' words. "One way or another they'll work things out, Ash is his son, one way or another, things will be okay in the end," Delia stopped herself. She wondered how much Iblis knew about Ash. The Rocket grunts didn't seem to know him beyond being Delia's son and Giovanni's guest. They didn't know he was also Giovanni's son.

For a split second shock overtook Iblis' face. She raised a delicate eyebrow and let out a soft, "oh?" Again, Delia didn't need to give any confirmation; it was all over her face. "I didn't realize you were so well acquainted with the boss in the past," she laughed softly, as if to get over her surprise.

"Don't tell anyone," Delia quickly urged, "please." It might eventually be known, but she didn't want any extra pressure on Ash at the moment.

"Don't worry," Iblis smiled once more, "no one will know." She spoke with absolute certainty, as if she would personally make sure of it. "If you'll excuse me, I'm feeling tired. Maybe it's best if I leave."

Delia nodded in agreement, "yes, you should rest and recover, take care of your health."

"I appreciate your concern," Iblis left without looking back.

xoxox xox xoxox

"Delia!" A female voice, coming from down the hall reached Delia. She turned to see Laiki running towards her. Of all the places where she could go, no one expected her to go to the mansion of the man who had sent his agents to hunt her down. It seemed much more likely that she would run to Pewter City and hide there. It was convenient that she had carried out her plan to find a Kanto boyfriend with Rex, the young butler.

Pixel approached along with Laiki. Purry was on Pixel's shoulders looking in every direction. Persian would surely be there later. The mansion could provide her with a place to hide and watch him, accomplishing that at the boss' office would be difficult. The love struck Meowth jumped off the girl's shoulders and dashed away quiet and sneaky. She left the three human females to walk off somewhere and discuss whatever they seemed so eager to talk about.

xoxox xox xoxox

Diamond 83: Give me Enlightenment

It was one of the most elegant and largest living rooms in the mansion. It could be used as a room to have a get together if a big open space wasn't needed, as the room was mostly occupied by furniture. It was in the middle of a collection of rooms that seemed to exist for the sole purpose of housing expensive furniture. The room had three large golden double doors connected to a square hallway all around it.

The most striking feature of the room was the artistic mural occupying the entire wall that was without doors. The painting was very realistic, as if the room had a glass wall with an ocean view. Several statues of water pokemon were placed in front of the painted wall; the 3D sculptures further brought the art to life. The sand was not a natural color, but the painting matched it, in a brilliant gold. It made Delia wonder if it really was gold dust.

The carpet had a design that made it look as if it was golden dust, though it was a thick fluffy plush texture. Delia shifted on the couch, the clear material it was made of looked like plastic, but it was far more comfortable than she imagined it would be. The water filling the peculiar couch shifted with little pokemon figurines floating inside it. Goldeen, Seaking, Magikarp, Horsea and Seadra were among them.

Pixel sat rather stiffly, she wasn't used to sitting on water furniture. Neither were the other two, but Delia adapted and Laiki's mind was elsewhere. "You're not going to believe what's happening!" Laiki bounced nervously in place. Her movements caused the water in the couch to shift.

It made Delia and Pixel bounce too, in a human wave. "Stop rocking the boat!" Pixel complained.

Laiki ignored the complaint and continued her dramatics, "Maybe now I can get some answers. What am I being accused of?"

"This couch is weird," Pixel muttered as she tried to get somewhat comfortable. "You're being accused of stealing the boss' Flygon and Garchomp and giving them to the assassin. He thinks you're her accomplice."

"I know you're innocent," Delia offered, "when Giovanni returns, I'll talk to him."

"Thank you," Laiki sincerely voiced, though Giovanni's distrust still bothered her. "How in the world was I framed in the first place?"

"You, or rather someone who looked like you, was caught by the gym's security cameras in the hall," Pixel revealed. "It doesn't make sense."

"Exactly, I'm not a traitor!" Laiki emphasized.

"Sit still!" Pixel hissed as she and Delia was thrown against each other with the water couch's motions. "Anyway, that's not what I meant. I know you're not a traitor, but why would the assassin frame you specifically?"

The way she left, abandoning the stolen pokemon, was very suspicious. "Let's list off all the facts we have," Delia suggested. "Maybe if we put our heads together, we'll be able to figure this out. We'll get to the bottom of this and catch the culprit!" The two younger women nodded in agreement.

Rex entered the room with a tray of food and drinks. Laiki had met him in the hall before finding Delia and requested some snacks to calm her nerves. He paused and observed the scene before him. He had not really caught the conversation. A cold chill invaded him as he glanced at Delia. She was upset and looked very much like a lady of the mafia with the expression she wore. Her eyes seemed to say 'you'll regret making me angry.' This was quite different from her usual sweetness.

