Chapter 25: Pushed by Circumstance

The door to the kitchen of the Favoris Café swung open violently, Crisis walking through clearly aggravated. He burst through the kitchen doors into the dining hall, gaining the attention of the concerned crowd.

“I want everyone to vacate the premises now! A serious criminal was just let loose!” he shouted at the crowd. They all mumbled amongst themselves, questioning his authority. “Hey! I wasn’t asking!” Crisis released Farfetched from its pokéball, to which it immediately slammed on the ground, splintering the hardwood floor. The crowd finally got the message and left in a disorderly fashion.

Ceailean then came in carrying Reese on his shoulder, followed by Marie and the Pokémon. Crisis took a chair and sat down, eyeing the group as they moved. Reese looked pale. Ceailean grabbed another chair for him to rest on. Grapploct laid its tentacle on Reese’s back in comfort.

Crisis leaned in towards Reese. “Now, what do you know?” he asked sternly.

“W-What?” asked Reese, still trying to process the events that occurred.

Crisis slammed his fist down on a table. “He was your brother! Surely you must know something!”

Ceailean stood between them. “Crisis, that’s enough!”

Crisis stood up into Ceailean’s face. “You would dare!”

Ceailean didn’t back down. “I don’t know the extent of your duty to Team Harmonious, but this isn’t the way we’re going to do things!”

“This is a serious matter, Ceailean! He tried to kill you for Arceus’s sake. I saw it unfold before my very eyes!”

“That was Boug! This is Reese! He had just found out that his brother of all people was involved in one of the biggest incidents to happen in Kalos since the Battle for Kalos! You cannot realistically expect to believe that he is in any condition to be giving information right now!”

“I must! For every second he is left out there, he could stir up more conflict or perhaps even try to kill someone else!”

“You’re wrong.” said Reese, his voice raspy. “He would never, that boy.”

Crisis stepped past Ceailean and leaned in front of Reese. “Oh? And what would make you so certain?”

Reese grabbed Crisis by the collar of his shirt. “Because he’s my brother you, ack-!”

Crisis took Reese’s hand and twisted it away. “You would dare lay a hand on me!” He then slammed Reese into a table, holding him against it.

“Crisis!” shouted Ceailean. Marie was visibly disturbed by the situation. Grapploct was ready to pounce at any moment. Crisis ignored him and continued to push harder. “Damn it, that’s it! Crisis let him go or we’re continuing our journey without you!”

Crisis looked at Ceailean frustrated. “That’s a preposterous suggestion!”

“I’ve only met you two weeks ago! And you’ve been traveling with us for only half that! I am more than willing to leave you here if I have to!”

Crisis stared for a moment, Reese still wincing in pain in his hands. Finally he let go, Reese gasping in relief. “Fine, we’ll do it your way.” Reese quickly moved away from Crisis, coughing trying to get his breath back.

Ceailean sat him down in a chair to rest. “There you go. Don’t worry, he won’t hurt you anymore.”

“Who’s to say you two won’t either?” asked Reese.

“I’m a thirteen year old kid dude. If I did such a thing, it would be embarrassing.” This managed to get a slight chuckle from Reese. “Take all the time you need. No need to rush.”

“Ah man.” Reese sighed. “Y'all are a crazy bunch.”

“We had a lot happen in the last two weeks.” Gurdurr then came in through the kitchen doors, Yanmega’s head locked in its arm.

“Come on now, is that necessary?” asked Reese, gesturing to Gurdurr.

“Yanmega showed expressed willingness to defend Boug. Evident by it attacking us on his escape.” said Crisis.

“Probably because you provoked the two!”

“I stand by my statement.”

“Whatever! It’s pokéball should be here. Grapploct, could you get it for me.” Grapploct nodded and went into the kitchen, then shortly after coming out with a pokéball. It threw it towards Reese and he caught it. “Yanmega, if you know good for all of us, you best not cause any more ruckus. So please, return.” Yanmega nodded guiltily, letting itself be returned to its pokeball from Gurdurr's arm.

