Today is a little special.
Some time back, Steven had contacted me to inform that there were arrangements made between the Unova League and the Hoenn League. Considering the Plasma problem that Unova is currently facing and with the aftermath of Team Rocket's actions still fresh in everyone's minds, nobody wished for the Plasma problem to eventually evolve into the kind of disaster Team Rocket had brought upon Indigo's soil. As a result, Hoenn had offered to send assistance as a show of goodwill.
The Unova League had accepted the assistance offered by the Hoenn League. My responsibility is a unique one because not only am I Hoenn's representative in the interpol, I also am currently the only person representing my region in overseas affairs where the Hoenn League is involved. It's an inevitable outcome resulting from my status as an interpol agent and also from my background as a member of the Vera family.
I was told that the Hoenn League will send two Pillars over to Unova. However, Steven had very playfully refused to reveal just who he decided to send. In fact, he didn't give me much time to prepare. By the time I was told of this arrangement made between the Hoenn League and the Unova League it was when said assistance from the Hoenn League would arrive in two days' time. That also meant that this arrangement made between both regions would have been agreed upon much earlier before I was made known of it.
I really wonder who the Hoenn League would send. I had met each and every Pillar of my region before and I am on good terms with most of them. Heaven forbid if they sent Sidney over though, I could never know how to deal with that man.
That aside, it also seemed that the Unova League was preparing to conduct something on a massive scale and that the interpol were to cooperate and assist with their plans. The signs were all there if one were to make a proper observation. The Unova League had been making preparations to gather their best trainers and even Looker had told us that he had gotten additional reinforcements to temporarily assist the interpol. However, just like Steven, Looker is a man who loves to play sick jokes with us and has a sadistic streak a mile wide. To date, he still hasn't told us just who he had invited to join our ranks for this short period of time.
The day finally came. Looker had gathered the entire interpol and brought us to a secret military base owned by the Unova League for a secret meeting of the highest confidentiality level. And lo and behold, I was glad that I wasn't the only person in the room whose jaws dropped in shock when we spotted a certain annoying Hokage wannabe lazily waving at us from his seat in the room.
"Volkner? Why are you- You are the reinforcement Looker told us about?"
"Hey, why are you so surprised? Aren't you guys glad to see me?" Volkner dramatically replied in mock hurt with a hand over where his heart was supposed to be. He shifted his body slightly to reveal another person who was sitting beside him. Jasmine gave us a wave from where she's sitting beside Volkner and our jaws all dropped even further.
"Jasmine too?" Skye said in disbelief as we all excitedly crowded around the husband-wife pair in the meeting room because it's been so long since we last met. We were here early, and it didn't take long for all of us to break the ice and quickly fill each other in on what had happened in our lives since we went our separate ways after the incident at Indigo. Most of us had already been acquainted with each other when we were planning out our countermeasures for Team Rocket back at Volkner's West Forest and seeing each other again felt like meeting old friends after a long time. Jasmine was still in a coma when we left and we were all glad to see that she's awake and well.
However, she had relinquished her position as Gym Leader of Olivine not long after she woke up from her coma. Her decision to step down from her position was a combination of many factors, but the main reasons were the loss of six pokemon on her team and the war we experienced at Indigo. Gym Leader or not, the loss of six pokemon is a huge blow and dent on a trainer's strength and the firepower they could bring on the battlefield. It is not something that can be easily remedied because even for Gym Leaders, it takes an extensive amount of time and resources to train a new batch of pokemon into Pillar-level strength.
Nobody was surprised about Jasmine's decision to step down. Her position and responsibility had now been handed down to her then Assistant Gym Leader, Eusine, who's still learning the ropes in preparation for his official inauguration. From what we were told, he will officially take up the position in a month or two. Until then, Elite Four Bruno will take charge of the Olivine Gym to ensure that its daily operations run smoothly.
"A volcarona on the Champion level? I'd like to fight one of those some day," Volkner mused when we told him about that part of our Unova adventure. Volkner's raichu voiced its agreement with an excited squeak and were promptly greeted by stares of disbelief from Skye and I.
Right, only somebody like him would be eager to face that insane moth in a battle. Even Jayce would choose to keep a healthy distance from that volcarona if given the choice.
Speaking of which.
I gestured for Volkner to lower his head so that I could whisper into his ear without attracting the attention of anybody who was not part of us seven, which he did after raising his eyebrows at me but soon acquiesced to my request anyway. I gave him a very quick summary about my meeting with Jayce and our current working relationship.
"Really? So Batman was with you?"
"Batman?" Skye repeated incredulously. "That's the nickname you are giving him?"
"The hero we don't deserve but the hero we need, don't you guys think it's a fitting description of him?" Volkner asked back in return and Skye looked away with a scoff. She still held a grudge for Jayce, that I do not doubt, but it's already a very big improvement from before. It's obvious that something had happened between them back in the Relic Castle after we were separated by that onix. My guess was that Skye had learned that the masked operative that she had been working with was Jayce and whatever happened between them in that period of time would forever be a mystery. However, where she outright hated his guts before, now her attitude towards him was merely reluctance to be stuck together with him.
"So how long will you be stuck with us? Actually, how on earth did Looker convince you both to come over to help?" I cannot help but ask. Over at another side, Jasmine was engaged in conversation with Mary, Akamu, Nova, and Shannon, allowing Skye and I to talk to Volkner alone. Then there's Hugh, who was still awkwardly standing alone in the middle of nowhere until Mary pulled him into the conversation on her end. As for Looker, he had long since disappeared the moment we went up to talk to Volkner.
"Remember Master Balls? The wonder pokeball that made the Zapmolcuno mess possible?"
I nodded. We already knew that Team Rocket and Team Galactic had a long standing secret collaboration with each other and what came out from that was the invention of the Master Balls. The PWL, and especially the Sinnoh League, are prioritising their efforts to prevent more of such nasty inventions from being released to the general public, especially in the underworld where the laws cannot reach. That looks like a problem for the interpol to tackle once this pressing Plasma issue had been dealt with.
"I'm here to put a stop to what I should have finished before stepping down as the Gym Leader of Sunyshore. The Galactic's invention of the Master Ball was my responsibility, or at least, this is how I feel about this issue. Long story short, I have reasons to believe that there were signs that Team Plasma might have gotten their hands on a few Master Balls as well, so here I am. It saves the Sinnoh League the trouble of having to send a representative from their side as well anyway."
"You still keep in contact with them? I thought you hated the Sinnoh League?" Skye asked, knowing just how much Volkner detest authority and how low his opinion of the Sinnoh League is. That is a secret that all of us "Sages" are privy to. Except for Jayce, perhaps, since he's rarely around.
"Hey, work is work, and contrary to popular beliefs I know when to keep my personal feelings aside when it comes to important matters," Volkner said in exasperation upon seeing the dubious looks we were giving him. "Also, Jas and I can also take this opportunity to have our long awaited vacation, travelling the world and things like that. Maybe try for a kid once we feel like we are up for it again."