Pixel had a rather sadistic expression as she caught her right fist in her left hand. She was wearing iron knuckles attached to her black leather gloves. Laiki's expression could only be described as pure evil while she made stabbing motions in the air as if holding an invisible dagger. He felt his face becoming warm, he thought mafia girls were attractive, more so if they were a little rough.

Rex quickly served the snacks on the small transparent, nearly invisible, coffee table in front of the group. He felt the three pairs of eyes on him and shifted uncomfortably. The same stubborn strand of auburn hair that always broke lose of the neatness of the rest of his hair did so again.

"Thanks," Laiki winked, "if you don't mind, can you make sure no one interrupts? We're having some girl talk."

"Of course," Rex was quick to comply, hoping that the rush of blood to his face wasn't too obvious. The women looked like they were plotting the demise of all mankind. For all he knew, perhaps that was the very definition of girl talk. "Have a pleasant time, ladies," he swiftly left.

"He remembered the syrup," Pixel chirped in delight, as she picked up her plate with a dark chocolate and chocolate chip brownie. She began to pour a generous amount of chocolate syrup on it.

"Is that healthy?" Delia decided to eat her brownie without any additional ingredients; it was already sweet enough in her opinion.

"I'm a sugar junkie, I can take it," Pixel closed her eyes in delight, savoring the chocolate.

"I need comfort food," Laiki began to devour her brownie. She then paused and opened up the liquor bottle, serving it in the three cups. She picked one up and held it, "to... Rex and how cute he looks when he blushes."

Delia followed suit, holding up her own cup, "to... Giovanni and how adorable he looks when he cuddles Persian."

"To..." Pixel paused, holding her cup up, "I don't have a boyfriend."

"What about Comet?" Laiki teased.

"Fine," Pixel smiled wickedly, "to Comet and how hot he looks all the time." Laiki's jaw dropped and her eyes opened wide. Seeing her expression, Pixel was invaded by a fit of laughter, which Delia couldn't help it but to join. "I know you're never going to let me forget that, no matter how many times I say I was kidding. That's alright because it was worth it to see you make that face."

"You're mean, you know that? Not that I didn't already know you like him," Laiki pouted and drank the rest of the contents of her cup.

Delia had only taken a sip for the toast and Pixel had not tried it at all. As an absolute lover of sugar, alcohol was too sour for her taste, unless it was in the form of a frosting covered spiked cake.

After getting a good laugh out of their systems, the three women gained focused expressions and Delia began to lay down the facts. "It all started at Razzo Albergo, a hotel in Cerulean City. I was attacked right next to it. The first attacker's left foot was injured in the fight."

"The security cameras in that alley were disabled," Laiki added. "This was done by a man who worked at the hotel. Peculiarly, he was found passed out at the control room with no memories of his actions." There was something else that stood out about that man, but Laiki couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Delia continued, "the second attack occurred at Vermilion City, in Lando's mansion. That second woman got past his security, probably taking advantage of the many guests that were there at the time to slip by unnoticed. She intended to lead me away, but her plan failed when she was unable to keep Giovanni distracted long enough. She ran away as soon as she saw him."

"At some point before the third attack someone who looked like Laiki stole the boss' pokemon from his gym office," Pixel added. "Then the third attack happened in this very mansion. Similar to the hotel incident, a man was found passed out after disabling the security system. He too worked for the boss. The woman involved escaped after leaving behind the two stolen pokemon. It makes no sense that she would abandon them after going through the trouble of stealing them. Stealing them was a very risky move. Even if she realized they wouldn't listen to someone they didn't know, she could have sold them or gotten rid of them. We can reason that she was desperate to escape, but even so something feels off. What do we know about her motive for the attempted murder?"

"Just theories," Laiki mused, "right now the theory that stands out the most is revenge on the boss."

"She said she was my rival, but didn't say in what sense," Delia revealed.

The statement caught Laiki's attention, "that has to be her motive! She's trying to steal the boss away from you; she's your rival in love!"

Delia thought about the possibility Laiki suggested. It seemed too much like something out of a TV drama, but she couldn't entirely discard the theory. "I suppose that would be a reason to get rid of me."

"She's in Team Rocket," Pixel concluded, "if she's so obsessed with the boss, then she must have met him as more than the gym leader. That is how she came into contact with the men from inside the organization."

"So then, the third woman is the leader of the operation?" Laiki wondered.

Delia's expression showed realization, "there might not be three."

Laiki was quick to follow the train of thought. "That's right, if someone who looked like me was caught on video, she must be a master of disguise! Furthermore, if she's that possessive of the boss, she might not want to work with other women, who could betray her and steal him for themselves."