Several minutes passed, no one saying a word, the tension lowering. Then, Reese gripped the table and said, “Okay, I’ll uh, try my best for y'alls. Tell y'all what I can.”

“Okay, well-” started Ceailean.

Reese cut him off, “On one condition,” He pointed at Crisis, “I want him outside.”

“You’re a fool if you think that’s going to happen.” snarked Crisis.

“I will not be intimidated and pushed around by this brute anymore dammit! Either he leaves or I ain’t talkin’.”

Crisis grit his teeth. “Brute? This information is critical for my brothers and sisters back at Team Harmonious! You would dare insult me in such a way-!”

“Team Harmonious this, Team Harmonious that! I-Don’t-Care! Ever since you got here you’ve harassed me, my family, and my business! Just what is this Team Harmonious anyway?! Do they all go around heckling everyone they can?”

Crisis realized the potential damage to Team Harmonious’ reputation and lightened up slightly. “N-No, I assure you that our creed is to prevent conflict all over the region and provide relief for those who suffer from it.”

“Some creed you uphold! This is the most amount of conflict I’ve ever had to manage in my life!”

Crisis was kicking himself mentally. “Alright fine, I recognize that this has been incredibly stressful for you. But I still need-”

Marie walked up and put her hand on Crisis’s chest. He looked to see that she had been holding back tears. “P-Please Crisis. Just, no more.”

Crisis stepped back. He gave the group one last look, seeing the ocean of negative emotion in front of him. “Alright then. Please inform me when your communication has ceased. Gurdurr, Farfetched, return.” Crisis’s Pokémon were recalled and he walked out the front door to the ring of a bell. Marie gave a shaky sigh once Crisis left, leaning upon the wall and putting hand to her forehead.

“All right then, what uh-” Reese coughed. He tried a couple more times to restart the conversation but failed, continuing to cough and stutter. “I-I’m sorry, that Crisis guy. He made me have to release a lot of aggression that I don’t naturally have. Now, I’m uh, shaken to say the least.” Grapploct suggested something to Reese. “Yeah, could ya please?” Grapploct nodded and walked into the kitchen.

“What's the story with your Grapploct?” asked Marie, hoping to lighten up the mood.

“That’s not what you’re here for though, aint it?” Reese asked back. Marie became even more disheartened. “Oh, I apologize. That musta’ been a bit rude. You understand right?” Marie nodded. “Anyway, Grapploct. Let’s just say that it’s caught in a limbo between two societies. One it had supposedly rejected and the other it wanted to become a part of, but was rejected by them. It gets convoluted from there and it doesn’t really like talking about it. Just know that because of its actions, no society will ever accept it with open arms anymore.”

Grapploct returned from the kitchen shaking a stainless steel cocktail mixer. Once it reached Reese, it opened the mixer revealing the same colorless gray sludge Ceailean and Marie had on Ol’ Vesta.

“Thank ya, Grapploct.” said Reese. He psyched himself up before downing the whole thing in less than three seconds. His face scrunched up in disgust. “Hot damn!”

Marie winced. “Um, could you please not?”

“Not what?” asked Reese, confused.

“Marie is not one for cursing.” explained Ceailean.

“Gotcha. My folks grew up south of Unova though, so if I happen to slip up that'll be my excuse.”

“Just try your best”

“Alright then.”

“Now first, when was the last time you saw Boug-”

“His name is Tyler.” interrupted Reese.

“When was the last time you saw Tyler before February the 4th?”

“I think it had been a week or so, maybe ten days.”

“Why would Tyler leave?”

“That boy, never understood the situation we were in. You remember that day we gave you the gem and the charcoal, right?”

“It was because that was the last ride of Ol’ Vesta right?” said Marie. “You wanted us to make sure that she traveled the world.”

“Thas right. See, my pa’s grandpa was a war vet of the Unova region and fought in the regions of Galar and Kalos. And like many others after the war, he stayed. Fell in love with a girl.” Marie glanced at Ceailean, who was wholly focused on Reese's story. “Thas where my pa comes in. Through their collaborative efforts with some help from the Unovan relief programs, they were able to secure a sizable amount of land. From that they built railroads all around the region. They were rich and controlled a significant amount of the goods transferred by rail.

However, familial affairs took their toll on the business. Woman was just usin’ grandpa for his money, least so we’ve heard. Pa then found his own woman, but he still likes others to refer to him by grandpa’s surname, Densk. Us here and now, we go by the Aldernaughts.”

“We’re getting off topic, could you please?” said Ceailean.

“Sorry bout that. Long story short, the business had been falling apart since then. We’ve sold quite a bit of land. Now we only have single lines going to Snowbelle, Camphrier, Coumarine, Santalune, Lumiose, and here. Pa, being as stubborn as he is, is stuck in the past. The routes are all almost obsolete but he still wants to hold onto them, draining his pocket fast in order to maintain the lines. He turns down any offer for the land for the sole reason that the land was built on with him and his pa. Sorta understand in a way. Eventually he had to start sellin’ things. First it was some obscure private property that we never used, then it was our engines. Diesel being the preferred choice for companies after all. We sold ‘em all for scrap, cept one.”

“Ol’ Vesta.” finished Marie.

“Thas right. She was the first one that pa and grandpa bought together. No way he’d let ‘er go. The family practically begged pa to sell off the land and Ol’ Vesta, but he was adamant. Then some guy named Nacho or whatever said that there was a very specific route that he needed to get worked on but it was starting to get a lil’ pricey. He told us that he found a loophole in Kalos’s tax laws that may allow them to avoid paying it entirely using Ol’ Vesta, paying us for the work of course. Pa took the job, earning enough to keep Ol’ Vesta runnin’ reliably.

Tyler was only three at the time and I was nine. For the years after, nothing significant happened. Til about six-seven months ago, pa came with the news that their partnership was ending. Something about the loop being closed in a courtroom decision. Tyler didn’t seem too worried about it, he never asked about our financial situation.

He didn’t like to admit it but Ty was a worry wart, though he didn’t seem like it at times. I was the only ‘real’ breadwinner in the house now. Every night I worked and worked, most times from nine am to midnight. Tyler caught me every now and again, sneakin away on those video games past bed time. Lil’ man was worried about me. I respect him for that. There was a secret though, I wasn't really pullin’ in any bread for that entire duration. It came to a head about two months ago. My parents were understandably upset once they found out. The secret though, I was building this place.” Reese pointed all around the café.

“You built this place all on your own?” asked Marie.

“Me and my cousin Lenny. Seven months in the making. And it was all because of this guy.” Reese pointed to Grapploct. “He has a real talent for those beverages, if you aren’t into presentation that much.” Grapploct gave him a stern look, which only prompted a chuckle. “I wanted to keep this place a secret til after the retirement party for Ol’ Vesta. But Ty missed that party, having disappeared about a week prior to that party, leaving a note saying he found a job to do and would be back in only about two days. I assume he heard that argument I had with my parents. He returned the night I revealed Favoris to the family, seemingly distraught and exhausted. Lil’ man looked like he was dragged through the distortion world and back.

I asked where he had been, but he ignored me and flopped on his bed and told me nothin’. Only saying he screwed up and wasn’t paid nothin’. I let him rest and told him about Favoris the next day. Though he acted a lil’ strange, askin’ why I didn’t tell him sooner. It was a secret of course. Ty was practically tearing his hair out and told me to leave him alone for the time bein’. It was only til about a week ago when I was able to talk to him. I convinced him to work at Favoris, then that leads to about now.”

“Tyler was gone for those ten days when Tuviere happened right?” asked Ceailean.

Reese hung his head. “Yeah.”

“He was only doing what he thought was right for your family, Reese.” encouraged Marie. “His intentions were good.”

“Maybe.” Reese stood up and faced Marie. “But it had to be a job involvin’ Tuviere. Being a part of a job of that scale would have the entire family on edge for the rest of their lives if they ever found out. We’d never know when the police would be knockin’ on our door.”

Marie thought for a moment, then said, “If it makes you feel any better, we’ll be willing to forgive him. We’ll act like he was never there.”

Ceailean stood up in opposition, “Marie?!”

“Why not C? You could tell he really cared for his family. Wasn’t there anything in your battle with him that you noticed that shows he isn’t a criminal at heart.”

“I guess. He was the only one that seemed visibly concerned for his Pokémon and even the least aggressive of the bunch, if only a little.”

“See? Can’t you find it in your heart to forgive him?”

“He still helped those other three secure those stolen Pokémon.”

“He only did what he was told.”

Ceailean sighed. His hand wandered to his pocket, where his pokedex was. “Let me uh, make a call first.” He walked over to the kitchen doors.

“You’re not calling the cops, are you?”

Ceailean gave Marie a smile, “I assure you, I’m not. Believe in me.” Scorbunny and Noibat moved to follow but Ceailean held his hand out and stopped them. “You two stay here, I need to talk alone.” The two looked at each other curiously and stayed put. Ceailean then went into the kitchen

Ceailean took out his pokédex and typed into a chat room, “Cherish Innocence.” There was a long pause before he got a response.

Cherish: What is it this time?

Dusker16: We found Bug

Cherish: I thought I told you to stay out of whatever those four were involved in

Dusker16: We found him by accident. If it wasn’t for the Team Harmonious admin we’re traveling with now, we probably would’ve never noticed.

Cherish: What are you doing with the likes of Team Harmonious?

Dusker16: Why? Are they bad?

Cherish: I haven’t heard anything incriminating about them, but I still don’t trust them. That’s to be expected when the names of the higher ups contradict the harmony part of the team. Just keep your guard up around them.

Dusker16: Understood. Now about Bug.

Cherish: spit it out then

Dusker16: He’s just a kid, wanting to get money for his family in need. The admin wants to capture him but my friend wants to forgive him. But I can’t just forget that he helped steal all those pokemon. What should I do?”

A long pause followed before the next reply.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

Cherish: Why’re you asking me?

Dusker16: Well I thought I would ask you what you would do

Cherish: I’m the wrong person to ask

Cherish: Listen, you know what I am. Before your journey started you made a pledge to remove yourself from the search. This would include my ways of doing things. Better that way. Think for yourself. I’ll help you take the next step.

Before Ceailean could type another message, he found that he had been blocked. He sighed and grabbed at his bangs. This was a situation he had never been in before. Devin, Mallen, June, none of the situations they got him into even compared. What could he do? Then he asked, “What would I want if I were him?” He remembered his mother. Their household wasn’t exactly financially stable as it was a vacation home, courtesy of his aunt. His mom did want to be able to pay it off herself being the nice person she was. It wasn’t a house that could be paid off with a simple job at a fast food place though. This led to arguments however over how his mom went to chase a man rather than pursue an education for a job like his aunts.

If Ceailean had to help his mom by doing some shady business, how would take it? The answer became clear to him. He then walked out of the kitchen.

“So, what are you thinking?” asked Marie.

Ceailean sighed. “Marie, I think I’ll take your side.”

“Really!? That’s great-”

“On one condition.” Ceailean pointed to Reese. “I want Tyler to look us three down directly and take responsibility for what he’s done.”

“What do you mean by that exactly?” asked Reese.

Ceailean smiled, “However he wishes to interpret that.”

“Kinda cryptic, but I guess.”

“Wait, how are we even going to find him?” asked Marie. “He could be anywhere out in the forest.”

“I prolly know where he is.” Reese said, standing up.

“You do?”

“He has a lil sanctuary he likes to go to every time things get rough. After all, he grew up with her.”

Ceailean had a light bulb go off in his head. “You mean-”

“Thas right. Let’s pay Ol’ Vesta a visit.”

“Right!” said both Ceailean and Marie. The Pokémon all cheered along with them.

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() In the cool winter air, a large wooden shed stood in the middle of a large track field. The interior smelled of loose gravel and was as hot as a summer day. Inside stood only a single engine, Ol’ Vesta. It was a lonely sight. Many tracks laid in a semicircle with Ol’ Vesta in the center, as if the shed had housed many other engines. Tiny veils of light shone through little cracks in the wood, keeping the interior from falling into complete darkness. Ol’ Vesta seemed to be standing alone, but it stood in comfort of a single individual, Tyler.

He sat with his knees to his chest inside the engine cab. He rested his head upon them, his mind going a million miles a minute. What would happen to him? Where would they take him? What about the family? Would they be okay? Would they understand? Would they hate him? The questions only deteriorated his mind further. But still, he remained expectant.

The sound of footsteps could be heard approaching from the outside. Tyler stood up and peeked around the window, making sure to obscure himself as much as possible. The latch on the sidling door unlocked with a metallic chunk and the door slid open quickly. The light was so blinding that Tyler only saw a silhouette before tumbling back covering his eyes. His tumble bashed the metal of Ol’ Vesta. He scrambled to his feet, but a voice got him to stay.

“Ty!” said Reese. He stood at the shed’s entrance, choosing not to advance. Tyler didn’t respond. “It’s only me. I know you’re here. I’m just here to talk.”

“L-Leave me alone.” Tyler shouted from the cab.

“I know what you did Ty, I also know why you did it.” Tyler considered leaving, but the comfort he felt from Ol’ Vesta made him sigh and huddle back in the corner. “I’m comin’ up.” Reese walked slowly towards the locomotive. While climbing up the small steps, he looked at Tyler, who didn’t look back. Reese sighed and sat down across from him.

“Why’re you here?” Tyler asked, his voice muffled from having his head on his knees.

“What else? I came to make sure you were okay.”

Tyler’s breath grew shaky, “How can I be okay? I’m a criminal now. The family will flip and if I keep running you’ll all get dragged into it.”

“I can’t speak for ma and pa, but if everything were to go wrong, know that I’ll run alongside you.”

Tyler raised his head. “Why? You’d simply leave everything behind just for me? A good for nothing kid with nothing on his name but a permanent stain. You worked so hard to build yourself up to where you are now, and you would throw that all so close to the start? You don’t make any sense.”

“Favoris was only a passion project. It was more for Grapploct than it was for me.”

“Liar.”

Reese sighed, “Fine, you caught me. But you can’t stay here forever. Just what do you plan to do?”

Tyler put his back down. “I-I plan on… running away.”

“So you’re okay with leaving everything you built behind as well?”

Tyler scoffed, “What did I have?”

“You have me. You have ma and pa. You have Ol’ Vesta to take care of. And how could you forget about Yanmega?”

Tyler curled up tighter. “You’ll… have to take care of it for me. Will you?”

Reese glanced away, shifting his head side to side. He then came up with a very definitive, “No.”

Tyler raised his head again. “What do you mean no?”

“No.” Reese said adamantly.

“But why? I thought-”

“The first thing I would do is release it into the wild.”

Tyler stood up and stood over Reese. “You wouldn’t! You know it was raised in captivity, it wouldn’t stand a chance in the wild!”

“How very interesting.” Reese stood up as well, looking down upon Tyler. “And once it is in the wild, what do you think the cause of its demise would be?”

“I just said-!”

Reese pointed into Tyler's chest. “It would be because of you!” His voice became louder and commanding.

“W-Wha-”

“I’m sure that Yanmega would have no problem going off on it’s own to find you. You’re its trainer, its friend! Naturally, it would wonder where you have gone. It would be worried sick knowing that you would be out there with a target on your back! You two were inseparable! Wherever you were, Yanmega was right there by your side! It would endlessly search the region for you until eventually it couldn’t fly anymore! It lay there on the ground hungry and exhausted, all the while just wanting to see you again one last time! But you would push it away and leave it to be alone.”

“But… I-I-”

“Do you even care about Yanmega as much as I thought you did?”

Rage exploded within Tyler. He grabbed Reese by the collar and shoved him against the wall. “Shut up shut up shut up! How could you say that! You know I love Yanmega, I couldn’t go on knowing if anything bad happened to it! That’s why I’m leaving, to protect it!”

Reese fought back, grabbing Tyler's hands and pushing him away. “Is a lifetime of misery and loneliness worth it in order to protect it?! Yanmega would be drained of all motivation and character! You have to be there for it, for us!”

Tyler attempted to push Reese back, but he dodged out of the way letting Tyler move past. “And what good would staying do?! The police would eventually find me anyway and I’d go to jail and Yanmega would still be alone! Like, what am I supposed to do? What am I-” Tyler began to break down, sliding back down onto the floor.

Reese joined him. “Why don’t you start with why? There was no need to do what you did.”

“N-No need? You think I don’t hear the arguments? You think I’m just another teenager that spends all day in his parents house playing video games? I heard everything. The rail line, the falling out of the deal, your struggle for income, pa’s retirement. How was I supposed to think that we weren’t financially in the shits? I started with taking odd jobs around town. Lawns, paints, gardens, everything I could think of. I was eventually going to surprise ma and pa with 100,000 pokedollars, but the process was grueling and slow. Then there was a time where I did work for this guy, he was a snake and didn’t want to pay me squat for the work I did. I was pissed and started to undo all the work I did. He started to call the police and I was scared for my life.

That is when my employer showed up. He saved me. I never knew his real name, I just knew he was called Darke. He threatened to do something to that guy. They must’ve had a history cause that guy went pale, prolly owed money or something. I waited outside the property ‘til he left. As he walked next to me, I could sense how dangerous he was. But before I could walk away, he told me to wait. He asked about our financial situation. I told him what I understood. Then he asked how hard I was willing to work and for how long. Eventually he said I was cheated by life like he was and offered to take me along on a job he was planning to do. It was supposed to be easy and quick, thoroughly planned out. He told me not to tell anyone but I thought a note would at least quell the suspicion of my whereabouts. I knew it was going to be something shady, but Darke said the payout would at least be in the 10’s of millions. I couldn’t pass up that opportunity.

On the day of the heist, Darke said that one of his contacts bailed at the last minute, someone called Poisyne. The plan had to happen in that week as that would be when security would be lowest. So he had to call someone he really didn’t like, Steele. We had to keep an eye on him, but by just looking at him I could tell that he was insane. Of course he ruined the plan for us and we had to scramble around Lumiose, dropping the pokéballs in locations that would be inconspicuous. The plan was going well too, ‘til I heard on the news that it was because of him the plan failed again.

It was because of those three at the café that we were even found out. They alerted the professor of the lab, Sycamore and some weirdo called Blaziken mask. Apparently they were too strong for even Darke to handle, I never saw though as I was already gone by then. You should know the rest.”

Reese sat there for a moment, taking his time trying to process all the information. “You never really understood the situation, did you?”

“What didn’t I know?”

“I had thought you weren’t too particularly interested in the situation, and I’d be lying if I didn’t say it was because you mostly spent yer time on video games.” Tyler scoffed. “You’d never asked us about it yourself. The thing was, ma and pa were already retired and were both receiving a pension, but pa didn’t want to sit around all day and let Ol’ Vesta rust up in the sheds. Most of what he earned on that route went to maintenance since our needs could be met with the pensions alone. And the arguments with ma were the typical paranoia stuff you’d hear from parents if you’re 21 and still live with your parents.”

“What paranoia?”

“When you ain’t makin money of course. They’d think I’m a bum who can't take care of myself. But they didn't know about Favoris yet.”

“So you're calling me an idiot?”

“Well no, but yes.”

“Fine whatever, but that still doesn’t help us with our problem.”

“What do you mean?” Reese asked somewhat obliviously.

“Ugh, did you forget already? No matter what I do, I still have the possibility of losing Yanmega.”

“Huh, didn’t I already tell you that those three are already willing to forgive you?”

Tyler’s jaw dropped. He grabbed Reese by the collar again and shoved him back against the wall. “You didn’t think to lead with that!? By Arceus man, come on!”

Reese raised his hands defensively, “Hey, it must’a slipped ma mind.”

Tyler let go and paced around the cab. “I have been sitting here terrified thinkin’ there was no way out! But now they’re willin’ to just forgive me just like that?!”

“They understood the situation. I’m sure they would have done some similar stuff.”

Tyler leaned against the wall and gave a sigh of relief. “That means I can go home right?” In his excitement, he immediately jumped down from Ol’ Vesta and went to the doors.

“Well, there is one thing- hold up!”

Tyler looked out of the open shed door having to shield his eyes from the intense light. There, standing far away in front of the turntable, was Ceailean with Marie and Crisis on either side of him. Scorbunny, Fennekin, and Snom stood in front of three.

Reese peeked out of Ol’ Vesta’s cab. “They told me that you had to confront them and take responsibility.”

“What do they want me to do?” asked Tyler.

“They… didn't really say. They basically said ``do whatever you think is the most responsible thing to do.”

Tyler looked back at the group and focused up. Determined to make things right, he exited the sheds. Then, Yanmega dropped from above and gave him the biggest hug it could. “Haha, Yanmega? You didn’t miss me that much did you?” Tyler hugged it back for a tender moment. Marie couldn’t but glance away and smile. Tyler’s focus quickly went back to the group. “Yanmega, I still have one last thing to do.” He gestured his head to the group. “Take me to ‘em.” Yanmega nodded and gripped Tyler’s outstretched arm, flying him over to the turntable.

He landed about ten feet away from them. The group only stared and waited. Tyler sighed and said, “I understand that I’ve done some bad things. Those pokemon were scared for their lives and it was partly because of me. I’ll never do something like that ever again. I also want to make things right, so I’ll give you anything you need.” Tyler bowed down. “So please, forgive me and let me continue to help my brother.” A sudden feeling of doubt ran down his body. He gritted his teeth awaiting the answer.

Ceailean smiled. “Apology accepted.”

Tyler gasped, “Really?”

“You took it upon yourself to confront all of us, acknowledging your wrongdoings, and even expressed your desire to help your family, which I find noble. So everything is good in my book.”

Tyler could feel tears building up in his eyes. “Thanks you guys, I mean it. I’ll pay you back in any way I can.”

“That’s a big task, sure you’re up for it?”

“Whatever it takes.”

Ceailean smirked, “You did almost kill me.”

Tyler felt super awkward and scratched the back of his head. “Y-Yeah, that did happen. But in that case, I’ll just save your life then! Whenever that time comes!”

“Ha! I look forward to it.”

Marie looked at Ceailean, “When did you get all prideful, C?”

“Oh, something I picked up from June I guess.”

“Huh?”

“Nevermind that, what shall we do next?”

Reese walked up behind Tyler, “Why don’t we start by having you over at Favoris. We never did serve you guys properly. And consider it on the house as our first step towards atonement.”

Marie realized she hadn't eaten anything all day, causing hunger to slur her words. “Really?! Thanks guys, I haven’t eaten anything all day. I’m starving!”

The entire group laughed. “Come on, I’ll show you the way back.”

As they did, Crisis stood still, lost in his thoughts. Throughout the entire exchange he remained expressionless and didn’t say a word. He still did not want to forgive Boug for what he had done. What right did he have to just say sorry and continue going on without any form of punishment? However, he had to remain orderly due to the new meaning of his mission he learned only a couple of hours ago.

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() Two hours ago

Crisis left Favoris in a huff. He kicked a stone down the road and leaned against the wall, closing his eyes in thought. What was he doing, Team Harmonious could lose face because of him. He looked back inside through a window to see Grapploct go inside the kitchen, their conversation inaudible from the outside. Still, it was within his duty to at least inform the Team of Boug’s last whereabouts, right? He took out his communicator and quick dialed a number.

An operator picked up the phone, “This is a secure Team Harmonious line, speak your key term.”

“A world without Crisis and tragedy would see to it that future history will no longer contain the suffering of the people and the negligence of others.”

“State your purpose, Admin Crisis.”

“I have found the whereabouts of the fourth member we have lost track of in Tuviere, I must inform Armageddon immediately.”

“Please hold.” A moment passed before Armageddon picked up.

“Speak fast, I am very busy today.”

“I have located where the fourth member involved in Tuviere had fled to. Boug.”

Armageddon sighed. “Damn it all, I thought that it wouldn’t come up again.”

“Pardon?”

“We already know his location.”

Crisis stood up urgently and confused. “Excuse me?!”

“Though it may have seemed that he had escaped according to the media and most of Team Harmonious, we have actually never lost him.”

“Who tracked him down?”

“Rivals group.”

“Of course. But why keep this information from me? I should know since I was the one who called it in!”

“That Tuviere criminal isn’t important right now. We have our eyes set on the other three.”

“Other three? Just how much planning have you been doing behind my back?”

“That isn’t relevant to your current mission.”

Crisis slammed the side of a support beam. “Why?! Why must you exclude me from everything?!”

“Things have changed, Crisis. Your mission may have become the most important one out of anything we have ever planned!”

“How so!? I’m following some kid around on a lackluster journey!”

A moment of silence. “Have you not heard yet?”

“Heard what?”

“I suppose the media hasn’t distributed the news yet. Three days ago, there was another incident at Tuviere.”

“A-Another?”

“Here is the body cam footage.”

Crisis received a message. He looked to see that it showed Tuviere being blasted apart. Explosions rampant, the ground shaking immensely, and buildings all around were being flattened. In the center of the chaos fought a gigantic red vine monster, similar to those at the Battle for Kalos, against a 50% form Zygarde.

“That is what has appeared within the waters of Tuviere. Look upon the images to see the destruction it has caused.”

Crisis hurriedly skimmed through them. He saw the docks completely destroyed, more buildings laid flat and set ablaze, and what seemingly looked like a continental plate folding over half of the entire town.

“D-Did that monster do this?” asked Crisis, still flipping through the images. He came across one that showed a close up of the mega Tyranitar head.

“Yes. It is something we have never seen before. If it wasn’t for Slaughter and his brothers and sister there, it may have caused even more havoc.”

“What about Zygarde? Wasn’t it there too?”

“It was, but it was unclear if it could’ve handled that thing on its own. We know that it travels with its brother, but a new revelation has been discovered showing that they have enlisted the aid of a rather peculiar Pokémon, Ash Greninja.”

“Such an oddity. Why would a random Greninja from a special trainer be helping Zygarde?”

“There is still much we don’t know. The media knows of our involvement and have been trying to get information out of us for the last three days now. This made it hard for the people involved to all hand in their reports. If anything, I won’t be surprised if those two learn of the incident themselves in time. But you understand why your mission is even more important now, don’t you?”

“Sir, you’re not seriously implying that Ceailean was the one who spawned this… this thing?

“We have no other leads to go off of. After all, it arose in the exact spot where several people stood by and tried to stop Darke from sailing away. So I ask that you keep traveling with the two for the relevance to Miskivin as well as the potential for understanding where that monster came from.”

“I… have had a bit of a falling out with those two recently. We had a disagreement about how to handle Boug.”

“How bad?”

“They threatened to eject me from their journey.”

Armageddon sighed. “I don’t have to tell you how important it is that you do not create conflict.”

Crisis scoffed, “They create conflict with me.”

“Conflict is a two way street, Crisis. I suggest you do your absolute best to quell any potential conflict that may arise, by any means necessary. It is your creed after all.”

“My creed?” asked Crisis, confused.

Before he could elaborate, he heard a door open and a faint voice, only hearing “...it’s Meowstic.” in their entire sentence.

“I have to go, Crisis. Make sure you find out what you can about Ceailean and Marie, you needn’t concern yourself with any other task.. Team Harmonious is depending on you.”

“Wait-!” The communicator produced a dial tone. Crisis sighed and put it back in his pocket. Before he could be left alone to his thoughts for too long, Ceailean opened the front door.

“Hey, we have a plan. I’ll tell you the situation. I just… hope you can understand what our plan is going to be.”

Crisis sighed, “Alright then, I’m willing to hear whatever it is you have to say.”