CHAPTER 261 - Opening Moves

Hatred, true hatred was an emotion I'd felt only a few times in my life. Saturn, Mars, and Amy were the only people I had on my list until today, and Zoey had been added to it now that she had tried to kill my friend. Maeve's Pokemon had almost been stolen. Her Drapion's arm had been ripped out, and it would take almost a month for the Ditto cells to regrow it, basically knocking her out of the Circuit by destroying her chances of making it to the Conference. Regrowing a Pokemon's limb, while possible, was not an easy affair, and the new limb would be delicate for weeks afterward. The marks on Maeve's face would scar, and I knew how difficult dealing with those was, even if she had acted like she was fine. It stuck with you, and it took months for you to be yourself again.

Zoey Miranda was worth less than some dirt on my shoe. From the questions Denzel had asked Maeve, the Feraligatr and Swampert she had fought against had been drugged. They were being made to fight against their consent, and one of them had died because of it. No amount of last-minute pleading would change that her actions needed consequences.

"No leniency," I said. "We went over the plan, Denzel. This girl is evil and is lucky I can't lodge a drill in her forehead. Actually, that would be too quick. Painless. She deserves no such mercy."

My best friend shook his head. "You cannot think like that, Grace. She cried for her Pokemon. Furret and Pansear exist, and they're most likely in danger."

"Do circumstances absolve you from your actions if those actions are evil?" I asked with a tilt of my head. "Should she get a slap on the wrist because her eyes secreted a few tears?"

"No, but—"

"Enough about moral quandaries!" Mira snapped, shooting up from Denzel's bed. "We have our plan. Now, we execute, but first, we need to talk about Abel."

"Why did Zoroark let Maeve's Pokemon go, and why did she not save Zoey Miranda," Cecilia nodded. "It is evident to me that he wanted her to get arrested."

Mira snapped her fingers and pointed at Cecilia. "Correct. And if she's arrested, then the cops will question her, but she isn't talking to the cops so far, and Abel is smart enough to know that that was a possibility. He wouldn't leave that much to chance, no? No," she added, as if to reaffirm her own statement.

"Whoever Zoey is working for, they probably coached her on staying silent to the police should she ever get caught," Cecilia said, crossing her arms. "Unless a plea deal of some kind is made, I don't see her ever confessing."

"Even then, why would she target Maeve?" Chase asked with a frown. "She should know that we don't fuck around. Maeve doesn't fuck around either."

"And she should know that the League protects you guys to some extent," Denzel added, much to Chase's displeasure. "What? I'm just saying, you have friends in high places."

"Friends I don't want," Chase grumbled.

"These questions are impossible to answer until we talk to the man himself," Mira said. Her eyes were still red from all the crying, but she'd thrown herself into workshopping a plan with us and our psychics, and that had distracted her from our failure to warn Maeve ahead of time. It was just as much her fault as it was mine. "The thing we can be sure about is that the bitch was meant to get caught."

"Okay. So now what?" Chase asked. "Lauren is here. Do we involve her?"

"No time to waste," I said. "Bringing her up to speed would take too long, and we don't even know if she'd join us, and we aren't even sure if the ACE Trainers will protect you yet," I said, nudging my head at my best friend. "Also, we can recover from any potential hit we'd take from our actions thanks to the League, and they can't. And it's too many people to watch over and protect. Two drugged Pokemon almost got Maeve killed. They'll only slow us down. Denzel, remember not to kill anyone."

"You really didn't have to remind me," he said. "And don't forget, Grace. Only the people in charge. The employees, you can knock out and they can go to prison."

I nodded. "I know. That was already the plan."

"I'm just making sure. You can't… lose yourself to your more bloodthirsty ways, okay?"

Honestly, I was surprised he wasn't fighting me on this. It wasn't like he didn't want to. I could see it in his eyes. Denzel was my best friend, but he was too soft. It was surprising to even myself, how easily I had made the vow to kill. I had done so with Saturn, but this was much closer and more tangible. Cynthia had told me once, that the first time was always the hardest, as if she'd known I would do so again. Solaceon seemed so far away now.

Now, at the very least, I knew that when I met Team Galactic again, I wouldn't flinch at what had to be done.

"We have a plan," Cecilia said. "We have a timeline."

"Now, we execute," Mira exhaled.

—

"Let us through, fall asleep and after all is said and done, forget this ever happened."

An invisible power roiled around Chase's mouth, and the two cops standing guard in front of Zoey's room became dull and silently nodded before lying down on the floor. We had thirty minutes, now. Less, probably, due to the complexity of the order. Luckily, this hall had been cleared thanks to Zoey needing to be protected from us or the public. The public wanted her dead, at the moment. It was the dead of night, and we'd infiltrated the Pokemon Center's hospital where Zoey was stationed. Infiltrated was a big word, because trainers were technically allowed here at all times of day because of its adjacency to the Pokemon Center. Not many people worked the graveyard shift, so it was just a matter of waiting for the right opportunity. Cecilia opened the door to Zoey Miranda's room, and it took everything I had in me not to imagine the hundreds of ways I could kill her. She was sleeping. Fucking sleeping. This bitch deserved nothing more but to rot in hell. Her foot was fortunately no longer attached to her bandaged leg, so at least I could revel in the fact that she'd be a cripple for the rest of her life. Chase huffed as he wiped the sweat off his forehead, and Mira slapped Maeve's assailant awake, leaving a red imprint on her face.