Delia nodded, "the theory fits. Their voices sounded similar, though not exactly alike. She could have just been purposely changing her tone. The first woman had an injury on her left foot, the second and third women had very large boots. They were big enough to hide bandages and even some sort of thin brace or cast. Pain killers should make it possible to walk without too much trouble. Those three might have been one."

"Additionally, she hit her head when Peachy attacked, but that was later," Pixel recalled. "Laiki, you're always in touch with the latest gossip, what can you infer?"

"I'll take that as a compliment," Laiki paused, thinking hard, "there's a nagging detail I can't quite bring out from the back of my head. I know the boss has admirers, even though he seems blissfully unaware of the fact. None of them seems to fit the profile though."

"The part about the stolen pokemon still feels off, she could have sent one of her zombie men to do that with less of a risk," Pixel pointed out.

"That's it, the men!" Laiki remembered that nagging piece of information that hid in the back of her mind. "There was a rumor going around that Iblis was flirting with them, both of them. Icy Iblis taking interest in something other than poking around people's heads is a novelty."

"Icy Iblis?" Delia repeated. "She seemed nice, but she did have an injured left foot." She didn't want to jump to conclusions; Iblis had been polite to her and Ash. "Maybe that was just a coincidence."

"Poisona attacked Iblis during an interrogation session, that's never happened before. Iblis is usually in control of her interrogations," Laiki remembered what she had heard from one of the dungeon guards. "Her left ankle was injured when Poisona went wild. She has already been handed to the police by now. They shipped her off to a mental patient facility, I think."

"Oh my..." Delia was obviously horrified by the turn of events, but at least Iblis had an alibi. "Then Iblis' injury really did have another cause."

"Don't be so sure," Laiki tried hard to remember the timing and details, "I heard something about Iblis' rotten luck. Some Rockets were talking about how her possible boyfriend from Cerulean City turned out to be a traitor and how she had been seen walking with a limp. That was before the incident when Poisona attacked her."

"You've told me about her before," Pixel recalled. "She uses hypnotism as part of her interrogations, right?"

Delia's eyes widened as she followed the connecting dots, "do you think she hypnotized Poisona into hurting her to create an alibi?"

"It's possible," Laiki nodded. "If you say she was nice then she was definitely acting weird."

"It was convenient that she happened to be knocked out near by, apparently by a blunt hit to the head." Delia was getting suspicious and she didn't like it. Iblis had been so nice; she didn't like the feeling of distrust. Was that how Giovanni felt? Did he question his agents wondering when they would betray him? He must still have some trust at least with the executives. Delia knew he had to be careful and so did she, but she didn't want Giovanni to completely lose the ability to trust.

Something suddenly clicked in Pixel's mind. The entire situation was like a video game where all the clues came together to reveal the truth. Like the lawyer protagonist, she had decided to believe in Laiki's innocence. After that, it was all a matter of putting the pieces together, like a detective. Wait, lawyer, detective... "Iblis is a psychologist, isn't she?"

"Yes, but she's more likely to traumatize her patients than help them," Laiki was always opposed to her treating her brother. Iblis was supposedly the best around in her field, so Giovanni put her on the job anyway. Binks wasn't one of the victims of her interrogations, but it still made Laiki uneasy to think that the torturer was trying to become her brother's healer. She would have no reason to hurt Binks. The boss considered him to be a valuable scientific resource. If Iblis didn't want to disappoint him, she truly had to try her best. It was those thoughts that made it possible for Laiki to deal with the prospect.

"We've stated that she is the culprit and so far everything fits. She wants to get rid of Delia, but knows it will be difficult. Even if she succeeded," Pixel certainly hoped not, "that would not mean that Giovanni would welcome her with open arms. If he has continued his past relationship, then we can conclude that he never let go of the past. Luke is in danger, that's why the executives are gone!"

"Woah, wait!" Laiki raised her hand in a sign of stop. "You lost me in your mental leap!"

"What do you mean? How do you know?" Delia wondered how everything was connected.

"Laiki, you're better informed than me, so confirm this," Pixel began her explanation, "is it true that the executives have been called to other regions recently due to several high ranking officers falling ill?"

"Yes, that is what's going through the rumor mill and I would say it's a reliable piece of information," Laiki paused and thought about it, then she made the connection. "The high ranked Rockets suffered from fainting spells attributed to stress. Ironically, they had been following a stress relieve program that included energy drinks and music. The items were sent to them by mail and were designed by... Iblis" The last word came out as a whisper.

"Ironically their stress level increased and their bodies were weakened," Pixel stated.