"Jokes aside, it's good to see you again. Everything feels a lot safer with you around," I said, knowing for a fact that Volkner is an Elite Four level trainer that could give even Champions a run for their money. His vast experience in dealing with criminal organisations is also a welcomed addition. His participation and contribution to the defence efforts during the war at Indigo were proof of his capabilities. Nobody can deny that.
"Is that a praise I hear, short stack?"
"Call me short one more time-"
"And you will grow taller?"
"Oh you've gone and done it now, you Hokage wannabe-"
The door of the meeting room opened once more at that moment and we all turned to see just who else had entered. I was in for another surprise when I saw just who walked through those doors.
"Flannery! Norman!"
I excitedly waved the both of them over and they spotted me almost immediately. Flannery walked up to me in brisk steps, easily pulling me to her side in a hug when she swung an arm over my shoulders.
"I heard it from Vance all the time, but you've really grown quite a bit since I last saw you," Flannery wasted no time in trying to give me that noogie that she loves to do whenever we see each other and I quickly escaped from her hold before I became her victim. Norman walked up to us and I don't think I could hide the smile on my face even if I tried. It felt good to see familiar faces from home in a foreign land.
"Hi Norman, how's May?"
"At the age where she never fails to give me and my wife a headache," Norman replied with a wry smile on his face. This man could unofficially qualify as my teacher considering that I had learnt under him for an extended period of time when I was his Gym Trainer.
"Nice to see you again, Vel. It's been a long time."
"Yup. Steven said that he would be sending two Pillars over, but I never thought it would be you guys."
"Oh? Then who were you expecting?" Flannery egged on with a grin, the torkoal by her side leisurely puffing out a cloud of white smoke from its nostrils as she said that.
"For some reason I thought it would be Roxanne and Brawly, cos the last time I called her she was complaining about wanting to go on a vacation. Wouldn't this be a good opportunity for them to go on their long awaited date on the guise of a business trip? With all expenses covered too?"
Flannery and Norman shared a quick look with each other.
"Actually, you were almost right on that front. Both of them did volunteer to come over but in the end, Steven sent us over instead. Ro and Brawly are still needed back home for other things," Flannery replied.
"I guess they must have been disappointed."
"Maybe," Flannery said with a knowing look on her face. "Well, both of them told me to say hi to you. Ro still wants to see how far your tyranitar's control over sand has developed, something about needing to collect data or something."
"Oh, that. I will see what I can do about it," I gave a sheepish awkward laugh in reply. I was aware that Roxanne had been writing a new thesis paper recently, something about further research on the move Sandstorm and the Sand Stream ability and the in-depth analysis of the relationship between them. Kratos just happens to be a candidate for her case study and I'm not planning to refuse her request because Roxanne was a huge help in helping me to train Kratos to harness the power of sand.
The only problem is that we are now literally regions apart and so, collecting accurate data is going to be a problem for Roxanne. Maybe this was one reason why Roxanne was trying to convince Steven to send her here to Unova. To an academic like her, research and knowledge will always be her number one priority. And speaking of Steven…
"It wouldn't be long until Steven assumes Wallace's position, right?"
"His probation period is almost over," Norman affirmed. "There's going to be a minor shift in our ranks as well. Juan had been wanting to step down for a long time due to his health. Problem is, we are having trouble trying to find a suitable replacement so for the time being, Wallace had volunteered to fill in that position. Although from what I could see Wallace doesn't really seem to mind the position of Gym Leader so this arrangement might become permanent. After Flannery and I return to Hoenn, it will probably be about time when Steven will be officially crowned as the new Hoenn Champion. In fact, Steven had been taking up most of the Champion's duty as of late even as we speak."
"I guess that makes Wallace a very free and happy man."
"You can say that again," Flannery laughed. "He has been making more and more frequent visits to Fortree City lately because he has so much more free time on his hands now. One guess as to who he's visiting there."
"Oh, I don't know… Maybe the most powerful Flying type Specialist in the region?"
"Right in one."
"You are Petalburg City's Gym Leader?" Volkner asked as he walked up to us. Norman simply answered Volkner's question with a nod of his head.
"You are…?"
"He's Volkner, previous Gym Leader of Sunyshore and one of the most annoying men I ever met," I helpfully informed and quickly ducked out of the way and hid myself behind Flannery before Volkner's hand could swat at my head for my cheeky remark. I very childishly poked my head out from behind Flannery and stuck my tongue out at Volkner. There's no way he could bully me with Flannery and Norman around.
"Norman," Norman introduced himself and held out his hand, which Volkner accepted and shook.
"Like you heard from Vel there, I'm Volkner. I've always wanted to meet and battle that legendary slaking of yours. Heard that it's a real monster to go up against."
"Likewise, I've always wanted to meet the man who trained an electivire that could injure legends," Norman returned Volkner's words in kind. It may have been my imagination, but I think both of them were using a little more force than necessary in their handshake and I thought I felt a spark of heated rivalry in here. Also, why are they still shaking each other's hands?
But taking a step back, a battle between these two legendary trainers would definitely be a titanic one. Ever since Norman stepped up to be the Gym Leader of Petalburg there were always arguments in the Hoenn's trainer community regarding who is now the strongest Gym Leader in Hoenn, him or Juan, but nobody ever managed to accurately rank or assess their strength. Volkner had held the indisputable title as Sinnoh's strongest Gym Leader until his resignation. Imagine it, a battle between the previously strongest Gym Leader of Sinnoh and what is also possibly currently the strongest Gym Leader of Hoenn…
That's a battle that I would definitely pay to watch.
"Never seen Norman so fired up before," Flannery whispered to me as we both watched on in silence as the two men continued to converse with obvious competitive tension between them, as if they were sizing each other up.
"I'd never seen Volkner so fired up before either," I replied in kind. I never knew that there's such a competitive side to that lazy man, but I guess he didn't become the strongest Gym Leader of Sinnoh by being laid-back all the time.
"Never thought that our guests would arrive so early, I apologise for the lack of a warm reception, but welcome to Unova."
The owner of that scratchy voice that interrupted our conversation was Grimsley, who had somehow appeared within the room without me knowing when or how. Beside him was Elesa, a person that the interpol is very familiar with by now.
"Oh hello Grimsley, it's been awhile," Volkner lazily greeted back with a wave of his hand. Pretty sure that the two of them were acquainted with each other back in Indigo.
"Glad to see that you are still kicking, it's reassuring to have you here," Grimsley nodded in reply before turning to face Norman and Flannery. "And welcome to Unova, Norman, Flannery. Unova is glad to have you here and we are thankful for your assistance."
