"I just have a hunch that he might be involved in Kidnapping me. Also, send me the details of Roy Falkner. I was kidnapped in his city. There is no way that he didn't know about it.", said Axel.
"I also thought about it but I did a little research on him. On the paper, I have not found anything unusual other than he started to drink too much after he lost against you. But only on paper. I have not done any deep research on him."
"Well, I feel that he had a hand in this somehow. He has a motive, so he is a suspect.", said Axel.
"Axel, if you can control your anger, can I give you very good advice?", asked Red.
"I am listening.", said Axel.
"I know that you have been through a lot and the only thing that you are thinking right now is revenge. I understand that. But Marcus said that the kidnappers had a pseudo-champion rank Pokemon.
If you want me Oak to intervene, then there would be no problem but knowing you for such a long time, I know that you want to deal with this by yourself.
What I am trying to say is that you are not strong enough to fight against them right now."
"What do you think that I should do then? Sit here and do nothing?", asked Axel.
"Yes, you need to calm your nerves, train harder than before and consolidate your power. You need to do that. Also, please go to that annual event and meet your friends."
"Red, I don't want others to pity me right now, and going there would make me feel uncomfortable."
"I know that but you need friends Axel. I made the same mistake as you and look at me right now. You cannot win this war alone. You need someone that you can trust, someone that would help you in the time of need."
"You and Blue are there for me.", said Axel.
"Yes, we are but we won't be here for eternity. You need other people too. Axel, you know that I am right. It is just that you are very stubborn. So, take my advice."
After that Red changed that topic and they started to talk about Ash and Gary. Both of them were one year old now. One of the only things that was keeping Axel in the right mental state was Aurther, his brother.
Aurther was also 1 year old but that didn't mean that he was still crying in his mother's lap. No, he had been able to properly stand and walk right now. He still could not speak properly but he could say some words like 'Mom' and 'Dad' which made the parents very happy.
It looked like Aurther had been a genius since birth. Axel spent all of his time playing with Aurther and then training with Agnes.
He was surprised to see Wartortle who had just evolved. He just didn't expect it to modify a move completely without his help and also max all of its stats.
Meanwhile, the 3 Magnemites were not so happy looking at their friend who had already evolved. All 3 of them had now decided that they would train harder than anyone else and then surpass Wartortle.
This sense of rivalry was good for the team.
Tring.. Tring.. Tring.. Tring...
Katchak!!
"Hello, sir. How are you right now?"
"I am good Hector. Thanks for asking.", said Axel.
"Sir, I wanted to come and meet you but I thought that you would love some privacy."
"I can understand that Hector. No harm done. But now you guys would have to come to my home by tomorrow.
Only call Krishna and Mia. We are going to an event.", said Axel.
"Alright, sir. I will do that."
Axel felt that he needed someone that he could completely trust in an event like this. This must be an over-correction due to his kidnapping as he just wanted to be safe.
"Guys, All of you come here.", said Axel calling all of his Pokemons.", said Axel.
All of these Pokemons came around to listen to him. It was rare for him to call off his Pokemon for a meeting.
"You guys know what I have been through and it would take some for me to be normal. But that doesn't mean that the training would stop. This made me realize that we are still very weak and very down in the food chain. So, we are going to an event after 4 days. After the event, all of us would train. I would revise the training plan for all of you.", said Axel.
Axel then started to tell his plan and what he wanted to do in the Johto region. Only 2 years were left before the start of the league battle of the Johto region and he was still very far away from reaching the standard. He must at least have a king-rank Pokemon or a tier 2 king-rank Pokemon eligible for the league battle.
If not then he would not be able to win the league battle. So, he would have to seriously focus on training his new Pokemons.
For the league battle, he would have to choose 6 Pokemons. Those Pokemons would be:
Lucario Togetic Aerodactyl Primeape Feraligatr Slowemperor
These were the 6 Pokemons that he had chosen. As per his estimate, Pokemons like Togetic, Aerodactyl, and Primeape should reach king-rank status. With Slowemperor already being a tier 3 king-rank Pokemon right now, Axel would not have to worry about the league battles as Slowemperor would already be a pseudo-champion rank Pokemon by that time.
###
"Brother, I also want to come.", pouted Agnes but Axel was hearing none of it.
There would a fierce competition in that event and not of a good kind. Axel believed that Agnes was not ready to go there right now. Hector, Mia and Krishna had already come 2 days ago and today was the day they were going to the event.
The event was held on an island and Steven's family was organizing it for some reason. Actually, this was just a get-together and there was no reason. Rich families often do these parties to have a good connection and this would also let the kids interact.