"Iblis is known to use chemicals to partially sedate her interrogation victims or make them hypersensitive to her convenience, she has access to such things," Laiki's heart pounded with worry as all the pieces were put together. She feared the revelation they had stumbled upon.

"Giovanni is without his closest friends," Delia realized, "with so many things going on, he must be close to a nervous break down for all we know. He's only human," Delia worried.

"She's trying to root out the past," Pixel concluded. "With the executives far away, they can't influence him. I don't know all the details, but Comet has told me a few stories about the past. When I went to Giovanni's gym office, with Flygon and Garchomp, Luke seemed to recognize them."

"Yes, he was training them," Laiki confirmed, she was in a sense, a human database of events and gossip.

"If the pokemon were stolen, Giovanni might ask Luke about it, right? The one framed for stealing them was Laiki." Pixel expressed her theory, "doubt, betrayal, stress, and uncertainty. She's trying to turn all the people that remind Giovanni of the past into bad memories. She wants to get rid of Delia and of anyone who is somehow connected to his past with her. She's tainting his memories little by little until he's forced to cast them aside, because it will just be too much to bear. The boss is strong, he's not easy to break, but she's getting desperate to accomplish it. Then, when his mind is at its weakest point, she'll find a way to mold his environment and make him think what she wants him to think. She would have the knowledge to do this if we consider her background. She's trying to brainwash him."

Laiki's face had become frozen in shock, as had Delia's. Pixel instinctively looked around the room despite not having heard anyone come in. For a second she almost expected Giovanni to be standing right behind her as she went on about her conclusions. It looked as if the other two women had seen a ghost and not of the pokemon variety.

"Binks," Laiki sobbed, her tears suddenly coming out like a flood. "She knows!" She spoke in desperation, her voice invaded by broken sobs. "She knows you've been seeing him, she has her ways to obtain information. She knows the past, she knows it. She probably forced it out of Binks early on, she's known all along. Now more than ever Binks' connection to you is obvious, she's going to kill him!"

"No!" Delia gasped. From the moment she found out the truth about Binks, she had been terrified that a mistake on her part would cause him irreparable damage. Had her help exposed him to greater dangers? "I didn't mean for him to be in danger, I don't want him to be hurt more."

Laiki tried to calm her crying, but the idea of her fragile brother being further tortured shook the very core of her being. When she was growing up, even if he was a little emotionally unstable, he was all she had until she adjusted to life in Team Rocket. "It's not your fault," she choked out, "I have to... I need to."

"I'll go," Delia insisted. "You need to stay hidden until I talk to Giovanni. Hide in one of the guest rooms here."

"Right..." Laiki nodded, still sobbing into Delia's shoulder. She had not noticed when Delia hugged her and started gently brushing her hair with one of her hands, the other softly placed on her back. "Rex is willing to help, I'm sure." When she thought of someone precious to her getting hurt, Laiki felt guilty about her multiple boyfriends. They might be precious to someone too, if they discovered her betrayal and suffered, would they feel pain similar to hers? Did they have friends and family who would be hurt because they were hurt? Laiki had to recognize the fact that she was emotionally overloaded if such thoughts plagued her. She was a natural player who very rarely felt a tiny hint of guilt. "That's it; I'm making a resolution here and now to stop being such a man addict." It was a resolution she would probably break. "I'm only keeping Rex because he's going to become my favorite after all the things I'll make him do to help us."

"I don't understand," Pixel finally voiced, she had been staring at the scene consumed by confusion. "Did I miss something?"

"It's a secret," Delia tried to explain. She stopped and looked at Laiki, encouraging her to be the one to reveal the truth. Binks was her brother and it was up to her to come clean about the situation to her friend.

Laiki nodded and tried to calm herself enough to speak clearly. "Comet doesn't know. I can't explain in full right now, but please don't tell him. Very few people know this, for now, keep it a secret." Laiki observed as Pixel nodded. "My brother, Binks, is alive. He's in a very fragile state of health and mind."

Pixel had many questions, but what stood out the most was the danger that could overtake him. "He'll need help," was all she could say, she didn't want to further upset Laiki. Pixel could doubt her own theory to reassure Laiki, but that would be a lie. She had confidence in her conclusions.

"I'll help him, I'll make sure he's alright," Delia assured.

One set of doors was suddenly thrown open and Rex rushed in. "Lord Roketto is here!"

"Go to a guest room. One that Giovanni has all but forgotten, far from his personal area of the mansion," Delia urged.