"Wakey, wakey," the pink-haired girl said. She had cried until she had run out of tears, and now she wanted answers. We all wanted answers.

Zoey groggily opened her eyes, then they widened when they saw that we were in her room. Just as she was about to scream—

Mira clicked her tongue. "No, no, no. I don't think you understand the situation you're in."

Haunter appeared next to Zoey, ghostly tongue lolling out of his mouth. He brought it to an inch of her face, and the tall brunette recoiled.

"Good. Stay quiet," Mira smiled. "Trust me, if you would have screamed, there isn't much I could have done to stop Grace from cutting you."

"That's still on the table," I said, enjoying the weight of the hatchet I carried. The same one I had used months ago when none of our Pokemon could gather firewood. Of course, all cutting would have to be non-lethal.

"What do you guys want?" she stammered. "Please don't hurt me."

Every time, she kept eyeing the door, as if she expected the officers to come save her. They wouldn't come any time soon.

"You hurt innocents, but you don't want to be hurt," I hissed. "Fucking hypocrite. You work with the poachers. Where are they based?"

"I won't. You can't— you can't kill me. You're bluffing."

Thank Arceus, she hadn't agreed. It would have been disappointing, not being able to torment her for the answers.

"You think?" Mira loomed over her. "Your mental barrier isn't going to last forever, you know? Pretty nifty thing, you have there. Better than anything Cecilia's Slowking can pull off. Strangely enough, you don't have a psychic, so Abel probably bestowed it to you."

Zoey's eyes widened.

"I don't think you realize how much we know already," Cecilia said. Her words were so gentle, like a poison someone would take to die painlessly. A silent killer. "Just tell us everything, and we'll be on our way. Don't make this harder than it has to be."

Zoey gulped, but she stayed silent.

"Should we take her?" Chase asked, still breathing heavily.

"You know Teleporting inside of a Center is impossible," Cecilia shook her head. "We'd have to go through the halls, and we'd get caught."

"Teleporting isn't impossible if you're good enough," Mira shrugged. "Alakazam can do it, if given a few minutes." The statement made Zoey clench a fist. Yes, we could kidnap you at any moment. Let that despair fester inside of you. "But yes, they'll know immediately and alert the authorities, so that isn't wise. Wait!" She exclaimed. "I forgot! We can totally not care about the authorities, because we're a part of the League! Lucky us, huh?"

An exaggeration, but a good one to make. If only Cecilia used the Voice… no, I couldn't start thinking like that. She had made a vow, and she was sticking to it. That was fine. I just had to figure out a way to twist the knife until she spilled everything out of her guts. Plus, it was good to see Zoey squirm.

"Maeve said you cried for Furret and Pansear before she passed out," I said. The flinch the girl had was delicious. "What happened to them? Are you being held hostage?"

Zoey bit her lip.

"If they are, we could get them back for you," I pushed, ignoring the rage within. "We plan on taking down the poachers. Either you tell us, or… well, we take you and wait until your mental shield falls apart, and we rip it out of you by force. Truth be told, I'm running out of patience. I could not care less about you, or your circumstances. Your life is worthless to me. You threw drugged Pokemon to their deaths, and did not express one bit of remorse. All you care about is yourself, so don't give us some sob story. But, if you have two innocent Pokemon that are being held hostage, we will get them back."

Not for her, of course. She wouldn't own any Pokemon for the rest of her life.

"They were—"

I interrupted her. "And don't lie to us," I smiled. "Because I will figure it out eventually, and when I do, I will kill you, and I'll make it slow. The best part is, the League will let me get away with it."

There you go. Something shifted in Zoey Miranda's eyes. She was quite easy to figure out, with the nuggets of information we'd gotten from Maeve. This girl valued her own wellbeing above everything else, and she would be willing to do anything to survive another day. She might have lost a foot, but at least she was still alive.

"Go on," I said.

"I wasn't… well, I'm not a hostage, or at least not exactly," she got out. My vision swam, but Cecilia's hand clasped my shoulder to calm me down. "I got a job with the poachers through connections I made in Veilstone when I was there and I was still doing Circuit stuff. I didn't know before joining, but if you get caught or snitch, they take your Pokemon as collateral and sell them to the Game Corner. That's why you never go on a job with your actual Pokemon."

Mira frowned. "So the Game Corner's running this?"

"Partly. The poaching itself is organized by Mr. Backlot, the owner of the Pokemon Mansion. He's the one running everything. He sells most of his catches to the Game Corner, and they run fights with the Pokemon in the VIP area. He keeps the rarest one for himself. Now that I'm gone, he'll send my Pokemon to the Game Corner too, after they're forcefully fed Candies."

Arceus, Denzel was going to beat himself up because of this. I could tell Mira was feeling a twinge of guilt, but my best friend was going to take a long time to forgive himself for funding such an evil establishment. He had given them hundreds of thousands of Pokedollars alone. The only reason he wasn't here tonight was because he was because I knew he would be far too nice to Zoey. He was going to join us after this.

"Candies?" I probed further.

"Drugs that make your Pokemon grow, but too quickly to be healthy," Cecilia explained. "Depending on the dosage, they can turn docile too. Most likely, they were the ones Swampert and Feraligatr were given."