"Agnes, I promise that I will take you to the next one but not this one.", said Axel.
Axel did everything to convince her and finally, she agreed.
"Axel, I know that you have changed and you still have that built-in anger. If you want to let it out, then go for it. We are family for a reason but you have to be careful from now on.", said Noah with a serious expression.
"Don't worry uncle, I can handle it.", said Axel with a smile.
The plane was already ready and it would take them a day to reach that island.
"What was the name of that island again?", asked Axel to Hector.
"Umm... It is called Devstone Island.", replied Hector.
"What an unusual name.", sighed Axel.
This was the island of Steven's family. The head of the family was the father of Steven called Joseph stone. He was the chairman of the Devon corporation and they were very rich.
Now, Devon Corporation was not as big as in the games but it was still a very influential company. It dealt with a lot of things like Poke balls, potions, and antidotes.
Axel wanted to meet with the mastermind of this company. That would be quite an interesting conversation.
###
After 1 day,
"Damn, I always hate plane ride. When would light upgrade its teleportation ability.", sighed Axel as he stepped to the ground. Hector, Krishna, and Mia followed him.
He chose only 3 of them cause these 3 were the strongest in his mercenary team. Axel also wanted to introduce them to other popular players in this world. This would be as a marketing for his mercenary team too. They could also get some private missions which would be great for them.
They had finally arrived on the island. There were attendants who were giving them direction and it had been very helpful. All of them were escorted to the hotel and to their hotel rooms.
"Sir, there is a get-together after 2 hours. All of you are invited. So, please get ready and ask us about anything.", said the attendant and went her own way.
Axel was excited to meet with all the young trainers that were of his age. This get-together was between the people of Kanto, Sinnoh, and Hoenn region. So, he would be meeting people like Cynthia, Lance, Ryker, Lyra, and Wallace. These young trainers were the cream of the crop of this generation and they were very capable and powerful.
After an hour of resting and getting ready, Axel called Hector, Krishna, and Mia to his room for a small meeting.
"Guys, the agenda of this event is just a get-together, but I think there will be something more. I have never attended such events, so I want to ask if you have any idea." , said Axel.
Krishna was the one to talk first.
"I was lucky to attend such an event when I was in my previous team. At that time, they talked about business deals, comparing their kids with others and of course, there was a lot of competition and the winner got a nice prize too.
I am just worried that you will be challenged by these young trainers as you are very popular."
"That might also be the case. Well, if they want to challenge me then I am okay with it. The reason that I called all of you here is to promote our mercenary team. I am not expecting all of you to get a job right now from those powerful people. For now, at least we should let them know that we will be on the market soon enough.", said Axel.
###
In this event, Axel was actually representing the Venu family. He asked for Mark and other elders to come but all of them were busy and none of them were interested in this event. So, he had to go on their behalf.
The event was happening in the garden. The garden was very big and there were a lot of food stalls. All of them served a different variety of foods. Most of the foods were very unique and it was Axel's first time ever seeing those.
Jospeh Devon had spent a lot of money on this island. The island had one big hotel where they were staying. There were also multiple shops and entertainment facilities and the crazy thing was that this was a privately owned island. This meant that others could not come here.
There was also a very big battle stadium right in the middle of the island. The rest of the island was filled with forest and wildlife.
Mia was specifically committed to tasting all the delicacies in the food stall.
"Mia, that is impossible. You cannot taste all these foods. Your stomach will blast away.", commented Krishna but Mia was not going to listen.
Just as they were passing by Axel and the team met the Hoenn team.
Romero, Susan, Wallace, Garemond, and Steven. Axel had met with all of them before when they were fighting for an island. Of course, Axel and the team won.
"Look who it is. I didn't expect to meet you here, Axel.", said Susan.
Susan was from the Kip family (Mudkip) and it was one of the starter families of the Hoenn region. Susan was still angry about the loss. She had planned it all and even used a strong Pokemon like Altaria but she had lost the battle against Lance.
"Why can't I be here? I was invited.", said Axel.
Steven and Wallace were from different families and they were also somehow connected with the league. Both of them knew that a fight here would not send a good picture. So, they were ready to stop but Garemond added fuel to the fire.
"I heard that you got kidnapped. I never thought that a famous trainer like you would need a babysitter to protect him."
"Oh, you think that Axel is a baby huh?", came a loud voice behind Axel.
Axel looked around to find out that Hymer, Lyra, Lorelai, Lance, and Ryker were coming towards him.