"Right," Pixel nodded, while Rex stared in confusion at Laiki, wondering what afflicted her. The two Rocket girls quickly snuck away.

xoxox xox xoxox

Diamond 84: Give me Encouragement

At the Cerulean City gym, Misty had enough of those silly friendship and sibling movies. They had watched so many that all that was left to watch were the really cheesy movies with terrible acting. Then again, they could all fall into that category, but those last few were even worse. Lily and Violet were indeed hit by sisterly separation anxiety after they returned home. Kenobi had gone back to Viridian City to take care of some business related things. Violet had been calm at the time, but it didn't take her long to explode in a fit of sibling nostalgia.

"Here's the ice-cream," Brock brought over three bowls of ice-cream, each including equal portions of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry with chocolate syrup, a banana, peanuts and abundant rainbow sprinkles. He didn't seem to be bothered at all by the frilly pink apron he was wearing.

"Thanks," Lily picked up her bowl and placed an empty little cardboard box on the tray in its place. "Could you get more tissues, this next movie is like really emotional."

Misty could feel her eye twitch. The actors didn't put any emotion into their lines, though they did make exaggerated dramatic expressions, yelling or whispering. It was not the same thing.

"Right away!" Brock had to go rent the movies, Brock had to prepare the snacks, Brock had to run random errands, Brock had to help with the gym's remodeling. Misty felt her eye twitch some more, Brock wasn't a slave.

"Thanks Brocky," Lily sniffled, though the movie had barely started. Misty also felt like crying, but only because the movie was so bad.

Brock's face was full of pride, "any time!" He skipped away to fetch another box of tissues.

Misty followed Brock, ignoring Violet when she called out, "you'll like miss the start of the movie!"

Away from her sisters, who were in the living room, Misty confronted Brock, "you don't need to do everything Lily tells you."

"I want to show her I can be loyal and dependable," Brock proudly declared. "Did you hear her? She called me Brocky, that has to be a good sign!" His face was slightly red and his head was in the clouds.

"I'm going to have a talk with Lily about this," Misty insisted, her face reflecting disapproval. She wondered if she and Ash used to enslave Brock in the past without realizing it.

"Please give me a chance, I can do this, I can prove myself worthy!" Brock looked like he was close to getting on his knees and begging. "Please, please, let me try to win Lily's heart."

Misty had no choice but to agree, "alright, I won't say anything. I just don't think it's nice that you're getting bossed around all the time."

"I don't mind," Brock desperately insisted. "If the orders come from Lily's gentle voice, I'll do anything I'm told to do!"

Misty sighed hopelessly, "oh brother..."

"Brother? You called me brother!" Brock cheered, "I knew it; I'm making progress. I have never lasted this long in a relationship before." He was practically jumping with happiness.

xoxox xox xoxox

In Pallet Town, Vandel, alias Skye, approached the Pallet House curiously. Ash had returned but there was still no sign of Delia. He decided to casually stop by to say hello and discretely ask about when Delia would return. Unless he got distracted and forgot to ask, which was a possibility Givan took into consideration. If the great catastrophe was to be avoided, Delia had to survive whatever fate was destined to befall her. Skye wished that he had an accurate version of history to go by, but he was stuck taking guesses at the time. "Ash!"

'Being inconspicuous was never his strong point,' Givan commented as he watched his trainer shout the name at the top of his lungs.

Ash looked out the window from his room to find Skye standing out on the street with a basket in his hands. Ash took a deep breath, the aroma of burgers reached his nose and his stomach growled loudly. It was dinner time and he wanted dinner. "I'll be right there!" Ash rushed down the stairs towards the front door. He had let all his pokemon out of their pokeballs as his mother advised. As a result, when dinner time came around, they cleaned out the refrigerator, leaving Ash with nothing to eat. Even the foods that required cooking were consumed thanks to the fire pokemon.

Within seconds, Ash was opening the front door with a friendly smile, "hi, do I know you? Oh well, that's alright, come in, it's always good to make new friends!"

As Vandel entered, followed by his pokemon, Givan grumbled, 'he's so gullible.'

Pikachu observed the visitors, 'is there anything to worry about? There are many of us here to keep Ash safe.' He looked at the large Persian suspiciously.

'You have nothing to worry about from us. We're not the enemy, but the enemy is out there,' Givan couldn't really share anymore information because he didn't know the specifics.

Pikachu took his words in a metaphorical sense and didn't inquire further. The Persian reminded him of someone, but he couldn't quite precise who. The Vulpix was also familiar, perhaps more so than the Persian.

Skye followed Ash to the kitchen setting the basket of appetizing scents on the table, around which they sat. "I'm Skye; I work for Gary, helping take care of the pokemon and stuff. I just thought I should come by and say hello. I've been taking care of your pokemon too, I even sang a lullaby to your Bellsprout," he wondered if he should be embarrassed about that.

