Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 086: Give Me Bonds

At the Viridian rocket base... "He's dead!" Laiki wailed at the top of her lungs, so loudly that Giovanni and Delia clearly heard her as they ran down the hall towards Comet's room. Laiki had seen her fair share of deaths, mostly pokemon and a few humans. Though she did her best to save them, there were times when her medical help was too little too late. She never panicked like that; she just shook her head and sent the victims away to be turned to ashes. This was different, she had no connection with any of those deceased beings, Comet was like a brother to her.

"Clear!" Before the nurse could panic further, Pixel pushed her away. She released Peachy from her pokeball, the Pikachu landing on Comet's still form. "Thunderbolt him back to life!"

"Pikachu!" The room was filled with electricity, some of it catching the two young women and Luke. He was panicking on the phone, despite Giovanni having already hung up.

Comet's blue eyes opened suddenly, he was only without a heartbeat for a few seconds. The pain of the shock woke him from his unconscious state as his heart started to beat again.

"I told you he's not dead," Pixel firmly insisted, "people don't die instantly when their heart stops beating. You can still revive them in the next few seconds, I'm not in the medical field and even I know that."

Laiki was beyond the point of responding to words. Her piled up stress had pushed her to a nervous breakdown. It didn't help that she was convinced that Comet would inevitably die due to being a clone.

Comet began to close his eyes, the tiredness evident in them. "Stay awake!" Pixel ordered, she was clearly the only one with a grasp on her reasoning at the moment. Laiki was choking on her sobs and Luke was begging for help on a cell phone that wasn't transmitting his voice to anyone anymore. "If you fall asleep, Peachy will shock you and make it painful."

"Ka! Chu!" Peachy was ready to follow the plan if needed.

Giovanni and Delia suddenly entered the room. Giovanni took the needle from the bag, clearly Laiki was in no conditions to apply it properly, but he had no experience. "We need to get someone to-"

"I'll do it," Delia interrupted, taking the needle. "I've done this before with pokemon," she took Comet's arm, searching for the proper place to inject the antidote and did so. She waited for what felt like an eternity looking into Comet's unfocused blue eyes.

Comet blinked; his eyes gaining focus. He muttered something too quiet to be perceived. He took a deep breath feeling the contradiction of hot and cold he had been feeling leaving his body. The lifeless exhaustion melted into normal tiredness and he felt much more alert. "I'm okay now..." He had no way to know, but whatever medicine they gave him was certainly making him feel much better fast. His vision was focused enough to see normally, he noticed Delia's tearful face and her slightly red eyes. Giovanni looked like he had a multitude of thoughts running through his head, none of them pleasant judging by his expression. He could hear his father's voice behind them, mixed with Laiki's sobs while Pixel tried to calm them down. He smiled a brilliant smile, looking like his usual carefree self.

Delia's breath caught in and she felt in her heart that he really would be alright. "You can rest now, you're cured," she brushed his red hair gently with her hand in a motherly fashion. She thought she heard him mutter a sleepy thanks before he closed his eyes again, his chest moving with the rhythm of his steady breathing.

Delia and Giovanni exited the room, leaving Comet with Luke, Pixel and Laiki. They walked down the hall to find a quiet place to talk. They both knew they had a lot to discuss and it could not be left for later.

xoxox xox xoxox

It was night time in Pallet Town, but Misty knew Ash wouldn't mind. She exited the yellow taxi in front of the Pallet House and paid the driver. She approached the house, but before she could call, Charla opened the door for her. The fire pokemon had long chocolate colored waves cascading from her head. Misty blinked, "hello," she saw several of Ash's pokemon out of their pokeballs around the house, some wearing wigs.

Ash thought he heard a car outside and went to see what that was about. He saw Misty, his face immediately brightening, despite his racing thoughts. "Misty, you're here!" He didn't want to throw his stress at her, but he had been wishing to see her.

They embraced each other in a tight hug before their lips met, as if they had not seen each other in years. They were reassuring to each other in many ways. After they parted, Misty explained, "my sisters and their chick flicks were driving me insane. I had to get out of there, Brock seems to be enjoying it though."

"Good for him," Ash smiled, "do you think he finally found a steady relationship?"

"I hope so, I would be upset if he ended up heartbroken after he's been spoiling Lily so much," Misty sighed, "I just hope he learns to tone it down a little."

"That's Brock, he always tries so hard," Ash laughed. He almost fell into the familiarity of being with Misty, but it wasn't long before his stubborn worried thoughts returned.

"If I didn't see your own hair peeking out from under this wig I would think you bleached it," Misty adjusted the blond wig on Ash's head, if only to make sure beyond a doubt that it was indeed a wig. "Why are you wearing that?" As she asked, Pikachu walked by in the background and she added, "why does Pikachu look like Elvis Presley?"

"It was pretty random actually," Ash and Misty sat down at the living room, his face returning to a smile as they talked. "Skye, Gary's helper, thought I was being stalked by fan girls. He brought over this collection of wigs he borrowed from Professor Oak to help me disguise myself. The pokemon started playing with some of the wigs too."

Misty couldn't help it but to laugh at the revelation. Her voice was clear and refreshing to Ash. Yet he couldn't help it but to feel guilty because she didn't know the truth. What would she say? Even if he wasn't supposed to tell her, he had to.

"What's wrong?" Misty's laughter faded and she caught on to the turmoil in Ash's eyes. "You know you can tell me anything."

Ash nodded and took a deep breath, his face serious, "what if I told you that I'm more... involved in the..." he paused, the word feeling somewhat odd and coming out as a whisper, "mafia, than I thought?"

"What do you mean?" Misty couldn't imagine how Ash could be more closely linked to them than her with her sisters' situation. She immediately started to wonder if Ash was in some kind of trouble.

He read the worry in her face and shook his head, trying to clear it and find the way to phrase things. "I'm not in trouble, this isn't even something recent. It's something that's been true for as long as I've been alive, longer even. I just recently found out, mom told me."

Misty immediately recalled the events that happened at Lando's mansion and an infinity of theories floated in her head about Delia, Giovanni, Ash and the mafia. She imagine sweet Delia being kidnapped, she imagined a battle between Giovanni and someone from the mafia. It all played out in seconds in her mind like in the cheesy movies her sisters had been watching. Another theory was about a young hero who falls in love with a lady, which lands the lady in the middle of a love triangle. She makes her choice, though the man who was not chosen still loved her. Then one day a terrible villain steals the life of her beloved and the other man, who had sincerely tried to save his own rival for her sake, can do nothing more than console her. Pushing the theories away along with the images of a bittersweet embrace in a sunset cliff near the ocean, she breathed, "you know you can tell me. You don't need to hide anything from me, I'm here for you."

"I know," Ash felt comforted and suddenly, the idea of keeping everything a secret from Misty was unthinkable. "Everything makes sense now. Mewtwo's enemy, the leader of Team Rocket, his resemblance to Giovanni, it was all true."

Misty's eyes went wide as she remembered their conversation with Brock after the tournament at Viridian City. Brock had been the first to point out how similar the Viridian gym leader was to the Rocket boss. "Than Giovanni is Team Rocket's leader? He's playing both sides so easily." Kenobi's involvement in the mafia made a lot more sense. They were trying to hide Giovanni's identity so that he could continue the good gym leader act. "The good gym leader is the mafia lord, it's so ironic, and yet, I wonder why no one can see it." As the pieces fell into place with the force of the revelation, the idea went from unthinkable to obvious.

"He has a lot of influence, I guess," Ash's confusion clouded him again. He honestly didn't know how to face Giovanni, but it had to be done.

"I bet the police knows, but Team Rocket is too powerful so they have to let him be," Misty reasoned, then the image of sweet Delia, kind, motherly, gentle Delia, entered her mind. "My goodness, Ash, your mom."

"She knows more about Team Rocket than I ever would have guessed. She knows their history from the very beginning," Ash looked into his fiance's eyes, "she was there, Misty, she was there from the start, ever since Team Rocket was a street gang. She was... she joined..."

Misty took in a big deep breath as if the extra oxygen was needed for her brain to continue functioning with more simultaneous thoughts than what a normal person should have. 

"Have you heard about the epidemic from years ago? I've heard stories about it, but it was hard to imagine. She saw it all, the Tempest of the past was the cause and Team Rocket ended up finding the solution. That just makes me believe it even more, that Team Rocket wasn't all that bad, it couldn't have been. Mom was there and... and my father, Giovanni, he had to be different. Maybe there's some of his past self still left," Ash fell silent as he observed Misty's face.

The red haired young woman paled, it wasn't until that moment that Ash had directly pointed out that Giovanni was his father. He wasn't part of a triangle as they had initially thought. "All these years..." her voice came out as a quiet whisper, but there was some edge to it.

"He didn't know," Ash was quick to reveal. "Mom broke up with him. She left to raise me in peace. She never told him she was pregnant, he didn't know about me until recently."

"She was protecting you," Misty concluded, "she wanted to keep you safe, she must have seen what Team Rocket was turning into, she must have..." Overcome by emotion, Misty felt her eyes water. "It must have been so hard."

The couple held on to each other tightly in a warm embrace. "They were in love, I know they were. I think they are again, I'm pretty sure they are. I don't understand it really; they're so different, even if I barely know him. It's... it's strangely comforting, to know they care about each other, to know they can care; to know they love each other." Ash held on to Misty and closed his eyes, burying his face on her shoulder as she gently caressed his hair. The blond wig had fallen off at some point neither cared to notice and sat on the couch next to Ash. 

"It's all so big, so unexpected..." Misty whispered, "at least you know and there is hope. Maybe everything has a reason," after seeing what Team Rocket had done over the years, Misty had trouble believing her own words. She wondered what else happened that she didn't know. She feared for Ash and for Delia, she didn't want them to get hurt. Then Ash's words rung out in her head with such certainty, ' they love each other,' his mother must have assured him no doubt, for Ash to be so convince, he must have seen the truth in her. There was a lot Misty didn't understand and she knew it must be troubling Ash terribly.

"We were at Giovanni's house when mom told me," Ash confessed, his voice slightly muffled by the closeness to Misty. "I ran away, I left a note saying I had to think. Mom called me as soon as she found out; I worried her I'm sure. I insisted that I was okay, that I was not angry at my father. I tried to reassure her and convinced her to give me some time to think. I didn't know how to tell you, I'm really glad you came."

"It's going to be okay, things will work out," Misty quietly assured, though she couldn't know for sure. "I'm here for you." What could she do? She couldn't change the past, plus it was a past that should not be changed. If Delia had loved Giovanni and Ash was the result of that, Misty could only be thankful. If they had rediscovered those feelings, how could they stay apart? If Delia found it in her heart to welcome Giovanni it was her choice, her judgment, but would she be hurt because of it? Would Ash be hurt?

"I wonder if he hates me," Ash looked into Misty's eyes; the fear in his eyes shocked her. He had always been brave and determined, always willing to face anything. "I ran away leaving behind nothing but a note, just like mom left him with a letter. Maybe the reason why mom didn't insist in coming here was because she needed to stay with him. What if he hates me? What if he thinks I hate him? It's ironic really," Ash laughed bitterly, the fear still present in his eyes. "I've always secretly wanted a father, but accepted not having one. Then when Giovanni came into the picture, I wondered if it was similar to having a father. I wanted that with him. I wanted to get to know him, to have the kind of father-son experience I never knew. I was happy, he wasn't replacing anyone, there was no one to replace. He was just filling a hole I never fully realized was there. Then I found out he really is my father and instead of being happy, I'm so confused and so afraid." Ash was almost trembling, which made Misty hug him tighter, "I don't know how to face him, I don't know what to say, I'm afraid I'll get caught in the moment and say something terrible. I'm afraid I'll anger him, I'm afraid I'll hurt him, I'm afraid he'll give up on mom and me, I'm afraid he'll give up on mom because of me. She already gave him up once for my sake, I know it hurt her to leave to raise me. They have a second chance to be together, I have a chance to have a father, but Team Rocket is in the middle of everything and... and..."

"Shh... don't say anymore," Misty softly placed her finger upon his lips, then kissed him gently and wiped away the moist from his face that he didn't even notice was there. "He can't hate you. How could he possibly? Maybe he's worried too. Maybe he's wondering what you'll think of him, but I'm sure he can't hate you. If your mom can still care about him, then no matter what he's done over the years with Team Rocket, there's no way he could hate his own son."

xoxox xox xoxox

At the Viridian City gym, Giovanni and Delia were in one of the rooms. The door was locked and no one would interrupt them. The conversation would not be easy and there was no way to make it so. Delia had taken a moment to wash her face and try to calm down. She splashed cold water on her face, then looked up from the sink to the bathroom mirror. Her face made it obvious how much she had cried. She took a soft towel and gently dried her face. 

Taking a deep breath, she headed out of the bathroom and into the connecting room. Giovanni was there, sitting on an expensive couch that she didn't care to admire. Her eyes were locked on his, but after a second he looked away. She approached and sat down at his side, searching for his eyes with hers. He was lost in thought and didn't breathe a word. With a deep sigh, Delia began, "what happened to Aayla's daughter?"

The conversation was barely starting and it was already taking a dark path. "She's dead. I was informed she passed away a few hours ago." He had received the call when he was on his way back to the mansion.

"How?" Delia kept her question simple; she feared that her voice would turn increasingly shaky if she spoke too much.

"Poisona stole her blood, the virus, and spread it. By the time we took her into custody it was too late. She was alive, just barely. We tried to keep her alive, but it wasn't enough. She was in a coma, clinging to life by a thread without most of her blood. Her body wouldn't accept normal blood for long. The doctors struggled to keep her alive but couldn't. She needed her own blood, but that was impossible to recover. It had been put in food, human food. Countless people consumed it and acquired the virus. They're out there, they don't know it, but to pokemon they are like poison. The virus was stretched thin and not very effective at first, but it grew, it's becoming unstoppable. I've managed to keep the base mostly clean, but it wasn't Team Rocket that Poisona was aiming for. She aimed for Kanto, for those who didn't expect it. Many of the nurse Joys are suspected to be infected, killing while they try to heal," after the confession was finished, Giovanni once again fell silent. His voice was paused with force neutrality. His expression hid discomfort and his eyes reflected thought.

Delia took in all the information. She had felt so much, so intensely, that she didn't know what to feel anymore. "What happened to the third survivor?" She referred to the three clones, no, the three boys, who had survived such terrible trials years ago. One of them was an urban legend, the Bloody Killer. The other one was a loyal Rocket, Comet. The third was still a mystery to Delia. She remembered Binks mentioning him, calling him number ten.

Giovanni didn't reply right away, he wasn't sure what Delia meant by her question, "survivor?" He finally inquired, his gaze still lost to hers.

"Comet's brother," Delia clarified, though she didn't know if she should call him that. Comet was different, he had no modifications. When they met as she ventured into the Viridian gym, she didn't see anything that could indicate he was different from a normal person. Regardless of his origins, he was indeed human. She remembered wondering about who was Comet's mother. She remembered wondering if she still lived. A cold chill went down her spine. She left the topic of number ten on hold and asked, "what does Comet think about his mother?"

Giovanni had to pause for a moment before replying, "he doesn't know he never had one." The very mention of Comet's name brought that image to mind. The memory of the young boy asking his father questions that Luke, out of mercy, didn't want to answer. Then the memory would turn into a figment of his imagination and mold into something else. The boy's hair was no longer red, it was black. The one he was asking was someone else and the question was about his father. The shadowy figure became clearer, he was asking Delia. Giovanni could feel the urgency in the boy's voice. Then the boy turned around, expression saddened, he was Ash. "He must have assumed she died. He must have assumed Luke was too sad to speak of her." Did Ash assume his father was dead in the past? Did he believe Delia had locked away his memories in sorrow?

Delia struggled to find her voice before finally speaking, "he needs to know. I know it sounds cruel, but he needs to know. He has the right to know. When things calm down, I'll talk to Luke." When things calm down, later, not now, it all felt too familiar. "No, after we're done talking, I'm talking to Luke. The more he waits, it'll just get worse. I'm not letting him continue making my mistakes. Every person deserves to know where they came from. I believe that not knowing hurts more than the truth. No one deserves such uncertainty." Determined, she took a deep breath and returned to their previous topic. "Tell me about the third survivor please."

"Number ten was here," Giovanni could feel Delia's upset eyes on him at the mention of a number. He knew she could never consider those experiments to be experiments and nothing more. After Comet became a Rocket, he was another agent and a competent one at that. Giovanni had all but forgotten his origins. Luke cared about him so much; he cared as a true father would. Not that Giovanni felt he could know. He didn't have a father, just a mother who saw him as a hindrance more often then not, as far as he could remember from his late childhood and teen years. He couldn't speak from experience either. His thoughts kept going back to Ash over and over.

"What happened to him?" Delia prompted Giovanni to continue after a long silence passed.

Giovanni tried to focus on the present instead of on his own thoughts. He didn't know what was wrong with him. He had done so much. He wasn't bothered by such things before. Why did his son's apparent rejection, though Delia had tried to excuse it, bother him so much? Why couldn't he get Ash out of his head? Why couldn't he focus like he used to? "I don't know where he is," he finally answered Delia's question. "He disappeared one day, no one knows how. There were suspects but..." he paused as if remembering a detail, his face contorting with anger.

"What is it?" Delia insisted that he voiced his thoughts.

"Iblis," the name was spoken with absolute hatred. "Looking back on it, the pattern fits. The so called suspects were set up by her. She must have stolen number... the other survivor. They're not like Comet. Comet wasn't altered. The others are different. They were altered; they're inhumanly strong, but also traitorous and unstable. The third survivor was in a coma, he woke up on occasion but he was too aggressive to let him go anywhere. He barely responded to words. It was strange, it was as if everything terrified him and the only thing he knew how to do was destroy it. Anything that moved or made a sound, he wanted to destroy it, anything that lived, he wanted to kill it. He's out there, it's the only explanation. He's out there."

Delia couldn't imagine such a miserable being ever existed, one that was created from Luke's DNA as the base. Comet was the only one who was spared, the only one who received a chance to live as a human. Was the third survivor going to become another Bloody Killer? Delia became pale as she remembered a conversation she had with Ash. He had told her about how he and his friends heard a horror story about a serial killer, as they passed through a town in Johto. They had camped out that night and stayed up late telling horror stories, trying to see who was the bravest. 

Delia thought it was all fiction. It was too terrible to be real. As Ash repeated some of the stories she even laughed at how exaggerated they sounded. Who would believe that? It had to be something purposely made to frighten people, not reality. The first survivor became a legend. The Bloody Killer was out there and possibly another one, but that other one could be being controlled by Iblis.

To be Continued

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 087: Give Me Reassurance

At the Pallet House, the atmosphere had quieted. The occasional murmurs and playful laughter had faded as the pokemon gathered to listen to Ash. 

"Life has a lot of twists and turns, doesn't it?" Misty voiced softly. She and Ash were still close together, as if they had melted into one.

"Yeah, it's pretty crazy," Ash breathed a little easier after letting out his bottled up confusion. "If a few years ago someone told me we would be so involved with the mafia, there's no way I would believe them. Maybe things really will work out," he tried to be optimistic.

"We'll make things work out," Misty tried to stay positive as well. This time the situation was far more complicated than a battle against an opposing force. This time, it all blended together and such different people needed to coexist. 

Ash took his cell phone, which was all but forgotten on his belt and look at it with indecision. He opened it and looked at the contact list, pausing on his mother's new number.

"Call, if it will make you feel better, call her, she won't mind," Misty encouraged.

Ash nodded, then went back to staring at his cell phone. "I was thinking about sending him a message, a voice mail through mom's phone. Am I a coward?"

"Not at all," Misty soothed, "you can talk face to face when you're ready.

Ash pressed the button to bring up the options and chose to record a voice mail. "Hi mom, it's me Ash... but you already know that from the number and because you're hearing me," he stopped, he didn't mean to ramble. He deleted the recording and tried again. He took a deep breath and began, "mom, could you let dad listen to this message?" Dad, the word felt so foreign. It was as if he was speaking in an unknown language he was anything but fluent in, unsure of what his words meant. "I just wanted to let you know that I'm sorry for running off, I hope that didn't disappoint you too much. I just needed some time to think, but I want to talk to you in person soon." Ash summoned all his courage, this was more difficult than any other challenge he had ever faced. "I'll return tomorrow evening, I promise." That was the entirety of the message. He sent it before he changed his mind and watched the confirmation on the screen.

Misty gave him a reassuring smile, which made Ash smile back. He gave himself some extra time to think, giving his parents some time as well. He made a promise so he wouldn't run away again, to keep his will strong.

xoxox xox xoxox

At the Viridian gym, though Delia tried to stop it from happening, as she sat there alone with Giovanni, she saw it in her mind. She saw the dangers that were more than just urban legends. She pushed the images away and told her imagination to keep quiet. She enjoyed horror movies, though more so about mysteries and ghosts and not about gore. The reason for that was that it amused her how far the imagination would go; she didn't believe any of it. 

To think that such events could be real sounded absurd, but it wasn't, not as long as he was out there. It was sad, that killer never decided to be a murderer, he never decided anything. He was turned into a being driven by instinct, it was as if his will had been stolen from him and he was condemn to suffer. "Look at me," she finally spoke.

Giovanni noticed then that he had been indeed avoiding her gaze. He expected to see her upset, angry and resentful, maybe even horrified and afraid. When he looked into her eyes, he found nothing but endless understanding and it confused him. "Delia..." her name escaped him as nothing but a whisper.

"You don't have to look away from me. You can tell me everything; you can tell me your mistakes. I won't hate you for it, just please, don't keep it all bottled up. Please, allow me to try to make it better," she hugged him tightly with full trust.

He returned the embrace, "you're too forgiving." He honestly expected her to at least scold him. She had scolded him for less in the past, though she was always forgiving in the end. She was always willing to put their differences aside and let things go after she spoke her disapproval. This time was different and he didn't know what made her react that way, as if she could see he simply didn't have the energy to argue. Did he look that exhausted, that troubled?

"I love you," her voice was so sweet and tender; he had to stare at her for a moment, taking in every detail of her expression. Supporting, loving, understanding, sincere, beautiful in so many ways.

"I love you too," their lips met, slowly, sweetly, gently at first. Then with a turmoil of emotion, their bodies locked in a tight embrace. For a moment, all was serenity amidst the chaos. 

The moment was interrupted by the sound of a cell phone receiving a message. Though it was different from the insistent sound of an incoming call, Delia's mind went to Ash and she slowly pulled away. "Let me see if that's Ash," she examined the little cell phone's screen to find that it was indeed Ash sending the message, it was a voice mail.

xoxox xox xoxox

Hours passed and the night gave way to morning. The day promised to be eventful. There were several enemies still on the loose that could make a move at any moment. Then, in the evening, Ash would return to meet his parents at the mansion. Giovanni wasn't sure what he would say to Ash, but had a feeling that he would find out soon enough. He expected Ash to have thought of his questions by then, he had a lot of things to answer. 

Though Delia didn't elaborate too much upon it, she said enough, "let's show Ash the better side of Team Rocket." She didn't want more tension and distance to be created. She certainly didn't want true anger to emerge.

It wasn't until that morning when Delia went through with her determination to speak to Luke. She smiled at Giovanni as cheerful as she could manage without being forceful of her expression, "I'll take care of giving Luke some advice." She set her mind on optimism and the thought that things were on their way to improve. The only unresolved aspect that still plagued her mind was the virus. As for Iblis and the clones, or as she called them, the survivors, she believed it was within Team Rocket's grasp to solve those problems if they really tried. It was about time Team Rocket stopped turning away and took responsibility.

While Delia was gone, Giovanni occupied himself with some Team Rocket work. After a while, he found he couldn't concentrate and his mind wandered into the battle field. He couldn't precise why, but that moment during the tournament at the Viridian Stadium, when his eyes met Ash's, resurfaced in his memories. He remembered seeing how Ash guided his pokemon; he remembered the trust between them that somehow seemed to amplify their power. He wanted to battle Ash and wondered if Ash wanted to battle him too. He knew it would happen one way or another, perhaps that particular destiny had already been decided the second their eyes met. He couldn't help it but to anticipate it and prepare his pokemon.  

xoxox xox xoxox

Meanwhile, Delia and Luke had found a quiet spot in one of the gym's above ground conference rooms. Luke had gone on and on about his relief that Comet was healed. "So he's like back in training, you know? He like took like a lot of sick days and like wasted his break, you know? Comet like never really had like trouble staying in shape so I like think he'll do fine. He like got a lot of medical tests, you know? They say he's like perfectly healthy, man! I'm like so relieved, dudette."

Delia smiled sincerely, "that's wonderful, I'm so happy Comet is alright. Shouldn't he take some time to rest though?"

"Nah, don't like worry," Luke sounded sure of it, "everything's okay now, you know? It's all like good, like more good things will like come, I'm like sure, you know? We have to like totally stay positive, dudette."

"Yes, you're right, we really need to stay positive," Delia agreed then paused. She didn't know how to address the subject and Luke was giving her a confused and curious look. "The truth," she finally began, "have you considered telling him the truth?"

Luke was speechless for a moment. He stared at Delia, at the wall behind her, at the table, at his fidgeting gloved hands, then back at Delia. "Like why?"

"Because if you don't, he'll always have doubts," Delia pleaded. She expected convincing Luke would be difficult. Furthermore, some sort of proof might be needed or Comet might have even bigger doubts. She wouldn't run off to tell him herself, that was something his father had to do. "Doubts are painful; you should tell him the truth. The sooner you tell him, the better, right away if possible."

"Alright, I'll like totally tell him, you know?" Luke nodded with determination and maintained a smile.

"What..." Delia began to ask, her voice fading into nothing. She opened and closed like a Magikarp, eyes wide with questions.

Luke's smile never faltered, "I like trust you, you know? If you like say it's like best to tell him the truth, then I'll like tell him the truth, you know?"

"You trust me that much," Delia voiced softly, her surprise evident.

"Like totally!" Luke's smile grew, "you have like never given me bad advice, you know? I like totally trust you, dudette. I'll like totally like tell him right away, man!" With those words spoken, Luke got up and exited the conference room.

With her shock still frozen in her face, Delia bolted from her seat to see Luke jogging down the hall and disappearing past a corner. Unable to find her voice, she could do nothing more than to run after him. This was Luke, he talked funny, he wrote funny, he could be a little impulsive. Delia called out, "stop the elevator!" And dashed into the enclosed space where Luke was.

"Dudette, are you like okay?" Luke seemed surprise that she would run after him after he had promptly left to do what she suggested. Wasn't this what he was supposed to do?

Delia took a deep breath and nodded, "you need to phrase it properly." This was Luke, cheerful carefree Luke, but he wouldn't underestimate the consequences, would he? 

"You like don't need to like worry, you know? Giovanni like gets annoyed when I like write like this, you know? But he like doesn't like mind like so much when I like talk like this, you know? Comet like understands, you know?" Once again, Luke's smile never faltered through his whole explanation as the elevator carried them below ground.

"I'm not talking about grammar, or verbal grammar," Delia tried to explain herself, wondering how it was possible that Comet didn't pick that up. Maybe Giovanni was so annoyed by Luke's reports that he made sure someone taught Comet how to speak and write with more clarity. They exited the elevator and walked towards a... subway? The underground train was black with red Rs on its sides. Its surface was polished and glossy as it sat elegantly on silver rails. 

Rockets of various ranks came in and out of the train Luke was heading towards. Amazed by the sight, Delia followed him wordlessly. It was as if Team Rocket was a whole different society with its vast underground city. She knew about it, but seeing it was different, she never tried exploring this far before. Some of the Rockets looked at her curiously, recognizing her as the woman whom their boss was dating, but no one dared to say anything to her.

Some seats were coincidentally free right ahead as they walked through the wagon. They sat down and Delia took in the atmosphere. Some Rockets looked energetic and others a little tired, faces still flustered from their training sessions. Some had damp hair as if they had been swimming or had recently taken a shower. Some carried bags, varying in size.

The automatic train stopped on several occasions with a recorded voice reminding the passengers of their location. Upon hearing the announcement of "Aquatic Circuit XL" Luke got out of the train along with Delia.

She breathed deeply as she followed him through the training facilities. "I'll leave you to talk to Comet in private, just be tactful." Luke nodded and Delia's worries subsided, "I know you'll do fine. Comet will appreciate it, I'm sure of it."

Luke was about to reply, but he was interrupted by Laiki's loud squeal of "Delia!" The blond girl was wearing a rather small green bikini that matched her eyes. She walked with two men, one at each side, their arms linked with hers. Their faces hinted that they were still new to Team Rocket, as their surroundings still had them in awe. Furthermore, they were surprised by the casual tone Laiki used to refer to Lady Roketto. "Welcome to paradise!" She let go of her conquests and rushed towards Delia. "Have you come to partake in the awesome activity of man watching? If you have, I won't tell the boss, I promise!"

"Actually," Delia shifted somewhat embarrassed, "I just walked over here with Luke because we were talking. Now he has to go talk to Comet." She had been so focused on the situation with Luke and Comet, that she didn't really took notice of the multitude of people in swimsuits of varied sizes and styles all around her. 

"Dudette, do you like know where he is?" Luke inquired naturally. He grew up as a beach loving surfer; there was little he had not already seen. The atmosphere all around them felt very natural and not at all awkward to him.

"He's getting ready for the race, it should be fun. Let's go watch from up there!" Laiki excitedly pointed at a balcony above their heads, stretching out from the wall above the entrance.

"That sounds fun," Delia automatically agreed, though she was honestly curious about the race Laiki mentioned. The area identified as Aquatic Circuit XL was a vast tunnel that stretched out left and right, with people coming and going walking along the pool. 

From that level, Delia could see a pair of long pools side by side, with some space between them. They must be extremely deep underground, since the ceiling was so tall and Giovanni wouldn't risk the facilities being discovered. The structure was made of silvery metal, it was the same strong seismic proof enforced material used in other areas of the headquarters. The large square lamps on the ceiling would at first glance appear to be a sort of sunroof in a very sunny day, but they were artificial lights. 

Delia, Luke, Laiki and her two admirers used an elevator to go up to the balcony. Laiki had not stopped talking the whole way there. "So I told Pixel, you have to come and see Comet race, he's really good at it. Do you know what she told me? She said she had some studying to do. I mean come on, at this rate they'll never get together if she keeps picking codes over him, not that his fan girls would mind. Either way, Comet doesn't like clingy girls. He likes a girl who picks violent video games over romance movies and mystery meat pizza from the cafeteria over a candlelit dinner." Not to mention she would probably add chocolate syrup to it, because Pixel would add chocolate syrup to anything.

Laiki continued after pausing to take in a deep breath, "speaking of which, I never thought he'd find one to suit his taste, but he did. Pixel is so unromantic, but then again, Comet wouldn't know romance if it punched him in that handsome face of his. I keep telling him, listen Comet, I know you're hot but fan service can only get you so far. Did he listen? Of course he didn't! Then I told Pixel that her geekyness was a turn off for guys, but did she listen to me? No she didn't! They even have that in common, they don't follow my advice! Then she's suddenly all buddy-buddy with Comet, even if she hardly said hello to him the first time they met. They became friends over video games and action movies and you can practically smell the attraction."

With another deep breath, Laiki proceeded, "did you know Pixel's been here for a while? I used to call her rookie because she was like a rookie, not having found her place in Team Rocket. It's not like that anymore; she's really on track now. The point is, that they've known each other long enough to know they like each other. I told Comet, I told him, you listen here, you're never going to find a girl who's as dismissive of monthaversaries and other such occasions as this one. She's the only one who's not even going to notice if you happen to forget one or all of them. She's the only one that is most likely to laugh at sweet talk instead of appreciating it. She's the one who will actually like to hear things simple and direct. I told him to go for it, I really did!"

Laiki's incessant rant continued, her words came out at an almost inhumanly high speed. "Do you know what Pixel said? She goes and says that she's only into guys that are older than her. Then she makes it sound like three years are three hundred! I've dated with a seven year difference on both directions and it went just fine! So I dared Pixel to come over here and watch Comet race. Maybe she just needs some fan service to motivate her that they really are perfect for each other." 

"Then they can have their unromantic relationship and discuss virtual weaponry while hunting down alien pokemon in a simulated world. They can continue acting as if they're just friends and the world can remain oblivious to what happens behind closed doors. Because you know," Laiki paused to wink, "unromantic people are still human after all."

"Laiki," the familiar voice of Pixel interrupted Laiki's rant, as the other young woman made her arrival known. She crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow, "too Torchic to come watch, am I?"

"You came!" Laiki cheered.

Delia's unvoiced thoughts were 'not a moment too soon.' Luke was too dizzy to think at all, he gripped the railing to avoid losing his balance. Delia wanted to lend an ear, she really did. After all, Laiki had grown up without a mother. She had Binks, but he was troubled, plus he was a man and she clearly had the necessity for girl talk. Still, she had to question how healthy it was to listen to this girl go on and on about her friends. Laiki's two admirers had fled, unable to follow her quick words and afraid they would be pushed to insanity.

From the balcony, Delia could see that the two long pools were actually one gigantic oval shaped pool. At the starting line, there were several Rockets riding on water pokemon. Pillars came up from the bottom of the pool, rising above the water. The mechanism on the pillars activated, splitting them into two hexagonal hoops, one above the other. Comet was at the starting line with Gyarados. His opponents were a brown haired man on a Tentacruel, a blond woman on a Milotic and a blond man on a Blastoise.

Rockets were free to sign up for a variety of events as many times as they wished, or had time for during the week. These events, albeit viewed by many as recreation, served as training and were lucrative to Team Rocket through bets and entry fees. Most of the time it was the fans who purchased entry tickets for their favorite contestants, in hopes of seeing them in action again. The prizes, aside from bragging rights, consisted of Rocket points, which were received or lost depending on one's ranking and record. Those points contributed a bonus to the rank score, sometimes being enough to make the difference between one rank and the next. The rank in turn decided certain benefits that included, but were not limited to, the type of mission assignments and payment. Of course, there were also missions that had special requirements aside from rank.

Once a week, four contestants would be chosen for the championship race. They would be: the contestant with the fastest racing record over all, the fastest record for the week, the largest total number of wins over all and the largest number of wins for the week. If one person held more than one of those titles, the runner ups for the titles that were repeated would face off for a chance to fill up the open spot. If any of those titles were held by two or more people, there would be a tie breaker race to determine who would go to the championship. If the holder of any of those titles could not be present, the title would not be lost, as the reason could be something more important, such as an official mission. However, for that week, the runner up would fill in the empty space. Tie breakers were in order if more than one runner up existed. The weekly championship wins were counted separately from the regular victories.

"The Electric Ring Race weekly championship will no longer be taking bets," the announcer sounded a lot like Jango. He had served as the referee in the Viridian Stadium tournament. "Let's get ready to race! Back for a rematch, we have Tyson riding on Tentacruel. He posted the fastest time of the week. Tyson came close to winning last week's championship race, giving our next contestant quite a challenge. Attila is a fierce competitor who joins the races very often. With his Blastoise, he holds the record for most wins overall." 

Jango's voice came from seemingly everywhere, "enjoying a winning streak, we have the beauty of the Aquatic Circuit, Domino. Riding on her elegant Milotic, she had the most wins this week. Finally, after being absent from last week's championship, we have the return of Comet, riding on Gyarados. Comet holds the fastest time overall and is tied with Attila for most championship wins."

Jango then made a quick recap of the rules, "both the pokemon and the trainer need to pass through each of the seven sets of circles. You do not need to stay in your initial lane. If you miss a ring, you can't move on until you succeed in the jump. On your marks, ready... Go!" A loud sound reminiscent of a gunshot rung out, though it was only a recording.

To be Continued

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 088: Give me Purpose

In the Aquatic Circuit XL, underground at Viridian, Blastoise, Tentacruel, Milotic and Gyarados launched forward in the pool, speedily surfing along the water. As they approached the first jump, Delia noticed the rings were electrified. The hoops were large enough for fully evolved pokemon to jump through, but touching the edges would be painful. The water pokemon jumped through the lower hoops almost in unison. The trainers jumped through the higher rings, landing on their pokemon's back on the other side. As they progressed through the lap, the circles were a little higher.

The balcony soon became crowded with spectators witnessing the race. The lower part of the floor was also crowded with people watching the competition unfold. They were getting drenched being so close to the pool, but they didn't seem to care, caught in the excitement of the race. The racers were almost to the turn of the oval shaped pool on one of the far sides. There was another hoop there, which was a difficult move.

"Gyarados' body is so long and that turn looks difficult. He would have to fly to get through that without touching the hoop," Delia watched with concern.

"Even if they like touch the hoops, the electricity isn't like enough to like seriously hurt, it'll just like sting, you know? It'll like get stronger, but it's like still not that bad, you know?" Luke's dizziness from Laiki's speech seemed to have considerably dissipated as he focused on watching the race.

Gyarados leapt from the water, the turns on either side of the oval shaped watery race track were the hardest part. His long body was almost through as the pull of gravity inevitably acted against him. The long water pokemon's tail touched the large ring, which let out a blast of electricity. He growled in protest, his wet scales transferring some of the shock to his trainer. However, they were far from out of the race. They continued on as if nothing happened, racing through the other side of the giant pool. 

Domino wasn't so lucky. Milotic screeched and contorted with the jolt of electricity that took her by surprise after miscalculating the jump. She threw her trainer into the water below. They would not be disqualified, but would lose precious time as the other contestants moved further ahead. 

The race continued with the circles becoming higher. At the third jump, Tyson, Attila and Comet were head to head. As they passed by, water splashed up to the people in the balcony, though they were high and far enough so that only a few drops reached them. On the forth ring, Domino started to catch up. Approaching the fifth hoop, Comet took to the inner side of the pool, with Gyarados jumping through the second one from the inside. Closing in on the sixth jump, they went even closer to the inner area. It might have been the shortest route to the goal, but it was the most difficult jump to make due to the sharp turn.

"Why is he getting closer? Isn't it easier on the further side?" Delia's voice was barely audible over the cheers of the crowds. 

"It's like too high and Gyarados is like too long, you know? He'll like touch the ring anyway, you know? Like only one of the rings like electrocutes at the same time. I like think Comet's like going to take the hit, it's like allowed, you know? You should like see the rookies like racing or like trying to race. They like fall off and sometimes like climb the pillars because their pokemon can't like jump like high enough while like carrying them, you know? Almost everything's allowed except like switching pokemon, or like attacking someone else, or like skipping a ring. If you like know your pokemon will touch the ring anyway, you can like touch it yourself and like take the hit," Luke explained.

"If the pokemon faints it's an instant loss," Laiki elaborated, "but that only really happens with rookies. Gyarados can take the hit; Comet just wants to make it easier for him."

The sixth jump happened as they had expected, with Comet choosing to go through the most difficult route in hopes of claiming a solid lead. He watched for the timing and reached for the ring as Gyarados slipped through it. The electricity was stronger than in the past rings. Attila fell a little behind, having decided that he wanted to avoid the delay that it may cause if his Blastoise touched the circle. Attila jumped through the third one from the inside. Tyson took the second hoop from the inside, along with the second place so far.

Attila refused to give up; this race would decide who held the top spot in championship wins. There was only one jump left and Comet was perfectly positioned to take the innermost ring. Since there was no turn involved, it would be easier even if it was the highest jump. Attila pushed his Blastoise to go faster and momentarily passed Tyson. Attila was aiming for the second innermost ring so that he would come out next to Comet, rather than directly behind him. Tyson refused to let it go and the two men guided their pokemon to jump through the second innermost ring. At the same time, Domino, jumped through the third ring from the inside, determined to make a strong final effort. Unlike Attila and Tyson, she had nothing to collide with.

Attila and Tyson's Blastoise and Tentacruel bumped into each other as they passed through the ring, throwing their trainers off. The two pokemon were uncomfortably stuck in the ring simultaneously, before finally squeezing through together. Attila and Tyson had landed in the water near each other and were fighting. Another Rocket with a whistle called their attention and they swam away from each other, glaring daggers. Attila and Tyson got out of the pool, knowing of the repercussions that came from causing unnecessary fights within the base, which may disturb the training activities.

Without looking back, Comet had already crossed the finish line and claimed the victory for the race. The triumph also broke the tie for most championship wins, which he previously had with Attila. Domino took second place, while Attila and Tyson were declared disqualified due to having attacked each other. They would still be able to continue racing next time, since the fight didn't become serious enough to merit anything beyond a warning. The look Attila gave the others made it clear he would return the following week and expected them to be there. A championship win was still counted even if the previous week's champion wasn't present, but Attila wanted a rematch and Comet was all up for it.

The crowd dispersed with some running off to collect their winnings and others ready to count their losses. Some went to congratulate the winner and others discussed the most exciting parts of the race with their friends. The pillars with the pairs of hexagonal rings became straight again and sunk beneath the water of the pool. The island in the pool's center sunk as well, with the water level going down to fill up the space. The water was filled up to the proper level again as they got ready for some other type of competition.

Delia smiled seeing that there was a good amount of control over the sport. Plus the rings really weren't as dangerous as she thought. Nearly lost in the crowds, Delia managed to keep an eye on Comet as he made his way past the multitude, occasionally stopping to exchange a few words with people. He headed for some doors on the far wall. People were coming and going from the large double doors, men through the left and women through the right. He was probably heading to the lockers to get dressed. "Good luck," she smiled at Luke reassuringly.

"It'll be like okay, because you said so, you know?" With confidence, Luke walked off to the elevator disappearing out of sight. 

Delia was left to wonder if her judgment really should be trusted that much. The atmosphere was so cheerful that she felt optimistic as she realized, "Ash would love to try this."

xoxox xox xoxox

Meanwhile, in a small cottage, north of Ecruteak City, Iblis paced around impatiently. There was a teenager tied to a chair. The small structure of the cottage was otherwise furnished with an old wooden table and three other chairs, one of them lopsided. The effects of the induced sleep had since worn off and the boy was glaring daggers at his captor. He reminded her of both Ash and Giovanni, it was unnerving. 

Iblis knew she couldn't risk going back for Ash, certainly not in broad daylight. She should have guessed that the capture was far too easy. "It doesn't matter," she thought aloud. "Sweet Delia will come for you anyway," she laughed like a witch from a fairytale, determined to make the protagonist miserable. She was in an especially rotten mood due to her plans failing one after another. To top it all up, that clone she worked so hard to get out of the Rocket lab had escaped. She had no idea where number ten could have gone.

"Why are you doing this? Why Delia? What did she ever do to you?" Vandel, alias Skye, asked from his position tied to the chair. She had taken his pokeball containing the green Bulbasaur and had it on her belt. 

"She stole him from me," Iblis growled bitterly, "I was to become the queen of the world and she stole everything from me!"

"I see..." Vandel closed his eyes in thought, "so that's what happened, you intend to kill her."

"I will!" Iblis raged, "she'll come for you even if you're not Ash. You'll just have to be enough."

"I don't think Ash would have been captured," Vandel mused, "I don't know what happened, what would have happened or what will happen, but it seems I found the cause."

"Stop your stupid ramblings!" Her eyes threatened to silence him permanently if he didn't shut up.

Vandel grinned, much like Giovanni when he was feeling victorious. His eyes shone with a special kind of determination, the kind found in Ash's eyes. "I guess I'm no longer taking random guesses, that's good to know." With one swift motion, Vandel was on his feet at an odd angle, with his ankles strapped to the chair's legs. He quickly spun around knocking Iblis back with the chair and simultaneously knocking one of her pokeballs off her belt. It was Bulbasaur; he saw the scratches from when Givan batted it away with his claws the previous day, sending the pokeball crashing into the wall. That earned him a protest of disapproval from Dia, who thought that calling out Bulbasaur for dinner could have been done more gently.

"Saur?" The little green Bulbasaur didn't recognize his surroundings and was instantly frightened. His fear grew upon seeing his trainer tied to a chair, struggling to stop some scary lady from taking aim with her gun. He was using the chair to tackle her backwards, trying to make her lose her grip on the weapon.

"Bulbasaur, razor leaf on me!" Vandel ordered with such authority that Bulbasaur dared not question it. The small green pokemon attacked his own trainer, successfully freeing him of the ropes that had bound him to the chair. A few small cuts were also inflicted upon him, but he didn't seem to care. 

"You insolent fool; you're going to die for this!" Iblis was finally able to aim. However, her gun shot missed Vandel as small vine whips wrapped around her arm and pulled.

Wasting no time, Vandel kicked the gun out of her hand and delivered a solid punch to the face, which left Iblis in a pained daze. "Saving Delia is what I've been training for. You might have killed her the first time, but not this time. This time, I'm here; this time, the great fall will be prevented." The boy picked up the gun from the floor. "If I kill you, you won't be able to kill her." He aimed for her head at point blank; she was still too dazed from the hit to try to get away. It would be hopeless anyway.

"Bulbasaur!" Frightened, the small green pokemon wrapped one of his vine whips around his trainer's wrist. "Saur!" He shook his head.

"Mind your own business," Vandel harshly pulled the vine whip away. "You have no idea what the future is like, this is to save your kind as well."

"Gengar, Alakazam," Iblis weakly released her pokemon. They were trained for interrogations, not battles. She knew there wasn't much they could do. However, if they served as her shield, that would be enough.

The door to the cottage was suddenly knocked down by a large, strong Persian. He was quick to attack the Alakazam and Gengar slashing at them in rapid succession. Iblis watched in horror, fearing for her life, "confuse ray, hypnosis, fight back!" The Alakazam and Gengar, who had been forcefully evolved, were helpless against the Persian. They were knocked out easily.

"Givan," Vandel immediately recognized his own pokemon, lowering his weapon. "How did you find me?"

Givan shook his head, indicating that this was not the proper time to discuss such details. Besides, he wasn't wearing his collar, so Vandel wouldn't understand him anyway. Furthermore, he didn't know the answer to that himself. He just knew that the cottage was the enemy's hideout. When he went to check on Vandel and realized he was missing from Pallet Town, he went to find him there. 

It was one of those random thoughts that surfaced without explanation. It was an inexplicable answer that he knew but shouldn't know. It was almost as if he could vaguely remember bits and pieces of things he couldn't have witnessed. Givan's silent gestures were enough to communicate that they should give Iblis to Team Rocket alive. After all, Dia would strongly disapprove if he allowed the boy to have any blood on his hands.  

xoxox xox xoxox

At the Team Rocket Viridian base, among the spectators of the Aquatic Circuit XL, Laiki had suddenly frozen and fallen silent after Luke left. Delia was there when Giovanni brought the cure, she probably knew the truth.

"Laiki?" Pixel waved her hand in front of the blond girl's face. "I think she's experiencing a mental blue screen."

After a few more seconds, Laiki finally blinked, "this is a totally crazy theory, but I have to ask," she paused and looked at Delia seriously. "When you mentioned Luke had to talk to Comet, you didn't mean about... his... origin... did you?"

"Actually, yes," Delia admitted, further questioning if she should have encouraged that or not. The way Laiki's jaw dropped and she experienced, as Pixel would say, another mental blue screen, wasn't exactly encouraging. 

"What origin?" Pixel curiously inquired.

"Um... ah... er..." Laiki babbled before blurting out, "Comet is long lost royalty!"

Laiki's announcement was something that neither Pixel nor Delia believed. "Long lost royalty, right. Who is his majesty Comet related to?" Pixel further inquired, wondering what crazy story Laiki would come up with. Her question about the mysterious detail, that both Laiki and Delia seemed to know about, was still present in her mind. If they didn't tell her, she would get some information out of Comet later. Besides, how secret could his origin be?

"Well you see," Laiki began her explanation in all seriousness. "I happen to know that the daughter, of the son, of the aunt, of Comet's father, is dating the long lost prince of our secret and proud kingdom. So that means that if they get married, she would be the princess. Which means that Comet would have a... um... what do you call the daughter, of the son, of the aunt, of your father anyway?"

"The son of your aunt would be your cousin, so this is the daughter of Luke's cousin we're talking about," Pixel mused. 

The conversation took another casual turn and Delia decided to go along with it. "Right, if your father's cousin is your second cousin, I think that the daughter of your father's cousin would be your third cousin," Delia reasoned.

"Right," Laiki nodded, "one day, Comet's third cousin might become royalty for all we know."

"That makes him a royal how?" In Pixel's opinion, the relation, if it were real, was far too distant to mean anything.

"By the marriage of his third cousin," Laiki didn't really know how to support her point beyond that. "I don't know how close that is to actually happening, maybe Delia can tell us."

"Me?" Delia blinked, was she supposed to add something to the fairytale? 

Laiki nodded energetically at the prospect of hearing some interesting information. "You're the queen after all, you should know."

Delia paused and allowed the influx of information to wash over her. If she was the queen in Laiki's story, that meant the so called kingdom was Team Rocket, of which Giovanni was the king. That would make Ash the prince and the future princess was, "Misty?"

"Yup," Laiki chirped, "I happen to know that her father was Luke's cousin, the son of his aunt."

"Wow, I guess there are more family connections than I thought," Delia laughed. She had learned a lot of interesting things as of her return to Team Rocket. Daisy was married to Lando, whose father and consequently he, worked for Team Rocket. Violet was dating Kenobi, the son of Rune, who was currently Viridian mayor and secretly also with Team Rocket. Kenobi was also the future mayor of Viridian City if all went according to plans. Misty was engaged to Ash, who was the son of the leader of Team Rocket. As if all those connections weren't enough, some kind of obscure distant connection had to turn up to add another drop to the already full glass. "Now that you mention it, Comet and Misty's hair color is pretty similar."

"That doesn't explain all this secrecy," Pixel pointed out the fact that she was not so easily distracted.

"Yes, well... I guess he'll tell you eventually, maybe," Laiki gave a weak forced smile before clapping her hands together and loudly declaring, "let's just forget about everything and go man watching!"

"I should go see if Giovanni needs anything," Delia decided.

"I have to keep studying codes," Pixel added.

"Fine, be that way," Laiki sighed, "ah well, maybe I should go back to my usual post now." She headed to the lockers to get dressed so she could return to the infirmary.

Unlike Laiki, Pixel was still in her Team Rocket uniform. Delia's thoughts went to Luke and Comet one more time. "Could you keep an eye on Comet for me? If he seems... sad, let me know, maybe I could help somehow." 

"Sure, no problem," Pixel's curiosity incremented with Delia's request, but she left it at that for the time being. 

xoxox xox xoxox

At the battle arena of the Viridian Gym, a newly evolved pokemon was easily beating the opponent. Delia arrived on time to catch the end of the battle between Giovanni's Rhyperior and a Rocket grunt's Mightyena. The Mightyena was knocked out and recalled into its pokeball, with an apology from the grunt for not providing a better challenge, or any challenge at all. 

"Doing some training?" Delia smiled as she approached Giovanni.

"Hardly," he replied almost amused, which was unusual given that he didn't get the challenge he wanted. He was looking forward to the challenge he would surely get from Ash.

Delia saw it coming from a mile away. They would battle; she knew it all too well. It was almost like a form of communication for pokemon trainers. She knew Ash would want to battle too and she hoped that they somehow became a little closer that way, even if it was just a tiny first step. The day felt crowded with many events, but also somehow optimistic. "I'm going to Pallet Town."

Giovanni nodded, "I'll see you this evening."

"Yes," Delia smiled, "both of us."

xoxox xox xoxox

Just outside of Pallet Town, a trainer made his way through Route One with an egg in his arms. He had traveled from the eastern edge of Kanto where the virus was at its worst. His entire pokemon team had fallen to the illness. The effects of the virus seem to lessen as he traveled to the west of Kanto and were not as strong in Johto. He didn't know how long that would last, but it was his only hope. He knew that the Oak research laboratory was in Pallet Town and intended to leave the egg there to be studied. It was all he had left of his past pokemon. 

"What does it matter, it's doomed anyway." He bitterly set the egg down on the side of the road and went on his way. He intended to get a fresh start in Johto and maybe head home to Hoenn before things got worse in Johto.

"Vulpix!" Dia had gone out to patrol the area, just in case, while Givan ran off to find Vandel. She knew that he had a point in not wanting to leave Pallet Town unguarded by someone of their team. Witnessing the trainer abandoning his pokemon, one that had not even hatched no less, she ran over to him. "Vulpix, vulpix!"

The trainer was tempted to try to catch the Vulpix which looked healthy enough, but had no way to do so. He was going to obtain a new pokemon to start with from a friend in Johto. Shaking his head, he turned around and headed away from Pallet Town, ignoring the Vulpix.

"Vulpix!" Dia called once more, but was ignored. If that's how it was, maybe the little one was better off with someone else. Dia touched the small egg, it was still warm and it twitched occasionally, it would hatch very soon. How could that trainer abandon the poor baby? Dia knew she couldn't take the child with her. When she, Givan and Vandel went home, they could only take what they came with. However, she could at least find a home for the child. She picked up the egg with one paw, holding it close to her chest, and went back to the Pallet House.

xoxox xox xoxox

It was the afternoon in Pallet Town and Vandel was getting ready to leave. "The world should be much better now." He looked at Dia, who seemed to be feeling accomplished. She had her collar back on, since they were leaving soon anyway. "All that's left to do is to give Ash the anti-paradox card." He looked around the guest room that had served as his residence during his stay at the Oak research lab. As soon as he gave Ash that card, the last piece to the puzzle would be set. "Hey Dia, what did you do with that egg you had when Givan and I got back to Pallet Town?"

"I gave it to Delia," Dia replied, her collar tracing red sound lines as she spoke. 

Dia remembered Delia wondering if the egg belonged to Dia, to which she shook her head. "An orphan?" Delia had asked, to which Dia nodded. "Do you think Skye will want to take care of it?" It was out of the question if he wanted to keep the baby pokemon or not, he couldn't anyway. Delia seemed to somehow understand and offered, "I can take care of the baby." Dia had smiled and encouraged her to do so. Delia's team then consisted of Kingler, Cloyster, Mimey, the fully recovered Oddish, whom was given back to her after healing, and a mysterious egg.

Vandel nodded, "that's good, she'll take care of it." He looked at the pokeball containing Bulbasaur. "I guess this is goodbye." He released the grass pokemon and petted him, "you're going to be the Oaks' pokemon again, I can't take you with me where we're going."

The little green Bulbasaur seemed sad, not understanding why he couldn't accompany his new trainer on his journey. He had witnessed some scary things in their short time together, but he thought that if he continued journeying with Skye and his other pokemon, it would all be for the best. "Saur?"

"Aw, it's not that we don't like you," Dia tried to console the disappointed little Bulbasaur. "It's hard to explain, we can't take anyone along that wasn't in our original group. Don't worry, the Oaks will find a new trainer for you and it'll be lots of fun."

"Bulba saur," though still a bit disappointed, the Bulbasaur at least seemed to accept the fact. 

"I'll miss you too," Dia smiled gently.

Vandel threw his backpack over his shoulders. He made sure not to leave anything behind, with the exception of the card, and not to take anything he didn't come with. "Where did Givan run off to anyway?" 

"I'm sure he'll be back soon," Dia replied and exited the guest room along with Vandel. They went to find Gary.

Gary was in the middle of typing something, apparently some kind of research. A cup of coffee was sitting next to his keyboard with pictures of the three Kanto starter pokemon. "Almost done, almost... Rejecting my article on that reason, how could they?" He muttered under his breath. "It may inspire an unnecessary panic, they say," he grumbled. "Panic is never necessary, but none the less the gravity of the situation can't be hidden for much longer. The east of Kanto is a mess," his furious typing never ceased. "Make it sound more hopeful," he grumbled, "how am I supposed to do that?" 

"Excuse me," Vandel spoke up and Gary's rambling ceased immediately.

The young researcher looked up from his computer and smiled as casually as he could. "You disappeared for a while. There was a drunken Rocket stumbling around like a zombie in town, but I didn't think that could be the cause of your little disappearance. After all, that guy was so confused and had no pokemon on him. I handed him to the police. So, where did you run off to?"

"No where important," Vandel lied, "listen, I can't really explain it, but I have to go back home. I don't think I'll return, ever. So this is goodbye, sorry it's so short notice."

Gary's expression soured, "you're worried about your pokemon, aren't you? It's because of the virus that's killed practically every pokemon in the east of Kanto; you're worried it'll reach here soon."

"That's not it," Givan and Dia were immune. However, the virus in the east was spreading fast. Maybe since the fall was adverted, the cure would come to that world sooner. Then maybe, the world from which Vandel came would be even better. It would no longer be a place where pokemon that used to be common were extremely rare. It wouldn't be a broken world, because is foundation would not have been removed; Team Rocket would still be there. "I just really need to go home. I can't take Bulbasaur with me," he handed the pokeball back to Gary. The little green Bulbasaur, who was still outside of it, sat down on the floor, next to the researcher's chair.

"Let me guess," Gary looked at him suspiciously, "you can't tell me where you're going or what your real name is?"

"How did you know?" Vandel was taken by surprise.

"I did a background check on you, just in case," Gary gave him a knowing grin. "There are no records of a Skye Mirai ever existing anywhere. That is a reason to be alarmed and suspicious, but you seemed trust worthy, so I let you stay. I don't know who you are, where you came from, why you're here or what you hoped to accomplish, but I don't think it's bad."

Vandel smirked, his eyes shone with determination and satisfaction at his mission. It was a look that Gary had seen in Ash before. That smirk was something he had seen somewhere else, in the Viridian City gym leader, though Gary wasn't immediately aware of it. "Even if I tell you the whole truth, I don't think you would believe it."

To be Continued

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 089: Give me Revelations

While Vandel gave the Oaks his goodbyes, Givan was at the Pallet House. He led Ash outside, his tail wrapped around the young man's wrist as he pulled him along. "What was it that you wanted to show me?" Ash asked with curiosity. If he didn't know any better, he would think that big Persian just wanted to lead him away from everyone else.

They had finally found a quiet spot behind the Pallet House, while Delia, Misty and the pokemon were inside. Givan began to glow and anyone else would guess he was getting ready to attack. There was something about that Persian that reminded Ash of someone. It all made him so curious he didn't move. A blast of hidden power came from Givan, the red jewel on his forehead glowing brightly.

The effect of the hidden power was unusual; it caused Ash no pain as it overtook his senses. The young man gasped in surprise, his back pressed against the wall behind the Pallet House for support. He saw his mother holding a pokemon egg, she seemed younger. He saw her leaning into a volcano, when did that happen? He saw her standing on the edge of a cliff. This was more recent, but why was she in a Team Rocket uniform? He saw her wearing the dress from Daisy's wedding. Then he saw her again, in an unknown place, with a sincere expression. He heard her voice in his mind, 'I love you.' Then he heard another voice, 'I love you too,' and the visions ended.

Ash allowed himself to slip down the wall, almost breathless. "What did you do?" The images and the feelings that went with them were still fresh in his mind. "How did you do that?" He knew then that the one who Givan reminded him of was his father. It wasn't simply because Giovanni had a Persian too; it was something else, something much deeper. It was something that few would believe, even if it was explained to them. "Was I seeing what he saw? How is that even possible?" The large Persian seemed to have no intentions of elaborating on his 'message.' Ash remained on the same spot taking in the images that he saw. 

"There you are," Vandel, alias Skye, arrived, turning the corner and walking towards the area behind the Pallet House. "What are you doing sitting there?" Still too absorbed in his thoughts, Ash couldn't reply. Vandel took something from his backpack; it appeared to be a collectible card. It was the one exception to the rule; this was something that he had to leave behind to avoid contradictions. "This is for you," he gave the card to Ash.

Ash had just barely woken up enough to receive it. "It looks rare," he finally managed to find his voice.

"It is very rare, one of the kind I would say," Vandel grinned. "Keep it safe, make sure you never lose it," he spoke as if the fate of the world depended on it. "Eventually, when years pass, give it to your descendant and keep passing it on like that."

Ash nodded, after thinking about it, Skye was pretty mysterious. He had an aura of familiarity around him. His Persian reminded Ash of his father and the Vulpix of his mother. It was inexplicable, especially after what just happened. Somehow, he felt that he could trust this boy and his pokemon. "I'll treasure it, I promise."

"Good," Vandel's usual grin turned more into an Ash-like smile. "It's time for me to go home. I already said goodbye to the Oaks and Delia. I don't think I'll come by Pallet Town again," at least not that Pallet Town, "but I'll always remember my time here."

xoxox xox xoxox

Some time later, far from Pallet Town and away from the road, Vandel, Givan and Dia stopped and looked back at the little town in the distance one last time. They had anonymously reported Iblis to Team Rocket, who had sent some agents to investigate. It would be an inexplicable shock to find her tied up in the little cottage. It would be something Giovanni could never figure out, but at least it was a step forward. However, number ten and number three were still out there.

"Ready?" Vandel looked at his two pokemon, who nodded. He took a futuristic looking communication device from his backpack, which he kept well hidden. He activated it, feeling the static and heat from the equipment as it strained to reach its counterpart. "Mission accomplished!" He victoriously declared into the device.

Through the heavy static, a barely perceptible female voice replied, "well done, I'm taking you home." The machinery in the future locked on to their position. Just as mysteriously as they came, the boy, the Persian and the Vulpix disappeared. Though the boy thought the capture of Iblis was the key to preventing the fall of Team Rocket, that was far from the truth. 

'Do you ever wonder why we're here? I think I know...'

xoxox xox xoxox

Vandel returned to his place of origin, his own time hundreds of years later. This was not an underground base, but a grand palace. Red, black and gold covered every surface. Something that seemed out of place in the splendor, were the large hole on the ceiling and the disarray of broken furniture, shattered sculptures and ruined paintings. "He came," Vandel simply stated.

His mother, Hime, looked the same as he remembered her, save for her new expensive dress. "He did," she allowed a sigh to escape her. Then she held up the collectible card, which was in fact an information storage device. Card readers capable of interpreting the encoded message it carried wouldn't exist for years. When they did, they would recognize even the very old cards, using them for simulated pokemon battles. She was destined to stumble upon some very important information when trying to play a game. She reviewed the story she had learned from the card, "long ago a terrible disaster befell Team Rocket. Delia died due to circumstances history did not remember. As a result, Ash blamed Giovanni and challenged him and Team Rocket. Some say that eventually, Giovanni lost the will to fight. Some say that Ash found a way to cause big trouble for Team Rocket. Regardless of how it happened, the point was that Team Rocket fell."

After a pause, Hime continued, "when Team Rocket fell, the world fell apart along with it. The production and commerce of most food and medicine was paralyzed. Science took a harsh blow and a terrible virus continued to spread. They say that somewhere the cure might have existed, but no one found it. As a result, the world faced a terrible dark age that Ash regretted. Picking up the pieces was nearly impossible; the world was far too broken. Time passed and pokemon became rarer, with some becoming extinct. A few species would survive in time and begin to repopulate in the wild, but many would be lost forever."

Hime contemplated the card as she spoke, "Team Rocket, what was left of it, banded together to one day reemerge. Ash tried to fix his mistake of taking Team Rocket away from a world that needed it. The damage was done, thus an ambition was born to undo it all. It has been the duty of the Roketto to seek out Celebi and ask to use its power to change the past. Hundreds of years passed and it was finally done, though not by the peaceful means our ancestor would have wanted. However, if those disasters never happened, time traveling to prevent them would not be needed. If the time travel didn't occur, the disasters would happen. They would be erased and again a contradiction. With this information, I would know to train you and send you to the past whether you grew up as the son of a fugitive or the son of a queen. The loop of changes would be ever present and history would be changed without the danger of a paradox. I've forgotten my time as a fugitive; I've always lived as royalty."

"Lucky you," Vandel chuckled, "since I was not in my original time when the change occurred, my memories are the same. I remember the broken world; I remember why I so desperately needed to change it." He looked towards the palace's ruined state, "so Mewtwo came..."

"Yes, he took Celebi and left. I believe he was always watching," Hime confessed, "I believe that it was Celebi's wish to allow us this one change. We may be Team Rocket, and Celebi's dear friends Mew and Mewtwo are certainly not fond of us, but they respected Celebi's wishes. This was for pokemon kind as well. They allowed this to happen to save the millions of pokemon and even humans, who would have died in those dark ages. Don't be fooled by this broken throne room, this is nothing, the world is grand. Pokemon are abundant, the economy is flourishing and I am the queen of everything. Team Rocket rules the world as it should."

Vandel felt a great satisfaction upon hearing this. Dia still wished that they had tried harder to make Celebi understand their reasons to borrow the power to change history. In the end, it seemed the legendary pokemon understood. Mewtwo, a good friend of Celebi, went to the rescue, freeing the time traveler pokemon of the futuristic machines when the world was saved. The world was ruled by Team Rocket, but it was prosperous, it was undeniably better than before. For the sake of the world, Team Rocket would have to be accepted. The organization was also quite different since they had their own world to protect, rather than a world to conquer.

Vandel looked beside him at Givan and Dia. They had a whole new, much better, world to explore. "Without the fall of Team Rocket, history should be clear now, more accurate and detailed records should exist. It was Iblis, wasn't it?"

"Iblis?" Hime shook her head. "I know history well, I've read about it. Iblis Raymus was indeed an enemy of the past. However, for all we know it could have been someone else who was close to killing Delia and angering Ash. Whatever was set in motion changed history. There's no longer a way for us to know what would have happened without interference. The general records are available, but the small details of the past were destined to become a mystery, no matter how precisely the new history was recorded."

Vandel was taken by surprise. He captured Iblis, but she might not have been the key to changing history? History had clearly changed; his mission had been a success. Team Rocket, never fell, Ash and Giovanni did not become true enemies. "I see..."

"You must be tired from your travels, rest prince brat boy," Vandel decided it was best to follow his mother's suggestion and rest for the time being.

Vandel Roketto, descendant of Ash and thus Giovanni, from hundreds of years into the future, found that his chambers were indeed fit for a prince. He tossed his backpack aside and allowed himself to fall into his big comfy bed. "I still don't understand. If Iblis wasn't the problem, then I didn't change anything, yet everything changed."

Givan and Dia curled up on the bed next to their trainer. "It wasn't your duty to change it," Givan spoke as if he knew far more than he was saying. 

Vandel didn't read too deeply into it, his time was safe, the world didn't fall apart, that was all that mattered. His eyes went to an old hat encased in glass, a pokemon league collectible. The world of his era was different in many ways, but he still had that hat safely kept among his belongings. He was able to learn mostly about Giovanni before, but the new Team Rocket history should remember Ash more and in a better light now.

Givan closed his eyes and slept comfortably, it had been a long journey. Perhaps the duty to change the past was his after all. Those memories of past events were truly his as well, images of another life from long ago. Dia was still there, to make sure he didn't lose his way, to support him and to remind him of what he really wanted, just like before.

xoxox xox xoxox

In the present, in the deepest underground laboratory in the Viridian Rocket base... Comet's hand went to the glass container, its coldness invading his palm. He closed his eyes and tried hard to remember. There were no memories like what one would expect from a child, no childhood to speak of. There was a cold and wet place mixed with the echo of voices. The voices were muffled and he couldn't understand them. He had not begun to live, he merely existed. 

Comet had always disregarded such thoughts as nonsense and formed his own logical theories. He had to have a mother, because someone had to give birth to him at some point. She was most likely a Rocket, because his father wouldn't have been able to have a relationship with someone who wasn't in Team Rocket, given the nature of his missions and situation. 

She must have died tragically, thus his father did not wish to speak of it or remember it. Comet himself might have been involved in that event that took his mother's life, he theorized. It was maybe that same event which erased his early childhood memories, leaving nothing but that faint gibberish of cold, wet darkness and muffled sounds. Maybe there was an accident, maybe he hit his head.

He sometimes tried to picture that mysterious lady he thought had existed at some point. Her appearance was always different every time he imagined her, since he could gather few clues about that based on himself, he looked just like his father. Lady Luck, he would call her in his thoughts, maybe that small number seven he had on his arm since before the true beginning of his memories was something from her, a sort of amulet. It was funny, because he didn't believe in leaving things to luck, maybe she had and that let to her unknown tragic demise. None of that was true, none of it was real, Lady Luck didn't exist, she never had.

He looked down at the number on the base of the tank, it was a seven. There were twelve of them, all empty now. They must have been used later for other beings, pokemon most likely, but he was one of the few humans who had originated in this laboratory equipment. They were originally on New Island, later moved to Viridian after the digging and construction was finalized. Perhaps it was more accurate to think he was the only human that had come out of it still human. Admittedly, his unusual origins didn't bother him as much as the fact that there were two insane versions of him out there. As he looked up at the glass again, he saw the faint reflection of his father standing behind him with Binks. 

The thin man, who for many years Comet had assumed was dead, looked too fragile to truly fit the profile of a mad scientist. He didn't look like he would have the strength to laugh insanely as one would expect a mad scientist to do. Another figure further away was reflected on the glass, Pixel was busy looking around curiously. She had approached them as Comet and Luke walked to a destination unknown to Comet. Luke had decided she should come and proceeded to ask for Giovanni's permission to take them both down to the lab, stating that Delia had already approved. Giovanni had agreed, letting them be on their way. The Rocket leader was rather easy to convince and eager to be left to focus his thoughts and continue his training. 

Comet turned around to face them and Luke appeared to be apologetic, "I'm like sorry I like didn't tell you like sooner, you know? It's like going to be like okay, you know?" He hurriedly added, "you're like the same as like always, you're like Comet, you can like go on living like always, you know? It's like okay, even your lover is like okay with it, man!"

"My what?" Through the stream of answers that flowed to resolve all his questions, one more question surfaced.

"Laiki like told me, you know?" Suddenly, Luke's statement made a lot more sense.

"Laiki has a big imagination," Pixel approached the others. She had been examining the lab, but also listening. "This is all really cool."

Binks observed her as if she was a strange specimen, "young lady, you are not alarmed?"

"Not really," Pixel smiled casually, "I used to live in a very lame place; stuff like this is still pretty cool to me." It wasn't exactly common in Team Rocket either, not anymore, especially not with humans. "I wish I had a story like this."

"Interesting," Binks nodded weekly, "it is not that the grass is always greener on the other side, but rather some are meant for certain shades and others for different shades. Those who know not their place will always think it is elsewhere. Those who know where they wish to be are capable of finding their place, even if it is far away from where they started." With his philosophy stated, Binks went back to staring at some beakers with fluorescent content. He mostly worked in his own little laboratory; it was nice to have some extra space to work in, even if that space brought bitter memories. The revelation of the truth and the rather calm resolution assured him that maybe the nightmare could end. Little by little, reality was less scary to look at.

"I'm glad you told me," Comet finally spoke, which filled both Luke and Binks with additional relief. "I'm going to request to be added to the assignment."

"You like want to look for like 'them' too?" Luke couldn't mask his surprise. He would prefer to stay away from number three and number ten, least they remind him of Comet and make him lose his concentration at a vital point.

"I've been taking too many sick days anyway," Comet reasoned, determination clear, "besides, it's kind of my business too. I'll help Team Rocket clean up, I'm a Rocket, it's my duty," plus he was curious to know how much he wasn't like them.

"If you're like sure," Luke presented no further arguments. He knew that Comet would go ahead with it anyway. He also had a feeling that Giovanni would allow it.

"Count me in, if there's anything I can assist with, I'll do it too," Pixel offered as she and Comet made their way back to the elevator for a long ride. Luke stayed behind with Binks for a little while, to make sure everything was okay. Comet looked calm enough and Pixel was with him.

"Hey Pix," he stopped in front of the elevator, his hand hovering over the button to open it. 

"Yeah?" She chimed curiously. 

"You know... the inevitable realization about life and how it shouldn't be wasted, combined with a new appreciation for what I have and all that stuff," Comet explained.

Pixel laughed, "along with some added sci-fi coolness, plus your usual 'I'm too cool to be melodramatic' atmosphere?"

"Something along those lines," he grinned and pressed the button to open the elevator, they both stepped in. "So... will you go out with me?" It was the second time he asked, the first he had received a negative answer.

Back then, Pixel wasn't sure what to expect of him. They were friends, but she didn't know if it was one of those passing friendships that would fade in time. People changed, they moved on to boring lives as 'good citizens' where she came from. They were off to slave away in a dull job and have a family simply because everyone else threw that same responsibility upon themselves. They lost their taste for fun and Pixel lost her interest in their existence, if there was ever any to begin with, which was rare. "I'm more of an indoors person..." Pixel paused in thought as the elevator doors closed and it started to move up. "In movies, I really like it when the action hero stays the action hero forever. I hate it when they make him a cheesy fluffy family man. I suppose I can rest assured that you won't become clingy or attention needy or overly fluffy."

"Nah, I'm too cool for that," Comet laughed, "besides, I'm a Rocket, I'm more like the action villain than the hero. They rarely turn lame."

Pixel grinned, "then okay."

xoxox xox xoxox

The afternoon was very calm in Pallet Town. After the mysterious Vandel, alias Skye, left, with Givan and Dia having influenced certain vital details, the town continued existing as any other day. It was a little town where events that were out of the ordinary were extremely rare and peaceful silence reigned supreme most of the time. That afternoon might have appeared to be exactly what one would expect of such a type of little town. 

Delia, proprietary, manager and chef of the small restaurant known as the Pallet House, sat on one of the outside tables with her son and his fiance, their pokemon playing outdoors nearby. There was seemingly nothing out of the ordinary with that picture; no one would have guessed the topic of their conversation. "I knew you would have to tell Misty eventually. Now that I think about it, I'm kind of glad you did," things couldn't get any more complicated, Delia thought. While the truths were being revealed it was best to face them without excuses after all.

"I'll make sure not to speak of this to anyone," Misty assured. "I have to admit I was taken by surprise." Seeing Ash's mother sitting there with them, Misty found it a little difficult to picture her as having a relationship with a crime lord, let alone the most powerful one. However, if it happened and still went on, there had to be much more to him than that. Perhaps some select characteristics of the good Viridian gym leader were more than just an act.

Delia smiled with optimistic reassurance, "I hope that's soon." She gently petted the little egg on her lap and felt it move in response. "The baby..." the atmosphere stood even more still than it already was. 

The sounds of the playing pokemon were replaced by silent curious looks as they gathered around to witness the egg hatching. The egg cracked as the baby pokemon tried to break free of its confinement. A tiny beak pecked at the egg shell as a blue little face came into view, surrounded by fluffy white. The small Swablu looked at Delia and chirped happily.

The group was still in awe about the baby when Delia's phone rang and she wondered who it could be. Misty automatically held out her arms, where Delia placed the little Swablu. The pokemon's eyes stayed on Delia, though she was very close by, so Swablu was calm. Delia looked at her little Rocket cell phone to see that the one calling was Pixel. She remembered that she had asked her to keep an eye on Comet. Immediately she wondered about his reaction and hoped for the best. Ash and Misty didn't even try to hide the fact that they were curious about that call. "That's wonderful, I'm so relieved!" She paused as if hearing something in the background, "that's a great idea."

To be Continued

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 090: Give me Improvement

At the Viridian Rocket base infirmary, Laiki watched as Comet slept soundlessly. "How can he sleep so calmly? I would be freaked if I found out I was a clone," she pouted. They were away from prying eyes and ears, save for the few injured pokemon occupying the other beds. Only the sleeping Comet, the fussing Laiki and the composed Pixel were there.

"Why not? He got the truth he wanted and suddenly everything from not knowing his mother to that little number seven tattoo he's had on his arm his whole life make sense," Pixel reasoned. "This is not a life changing situation in the sense that those closest to Comet knew. If they intended to treat him any differently, they already would. Plus there's no uncertainty about what's to come. I'm sure Comet would have preferred to know sooner, but this is a revelation of the past, not the coming of unknown changes in the future. I didn't believe it at first, but after I got a tour of the lab... Let's say it was one surprise after another. I was surprised that Luke talked the boss into letting us go down there, I was surprised at what was down there and..."

"Shocked, scared, horrified?" Laiki added in, "I'm just glad you didn't freak out at Comet, he doesn't need something like that. Don't worry; you get over stuff like this."

"Actually," Pixel tried to put a stop to Laiki's usual fast theories, "I wasn't scared or horrified, just surprised and kind of excited to see stuff in real life that I thought could only exist in science fiction movies. Besides, Comet has such a cool past; I'm just some no name island girl who ran away to the main land. Let me tell you, I jumped with joy back when I first saw my supposed death on a news website. It was nice, having no identity in the eyes of the law, starting over as a Rocket. Anyway, that's getting off topic, the point is that I don't see what the freak out should be. So Comet is a clone, he's healthy, he'll live as long as a human, there are no set backs, just added coolness. So what if there are two insane clones out there and one has already become an urban legend? That doesn't mean-"

"What?" Laiki's eyes went wide as she stared at Pixel, "you know about that too? About number three alias the Bloody Killer and number ten?" What they were not aware of was that the Bloody Killer was to blame for the death of Laiki's parents; that was a secret that Binks still kept from his sister. "Just how much did Binks spill out? I wish I hadn't gotten sidetracked stalking that hot new guy I saw, then I could have gone with you. I can't believe Comet would go and tell you before telling me. He might have needed to get stuff out of his system and he told you instead of his 'big sis,' but then he went on and let you get the tour without me." That was something that happened because Luke had mistakenly believed them to be lovers and thus thought Pixel should be there for Comet. Laiki didn't know that and was, as always, quick to come up with her own theories. "That's it, it's a sure sign, he trusts you, he likes you and I know he just got extra attractive points from you for his sci-fi origins. Plus you're both such big fans of Team Rocket, not the rabid kind, the good kind, like me."

"Maybe he just knows I don't freak out easily," Pixel shrugged, as long as she had her precious technology, she was okay. "Anyway, you should also know Comet wouldn't fall apart over this. He seemed kind of bothered by it, as it is understandable, but he's got a very carefree nature. He's..." Pixel grinned, not completing the sentence.

Laiki pouted, "go ahead and say it, he's not like me. Excuse me, but it just bothers me to see someone I appreciate on the verge of death. He might have really, if Peachy had not..." Laiki left it at that, certainly not in the mood to finish voicing such a grim thought. "It's funny, in the rare occasions when I have field missions, I jump at the chance to shoot stuff. I guess lives only count if I care about them."

"I know what you mean, even if I'm not as trigger happy as you, which is a good thing given my aim." Pixel agreed, "priorities, loyalty over justice. I think we all understand that." 

"Really though, I'm kind of worried, I mean, Comet never sleeps like this." Laiki stood hovering over the young man who opened one eye before closing it again, then turned over and burying his face in the pillow.

"Of course, no one sleeps like this, not with us talking right next to him," Pixel reasoned. "We should let him rest. The best way to get over a cold is by playing tons of video games and the best way to get over a surprise is by sleeping it off."

"Your medical knowledge astounds me," Laiki joked, "I knew he was awake, he wasn't snoring."

"I don't snore," Comet defended.

"Do too," Laiki insisted.

"Do not," Comet argued.

"Do too," Laiki continued.

"Do not, Purry cured me while I was still on sick leave," Comet recalled the event, "if someone attempts to feed you a living Gyarados in your sleep, trust me, you'll keep your mouth closed at all times when you're asleep from that point on and you won't make a single sound. That's how powerful survival instinct can be." Not a second passed before the two girls erupted into laughter. Comet took a look around, "how are some of these pokemon still asleep?" He had to wonder, given all the noise they were making.

"They're sedated, I don't want them whining and making my job more difficult than it needs to be," Laiki stated as a matter of fact.

"I should have guessed," Comet sat up on the bed, no longer really in the mood to sleep. He observed Laiki's pouting worried expression, "relax, I'm here, I'm me, that's all that matters," he assured her.

"I guess you won't be needing your feel better present..." Laiki mused aloud.

"Oh, I'm so depressed!" Comet voiced dramatically with exaggerated pain. Then his expression turned amused, "give me my present," he grinned.

"Fine, but you could have at least tried to put up a more believable act. I know your acting skills are better than that." Laiki went to retrieve the gift from a storage room attached to the infirmary. It was a pokemon egg in a container. "It's ready to hatch, just take it out and wait for the little one to wake up." The container kept the egg from hatching until it was given to its trainer, so that loyalty would be formed when the baby hatched and saw the trainer. "I just find it unusual that you're over it so quickly; don't keep anything bottled up, okay?" Laiki tried to be supportive, while Pixel and Comet exchanged knowing looks. Those looks were not missed by Laiki, "there is something going on here."

"Relax, he didn't keep things bottled up. He already ranted at me and got things out of his system, all is well in the world," Pixel assured.

"I named my pokemon," Comet had gained a new appreciation for the fact that he had a name. He wasn't simply specimen number seven, he was Comet. That motivated him to name his pokemon. "Scyther is Rykros and Gyarados is Shenron." Comet took the egg out of its container and waited for it to begin to hatch.

A short while later, a portion of something black and somewhat pointy peeked out from the broken egg shell. The appendage broke more of the egg shell and white fur came into view. Finally, a little white and black head peeked out from the opening on the egg and looked at Comet with curious eyes, recognizing him as his 'father.' 

"Aw, how cute," Pixel smiled.

"What should we name him?" Comet gently petted the little Absol.

"Fluffy!" Laiki suggested. 

"That's a girl's name and this one is a boy," Comet pointed out. "Not to mention it's silly, who would name their pokemon Fluffy?"

"That would be pokemon abuse," Pixel agreed.

"I think Fluffy is cute," Laiki huffed.

"How about Meteor? Since you're Comet it kind of fits," Pixel suggested.

"Good idea," Comet agreed. "Is Meteor okay for you?" The little Absol cooed happily. "He likes it," Comet smiled, petting the baby pokemon.

"That's what I'm talking about," Laiki threw her hands in the air in an exaggerated expression. "Why aren't you two together already?" There was only silence in response. A few seconds passed, then a few more, "unless, you already are?"

After a few more moments of silence there was a chorus of "no weekaversary," originating from Comet and Pixel.

Laiki let out a loud squeal before pouting and whining, "you have to let me plan your weekaversary, I've had plenty of week long relationships, I have experience!"

"We don't need to know," Comet reminded her.

"Yeah, besides, neither of us is keeping count of time anyway and we're not into overly mushy situations," Pixel added.

"So then what are you going to do for a relationship?" Laiki's voice rose in pitch as she got excited, some would say over excited, about the whole thing. "Train, study, play videogames, go on Team Rocket missions... No one even notices you're together, even if everyone notices there's a certain chemistry there. Then what? Make out where no one can see you and repeat that same schedule the next day? No public displays of affection to show off what you can have and others can't? No weekaversaries, monthaversaries or anniversaries to be spoiled with tons of presents?"

Comet grinned, "works for me."

"Me too," Pixel agreed. 

Laiki pouted at Pixel, speaking as if Comet wasn't even listening, "how could you not demand weekly presents from your man? That's so unfeminine!"

"I'm still here, in case you've forgotten," Comet pointed out.

Laiki continued her outburst, "stay out of it, this is girl talk!"

"If you'll excuse me," Pixel raised her voice to silence any further arguing. "I promised Delia I would keep her informed. She seemed worried so I need to let her know everything is okay." Pixel called Delia's Rocket cell phone, it was the only number she had for her. 

As expected, as soon as Pixel called, Laiki let out of flood of 'tell her this and tell her that'. The nurse had seemingly let go of her previous relationship argument, for the time being at least. 

Pixel just barely managed to say, "hi Delia, it's Pixel, I just wanted to let you know that everything is fine." Then Delia heard Laiki's voice in the background going on and on about how they should all get together and in a split second it was agreed upon.

xoxox xox xoxox

Later that day, the brown car nicknamed the chocolate bar, in honor of a past car of the same color, appeared in the horizon heading towards Pallet Town. It stopped in front of the Pallet House and three people exited it, one practically bouncing with excitement with a high pitched, "Delia!"

"The visitors are here," Delia smiled. 

Ash and Misty were expecting visitors from Team Rocket, but Ash was still surprised to see just who had arrived. "You!" He pointed at Comet. "Your Meowth stole my hat!"

"I'll battle you for it," Comet offered, though he no longer had the hat in his possession, as it had long since been delivered to Giovanni.

Before the battle could start, Misty interrupted, "weren't you with Tempest?"

Then another intervention followed from Delia, "just a moment, you can have your friendly pokemon battles in a minute, let me introduce everyone first." She seemed to irradiate calmness into the atmosphere. "The one who is staring at Ash as if he's a very strange pokemon is Laiki."

Upon being called, Laiki ceased her examination and smiled sweetly, "hi!"

"Here we have Pixel," Delia continued with the introductions, "and Misty's third cousin, Comet."

Both Comet and Misty were taken by surprise, while Laiki nodded energetically, "it's true! It's true!"

"This is my son Ash and his fiance Misty," Delia finished.

"We're third cousins?" Misty asked with curiosity, "and you're not with Tempest?" She added in a quieter voice.

"Infiltration," Comet grinned, "that's all it was."

"I still want to battle for my hat," Ash pouted.

"The truth is I don't have it anymore," Comet admitted, much to Ash's dismay. Before Ash's despair could evolve into an accusation, he added, "the boss should have it."

It took Ash a moment to process that piece of information. The boss, the Team Rocket boss, Giovanni, his father. "Why hasn't he returned it?" He remembered that Giovanni had not been too fond of the hat before. "Did he throw it away?"

"Aw, he wouldn't," Delia certainly hoped not, or some unfortunate rookies would find themselves on an unusual mission to recover that hat wherever it went. It didn't matter if it was unusable anymore; it was a collector's item. "He's probably keeping it somewhere and just forgot to return it," he better have kept it. It would not be good for the true start of their relationship to be scarred by the loss of a precious hat. Anything could make things difficult and Delia certainly didn't want that. "You can ask him about it this evening."

"I will," Ash made a mental note to do so. While their unusual conversation took place, the group had settled into a table at the Pallet House. The Rockets were all in civilian clothes and didn't stand out for any reason other than the fact that they were not from Pallet Town and visitors were rare. That alone was still not enough to cause any alarm.

Misty had been thinking about her distant family relation with Comet, searching for any clues in her memories. "I remembered something," she finally spoke. "My sisters were looking at an old photo album." It was part of coping with Daisy's recent marriage. "There was a picture of a toddler Daisy with someone who kind of looked like you. Violet said that was 'uncle Luke,' he wasn't really our uncle, he was dad's cousin, but my older sisters would call him uncle. I don't think I ever met him, but Daisy is the oldest so she would remember best, Violet remembers a little too. Lily, the second youngest next to me, doesn't know much about him. I remember Violet mentioning that she and Daisy picked up saying the word 'like' from Luke, and Lily picked it up from them. I don't know if that's just something they made up or not, but if by any chance your father's name is Luke..."

"It is, and that sounds like something that would happen with him," Comet confirmed. He came close to picking up his father's style of speech when he was younger, until Laiki was assigned to the task of making sure he didn't. If he was going to grow up to be a Rocket agent, he needed to be able to write reports that didn't need to be 'translated' before the boss could stand to read them. "I guess we are related after all."

"Were there ever any doubts about my information?" Laiki pouted.

Ash observed Comet and Misty, "your hair color is a lot alike." After another moment of thought, he added, "we should commemorate this discovery with a pokemon battle!"

"You're on!" Comet was quick to agree, "two on two, you better not lower your guard. This won't be an act to make Tempest look bad."

"It's good to know that your real battle style isn't cheating," Ash grinned with anticipation, "I choose-"

"Not so close to the house!" Delia cut in, "why don't we go over to Professor Oak's place, there's plenty of space to battle there."

Excited for the battle, Ash was no longer worried about facing Professor Oak, someone who knew the truth. Besides, even if he did see him, the questions that floated in Ash's head could at least wait until that evening, since the time of his reunion with his father had been set. Ash recalled his pokemon to their pokeballs temporarily, all except Pikachu. Delia's baby Swablu and Comet's baby Absol were also left out of their pokeballs.

At the Oak research lab, Gary was surprised to see such a crowd coming to visit. "I have a battle!" Ash proudly declared, though it was nothing new. "Can we use your yard?"

Gary blinked, "sure," and he watched as Ash led the crowd in. Laiki paused, looked at Gary up and down, then winked before following along. It reminded him of when he used to travel with his cheering squad, except this young woman had something about her that screamed, 'I'm dangerous, therefore irrationally irresistible.'

Delia smiled sweetly and followed the group, "Laiki, you'll be a good girl and behave, won't you?" She whispered discretely.

"Off limits? Aw..." Laiki looked somewhat disappointed, but let it go. 

The walk to find a spacious spot outside was filled with casual conversation about Ash and Misty's friends from Viridian City who had come to visit. A convenient mention of Comet being a relative of Misty was added in for extra reassurance. Gary was also curious about the newborn Swablu that Delia had acquired and the newborn Absol, who was confirmed to have hatched on that same day as well.

The specific place were Ash and Comet would be battling was the same place were Ash and Giovanni had attempted to battle before, until a mischievous Jigglypuff interfered. Fortunately, the little troublemaker didn't seem to be around today. Ash was curious about where she went. Wherever she was, he hoped that it wasn't too close by, as she seemed to have regained the ability to pop out when he least expected it.

The two opponents exchanged confident looks as the audience gathered around to watch. "Shenron, I choose you!"

"I choose-" Ash was cut off by one of his pokemon jumping in front of him. "Sceptile?" He occasionally switched pokemon and had been recently traveling with his Kanto pokemon while the others stayed with Professor Oak. "I guess you want to battle?" Why not? To send out a grass type against a water type seemed logical enough. "Alright, I choose Sceptile!"

"A grass type," Comet observed, "Shenron, don't hold back!"

"Let's see how well you've really trained your pokemon, Sceptile, leaf blade!" Ash sent his pokemon on the attack. Eager to battle, Sceptile quickly closed the distance between himself and the Gyarados. The leaf on his right arm was already glowing, ready for a powerful strike. Just a little closer, "Sceptile, stop! Jump back and use leaf storm!" Ash called out at the last moment. 

Sceptile was confused by the sudden change in plans; he hesitated for a moment before retreating. Not wanting to lose the opportunity, Comet sent Shenron on the attack, "fire blast, twice!" 

Sceptile's leaf storm was scorched to nothing by the flames, but it at least served to shield the pokemon a little from its vulnerable element's first attack. Still surprised, Sceptile struggled to dodge the second blast of fire and came out with a few burns. "Sceptile, are you okay?" The grass pokemon shook away his surprise and nodded; he took some damage but could still fight. 

"You knew," Comet observed, "you called Sceptile back just in time. How did you guess what I was going to do?"

"I didn't guess it exactly," Ash admitted, "but I knew you were going to do something. I can't really explain it, I could almost feel it coming. Fire blast being used by a Gyarados, there's something you don't see every day. Twice in a row too, you catch your opponents off guard like this a lot, don't you?"

"That's right," Comet confirmed with a grin, as if remembering one of his missions where the element of surprise was in his favor. "People tend to associate water type pokemon with water moves, but they can learn more than that with the right technical machines."

It occurred to Ash that Team Rocket must have access to a large number of evolutionary items and technical machine discs. His eyes shone at the prospect of a real challenge. Not knowing what to expect beyond the awareness of facing a strong opponent could make a battle more interesting. "I'll just have to give it my all, another leaf storm Sceptile and get ready to use solar beam!"

"Get those leaves out of the way with thunder and charge in!" Comet quickly urged, saving the next fire blast for when Shenron was closer. Shenron didn't waste a second in unleashing the attack. Most of the leaves fell harmlessly with static around them, only a few reached the Gyarados, certainly not enough to stop him.

"Solar beam!" "Fire blast!" Ash and Comet called out in unison. The two powerful attacks collided in a bright light. The spectators and trainers had to look away from the extreme brightness. Neither pokemon wanted to give in, each trying their best to withstand the attack and take down the opponent. 

Finally, when the light faded and everyone was able to look at the results, the two pokemon lay unconscious next to each other. The mix of withstanding the attacks and pushing themselves to fight back had exhausted them. The attacks got through their defenses simultaneously, knocking out both combatants.

"Both pokemon are unable to battle," Gary formally announced, "the first round is a tie."

"Shenron return, you did very well," Comet recalled his pokemon.

"You too Sceptile, good job, return," Ash paused, realizing he didn't have Sceptile's pokeball with him. 

"Catch!" Gary threw a pokeball at Ash, which he caught.

"Sceptile's pokeball?" With that on hand, Ash recalled his unconscious pokemon. He then noticed a little green Bulbasaur next to Gary.

Gary petted the small green Bulbasaur, "I asked him to fetch the pokeball from the lab at the start of the match when you decided to use Sceptile. He's been here for a while so he's familiar with the lab. I told grandpa to give him to a trainer, but his past trainer couldn't keep him, so he ended up back here. Maybe I'll keep him around, I think he likes helping around the lab."

"Thanks," Ash voiced automatically, before he had a few seconds to process the implications, "hey! How come you assumed I would be needing the pokeball?"

"Lucky guess?" Gary laughed, "besides, Comet didn't seem at all bothered by the type disadvantage, so I thought something was up. It's still unusual for people to use these type of technical machines on Gyarados and for the pokemon to adapt so well."

"I've only really kept these two with me, so I've had time to train them," Comet explained, though it wasn't entirely true, since he was sometimes so busy with missions that his pokemon had to learn on the job. "Now I have Meteor too," the little Absol would be trained to track scents, as well as used his special ability to sense possible disasters. He would be another reliable partner to have during missions and another pokemon friend. "There's also a Meowth that's Pixel's pokemon too, but she comes and goes how she pleases." 

"Sounds like a mischievous one," Ash knew exactly what Meowth Comet was talking about, but pretended he could only imagine.

Comet released his other pokemon, "go Rykros!"

"He looks strong, but I won't lose," Ash's resolve grew; this would be the decisive match. "Pikachu, I choose you!"

With a determined, "pika!" the small and powerful yellow pokemon entered the designated battle area.

To be Continued

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 091: Give me Relaxation

At the Oak research lab, Ash and Comet both released their final pokemon for their two on two battle. The first round had been Ash's Sceptile versus Comet's Gyarados, Shenron. After round one ended with a draw, everything rested on the last two pokemon standing in the designated battle area in the Oaks' vast land. Comet's true style of battle was quite different from the display he made when infiltrating Tempest. This was something Ash was glad for. It made him subconsciously compare Team Rocket with Tempest and other gangs. Though in this case it had been the same person working as an infiltrator, there were many examples when the differences shone through. Team Rocket was a criminal organization, Ash understood that, but life wasn't all black and white.

"Pikachu, stay on your guard, thunderbolt!" Ash found piece in the midst of battle. He was reminded of the friendly battles he had with Jessie and James after they became friends. He would sometimes team up with Misty to train with them simultaneously in a double battle. It was those battles which helped them become closer friends and reach a deeper understanding of each other.

"Rykros, fly up and use focus energy," Comet commanded. His pokemon obeyed and basically disappeared in the vertical distance.

Ash tilted his head backwards as did Pikachu. "That's high," he commented sounding somehow amused.

"Did I break a rule or something?" Comet wondered. "I've never had any official battles." 

"Really? No contests or tournaments?" Ash asked in surprised. He knew when someone liked battling and he could sense that Comet did.

"A few tournaments, but those were not really official," Comet explained with a secretive look.

It took Ash a moment to catch on. Any tournaments Comet might have entered must have been internal in Team Rocket or maybe even illegal. His pokemon clearly trusted him, which further reminded Ash that people, and groups were more than just good or bad. "There are no vertical limits in this battle so it's okay. Besides, I've had my pokemon fly really high and out of reach in official matches before. They have to come down sometime."

"And they're all going to have to stop playing shadow tag sometime too, so that the battle can continue," Gary commented from the sidelines. The audience, consisting of Delia, Misty, Pixel, Laiki and Gary, was quite amused.

The two trainers watched as Rykros flew lower, with the two baby pokemon, Swablu and Meteor, the Absol, having wondered into the battle field. They were joined by the green Bulbasaur in trying to 'catch' the Scyther's shadow. The flying pokemon seemed to find amusement in watching them jump on his shadow. Rykros positioned himself on top of Pikachu, which caused the three younger pokemon to jump on him, caught up in their game. Pikachu was left in the bottom of a pokemon mountain, but he was laughing none the less.

Delia smiled at the funny little interruption, "okay you three, come over here so the battle can continue, then afterwards I'll give you cookies." The three small pokemon cheered and rushed to join Delia and the others in the sidelines. 

At the mention of cookies, Peachy popped out of her pokeball on Pixel's belt. The sudden red beam made Pixel jump in surprise, though immediately after, she thought she should have known. "Pika!" Peachy exclaimed loudly as her eyes shone.

"Sometimes I think Peachy's mission in life is to eat all the sweets in the world," Pixel theorized, never mind that her primary food was also sugar.

"Do you want cookies too, sweetie?" Delia smiled kindly at Peachy. She seemed close in age to Ash's Pikachu, perhaps a little younger. 

Peachy approached Delia with a wide smile, nodding her head eagerly, "pika! Pika!" She cheered as Delia petted her.

"Chu..." Pikachu's eyes traveled to the female of his species, admiring her shiny yellow coat and energetic atmosphere. However, she seemed focused on Delia as she had been the one to mention cookies.

'I bet she's going to make you give her all your treats,' Rykros teased. Teasing other pokemon seemed to be something he liked to do, even if he knew not to tease Purry, that Meowth had quite the temper. 

Pikachu's already red cheeks emitted sparks of slight embarrassment as he was caught staring. 'I didn't say anything...'

After the battle field was safely cleared, the battle was ready to resume. Ash saw the sparks flying from Pikachu's cheeks and assumed he was ready for an epic fight. "That's right Pikachu, let's give it our all!"

"Let's do this Rykros, show them your power!" Comet cheered on his own pokemon as well, unaware of the real cause of the male Pikachu's 'blushing' sparks. 

Albeit Pikachu's reaction was perceived by all the other humans present, no one really said anything aside from Rykros, who had spoken in pokemon language. Peachy's mind was far from thinking of the opposite gender, as her head was filled with thoughts of food. 

The two trainers knew very well that this round would be fast and strong as both pokemon were blessed with speed and power. The outbreak of commands began with a "thunderbolt" from Ash and a "hyper beam" from Comet. The blasts of energy collided in a bright light, but neither pokemon or trainer relented.

"Quick attack!" Ash called out. That Scyther was very speedy and if Pikachu was going to land a direct hit, he would have to close in fast. "Thunderbolt!"

"Swords dance!" With that attack, Rykros would prevent Pikachu from getting too close as well as deflecting his attack. At least that was what would have happened in most cases. However, Pikachu's electric attack was far too strong for Rykros to deflect. Realizing this after only the very beginning of Pikachu's attacked reached his pokemon, Comet quickly instructed him to use, "hyper beams, from above!"

Rykros caught some of Pikachu's electricity, but he was still able to battle despite feeling the stinging pain of the attack. He conjured a series of beams unleashing them as fast as he could while his target remained hidden in the light of their colliding powers. Neither trainer could see what was going on, nor could the audience. Following his sense of logic, Rykros aimed his beams at the source of the bolts of electricity shooting up at him from the ground. Pausing to catch his breath, Rykros waited for the extreme light to fade away and hopefully reveal his fainted opponent, but it didn't. The light didn't fade at all, instead taking a yellow hue as Pikachu unleashed his final thunderbolt and caused his opponent to faint.

"Rykros..." Comet observed the markings in the burnt grass. "I see, Pikachu used his own electricity as a decoy," he realized. "You put up a good fight, come back and rest." He recalled the Scyther into his pokeball.

Ash rubbed his eyes, which were watery from stubbornly trying to see what was going on, even if it had been impossible until the display of power ceased. "Great job Pikachu!" He cheered. Pikachu had gotten quite a workout and used a large amount of energy. "That was a fun battle. It's been a long time since I've seen Pikachu all out of breath, I thought only Ritchie could do that." The fact that he was able to battle someone who was still actively in Team Rocket without it being a true war, but a friendly test of skill and power, added to Ash's reassurance.

"I say the same that was a really good strategy at the end," Comet complimented. "Now all you have to do is win the next Indigo League."

Misty watched Ash and Comet shake hands and continue their conversation. That was all fine and wonderful; her worries had evaporated upon witnessing the scene. She was reassured again that not everyone in Team Rocket was bad. However, since the Indigo League was brought up, now Ash would probably go on and on about it for the rest of the visit. She found herself laughing unexpectedly. This visit was indeed just like a visit with old friends. Any tension that might have been left was completely gone after the battle.

Among friendly conversation and Ash's speech about how he was looking forward to the Indigo League, the group, joined by Gary, returned to the Pallet House.

xoxox xox xoxox

A few minutes later, Delia, Ash, Misty, Gary, Laiki, Comet, Pixel and their pokemon, were back at the Pallet House. The rest of the pokemon had been let out of their pokeballs to join in having an afternoon snack. Delia and Mimey emerged from the kitchen, heading towards the outdoor table were the group was seated. They each carried a large tray with mountains of cookies for the group to devour. 

Pikachu had decided to try to speak to the female Pikachu, who seemed to be the pokemon of that blue haired girl, Pixel. He knew she was a Rocket pokemon, but with Ash being the son of the Rocket boss, he didn't think it would matter too much if he happened to be friends with a Rocket pokemon. Besides, the group of trainers seemed to get along just fine with Ash and his mother. "Pika..." he tried to get her attention. It's not like he didn't have any female friends when he used to live in the wild before he ended up as Ash's pokemon. That was different, he was very young. He had met many other pokemon during his journey with Ash, but this one seemed to stand out. Everything from her presence, to her scent, to the static atmosphere perceivable by other electric pokemon was unique.

The female Pikachu, whom Ash's Pikachu had heard being called Peachy by her trainer, had been occupying her attention with the younger pokemon. Something seemed to spark her interest, quite literally as she smiled brightly and a few small electric sparks escaped her cheeks.

Ash's Pikachu smiled back, feeling flattered at such a seemingly approving reaction. He was about to try to make conversation, perhaps pointing out their mutual liking towards interaction with the young pokemon or speaking of the interesting connections of their trainers. Maybe he would inquire what life was like for her. If her healthy appearance, extra glossy coat and cheery disposition were any indication, Rocket or not, she was treated well. However, his train of thought halted when Peachy dashed right past him, apparently not even noticing him. She proceeded to climb on to her trainer's lap and from there reached the table.

Little Meteor began to climb up Comet's leg to get up to the table. Comet quickly picked him up before the small Absol decided to use his tiny claws for a better climbing grip. He placed the baby pokemon on his lap, where he could reach the cookies closest to Comet's side of the table without diving into the cookie mountain head first. Pixel had done the same thing with Peachy, knowing all too well what a bottomless pit she was. Pikachu pouted upon realizing that Peachy had not really given him a second glance, focusing on the food instead.

The baby Swablu had begun to try to fly, learning by instinct. She landed on Ash's head and from there jumped on to the table. The table was becoming quite crowded with pokemon hurrying to get their share of cookies before they ran out. "I better get some more cookies ready," Delia observed the pokemon clear most of the cookies and returned to the kitchen. 

"Chu..." sighing softly, Pikachu used Ash as a way to climb up to the table where he found that the cookies were already all gone, save for one. He reached for the last cookie in the middle of the table at the same time that Peachy got loose from Pixel and went to grab the cookie. Their yellow paws touched as they reached for the treat and a few sparks flew with the sudden contact of two powerful Pikachu. 

The male electric pokemon looked at the female in front of him and smiled. She took him by surprise with a battle cry of 'my cookie!' And tackled him right off the table. The event was interpreted by the humans as the two pokemon playing. Swablu and Meteor thought that the two Pikachu were no longer interested in the last cookie and they both reached for it at the same time. They both retreated and waited before pushing the cookie towards the other back and forth. They finally resolved the issue by breaking the cookie in half and sharing it.

"So, how are things with Team Rocket?" Gary suddenly asked, which made all the color drain from Ash's face. In a matter of seconds all his blood went to his feet and his face became white as a sheet. Misty had a somewhat opposite reaction, with her face becoming as red as her hair.

Gary was looking right at Pixel. He had been giving her suspicious glances, which were not missed by Laiki. The blond girl was a little jealous misinterpreting the suspicious looks. The cause of those glances was the fact that Gary recognized her as being from Team Rocket. A look of realization overtook Comet's face as he learned why Gary had been looking at Pixel. No one seemed to notice the change in his expression, since they were all focused on Gary.

Delia returned from the kitchen with more chocolate chip cookies, while Mimey followed her with three cake containers on top of each other. Delia placed the cookie tray on the table and took Mimey's load off his hands to place on the table. Before going back to the kitchen to get plates, spoons and a knife to cut the cake, she paused seeing Ash's pale face and Misty's flustered expression. "Did I miss something?"

The movement of time had become frozen upon Gary's question and went back into motion when Delia spoke. The atmosphere unfreezing caused Pixel to exclaim, "cosplay!"

Gary nodded in acceptance, he somehow knew there was little more to be done than to agree to the explanation. "Getting into character, weren't you?" Given the fact that Delia's cooking had helped convert Rockets into good citizens before, Gary considered his thoughts for a moment longer. It wasn't unheard of for Ash to end up being friends with someone who was formerly in Team Rocket. It happened with Jessie and James so who was to say it couldn't happen again? Though he didn't quite believe the cosplay story, he didn't think Pixel had any intentions of carrying out any wrong doings, thus he let it go. "It was a very realistic costume."

"Thanks," Pixel discreetly glanced at the pale Ash, who still seemed to believe that the mention of Team Rocket was somehow related to him. 

Misty had begun to regain her normal color. As for Ash, the normal flow of his blood wasn't restored until Misty placed her reassuring hand on his hand under the table and smiled. Though still somehow confused about what had transpired, Ash decided to let it go, since everyone else seemed to be okay with it. Delia returned to the kitchen while the animated conversation about pokemon resumed at the table. It was as if Gary's mention of Team Rocket had never occurred. 

All the while, Peachy and Pikachu were rolling around the floor trying to pin the other down to establish ownership of the already consumed cookie or for the sake of self defense. Contrary to Purry, Peachy was generally friendly and only became territorial and possessive when there was food involved. As the second batch of cookies began to be consumed, Peachy bolted back towards the table with Pikachu calling after her, demanding an explanation. Frustrated to be ignored, Pikachu let out a low voltage electric charge that was not meant to pick a fight, but to get Peachy's attention. At that very moment, Ash decided to look over to see what the two yellow pokemon were doing and caught Pikachu in what appeared to be a surprise attack on the back. "Pikachu, what are you doing?"

"Pi pika chu!" Pikachu defended himself pointing his accusing paw at Peachy. 

Peachy pouted and looked into Ash's eyes, ignoring the small painless jolt of electricity that barely tickled. She moved her ears down and gave him a sad expression. This was something she did when convincing humans to give her food. "Aw," instantly feeling sorry for her, Ash picked up Peachy and offered her a cookie. "It's okay, don't cry." He looked at Pikachu with disapproval, "what was that for? You're usually better behaved than this."

"Chu! Pi pika chu!" Pikachu argued to no avail. Ash offered Peachy another cookie which she happily ate as well. For the time being, she seemed comfortable sitting on Ash's lap as long as he kept feeding her. Pikachu kept pouting in exasperation until he saw Peachy... did she just wink? Was she just playing before? Of all the confusing things to do...

Though Peachy wasn't particularly violent, Purry was rather aggressive. Pyro liked to glomp and cling to just about any female he laid eyes upon. Then there was the fact that at times Pixel literally threw Peachy into battle, giving her an edge by allowing her to attack from above. She also often slept with Peachy as if she was a plush toy, rolling around and somehow not causing Peachy to wake up. To summarize, a bit of rough treatment was nothing but harmless playfulness for Peachy, who saw little difference between a hug and a tackle. Thus despite being indeed possessive of food, in the end she was only playing.

Delia returned with the dishes and utensils just as the cookies ran out. The cake was served and she rejoined the group at the table. The conversation remained on the topic of pokemon and Team Rocket didn't come up again. There was a story about a three on three battle involving Jessie and James. That story also told the tale of how Pyro evolved from a Charmander to the Charmeleon he now was. Delia, Ash and Misty suspected the story was edited in terms of how it came to be, but kept all the real elements of the battle itself. Gary had no suspicions about it, since as far as he knew, Team Rocket was ancient history for Jessie, James and apparently also for Pixel.

xoxox xox xoxox

Comet and Pixel stepped out of the elevator after his origin was revealed to him. He was quiet for a moment before finally asking, "why did you name your pokemon?"

Pixel didn't really expect the question and her answer was a rather simple one. "Because I felt like it, I suppose and it's kind of cute. Besides, it felt more original to give them names than to call them by their species. Calling them by their species would be convenient and maybe even necessary for someone who intends to catch many. I never planned on having many and I'm satisfied with what I have now. One that's tech because you know I like technology, one that's electric to provide power for electronics, and one that can fly for easy transportation. That's what I thought, practicality, but somewhere along the way I got attached to them."

Comet was surprised at just how familiar it all felt. He knew Pixel didn't like what she described as an anti-climatic history and thus insisted that the past was nothing. Though she did consider the future, she was happiest living the moment. He had always lived the moment before, he could continue doing so. "I think I'm going to name mine." He paused in front of his room's door, where he had automatically headed. He entered followed by Pixel and they both sat down on his bed. The sheets were a simple dark blue with a big Blastoise shaped pillow that he had for years.

"What will you name them?" Pixel inquired, not asking about the seemingly sudden choice to name them. She had an idea where Comet's decision came from. 

Comet thought for a moment before concluding, "I guess it's not really the name that matters but what's attached to it." To name them wasn't really a necessary action. It was the training and appreciation that went to the pokemon that truly mattered, as he had learned from his father, Luke. "I'll still do it though, something cool." He took Gyarados' pokeball in his hand, "Shenron, just like that legendary super long green Gyarados that grants wishes when the seven magical orange pokeballs are collected in that show."

Pixel chuckled, "it's a classic!"

"Scyther will be..." Comet paused in thought, holding the pokeball in his other hand. The blades Scyther had, reminded him of the blades of legends such as the Master Sword, Masamune, Dual Blade, Reverse Blade, Espelancer, Elsydeon and others, but they didn't seem to fit. That last one reminded him of something else, "Rykros, after the original." 

"Another classic," Pixel agreed. 

Though they were inside their pokeballs, the pokemon could still hear what was being spoken around them. "Is that okay with you two? I guess if you're not popping out to protest, its fine," Comet concluded.

"So... go on, say everything that's on your mind, as if this was a verbal blog. Get it out of your system," Pixel grinned, reading Comet as easily as she would read a computer codes.

xoxox xox xoxox

After the brief stop and the pokemon naming, Comet and Pixel went to find Giovanni. They found him at the gym's arena just as he was finishing off another relatively easy battle against a Rocket grunt. On the side of the arena, there were another four Rocket agents, also in uniform. They were Jessie, James, Cassidy and Butch. After the grunt excused himself and left, Jessie and Cassidy started to loudly argue about who would battle the boss next. 

While the next battle was delayed due to the argument, Comet approached Giovanni with his request. "Boss, I want to be added to the investigation of three and ten." The words were direct, to the point and not particularly revealing to anyone who didn't already know what it was about.

"Me too," Pixel added.

Giovanni observed them both, "that is still in the tracking stage," he didn't want to make an obvious move that would make number three and ten harder to catch by going into hiding. Or they could also react by suddenly becoming more active upon feeling threatened. That could bring numerous casualties that would not only upset Delia, but possibly cause trouble for Team Rocket's general operations.

Number three wasn't much of a problem in terms of power anymore. He was old, much older than the time that had actually passed. However, that gave some of his victims the opportunity to escape and live to tell the tale. Though the legendary Bloody Killer was about to die, he would go after getting a lot of attention. For the time being, the police were waiting it out, occasionally moving to try to catch him when he was weak. Thus far, he had evaded the authorities. As for number ten, that was another story. He was still a young adult, still in his prime, he was inhumanly strong and dangerous. Team Rocket had been on the look out for him since he disappeared from the lab. So far they had no significant clues, not even from interrogating Iblis.

Giovanni finally gave a more direct reply to the two Rockets. "You can join if you win a battle. All of you will battle three on three." After battling so many grunts, Giovanni was tired of battles he could easily win and opted instead for a little entertainment. He raised his voice for the last sentence; it was enough to silence Jessie and Cassidy. Jessie and James were just there for a brief visit to take care of some minor routine business at the Viridian headquarters. They didn't expect to find the boss taking on challengers and were quick to volunteer.

Jessie, James, Cassidy and Butch quickly became aware of their situation, though they were not sure how it came about. Apparently, they would need to divide themselves into two teams of three people each. Comet and Pixel were on the same team. The realization sunk in for Jessie, that she might end up stuck in a team with Cassidy if either James or Butch was chosen as the third teammate for their opponents. With that in mind, Jessie bolted across the earth arena and stood between Comet and Pixel with her arms around their shoulders. "Teammates?" She gave them a big grin.

Comet decided to go along with it, "sure."

James' eyes widened in realization, "I don't want to be on the same team as these two!" He protested with great agony.

"Enough," Giovanni made it clear that he was not in the mood for further stalling, "begin the battle, three on three."

"My money's on Jessie's team," Meowth commented from the side lines as the trainers took their positions. It only made James pout more and give Jessie a sad face.

"Take it like a Rocket!" Jessie called out in response from the other side of the arena. Six red beams were unleashed almost in perfect unison. Six shapes appeared, three on each side of the earth arena, and the battle commenced.

To be Continued

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 092: Give me Accomplishments

Six red beams had invaded the Viridian gym arena for the three on three battle. The confrontation would decide if Comet and Pixel would join the investigation about number three and number ten or not. The teams consisted of Comet, Pixel and Jessie, versus James, Cassidy and Butch. Each trainer had called upon one of their pokemon. Jessie's Seviper, Comet's Scyther, recently named Rykros and Pixel's as of yet to evolve Charmander, Pyro, composed one team. The other team consisted of James' Carnivine, Cassidy's Houndour and Butch's Migthyena.

Pouting deeply and making a sad face, James complained once more before the battle began. "I really don't want to be in the same team as Cassidy and Batch!"

"It's Butch!" The Rocket agent whose name people often changed complained.

James had no reply for the correction, since he soon became busy trying to pry Carnivine off his face. The pokemon had become stronger over time and so had her grip, much to James' pain. 

Pyro observed the scene and decided it was as good a time as ever to follow the example and go hug his own trainer. He quickly attached himself to Pixel's leg, while she tried to shake him off. "Let go, we have a battle to take care of!" She tried to pry him off a bit too hard with her long blue fingernails accidentally digging into his skin in the human version of a scratch attack.

Pyro whimpered, though he still didn't let go, since he was following Carnivine's example and she had not let go. It might have been an early random mood swing, despite her condition not yet showing, but Jessie felt compassion for the Charmander and decided to try to help Pixel get him off before she accidentally hurt him. The red haired woman succeeded in pulling the fire pokemon off his trainer, but it backfired. Finding himself in Jessie's arms, Pyro lashed on to her neck and snuggled into her chest. At the other side of the arena, a strangely jealous James witnessed the scene while turning blue from lack of oxygen.

Since Giovanni was looking impatient, the trainers who were not dealing with pokemon troubles went on the attack. "Houndour, use flame thrower on Scyther!" Cassidy shouted.

The command was backed by Butch who ordered, "Migthyena, use take down after Houndour's attack."

Their plan was obviously for Houndour to weaken Scyther and make him lose altitude with the fire. Then Migthyena would charge in to finish him off. "Rykros, quick attack!" Comet called out to his pokemon, watching as he skillfully dodged the flames that were thrown at him as he approached Houndour. When Rykros was close enough, Comet saw and opening and called out, "giga impact!" Rykros quickly changed his pace from flying in rapid zigzags, to a more direct upper approach. He gained a little altitude before slamming his scythe down on Houndour's head. It would have been fatal if not for Houndour's hard skull, which Comet also took into consideration. However, the attack was enough to leave Houndour in a daze before Comet warned, "up!" Rykros quickly flew out of the way, narrowly avoiding Migthyena's take down attack.

Houndour and Migthyena stayed close to each other after that, watching each other's backs. Comet knew that another opportunity like the one that was just cut short, would not present itself so easily. The thought was further confirmed by Cassidy's next order, "Houndour, snap out of it and jump on Migthyena's back."

Once Houndour was on Migthyena's back, Butch followed up on the plan, "jump as high as you can!" Migthyena obeyed with some difficulty due to the extra weight, giving Houndour some extra impulse.

Houndour in turn jumped when Migthyena was in the air and followed Cassidy's next instruction, "fire blast!" 

"U turn!" It was a risky move, but Comet had to get Rykros out of the line of fire fast. He also wasn't about to waste the opportunity to get an attack in on Migthyena when he saw an opening. Rykros swung down below Houndour and passed by between him and Migthyena. The bug pokemon held out his scythe to slash at Migthyena. Rykros was soon back in the air on the other side after making a U shape in mid air. It all happened in a split second as Houndour fell on top of the surprised and pained Migthyena, who didn't have time to get out of the way.

"Get out there and fight or I'm sending you to the experimentation lab after I beat you to a bloody puddle!" Pixel yelled at Pyro. She wouldn't really do that, but she was angry at him for embarrassing her in front of the boss. Pyro whimpered and loosened his grip on Jessie long enough for Pixel to grab him. The blue haired girl then literally threw him into the battle field, where he landed face first with a loud undignified thump. 

Jessie gasped and pointed at the fallen, but still conscious Charmander. She turned her head towards Giovanni who was watching the show from the sidelines. She searched for any hints of disapproval, but he was quietly chuckling in an almost imperceptible way, as if he was amused. 

"What's his problem?" Pixel wondered with sincere confusion. "I've seen Purry jump down from much higher distances and land easily enough. Besides, whenever I throw Peachy like that, she makes good use of the opportunity to use a powerful thunderbolt in mid air. She never complains, she always looks like she's having fun."

"Purry is a feline," Comet pointed out, "and Peachy is... Peachy is special, with all the food she eats, all that energy must make her very strong." That was the same Pikachu that could be squeezed in a tight hug like a plush toy and be unconsciously used as a pillow by a sleeping Pixel without waking up until someone mentioned food. The good news about Pyro's entrance was that Rykros was given a moment to rest. The bad news was that Houndour and Migthyena were ganging up on the Charmander.

Jessie placed her hand on Pixel's shoulder like a mentor to a student, "you need to remember that Pikachu are virtually indestructible. You can't compare them to anything else."

Pixel nodded, "if you say so." She grew up as a computer geek, not a pokemon trainer. Thus she had by far the least experience in pokemon training out of all those present. She didn't obtain her first pokemon until she joined Team Rocket, right after graduating from college at the age of twenty-one. That left her with at least a decade less of experience than most of the others.

Jessie nodded and, free of the glomping Charmander, she sent her own pokemon into action. "Seviper, poison fang on Houndour!" The amount of venom in Jessie's voice was comparable to the attack itself. Seviper rushed forward to join the action.

Cassidy was quick to react, "Houndour, fire blast!" Before Houndour could respond, Pyro let out an ember attack at him. He was still a bit dazed from his entrance to the battle field and the small fire attack was not very effective in terms of damage. However, the attempt did serve as a distraction, delaying Houndour's counter attack long enough for Seviper to sink his fangs into Houndour's throat. With a sharp cry, Houndour stumbled even after Seviper let go, he was badly poisoned. 

Seeing Cassidy's angry face, Butch knew he better back her up soon, "Migthyena, knock out that troublesome little Charmander with take down!"

"Pyro, use flame thrower on Migthyena!" Pixel urged him to respond to the attack.

"Rykros!" Comet began to call out to his pokemon to back up Pyro if needed. He stopped upon realizing that Pyro was glowing.

Pyro was surrounded by a bright light. Before the light even faded, while his shape was still changing, he charged forward with a flame thrower attack that stopped the already injured Migthyena in his tracks. He ran around the dark pokemon and bit his tail, unleashing a breath of fire as he did. He had thought that he really would be abandoned, though Pixel wouldn't do that. He wanted to prove himself as more than just a flirt; he wanted to show he could be a competent companion. Letting out a loud pained cry, Migthyena started to run in circles around the arena with the recently evolved Charmeleon attached to his flaming tail. 

Cassidy growled in frustration and glared at James. He was on his knees at the sidelines, trying to catch his breath after his near death experience. Carnivine was still cuddling against him, though in a less deadly way. "Do something!" Cassidy yelled.

James jumped to his feet and tried to get Carnivine to battle. "Carnivine, go help Seviper fight Houndour!"

"Not that!" Cassidy reproached.

"Oh, right, sorry..." James backed away, "Carnivine, attack Seviper, let's get back at Jessie for abandoning us with Cassidy and Botch, leaf tornado!"

"It's Butch!" Migthyena's trainer corrected.

Confused with her trainer's contradicting commands, Carnivine decided to aim her attack at everyone. She spun around throwing leaves in a massive tornado that overtook the quarreling Seviper and Houndour. When the tornado ceased and the leaves cleared out, only the dizzy tangled up Seviper was still conscious. The poisoned Houndour had too much and lay knocked out near Seviper.

"You idiot!" Cassidy screamed in frustration, about to grab James by the neck. 

"Hey!" Jessie shouted from the other side of the earth arena, "you leave James alone! Meowth, fury swipes on Cassidy!"

Meowth, who had been witnessing the battle from the sidelines, jumped in surprise upon being called. "What? Me?"

"Now!" Jessie roared, leaving no room for argument.

"Yes, ma'am!" Meowth rushed out to James' rescue, baring his claws at Cassidy. At the last moment, Cassidy let go of James and pushed Butch towards Meowth. The man stumbled forward, falling on top of the pokemon, causing Meowth to drop the attempted attack. "Get him off! Get him off! I'm being flattened by Betch!"

"It's Butch!" He complained again as he tried to get back on his feet.

"I think this battle's as good as won, Rykros, but just in case, charge up a hyper beam," Comet instructed his pokemon. Rykros had since flown over to his trainer, hovering near by as the battle played out, waiting for the next move to make. Comet whispered something, to which Rykros nodded. He flew across the battle field, exchanging a few quiet words with Carnivine, before flying up high. He prepared to fire the hyper beam from above on Comet's signal.

Migthyena had finally freed himself from Pyro's grip on his poor abused tail. The dark pokemon whimpered as he his burnt and bitten tail. Charmeleon stood proud, happy that he had evolved, waiting for the command to finish the battle. Seviper was still somewhat busy untangling himself from the knot Carnivine's attack had left him in. At least the long poison pokemon was almost free. 

"Well done Pyro, finish him off with a fire blast!" Pixel encouraged. Exhausted from all the punishment he had received, Migthyena whimpered and flopped to the side before Pyro could let out his attack. "No way," Pixel found it suspicious. Cassidy didn't believe it either if her yelling at Migthyena to get up was any indication. "Stay on your guard, Pyro. Keep that fire blast ready just in case and attack if Migthyena moves." Pyro nodded and stood ready. Migthyena didn't move, so he didn't use the attack, but he kept the fire on standby anyway.

"That just leaves Carnivine; let's finish this Rykros, hyper beam!" Comet called out to his pokemon to carry out their plan. Seviper finally got untangled and considered helping Carnivine since they were friends, but stopped, witnessing the scene. The hyper beam collided with the battle arena ground below and apparently with Carnivine. The grass pokemon moved her left leaf arm as if clutching her heart, with her right leaf dramatically over her head. With an agonized gasp that she shouldn't have had time to make, she collapsed where the burn mark of the hyper beam on the ground was.

Seviper blinked and slithered over to join his teammates, Rykros and Pyro. They seemed to have decided to do a victory pose to further emphasize their triumph. The pose was actually not part of the plan. Charmeleon spun around and held out his right arm, with two claws forming a V shape. Rykros flipped in the air, then landed next to Pyro, raising one of his scythes in victory. Improvising, Seviper coiled up like a spring and hopped, then stretched out tall and proud on Pyro's other side. The three winning pokemon stayed that way for a moment until Seviper lost his balance and fell on Pyro. The newly evolved fire pokemon then fell on Rykros, leaving the winning team like a pile of dominoes.

"That was not my idea," Comet felt the need to express his disclaimer for the silliness. He chuckled in amusement none the less.

"The battle is over," Giovanni announced officially.

The certified acknowledgement of the end of the match made James react. He had been staring at the unmoving Carnivine anxiously because she was yet to even twitch after she dramatically fainted. He rushed to her side with worry, apparently being the only one present who didn't realize that the hyper beam had purposely missed. Carnivine knew James didn't really want Cassidy and Batch, Botch or Betch, whatever his name was, to win. Thus she took the fall to end the battle, which was looking favorable for Jessie and her teammates anyway. "Carni-" James couldn't even finish his worried statement before Carnivine tackled him in another bone crushing, suffocating affectionate hug.

"That's cheating!" Cassidy stammered, "Migthyena didn't faint and neither did Carnivine! They should both be able to battle... Houndour too!" She looked at Houndour, whom she had not yet recalled. Her pokemon was just beginning to stir. Migthyena looked pretty beat up and would probably take a while to recover.

"Unable to battle or unwilling to battle, either way, you lose," Giovanni spoke and no one dared to question him. "Cassidy, Botch, clean up the arena," he ordered.

Cassidy considered protesting, but wisely decided against it, "yes, boss." Butch frowned but didn't dare to correct Giovanni in the incorrect use of his name.

Jessie cheered, feeling especially accomplished that they had beaten Cassidy. James was still busy trying to get Carnivine to let him go, while all the others recalled their pokemon. The trainers gave their respective pokemon a few words of gratitude for a good battle, except Butch, who remained silent and Cassidy, who kept grumbling and growling in frustration.

xoxox xox xoxox

It was after that three on three battle that Comet and Pixel hung out with Laiki for a while. Then the three of them ended up going to Pallet Town to see Delia. After Ash and Comet's battle and some yummy sweets from Delia, it was almost evening. 

"We should get going soon," Delia gently noted.

"Yes," Ash was smiling as if any left over tension was completely gone after having such a good time with everyone. He was now looking forward to seeing his father again. 

"Going somewhere?" Gary curiously asked.

"Yeah, we're going to..." Ash paused looking for a truthful but not too revealing reply, "to Giovanni's place for a while."

"I see," Gary smiled, he was aware of Delia's relationship with the Viridian gym leader, everyone was, even if no one knew of Ash's true connection. "Have fun," he was sincerely glad that Ash was adapting to the whole situation so well.

"We should get going too," Pixel reminded. She had a technology related conference to attend at Razzo Albergo. She intended to travel to Cerulean City by train, although it wasn't really open to the public. None the less, Rockets sometimes got a ride with the crew of Antilles Oceanus' cargo train that went all across Kanto. The conference was not required, nor was it Rocket business, but Pixel thought it might bring some useful knowledge. She would go as a civilian and keep her link to Team Rocket hidden from the other attendees.

Comet remembered Pixel mentioning her plans earlier and knew what she was getting at. Besides, Ash and Delia were going to meet Giovanni soon anyway. "Yeah, it was fun."

"Absolutely!" Laiki squealed in delight. 

After saying their goodbyes, Delia decided to go talk to Professor Oak for a few minutes before leaving, since she didn't see him earlier. Ash stayed behind talking to his new friends while Gary and Delia walked down the street to the Oak research lab.

The group of undercover Rockets recalled their pokemon into their pokeballs. Before leaving, Peachy tackled Pikachu to the ground harshly and gave him a slightly painful electric hug. Then she hurried over to Pixel and jumped into the red beam of her pokeball. Pikachu was left to figure out her farewell, but decided to take it with an open mind and think positive. Maybe they would meet again sometime soon. 

"I should head back to Cerulean City," Misty thought aloud. Ash would probably need some time alone with his parents to sort things out and she wanted to give him that. 

"I'm heading to Cerulean too, I wonder if they'll let you on the train," Pixel mused.

Laiki nodded in affirmation, "other people have been allowed on the train before. It should be fine." There was nothing secret on the above ground train. It was just regular cargo for the most part, plus the crew area.

"What train?" Misty inquired in curiosity.

"The Antilles Oceanus train, it will be leaving from Viridian to Cerulean soon," Pixel replied. "It's a cargo train, but people can ride in the crew wagon."

"If you're sure they'll let me get on, that sounds like a good way to get back home," Misty agreed. She looked at Ash with encouragement in her eyes, "call me later, when you can, alright?"

Ash smiled back, "I will." After a few more words were exchanged between the group, Ash watched the brown car disappear in the horizon away from Pallet Town. Misty had joined Comet, Pixel and Laiki, since she would be riding the Antilles Oceanus train from Viridian to Cerulean City along with Pixel. 

For the moment, Ash was left alone in the Pallet House with his pokemon. He considered catching up to his mom and talking to Professor Oak, but decided that he would talk to him after he sorted things out with his father. Ash and Delia's pokemon were all in the house since she would be back in a few minutes anyway. Swablu had fallen asleep in one of the restaurant's chairs.

Ash petted Pikachu, who had climbed back on to his shoulders. "I somehow feel like I've accomplished something." He didn't know what it was he accomplished, but he had conquered his doubts and was ready to face the truth that lay before him.

xoxox xox xoxox

Gary had gone to tend to a few things around the Oak land. He began to serve the pokemon some dinner so that he wouldn't be out too late feeding the many pokemon that lived there. Delia had gone to talk to Samuel, who had previously been caught up in a few articles in the lab. He had focused on his research so much that he lost track of time. Delia reassured him that everything was progressing very well, for which the elderly professor was sincerely pleased in the end.

After talking to Samuel, Delia returned home, where she knew Ash was waiting. As she walked, she thought she heard something from beyond the brick fence around the Oak land, but disregarded it. More noises followed and she distinguished Gary's voice yelling for someone to stop. Perplexed, she halted and listened for any other suspicious sounds coming from beyond the red brick fence. She looked towards the Pallet House. From her angle, she couldn't see Ash behind the structure, though she knew he was there. Of course, he couldn't see her either.

Suddenly, a human shape jumped over the fence and landed in front of Delia. She could still hear Gary's voice yelling for someone to come out of hiding. He must have been chasing the person in front of her, but he slipped away. The man looked to be around Comet's age. His eyes were the same brilliant blue of Comet's eyes and his hair, albeit longer, was the same red color. His clothes had tares that indicated he might have been running through the wilderness recently and unidentified blood stains. Delia's face revealed her realization, "you're..." she gasped. The being that Delia theorized was the missing number ten stared right at her, tensing at the sound of her voice. 

Delia remained completely still so as to not frighten him. He didn't seem quite as aggressive as Giovanni described. She then realized it must have been Iblis' doing and suddenly it all made sense. Giovanni had told her about Iblis' capture and the fruitless interrogation about number ten's whereabouts. Delia didn't know what to expect. If Iblis had given him some kind of training or hypnotized him, it would make perfect sense that he was after Delia. But what was he instructed to do? Would he go through with it?

"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you," Delia tried to soothe the being before her. Though his features were human, there was something very different about him. The way he jumped over the fence was something else to consider, his physical capabilities were beyond those of even a very well trained human. "You'll be alright, we can help you." She wasn't sure what to do or say to keep him calm, she wasn't even sure if he was capable of understanding her at all.

Suddenly, Gary emerged from the house and went down the stairs. He arrived at the street and spotted Delia a few steps away. Before he could even say anything, his mere presence caused number ten to become more aggressive, since Gary had yelled at him before. Number ten charged past Delia at Gary as the young researcher hurried to call out a pokemon. "No!" Delia's sudden loud voice turned number ten's attention back to her. Instead of trying to rip Gary to shreds, he hurried towards Delia and picked her up. With Delia harshly thrown over his shoulder, number ten made his escape.

"Let her go!" Gary released Fearow from his pokeball and jumped on the pokemon's back in pursuit of the kidnapper.

All the noise alerted Ash that something was wrong. He hurried to the street just as number ten dashed past him at an inhuman speed, carrying a screaming Delia. "Mom!" Ash quickly released Charizard from his pokeball and jumped on his back, joining Gary in the pursuit.

To be Continued

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 093: Give me Empathy

Number ten was moving incredibly fast, quickly heading out of Pallet Town and towards an area with more abundant flora where he could hide. It was the beginning of the extended Viridian Forest. Ash and Gary continued the pursuit, but unfortunately lost sight of Delia among the trees and bushes. They followed her voice as far as they could, until the echo became silent. They called out to her, but there was no answer. 

With no clue about which way to go, Charizard and Fearow landed. "Who was that? Where was he taking her?" Ash demanded to know.

"I don't know," Gary truthfully replied, "I was getting started setting out the pokemon's dinner when I saw someone. I thought it might be a thief, so I chased him, but he got away. I was going out to warn the townspeople that there was someone suspicious around, then I saw him down the street. Before I could even call out a pokemon he grabbed Delia and ran. No one is that fast, this makes no sense!"

Ash clenched his fists in frustration. "I have to get her back!" He didn't even know where to begin, then a thought occurred to him, 'Team Rocket.' Maybe that unknown red haired man was an enemy of Team Rocket. He seemed somehow familiar, but he moved so fast that neither Ash nor Gary could get a good look at him. "I'm taking mom's pokemon with me. Except Swablu, since she's too young. She's still back at the restaurant, take care of her for me, okay?" The pokemon, except the babies, had been recalled into their pokeballs a few minutes earlier, since everyone would soon be leaving the Pallet House. Ash had automatically taken the belt where his mother's pokeballs were when he took off on Charizard. His mother must have intended to put it on when she came back from talking to Professor Oak, since it would only be a few minutes. He put the pokeball belt on along with his own.

"Wait, what are you going to do? Do you have any idea who that was? We need to call the police!" Gary exclaimed. He didn't even bother arguing that a trainer shouldn't carry more than six pokemon at a time, that detail wasn't really important at the moment. 

"No!" Ash snapped, "don't call the police." He looked into Gary's eyes, "trust me, it's best to leave them out of this. Go back to Pallet Town, take care of Swablu and keep the town safe. Please Gary, leave this to me."

"I know you're hiding something," Gary sourly concluded. "I also know when it's no use arguing with you. I'll go back, but whatever it is you're planning to do, be careful and call me if you need help."

"Thank you," Ash agreed, though he had no intentions of calling Gary and getting him involved. It was strange to think about it, but he would have Team Rocket to back him up if he needed it. The thought also made him feel frustrated at the possibility of that man being an enemy of Team Rocket, who had kidnapped his mother because he knew of his father's true identity. It was the images the mysterious Persian, Givan, showed him which made Ash keep his temper in check. He hurried the rest of the way to the heart of Viridian City. Gary went in the opposite direction back to Pallet Town.

It only took Charizard a few minutes to reach the Viridian gym. Giovanni was coincidentally making his way to his red car in the parking. Needless to say, he didn't expect Ash to suddenly arrive on a Charizard. Giovanni could only stare at the young man's expression, which held anger, frustration, urgency and fear all at once.

xoxox xox xoxox

While so many events were taking place in Viridian City and Pallet Town, at Giovanni's mansion, Persian was bored. He had been feeling tired lately, but simply wasn't in the mood to sleep anymore. He had done nothing but sleep ever since he was left in the mansion. He only woke up occasionally to the mansion's chef fussing about how he needed to eat something nutritious to get better. His head hurt, his nose was stuffy, he wasn't in the mood to deal with people. To top it all up, the classy pokemon couldn't shake the feeling of being watched.

Desperate for some fresh air, Persian snuck out of the mansion. He knew that his father would disapprove of him going off on his own, but he really needed a break. Besides, even if he was feeling sick, he refused to believe it was related to the beginnings of that deadly virus he had heard humans talking about. Furthermore, just because he mostly sat beside his father while his other pokemon did most of the battling, didn't mean he couldn't battle. He was confident that he could defend himself just fine, not that he expected anyone to attack him anyway. He would just go for a walk and return to the mansion after he cleared his head. In and out, no one would notice.

Persian climbed over the fence, with more effort than it would have normally taken him in full health. He walked further and further away from the mansion. He looked back over his shoulder; he was away from the mansion but couldn't get rid of the feeling of being watched. He shrugged it off and kept walking. 

He was in the Victory Road area when a rock flew out of no where and hit him on the head. The rock was relatively small and rounded so it caused little damage, but Persian was angry. 'Who threw that?' He demanded to know with a hiss.

A loud roar answered his question as an angry Ursaring came into view. The pokemon was very unusual in that area. That particular Ursaring had been trained by a human before, but was now wild. His trainer lost his first pokemon to the illness that had tainted the east of Kanto and was spreading towards the west and to Johto. Seeking different medical help, the trainer had journeyed to Johto, with the esteemed starter pokemon finally passing away when they stopped in the Viridian Pokemon Center.

Ursaring's past trainer had continued towards Johto heartbroken, before finally deciding upon releasing his current team. One of those pokemon was Ursaring. Some were sick and others were not, but the trainer didn't want to risk infecting any of his other pokemon that were awaiting his return in his home of New Bark Town. Ursaring felt abandoned, he was healthy, but he was still thrown away on the possibility that he might be ill, albeit not yet showing it. Furthermore if he truly was ill, living in the wild would have been difficult. Ursaring felt betrayed and frustrated, he was furious. 

Ursaring couldn't harm his trainer whom he still thought of as a precious person, so he let him go and took out his anger on some boulders. Then, out of seemingly no where, a Persian hissed at him. Ursaring lost his temper further and picked up a large boulder, throwing it at Persian.

Persian quickly dodged the boulder, but soon another came. Ursaring kept throwing every boulder he could get his paws on and Persian was starting to feel tired. He could barely dodge in his condition, let alone get an attack in.

'Stop it!' A blur suddenly jumped out from behind some near by rocks. Purry had been watching Persian the whole time, keeping herself well hidden. Over time she had become an expert in the art of stalking him. She debated if she should reveal herself or not, since she had the distinct appearance of an alley pokemon. The contrast with Persian's refined look was too great. None the less, all things aside, she couldn't let him get hurt. Purry jumped towards the Ursaring with her claws out, aiming for the throat.

The large brown pokemon was caught by surprise upon realizing that the Meowth was seriously trying to badly injure him, if not kill him. Ursaring lost his grip on the bolder he held over his head ready to throw it. The large rock hit him on the head, falling at his feet after the impact. Ursaring hollered in pain at the impact of the stone and furthermore upon feeling a stab on his chest that was far too sharp to belong only to a Meowth's claws, however fierce the Meowth may be. He then noticed that the fiery Meowth had used her charm as a weapon; the golden coin was cut to a point and sharpened. Fortunately, his thick fur and built prevented any fatal injuries. 

The Ursaring tried to defend himself in his pained dazed state, but found he couldn't move fast enough. That Meowth was incredibly fast and strong. With a rapid succession of slashes, Purry finally forced her large opponent into unconsciousness. The Ursaring would live, but he would certainly never forget that battle. He would have never guessed such a small pokemon could possess such aggressive power.

With the battle won, Purry froze and slowly looked over to where Persian should have been. He wasn't there. She sighed sadly, 'he ran away, he probably thinks I'm a monster.' Worried that he might run into more trouble, Purry was quick to follow her beloved's scent. 

xoxox xox xoxox 

Persian didn't know what that Ursaring's problem was and he didn't know where that fierce Meowth came from. He did know when it was time to leave. Curious as he was about the fight, as much as he wanted some answers, he concluded it was best to leave those two alone. Besides, the mansion staff might have noticed that he was gone and they would be running around in desperation looking for him in no time. Deciding that he had enough adventure for the time being, Persian headed back to the mansion. 

During his walk back, he noted that the feeling of being observed was gone. It was that way for a while, until his instinct once again alerted him that he was being watched. He decided to ignore it and keep going. He had left Victory Road and was in the area between it and Viridian City, where trees and flora were abundant. He found that he had lost his way, but knew the mansion had to be near by, hidden in the tall, lush vegetation. He resolved to climb up a tree and have a better look.

Persian saw a tree with some conveniently arranged branches. He could easily jump from one to another without worrying about losing his balance due to the dizziness that was overtaking him. Even more convenient, he saw a smaller tree near that big one. He would use that small tree, with its easy to reach branches, to climb up to the lowest branch of the larger tree. Then he would follow the ladder-like structure of that big tree until he was high enough to see the roof of the mansion among the vegetation.

With his mind set on the plan, Persian began to climb the small tree with his claws out. The tree was most displeased upon the uncalled for attack and quickly threw Persian off. Dazed, the classy pokemon blinked trying to clear his somewhat blurry vision. He had been thinking about the feeling of being watched in the back of his mind and didn't even notice that there was a Sudowoodo sleeping while standing, right in front of him.

Tired of being pushed around, Persian tried to prepare for a fight. He showed his claws and hissed as menacingly as he could. His tail was momentarily up straight and his eyes gained some focus. Unfortunately, he was soon invaded by another wave of dizziness stronger than before. To make matters worse, Sudowoodo was on the attack with wood hammer.

As Sudowoodo's arm came down on Persian, Purry jumped out of the bushes, biting the branch that dared to attack her beloved. The Sudowoodo flailed around trying to get the Meowth off. She let him go at the right moment, being flung into a tree. Instead of crashing into the tree, Purry pushed off it and tackled Sudowoodo with her claws out. The tree shaped rock pokemon tried to mimic the attack, but his strength was in no way comparable to the fierce Meowth. Clearly overpowered, the Sudowoodo ran away as fast as he could.

Purry didn't chase after her opponent; instead she looked at Persian to see how he was doing. She gasped as she saw that he was laying on the ground, breathing heavily with his eyes closed in pain. He must really be sick and shouldn't be out there. She heard some rustling in the bushes and instantly tensed up.

A tall pokemon with dark fur came out of the bushes. Purry looked into her green eyes noticing she wasn't hostile. The pokemon stood upright much like a human, with a long violet mane that went from her head, falling almost to her ankles. Needless to say, it was very unusual to see a Zoroark in Kanto. The Zoroark approached the Meowth and the Persian, observing the Persian. 'He is ill,' she spoke in the pokemon language. 'I can help him.'

'Can you, really?' Purry was taken by surprise. There was something different about this pokemon, the way she carried herself was unlike anything Purry had seen before. It wasn't simply that she was of a species that Purry had never met before, it was something more.

The Zoroark nodded, 'yes.' She extended her paw placing it gently over Persian's head and focused. His eyes were closed tightly and he was unaware of his surroundings due to the heavy dizziness that had overtaken him. Zoroark glowed as she willed the sick pokemon to sleep with the power of rest. Persian fell into a deep slumber, with his breathing becoming calm and even. 'Let him rest, he will be alright soon.'

Zoroark started to leave but Purry called after her, 'wait, who are you? How is it that you can heal with rest, like this? That power wasn't like a normal rest; I could somehow sense it was different.'

Zoroark shook her head, 'I'm not certain about that myself, but I can tell you this, I'm not who I used to be.'

It was clear that the Zoroark wasn't going to stay and tend to the Meowth's curiosity about her mysterious abilities. Purry decided not to bother her and just be grateful, 'thank you for healing him.'

Zoroark nodded in acknowledgement and promptly left. She always visited Kanto in the fall; she didn't expect to find anything or anyone waiting for her. She had long since forgotten what was it that drove her to travel to Kanto every year. It was something she had been doing for as long as she could remember, every fall she would sneak into the Viridian Forest and spend a day there before going off to explore other areas. Sometimes bits and pieces of memories reemerged, but she had stopped trying to bring them to the surface completely.

She always made sure to stay away from humans. Sometimes her presence in the Viridian Forest would be noticed, especially in the recent years. The forest was well guarded. Someone would try to catch her, but they would always fail. Thus Zoroark headed towards Viridian as she always did once a year.

xoxox xox xoxox

Some time later, Persian slowly opened his eyes feeling well rested. The fatigue of sickness was gone, his breathing was normal and his balanced had fully returned. He didn't know how it was even possible, considering how he felt before, but he was somehow fully healed. He remembered the Sudowoodo and the Meowth, but neither seemed to be anywhere in sight. He did feel like he was being watched though. He wondered if the one who had been watching him was that Meowth all along. If that was so, then how did she get into the mansion? He held no memories of the Zoroark, since he was so out of it when she was there. 

He got to his feet and decided to resume his trip back to the mansion. He would still have to climb a tree to see which way he should go. Fortunately, he was once again alert enough to easily tell the difference between a tree and a pokemon. Persian was about to climb a tree when he heard some growling near by. The sound was angry and it was not similar to any sound he had heard a pokemon make. It sounded somewhat human-like, but at the same time distinctly not.

The source of the unpleasant growls soon came into view. Number three was no longer to be left alone as an urban legend. Neither Team Rocket nor the police pretended he didn't exist anymore. He was like a cornered wild pokemon trying to escape. As a result of the modifications made to age him to an adult years ago, he had continued to age at a fast pace. His old clothes were stained and ripped with blood sticking to nearly every inch of his body. Beneath the layer of blood, his skin was harsh in a barely perceptible dark tan that was hidden by the dark red tint of the dry blood. His dirty hair looked red due to the blood in it; albeit in truth it barely had any red left in it, as it had mostly turned gray in time. The only truly recognizable feature that the Bloody Killer shared with his genetic relatives, were his blue eyes.

'What in the world is that?' Persian stared at the creature that appeared to be somewhat human, but at the same time not.

'It's bad, get out of here!' Purry jumped out of the bushes, ready to fight that creature.

'I knew you were following me!' Persian accused, 'just who do you think you are stalking me like that, you unrefined alley pokemon,' he huffed in indignation.

Purry froze at the disapproval, 'I... um... Just get out of here!'

Persian huffed in annoyance, 'fine, servant, I'll leave you to your little battle. You and that creature look similar enough so-' he was cut off by the Bloody Killer suddenly hurrying forward to grip the Persian's neck. The mutant was hungry after having to run and hide so much. He could feel himself growing weaker by the day and he couldn't allow that. Maybe a meal would make him feel better.

Purry jumped on the Bloody Killer, scratching and biting as hard as she could. She managed to make him let go of Persian, but he threw her against a tree. The force was so strong that she couldn't shift her body to push herself off it and slammed hard against the tree. Angered, number three didn't cease the attack on the fallen Meowth. He grabbed her by the tail and slammed her against the ground repeatedly.

Persian had caught his breath, even if he could still feel the sticky filth of that creature's grip around his neck. That thing was disgusting and Persian was very angry. He had no business with that shabby Meowth, but he wasn't going to let that thing get away with attacking him like that. The ruby on his forehead glowed brightly as he summoned his pay day attack. A multitude of coins collided with the mutant almost like bullets, leaving bruises and cuts all over him.

Purry slipped away from number three's grasp, pained, but still able to battle. It would take a lot more than that to make her faint. She had a long history of harsh battles. It all began with Team Rocket years ago. 

xoxox xox xoxox

It was a special training program for pokemon that was dropped due to the pokemon either failing or becoming too wild to control. The regimen didn't involve any power ups, only training. When the first and only instance of the program ended, only a few pokemon came out of it, Purry being one of them. She was trained to be an assassin, but she too had developed a rebellious, nearly insatiable, thirst for battle. Eventually she ran away and was forgotten, possibly thought of as dead.

After escaping from Team Rocket, Purry continued fighting one battle after another. Those who saw her feared her. She lived to fight and often found herself challenging other pokemon, even if she was vastly outnumbered. The constant battles and hardships led to many wounds along the way. Though she eventually recovered from all of them, she was left with many battle scars, visible through missing patches of fur. She also had a sharpened charm, which was done during her training to make it as deadly as the sharpest knife. 

It was during the start of her training with Team Rocket when Purry, back then a nameless Meowth, met another Meowth. The male Meowth was a little older than her, but still a child. He was perched on a human's shoulder, the human that was apparently the boss of all the other humans in that underground training facility where she had been born.

The small boy Meowth jumped off the human's shoulder, landing on his feet on the floor. He curiously approached the rows of cages were many other pokemon were kept. He saw that one of the cages contained a female of his species, a little younger than him. He scuffed at the mental comparison, they were nothing alike. In his curly tail he carried a small bag of gourmet pokemon treats he had taken along to snack on. He sat down, placing the bag in front of him and reaching in for a treat with his front paw.

'Why are you sad?' The voice took the male Meowth by surprise. He looked towards the young female in the cage who had spoken. 'Your trainer is clearly much kinder to you than mine is to me. I don't know why someone like you would be sad.'

'Mom left and dad tries not to show it but he's upset.' He stopped himself before he could say anything more. He threw his head back and looked away from the female of his species. 'It's none of your business, servant. Unlike you, I'm a high class pokemon. I can have everything I want. My father is the boss of this place, I'm not just his pokemon, I'm their son, mother said so.'

'It's too bad your mom left. I never met my parents,' the female Meowth replied.

'I said it doesn't matter!' The male hissed, 'mom will come back some day, dad's going to find her. I'm sure she'll come back if dad asks her to.' 

The young Meowth didn't know how right he was. But Giovanni didn't go after Delia; he didn't ask her to return even if he knew where she had gone. She had left with only a letter and no reason to run away like that could be big enough, in Giovanni's opinion. Many years would pass before he knew why she left, before he learned about Ash.

The female Meowth observed the male. She had seen him a few times with the human he called his father, the boss. 'I guess no one is safe from sadness,' she mused. She had thought he lived such a perfect life, but he didn't. 'At least you still have your father and you might see your mother again too. Cheer up, you'll be okay!'

'You're the one in a cage, servant pokemon, you're in no position to tell me to cheer up.' Frustrated and sad, the Meowth boy dashed away back to his father. He attempted to climb back on his shoulder, but Giovanni picked him up first, allowing him to easily jump on his shoulder again without having to climb all over him.

As Giovanni exited the lab with his little Meowth, the bag of treats was left forgotten on the floor. The female Meowth reached between the bars of her cage and stretched as far as she could, but was unable to reach it. She uncomfortably repositioned herself inside the small cage and reached out with her tail. Her tail was just long enough to reach the bag of treats. She reached into it taking one of the delicious treats in her small front paw. She put it in , savoring the taste; it was like nothing she had ever tasted before. 

She didn't know if the Meowth boy had truly forgotten his treats or if he just left them there. If he had left them, it was the first act of kindness she had ever received. Even if it had been an accident, none the less she wanted to be his friend. He was kind of bratty, but she could tell he was only that way because he missed his mother. Perhaps his father tried to make up for it by showering him with gifts. She could only imagine what his life might truly be like. 

The young Meowth girl decided that one day she would climb to the top of Team Rocket and stand by his side. It was just a childish crush, mixed with a wish for a better life and for a trainer that cared about her. Eventually, she would run away from the hardships of Team Rocket and wonder from one place to another all over Kanto for years. 

One night, after that little Meowth was all grown up, she met a girl wearing the emblem of Team Rocket. The girl didn't seem bad; she tried to talk to her, to negotiate a mutually beneficial agreement. She wasn't looking for a servant; she was looking for a partner. It was that girl, Pixel, who began to call the Meowth Purry. Upon returning to Team Rocket, Purry had the chance to see her first crush again. He was grown up into a handsome Persian more attractive than any other pokemon she had ever seen. The wish to be with him resurfaced stronger then ever. At least she controlled her thirst for battle as she began to get used to interacting with other living beings outside of a fight. 

Purry didn't expect Persian to realize who she was. She fully expected him to have forgotten their first meeting all those years ago. Either way it didn't matter, it didn't change anything. Purry was once again determined to make it to the top and stand by his side.

To be Continued

Don't Give Me Diamonds

Diamond 094: Give me Reliability

In the parking of the Viridian City gym, Ash's Charizard had just landed near Giovanni. Ash was still on the pokemon's back as he revealed the unexpected dilemma. "Mom's been kidnapped! It was some guy with red hair; I couldn't get a good look at him. He moved so fast, it's like he wasn't even human! I lost them in the forest."

The description fit perfectly, Ash had probably seen number ten. He had been taken by Iblis and might think of Delia as his target, even if he was more wild than rational. "I'll find them," just as Giovanni took his little Rocket cell phone, it rang in his hand. "Is this about Delia and ten?" He immediately asked, then listened to the report from the hidden cameras in the forest. "Don't let him get away!" Another call interrupted, Giovanni noticed on the cell phone screen that it was from Comet, marked as urgent.

xoxox xox xoxox

The crew wagon of the Antilles Oceanus train was quite comfortable. It was large and had plenty of space for the crew's belongings, snacks and so on. It had a couple of tables in the corner with cushioned booths to sit at. Pixel was taking the train to attend a conference in Cerulean City. Misty had boarded with her to return home. She was allowed in because of the link the Waterflowers now secretly shared with Team Rocket. Either way, the cargo of the above ground train held no secrets. 

Coincidentally, Jessie and James were on the train as well. They were heading back to Saffron City so they would remain on board past the Cerulean City stop. They would have to wait for the crew to take care of business with the cargo at Cerulean, but it didn't really matter. They had come armed with a handheld videogame, a deck of cards and enough snacks for the journey. Besides, it was free transportation and free things were not to be wasted. 

Laiki had gone off to visit Rex and Comet had decided to take a walk around Viridian City before returning to headquarters. He saw the bridge at the edge of the city under which the train would soon pass. He heard the engine as the train started moving out of Viridian City. It wouldn't fully speed up until it was out of the forest area. Coming from the thick forest, Comet spotted a most shocking sight. A man with red hair, holding some significant physical resemblance to himself was running with an unconscious Delia thrown over his shoulder. She had hit her head on a low hanging tree branch during number ten's get away.

Number ten froze upon seeing Comet running towards him. There was something about that particular human that seemed too familiar and it frightened him. Normally, his first instinct would be to destroy, but the woman he carried... there was a mental order telling him to take her to someone, except he didn't know where. The remnants of Iblis' attempt of hypnotism were blurry. Then there was that man running towards him, there was something different yet familiar about him. Number ten didn't like it, he had to get away. He jumped off the bridge and landed on top of the passing train below.

xoxox xox xoxox

Outside of the Viridian gym, "I found ten, he had Delia, they're on Gallade," Comet's voice came from Giovanni's cell phone sounding as if he was running as he spoke. The name of the train was the Green Gallade.

"Don't lose track of them!" Giovanni urged, "I'll be there soon." He sent a signal for his agents to head to the location. 

"Did they find mom? Are they getting her back? Where is she?" Ash questioned. It was odd to think of his mother as being safe if she was with Team Rocket.

"Not too far from here," Giovanni released Flygon from his pokeball and jumped on his back, "let's go."

"Right!" Ash followed Giovanni and Flygon on Charizard as they headed towards the train's tracks, following them to the train ahead.

xoxox xox xoxox

In the forest-like area surrounding Giovanni's mansion between Viridian City and Victory Road, Purry and Persian were facing the legendary Bloody Killer. After so many years had past, he no longer possessed all the power he became known for, even if he was still a very deadly opponent. The being growled and went on the attack again. Purry didn't think twice before jumping at the mutant creature with her claws bare. If he managed to push her away, she would get up and fight again.

'This is insane, what is that thing?' Persian was really regretting having gone out for a walk. He would find a way to communicate what had happened to his father. When he found out he would have all of Team Rocket out there to avenge him. 

Upon thinking about the situation further, Persian remembered certain things he overheard while half paying attention to the conversations Giovanni was having. That thing was one of the monsters Team Rocket was trying to capture. While the scruffy servant pokemon kept that creature busy, Persian would go and get help. More importantly, he would get someone to prepare a bubble bath for him and sponge off all the filth that stuck to his fur as a result of his annoying little adventure. 

With that plan in mind, Persian was about to follow his earlier decision of locating the mansion and running towards it as fast as he could. His dash was interrupted by Purry being thrown several feet away from her opponent, in front of Persian's path. Persian looked back at where the Bloody Killer was wiping away the blood that had fallen in his eyes from the scratches on his head. He seemed unable to completely open one of his eyes.

'Why are you still here?' Purry hissed, getting up once more despite her bruised state. She stumbled upon realizing that one of her hind legs was broken.

Persian shook his head, 'undignified uncivilized-'

'Move!' Purry tackled Persian out of the way of the Bloody Killer's charge. 

'Get off,' he growled, one more look at the wild creature that came towards them again was enough to make him stop arguing and climb up the nearest tree. 

Purry followed him up the tree, using mostly her front paws to get herself up. Number three was beginning to show signs of fatigue as he tried to climb up the tree and slipped back down. 'Look, we can see the mansion from up here,' she pointed at the portion of the structure's roof that was visible amidst the trees. 'I'll distract him and you can make a run for it.' She paused and glared, 'and I'm not a servant pokemon.'

'Of course you are,' Persian spoke smugly. He wasn't used to being in danger. The situation felt unreal, since he was accustomed to always being by Giovanni's side. Persian thought of his father as the most powerful human in the world, with many humans and pokemon at his command. He was always safe. 'Why else would you be doing all this?'

The Bloody Killer charged at the tree as if trying to knock it down. The tree, which was not one of the thickest around, shook every time the mutant collided with it. It's not like the two pokemon had time to be picky about which tree they climbed. Seeing the blood lust in the mutant's half closed glare, Persian could almost feel his strong grip again. The feeling of danger returned to him and he could no longer push it away. He was always safe with his father, but his father wasn't there.

'Because I... um... I kind of like you,' Purry admitted. This wasn't what she wanted. She was supposed to have evolved into a beautiful Persian before her beloved saw her. There she was, stuck in a tree, looking her worse, with a murderous monster trying to kill them; that was certainly not a romantic setting.

'Don't be ridiculous,' Persian growled as he moved through the branches, looking for the best way to jump to a different tree. He saw a steady branch and walked onto it, then jumped to a neighboring tree. That tree was larger and much sturdier than the first. 'I'm a high class pokemon, my father is the boss of Team Rocket, you have no right to say something like that.'

'Maybe not,' Purry jumped from the relatively small tree to the larger one, trying not to further damage her broken leg. She winced in pain, but refused to cry out, quickly regaining a serious face. 'Right now, like it or not, I'm your only hope. I'm not doing this because I have to, I don't have to and no one can make me. I'm helping you because I want to, no matter how much you may not like it, someone is having mercy on you.' 

It didn't matter anymore, even if by some miracle she evolved into a beautiful Persian, he had already seen her at her worse. He would not forget this, he would always think of her as a monster. She felt her eyes water, but this was no time to cry, it was time to fight. Maybe she could allow herself one last indulgence before she accepted the reality, she would never have him. It was just one last little pleasure, one that he would never forgive her for. 

Persian's eyes traveled to the growling creature at the base of the tree, trying to climb up. Number three climbed a considerable distance, but slipped off the tree and fell. As he hit the ground on his side, his arm twisted in an unnatural angle, adding to all the mistreatment it received when the mutant was ramming into the other tree. The creature growled and tried to pop his limp right arm back into place to no avail. 

Persian shuddered, distracted by the monsters doings below. Then when he least expected it, the scruffy little servant pokemon was too close for comfort. He was about to harshly protest and criticize her for the invasion of his personal space. Perhaps he would even push her away despite the limited space of the tree branch they were on. However, none of those actions could be carried out fast enough. Before Persian knew what in the world was going on, Purry kissed him, then leapt off the tree. 

Purry landed on three paws, keeping her broken leg from getting further damaged. The mutant stopped trying to fix his arm and went on the attack, while Purry skillfully dodged, despite the pain, even getting a few extra scratches in. Up in the tree Persian was shocked. He finally recovered enough to start yelling at the top of his lungs about the uncivilized, impulsive unworthy creature and her unforgivable actions, for which his father would certainly make her pay. 

Persian's voice called the mutant's attention back to the tree. He momentarily ceased the attack on Purry and tried to climb the tree again. However, all hope of accomplishing the task had already been lost when his right arm became immobile. Number three glared at the Persian up in the tree and growled at him one more time before turning his attention to the Meowth on the ground. She wasn't where she had been a second ago. 

The Bloody Killer spun around looking for his prey, only to have her jump on his head from one of the branches above. She had made good use of the distraction to climb up another tree and get ready to attack. 'Go now!' Purry hissed.

Persian knew it was his only chance to get back home and away from this mess. He would never run off on his own again. He jumped down from the tree and gracefully landed on his feet. He looked back only once, wondering why in the world that Meowth fought so hard. She should know she was a low ranked servant pokemon and that she would be so, no matter what she did. It didn't make sense to him that she would try so hard if she claimed she didn't feel she had to, why would she want to? What did she hope to accomplish if he had clearly already rejected her? He decided not to try to make sense of that stubborn Meowth's strange behavior and just get out of there. He ran in the direction of the mansion as fast as he could.

After Persian was gone, Purry had her paws full with the fight. The Bloody Killer was clearly tired, his left eye remained closed and his right arm didn't move. None the less, he kept throwing punches and kicks desperately, as if he rather rip himself to pieces than let all of his prey escape. He had already lost one of them and that was too much. The mutant's right fist collided with the base of a tree as Purry dodged the hit. He tried to kick her and succeeded in reaching her as she dashed to the side. She was thrown several feet back out of breath with a few broken ribs. 

The momentum of the hard kick was too much and the mutant stumbled to the ground, his head hitting a rock. He took the bloodied rock, not caring about his injuries, and threw it. Purry rolled out of the way of the rock and further damaged her ribs with the sudden movement. The mutant was trying to get back on his feet. His ankle, which he had twisted earlier when he fell off the tree, finally gave in and broke as he placed his weight on it while trying to get up. The creature screamed loudly and panted heavily. He would have his prey even if it killed him. 

xoxox xox xoxox

Not too far from the battle of mutant versus pokemon, Rex was searching for Persian. If Giovanni found out his precious pokemon disappeared from the mansion, the entire staff would be in big trouble. He didn't exactly disappear though, he was caught by the security cameras jumping over the fence and leaving. That new PorygonZ that began to inhabit the system for additional security let him go, understanding that the master's favored pokemon was free to go in and out as he pleased. The PorygonZ, codenamed Quartz, informed Rex of Persian's departure by showing him the images on the screen when the butler inquired about it. 

There were also other PorygonZ that had recently begun to inhabit the Rocket security systems for constant live monitoring against hackers and viruses. The idea was inspired by Prism, who was currently a Porygon2 partnered with Pixel. The main PorygonZ of the Viridian Rocket base was codenamed Ruby. Ruby, Quartz and all the other Rocket system PorygonZ answered to the leader PorygonZ, Diamond. Diamond's color was predominantly blue were PorygonZ were usually pink. The pokemon was constantly trained and given new data to keep it ahead of all other technology outside of Team Rocket. Diamond inhabited the main Rocket satellite in orbit.

"Persian! Persian!" Rex called out as he searched the forest area surrounding the mansion. "Persian, please come back!"

Laiki had gone to visit Rex and arrived to find the mansion staff in a panic because Persian was out on his own. Annoyed that her date was ruined, she joined Rex in the search. "He's not a baby," she insisted, trying to soothe his seemingly purposeless panic. "Persian's a big boy. He can go for a walk on his own and come back on his own just fine. He was probably fed up with everyone getting in his face all the time."

As Laiki was trying to calm Rex, Persian bolted towards them from between some bushes. "Persian, he's injured!" Rex rushed towards the pokemon followed by Laiki.

"He's not injured," she concluded after a quick examination to the precious pokemon. "He's just a bit dirty and a little bruised and scratched, but not really what I would call injured. I'm sure he'll look a lot better after a nice warm bath."

Loud noises were heard from near by, "that sounds like a fight, do you think it was wild pokemon that got him into this state?" Rex inquired and Persian hissed, saying something in his own language.

Laiki interpreted Persian's attempt at communication in her own way, "I guess so and it looks like someone wants vengeance. Hitmonchan could use some exercise." Laiki released her pokemon from his pokeball and pointed forward in the direction from where Persian had come, "charge!" She ran ahead followed by Hitmonchan, who was quick to catch up and take the lead.

"I have a bad feeling about this," Rex followed them, along with a vexed and curious Persian.

xoxox xox xoxox  

Purry had been fighting the mutant the entire time Persian was gone. The urban legend just didn't give up even if he was clearly exhausted. His breathing was harsh and labored and his movements were getting clumsier. Even so, he was still strong, but Purry was determined to win. With a final burst of power, the Meowth glowed brightly as her body began to change. She was larger though still slightly smaller than Giovanni's Persian. All her pain and injuries were gone and her bones had somehow mended.

Purry had feared that evolution wouldn't turn her into a refined creature and thus unconsciously held back. Now she had nothing to lose, evolution or not, she had already been rejected as she was not born high classed. She had nothing left to fear and let the power surround her in a burst of energy and light. After spending time with Peachy, Purry had mastered a few electric attacks. With a bright light and powerful atmosphere, she released a massive thunderbolt that finally knocked out number three.

Some rustling in the bushes were heard and a Hitmonchan arrived. A voice called out, "wait for me," alerting Purry that a human was approaching. Neither the pokemon nor the human were strangers to Purry. That Hitmonchan was Laiki's pokemon, so it must be her who was following after him. Maybe Persian was with her, but Purry didn't want to face him again, she had resolved to give up on him. 

The next one to emerge from the vegetation was Persian himself. As if answering to her well practiced secret stalker reflexes, Purry immediately ran for cover. He saw her as she dashed away and she thought she heard him say something, but she didn't stop. 

Laiki arrived at the scene, "don't run off without your trainer like that, Chan," she was about to say something to Persian who had also run ahead, but stopped upon seeing the unconscious mutant on the ground.  She was already on the phone with headquarters when Rex caught up to the group.

xoxox xox xoxox

Meanwhile, Jessie, James, Misty and Pixel were in the crew wagon of the Antilles Oceanus Cargo train, Green Gallade. "Is it just me, or are we going backwards?" Misty asked as she felt the shift in movement. 

"Maybe they forgot something," James offered. None of them rode that train regularly, no one except the crew did. Thus it was hard to tell if the occurrence was normal or not. Yet it seemed out of place that they would forget something and have to go back for it.

Suspicious noises were heard overhead, as if someone was running on the train's roof. "What's that?" Jessie looked up instinctively, though her eyes could add nothing to the apparent presence that her ears had perceived. 

"I'll go ask," Pixel got up and left the table where the group was sitting. She headed to the control cabin and found that the conductor looked rather nervous. "Is something wrong?"

"It had to happen now," the conductor muttered. 

Pixel had noticed a few crew members coming and going through the train's wagons, but thought little of it until those noises became more noticeable, closer. "What's wrong?"

"He's out there," the conductor whispered, his uniform was the standard forest green of all Antilles Oceanus employees, regardless of if they worked on land or the sea. The sea was the biggest trade route, with a train on each region that distributed the cargo that was not picked up at the ports. "A dangerous enemy of Team Rocket known as number ten. No one knows who or what he is, except of course the higher ranks. We were warned about him and recently received communication that he was here, right on top of this train. We're staying in the forest's cover until the situation is resolved. It just had to happen now when we have such an important guest on board. I'm sure you already know this, but Misty Waterflower is Ash Ketchum's fiance. He's the son of Delia, whom the boss is dating."

One set of footsteps stopped on top of the control cabin and another kept approaching, then stopped suddenly, a little further back. There was a voice and some growls, but it was too muffled by the train's structure to be understood. The train came to a full stop in the middle of the forest. "I better go out and help," Pixel went back to the crew wagon along with the conductor.

The conductor was quick to apologize, "I'm sorry for this delay, we're having a few small technical difficulties. Please don't worry; we should be on our way to Cerulean City again soon."

"Right... Jessie, James, since we're in Team Rocket and all, we should go give them a hand," Pixel hinted.

"Wait a minute," Misty found the entire situation to be very suspicious, "what's really going on?"

Jessie and James looked confused, so Misty looked at Pixel for answers. The blue haired girl thought of her options for a moment then shrugged, "what's to stop you from going out and taking a look? You're on our side anyway. Have you ever heard the legend of the Bloody Killer? There's someone similar on the loose and we need to catch him. I'm off to the battle field." Without further explanations, Pixel exited the train.

Jessie and James didn't seem to know much about the situation, but remembered receiving a warning to be on the look out for a supposed criminal that was apparently on Team Rocket's black list. "Let's go, this will be our chance to do something big!" Jessie was full of determination as she rushed out of the train.

"Wait for me!" James called after her and quickly followed.

Seeing that everyone was going out, Misty rushed out as well, ignoring the conductor asking her to stay inside the train. She was still confused about the current occurrences, but came up with her own theories. If the one they were trying to capture was similar to the horrific urban legend, then that would mean he was a serial killer. She had heard about gangs being protective of their territory. Maybe he committed a crime in Team Rocket's territory and that's why they were trying to capture him. If he really was so bad he had to be stopped, it didn't matter if it was by Team Rocket or the police.

Outside of the train, a man with red hair stood atop the motionless train's engine. A few feet back was Comet. Misty gasped as she realized who the woman the criminal was holding hostage was, "Delia!" To further add to her worries, Delia seemed to be unconscious.

Giovanni spotted the train among the thick vegetation of the Viridian Forest. Flygon hurried towards the engine and stopped next to Comet. Ash followed on Charizard, stopping on Comet's other side. It seemed they were at a stand still with number ten threatening to break Delia's neck. The mutant twitched occasionally as if it was difficult to maintain his focus. 

"He's losing it," Comet quietly warned, he could see it in the mutant's eyes. What little perception the creature had of the world around him was slowly fading away.

"Iblis' hypnotism must be wearing off," Giovanni reasoned. He understood that the knowledge of being surrounded would do little to tilt the situation in their favor. Giovanni's cell phone rang, causing number ten to growl.

Ash kept trying to reason with him, telling him to let his mother go. His words were lost to a being that couldn't truly understand them.

To be Continued

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