"And you just willingly joined them?" I scoffed. Fucking scum. "You didn't think to report them instead?"

"I needed the money, and they'd kill me if I did!" Zoey screamed. A glare from me stopped her from raising her voice again. "They have people everywhere. Even in prisons. I'm risking my life telling you this, you can't tell anyone else."

"Don't be a coward," Chase said. "Atone for what you've done."

"We won't tell anyone about this," Cecilia said. The lie had come out of her mouth so naturally that I realized she could have fooled even me. "You have my word."

It was just such an ironclad statement that it made people want to trust her.

And the fool believed her too. "Thank you," she sighed. "I— if you want to stop us— uh, them, you'll have to go to the Pokemon Mansion. I don't know where they keep all of the Pokemon, but Mr. Backlot knows."

"And Abel?" Cecilia asked.

"He's basically his second in command. He's the one that created my mental shield and his Hypno is Teleporting the poachers around."

"How'd he fool Gardevoir?" Mira demanded. Haunter hovered just a little closer, and Zoey shivered. "He shouldn't have been able to."

"I don't know— and that's the truth, I swear."

"Funny thing is, we have no way of knowing that," Mira smirked. "Remember what Grace said. Ever wanted to know what it felt like to get stabbed in the chest by a stone spear?"

Zoey paled. "I'm telling the truth… he just had his Malamar and Hypno do something, I don't know what. He said he had a nasty run-in with one of you before and that he'd created contingencies to counter that person."

Mira bit her thumb nail. "Alright. That fits very neatly," she said. "Now, let's go over your poaching pals' capabilities. How many people can we expect to fight?"

"Around fifty guards?" she hesitantly said. "Most of them won't have drugged Pokemon like I did, and they aren't that strong. Just in high numbers enough to deter any wild Pokemon from attacking the mansion. There are eleven with drugged Pokemon, I know them all. There's a Flareon, a Cinccino…"

I committed everything Zoey told us to memory. She went very in-depth, going over moves, how Pokemon hooked on Rare Candies fought in simple but effective ways, the layout of the mansion, and everything else we'd need for the raid. With the League Trainers with us, I had no doubt we'd make quick work of all the guards. There was still some information she lacked due to not being high enough in the food chain, but this was more than we'd expected.

"The one you've got to worry about is Abel," she said. "He's strong, and Mr. Backlot is paying him very well. His Pokemon are…"

We let her list them, just in case he had caught something new, but there wasn't anything out of the ordinary other than the fact that Abel's near-capture had pushed him to new heights. After twenty minutes of questioning, we knew we were cutting things close. We'd squeezed everything we could get out of Zoey, and she was of no more use.

"Just one more thing," Zoey said. "Uh, Mr. Backlot is having a bunch of rich people over tomorrow for a get-together. The event officially starts at one in the afternoon and lasts the rest of the day."

"Are they involved in the poaching?" Cecilia asked.

"I don't know, I wasn't allowed to look at the guest list. I believe a few of them will be— but again, I don't know their names. Backlot keeps their identities secret just in case of a leak. I think most won't have anything to do with it. They're just his rich friends and connections he's made over the years. Most of them will be Teleporting in."

Not good, when we were planning on keeping this on the down-low. And where would Abel fit in all of this? He clearly wanted to bait us, but why? Even if he hadn't wanted to save her, he could have had Zoroark kill Zoey before Teleporting away. He wanted us to know about this.

"Thank you for your time," Cecilia said. "We'll leave you to rest. But one last question. Do you know of a Paldean Wooper that was captured recently from the Safari Zone by Abel's Zoroark and Hypno?"

Zoey nervously licked her lips. "Shipped to the Game Corner."

Cecilia took a deep breath.

"I see," she simply said, smothering the cold, icy anger within.

We asked for a Leafeon, and Zoey said she hadn't seen any come through, but that she might have missed him. That could either be constituted as good or bad news depending on the way I looked at things.

"I'm sorry," Zoey said. "I really am."

She was not. She was sorry she had gotten herself caught, and nothing more. Cecilia, silver tongue that she had turned out to be, had been there to feed her sweet nothings to push her over the edge every time she'd looked like she would be shutting down and deciding to stay quiet. It had been far more effective than my threats, I had to admit.

But still, Cecilia was an excellent liar and smooth negotiator. We'd been recording all of this.

Zoey wasn't going to be able to claim mind control as a defense, now. Cecilia had explained that it was her most likely means of staying out of prison. As soon as everything was over, we would have Denzel edit our voices, names, and everything that could give us away out of the clip and send this anonymously to the cops. Zoey was going to rot in prison for the rest of her life, or close to it. And, well, if she died to the agents Backlot and the Game Corner had in multiple prisons?

She would deserve it. Personally, I wouldn't particularly care.

—

We were back in Denzel's room, now. We were lucky that it was late and most of our friends were sleeping soundly, because having to explain all of this to them would be a hassle and get in the way of our planning. We told him everything as quickly as we could, and his mercy for Zoey cratered when he learned she had willingly thrown herself into this. She had not been blackmailed, mind-controlled, or pressured. She knew the way the poachers operated before joining them, save for the fact that her Pokemon might be taken, and she had done so anyway because she'd wanted money.

But it was when we ripped off the band-aid about the Game Corner that he froze.

"The… Game Corner is involved?" he choked and clasped his knees. "I— Swablu?"