"That's great, thanks for taking care of them. It sounds like you already know who I am," Ash eyed the basket. "It's nice of you to come over... so... what's in there?" His mouth watered some more. He already knew what was in the basket, burgers, lots of delicious burgers, the scent was unmistakable.

"Just some cheese burgers. I made them," Skye paused and corrected himself, "well, actually, Dia, my Vulpix, she was the one who cooked them. I just put them in the bread and added the cheese. Givan, my Persian, he... supervised," it would be more accurate to say that he complained about his trainer not adding all the condiments he liked to his burger. "We made too many," he removed the red and white checkered cloth that covered the basket. "I thought maybe you would like to try them."

Ash thought the boy would never get to that part. "Yes, please, thank you!" Ash happily exclaimed before stuffing one of the burgers in his mouth whole.

"I guess you were hungry," Skye stated the obvious.

Dia laughed, 'that look Vandel gets in his eyes sometimes reminds me of you,' she told Givan, 'but right now he seems similar to Ash.'

'Yeah,' Givan agreed, 'but if you ask him who he looks like he'll say the great Giovanni, in terms of personality, I'm not so sure.'

'Maybe he's a combination of both Ash and Giovanni,' Dia mused, 'they are both related to him after all.'

"Bulbasaur," though Charizard took a peek into the kitchen to make sure everything was okay, it was Bulbasaur who decided to stay while his fire comrade returned to the others and told them all was well. The unknown boy was apparently a friend of Ash. Their trainer had been feeling tense lately. Pikachu and the others had been talking about all the things happening with their trainer.

Ash swallowed the burger, miraculously not choking on it. It seemed the other pokemon were full, they had cleaned out the refrigerator after all. Even so, Bulbasaur could not pass up the opportunity to have a burger, he loved them. "Here you go," Ash gave Bulbasaur a cheese burger, which the pokemon took with his vine whip.

"Your Bulbasaur eats meat? I thought grass types were vegetarians," Skye observed. "I have a Bulbasaur too; it's much smaller than yours. Professor Oak just gave him to me. I tried to feed him a burger and he wouldn't eat it. Then again, it could be that he was full from eating all the salad when I let him out of his pokeball and didn't watch him closely enough. That's why there are no lettuce or tomato on those burgers."

"My Bulbasaur is very special," Ash smiled fondly as he took another burger from the basket, eating it slower than the first. "I'm really glad you came with these burgers, the pokemon ate all the food and I was hungry."

"Why didn't you just go over to Professor Oak's place?" Skye curiously asked. "He seems very kind; I bet he wouldn't mind sparing some food." If he gave away a pokemon just like that, he would definitely share food.

Ash took a big bite of his burger and focused on his chewing for a moment. He couldn't talk to Professor Oak until he sorted things out. He was aware that Professor Oak knew about Giovanni. If Ash saw him at that moment, he might ask too many questions. He wanted to let the information he already had sink in. He swallowed, actually having chewed his bite a proper thirty-two times. No one ever did that unless they were stalling. "I didn't want to bother him."

One of Skye's rare observant moments apparently occurred at that very second. "You're hiding something," he bluntly pointed out, which caused Ash to choke on his next bite. It all turned out to be a false alarm; Skye wasn't that observant, "I happen to know you won the Indigo League Championship," plus he was the son of the great Giovanni, who would be remembered by Rocket history, even if that history was close to changing. "Are you hiding from fans?"

"Something like that," Ash laughed. He took the assumption as a compliment.

"If it's troublesome, you could just disguise yourself," Skye suggested the most logical thing. "Professor Oak has a bunch of stuff you could use. It's just stashed up in the attic, so I'm sure he won't mind if you borrow something. Not that I was looking around or anything."

Ash's curiosity was captured, "what kind of stuff?"

"Wigs, lots of them," Skye revealed.

Ash blinked, why in the world would Professor Oak have a collection of wigs? "Wigs?" That was all he could say.

"Want me to get them for you? I'll be right back," Skye ran out of the house before Ash could reply. If Ash was trampled to death by crazy fans, that would not be good for Skye.

xoxox xox xoxox

At the Oak research lab, the elderly Professor watched as Skye rushed in. Gary had returned to Pallet Town earlier that day and was immersed in his research. "You seem more energetic, are you getting used to your job here?"

"Kind of," Skye nodded, then went straight to the point. "Just out of curiosity, do you happen to have something that works as a disguise? Something like, I don't know, a collection of wigs?"

Professor Oak rubbed his chin in thought. He remembered that he indeed have a collection of wigs. It was quite a coincidence that Skye had asked. "There is something like that here. The wig collection belonged to my son. His wife liked to practice hair styling back when they were still dating. She would always make him wear wigs so she could work on a different style everyday. Let's get them from the attic."

