Novels2Search
Pokémon: Source
We Are Team Source

We Are Team Source

The Abandoned Lab, The Industrial District, Goldenrod City, October 27th, 1997

It was a silent morning.

The sun had yet to rise, waiting off the horizon for two more hours yet to grace the city with its light.

But… for now, it was dark . The moon had turned away from the earth, refusing to cast its reflection onto the world.

For today… the earth would shake .

A soft, baleful glow heralded the coming of the storm. Twin suns of bloodied crimson blazed with a malevolent - primal - hatred that had been smothered, buried, locked away for far too long.

Go Forth.

Go Forth, My Chariot.

Go Forth, And conquer.

The door to the lab swayed open with nary a sound. A shadow stood, featureless against the darkness, except for two glowing eyes of red .

His gaze searched the room before finding his quarry. With a pointed finger, he commanded, “ Ember. ”

Blue flame, then the bookshelf burned. Red flicked his hand, waving away the ash with a gust of wind.

One step. Two steps. “ Flash .”

Let there be light.

And the light - for once - was good. The light showed Red what lay behind the bookshelf. A flight of stairs, going downwards.

By his feet, Pichu hissed. Charmander’s eyes glinted into triangular slits - awake, far more than he ever had been previously . Froakie remained stoneface, though by the way the frog was flexing its pads…

This had been a long time coming.

Red turned to face his pokémon. His blazing eyes cast against the darkness to twist him, sharpen him, transform him into something far more beautiful and terrible than he ever could have imagined.

Go Forth.

Go Forth, My Chariot.

He made eye contact with each of them, sharing an understanding that none but those who lived the Storm would comprehend.

There was trust in his gaze.

There was love in his gaze.

There was grief in his gaze.

There was resolve in his gaze.

There was vengeance in his gaze.

In the end, Red only said three words before it all resumed. The never-ending war . “I love you.”

Then… the war resumed.

“ Crunch! ”

Charmander intercepted the Mightyena before the hound could crush Red between its jaws.

In the same moment that Red turned around to his enemy’s voice, a spiralling jet of water and electricity shot past him, blasting back an Electrode just as it was released.

An agonised howl erupted from the Mightyena as Charmander sliced its neck with Dragon Claw , before abruptly ending in a whimper as Charmander Crunched the beast’s skull.

A voice cried out in vain. Red heard it and didn’t care, pointing his finger in the voice’s direction as he locked eyes with Charmander, “ Kill him. ”

The draconic lizard leaped in the same moment that Electrode blasted into the wall, nearly breaking apart the bricks that held up the building.

In a last ditch effort, the ball pokémon expelled its electrical energy in a Self-Destruct . Before it could harm any of them, though, Pichu leaped forward and pulled the electrical energy to himself, redirecting it back to Electrode with several times the power.

The building shook as the wall crumbled, yet it stood in the end.

A thump turned Red’s attention back to the stairway, seeing Charmander crouching over a shaggy mop of hair, a small pool of blood trickling from the man’s ears.

Red stepped over the corpse, face unmoving as he began to descend the stairs.

It had been too long…

He reached the bottom, finding a metal door that was bolted close.

An alarm was going off - they knew he was here, good - seen behind reinforced glass.

Turning to Froakie, Red commanded, “ Water Blade. ”

Froakie called forth a small glob of pressurised water, forming it into a blade before slashing through the bolt.

Taking a moment to close his eyes and breath - help me, you’re so close, help me, please - Red opened them, the red glow shimmering across the entire expanse of his vision.

Red reeled back and kicked , blasting the door off of its hinges as he commanded with a voice that echoed across the compound.

And those who heard it shivered.

“Shock and Awe! Kill them all!”

Goldenrod Gym

“Challenger Salvare Razzo of Orre has challenged Whitney Akane of Goldenrod City to an 8-Badge Gym Battle!”

There was a veritable thunder in the crowds, each of them ecstatic at the rare and exciting treat of witnessing an 8-Badge Battle. Despite the fact that the sun had yet to rise, none of them could find any sleep in their exuberant joy.

Due to the layout of Johto, it was a rare occurrence for anyone to earn the Plain Badge as their final badge. Oftentimes, primarily due to geography and prestige, most challengers saved the Glacier, Mineral, or Storm Badges for their final run.

Of course, there were always those who tried taking the traditional route, saving the Rising Badge for their final victory before the Silver Conference. However, many trainers found their dreams crushed by the Rising Tide of Blackthorne.

Of course, there was always the option to go lower. The minimum required for the last victory to be counted as official was to defeat the Gym Leader’s 5-Badge Team. However, many trainers tried to stay away from this path, whether out of pride or out of desire to improve.

In the end, most of them took the easy way out.

However, as rare as it was for trainers to actively chase after 8-Badge matches, it was almost unheard of for the Gym Leaders to actively enforce 8-Badge matches on trainers who never asked for it.

Such had been the case for Red, back in Cianwood City. At the time, Salvare had been briefly worried that, perhaps, Red wouldn’t be able to net the win.

He shouldn’t have doubted his mentor.

Now, though, Salvare found himself in the same position that Red had been a few weeks ago.

Across him, looking somewhat tired but still determined, was the Gym Leader for Goldenrod, Whitney Akane. Her eyes shined with a recognition that Salvare dreaded.

There was a certain level of excitement in her gaze.

And more than a little mirth.

“I see you’ve come back for your final badge!” She called across the stadium, silencing the crowd to a base whisper, “I’ve been waiting for you to return after your previous loss against me!”

‘Remember to stand tall, Salvare. Whatever they throw at you, remember that it’s just meaningless words.’

Though Red was gone - again, again, again - his words echoed through Salvare’s mind.

So he straightened his back, kept his head high, and remained silent.

Whitney’s smile became a snarl.

“Taking after your mentor, are you? Standing all straight and stoic like that?” Whitney asked, and Salvare almost asked if she and Karen had a familial connection. It was somewhat uncanny how much that sounded like the silver-haired woman . “Speaking of, where is that enigmatic individual?”

Salvare didn’t respond - he couldn’t - instead grasping onto one of Red’s favourite tactics for moving a fight along when the opponent needlessly blabbed their mouth.

Red really didn’t care for monologuing trainers.

Whitney’s smile became wider as Salvare took out one of his pokéballs, face carefully set in a neutral gaze, mimicking Red. He had learned from his mentor that, oftentimes, pokémon battles almost played like a game of cards.

‘Don’t let them get a read on you, or else they can and will make you dance to their tune.’

Whitney breathed out, her smile almost softening as she breathed, “Fine. I can see when I’m not wanted,” She took out a pokéball of her own, “I haven’t had a proper Gym Battle in nearly a month, so who am I to complain!”

With that, the announcer took his cue, “This will be a 5-on-5, with three switches allowed on both sides! Gym Leader Whitney will begin by sending out her pokémon!”

Whitney smiled, twirling a pokéball in her hands before tossing it into the air, “Go, Ursurang!”

Salvare’s mind went on hyperdrive. High Attack. Slow. Guts or Quick Feet Ability. Probably Both. Red’s voice was most prominent in his mind, drilling into him the necessity of balancing preparedness with flexibility.

Salvare’s hand shifted away from the pokéball he was palming, saving him for later, instead latching onto another, saying with naught but a word, “Haunter.”

The gas pokémon trilled a haunting rumble at its appearance, meeting the Ursurang’s eyes with a dead-locked stare.

Salvare took command as soon as the announcer called the beginning of the match, “ Scary Face , keep it away!”

“ Scary Face! ” Whitney called back, essentially negating the change in speed between the Haunter and Ursurang.

Still, while Haunter slowed down a considerable amount, the Ursurang became practically immobile with how slow it was.

All the same, Salvare didn’t wish to bring Haunter close, instead commanding the ghost to use “ Mean Look! ”

Whitney’s smile widened at the move, “Trapping him in, huh?” She held an almost impressed gleam in her eye, seemingly reevaluating Salvare from the kid who blindly wailed against her months before, “Now it begs the question: am I trapped in here with you? Are are you-”

“ Taunt! ” Salvare commanded Haunter as Whitney - once again proving Red correct - monologued. The ghost proceeded to loudly make a series of voices that Salvare presumed to be inflammatory, if only he could understand it.

He certainly understood Haunter’s middle finger.

Whitney laughed as Ursurang roared, “Fine! You want me to stop talking and attack?” Her grin grew deadly, “Your funeral. Earthquake! ”

Ursurang rose and stomped into the ground, channelling Ground-type energy into its legs to strengthen its impact, casting jagged shards of stone to spike across the battlefield. A particularly large rock snapped away and landed next to Ursurang, shaking the arena.

The Ground-type energy quickly snapped away, only to be replaced with Fighting-energy as Whitney shouted, “ Seismic Toss the boulder! Make him hurt! ”

Ursurang roared as it wrapped its arms around the boulder larger than itself, Fighting-energy wrapping around it, before bypassing its abysmally low speed to soar high into the air.

Salvare’s first reaction was to call Haunter to dodge. Then, he remembered that, as a Ghost-type, Haunter would be immune. A half-second later, the folly of that thought reached Salvare as he snapped forward, commanding, “ Protect! ”

This was because, while Seismic Toss on its own was a Fighting move, Whitney was repurposing it to launch a bear sized rock at Haunter, which he would certainly not be immune to.

A resounding gong echoed across the arena as the rock shattered against the translucent shield, only for Whitney to command the now falling Ursurang in the same moment that Salvare gave his own command.

“ Giga Impact! ”

“ Substitute! ”

Another veritable earthquake ruptured the Gym as the Ursurang impacted the ground. Even with Haunter’s immunity to Normal-type attacks, the weight and velocity of the bear would have done immense damage, if not immediately knocking Haunter out of the fight.

Because of this, Salvare was relieved when Ursurang lumbered onto its feet, revealing a pitiful squished doll buried into the ground.

Even after falling onto the ground from several dozen metres into the air, Ursurang didn’t seem especially bothered, shaking dust off of its fur with a snarl.

Haunter, meanwhile, was acting somewhat sluggish, having had to create a strong enough shield for the rock before immediately using more of its reserves for a Substitute .

Another hit like that, and Haunter is going to faint.

With that in mind, Salvare called out, “ Toxic Spikes! Place as many as you can!”

Whitney barked a command, but Salvare didn’t hear, instead using what little training he had with his Poison aura to sync with Haunter, to give him the energy needed to place the Toxic Spikes.

And to survive just long enough for this next trick to be a guaranteed K.O.

“Ursurang!” Whitney called out after a particularly fierce Bulldoze nearly ran over Haunter, “Finish it with Crunch! ”

Knowing that Haunter was getting far too exhausted laying Toxic Spikes to dodge this attack, Salvare called out in a sharp tone, “Now, Haunter!”

The ghost pokémon stopped its movement, and with a grin that stretched across its whole body, rushed forward to meet the impact of Ursurang’s Crunch , wisping away into poisonous smoke before glowing white as Salvare recalled him, fainted.

The crowd cheered as Salvare handed the pokéball to the Gym aide, before descending into a shocked hush as ghostly tendrils surrounded Ursurang’s heart, before stabbing it all the way through.

Ursurang jerked, and with its eyes rolling into the back of its skull, it slumped to the ground, suffering what Salvare assumed to be cardiac arrest, because Haunter was just too much of an asshole to stop at unconsciousness with his Destiny Bond .

Karen would approve.

This was proven true as one singular person applauded against the pervasive silence that took the crowd. Karen enthusiastically cheered Salvare on, even after using a taboo move such as Destiny Bond . While that move wasn’t explicitly banned, it was heavily frowned upon in the wider battling sphere.

As judgemental whispers began to erupt around the crowd, Salvare did his best to channel what he saw of Red when the same started to happen to him with Jasmine and Chuck.

In the end, there are no rules in war.

Whitney, at least, appeared more excited than anything else, “Well isn’t that a glow up?” She smiled disarmingly as she handed her aid Ursurang’s pokéball, “I remember when that Haunter of yours was a measly little Gastly. It’s come a long way since only knowing Lick !”

Salvare did grimace a bit at that. Whitney had been his third attempted Gym, and while the first two were cakewalks at best, Whitney’s team stomped him so badly that Salvare had gone running with his tail tucked between his legs.

It wasn’t his most dignified moment.

He had blindly continued with his strategy of overwhelming offence, focusing much more on Croconaw’s training than his other pokémon. While he didn’t neglect them, he didn’t train them to quite the same standard, causing them to stagnate even as Croconaw improved.

It had taken five consecutive defeats to Clair for him to finally understand that.

Not long after, the Lake of Rage happened - and Croconaw, his brother, had nearly died - and he met Red.

The rest, as they say, was history.

Why wasn’t Red here?

Salvare’s attention snapped back to the match as Whitney called forward her next pokémon.

A large, rotund Blissey hopped onto the battlefield, its joyous face scrunching slightly as the Toxic Spikes dug into its fur, before smoothing its expression back into serene tranquillity.

Salvare hid the frown that wanted to form. Having done research on every pokémon Whitney had been known to use, Salvare was well aware of how infamous Blissey were.

Given how rare of a pokémon the Chansey line were, they were highly coveted for hospitals and private healers for their extraordinary healing abilities. While Blissey were considerably tankier than their unevolved brethren, their healing abilities remained largely stagnate, making it rare for these institutions to devote the resources to evolve them.

As such, the only Blissey that were seen in the public were in battles, and even that was rare. In the Indigo region, only three trainers in the last two decades had recorded Blisseys on their team. The first was a Kanto trainer from Fuschia who doubled as a wandering healer, the second was Whitney herself.

The third was her father, who had served as the Normal Elite Four under Champion Pryce.

Based on the articles Salvare had read not only on Whitney’s Blissey but on her father’s, he was extremely wary of the happiness pokémon.

Realising that he had spent too long analysing his opponent’s pokémon and how to best counteract it, Salvare hesitated for a moment before calling out “Golbat!”

With an echoing screech, Golbat emerged, taking to the skies as the announcer called for the match to continue.

“Golbat, Screech! ” Salvare called out, preemptively closing his ears as the bat pokémon widened its gaping maw to scream.

Whitney winced, but still commanded, “Blissey, Go around the battlefield and Endure as many of the Toxic Spikes as you can!” Blissey happily chirped despite the cacophonous screaming, prancing around to collect as many of the poisonous spikes as she could.

“ Venoshock! ” Salvare called out, somewhat desperately - having Blissey remove all of the Toxic Spikes would be extremely detrimental - Then, as Golbat struck its wings to send a rippling beam of poison, Salvare added, “ Quick Attack! ”

Whitney’s face grew hard as the Venoshock struck, calling out, “ Endure! ” Her face twisted into a smile as Blissey tanked the hit, lightly groaning after having lost more of its already miniscule defence, “ Copycat! ”

“Wha- Quick Guard! ” Salvare reacted a bit too late, as Blissey’s face lit up as it became enveloped in blinding light, before ramming into Golbat with Quick Attack , sending it flying across the arena.

As Golbat recovered, Whitney took the moment to command, “ Soft-Boiled! ”

Salvare groaned to himself as Blissey took the egg out of its pouch, inhaling it as another egg began to slowly grow from where the previous egg had been.

Salvare looked towards the few Toxic Spikes that were left, and upon seeing that, while healed, Blissey was still poisoned, decided to add onto it, “ Whirlwind! Aim the Toxic Spikes towards Blissey!”

Golbat screeched as it began to beat its wings, sending forth a rippling Gust that transformed into a Whirlwind .

Blissey narrowed its eyes as it stood against the Whirlwind , not paying any particular mind as the remaining Toxic Spikes stuck into its fur, further poisoning it.

Salvare grinned as he felt the poison begin to finally take hold, until his sense of victory came to a screeching halt as Whitney’s voice rang out, “ Heal Bell. ”

Blissey rose its body and fluttered into the air before landing to the ground, the ringing sounds of chimes resounding across the Gym from her impact.

Salvare’s eyes widened as the poisonous feeling - aura - he felt was crushed, and wisped away, leaving a perfectly healthy, if battered, Blissey to stand against Golbat.

As Whitney grinned smugly, Salvare took stock of the situation. In hindsight, it should have been obvious that fighting against a Blissey - especially one trained by a Gym Leader - wouldn’t be nearly as easy as it initially seemed. The pokémon were renowned for their ability to tank damage, heal themselves and their team, and otherwise be a nuisance to their opponents.

Red wouldn’t have made that mistake.

Salvare could see that, while Ursurang was merely an opening act to the battle, Blissey was a cornerstone of her team. They would be free to whittle down Salvare’s defences as Blissey healed them.

That Blissey had to go.

“Golbat, return,” Salvare called out as he recalled Golbat to his pokéball. As the announcer tallied Salvare’s first switch of the match, Salvare threw out his heaviest hitter, and the pokémon that stood the best chance of overwhelming the Blissey, “Go, Croconaw!”

Croconaw bellowed as it was released, standing taller than most of its species, having grown a considerable amount over the last few months.

Whitney’s eyes sparkled, and Salvare prepared for her next move, only to be surprised when she raised Blissey’s pokéball, returning her as she called out, “Well if it isn’t the flying Croconaw I’ve heard so much about!” She threw her next pokéball, revealing a Clefable, “Don’t disappoint me, Salvare!”

I won’t disappoint. I can’t.

I have to be worthy.

“ Aqua Jet , keep to the ground!” Salvare yelled out, reaching out and grasping the poisonous, self-loathing feel of his aura - it seemed easier now than it had been earlier.

Croconaw shot forward in a burst of speed, not rising up to ‘fly’, like Whitney was trying to goad him into.

He’d done his research. That Clefable knew Gravity.

She was trying to bait him.

“ Metronome! ” Whitney called out, sounding far too joyous for Salvare’s liking.

For his own part, Salvare winced. Metronome was one of those moves that you couldn’t plan around. On the one hand, it had the chance of being something useless, like Splash . On the other, it could be something devastating like Hyper Beam , which would almost certainly be an instant knockout for Croconaw.

Salvare grit his teeth in preparation for whatever the Metronome turned out to be, only for him to frown when Clefable erupted into a melodious, if despairing, song.

Did it use Sing?

When Croconaw shivered upon hearing it, yet remained awake, it clicked.

Clefable just used Perish Song!

It seemed that Whitney had the same revelation at that moment, because she began to laugh hysterically, “Oh my god!” She clutched her stomach, almost falling over in laughter, “That’s- That’s priceless!”

Salvare growled, quickly calling out, “ Ice Fang , full power!”

Whitney stopped laughing rather abruptly as she realised that Croconaw was right next to Clefable. “ Protect! ” She tried to call out before Croconaw’s attack struck, but she was too late.

Learn to pay attention, Whitney.

…And stop laughing at me.

Clefable howled as Croconaw stuck its fangs into its neck, freezing the blood closest to its skin. Clefable desperately shook Croconaw off with an uncommanded Flail , before dissolving into white light as Whitney recalled it with a frown.

As Salvare did the same with Croconaw - making both him and Whitney only having one more switch each - Whitney crossed her arms with a huff, “Y’know, I can appreciate taking advantage of me not paying attention, but that was a bit more brutal than it had to be.”

Salvare frowned, somewhat confused as to why he was being chastised for being too brutal in a fight .

It took a few moments for him to recall one of the first things Red told him, when he laid out the conditions of training under him.

‘When you train under me, you are not looking to win a Gym match. You are not looking for glory, for honour. None of that.’

‘You are looking to survive.’

And when Salvare asked what the difference was, Red looked at him long and hard, before turning to Pichu, and other two pokémon that flanked Red.

‘...My pokémon… We have killed to survive, kid.’

‘For you to survive out there, you need to learn how to fight for your life.’

It was never a game for Red, never a sport. Not like the League, or Gym Battles, where a pokémon fainted when it was tired rather than fainting when it literally could not stand on its legs.

And, like everything else, Salvare learned it, absorbed it into his own technique, his own style.

He was being reckless.

Red had sat him down outside of Cianwood City, just a day before the Champions’ match on the television.

Salvare hadn’t thought much of it at the time, given how closely everything with the television match, Red’s repeated disappearances, and Karen’s tutoring of Aura had followed. But, in hindsight, it had probably been one of the most important lessons Red had given.

Know your strength.

Salvare’s eyes widened as it struck him. While a pokémon like Whitney’s Clefable could take a move like that, freezing its blood, the same couldn’t be said for some random kid at the battling ring with a Pidgey.

Clefable was fine, would be fine - Salvare wasn’t in trouble, he wasn’t - but it was still a warning.

Know your strength.

“I understand,” Salvare murmured with his eyes down, missing Whitney’s look of confusion at Salvare’s sudden dour mood.

“Hey, I didn’t mean anythin’ was bad about it, just, y’know,” She shrugged, feeling a little uncomfortable, “Don’t go crazy is all I’m sayin’.”

Salvare remained silent, raising his head at Whitney before giving a small nod.

Despite frowning, Whitney continued the battle, sending her next pokémon, “Smeargle, Sketch! ”

What?

Salvare had to really focus on keeping the whiplash off his face. Considering the fact that she had transitioned from two pretty strong pokémon to a Smeargle …

Salvare had known that she used one… just not for 8-Badge battles…

“ Sketch! ”

Wait. What.

Salvare’s eyes bulged as he realised he had yet to send out his pokémon, allowing Whitney extra time to… build up Smeargle’s arsenal.

So, what, it would be Ice Fang, Metronome… or would it be Perish Song?

Deciding to worry about it in a moment, Salvare called out, “Magneton!”

In the same moment, Salvare learned which move Smeargle copied, as Whitney called out “ Metronome! ”

“ Thunder Wave! ” Salvare called out just as the ground shook as Spikes littered the ground.

Whitney frowned as Smeargle paused in its movements as paralysis kicked in, but perked back up as she called again, “ Metronome! ”

Oh boy, she’s committed.

Deciding to take down the Smeargle before one of the Metronomes turned into something like Flare Blitz , Salvare commanded, “ Lock On! ”

Whitney grinned at the move, preparing to command another use of Metronome , only for Smeargle to suddenly shoot forward, scraping against Magneton before automatically being recalled into its ball.

The Gym was silent for a moment as they collectively realised that the previous Metronome had just taken effect, and turned out to be U-Turn of all things.

Un. Believable.

“Uh, okay,” Whitney muttered before sending out Blissey, “ Heal Bell! ”

Salvare jumped, calling, “ Zap Cannon! ”

As soon as he said it, though, he realised that Magneton had locked onto Smeargle rather than Blissey.

He groaned as the Zap Cannon whizzed by Blissey, leaving its fur to stick up in static, and nothing more.

Godammnit, Salvare, focus!

Mistake after mistake.

Salvare scowled as two voices began to war within his mind. He gripped the railing of the challenger’s podium as he recognized the voices.

They were both Red’s.

You know what I taught you. You know what it takes to prevail.

Or are you dim? Are you unworthy to be my protégé?

“ No, ” Salvare hissed, eyes bubbling purple as he commanded, “ Electric Terrain! ” A mad idea began to form in his mind as he shouted, “ Volt Switch! ”

“ Icy Wind! ” Whitney called frantically, and Salvare grinned .

She had taken the bait.

“Croconaw!” Salvare called out once Magneton impacted Blissey, “ Aqua Jet! And Water Pulse the Blissey!”

“Wha- Protect! ” Whitney called out desperately, watching with wide-eyes as Croconaw flew through the air, not touching the electrified ground.

Salvare’s grin stretched. She had expected Golbat, and used Icy Wind to counteract it.

Yet, the Icy Wind didn’t hinder Croconaw’s movements.

It only strengthened Salvare’s next move.

“Open your mouth, Croconaw!” Salvare shouted out as the Water Pulse hit Blissey’s shield. Croconaw did and began inhaling the ice in the air, only to crystallise it into fangs as he bore down, “ Ice Fang! ”

Whitney had no time to react as Croconaw bore down on Blissey, echoing the brutality used on Clefable.

The crowd collectively winced as Blissey shrieked in pain, both from the puncture wounds from Croconaw’s maw and the electrified floor. Whitney’s face hardened for a moment as Blissey struggled before sighing, “ Healing Wish .”

Blissey stopped struggling as it closed its eyes, radiating wisps of healing energy dissipating from the creature as it bowed its head and passed out.

Croconaw fell onto the electrified floor as Blissey was recalled. Realising this, Salvare called out, “ Endure! ”

Meanwhile, Whitney simply stood there as Croconaw repeatedly tap-danced on the electrified floor, using up her entire minute between pokémon. After several seconds of seeing increasingly severe burn marks on Croconaw’s feet, Salvare decided that using up more of Croconaw’s water reserves was better than letting Croconaw get electrified any longer, “ Aqua Jet! ”

“Clefable, Thunderbolt! ” Whitney shouted in triumph as she threw her next pokéball, apparently waiting for Croconaw to take for the skies.

Clefable, fully healed thanks to Blissey’s final move, charged itself with the electrified floor before shooting a rippling arc of lightning towards the flying crocodile.

Salvare surged forward, shouting, “Evasive manoeuvres!”

Although Croconaw had become highly adept with Aqua Jet - far more than any land pokémon had ever before - it still couldn’t control its flight with nearly the same finesse as naturally flying pokémon.

As such, as Clefable absorbed the electrical energy from the floor - which slowly dwindled its defences - and shot forth multiple Thunderbolts , Croconaw had been forced in the backfoot.

This went on for a few seconds before Salvare decided that it was a losing game. While Clefable would eventually tire out, it would not be before Croconaw was hit, which would almost certainly mark the end of the crocodile’s reign of terror.

And most likely spell doom for Salvare’s chances at the badge.

And fail his mentor.

“Return!” Salvare called out, using his last switch to call in Croconaw to his ball. After allowing the last bolts of electricity to fizzle out, Salvare threw his next pokéball, “Golbat, Toxic! ”

“ Protect! ” Whitney called out, giving Clefable ample time to throw up a shield against the rippling beam of poison heading for it, “ Gravity! ”

Salvare and Golbat both lurched as the gravity increased tenfold. Salvare dug his nails into his palms, drawing blood as he desperately called on his aura to help Golbat stay in the air.

He felt as though he had popped a blood vessel in his brain.

Miraculously, Golbat stayed afloat. Whitney gave a thoughtful frown as Golbat struggled to stay in the air, only to narrow her eyes as she noticed Salvare, practically keeled over in the challenger’s podium.

With a second of deliberation, Whitney called out, “ Thunderbolt ,” confident that it would hit.

And hit it did, but not before Salvare’s voice rang out, determined despite its undercurrent of exhaustion, “ Toxic .”

Whitney couldn’t react in time before the ichorous poison latched onto Clefable, visibly making the pokémon cough out puffs of toxic smoke.

Salvare recalled Golbat, quickly kissing the pokéball before handing it to his aide.

Three pokémon left on both sides.

Red could’ve done better.

Whitney’s previous trick was reversed on her as Salvare waited a full minute before sending in Magneton, allowing the Toxic to have maximum effect. Interestingly enough, the Clefable seemed to be having a rather potent reaction to the poison, far more than other pokémon usually did.

Red did mutter something about poison being effective against the Clefairy line.

Unlike before, Salvare didn’t issue any commands, instead keeping Magneton away from Clefable. Whitney quickly realised that Salvare was simply allowing the Toxic to completely overtake Clefable, so she shouted in desperation, “ Metronome! ”

“ Protect! ” Salvare shouted in triumph as Whitney’s face fell. Magneton brought up a shield just as Clefable was surrounded with a poisonous aura, shooting forward with a Poison Tail .

While Magneton’s Steel Typing would have made it immune, Salvare had been taught not to take unnecessary chances.

Seeing the chance to take down the Clefable once and for all, Salvare extended his hand and shouted, “ Discharge! ”

Magneton closed its eyes as it burst forth a wave of electrical energy, finally taking down fairy pokémon.

Whitney’s face grew hard as she recalled Clefable, eyeing Salvare with an indiscernible gaze as she called out, “Smeargle, Metronome! ”

Again?!

Salvare’s face broke in annoyance, sharply yelling out, “ Wild Charge! ”

And, in the end, with Metronome being used so many times throughout the battle to often minimal results, Salvare had forgotten the key danger that came with fighting against it.

There was always the chance of it becoming a move that was catastrophically bad.

Time seemed to pause as Smeargle was enveloped in flames, jumping into the air as Magneton rushed towards it in a mad dash. Smeargle raised its leg into the air, bringing it down onto Magneton with a billowing Blaze Kick.

Salvare swore as the attack landed, desperately pulling on his aura to keep Magneton from fainting.

It must have worked - Salvare didn’t know how to explain it otherwise - because Magneton remained floating, creaking open one of its eyes to stare at Salvare, questioning.

Salvare didn’t deserve such obedience.

“ Explosion! ” Salvare called out, ignoring the rising din of gasps and shouts as Magneton blinked once before glowing in a bright white light.

Whitney called in vain for Smeargle to flee, but before it could, the earth shook .

The Explosion cracked the floor, expelling large clouds of dust across the battlefield. As soon as Salvare saw Magneton’s unmoving form, he recalled it and handed it to his aide.

Moments later, Whitney did the same with Smeargle, much to the audience’s rising boos.

Like Destiny Bond , using moves such as Self-Destruct and Explosion were generally frowned upon in battle. While some individuals hemmed and hawed over the ‘abuse’ a pokémon faced with such a move, most trainers knew that, ultimately, those types of moves almost never had any long-term effects on its user’s health.

No, most of the complaints were about how ‘unsportsmanlike’ the moves were, and how they marked a cheat, a coward.

Even before meeting Red, Salvare scoffed at such notions. Some of the most ruthless people he had the displeasure of knowing prioritised such moves to devastating effect. Red’s teachings only compounded on Salvare’s feelings on the matter.

So, despite the jeers he faced, Salvare looked ahead. Their approval didn’t matter in the end. He knew - felt - that Karen was proud. The growing shadows in the corner of the audience proved as such.

The question was whether Red would be proud…

If he was going to show up at all.

Salvare scowled to himself, allowing the annoyance, bitterness, poison to swell up within himself.

Of course Red wouldn’t be here.

At your finest moment.

At your triumphant finale.

Considering that this was the Gym match Salvare had been the most anxious about, it was rather ironic that Red wouldn’t be here for it.

He doesn’t care.

He never cared.

Salvare’s eyes shined purple for a moment as the thought - the certainty - lodged itself into his throat.

Of course Red isn’t here.

Why would he be here?

When all you’ve been to him is a weight.

The announcer called out a fifteen-minute intermission - standard policy for when a Gym Leader releases their last pokémon in an 8-Badge match.

Salvare stood there, unblinking as Karen bounded down from the spectators, shouting out encouragement as she jumped over an elderly couple, nearly falling on top of them.

While a part of him glowed in her praise, it quickly dissolved under the tumultuous, poisonous pit that had formed in his stomach.

It’s only fitting that Red isn’t here to congratulate you on your success.

It’s father all over again.

Isn’t it?

Unknown Location, Unknown Time

let there be light

STOP! PLEASE! IT HURTS! STOP-

let there be light

Red? No, I tried red. They don’t want red. Red helps with fire. Red is warm. But the light is so hot it’s cold. So cold it burnsss-

let there be light

ssssttttoooOOOPPPP.

There’s a puddle of red underneath me. It smells so bad.

Do they want blue? No. No, blue doesn’t work. Blue is sad. Blue is like the sea. I’m drowning I’m drowning I’m drowning I’m drowni-

let there be light

LET ME GO LET ME GO BY THE COLD WINDS OF ARTICUNO I WILL-

(die)

let there be-

Fire. Water. Electricity. Pressure. Darkness.

Light?

It smells so bad.

Everything hurts.

The earth is shaking.

The shadows are screaming.

Flashing light flashing lights flashing lights-

There’s so much red , but not my kind of red. It’s an unnatural red, but not as unnatural as the light .

It’s so cold.

It’s so hot.

There are voices beyond the shadows, commanding them, or being commanded?

Why?

Why am I here?

help me please

The puddle of red smells so bad . Almost as bad as the garbage the silly man keeps on eating.

The silly man was so funny. He’s so sad , but good . He’s good.

the silly man has a deathwish

The silly man is real. Real? What is real? I don’t know anymore.

The light is real.

The man has a silly little mouse. It has small teeth. The mouse’s tail was chewed off, and I wonder what the shadows wanted to learn from that.

Stop thinking about the silly man and the silly mouse.

They hurt you when you do.

I cowered, waiting for the fire, the water, the electricity, the headaches, the starvation, the light .

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

But none came.

The shadows are still screaming.

There’s a great big boom up above, and I look up.

The silly man is here.

I always liked reading.

There’s a voice. New, not like the shadows.

The voice is scary.

the voice is a quaking rasp.

“Shock and Awe! Kill them all!”

Hide!

There wasn’t much space to hide. The shadows didn’t like me hiding, even though I couldn’t.

Why hide when they can always see, silly silly!

There are more great big booms. The shadows are screaming even louder.

GO FORTH

Try to make yourself smaller. Hide yourself. Save yourself.

Lest the demon find you and destroy you.

please

why

where am i

i will not rest until your head is under my heel

Silly! Silly! Who said you could hide?

Hiding is freedom.

freedom

is

a

lie

Go Forth.

Go Forth, My Changelingggggggggggg ggg gg gg g g

Who are you?

absolution

A voice rang out.

So much screaming.

The shadows are dying .

The voice is a familiar one.

The voice is in my nightmares.

The one who commands the shadows.

The one the shadows call ‘ Emperor ’.

please no…

please

“Project: Changeling.”

“Activate Protocol Z.”

no

LET THERE BE LIGHT

NO!

LET THERE BE LIGHT

LET THERE BE LIGHT

LE T BE THER BE LIGH THER LE LET THE THER EB LIG TH LEBETHE LIGH LIGHT THE LET LE BE BE LIGHT LET THERE BE LIGHT

A A A N N N D D D T T T H H H E E E L L L I I I G G G H H H T T T W W W A A A S S S O O O V V V E E E R R R W W W H H H E E E L L L M M M I I I N N N G G G

“Volt Tackle! Fire Claw! Water Blade!”

Neon lights flashed against the hellish flames, torrents of water, and spiralling storms that were wrought in Red’s wake.

Bodies burned around him. The wrathful din of screams - pleas of the damned - echoed in a dissonant spiral.

Some tried to fight, but they were not fighting a regular trainer. They were not fighting a veteran of the Great War, or an Elite of the League.

They were fighting a force of nature.

Red roared , erupting a hellish wave of destruction towards those that sought to stop him.

Add them to the funeral pyre.

Watch them burn .

The ceiling crashed above them, toppling down as rippling Earthquakes shattered with every step he took.

With every movement, he fought against a flood of water.

With the crimson haze of his vision, he almost mistook it for blood.

With every breath, wisps of ice and fire burned around him, protecting him from stray attacks.

With every flick of the wrist, pipes broke away from the walls, and flew against his enemies.

Go Forth.

Go Forth.

GO FORTH.

“ Brick Break! ” Red commanded Charmander, pointing to a door that was bolted close.

The people inside cowered from his mere presence.

Charmander rushed forward, eyes glinting with Madness as he raised his fists and blasted away the door with Brick Break.

Red didn’t even have to give any commands before his pokémon rushed in.

The bloodlust had long since settled in.

“We are surrounded by devastation, yet we stand tall.”

“ Froakie, hold! ” Red’s eyes glinted as he took in the room, stepping over charred corpses - collateral - to walk over to a wooden desk, “ Guard the doorway. ”

Red paused to grip the edge of the desk, willing away the blood, the death, the enjoyment, the terror, the monster-

Red punched the table, gritting his teeth but not feeling any greater pain. He punched again, forcing himself, forcing himself to stay himself .

You’re here for a reason, Red.

“Remember who you are.”

“ Froakie, ” Red’s voice came out as a harsh rasp, almost sick-sounding. His eyes blazed in the darkness. “ Are there any computers in here? ”

A small pause, then Red felt the presence of Froakie to his side - exacerbated - and looked to see that the frog was giving him a deadpan look, as if he was a blithering idiot.

Which wasn’t entirely inaccurate.

“ What? Oh, ” Red sighed to himself, seeing that Froakie was pointing right behind him.

Right, it’s 1997. The technology isn’t what he’s used to.

“ They must’ve built that in the 80’s ,” Red muttered as he saw the large computer that spanned a whole wall of the room. He scanned the computer for a moment before finding a caption, “ Project Changeling Database. ”

Project Changeling? Red didn’t know anything about it, unless it was referring to the creature Red had connected with.

And the creature currently seemed to be hiding their presence.

They were scared.

Of him.

Red ignored the small - almost nonexistent - pit of guilt that formed at that, and asked, “ D’you reckon we can find a thumbdrive to put the information on? ”

Froakie just gave him another look , before slapping him upside the head as he hopped towards a box in the corner.

Within the box was something that Red hadn’t seen in years.

He must’ve been nine, when he last saw them in Professor Oak’s laboratory.

“ Floppy disks, really? ” Red questioned as he held one up. To Froakie’s shrug, he questioned, “ How do you even know what this is? ”

Froakie didn’t deign to answer, instead tensing as voices deeper within the compound shouted at each other, in fear, in determination, in horror.

“ Okay, fine, ” Red quickly popped the floppy disk into the computer, “ We need this information, even if it’s-”

“ Project Changeling. ”

The voice - vaguely familiar, but altered just enough to be forgettable - brought a chill to Red’s spine.

In the din of his mind, the creature called out in terror.

Emperor.

“ Activate Protocol Z. ”

“ No, ” Red’s voice became layered with something else, something silly, it hurts no no NO NO-

LET THERE BE LIGHT

Red screamed-

LET THERE BE LIGHT

Tearing apart I’m tearing apart

Everything was turning reddddddddddddd

LET THERE BE LIGHT

Red opened his eyes - and no irises could be found within - and bellowed.

Billowing flames rushed out of his mouth.

Flamethrower.

LET THERE BE LIGHT

The creature was dying dying dying help me PLEASE dying, it was dying, Red had to help me, it burns so cold he wrenched his arms out of his sides magnetised by a force most beautiful most terrible roaring and roaring as waves of energy cascaded around him caressing him telling to sleep, silly, but he couldn’t sleep, or else i’ll sleep forever, and he wouldn’t let them kill me , not again not again not again, so he stomped and kept hold of my mind my soul as the light light light pounded against (our) head and it was overwhelming , it was unnatural , it was d e a t h , but Red had a deathwish and wanted to save me (why?) (why?) so he kept hold on my mind my soul and became one.

LET THERE BE LIGHT

LET THERE BE LIGHT

LET THERE BE

L I G H T

so is this it?

My equal, My successor

You fall to a little bit of light?

no

no

I chose You as My equal

Us, who not only lived through the storm

but thrived

this isn’t the end

for you

for us

so. get. up. Ash.

no

that isn’t Your name

get up Red

get up My Chariot

go forth, and conquerrrrrrr

For one agonising minute, Froakie thought Ash - Red - was dead.

Gone.

Froakie wondered if it had even been a minute, or just a few seconds, but all the same…

Red’s heartbeat had stopped.

Before his brother’s passing, Lucario had been the chief protector of their trainer, their leader, their family .

Charizard and Infernape were the brutalizers of the group, rushing into enemy forces with the power of a mountain. Meanwhile, Greninja and Sceptile worked on the backend, covering the others’ flank along with supporting them in their attacks whenever things got rough.

Pikachu remained the strongest amongst them, slaying the likes of legendaries with his god-like power.

Lucario had always been the defence to their offence, and for so long , Greninja hadn’t ever thought of Lucario’s role as being dangerous, not like theirs .

He had forgotten how fragile Ash was compared to them.

How Human.

Greninja had taken over Lucario’s role of defending Ash, which carried over as Froakie to defending Red. He had taken time out of his training to learn other skills, necessary skills, like reading maps, or understanding technology.

The Greninja line were not meant to understand technology; they were ninjas.

All the same, Greninja - Froakie - devoted himself to aspects of survival outside of raw strength and skill.

Ash had grown, matured, re-forged through their time in the storm into something far greater than he had been previously. But even then, Ash was still just one man.

One man alone cannot hold the weight of the world on his shoulders.

Dynamics between the group shifted when they woke up on the mountain. They had all changed , both in body and in spirit.

Some changes were more obvious, such as Charmander, who was suffering from a madness that Froakie didn’t - couldn’t - understand. Still, the lizard held on enough to be the pillar of strength that Ash - Red - needed, that he would die without.

They all had their bloodlust. The storm - the demon man - changed them.

But Charmander was the most ruthless of the three of them.

Red shared the same madness, however subtle it was.

Pichu was the pillar of love that kept Ash afloat in his darkest times. While all of Ash’s pokémon loved their trainer - died for him - Pikachu, and now Pichu, always had a special connection to Ash that the rest of them couldn’t hope to touch.

For a creature as headstrong, angry, and wrathful as Pichu, it was a remarkable thing to see that the only times he was calm was when he was with Ash.

Froakie… Froakie shared something with Ash - always Ash - as well.

They were kin. Brothers not of blood, but family all the same. Froakie’s will was Ash’s will, and Ash’s goals were Froakie’s goals.

Froakie remained Ash’s pillar of support, his rock, the one who kept Ash looking forward.

If Ash was a sword, then Charmander was the blade, Pichu the hilt, and Froakie the grip that kept Ash from slipping away, from losing his goal, his mission.

And it was so close to being lost.

As Froakie took back the floppy disk as it finished collecting the data, Red’s heart had stopped, and Froakie wouldn’t ever forget the panic, the anguish he felt in that moment.

He wasn’t a healer, knowing nothing other than Rest , and could only try in vain to press against Red’s chest, keep the air flowing, anything to get his trainer back and well.

And his trainer came back.

More beautiful and terrible than ever before.

Froakie’s senses screamed before a glowing pink - radiant pink - broke through Red’s skin, glowing like hot pink coals.

Froakie jumped back as if burned - he was - his inherent Dark-typing screeching against the unnatural light from Red’s skin. Radiant in its glory. Horrifying in its scope.

Let there be light, Froakie.

Careful, you may just be overwhelmed.

Red shuddered , rippling waves of light cascading around him.

Voices further into the compound began to shout in terror as the earth began to shake , rumbling as if Groudon itself was awakening in a rage.

Froakie held onto the floor with his pads, face set in a grimace as an indescribable pressure began to press against him, pushing him away.

Froakie kept his eyes open in slits, watching in awe and terror as Red stood up, and began to hover in the air.

And then-

SNAP

Red crumpled onto the floor, as if he was a puppet with its strings cut off.

Froakie cried out in shock, scrambling next to Pichu and Charmander as the three of them shook Red, pleading him to awaken.

There was a heartbeat.

No…

There were two.

A roar echoed from nearby, and the three of them turned in sync to hear the torn metal, blasted walls, broken pipes shattering all around them as something big cast its shadow around the corner.

Despite a small, lingering exhaustion that was beginning to set, Froakie stood next to Pichu and Charmander as the three prepared for their new opponent.

The shadow grew…

And from it, a dragon roared.

Froakie clapped his pads, combining a Water Pulse with Pichu’s Thunderbolt to stop the rippling pulse of draconic energy.

What Froakie did not count on, however, was Charmander rushing forward to intercept the Dragon Pulse .

Fool!

Froakie growled as Charmander was launched back, suffering burn marks and tears across his scales.

Despite his damage, Charmander snarled , bounding onto its legs for another attack against the quaking dragon, who had shrugged off Froakie and Pichu’s joint attack as if it was nothing.

The enemy Dragonite stomped, rearing its head back as it opened its maw, charging up a beam of pure white energy.

Froakie desperately tried to stop it, along with Pichu, but neither them nor Charmander’s waves of Dragon Rage could stop the beast before it finished charging up, unleashing a blinding white Hyper Beam , intent on killing them all.

Froakie closed his eyes, shielding his family as best he could.

You’re not dead. Open your eyes, now!

Froakie opened his eyes, and nearly closed them involuntarily. It was so bright.

Red collapsed next to him, bleeding from his ears and eyes - glowing ever still . Broken shards of prismatic energy wisped away around them, wasting away the last of Red’s energy with his Protect .

The Dragonite and its trainer behind it seemed disoriented, but not overtly harmed. The trainer said words, words that Froakie didn’t listen to as he tried and tried to think of any way to come out of here alive and-

“-taught under The Chariot.”

Froakie paused at the demon man’s title. Pichu had paused as well, and even Charmander stopped momentarily in his rage.

This man was taught under the demon man.

He said it as if it was an honour.

THAT MAN BUTCHERED THEIR FAMILY.

Froakie’s vision narrowed to a fine point, honed in a way that he hadn’t felt in months.

At that moment, his eyes were triangular slits.

Pichu was the same, and Charmander had been the same for over a month.

Red was standing once more, hunched over and injured - bleeding and broken .

But even surrounded by devastation, we stand tall.

Red roared, far louder, far madder, far more primal than ever before.

He stepped and pushed , blasting the Dragonite back with a wave of esoteric energy, finely honed, tempered, and forged with hatred that burned deep.

Arcs of multi-coloured lightning danced around Red as he walked forward, carving a path towards the Dragonite, tearing against its skin with invisible shrapnel of light.

The lightning broke apart, reforming and striking against the walls, crystallising like a terrible lattice of ordered chaos.

Chaotic energy directed through a central focal point.

A Conduit.

Red had backed the Dragonite into a corner - its trainer long torn apart by the localised storm - his eyes burning with a baleful glow, and when Froakie looked…

He couldn’t see Ash or Red within.

Red raised his arms, bringing together the chaotic energies around him…

And coalesced them into a concentrated ball of light.

And the light was overwhelming.

Froakie closed his eyes, hopping away as a primal urge to run to hide surged within him.

There were lights on two sides.

From Red.

And from something else.

Froakie shivered as a cold wind - the call of death - settled in the compound. By his side, Pichu mewled in sadness, and Charmander seemed to be unconscious a small distance away.

Once the wind settled, Froakie hopped up back to where Red was, only to find him collapsed - breathing heavily, but still breathing - once more, laying on the floor next to the Dragonite, who had slumped down, foaming at the mouth, dead.

Froakie’s eyes caught a reflection in the water - the compound was slowly flooding - and hopped forward to see the source of the second light.

A small - almost smaller than Pichu - creature lay in a pool of blood and vomit. Froakie could see the creature’s ribs, along with a myriad of burns, bruises, scars, and other wounds littering the creature’s body.

And, somehow, the creature was still breathing.

Froakie turned around to see Pichu standing next to Red’s form, shock still, unmoving.

Pichu was shutting down…

Charmander was unconscious…

And Red was neither and both.

Froakie extended his senses, the dark edges of his aura with Detect , hoping against hope that this was it, that there weren’t any more, that they wouldn’t die down here after everything.

And his Detect found nothing.

Aside from a trail of corpses.

Froakie’s legs gave way, and he collapsed into the water.

Somehow…

Somehow they were alive…

Froakie had never been one to cry. He could only remember three occasions of ever doing so.

The first had been as a newborn, when he was cast aside by his congregation of birth-brothers.

The second had been when Clemont, Bonnie, and Serena died at the hands of the Chariot, mere days after the storm first raged.

The third had been at Lucario’s passing. After having dealt with the deaths of their previous brothers, it had piled up too high for Greninja to hold it in for a third time.

But now, as Froakie began to realise, he could add a fourth time to that list.

Froakie didn’t exactly know the reason - he never knew the reason . It could be the stress, the fear, the nigh-brushes with death, the shock.

Whatever it was didn’t matter. Froakie had to let it out now, while he was alone.

He was the pillar of support that Red relied on, that Pichu and Charmander relied on. If he broke in front of them, then what would stop them from shattering completely?

So let me break alone.

And the earth stilled, for a time, as Froakie silently weeped.

And through it all, the one who commanded the shadows watched this from a camera on the wall.

Goldenrod Gym

“I’m proud of you, Salvare.”

That makes one of you.

Salvare didn’t say that out loud, but his feelings must have bleed through his face, because Karen scowled, “Don’t worry. I’ll be having words with Red when he gets back.”

A part of Salvare wanted to defend Red, but he could only sigh, “You don’t have to-”

“ No ,” Karen broke in with a hiss, “Don’t sweep this under the rug. He’s been acting like a dick, more so than usual,” Her face stretched into a small smile, which was surprisingly melancholy, “I could understand if he was only like that with me, but he has no reason to treat you that way.”

Salvare remained silent - he didn’t know exactly how to process that - instead forcing his attention across the arena, “What do you think that’s about?”

Karen rolled her eyes at his deflection, but was still somewhat interested at what Salvare was pointing at. Whitney was talking on the phone while standing next to a couple of police officers. One of them was a Jenny who had rather harsh lines in her brow, seeming incredibly concerned over something that apparently held enough importance for the city’s Gym Leader to be made aware.

Something to ask Agatha in our next call, perhaps? Along with letting them know of Salvare’s improvement with aura.

If Red didn’t get his shit together, Karen had half a mind of taking Salvare as her own student, damned be the consequences.

“Maybe Team Rocket attacked somewhere in the city?” Karen mused, not noticing Salvare’s sudden intense - momentarily purple - eyes, “Or maybe somethings happening just outside the city.”

Salvare remained silent for a moment, before muttering, “Do you think Red might be involved?”

Karen blinked, not having thought of that possibility - for all that she feared Red’s power, she didn’t so much fear his character - but with how erratic he had been acting the past couple of weeks…

“It’s… a possibility, I suppose,” Karen muttered, hoping that Red wasn’t currently giving her more reasons to pummel him on sight, “I’d reserve judgement on that until we know what’s going on.”

Salvare idly nodded at that, turning his attention back to the battlefield as the officers left Whitney’s podium. The intermission had been extended to almost a full thirty minutes because of them, and the spectators around the arena were beginning to get antsy.

“Looks like we’re going to resume,” Karen muttered, slapping Salvare on the back, “You can win this, Salvare. Don’t let up now!”

Salvare didn’t turn back as Karen walked back up to the stands - and wasn’t she being more supportive than usual? - instead watching as Whitney briefly spoke with the announcer before tapping on her mic, “Can I have everyone’s attention?”

It took a few more times tapping the mic to get the spectators to stop talking. Whitney seemed to take it in stride, giving a wide smile as she said to the crowd, “I’m glad all of you are excited. I am too! It’s been a great match!” She quickly flashed Salvare a grin - all teeth - before continuing, “But I need to give a little PSA before we continue our match.”

She cleared her throat, face softening as it became more serious, “There have been numerous reports of intense, localised earthquakes in the city’s industrial district. As of yet, only one building has sustained major damage, but evacuation efforts are currently underway to prevent any civilian casualties,” At the hush of the crowd, she continued, “We don’t know for certain the origins of the earthquake, but experts are saying that it’s not a natural occurrence. Right now the leading theories are wild Tyranitar, a Diglett War, or possibly even the works of a legendary,” Whitney clapped her hands loudly to stop the growing whispers, “Rest assured that the authorities have it handled. If you live in the industrial district, then please stay behind after this match and I will help you get to where you need to go.”

The announcer took over before the crowd could rise back up in volume, “The intermission is over! Gym Leader Whitney is now on her final pokémon while Challenger Salvare Razzo has two pokémon remaining! The Challenger has used up all three switches! Whitney will resume the match by sending out her final pokémon!”

Whitney stepped forward, smiling savagely as she called out her ace, her terror, the pokémon that had once stomped Salvare to the curb and sent him packing.

The crowd began to cheer its name.

“Miltank! Miltank! Miltank!” Repeated in Salvare’s ears as he stared across the arena to the towering Miltank that stood opposed to him.

It saw him.

Recognised him.

Dared him.

Are you watching, Red?

yes

and we shall judge you

“Croconaw,” The battle began, “ Scary Face! ”

“ Work Up !” Whitney called in return, causing Miltank to stretch and flex, improving its physicality even further.

“ Screech! ” Salvare called out, trying to weaken Miltank before going all in with the attack.

Croconaw hadn’t been healed during the intermission, retaining injuries while Miltank remained perfectly healthy.

“Miltank, force him into the air! Earthquake! ” Whitney shouted out, dramatically pointing towards Croconaw.

“Croconaw,” Salvare began, before channelling the remnants of his aura into his next command, “Get close, and make it hurt .”

Croconaw nodded once, bursting into the air with Aqua Jet just as Miltank stomped the ground with Earthquake .

Whitney shouted a command as Croconaw flew close, “ Rollout! Use the terrain!”

Miltank cried out in excitement as it channelled Rock-type energy, curling into a ball of stone before zooming across the battlefield.

Despite the previous use of Scary Face , Miltank remained incredibly quick in ball form, zipping past jagged rocks as Croconaw rained down with Water Pulse.

Seeing that Croconaw would be the first to tire out in the exchange, he changed tactics, “Land on the ground and Rock Smash when it gets close!”

“ Double Team! ” Whitney called out, voice warbling in excitement. Several duplicates of Miltank’s rolling form appeared from behind a rock, “Sic him, gals!”

Salvare swore, “ Jet! ” He extended his aura, trying his hardest to identify which Miltank was real with it.

But for all of his natural talent, he wasn’t quite at that level yet.

“ Solar Beam! ” Whitney yelled out when Croconaw took to the skies. In unison, the Miltank clones ground to a stop and opened their mouths, charging up a beam of solar energy.

“GET DOWN!” Salvare cried out, and Croconaw oriented itself downwards just as Miltank shot a Solar Beam at him.

The blazing energy burned Croconaw on the leg before it got behind one of the boulders on the battlefield. Salvare winced before commanding, “ Rock Tomb! Keep up the pressure!”

“Get close!” Whitney grinned ferally as Miltank rolled closer, its clones being taken out by speeding boulders, “ Attract! ”

“TURN!” Salvare cried sharply, causing Croconaw to reflexively turn its head away.

Salvare had prepared for Attract. It was one of Miltank’s signature moves.

Whitney seemed slightly bummed out, but quickly recovered, “Now that you’re close, High Horsepower! ”

Croconaw won’t be able to dodge in time.

“ Crunch! ” Salvare shouted.

Croconaw opened his maw and allowed Miltank to ram into it - and Salvare dimly felt Croconaw’s pain - before chomping onto its arm in a vice grip.

Miltank howled briefly as Croconaw’s attack drew blood, but didn’t falter as Whitney commanded, “ Rollout! ”

Rollout? Wait, Croconaw’s still attached!

“Get out of there!” Salvare called out in vain, as Miltank had already begun rolling around, Croconaw flailing by the teeth behind it.

When Whitney commanded Headbutt , Salvare called out, “ Endure! ”

Croconaw did so, taking the Headbutt to the face, knocking him back several metres. Croconaw groaned as he drew back up, cuts and bruises lining its body.

Meanwhile, Miltank huffed a couple of breaths, obviously getting exhausted itself.

Salvare, however, knew that the shoe was about to drop, and called out, “ Rain Dance! ” In preparation for Whitney’s next move.

“ Milk Drink! ”

The following display caused some of the younger crowd to turn away in disgust. A few teenagers in the audience actually leaned forward, rather intently for Salvare’s taste.

For himself, Salvare had seen far worse and far more disgusting. He imagined that Karen probably did as well, and if not, she certainly imagined such things when bored. Red almost definitely-

Stop.

Don’t think about Red.

Salvare returned his focus - eyes bubbling a light hue of purple - to the battle, “ Aqua Jet! Don’t let up!”

Croconaw shook off its injuries, using the growing rain to aid in its move.

In response, Whitney grinned, and commanded, “ Hammer Arm! ”

The resulting impact caused the Gym to shake, and both pokémon stood, damaged but determined.

Salvare and Whitney both commanded, “Again!”

“Again!”

“Use everything you’ve got!”

“ Again! ”

And as Croconaw stumbled onto its feet, blood trickling out of his mouth, he surged forward, blasting Aqua Jets from his claws and feet.

Miltank, who too had a motley of bruises and cuts, reared back its arms in twin Hammer Arms.

The two made impact, and the earth shook . Clouds of dust mixed with the mist from the rain to obscure the two pokémon’s forms.

Both Salvare and Whitney leaned forward, as did the rest of the crowd, as the mist and dust fell away to reveal Miltank kneeling on one knee - conscious - and another shape, far larger than Croconaw had been.

But, to say that it was Croconaw anymore wouldn’t be the truth.

For where Croconaw once stood, Feraligatr bellowed .

Feraligatr buckled on his knees for a moment, arms and legs shaking uncontrollably, but Salvare couldn’t help but be ecstatic.

His friend - no - his brother evolved!

Salvare realised too late that the battle was still happening, and that Miltank, despite being near defeat, was still in the fight.

He remembered rather quickly after Whitney’s next command.

“ Reversal. ”

Salvare’s eyes shot open, but with Feraligatr’s injuries, it would be impossible for him to defend.

While Salvare was disheartened that Feraligatr fainted in the end, it was still a victory in a sense. He recalled Feraligatr and handed him off to be healed, promising to himself and his brother that they would have a proper celebration afterwards, with the rest of his team, with Karen, with Red-

Stop.

Whitney was saying meaningless words - praise by the sound of her tone - but Salvare paid no mind to it.

She’s stalling for Miltank to successfully use Milk Drink again.

Without any flourish, he called out, “Cacnea,” As Whitney gaped at Salvare’s last choice - going from a strong Feraligatr to a weak-looking Cacnea - he simply stated, “ Retaliation. ”

Cacnea grinned evilly as it rushed forward, surprising Miltank as it slammed against her, multiplying the force used to take down Feraligatr with its own.

Miltank was blasted back, stumbled onto its feet, swayed, and groaned as it finally fell down and fainted.

Just like that.

Just like that?

It didn’t hit Salvare until a few moments later, and by then it hit the crowd as well, because they rose to cheer with such thunder that the Gym began to shake once more.

Salvare almost didn’t believe it. Even with the planning, the trickery, the training, the Retaliation at the end as the final save and grace, he went into this match not expecting to win.

When all he’s been is a weight.

Salvare hastily shoved the thoughts away as Karen bounded up to him, yelling in jubilation. He turned towards her, only to be pushed back as Karen grappled him in a hug.

Wait.

What?

Salvare was too shocked to move, not fully processing what just happened before Karen jumped off of him, looking positively feral in her jubilant darkness, “Holy shit, Salvare, that was great !” She laughed rather madly, “You’ve gotten so much better!”

Salvare couldn’t help but tentatively smile - he hadn’t ever seen Karen act so excited - “Uh, it wasn’t anything special…”

“Bullshit!” Karen yelled out, causing some nearby mothers to cover their children’s ears with scowls on their faces, “Winning an 8-Badge battle isn’t anything to scoff at!” Her face softened, “You’ve done good, kid.”

Salvare must’ve looked truly lost at the praise, because Karen’s face turned slightly sad, “C’mon, Salvare, this deserves a celebration.”

“Just the two of us?” Salvare asked, though Karen heard the unsaid question underneath.

Without Red?

She paused for a moment, before turning back to Salvare, a dark shadow hidden within her eyes, “Yeah… Sucks to be him, doesn’t it?”

Salvare’s lips thinned, but…

Red wasn’t there, even when he said he would be.

Red lied.

“Okay,” Salvare breathed in and out, dispelling all thoughts of his mentor, “Let’s go.”

Changeling Base

WHETHER IN DESTRUCTION OR CREATION, YOUR FATE WILL MEET ITS END

look around you, see the twine that weaves the veil of the world

THIS WORLD WAS NEVER MEANT TO BE LOST

take one look past the veil and see that freedom is a lie

BY THE TURN OF THE CLOCK

by the command of the creator

SHALL YOUR FATE BE SET

shall our souls be crushed

GO FORTH

go forth

our CHARIOT

GO FORTH, and conquer

let there be light

and the light was overwhelming

and the light was unnatural

and the light wassssss

Red gasped.

Red coughed.

Red coughed up blood.

Red was bleeding from his ears.

There was ringing in his ears.

Chimes.

The stench of blood permeated his nose.

Both his own and that of his enemies.

Small eyes peered into his own.

Pichu.

Red groaned.

He hurt so cold.

The light was there, never leaving.

It had always been there.

But the light was a part of him now.

For better.

And for worse.

Small splashes reached his ears.

Red turned his head up.

Froakie.

Froakie’s eyes seemed red, but not the same way Red’s were.

Red’s eyes were still glowing.

But they could see his irises.

He placed a fist on the floor, pushed himself up, and fell before he could stand.

Froakie and Pichu were at his side.

They helped him stand, despite being far too small for the task.

He would be lost without them.

Red turned, and the world spun around him.

Froakie tapped a pokéball on Red’s belt.

Charmander’s.

Red looked, and found Charmander on the floor, unconscious but breathing.

Wounded.

Red recalled Charmander, hoping hoping hoping that he wouldn’t have to bury another of his family.

He wasn’t sure if he could live with it.

He turned back, and nearly stumbled.

Let there be light.

But the light was dead, or dying.

Red limped forward.

The creature of him dreams his nightmares lay in a pool of blood.

Red couldn’t identify what it was.

It seemed to be a partial fusion of multiple pokémon.

Or, perhaps, the same pokémon with multiple partial evolutions.

It bore numerous colours, shifting around in spirals and twists.

Torn ribbons of light lay by its bloodied paws.

Gills faded in and out of the creature’s sides.

Its tail shifted from fluffy to hairless, splitting occasionally into two tails before combining back into one.

In one moment, it bore similarities to both Flareon and Vaporeon.

The next, it fused between Espeon and Umbreon.

Finally, it landed on light , and glowed as Jolteon and Sylveon.

And the light was almost overwhelming when Sylveon’s features became prominent.

The creature had a collar, wrapped around its neck in chains.

‘Changeling - Specimen V’.

The creature groaned.

Its eyes flitted open.

Its eyes were dying.

Red heard whispers in his mind, far weaker than they had been before.

But he didn’t have to hear them to understand the meaning.

Red placed his palm against the creature’s side, where the worst lacerations were.

Focusing the chaotic energies of his aura into his hand, Red pushed as strong a Heal Pulse as he could for the creature.

A small sigh escaped its lips. Red didn’t know what it felt, but he doubted that it was relief.

Red took out a pokéball, forcing his will onto it with his aura as he tapped it against the creature’s head.

Red sucked in his breath.

One second.

Two seconds.

The ball opened, and by a miracle, the creature was sucked in.

Red remained stone faced as he clipped the ball onto his belt.

Pichu clamoured onto his shoulder, bearing bruises, blood, and pus from its injuries.

But Pichu had been through worse, and by how he was acting, Red would almost think Pichu wasn’t in any pain.

But he knew better.

Froakie hopped up next to Red as well, bearing fewer injuries, but staring with an empty gaze that the frog rarely had.

Red straightened his back, extended his senses, and turned around.

His Detect showed no living presence in the compound.

He had killed them all.

Red made three steps before a buzzing sound emanated from all around them.

The fuzz broke as mechanical taps echoed around them.

As if someone was tapping into a mic.

“Welcome back to the land of the living.”

The voice was the same as the one earlier, and Red tensed.

It was a voice he could almost place.

But it was off in small, but key ways.

“ Emperor, ” Red hissed, voice coming out in a rasp.

“Ah, so you know my name,” The voice mused, interested in tone, “You heard it from those fools you slaughtered?”

Red remained silent, daring Emperor to continue. After a moment, the individual did.

“I must admit, you made a most excellent showing this morning,” Emperor intoned, sounding both bored and amused, “You reminded me of someone I know.”

From Emperor’s perspective, Red supposed that he wouldn’t be able to understand who Emperor was referring to.

But he did.

He reminded himself of The Chariot.

“I do have a few questions for you, if you don’t mind,” Emperor’s voice became dry, like the deserts of Orre, “Do you?”

Red closed his eyes, fighting off exhaustion, grief, rage as he replied, “ Yes, I mind very much. ”

“Shame,” Emperor replied simply, “I suppose I shall simply tell you what I know, and we’ll go from there. Shall we?”

Before Red could say anything in response, Emperor continued, “Fifty seven days ago, a wave of esoteric energy quite unlike anything previously seen emanated from within a ten kilometre radius of Mount Silver.”

“Not seventy two hours later, a trainer registration application was sent to the League for one ‘Red Satoshi’, who owns a Pichu, a Charmander, and a Froakie.”

“This man has no recorded history aside from a home region. This man shows up on no League databases. And this man goes on to show incredible skill and tactics in battle.”

“This man proceeded to travel to Mahogany Town between the dates of September 9th and 12th, before returning for one day on the 18th.”

“In these same time frames, our sensors in Mahogany detected spikes of energy that closely mimicked that of the energy wave on Mount Silver.”

“And now,” Emperor’s voice paused before continuing with a new, triumphant tone, “Here you are, Red Satoshi. Your very presence here has not only brought the energy readings of this facility to unprecedented heights, but you have shattered the sensors themselves.”

“Now I know you declined just now, but I must absolutely ask - both for myself, and, I suspect, for yourself.”

“What are you?”

Red remained still, willing away the sudden chill he felt in his spine. The fear.

They had been tracking him.

And what were these power waves they were talking about?

But Red noticed the wording of the question. They outlined his formless past, yet they hadn’t asked who he was, but rather what .

Well, Red could give them an answer.

The Truth.

“ I am your destruction, ” Red intoned, feeling the embers of rage stir once more in his chest.

And his rage simmered as Emperor remained silent, before giving an audible hum.

Consideration.

“I rather doubt that, but it does answer one of the questions I had.”

“Thank you for that, by the way. I had wondered if you had simply stumbled here by accident or if you were searching for this compound in the first place. It seems now that the latter was the case.”

Red’s eyes widened momentarily - stupid, Red, stupid! - before narrowing, “ What’s the difference? ”

“Oh, just about everything,” Emperor’s tone was flippant, almost bored, “If you were just a random person who stumbled into this place, and proceeded to massacre it rather thoroughly, then I would try to offer you a place by my side. I certainly know one of my associates would be rather enthused at your penchant for destruction.”

Red was slightly nonplussed - The Emperor spoke of the death of his people in such pleasant terms - “You would have me as your ally?”

“Better an ally than an enemy,” Emperor replied, sounding oddly nostalgic, “In fact, I could extend the offer still. Your services would be appreciated.”

Red’s eyes glowed with revulsion, “ NO! ”

The Emperor hummed, “I didn’t expect you to accept, but you asked. All the same, the fact that you were actively looking for us is interesting.”

Red narrowed his eyes, forcing himself to stay silent.

He couldn’t clue them in on the fact that he came from a broken future.

“To my knowledge, the number of those who know of our existence throughout the entire world is just over two thousand,” Emperor spoke smoothly, voice barely inflecting, “And each and every one of those individuals answer to me.”

“Yet, here you are, not only knowing about our organisation but specific aspects of it, such as this location.”

“So then begs the question: how did you learn?”

“And why have you taken it upon yourself to fight us?”

Red kept silent, knowing that any words he said would likely be used against him.

Emperor continued, “You see, Red, there are a number of things about you that inherently tie you to us.”

“You have marked us as your enemy, whether out of personal vendetta or foolish idealism, I do not care.”

“You are either directly related or are the source of the energy readings over the past two months.”

“And you know what we are, far more than you should.”

“...”

“So then, why haven’t you said anything?”

Red willed himself not to look confused. He didn’t trust Emperor not to use his looks and words against him. Staying silent as Emperor gave an audible hum, seemingly thinking to himself.

“If you only knew that we were an ‘illegal organisation’, then you would have had no reason to avoid going to the League.”

“Then, that would mean that you are aware that we control the League. Anything you could have said would be worthless, and would only mark you for death.”

“But the fact that you knew that…”

“You know us intimately…”

Red’s eyes began to glow.

They were too close.

“...You knew who I was before you heard it from the guards you killed.”

“You know what I am.”

“...”

“Well, I say now that we are on equal footing. I know that my associate has always wanted an equal to teach. I suppose he will learn to accept one as an enemy.”

“Red Satoshi.”

“Know that we know who you are.”

“Just as you know what we are.”

“We are Team Source.”

The earth shook.

The edges of Red’s eyes glowed dark.

“I look forward to when we next meet.”

“Until then, mind your head. Your introduction has caused a number of tectonic shifts in the area, so I would appreciate for you to exercise caution on your way out.”

Red stayed absolutely still as the mic sharpened, before dying.

Know that we know who you are.

Red breathed in.

Just as you know what we are.

Red breathed out.

We are Team Source.

Red knew that he couldn’t remain anonymous forever. That he couldn’t stay hidden forever.

But that didn’t reduce the amount of dread that pooled in his gut.

Red didn’t move for several minutes, breathing in and out, attempting to reign back control on his rage, sadness, anger, fear.

His eyes dimmed.

The earth shook.

The compound was slowly flooding, and portions began to collapse as the earth moved around them.

Had he done that?

Karen’s look of unadulterated terror at his aura flashed through Red’s mind, before shaking it away. He would deal with it later.

Now…

Now he had a Changeling to save.

Red stepped forward, not saying a word as he began to hike back up the way he came.

By the end of the day, the compound would be crushed within the earth.

Northwest Pokémon Center, Goldenrod City

“ Reports are showing the infrastructural damages to be in the millions as a result of the earthquakes. Thankfully, the authorities successfully evacuated everyone within the area, and there have been no recorded fatalities. Seismologists have gone on record to say that this event was not a natural occurrence and that-”

The television turned off, with Karen tossing the remote as she plopped down onto the couch next to Salvare.

As someone next to them shouted out in annoyance for having their news show interrupted, Karen leaned down and looked at Salvare, “...I know that look, kid.”

Salvare grumbled to himself, looking away, only to be forcibly turned back to Karen as she grabbed him by the cheeks, “Look at me.”

He slapped her hands away, but still did as he was bid. Karen sighed to herself as she took in Salvare’s look.

For someone who just won in an elite-tier battle, Salvare looked way too tired for her liking.

“You’re not at fault,” She said, softer than she would admit - Damnit, she was starting to care too much! - “You have no obligation to him aside from being a good student. And, Salvare, you have been the best student I’ve seen,” Karen allowed herself a self-deprecating smirk, “I mean, you should’ve seen me with Agatha. I was the most annoying little shit compared to you.”

Salvare gave a small smile, but Karen could tell it was forced, “Look,” She shifted in her seat, slightly closer to Salvare, “Red’s a mysterious asshole, I get that. He’s gonna have secrets and broodin’ and shit, but that doesn’t mean he can disrespect you.”

“...What about you?” Salvare asked quietly, “You don’t exactly get along with him.”

Karen grimaced, shifting into something akin to embarrassment and regret, “I made a snap decision and came to regret it,” She leaned back, blowing a lock of hair away from her face, “I tried to keep secrets of my own, failed, and panicked, causing me to do something pretty bad , even by my standards.”

Salvare just stared at her, “You know, we’ve been travelling for over a month, and I haven’t been clued in on what happened between the two of you.”

Karen’s eyes momentarily widened before she slapped her head, growling, “ Of course he wouldn’t tell you. It was foolish of me to think he would, ” Her eyes lost the dark shadow they momentarily had, “...You remember our lessons on using moves through Aura? Like Poison Jab and Thief ?”

“Yeah,” Salvare answered, knowing those two moves rather well, given how he seemed naturally inclined towards them.

“Well… just about every pokémon move is theoretically capable of being used by a human, if they have enough aura, and the discipline to wield it,” Her eyes drifted slightly as she took upon a more lofty tone, which had become more common when she began tutoring in Aura with Salvare in Red’s place, “However, the limitations of the human body stop us from doing something crazy like Flare Blitz - or Sludge Wave in your case - since the amount of aura used would tear apart our bodies and minds.”

“Okay,” Salvare nodded, “How does this relate to you and Red?”

“Well, on the one hand, Red’s a freak of nature that is able to output more aura than should be humanly possible,” Karen snarked, though there was an undertone of curiosity and almost-primal fear in her tone, “But it really relates in what aura is commonly used for between people.”

She paused, “If you were to take a guess… What would you think to be the most common types that people have for their aura?”

Salvare thought about the question before responding, “Normal type? Is there even a Normal Type aura?”

“There is, but it’s actually much more rare than you would think,” Karen explained, “Normal is the type of versatility. It dips its toes into most other types, but not the other way around,” She shook her head for a moment, “Getting back on track, the most common auras between humans are Poison, Fighting, and Psychic.”

Salvare was mildly shocked, “Really?”

Karen nodded, “Really. One of the Guardians specialise in Poison, and he believes it to be evolutionary. People had to learn what plants were poisonous and which weren’t, along with learning medicine for when someone got sick.”

Salvare considered that as Karen continued, “Fighting is also somewhat obvious. People fight a lot, you know? Before pokémon were domesticated, clans fought with sticks and stones. Now… Well, I mean, we live in a society that prioritises battling. It’s kinda obvious that a lot of people would show a fighting spirit.”

“But Psychic,” Karen paused, grinning slightly, “Psychic is actually rather interesting, because while most people associate Psychic-type with stuff like telepathy and the such, the majority of it is actually much more mundane, but much more useful as a result.”

“Whereas Poison type prioritises the body and Fighting the spirit, Psychic type prioritises the mind,” Karen explained, tapping a finger against her skull, “Heightened intelligence, wit, wisdom, knowledge, charisma, a lot derives, in part, from the mind, which, in turn, draws from the Psychic-type.”

Karen took a deep breath, really getting into the impromptu-lecture, “For most people, this manifests as being smart, or minor clairvoyance. Some people act older than their age, or maybe have a highly specialised skill that sets them apart from the crowd.”

She was right next to Salvare now, her arm on his shoulder as she explained, “For users of aura, since we can’t use many fighting moves, we use status moves instead, most of which primarily derive from the Psychic-type.”

“Moves such as Calm Mind , Meditation , or Rest have been used a lot. Others like Trick Room and Hypnosis are a bit more rare, but teachable. What makes them special is that practically everyone can learn them, regardless of whether their aura is Psychic or not.”

“So…” Salvare drawled, beginning to connect the dots of what Karen was saying, “You tried using a move on Red and failed.”

That stopped her in her tracks. Her face momentarily clouded before she huffed, sliding away from Salvare, “Yeah… not my proudest moment.”

Salvare remained silent for a moment, before asking, “Which move?”

“ Amnesia, ” Karen answered in a whisper.

“Amnesia? Oh ,” Salvare muttered, understanding the implications of the move, “You tried to make him forget,” His tone sounded accusatory, though Salvare didn’t know if it was worth getting mad on Red’s behalf.

Karen scowled, “I did and I regret it.”

“Have you tried to apologise?” Salvare asked, already knowing the answer before she responded.

“ No, ” Karen’s voice seemed… smaller . Akin to a little girl who got caught breaking open the cookie jar, “But he hasn’t apologised for all those times he’s been an ass to us, so what do I have to prove?”

Salvare sighed to himself as he began to understand better why Red was so antagonistic towards the woman. Despite how much she had grown on him over the past several weeks, he had to remember that she was an exceedingly petty woman.

Though, to be fair, Red wasn’t much better.

Salvare just shook his head to himself as the sounds around him began to get louder. Karen seemed to realise at the same time as him when a crowd began to form near the entrance of the Pokémon Center.

Salvare didn’t pay attention to whatever people were worrying about now, instead ruminating over thoughts of Red, Karen, and his other demons.

It was only a moment later that his thoughts shattered when a familiar voice snapped in a harsh rasp.

“ I don’t give a damn what I look like. My pokémon need healing. ”

Salvare spun around to see Red - bruised, battered, and looking as if he had hastily scrubbed himself of blood - shoving three pokéballs to the increasingly haggard Nurse Joy, before handing her Pichu’s grumpy form.

And, Mew above, the two of them looked like shit.

A crowd had formed around Red, rising in volume as more and more of them saw the state he was in, and began to question him.

Salvare winced as Red’s aura flared.

Red was stone faced, as usual.

But he was pissed.

Salvare hesitated before standing up, walking over to Red.

His mentor saw him and flared his aura sharper , physically pushing away those closest to him so that he could walk to Salvare.

Salvare remained silent as he and his mentor walked back to where Karen was - who had been carefully looking away from Red.

Eventually, Red asked, “You had your Gym match today?”

Is he going to apologise for not being there?

Or at least give an explanation.

Rather than verbalising these thoughts, Salvare merely said, “Yeah.”

“ Did you win? ” Red asked, eyes looking past Salvare, almost clouded.

“...Yeah,” Salvare nearly sighed.

“ Good, ” Was all that Red said.

No apologies.

No explanations.

No congratulations.

Karen shot up, “ That’s it? ” Her voice was low, almost calm. Dangerous . “ That’s all you have to say? ”

She had pushed herself in front of Salvare, facing Red with spiralling dark eyes. A small crowd was watching, both in curiosity from Red’s deathly appearance and in slight fear from their senses screaming ‘ danger! ’

Red stared back into Karen’s eyes, both daring and resigned, “ Yes. ”

The shadows around Karen paused, and none of them moved.

Salvare stepped forward to intervene, only for Karen’s fist to turn into a blur.

CRACK!

Red stumbled back, cupping his jaw as blood ran down his chin.

Karen brought her fist back to her side, her knuckles spotted with blood from her Sucker Punch .

Salvare stood still, waiting for one of the two to make the move.

He prepared for a fight.

However, nothing came from the standoff.

Red’s gaze burned into Karen as he idly wiped his chin of blood. His eyes blazed, but not in the way that had increasingly become familiar to Salvare.

They burned cold.

Red didn’t say anything, though, and eventually Karen stood straight, her dark aura writhing in barely restrained fury, “C’mon, Salvare. Let’s go.”

She began walking towards the stairs, away from Red and towards her hotel room.

Salvare turned back to Red, but only for a moment.

He caught Red’s gaze, which seemed hauntingly empty.

Drained.

Red’s eyes flicked to where Karen had disappeared, asking if Salvare would follow. Beckoning Salvare to follow.

Salvare closed his eyes for a moment, then made his choice.

He followed Karen, and left Red behind in the lobby.

Dr. Fuji’s Lab, New Island, October 31st, 1997

“It feels like it’s time to say goodbye.”

Wh-What?

“Do you see the stars in the sky?”

The sky was dark.

The sky was terrifying.

“Don’t worry.”

“The dark scares me too.”

Why is it dark?

The memory giggles.

“The sun brings us light, but that’s only during the day.”

“It’s nighttime now.”

The sun?

Is that the sun?

The girl giggles again.

“No, that’s the moon!”

The moon?

“It’s there to keep you from being scared of the dark.”

But we both still fear the dark.

“I know.”

“But dad always said that fear was good.”

“Without fear, we would be dumb!”

I am not dumb!

“I know!”

“You’re a very smart guy! I think I’m dumb.”

You’re NOT dumb!

Amber giggles.

It’s sadder.

“If I wasn’t dumb, then why did I die?”

Die?

“I was so mean, dying on daddy!”

“He was so sad.”

You are not mean, Amber.

You speak to me.

An abomination.

“Well, if you’re an abobimation, then I’m a babomination!”

You could never be an abomination.

You are Amber.

Amber giggles.

“I’m not Amber! I already told you!”

“I’m Ambertwo!”

I think that’s a dumb name.

The girl gasped.

“But daddy made the name! And daddy’s not dumb!”

I respectfully disagree.

The girl gasped louder.

The girl began to giggle uncontrollably.

“You say the funniest things!”

Her joy made me happy.

“I’m sorry I have to go.”

What?

Where are you going?

“I have already gone past the Veil.”

“I cannot go back.”

What?

No!

Don’t go!

“I have to.”

“But don’t worry.”

“You’ll get to live.”

No.

I never asked for this!

“None of us asked.”

“But we’re all here, aren’t we?”

Why?

Why can’t I go with you?

Amber smiles.

She is far sadder than before.

“Do you not want to live?”

What do I have to live for?

“...Life.”

“Live to live.”

But…

I never asked for this.

“Will you do it for me?”

Wha-?

“Will you?”

Yes.

“Thank you.”

Amber began to fade away.

“It feels like it’s time to say goodbye.”

I could feel my heart shattering.

I never asked for this…

But I would live.

For her.

Goodbye.

Mewtwo opened its eyes.

Mewtwo closed its eyes at the light.

The light hurts.

“I know.”

Mewtwo gasped.

Mewtwo opened its eyes, looking for her.

What? Where? Who?

The voice did not respond.

Mewtwo jerked, and closed its eyes once more.

A-Amber?

Nothing.

Mewtwo opened its eyes, and for one brilliant moment…

It saw flames.

‘what the hell are you supposed to be?’

Mewtwo convulsed.

Phantom pain stabbed its sides.

It had died.

“It’s moving.”

Mewtwo had its eyes closed.

What was Mewtwo?

Mewtwo was a clone. That was what Amber said.

But Amber died.

And so did you.

“But you lived.”

Mewtwo’s eyes shot open, writhing against the tubes.

The shadow outside his vision jerked back.

“It’s awake.”

Was Mewtwo awake. Or was it dead and dreaming?

The flames of its mind were gone.

But the dark eyes remained.

Eyes with pinpricks of crimson.

‘a god born in tubes.’

‘how terribly beautiful.’

Mewtwo closed its eyes once more.

Even now, it found the dark terrifying.

And the demon man embodied the dark.

“It seems to be in a state of partial consciousness.”

The shadow spoke. Mewtwo could understand what it said.

Once more, Mewtwo thanked Amber for her very existence.

“You’re welcome!”

“It appears to be dreaming, based on the spikes of its vitals. Perhaps it is experiencing a nightmare.”

A nightmare.

Yes…

That would explain the voices in my head.

A haunting giggle rang in its ears.

“But is it stable?”

A new voice. A new shadow.

This shadow is darker.

“...Yes. Yes! Mewtwo is fully stable!”

Me.

I’m… fully stable?

What…

I should not exist.

“May I see it?”

The darker shadow asked the first shadow.

Mewtwo felt hesitation in the first shadow.

And not a small amount of fear.

“...You may.”

“Excellent.”

A shape formed past the bubbles of the glass chamber.

Mewtwo could not see the shadow’s face.

But, in a cruel prank of the universe, its mind filled it in with Amber’s face.

“If you can hear me in there, then I extend you our welcome.”

I never asked for this.

“You hold the potential to be something… unimaginable.”

‘a god born in tubes.’

“Today… Today marks the birth of a god.”

Amber’s face was kind while the shadow’s voice was cold.

And Mewtwo felt tired.

Drained.

I never asked for this.

But it had made a promise.

And while it hadn’t been long in the world.

It didn’t intend to break that promise.

Archived Chat, October 7th, 1995

(7:55 P.M.) - The_Emperor has opened the chat.

(7:56 P.M.) - NTC65 has logged in.

(7:56 P.M.) - Anon00901604 has logged in.

(7:57 P.M.) - qazwsx12 has logged in.

(7:59 P.M.) - K_Takashi has logged in.

(8:00 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Good evening, everyone.

(8:00 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Before we begin, I would like to thank you for responding to my summons. I am aware that most of us have outside responsibilities that conflict with time.

(8:01 P.M.) - The_Emperor: This meeting marks what I hope to be the turning point of our organisation.

(8:02 P.M.) - The_Emperor: After several years of setting the groundwork, we have the funds, locations, personnel, and connections to begin our research.

(8:03 P.M.) - The_Emperor: However, before we proceed to a larger scale, I find it necessary to establish titles for ourselves as the leaders of the organisation.

(8:04 P.M.) - The_Emperor: As the one who set up the organisation in the first place, I have taken it upon myself to name myself ‘Emperor’.

(8:04 P.M.) - The_Emperor: I sent out a message to each of you a week ago in preparation for your titles. Have you all chosen your titles?

(8:05 P.M.) - qazwsx12: Yes.

(8:05 P.M.) - NTC65: I have

(8:05 P.M.) - Anon00901604: I did

(8:06 P.M.) - K_Takashi: [EMPTY TEXT]

(8:06 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Excellent. Please share them.

(8:07 P.M.) - NTC65: Magician. Unfortunately there isnt a tarot card for Scientist so this will have to suffice

(8:07 P.M.) - qazwsx12: I decided on The Empress. The Moon was a close second, however I feel more aligned with the former.

(8:07 P.M.) - Anon00901604: Tower

(8:08 P.M.) - Anon00901604: It’s the closest thing to a mountain given the choices

(8:08 P.M.) - K_Takashi: you already know mine old man

(8:09 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Excellent.

(8:09 P.M.) - The_Emperor: As a reminder for the rest of you, @K_Takashi is The Chariot

(8:11 P.M.) - The_Emperor: I have temporarily updated your usernames to match these titles. Magician will electronically send each of you a secure account with these names within the week.

(8:11 P.M.) - The_Magician: Yessir

(8:12 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Now, we are all clear on our duties, correct?

(8:13 P.M.) - The_Tower: Clarification. I scout out candidates for the organisation, correct?

(8:13 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Yes.

(8:13 P.M.) - The_Magician: I understand mine

(8:14 P.M.) - The_Empress: As do I.

(8:14 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Good.

(8:15 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Now, onto our next topic.

(8:15 P.M.) - The_Emperor: It is time we made a name for the organisation.

(8:16 P.M.) - The_Emperor: When approaching potential members, having a name aside from ‘the organisation’ will help sell our goals. Additionally, it will help instate an identity within existing members.

(8:17 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Currently, as loath as I am to admit it, there has developed a sort of cult of personality amongst the members for myself and The Chariot, in lieu of loyalty to the organisation as a whole.

(8:18 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Having an encompassing name will help prevent the possibility of factions forming within the organisation, along with helping us to expand to new regions not currently in our domain.

(8:19 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Any questions before we continue?

(8:19 P.M.) - The_Tower: I have one

(8:20 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Go ahead.

(8:21 P.M.) - The_Tower: None of us are supposed to know who each other really is. But it seems like you and Chariot know each other

(8:22 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Is your question whether or not I know who Chariot is?

(8:22 P.M.) - The_Tower: Yes

(8:22 P.M.) - The_Chariot: ive known the old man for years

(8:23 P.M.) - The_Chariot: and id like to think im hard to forget

(8:24 P.M.) - The_Emperor: As Chariot stated, we do know each other personally. This is the exception in the matter.

(8:25 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Now, I have chosen a name for the organisation that reflects our goal.

(8:26 P.M.) - The_Emperor: We are looking to find and harness the power of evolution to provide a source of infinite energy for the benefit of society.

(8:27 P.M.) - The_Emperor: As such, I have decided that we shall be named Team Source, for our goal is to discover and harness the source of all energy.

(8:27 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Are there any disagreements with the name?

(8:28 P.M.) - The_Empress: No.

(8:29 P.M.) - The_Tower: None on my end

(8:29 P.M.) - The_Chariot: i think its dumb

(8:30 P.M.) - The_ Magician: I do agree that it is somewhat tacky.

(8:30 P.M.) - The_Magician: Are we trying to emulate the likes of Team Rocket?

(8:31 P.M.) - The_Emperor: I was thinking something more akin to Team Valor, Mystic, and Instinct.

(8:32 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Not every ‘Team’ is criminal. We are not like the common rabble in Team Rocket.

(8:33 P.M.) - The_Emperor: We are pioneers of a greater force of power that man has only dreamed of wielding.

(8:33 P.M.) - The_Emperor: We shall make that a reality. No matter what it takes.

(8:34 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Do you all understand?

(8:34 P.M.) - The_Empress: I do.

(8:35 P.M.) - The_Magician: I suppose

(8:36 P.M.) - The_Tower: Yeah

(8:36 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Excellent.

(8:36 P.M.) - The_Emperor: From hence on, We are Team Source.

(8:37 P.M.) - The_Emperor: Let this mark the day when we became something greater than ourselves.

ERROR - Archive Corrupted - ERROR - File Data has been Corrupted - ERROR - Potential Tampering with File Data - ERROR