"The fights you were betting on weren't a part of it, Denzel," Mira said. "And Swablu was obtained legally and hatched from her egg. That VIP area we found shady and couldn't get in? It's a front for the real one, where they have the poached Pokemon fight."

"I still financially supported them, Mira," he hissed before placing his head in his hands. "I'm so fucking stupid."

"You had no way to know, Williams," Chase said. "Put your chin up."

Denzel raised his head. He wasn't crying, but he was tired. We would all usually be asleep by now, but there was far too much to do to get ready to storm the Pokemon Mansion.

Chase gripped Denzel's shoulder. "You're a trainer. Yeah, that doesn't mean you can't feel guilty, or cry, or hate the fact that you funded the Game Corner," Chase said. "But you need to stop feeling fucking sorry for yourself and be a trainer."

"Adequately said," Cecilia agreed. "If you feel responsible and want to make it up to the Pokemon trapped in the Game Corner, then stop wallowing in self-pity and join us. You're better than this."

My girlfriend held out her hand, and Denzel grasped it tightly.

"I will," he declared. "Thank you both for that."

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

"Now, let's keep going. Cecilia, you go stock up on Hyper Potions. Twenty, like we said," I spoke. "That'll add up to the few I have remaining. Denzel, Mira, you go with her. We can't be on our own, at the moment. Chase, you're with me."

Chase adjusted his cap. "Sure thing. Which one first?"

"The League trainers first," I said. "Then, Carnivine. Before all of that, I have to speak to my team. I suggest you all do the same… and Cece, smooth things over with Croagunk. She'll be angry that she can't participate when she learns about Wooper's fate."

"I know," she said, thinning her lips. "But she'll understand. We're doing this for her, too. And maybe Wooper will be freed from the Game Corner after we expose them and all is said and done."

There was a pause.

"Abel did this," I pressed her. "All of it. You know what that means, right?"

Cecilia bit her lip. "I won't hold back."

Good.

—

Being in a store in the deep of night brought comfort to Mira that she hadn't known she needed. The warm, glowing lights on the white tiles contrasted with the darkness outside. Pastoria was not well-lit at night like most cities. Buildings were like little islands of light, where activity still desperately clung. Haunter was with her, still, hidden from view as she browsed the aisles with nothing particular in mind. Cecilia was already buying the potions with Denzel. They were all ready. Every single one of them knew what was to come, and they'd made their peace with it. Hell, some even looked forward to it. Grace and Chase were two sides of the same coin in that regard, while Denzel was on the opposite side, but knew what had to be done. Cece was out of the coin entirely. Mira couldn't gauge Cecilia no matter how hard she tried. The tall girl had this mysterious air about her tonight that attracted Mira's attention like a Mothim to a flame as she desperately attempted to solve the puzzle that was her mind. Porygon2 made her phone vibrate in her pocket, possibly for support. She'd evolved two days ago and her capabilities were practically limitless. She was, Mira mused, very good at leading the non-sentient Porygon without her trainer's input, which would be an integral plan of the plan for tomorrow.

Or, well, today now. It was past midnight.

"Haunty," Mira said.

The ghost did not respond. Instead, Mira felt a chill across her skin. She had never been one for violence. Oh, she wouldn't shy away from it when it was required of her, but she'd always found it so wasteful.

Tonight, however, Mira Compton felt particularly bloodthirsty. One did not try to kill her friend and get away with it. One did not try to kill her friend and get to stay rich and have fucking parties. Mira grabbed a pack of chips and crumpled it. This was all on her. Her failure. She had failed to vet Zoey properly, and now Maeve was paying because of it. Why was it always someone else and not her?

"You've been a good boy these past few months," she continued. "Ever since I've spoken with Fantina, you've improved leaps and bounds. Found ways to be more than just a murderous, hateful ghost. I have learned to love you, and you have learned to love in return."

Haunter loved to play catch, even if his poison sometimes dissolved the ball.

Haunter loved punk rock music.

Haunter loved to annoy the living crap out of Magnezone.

Haunter loved playing pranks on people.

Haunter loved clinging to her shadow and tickling her feet and ankles.

Haunter loved to watch people go about their day while being invisible.

"Today, Haunty," Mira sighed, "I'm going to ask you to break your chains and be the worst you can be."

Mira felt a cold hand touch her shoulder.

The ghost cackled.

—

I released my team in the same park we'd played music in.

They knew things were wrong as soon as they saw the look in my eye. Cries, grunts, growls of worry rang out, but they stopped when I raised a hand. Now was not the time to worry about me. I explained everything that had gone on today, including the elaborate plan we'd made to storm the Pokemon Mansion. Angel, Buddy and Honey were the most worried, as they always were. Princess, Sweetheart and Sunshine would follow without a word as they always did, but I needed to convince the entire team that this was sound.

"Remember the story Bella told us?" I asked. "About her killing her trainer after years of pretending to like him?"

How could they forget? Bella had a way of telling stories that was so captivating, especially when they pertained to her own circumstances.