The Oak attic was similar to most attics. It was cluttered with all sorts of old forgotten things and covered in dust. Skye knew exactly where to look since he had been up there recently in his curious investigations. He conveniently coincidentally found the box they were looking for and carried it out of the attic.

As Skye was ready to return to Ash with the supplies, Professor Oak curiously asked, "why did you want to borrow something like this?"

Gary had just finished an interesting day of research and was passing by down the hall. He saw Skye holding a box full of wigs and heard his answer, "Ash is being stalked by fans, so I'm helping him disguise himself." Unable to contain it, Gary fell into a fit of laughter. Not realizing what was so amusing, Skye assumed, "he must have made a really funny discovery." Skye would have to further inquire about that particular piece of research later. For the time being, he returned to the house where Ash was waiting.

xoxox xox xoxox

Skye delivered the box of wigs to Ash, who was quite impressed by the collection. "Wow, there are so many." He didn't really need to disguise himself. The entire thing about hiding from fans was something he played along with in a desperate moment when he thought Skye could see all his truths written on his face. It was silly; Ash's origins had always been what they were. He was still the same; the only difference was that he knew a little more about himself. The truths had always been present; the truths had always existed and would always be there. Realizing that made Ash feel a little better.

Skye picked up a black wig and took off his hat revealing his brown and blond hair. He put it on, brushing it with his fingers. After being in storage for so long, the hair on the wig was quite rebellious. He put on his red hat, watching as Ash's face lit up with amusement.

"Wow, anyone would think you're my brother or something," Ash laughed. Maybe a silly little distraction would be good for him now that his stomach was full.

"Yeah, something like that," Skye laughed, they were not brothers, but they were related.

Ash picked up a blond wig from the box and put it on, hiding his black hair in it. "Do I look like a movie star?" He joked.

The pokemon soon joined in, many looking quite funny with hair. Givan didn't seem to be interested in such silly games and hissed at Vandel, alias Skye, to stay focused. Without his collar, the humans could not understand his words. Besides, Skye wasn't paying attention anyway.

Time passed and Ash relaxed a little more. When Skye went back to the guest room at the Oak research lab, he left Givan and Dia at the Pallet House. Dia was entertained playing with the other pokemon. Givan looked grumpy, but he stayed with Dia anyway.

All was quiet and still in the little town of Pallet. Skye was too relaxed and sleepy to notice the dark figure hiding in the shadows at the end of the street near the brick fence of the Oak land. He didn't realize he was in danger until it was too late. A man with a zombie-like look in his eyes and a gas mask jumped in front of Skye. The unknown man swiftly threw a small object to the ground. The item exploded noiselessly into a cloud of purple smoke.

Skye coughed, unable to find his voice and call out for his pokemon. The strange smoke invaded his senses and he felt irresistibly sleepy. His vision became a blur and his body felt weak. He collapsed and was carried away into a car that hid in the shadows of the brick fence at the turn of the road.

As soon as the unconscious Skye was in the car, the man with the gas mask collapsed. A woman glanced at the unconscious passenger that was thrown in the backseat. It was dark and she was in a hurry. He wore clothes similar to Ash; he had black hair and a red hat. She silently closed the car door and went to the driver's seat. She drove away hastily, but quietly. The man with the gas mask was left passed out on the road while the mysterious woman made her escape with the prisoner she thought was Ash.

xoxox xox xoxox

At Giovanni's mansion, from the second the rocket leader saw Delia hurrying towards him, he knew something was wrong. She had a look of absolute urgency in her eyes. "Delia, what is it?" A lot of things had been going wrong on that day and Giovanni could only assume the worse. "Did the assassin send someone else after you? Just how many enemies could we be dealing with?"

"Probably just one," Delia revealed hurriedly, "all the women involved are actually the same, Iblis. She's probably hypnotizing the men into helping her. Catching her is important, but saving Binks more so. She's going to attack him!"

The sudden overload of information was too much for Giovanni, "wait, slow down, how do you come up with all these theories?"

"They're not theories," Delia insisted with a serious expression, "they're conclusions. Let's hurry, we need to get to Binks," she started walking towards the front door of the mansion, making it clear that she was not stopping.

Giovanni was quick to follow her. "Alright, we'll go see Binks immediately. I'll call ahead to make sure he's okay, but you need to explain this to me on the way." He glanced at Persian, who was looking up at his human parents curiously and somewhat tiredly. The pokemon was starting to show signs of exhaustion. Due to the virus being spread so far across Kanto, the portions were much smaller, thus weaker. That didn't stop them from developing and becoming disastrous in time. At least they had time to prepare, but they were cutting it close. The illness was becoming known in Kanto as the pokemon deaths increased. "Stay here, Persian."