"Don't mention it, we are equally honoured to be able to work alongside someone of your stature. Steven also sends his regards on behalf of the Hoenn League," Norman conveyed the stance of our region on behalf of our Champion, or soon-to-be Champion in this case.
"Never been in a place with so many big shots around before. This trip is worth it," Flannery whispered to me with an excited gleam in her eyes. I guess meeting Gym Leaders and Elite Fours from other regions is a very rare opportunity even for someone like Flannery, mostly because of the lack of proper inter-regional transportation infrastructure and also because people like her are unable to leave their posts as freely as they liked. Most of their time is being confined to their respective cities that they were tasked to protect and oversee.
"So are you planning to challenge another Gym Leader or two?"
"I wouldn't say that, but I'm not going to say no to a spar, just to gauge where I stand," Flannery admitted. "I think it's the same for Norman and Volkner as well. I'd bet that those two are going to battle right after this Plasma problem has been dealt with."
"I'm definitely going to watch that."
"Who wouldn't?"
This meeting was attended by the entirety of the Unova's Pillars, the interpol, some of Unova's best trainers that already have what it takes to succeed the position of Gym Leaders at any time should there be an available spot, and other important key figures from within the Unova League and the other branches of its military force.
I will skip the boring and technical details of the super duper secret and highly confidential meeting. In short, now that the Unova League has made their due preparations, we are going to take action.
Ever since the interpol had arrived and started work in Unova we had been slowly yet steadily succeeding in reducing Team Plasma down to a manageable size. To wipe Team Plasma out entirely from existence is not realistic due to how large of an organisation they had expanded into, so this operation aims to strike at the hearts of Team Plasma and hopefully, this will cripple them to the point where they wouldn't be a huge threat to the region for any longer. The Unova League can pick up the mess on their own after we cut Team Plasma down to size.
The lists of things we had collectively uncovered about Team Plasma were many. Among which, what I felt was the most atrocious act they had committed was the abduction of Ability Holders. There was a huge surge of increased kidnapping activities in Unova recently. However, the Unova League was unable to identify if these kidnappings were related to each other due to the seemingly random and diverse backgrounds of the kidnappees and the lack of an obvious motivation for the kidnappings. The interpol was involved in the investigation at some point in time but I wasn't involved in the investigation so I was pretty much out of the loop. Nova was the one that Looker assigned to assist the Unova League in looking into the matter. It was until very recently that they found out that most of the kidnappings were Team Plasma's handiwork and without any exception, every abductee they kidnapped were actually Ability Holders.
What Team Plasma wanted to achieve through these kidnappings was organ theft. Team Plasma has identified and abducted Ability Holders across the region to "harvest" their organs and somehow, they have invented some sort of surgical process where implanting these stolen organs into non-Ability Holders is able to transfer the abilities to them, turning people who were previously non-Ability Holders into Ability Holders. Team Plasma had been building a huge army of what we now temporarily refer to as "pseudo Ability Holders".
The Culture Purge of Unova four hundred years ago had a lasting impact on Unova's history and culture. It was a time when Ability Holders were culled and hunted down much like a witch hunt, where the flames of war started to spread across the region once again after the last huge war during the era of warring states. A lot of Unova's history and culture was lost in that purge and more importantly, innocent lives as well. Thereafter, in order to protect themselves, Ability Holders learned how to conceal themselves and their abilities, learning how to blend into society without standing out.
If one were to trace the cause of this historical development to an even earlier point in time, it would be during the era of warring states five hundred years ago. The origin of all the fear and prejudice directed at Ability Holders was Unova's very first Champion, Nicholas Harlow, the Mad Conqueror with the ability to command entire armies of dragons at his beck and call. He was the man who could never lose no matter how impossible the odds were stacked against him. Every war and battle he fought, he and his faction were always severely outnumbered but they always won. He commanded and led an army largely made up of Ability Holders and while they were small in numbers, they never suffered a single defeat. This was how he became Champion. This was the kind of terrifying might that Ability Holders can wield when banded together and fighting for a single cause.
And now, Team Plasma wanted to recreate the miracle that Champion Harlow made.
In this meeting, we were made aware of a secret that the Unova League preferred to keep under wraps. It was the source of Champion Harlow's strength and how he kept recreating miracles after miracles on the battlefield to the point that he could be considered a legend among legends. It is a secret and the truth of why Ability Holders were so feared in the days of old.
The Unova League revealed that according to their findings, theoretically, all Ability Holders have the potential to tap into an unknown source of strength known as "Resonance". It is a state that theoretically, all Ability Holders are able to enter but in reality, a feat that only a scant few ever managed to attain. Not much was really known about this mysterious facet of Ability Holders but to put it simply, whenever an Ability Holder enters the state of Resonance they are able to give their pokemon a huge boost in power for as long as they could remain in that state. If the pokemon in question is of the same typing as the inclination of the Ability Holder's ability, then that power will be further amplified. Theoretically, through Resonance, even a pokemon of average strength could suddenly possess the strength needed to fight a Pillar level pokemon on equal footing when under the influence of Resonance.
However, the actual results achieved by Resonance vary largely from trainer to trainer and pokemon to pokemon. The only thing we are sure of is that Resonance can definitely bring about an incredible power boost to the pokemon's strength for as long as Resonance lasts, but as to how great the boost is, how long that power up will last; it varies largely from person to person. Whether Resonance really allows an average pokemon to fight a Pillar level pokemon as its equal still really depends on both the trainer and the pokemon in question, but the potency of Resonance can be improved with practice.
Champion Harlow's mastery of his ability and his capability to freely enter into the state of Resonance was why he's called the Mad Conqueror. His pokemon were all Champion level and combined with the extreme power boost granted by his mastery of Resonance, it's no wonder that he eventually conquered every single foe on the battlefield and unified Unova. His ability was dragon inclined and dragons tend to fly into a blind rage when they are at the peak of their anger. The Unova League's best explanation for the mysterious source of his strength was that his infamous berserker tendencies and suicidal battling style were in actuality, a side effect of him expressing this trait of his dragon inclined ability whenever he enters the state of Resonance.
However, there were very few records left that documented anything pertaining to Resonance after the Culture Purge so it's impossible to verify that hypothesis. What we do know is that achieving "Resonance" is not an easy feat to achieve. Even the Unova League has very little knowledge about what Resonance truly is and how to invoke it. As far as the Unova League is aware, there were no records of Ability Holders managing to enter the state of Resonance ever since Champion Harlow's death.
Until very recently.
One of Unova's most elite special forces had encountered Ghetsis' bodyguards and trusted followers, the Shadow Triad, and had confirmed that the three of them are Ability Holders with the ability to freely enter and exit the state of Resonance. Whether their abilities were born or were artificially bestowed through Team Plasma's sick experiments remains to be seen, but the fact that they could enter Resonance was a huge cause of concern. If Champion Harlow could conquer an entire region through his mastery of Resonance, what would that mean for Unova if Ghetsis has three of such trainers by his side?
The worst part of it was that the Unova League has strong reasons to believe that Team Plasma has unlocked the secrets of Resonance, allowing their army of pseudo Ability Holders to freely enter that state. By giving their most loyal and zealous members Abilities that they robbed from Ability Holders which they kidnapped, and thereafter bestowing them the knowledge of tapping into a well of power that could possibly turn the tide of any battle, Team Plasma had succeeded in building a terrifying army that could rival Champion Harlow's own in the days of old.
The Unova League's estimation of the number of Ability Holders in Team Plasma's fold is not a small number. If we assume the worst, that every single one of them are able to freely enter the state of Resonance, then Team Plasma now has the firepower needed to soon topple the Unova League.
Suddenly, everything seemed much bleaker. Nobody had expected for Team Plasma to have hidden such a card up their sleeves. To be fair, this is a development that nobody would have imagined to happen even in their wildest dreams. If Resonance has the theoretical potential to allow a pokemon of average strength to be able to go toe to toe with another pokemon trained by a Pillar, even if it's just for a short while, the consequences of such an implication is disastrous when there's now a hostile army of such people working to overthrow the Unova League's rule. Even Norman's usually stern expression had soured even further when we learnt of this news and he's usually not a man to express his mood so visibly.
The next pressing issue to deal with was the confirmed theft of the fossil of an entirely newly discovered species of pokemon. It is a Bug type pokemon that is estimated to be on the strength of a mythical pokemon. In fact, Shannon was the person who initially made the revival of such a pokemon possible.
That pokemon is genesect.
Genesect's fossil had been handed over to the Unova League for safekeeping after Shannon had managed to piece out the entire complete sequence of its DNA to make its revival a possibility. However, somewhere down the line, Shannon's research data and a piece of that fossil had been stolen without the Unova League being any wiser. Those eventually ended up in Team Plasma's hands and it ended up in Team Plasma kidnapping Shannon and Mary to coerce them into not only reviving Genesect, but to modify it to their liking. Shannon and Mary had no other choice but to do as they were told because Team Plasma was holding baby Silver hostage back then. They were rescued eventually and I only knew about their kidnapping after they had returned safe and sound since I happened to be elsewhere in the region assisting Looker in other tasks, but Team Plasma had already gotten what they were here for. Mary and Shannon were forced to revive Genesect per Team Plasma's orders.
"I think Team Plasma wanted to take a leaf out of Team Rocket's books, to create an entirely new pokemon based on the DNA sample of an existing one. Mewtwo's existence is proof that such an endeavour is possible and Team Plasma wanted to recreate Team Rocket's success," Mary spoke as she briefed everyone present about Genesect with a grim look on her face. "However, to emulate Team Rocket's experiment was not possible given how unique Genesect's DNA is structured and it was where they hit a dead end. This project was spearheaded by someone in Team Plasma called Scientist Dudley until we were forcefully brought in to carry on where he left off. Team Plasma forced us to come up with the next best thing, which is to technologically enhance it to give it capabilities to further enhance its power. Most notably, they had us install a cannon on Genesect's back."
The screen flickered as a long list of what I assumed were programming codes filled the screen, along with an image of a porygon-z.
"They had my child hostage but at the same time, I wanted to leave open the possibility of turning Team Plasma's creation against them so that they could not carry on with their plan. To do that, I decided to see if I could try my hand in turning Genesect into a semi-cybernetic pokemon much like porygon is since I am well-versed with their biology and programming code. As such, the Genesect variant that Shannon and I created now shares the same unique ability as the porygon species, Download, allowing it to be able to quickly learn and adapt accordingly to the situation. They possess a steel-bug dual typing similar to the scizor species and are very adept in both close and long range combat. In close combat, they would favour using the claws on their arms. In ranged combat, they would rely on the cannon on its back to obliterate their enemies in a single blast. At the same time, due to the porygon source code that Shannon and I programmed into the Genesects, theoretically, they should have the same command that all porygons would have, which is to help humanity. That is something that we can try to exploit and turn the Genesect against Team Plasma. I had also left a virus in their programming to see if I could hack into and regain command of them remotely but so far there's no success. However, in the event we were able to capture these Genesects again I could possibly use that same virus to reprogram them to fight for our cause instead. Hopefully, Team Plasma still has not detected that virus. As far as I'm aware, after the completion of their physical bodies and programming they hadn't had the time to tame and readjust the program Shannon and I coded into Genesect to their liking and it also definitely wouldn't be an easy process. If we are lucky enough, they might still be struggling with recalibrating Genesect's programming since I made sure to make it difficult for them to modify it."
"How confident are you in reprogramming Genesect?" Norman voiced his concern, much to my surprise. He was never a man of many words.
"I never had a chance to try, but the chances of success is more than fifty percent."
"How many Genesects have they revived?"
"Shannon and I were forced to create and programme five of them, I'm not too sure if there are any more copies elsewhere."
"So we have five mythical level pokemon on the loose and in the worst case scenario, Team Plasma might already have full control over them?"
"Yes."
"Any other weakness that we can exploit?"
"Even if we assume that Team Plasma managed to get these Genesects functioning and combat ready, these Genesects are technically newborn. If we were to look at the porygon species as reference, Download is not an ability that can be easily harnessed, especially so for newborn porygons. It would take a while for these Genesects to learn how to properly use their abilities and they would act very methodically. At this point, they are more machine than pokemon, so the best way to take them down would be to do something that is outside of the scope of their calculations. Basically, the element of surprise, do something that they would never expect you to do. However, every surprise would only work once. Once a trick has been recorded by their Download ability, trying to use the same trick on them again would probably not work. They would have come up with a countermeasure."
"The cannon on their backs, how powerful would you rate it?"
"That is a Team Plasma invention that was already completed before we were brought in to complete the project, but based on what little I managed to glean, that cannon is powerful enough to grant instant death to any pokemon who gets hit by it unless they have very powerful defensive capabilities," Mary answered without skipping a beat and almost everyone took a glance in Jasmine's direction. She had made quite a name for herself for being able to block Zapmolcuno's attack and coming out of it alive.
"You can send Jas and I to where you guys think these Genesects are most likely at. We will take them," Volkner volunteered. Even he had discarded his lazy persona entirely while we were on the discussion of the Genesect problem, another indication of just how serious this problem is.
"That's five mythical pokemon, Volkner," Looker helpfully reminded him.
"I have a porygon-z and I trust Mary's skills as an inventor. I saw her skills for myself back at Indigo when we last worked together. She said she left a virus in Genesect's programming, didn't she? She can install a program into my own porygon-z so that we can use it against the Genesect by taking advantage of the virus she left there."
"That's certainly one way of going about it."
"Based on our investigations, the place where Team Plasma would most likely hold the Genesects would be their stronghold at Icirrus City," Grimsley added from the side.
"Got it."
"These will be the four major Plasma strongholds that we will be raiding," Grimsley, being the main person in charge of this operation, took over the briefing once the discussion about the Genesect problem had been concluded. "Icirrus, Striaton, Nacrene, and surprisingly enough, Opelucid. While the Unova League would prefer if we could mobilise all of our Pillars, that is not possible nor is it realistic. There are still other Team Plasma bases that will need our attention. As such, this is what I will propose."
An entire list of manpower staffing was displayed on the screen. At first glance, I could tell that the interpol agents had all been split up into four different groups that correspond to the four cities that house one of Team Plasma's four major hideouts which we uncovered. From the looks of it, Flannery, Looker, and I are all assigned to Opelucid City.
At least I will be in the company of familiar people.
"Guess we are going to be in the same group," Flannery wrestled me to her side, which really wasn't difficult seeing that we were sitting next to each other.
"Come to think about it, I don't think I had ever seen you fighting at full strength before," I added, only realising now that the only time I ever saw Flannery fighting her battles was with my gym battle with her and in the short period of time that I had went to find her at Lavaridge after I earned my Rain Badge from Juan. She had never displayed her full strength to me on both occasions simply because there wasn't a need to. Back then, I was simply just another Advanced level trainer.
"Don't be too awed when you see it."
"Har har," I replied dryly and took another look at the screen. Norman has been assigned to Striaton City together with Akamu… Wow, that's a very nasty combination if I ever see one. Between Akamu's incredible supportive capabilities and Norman's insane strength, they are going to be near unbeatable. Grimsley sure knows how to allocate manpower to the right places.
"Who's Cheren and Roxie?" I asked softly and Flannery shook her head, telling me that she had no idea either. Those two unfamiliar names were shown on the screen next to Akamu's and Norman's, also assigned to assist in raiding Team Plasma's hideout in Striaton City. Since their names were put next to Norman's they had to have some sort of standing within the Unova League. I wouldn't be surprised if they were some big shots that we had no idea about.
"They are some of Unova's best and rising trainers, qualified enough to be a Gym Leader even if any one of us were to step down even right now," a voice answered my question and Flannery and I both turned around, spotting the Gym Leader of Nacrene City, Lenora, beaming at us with a huge smile where she was seated behind us. She discreetly pointed a finger to our left, prompting us to turn our heads to where she had pointed to.
"The punk looking girl with white hair is Roxie, the neat looking lad beside her is Cheren. Poison and Normal Specialist respectively. Good kids, both of them."
"They look to be around my age," Flannery remarked just as Grimsley ended this meeting and everyone started to stand up from their seats and the noise level began to rise. I saw Looker beckoning for Flannery and I to come over and I know that there are further discussions to be had seeing that Drayden was standing beside him.
"Off you go, ladies, you don't want to be late to a meeting with that strict geezer," Lenora joked with a hearty laugh as she too, stood up from her seat. "By the way, do any of you happen to know who Nova, Skye, and Hugh are? They are the interpol agents assigned to my city."
"Nova is the woman with the bright orange-red hair. Skye and Hugh are the ones sitting beside her," I pointed out for Lenora, who sent me her thanks before the jovial Gym Leader strode over to familiarise herself with Nova and co and also to further discuss in-depth of how they will be delegating their tasks among themselves that day. Flannery and I walked over to where Looker and Drayden were.
"Drayden Gilmart, just call me Drayden," Drayden offered his hand to Flannery, which she shook. Drayden and I were already acquainted with each other when I visited Opelucid City during my vacation so we simply exchanged simple greetings and that was it.
"Just call me Flannery," Flannery returned the gesture with a grin. Soon, we were seated around a table in another separate meeting room with a detailed map of Opelucid City spread across it. As the Gym Leader and the mayor of the city, Drayden is very intimately familiar with the layout of the city.
"Truth to be told, I'm surprised that they managed to hide such a huge and important stronghold from me when I had just finished a sweep in my city. But, this place where they built their hideout," Drayden pointed to the specific spot on the map and we could all see the geography of the place at a glance, "is both advantageous and disadvantageous to them."
"There's only one way in or out no matter how you look at it, if we discount things like teleportation, flight, or underground transportation," Flannery easily picked out Drayden's unsaid words. "We could choke them in their hideout and just burn it down."
"My sentiments exactly," Drayden nodded. "My only concern is that there might be innocent civilians in there that we are not aware of. Remember the mass disappearances and kidnapping of Ability Holders recently?"
"You think this might be where they hold them?" Looker asked.
"It's a possibility," Drayden admitted. "As much as I'm ashamed to say this, the Unova League still hasn't fully accounted for the missing Ability Holders which were reported as missing. We are speculating that there's still a group of them being held prisoners somewhere, being kept alive until Team Plasma decides to commit organ theft."
"The mortality rate of the victims after undergoing their procedures is almost at a hundred percent," I recited what I remembered from the briefing earlier. If there are indeed abductees being kept prisoners there, then they are in a very precarious situation.
"If there are hostages we cannot just burn the place down," Looker agreed. "Is this why Velda and I are assigned here? As Ghost Specialists, we are good at sneaking around."
"Ghost Specialist?" Flannery looked at me as though she was seeing me for the first time and I shrugged my shoulders. Actually, I still have no idea if I should define myself as a Generalist or as a Ghost Specialist seeing as how deep I had delved into learning about Ghost types as of late.
"That is one consideration we had," Drayden affirmed. "The League and the Gilmart family will also provide their full assistance on that day so manpower wise, I believe we are well-covered. We just need to go through the hostage rescue protocols on the assumption that there might be imprisoned civilians to rescue on that day, and also how we could prevent the Plasmas from escaping our grasp."
"We can block their escape routes with Darktycin technology. Since they love to use it so much, we can let them have a taste of their own medicine. The surrounding terrain makes it easy to deploy Darktycin, there's no reason not to use it."
"I'm in agreement," Drayden readily agreed to Looker's suggestion. "My dragons will keep a lookout for any possible escapes through underground and I will have my Gym Trainers keep a lookout for the skies. Once Looker and Velda confirm that no other hostages are in their base, we can then hit it with everything we got and burn it to the ground. Flannery, your firepower will be needed then."
"Leave it to me."
Plans were quickly hashed out. Drayden's experience that came with age really showed frmo how he seamlessly came up with plans to cover all bases that we could possibly think of. Looker's experience in conducting espionage ops was displayed when he offered a few proposals of how we could possibly infiltrate the Opelucid hideout after Drayden briefed him in greater detail of the geography of the surrounding area. Flannery's expertise in large scale raids also came into play when she gave several good suggestions that none of us thought of.
Gym Leaders are the apex and the very representation of a region's might. They are the best a region has to offer. When you put three people of such calibre and skill together, it feels as if there is no limit to the things that they could possibly achieve.
As for me, I just have to make sure that I play my part well and not be a liability because that is my role. I'm still ways off from being able to stand on the same level as they do.
"What a looong day," Flannery sighed and stretched her arms upwards as we made our exit after we were finally done with the meeting. She and Norman had only just arrived here in Unova late last night and had immediately come over to participate in this important meeting after a few hours of sleep. She didn't have much rest.
"Where are you and Norman staying?"
"Some high class hotel that the Unova League arranged for us. Oh, come to think about it, do you still have extra rooms over at your place? Vance said that there should still be rooms but I'm not sure if his words could be trusted."
"He will be so hurt if he heard you say that," I laughed, "but yes, there are still free rooms available. Actually, you can just use his room. Norman can come over too and I'm planning to invite Volkner and Jasmine as well, assuming that they want to join us."
"Sounds fun."
"It will be."
92
It was a little late when everybody was finally done with the preparations of their respective assignments and we headed back to Nimbasa together through the use of Teleport. For most of us, it's been a long time since we saw each other and despite feeling a little exhausted after a long day, there were no lack of topics to talk about in our conversations on our way back.
"Nice place you have here, short stack," Volkner whistled in appreciation when he stepped foot into the Nimbasa residence that the interpol had used as our headquarters during our stay here. Norman and Flannery had made a quick trip back to their hotel to get their stuff before joining us. I also had instructed Sebastian to make sure that dinner was ready by the time we got back since it was already a little late and I doubt any of us here had the energy left to eat out after a tiring day.
Sebastian, being the efficient butler that he is, had already prepared the rooms for our new guests. Volkner and Jasmine will take the room on the eighth floor, Norman will take the fourth floor, and Flannery will take Vance's room on the topmost floor, the twentieth floor. Everyone gathered back in the common area on the third floor to have our dinner together after a quick washing up and things became a lot livelier with jokesters like Volkner around. Still, we retired early after we finished our dinner since everyone's tired.
Or at least, that was the plan.
Norman had called me aside after dinner, saying that he needed to talk to me and Flannery in private. I simply brought them to my room on the nineteenth floor with a little assistance from Dolly's Shadow Sneak.
"I knew that your banette was proficient in this move but I have to say, its mastery over Shadow Sneak had improved beyond my expectations."
Norman's praise was instantly soaked in by Dolly, making her a very happy banette as she cackled and flew loops in the air. She's very well acquainted with Norman thanks to the period of time we spent at the Petalburg Gym where I assisted him as his gym trainer. We know that it's difficult to get a praise out of this man.
My floor, the nineteenth floor of our residence, is very spacious and has several rooms available. I use one of it as a wardrobe to store the large number of clothes and accessories that my family had given me, another of it as my bedroom, one as a study, and the last one is an empty room that could double as a guest room if needed. There's a small lounge outside the rooms where the lift is, but I hardly use the lift when I have my ghosts to bring me around.
I brought Norman and Flannery into my study. Steven apparently wanted to talk to us in private, so I simply took out my laptop and had Jarvis help me set up a video call so that it would be easier for the three of us to fit into the screen.
"Hello Norman, Flannery. Ah, Vel, good to see you too. It's been a while," Steven greeted the moment the video call was picked up on the other end of the line.
"Hi Steven," I greeted in return. "So… I guess congratulations are in order? Mr soon-to-be-officially-crowned Champion?"
"You tease, but thanks anyway." Steven accepted my well wishes with a good natured laugh. "Give me a moment, I think Wallace will want to be in this call as well. Let me see if I can pull him over," there was a brief pause before a new participant was added into our video call and another familiar face that I hadn't seen in a while appeared on screen.
"Ah, it's you guys. How's it over at Unova?"
"To be perfectly honest? It's kind of a huge clusterfuck, makes me glad that we nipped the Magma and Aqua problem in the bud before they could grew into the mess of epic proportion like how the Plasma problem turned out to be," Flannery surprised us with her brutally honest opinion that she concealed from even me when we were at the briefing earlier in the day. "I'm going to be frank, I think the Unova League was trying to paint an image far more optimistic than it really is. If things are as serious as I think it is, I'm not even sure if Unova can tide over this crisis."
"Flannery, language," Norman reminded with a disapproving frown with a quick glance my way. The funny thing is, I'm not really the fourteen year old girl that he thinks I am.
"Fuck isn't that bad of a word, I use it all the time too," I cheekily added, and it was taking all of my willpower not to laugh at how Norman's eyes had comically widened when he heard me say the F word.
"Brief us on the situation," Steven requested and simply ignored my cheeky remark. Norman very quickly gave a rundown of the situation we were briefed upon. I could see our Champions' brows furrowing deeper and deeper the longer Norman went on. Even after Norman was done with his verbal report, both our old and new Champions were silent for a short while before Steven finally broke the silence.
"Flannery is right, this is a very dire situation," Steven agreed and barely managed to hide the sigh escaping his lips. "Norman, Flannery, Velda, I only have one request to ask from all of you. Please, return back alive. The threat of the army of pseudo Ability Holders that Team Plasma had built is not something that we can realistically estimate at this point in time. There's no idea how dangerous they might be until you face them on the day itself. Hoenn cannot afford to lose two Gym Leaders in a diplomatic exchange, especially Gym Leaders of your calibre. If the situation spirals out of control to the point that your lives are in danger, you have my permission to pull out of it immediately."
"But-"
"Velda," Steven interrupted me before I could voice my opinion. "I could guess what you wanted to say, but hear me out. I am first and foremost, the Champion of Hoenn, or soon-to-be Champion as you put it earlier if we want to be technical. My priority and concern will always be the well-being of my region, my Pillars, and my people. Yes, we sent Norman and Flannery over as a show of goodwill and support to the PWL's cause of averting the prophecy, to strengthen diplomatic ties with the other regions to promote global peace but ultimately, we are not obliged to clean up the mess for them at the cost of incurring a huge and irreplaceable loss that would directly affect Hoenn's interests. Juan is stepping down soon and this is not something we can delay for much longer because he's no longer young. Wattson might follow his lead anytime in the next few years as well. With Juan's departure, Norman would be the undisputable strongest Gym Leader of Hoenn if we exclude Wallace from the picture. Norman is the new image of our military force, the representation of Hoenn's Gym Leaders. I cannot allow anything to happen to Norman because once that happens, my people will panic, the region will be in an uproar, and negative sentiments about our region's diplomatic policies are bound to surge. The media crisis that will result from this aside, we will also be forced to abort everything we have done so far. The same applies to Flannery, Hoenn cannot lose her. Do you get me?"
I understand the point where Steven is coming from. If we really do lose Norman in this fight that he had no need to take part in the first place, every single effort that the Hoenn League had put into strengthening diplomatic relationships with the other regions will immediately fall apart. All of our efforts thus far would have been for naught. If no lives were lost on our end, things will be bad but still salvageable, but if either Norman or Flannery were to be killed in this battle then the Hoenn League would have no choice but to let all of their efforts go down the drain.
"I understand," I answered, my mood a little solemn when I understood that Steven has his own considerations that he has to uphold as the new Champion of Hoenn. I felt Flannery patting my back in silent encouragement, but it still did little to lift my mood.
Steven's stern expression mellowed out a little after hearing my answer.
"The same goes for you as well, Vel. I'm not sure if you realised, but you are not just an interpol agent working in the interests of the PWL, you are also the link that connects Hoenn, the PWL, and whichever region that you will be assisting in the capacity as an interpol agent. You are our eyes and ears in the interpol, the connection we have to the higher echelons of the PWL and I want you to understand that. You are vital to the Hoenn League as well."
"What Steven is trying to say is that whether you had realised it or not, thanks to the circumstances that you are now in you are not just representing the interpol, but also Hoenn in international affairs," Wallace spoke up, probably trying to ease the solemn tension between us. "Velda, ever since the world leaders agreed to relax control over their borders there were experts who had already foreseen that the world is rapidly developing to reach a new stage of globalisation never seen before. Now, looking back, they were spot on. This was one of the visions you had when you proposed this idea to me in an attempt to promote peace and strengthen global relations, remember?"
Wallace took a brief pause, probably giving me time to digest his words before he continued.
"Now, try to look at things from Hoenn's perspective. Just look at our recent economic development and the huge surge of influx of overseas investments going in and out of every region on a daily basis, a sight which was almost non-existent a year ago. Hoenn is currently at the forefront when it comes to diplomatic policies because compared to the other regions, Hoenn's political and economical climate is extremely stable, allowing us to better focus our attention on the global stage. This is the advantage we hold over the other regions. This is also thanks to your contributions in helping to remove Team Magma and Team Aqua very early on before they could grow into the threats Team Rocket and Team Plasma had grown to be. Now, you are part of the interpol, an agent of the PWL. Not only that, you are the one and only sole member Hoenn has sent over to the interpol. Thus, you represent us, the Hoenn League, I'm sure Vance had impressed that idea on you when he made his visit."
"You were the reason he was here?"
"Just a small part of it. Vance's visit was mainly his own initiative because he simply wanted to see you, and also because your father had other plans for you. I just made sure to remind Vance to convey to you about your importance to the Hoenn League once I learned that he would be visiting you in Unova. Think back, Vel. While Vance did earn his rank through his own power, it wasn't entirely by coincidence that he was my second-in-command. He's the heir of the Vera family, the League will have to take special care of him. Just like how your father was put under Drake's care during his time in ACE, the League had specially arranged your brother to be under my care once he showed a greater potential that outshines even your father at his prime. Well, he was originally supposed to be under Norman's care, but I digress. That's a story for another day."
"Your brother is simply too destructive for me to handle. Somebody more qualified was needed to supervise him." Norman's explanation was short and succinct, enough for me to understand the gist of it.
"As of now, in a manner of speaking, you are our only sole full-time diplomatic representative in global affairs. At least for now," Wallace continued, and it was then I was suddenly reminded that due to a severe lack of globalisation in the pokemon world there are still no such things as diplomats or ambassadors that serve to help maintain the global diplomatic relations with each region. So, in a way, I somehow had found myself in a very special and unique position without knowing it myself, because I am the only Hoennian within one of the PWL's most prized units, the interpol. My actions would represent Hoenn on a global stage.
"I'm not going to hide this from you, but there are still dissents from officials within the Hoenn League and the President's cabinet about us being too proactive and appearing as if we are too eager to help with international problems when nobody else seemed to give a damn. These sentiments didn't arise from nowhere, Vel. It is a fact that the other regions are not as vested in the shared cause we agreed upon when we first decided to set up the interpol. There are also dissents regarding your appointment to be Hoenn's representative in the interpol. The main arguments they brought up are mainly about the concerns they had about your age but thankfully, your contributions in the Magma and Aqua problem, your participation in the war at Indigo, and what you had accomplished so far in the Unova region allowed Steven and I to easily shut them up. At the very least, on affairs relating to pokemon, your status as a Vera also made you a very suitable candidate to represent us on the international stage as Hoenn's first diplomatic ambassador despite your young age. I was planning to let you in on this in the future when things are less busy for you, but I guess now is a good time as any to break this news since we are already on this topic. Assuming that there are no unexpected developments, becoming Hoenn League's ambassador is the direction that Steven and I are planning to groom you towards. You are more than capable of representing us on the global stage. You have all the qualities to be one and Steven and I are confident in your ability to do your job well. All you ever need is the time to grow and learn until you are ready for the responsibilities for that position."
I could not believe it, Wallace's serious.
"However, once you officially become our representative, you have to start looking at things from our standpoint. You have to start thinking about and protecting Hoenn's own interests. This Team Plasma problem is just one example out of many. Going forward, Hoenn cannot always be the main party offering assistance to the PWL's efforts. As much as I don't want to say this outright, we are not a charity organisation. In every kind of relationship, be it between family, lovers, regions; there must be an equal amount of give and take for the relationship to be a healthy one so that it can last. Hoenn cannot keep sending support to the other regions in this manner like we had done for Indigo and Unova. Can we agree on that?"
"I see your point," I admitted.
"In my personal opinion, we were already being very generous in our efforts, sparing a Champion and an Elite Four for the Rocket mess in Indigo, and now our strongest Gym Leader and Flannery for the Plasma problem in Unova where the other regions did nothing of the sort. Just look at the situation now. Which other region had sent over their Pillars or equivalent when Unova had requested for assistance? Only we answered their call. Just look at your current residence, your family was the one who forked out the money to build the interpol's first headquarters in Unova, not the PWL. I don't want to compare or talk behind people's backs because I'm sure the other Champions had their considerations and problems to deal with back home, but we cannot keep this up if things were to continue in this manner. Hoenn will not hesitate to help her allies if they need it, but if they continue to take us for granted and treat us like a charity organisation then we are going to have problems. If that is the case, if it really felt as if Hoenn is the only party vested in trying to contribute to the PWL's efforts and nobody else is taking this seriously, Steven and I will not hesitate to pull out our support if the other regions keep taking our goodwill for granted because it takes two hands to clap. Already, we are very displeased by the attitudes of the other Champions when it comes to upholding the agreement we had in trying to build a better and more cohesive world in attempting to avert the prophecy."
Wallace's voice had turned a little sterner as he continued to talk.
"In fact, once this entire Team Plasma problem blows over Steven will be calling for another talk between the Champions to make our displeasure clear. If we feel that the situation does not improve after that talk, we will pull out from this immediately. Yes, including you, Velda. If things ever get to that point and Steven gives the word, you are to immediately put down everything you have in the interpol and return back home immediately, this is an order from your Champion. We will not be taking no for an answer. If needed, we will send people to fetch you for your safety. As Champions of Hoenn, Steven and I have to make our stance in this matter extremely clear because to us, our people and our region is our first and foremost priority. We cannot keep cleaning up messes that everybody has a duty to clean up after but yet, allowing our partners to keep shirking that same shared responsibility that we previously agreed upon. The only outcome that will turn up from that in the end, will be what was originally another region's problem or an international problem suddenly becoming Hoenn's problem. There are many other such things going on behind the scenes that I'm not telling you, Velda, but the way the other regions keep pushing the dirty work for us to handle is something that has to be addressed before we could really embark on the agreement that initially led to the founding of the interpol. Talk is cheap, Steven and I prefer if we could see the other Champions actually taking concrete action to fulfil their promise."
I certainly had no idea what else to say or do after hearing what my Champions had to say. I knew it was going to be an uphill challenge trying to get every region on the same page when it comes to that stupid world ending prophecy, but I guess I was either too naive or I had underestimated just how difficult it would be to get everyone involved.
Maybe the expression on my face had betrayed my mood. Steven and Wallace ended the call shortly after and wished us the best of luck, but not before reminding us once again that our lives are our foremost priority to the Hoenn League and should be prioritised above everything else for the upcoming battle.
"I know they sound harsh but don't take it the wrong way. They are not blaming you for anything, you did nothing wrong. In fact, you did a great job thus far, they just want to let you know that things are not as harmonious as it seems behind the scenes and that you should be aware of them lest you get taken advantage of without knowing it," Flannery pulled me to her side and immediately tried to lift my mood up. I tried squeezing a smile but for some reason it felt really forced.
"Take our word for it, none of us Pillars are blaming you for anything that resulted in the mess that happened behind the scenes. You have done well, Vel, but Hoenn cannot always be the party at the forefront of solving this international mess. Believe it or not, Flannery and I were sent here not just to assist Unova as a show of goodwill, we are also here to see and judge for ourselves how well the interpol is faring, just what kind of support the interpol has been receiving from the other regions, and the attitudes displayed by the other regions in this matter. Steven will make his next decision depending on what we observed and report back to him."
"Sorry for the disappointment," I mumbled, knowing that the only help the interpol had so far was my family's donation in getting this building to be our residence, office, and headquarters all in one. I should have identified this problem earlier on. If even the PWL is giving empty promises and not taking substantial steps in tackling the prophecy problem, to the point that my family had to fork the money out of their own pockets, then something is very wrong. We had to start everything from scratch, and the only people in the Unova League that seemed to be actively trying to help us were Alder, Grimsley, and Elesa. I should have noticed the signs sooner.
"Hey hey, stop blaming yourself for this. This is not your fault," Flannery reiterated her point as she spun me around to face her. "You already did your best, nobody is blaming you for this because this is out of your control. You know why we were sent here? Not just because Hoenn wanted to express our support to Unova, not just because we are here to see for ourselves how things are really like on the ground, but also because Steven sent us here to make sure that you are alright and if necessary, bring you back home just in case this whole interpol business falls apart from the lack of support from the other regions, cos nobody can stop you from going home with two Pillars behind your back. Now, I'm glad that we were sent here, because none of us back home had any clues that things were this bad until we saw it for ourselves. You are only fourteen, Vel, give yourself some slack. This Plasma problem is a mess of epic proportions that even adults wouldn't want to touch within a ten foot pole. Honestly, you shouldn't be anywhere near the Plasmas on the day itself. You are far too young to be involved in a war of this scale."
"A little too late. Tell that to the twelve year old me back in Lilycove," I cannot help but mutter under my breath, briefly recalling the memories and experiences of that fateful day which I cannot seem to truly shake off no matter how I try. Interpol work is tough, I'm not going to sugarcoat it, and there were also times that I also really felt like giving up. However, whenever the memories of the Lilycove Invasion flooded back I cannot bring myself to stand still and do nothing.
I just… I don't want something like that to happen ever again. Doing something to help prevent such things from happening again helps to give me peace of mind. Working towards that goal as an interpol agent was what I felt I needed to release myself from the nightmare that had been haunting me since Lilycove.
"I think what you need now is a good rest," Norman sighed and patted my shoulder twice in a show of support. "Don't worry too much about the politics going on behind the scenes, we adults are here for a reason. Right now, just focus on preparing yourself for the operation and be in your best condition on that day. But like Wallace and Steven had said, if things in the interpol are not going as you hoped it will be and you have reasons to believe that the situation is not going to improve, feel free to leave and go back home. Nobody can force you to stay with Flannery and I around, and the League will handle the political repercussions."
"Yup, nobody can stop you from going home with us here."
"Why do you guys make it sound as if I'm being held captive against my will?"
"Did we?" Flannery looked at Norman, who simply shrugged.
"But a break does sound nice. I really miss home," I admitted. It's been about a year since I've been home. I've never been away from home for so long before.
And if things were really that messy behind the scenes, then maybe Steven and Wallace had the right idea. If this were to go on, even if no other major issues had popped up yet, the interpol is just going to eventually rot from the inside out despite being founded with noble intentions. My idea of setting up the interpol was a desperate idea to begin with, there wasn't any guarantee that it would be a success. I cannot keep relying on my family and the Hoenn League to keep funding and supporting the interpol because like my Champions had pointed out, it's just not sustainable. Maybe I'm just the one who couldn't let this go because the creation of the interpolwas my idea.
It would pain me to leave the interpol and the people I had befriended, but ultimately I do not need the interpol. On the contrary, the interpol is still heavily reliant on my family's financial support to keep it running when the PWL should be the one forking out for its expenses. The only thing the PWL paid were our salaries. I really should have recognised this as a problem sooner. I'm still too naive and inexperienced.
"Actually, you know what?" I spoke up, catching Norman's and Flannery's attention. "I think, after this is all over, regardless of whether the interpol can continue to exist or not, I should head home. Kind of miss my Mum and Dad."
"Not the hot springs at Lavaridge?" Flannery teased as she ruffled my hair, referring to the excessive trips I made to the hot springs there in the few times that I was at Lavaridge for a visit.
"That too, including the hot spring eggs. Damn, now I'm hungry again. This is all your fault, Flan."
"I prefer the tempura, actually," Norman added.
"Nobody is talking about Fortree's bamboo steamed rice?" Flannery added on to the list.
"Dewford's mochi," Norman continued.
"You guys are purposely trying to make me even more homesick than I already am," I accused.
"Guilty as charged, what are you gonna do about it?" Flannery taunted with an unrepentant grin.
"... I actually cannot think of anything beyond kicking you out of here, but you guys are Gym Leaders so that's not possible. You big bullies."
The casual banter that followed allowed me to finally relax. I might not have voiced it verbally, but it felt great to be around familiar company again.