"Whether you think it was fair or not doesn't matter," I said. Even today, I didn't think it was. That she should have given him a chance after seeing him improve. "What matters is, do you think Backlot deserves to fight this in court for years and years, with his sentence not even set in stone? All we have in Zoey's testimony. Enough to ruin his reputation, but not to send him to prison. She told us that the League came to inspect the Pokemon Mansion and found nothing, so we don't know if he'll even go to jail if we talk to the authorities. Cece thinks that since he's working with Abel, he could even claim that he was being mind-controlled from the start," I spat through clenched teeth. "The ACE Trainers won't go there unless we bait them into doing so. You understand, right? Only we can stop this. Backlot has been doing this for fucking years… ever since he built this damn mansion, probably. Pokemon are suffering, and every day we don't do anything is another day they spend dying."

That seemed to have won Angel over. The grass type nodded, wrapped a vine around my good ankle and gently squeezed it. He had always been a caretaker, and imagining Backlot going free after the amount of suffering the Pokemon were subject to by his word was too much.

"There was a fundamental lesson in Bella's story," I said. "About people getting what they deserve. Backlot and his ilk deserve to die." I turned to Buddy. "We'll have ACE Trainers protecting us from all danger. The best Sinnoh has to offer. And we aren't too shabby ourselves. We have seven badges. Few trainers ever get this far. We're powerful, Bud. I'm not that little girl who was taken hostage in the Valley Windworks any longer. I'm tired of watching this happen and doing nothing about it. We don't run away, we fight."

The ghost's eyes dimmed, but he gave me a reluctant nod.

"Honey."

So grown up now, but still a little boy. Still the same Pokemon who had been so shaken after killing Harry Rodriguez's Crobat, even through Shiftry's domain.

"I won't have you kill anyone, whether that be a person, or a Pokemon. On that, you have my word," I said. "And we won't be targeting innocents. The only people whose heads deserve to be punctured are Backlot and his ringleaders."

Zoey had told us that there were others who were high enough in the food chain for me to target. None of them lived in the mansion with him, and I didn't know their names, but she thought that them being at the party was guaranteed. Since Backlot was having a party, I was sure he was celebrating something, and they weren't going to leave their old business partner out to dry. Plus, it wasn't like rich people like them had to work on a weekday.

"I won't ever force you to become someone you're not," I continued. "You're fine just knocking our enemies out."

The electric type's tails straightened, and he told me he didn't want me to become a murderer.

"Oh, Honey," I lamented. I rubbed his arm, then hugged him. "You're too nice for your own good. You know I've already crossed the line during the Darkest Day. It's… it's about justice."

Electivire sighed.

But he agreed with the plan.

People had the freedom to choose their path in life, and that meant that they were subject to consequences. And in the end, what were we but people?

—

The cold, night air whipped around my hair as I rode on Princess. Chase followed close behind without a saddle, as usual. Sigilyph had been brought up to speed, and she would let out a worried beep every thirty seconds or so, and Chase would soothe her. I couldn't hear what was said because of the wind, but it evidently worked, since she stopped doing so when we got high enough in the air. Princess hovered in place, and allowed Chase to catch up to her.

"How are we going to find your trainer? Maxwell, you said his name was?" Chase asked.

I squinted and scanned the horizon around me. Finding a Honchkrow this skilled during the night was basically impossible. We could try to find one of Chase's guards as well, but I didn't see anything, and my friend had only spoken to one of his guards once in Veilstone when Cynthia summoned him to meet. The only sources of light currently available were the spotlights attached to my saddle to make sure no other flier would ram into me. Of course, our bodyguards weren't subject to the same laws.

"I'll have Buddy do it," I said. I released Jellicent into the air, and his red eyes were the only thing I could see in the dark. "We're looking for a Honchkrow, or anyone that's currently flying this high."

The ghost agreed and started to scan our surroundings.

"Grace," Chase said. "I know you want Backlot's head—"

"You're not going to tell me not to kill him, I hope," I said, turning toward him.

Chase snorted. "Me? You know me better than that, Grace."

"Right. Sorry, I'm just on edge."

"I getcha," he said. The way he lazily hung on Sigilyph's back made me nervous, but he had never fallen before, and Princess was here to catch him if he did. "But no, I wanted to talk about Mira's Haunter."

My eye twitched. "Does this have to do with the evolution? She still hasn't told us how."

"Good guess. She told me, when she was crying earlier today. It isn't pretty," Chase said. "Essentially, he would haunt someone until they couldn't take it anymore and offed themselves."

"She's thinking about doing it with Backlot? We won't have the time… we'll have to be in and out. The longer we linger, the worse this gets."

"She hasn't explicitly said so, but I think that's what she's planning. Part of me thinks Backlot will be quite easy to break," Chase shrugged.

"You don't know that."

My friend sighed. "I know you want to kill Backlot yourself. That's mostly why you're against this, and not some issue of time constraint. Be honest with me."

I winced, and calmed Princess down before she could come to my defense. There was no use in lying to myself.

"See? I'm right."

"You are," I said. "I wanted to… I wanted to do it. Backlot has had his hand on this poaching thing for years according to Zoey. Fucking years. How many lives has he ruined? Taken? I want to watch the life drain out of his eyes."

"You know," Chase smiled. "When I met you, I never thought you'd ever say stuff like that."

"Only with those who deserve it," I grunted. "Do you think that death by Haunter would be a worse way to go than getting crucified on a tree in the middle of route 212 and letting him rot there for an hour or two and acting like he has a chance of surviving if he apologizes enough?" I wondered.

"I haven't done the calculations," he snorted. Ah, Chase. The only one I'd feel comfortable saying this stuff to. "But Mira having a Gengar would be good for all this Team Galactic shit. Don't know much about 'em, but there must be a reason they're so feared."

"I'll see if we can arrange something to both be happy," I said. "Do you have any grievances you want to address?"

"I just want to crack some skulls, Grace," he said. "Nothing more, nothing less. Backlot and his crew have done wrong, and they deserve to pay, be it through death or prison. I've got your back no matter what."

No matter what. The words felt like they mattered.

"Thank you, Chase."

It was strange to be so proactive in our actions. We had never held this much power at our fingertips, and it was nigh time we used it for good. I wasn't going to stand by when one of my friends had nearly died.

"Ah, you were looking for me."

Chase, Sigilyph and Buddy jumped when we heard Maxwell's voice. Honchkrow cackled, silently flapping his wings behind us. I barely had the time to feel him come, and Princess had been completely stumped. Her empathy was different than mine and could actually be countered, then. That was good to know. If I could feel an ACE's Honchkrow trying to sneak around, then there weren't many things that would fool me.

"Do not do that," I exhaled. "We're on edge."

"Ms. Pastel. Mr. Karlson. To what do I owe the pleasure tonight?" he asked, ignoring us.

"I have an inkling you already know," I frowned.

"I do know you broke into Zoey Miranda's room and made it past the officers with some kind of Hypnosis," he nodded. "I do not know what information you extracted out of her, but I also know that you're planning something. Ms. Obel and Ms. Compton have been quite active, which they usually aren't at this time of day. We're quite interested in how you managed to get police officers to forget what happened. The officers don't even remember that they were asleep, funnily enough. Hypnosis doesn't usually work that way, and Ms. Obel's Slowking has not practiced with the move that much."

"He has," Chase denied. "Not like you can see or hear much from your fucking fliers."

Fuck, the plan hadn't worked. The reason Chase had made the officers fall asleep was to make the entire thing look like a Hypnosis, but the League wasn't biting. Maxwell opted to let it go for now.

"What are you doing, then?" he asked.

I explained all the information we got from Zoey as fast as I could. If Maxwell was shocked, he hid it very well.

"So we're planning on storming the Pokemon Mansion today," I said. "And you'll be coming with us."

When Honchkrow laughed, which was creepy in the dead of night, Maxwell's lips quirked. "Alas, it seems like it."

"There's going to be a party. By the time we get there, it'll already be the afternoon, so the guests will all be there," I said. Sigilyph and Golurk were still quite slow at flying, and even if I could have made it to the mansion faster, I didn't want to get ahead of everyone else. "So we'll need you to make this look like a League raid that we participated in. I trust you'll smooth things over."

"Demanding a lot now, are we?" he smirked.

"You said you wouldn't stop us," Chase shrugged.

"We will not," Maxwell said. "And I suppose Ms. Collins would appreciate us doing some spring cleaning."

"Backlot and the people in charge are ours," I demanded. "Their fates are in our hands."

Maxwell waved a hand dismissively. "Sure thing."

I blinked. "That easy?"

"Rejoice, for the Champion has decided to clear out the rot from Sinnoh's criminal underworld," he said, spreading his hands wide. "And luckily for you, due process is more of a suggestion than a rule at this point in Sinnoh's history. Whatever Ms. Collins says, goes."

"One last thing, then," I said. "Denzel is coming with us. I need you to protect him as well."

"Not my job," he shut down. "Do it yourselves."

"Would it really hurt you to do more than the bare minimum?" I hissed.

Maxwell's eyes darkened. "I don't think you understand, Ms Pastel. I do not deviate from my assignment. Ever."

There was a shiver down my spine, and I could only nod. We would have to keep Denzel protected by having him stick close to us, then. The plan was deviating already since we had planned to split, but there was no way my best friend was going to let us go alone, even without ACE Trainers to watch his back. It would be best if he stuck with me, then.

"So, we're good, then? You'll intervene right away?"

"Yes."

"Okay. Thank you."

Maxwell and Honchkrow disappeared into black smoke, and Chase and I flew on toward Carnivine.

—

The mountain my ankle had gotten broken on hadn't changed since the last time I'd seen it. In fact, every ounce of greenery had regrown from the time Sunshine had burned it down. We flew deeper than I'd ever gone before, however. We delved where the grass grew thicker than bark and taller than trees, and it all was illuminated by the moon's soft glow. The mountain's center. I had never seen such thick vegetation outside of Eterna Forest.

"Think she's in there?" Chase asked.

"We're too far up for me to feel anything," I said. "Princess?"

Togekiss chirped quietly and closed her eyes to focus. There was no way we were going to go down here, especially with how much vegetation there was. We'd be stepping into a death trap. If Carnivine attacked, at least we'd be in a position to run away. Sigilyph's Psycho Shift would send any attacks back Carnivine's way, and from the time I'd fought her, she didn't have that many ranged attacks and was a far better fighter in a melee.

"This is going to take too long," Chase said. "The sun's going to rise in an hour and a half. The others are waiting for us in Pastoria."

"So then we raid them at night instead of in the afternoon," I said. "Honestly, that might be better. The partygoers will be drunk or asleep."

"Okay, but then there's a higher chance of the others actually getting here during the fight," Chase shrugged. "You know a note telling them not to come won't deter them. And by my understanding, they have quite a history with notes."

I grimaced, realizing he was right. Cecilia had left us a letter so long ago now, when she'd gone into Mount Coronet alone to die. Our goal was to have finished things at the mansion by the time they ever had a way of making it there. They wouldn't know where we'd gone exactly, but it was no doubt going to be on the news as soon as the raid started, and our friends were smart enough to put two and two together. Essentially, the earlier we left Pastoria, the better. Cecilia had suggested not leaving a note at all, but we had decided this would go too far and damage our friendships. We didn't want to lose anyone. We explained as best we could in the letter that the ACE Trainers wouldn't protect them like they did us, so they were better off staying back.

"I'm just saying," he shrugged. "You do you."

I let out an exasperated sigh. "Fine. What do you have in mind?"

"Heh. Check this out," he grinned. "HEY, CARNIVINE! WAKE THE FUCK UP! WE NEED TO TALK!"

His voice was so loud it reminded me of Crasher Wake. It echoed across the mountain multiple times. Buddy glared at the back of his head like he wanted to murder him.

"What the hell are you doing?" I hissed. "That's like, the worst way of approaching this!"

"Is it?" he asked with a thumb pointing down.

Something shifted in the leaves until Carnivine's silhouette made it through. I couldn't see her properly, but I knew it was her. Her grief and anger had only abated slightly, and she was still a complete emotional mess. I soothed Princess by softly caressing her head and told Buddy to stand by.

"Well, she ain't attacking us on sight, so that's a win," Chase murmured.

"You're terrible at this," I scoffed. "Let me do the talking."

"You got it."

Carnivine rose to our height and glared at me. I already knew what the problem was. She thought she would never see me again. Hell, just me being there probably made her remember Leafeon even more, when she was trying to move past this. She had given up long ago and had no hope of finding her son any longer.

And unfortunately, she might have been right. Still, we had to hold on to hope.

"Carnivine," I said. "I know you don't want to see me, but I have a proposition for you regarding the poachers. We know where they're based."

Fury surged out of her skin in erratic waves that made her difficult to look it. I squinted, turning my head slightly. There was so much fury emanating out of the grass type that it was like her emotions were pressing down on my chest. The grass below us lashed out in every direction, slicing across the air until it even cut itself apart. Thank the Legendaries we hadn't landed. That would have cut us into ribbons.

"I told you I would try to get Leafeon back, and I keep my word," I said. "I won't lie to you and say that we know your son is safe. The way they treat the Pokemon they kidnap is… deserving of a horrifying death. But there's a chance. We're planning on going there."

There was a trill in Carnivine's throat, and she opened her mouth to talk. My Pokemon could translate, of course. The grass type asked where this location was.

"I'll tell you on two conditions," I said. "One, you stick by me at all times. Two, I know you'll want to kill everyone you see." Including Pokemon fighting for the enemy that are drugged. "That won't do. There will be innocents where we're going which include both humans and Pokemon, and unless you can promise me that you're going to play ball, then we'll handle it on our own. We'll still try to find Leafeon for you and bring him back here."

Carnivine growled, and the grass below us turned to sharpened blades all aiming at us with a neon green glow. Even while being around a hundred and fifty feet above the ground, it was hard not to feel nervous.

"Don't fight me on this," I said. "If you can't do it, then don't come. I'll bring you to the mastermind behind all of this and I'll let you watch him reap what he sowed."

It didn't matter who finished off Backlot, Carnivine would be here to see it. We were going to capture the man, after all.

Carnivine stayed silent for a few seconds, then snarled, sending sweet-smelling spittle out of her mouth. She couldn't, I realized. She couldn't guarantee the innocents' safety, even if she wanted to agree with my proposition.

I inhaled. "Thank you for being honest with me." I would have been able to tell if she lied, but it was still an appreciated gesture. "I promise you, I'll bring you to him. And I might be able to let you have some of the people that were in high positions in the organization, since I plan on smoking them out. We can all share."

Share in retribution. Denzel would have blanched had he been here, but Chase didn't care one bit.

There wasn't much to say after that. Carnivine demanded for us to leave and not come back until we either had the culprits, her son, or both.

"Well, that was emotional and all," Chase said as Carnivine left. "But it was also a waste of time. Let's head back."

—

"Arrested?! What do you mean, Zoey was arrested?!"

Abel had always thought that Edward Backlot looked like a Lechonk. The fat man pumped his fist in the air, his face bright red as he raged and punched the air with little jabs that wouldn't hurt a Cutiefly. His maids gave him a wide berth as they prepared his party, not willing to get Backlot's attention while he was angry. He was making the rounds of his mansion while in his pajamas and flip-flops, and Abel dutifully followed behind, of course. Dan was a boy today, and Abel held his hand as they walked through the Pokemon Mansion's fancy carpeted hallways.

Abel shrugged. "By the time Zoroark got there, the cops had already taken her," he flatly lied.

"This stupid bitch," Backlot snarled. "Why risk it all now? I told everyone to stay put and out of trainers' business for the next month! We were drawing too much heat!"

Because she values money above everything else, Abel mused. He knew people like her, because he was her, but less fucking stupid. It had been easy to push her buttons to have her target big names in hopes of getting Backlot's attention so she could get a promotion. The problem was that he hadn't expected her to target Maeve Chang of all people. The plan had been to have her arrested and get her to talk to the police. Abel was well-versed in legality, and he had no doubt Pastoria's policemen would have offered her a deal of some sort if she gave up the bigger morsel. The little rat would have jumped at the chance to get five to ten years in prison instead of life, and the cops would have offered her a nice, comfortable cell away from the other inmates, so her life wouldn't be in danger. The Unovan knew exactly how her mind functioned.

He would, after all, have accepted the same deal and taken his chances in prison.

Then Abel would have accidentally left Backlot's zoo exposed before leaving, and as soon as the police came by with a warrant, they would have caught that inconsistency. Oh, just the tiniest of gaps.

Oh well, he supposed it was all ruined now. Xatu had been quite alarmed at the fact that Maeve Chang's friends were all coming with ACE Trainers in tow. Abel had expected them to come, but not so soon.

He couldn't just have one normal day, could he?

"What will you do, Mr. Backlot?" Abel asked.

"Call my lawyers," he sneered. "The party won't be interrupted, it's too important and I'll lose face with my business partners. The police will come knocking sometime this week, I'm sure, so you'll have to be discreet."

Thank Arceus, he was so stupid. Hm, maybe stupid wasn't fair. Mr Backlot was too secure. Yes, that was the word Abel had been looking for. He thought that everything was always going to go as he foresaw it and that his lawyers would get him out of any jams. It wasn't the law he was going to need to fight in a few hours.

"I will, Mr. Backlot," Abel dipped his head with a coy smile.

Now, Abel had a few problems. Should he run, Backlot would be alarmed, and he still needed the rich prick to get back to Unova anyway. Backlot had been supposed to lend him one of his private helicopters to get him to a 'private airfield' that his friends in high places supposedly had, away from the League's eyes where a private jet would pick him up. Abel had been very clear with Backlot upfront that if this was a lie, he would kill him, so he was sure he was telling the truth.

Unfortunately, today had him in the worst of jams. If word came out that Backlot was captured, killed or that his mansion was under assault and Abel showed up alone, they would never let him in a plane. Hell, he couldn't even do that. He hadn't been told the airfield's location as of yet, and wouldn't until the end of his employ.

What now, Abel? Mind control to get it out of him in a subtle way? It would take hours to get him under Malamar's influence, but they had hours. Just hours. The problem was that Backlot would need to be away for those hours, and one of the maids was bound to notice that the pig was missing. Abel's employer was a paranoid man, and he had plenty of alerts and systems set up as deadman switches should Abel mind control him. Backlot felt too secure, but was not naive. One did not hire Abel without a few contingencies like these. Even though they wouldn't be able to beat him, the maids would alert the guards, then the authorities, and Backlot would get off scot-free after having told Abel where the airstrip was, because he couldn't be touched before Abel was on the damn plane. Sure the Unovan would escape, but…

He owed it to Zazza to see the man in prison. Well, dead worked too, if he could manage that without screwing himself over.

The unhinged part of him wondered about Malamar mind controlling a pilot, but he wouldn't trust his starter with having someone ride a bike, let alone pilot a plane. Threats were possible, but not something he felt comfortable with because of the huge amount of agency the pilot would have over the situation.

There was a very fine line he could walk today to ensure he got everything he wanted out of this. That path, unfortunately, had him stay during the party, and it was so hilariously unlikely to come to pass that Abel wanted to laugh. It all started, of course, with stealing Backlot's phone and texting his pilot ahead of time.

Mr. Backlot could not be allowed to die or fall into enemy hands until the time was right.

Time to gamble again, then. Fifteen to twenty ACE Trainers in total, by his and Xatu's estimations, and a bunch of uppity teenagers that thought they were going to fix all that was wrong in the world by taking down a single poaching operation and probably screech about how wrong it was and morals. Arceus, Abel needed a cigarette.

—

The sun had already risen when we were back in Pastoria, and it was nine in the morning by the time we decided to leave. Most of our friends were still asleep, save for Emilia and Justin, but we'd slipped the note under Pauline's door. She was usually one of the last to wake up, and she'd taken to sleeping alone ever since she had broken up with Emilia. I hadn't sensed any Pokemon inside of her room through the door, so they were all in their Pokeballs.

Cecilia had distributed the Hyper Potions to everyone. They had cost her an arm and a leg, but they were far too valuable to skimp on. Lehmhart's legs had disappeared, having retracted into his body somehow. I still didn't know how the hell he did that, but it was better not to think about it. Cecilia, Mira and Denzel were attached on his back, strapped into her custom saddle that Alakazam had picked up. Right now, they were upright, but they essentially would have been horizontal to the ground if Lehmhart had known how to fly properly. He was still getting the hang of it, which was why he was far slower than his potential. Chase was on Sig's back, as usual, and I was on Princess. We had eaten a quick breakfast to satiate ourselves and double-checked everything at least five times.

Lehmhart took off first, and he was louder than he had any right to be. It felt like I was standing next to an airplane until he got high enough into the sky. I had also shoved one of my crutches into Lehmhart's saddle. I was only going with one. I didn't miss Denzel being nervous about flying like this, but he'd get used to it. Chase went next, his Sigilyph silently hovering until they were tiny in the sky. I spared Pastoria one last look, and Princess took off.

Six hours to reach the Pokemon Mansion by cutting in and flying off-route. Six hours to retribution. Six hours for Backlot to start paying the price for his actions.