Persian protested, making it clear that despite whatever was happening, he wanted to tag along. Delia caught on to Giovanni's precaution and insisted as well, "it's best if you stay." She petted Persian gently, "we'll be back later, you should take some time to rest." Persian realized he had no choice but to agree and let the two humans go.

There was no need for a limousine, especially when they were in a hurry, so they left in the red convertible instead. After Giovanni made his call to assure Binks' safety, he glanced at Delia, before turning his attention back to the road, "I'm listening."

"First of all you need to understand that Laiki was framed," Delia was quick to defend.

"How do you even know about that?" Giovanni already didn't like how the conversation was going. A thought occurred to him, this was Delia, of course she would know. People gravitated towards her sweet persona naturally; they trusted her with information, maybe even with their lives. "You know where she is," it was a conclusion, more so than a question.

"Yes," Delia confirmed, she had no intentions of denying it anyway. She also had no intentions of revealing Laiki's location until Giovanni was convinced that she was not a traitor. She would keep Pixel's involvement in secret.

Giovanni's mind was immediately flooded with theories. "Laiki is in Pallet Town," he guessed. "You're hiding her in your house, or maybe she took refuge with Professor Oak."

Delia decided not to reply and Giovanni didn't insist upon the question. Instead she continued informing him of the urgent matter. "Iblis is..." she paused, trying to figure out how to properly phrase it. Somehow, saying it aloud felt odd. "She's trying to steal you away from me," that was not how Delia wanted to say it, but this was not the time to go in mental circles trying to form the ideal explanation.

Giovanni almost chuckled, "there's nothing between us, there never has been, I assure you."

"That's not what I mean," Delia insisted, "she's trying to steal you by taking away our precious memories. She's turning all the good memories into something tainted. She wants you to feel betrayed by everyone who is somehow linked to the past. I trust Ash will be alright with his pokemon for now, but I can't let her keep doing this. I don't want you to forget how to trust. She disguised herself as Laiki, you believe me, don't you? Think about it, would Binks' little sister truly betray Team Rocket?"

"I would never have expected this from her," Giovanni admitted. Laiki had been with Team Rocket since a young age and had never shown any signs of being a traitor. As for Luke's little mishap leaving the pokeballs in his office unguarded, he knew it was only a mistake. Other than that, he had done a good job for years. It was something he received little credit for, until Delia's return somehow put Giovanni in a good enough mood to give him some credit. He was aware of Iblis' interest, though he never returned it. He didn't expect that she would go so far in a fit of jealousy. "I'm going to have the agents focus on finding Iblis instead."

"Yes," Delia adamantly agreed, "you should do that right away." She waiting for Giovanni to call, holding his little Rocket cell phone with one hand and the steering wheel with the other. She listened as he called off the search for Laiki and ordered his agents to look for Iblis. Giovanni closed his little cell phone and speed up, they were almost to Viridian City. "Giovanni, you have competent allies, you just need to trust your judgment and not give into doubts. I know you understand and that's part of what makes you a great leader."

"Then why didn't I predict Iblis would attack?" The more he thought about it, the more sense it made. Iblis was known to be good with disguises, second only to Petrel. She sometimes used disguises as part of her interrogation techniques. The entire possibility of trying to play with his head, enraging as it was, also fit her background. Ash ran away bringing out past feelings of betrayal. It was as if Giovanni expected to be betrayed and was quick to jump to conclusions when he thought he was.

"You were thinking too hard instead of trusting yourself and your mind wasn't clear," Delia concluded. She observed Giovanni's seemingly neutral face for a long moment. She saw a hint of something in his eyes that she couldn't quite explain. Letting out a deep breath as they drove through Viridian City, she gently voiced, "Ash is not angry at you. He wanted you to know that, he just needed time to think."

Giovanni didn't say anything, but his expression slightly changed. He was a little more relaxed despite the situation, almost relieved. They had arrived at the Viridian gym and quickly went in. They headed into the underground base and to the elevator that would lead them to Binks.

xoxox xox xoxox

Meanwhile, in Comet's room, underground at the Viridian Rocket headquarters, Luke watched his son with concern. The young man who looked so much like him had always been strong. Maybe Laiki's worries were correct after all. Comet was unconscious on his bed, his face reddened with a very high fever. His breaths were slow and uneven, his expression occasionally reflecting pain. Yet the thought of him never waking up was an impossibility in Luke's mind. Comet didn't remember his early childhood and he had no clue about who his mother could have been. Somehow, truths had a way of being revealed in time. Luke had to wonder if Comet would live long enough to find out.

To be Continued

Disclaimer, I don't own Pokemon. The videogame Pixel was reminded of on Diamond 83 was Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney.