Arc one:

Boredom is the root of all evil

The despairing refusal to be oneself

Chapter 1: Elaborate mission failure

Unknown location in Hoenn.

Middle of the night:

Shiny black boots cracked the glass shards littering the polished floor.

Norman was furious and the investigators on the crime scene gave him a wide berth. Moving closer, he resolutely stared at the broken glass cage as if looking at it will force the cage to magically repair itself. His reflection on the glass shattered into a million pieces due to the spider web cracks decorating the unbroken pane. Tearing his gaze away, he looked around the room. It was perfectly undisturbed, the cameras were fully functional, the security system was un-tampered with and yet, this incident took place.

Legendary pokemon Rayquayza was magically stolen from one of the top research facilities in Hoenn. If it weren't for the alarms blaring when the cage broke, Norman would've thought the creature broke out by itself. A review of the camera records showed a masked thief teleporting inside the room and that was it, how the thief escaped or when he stole the pokemon...None of the above events showed up on video.

"Sir, the crime scene has not produced any evidence apart from this...It's similar to the other cards we found when Mewtwo and the other legendries where stolen. Also we can safely assume this heist is related to the other one associated with the swiping of classified information on Ky-"

"Enough" Norman cut in "...Let me see the paper"

A stiff square card was handed to him, despite owning a dozen or so of these cards, top investigators still couldn't make out what they are for and their only guess was that it functioned as a calling card of sorts. One half of the card had a picture of two maroon swords, crossed over each other. The other half sported portraits of various pokemon: a Pikachu, Sunflora, Munchlax and a white dragon whose name he did not know yet. The back of the paper was white, save for an elegantly scripted E in the middle.

E...E for what? He stared at the two crossed swords...Elimination...Execution? He paled at his own conclusions, were the captured legendries being put to death?

Gritting his teeth, the gym leader huffed, tossed the card back to the investigator who presented it and marched out of the room.

Littleroot Town.

Ruby's House:

Norman carefully opened the door to his home and stepped in. His wife and child were obviously fast asleep and he did not want to disturb them. Taking off his shoes, he walked through the corridor and stopped by the lounge.

The room was glowing with a faint bluish light.

Entering it, he saw the television was switched on and lying on the couch was his son Ruby, his half lidded eyes were glued to the screen. The programme showing on T.V appeared to be some sort of Pokemon contest. Crossing the room he turned the device off.

"Go to bed Ruby" he sternly stated, "It's almost sunrise again."

The teenager picked himself lethargically and dragged himself to his bedroom.

One week later

Evening

Cerulean City:

Orbs of golden light formed part of the extravagant decor inside the ballroom. Streams of orange and yellow flowers hung from the ceiling, reflecting light in all sorts of directions. The twinkling of glasses complimented the soft chatter and lilting music echoing around the room. Large windows were draped with mauve curtains but all this lavish adornment was lost on a certain jet haired individual leaning against a Greek styled pillar. He sighed, arranged his gel stiffed bangs in front of his eyes and continued to read the news on his cellphone.

"Can't believe they don't have any idea on Rayquayza's culprit" he muttered, his voice drowned by the elegantly dressed crowds "...Why am I even here? Stupid Blue, she could've sent Gold or someone else. Why me?"

He reminisced about his earlier predicament:

"Because you are the only one who can do this Red!" she exclaimed whilst Green watched with a slightly apologetic smile on his face. The girl dragged him over to the dressing room and handed him several articles of formal clothing, due to her insistence he had tried them all on, alas, she seemed unsatisfied. Finally she decided on a deep grey one...the problem was the price. Stingy as she was, Red was touched when the three of them split the expenses between themselves.

It was getting closer to the appointed time and an argument had broken out. Red listened with apprehension as she ranted on about his unruly hair; he patted his upright bangs and wondered what they did wrong. With an evil look marring her pretty face, she seized Red and began to apply gel on his hair, forcing his hair down over his blood red irises. Combing it vigorously she commanded him to go change. As he came out of the bathroom in a sheepish manner she gasped.

"Woooowww" she stretched out her words "you should become a model, like this, no one will recognize you" Blue gave a thumbs up whilst Red fidgeted with his tie.

Phasing back to the present he noticed the lights had dimmed slightly. On top of a grand wooden staircase and illuminated by a spot light stood a young woman draped in a glittering cyan ball gown. The top layers of the dress were made of transparent material and as she came down the stairs, they layers seemed to move, flowing like water. Surroundings forgotten, Red stowed his phone away and wondered if his flirting skills had rusted beyond hope.

Gold would totally own this.

The woman had reached the bottom of the stairs and was immediately surrounded by a posse of men trying to gain her favor, recalling his mission, Red shouldered past them and tried to offer her a dazzling smile, however, he was taken aback by how feminine she looked.

Tomboyish gym leader my foot! His mind supplied. Her short hair had been stylized into a side ponytail and adorning her neck was a string of pearls. Soft pink lipstick went well with her light blue eye shadow. Upon seeing Red, she made a bee line for him.

Misty, gym leader of Cerulean city was standing right before him. His words seemed to stop in their tracks as she scrutinized his appearance. He simply stared back, trying to say something savvy and desperately trying not to break out in a cold sweat.

"So they sent you..." she pondered aloud, then looking up she gave him a smile and introduced herself. Red was acutely aware of the murderous looks directed towards him by the men who had surrounded her as she came down. Brushing away unease, he grinned in return and presented himself.

"My name is Red from Pallet town" he bowed "it would be a great honor if you graced me with a dance."

Misty did not blush, nor was she impressed. Rather she peered around the decorated hall as if wary of someone or something. Barely listening to Red, she seized him, none too gently and began dancing, swaying rhythmically to the violin and piano piece that begun playing. Feeling awkward, Red shuffled closer to her and gingerly encircled her waist.

And he panicked.

Seeing her opening the dance, the rest of the guests coupled off and started dancing themselves. The ballroom floor was littered with pairs. The red eyed adolescent noticed his dance partner was fidgety, despite being a noble and obviously knowledgeable in the art of dance, she kept on making mistakes. Most of them consisted of stepping over his leather shoes. Instead of looking at him like a love-struck princess, her sharp blue eyes darted about, flitting from one person to another, from one couple to another.

"Is there something wrong?"

She jolted at his sentence, her cheeks flushing to show embarrassment. Taking a deep breath. She looked at him.

He found himself drowning in the deep blue sea.

"Have you heard about that criminal organization targeting legendries?" she asked.

"Yes, what were they called again?"

She ignored his question and carried on with what she wanted to say.

"Well...I'm in possession of Suicune and I've been informed by the international police that they will be targeting me next. Since parties and formal occasions are prime time to carry out such deeds. I'm on high alert...Speaking of which, you should be on high alert too!" she admonished.

They continued to waltz around and Misty kept on casting suspicious looks. Red gave up trying to get her to focus his attention on him. He still kept a gentle hold on her; it would be troublesome if they got separated. As these thoughts ran through his mind, the lights in the mansion all went out. Dumbfounded by such an out of place experience, he stood there with a perplexed expression. As the emergency lighting came on, a sickly orange glow, the sound of shattering glass stimulated Misty into action. She grabbed Red, pushed through the crowds and climbed the stairs. Locating an ornate vase placed on the second floor, she let go of him, picked up the porcelain vase and threw it at a ceiling to floor length window with all her might. The glass broke into pieces and the silk curtains bordering it swished back and forth in the breeze, hitching up her dress, she jumped.

She jumped out of the broken pane. Fearing for her safety he walked to the window and peered through. Misty was on the ground, perfectly safe, she looked up and beckoned to join him.

He had no choice.

Once he was with her on the ground, he observed her ripping off the lower part of the dress. The street lighting was dim and all he could hear was the sound of tearing cloth. A true gentleman, Red averted his eyes. As she took hold of his arm, he risked a peek.

The gym leader had torn her too expensive ball gown so that it barely covered her knees. If Blue were here, she'd weep.

"In case you are wondering why I tore the dress...I can't run in such an extravagant gown" saying this, she took off at break-neck speed, tugging Red along the way.

"Target has escaped and is running away with an accomplice. Team E head out, get the legendary at all costs." a figure standing on a nearby skyscraper and looking through a pair of high magnification binoculars commanded. Instantly two persons, rose from their position on the ground and jumped off the rooftop unclipping their shimmying ropes along the way, confirming Misty and Red's location through a palm sized navigator, they gave chase through another route, taking care not to be seen by the residents of town.

He was out of breath, how was this woman so fit, he contemplated. Wind whipped his hair and he used one hand to keep his bangs in place and shield his eyes from the sting. They had careered to the edge of a canal and he hoped she'd stop her mad dash across the city. Instead of slowing down, she pulled a pokeball out and threw it at the water. A Gyarados materialized and in one smooth motion she leapt on its back, clutching the fin like projections for support. He rooted on the spot, his mouth hanging open with awe and admiration. To the passerby, the adolescent looked like a rich but homeless person. His suit was dusty and torn in several places.

"I don't have any water pokemon with me" he croaked. He was parched.

"Fine, then come stand with me, make sure you don't fall off." she stated and moved up to make space. Feeling the situation uncontrollable, he hesitantly stepped on the creature. Misty, impatience distorting her features, pulled him roughly and clung on to him lest he fall.

Seriously was an international police agent supposed to be this timid?

As the blue serpentine creature surfed through the water. Red spied two masked individuals on the opposite side of the canal. Their gazes pierced him and his body automatically became rigid. Sensing him tense, Misty turned and enquired, in response he pointed to the two people who summoned their own pokemon and were now pursuing them on a Politoed through the water. They put on speed and left white churning waves in their wake, water sprayed everywhere.

Misty urged the Gyarados to go faster and it did. Shooting through the water like a submarine missile. Red screamed in surprise, his vision partially obscured with foam and stray droplets of water. The two suspicious people were steadily gaining ground.

"It's not working" his shouted over the din of crashing waves.

With a defiant look, Misty precociously balanced by Red's side and said:

"Let's battle them."

Red perked, she was speaking his language.

Pulling out a pokeball he released his Pikachu, said pokemon made a disgruntled noise to his greeting.

"Is he sick?" Misty asked with concern lacing her voice, having ill pokemon for battle would not do, those masked adversaries appeared powerful.

"Nope" came a cheerful reply "Pika's just mad because I stuffed him in a Pokeball. He hates being inside one"

The pokemon squeaked in agreement. The gym leader hesitated to bring out her Pokemon; the only one she had left was legendary pokemon Suicune. It was what these people wanted. Seeing her hesitation Red stepped up.

"Don't worry; I'll handle them on my own." He announced and sent Pika forward.

Behind his silly mask, his eyes widened. What was that man doing? He was not going to take them both at once was he? Mood morphing into annoyance, he decided to call out his own Pokemon in a hurry, unfortunately before either he or his consort could do so, disaster struck.

"Thunder!" Red commanded and the electric mouse complied. In a blink of an eye, the dark surroundings darkened further. Thunder clouds obscured the pale moonlight, wind howled, agitating the water and offsetting balance. The gathered clouds rumbled ominously and amidst all of this, a single flash of lightning illuminated everything into a stark, blinding white world. When it subsided the targets were gone, floating calmly along the canal whilst he and his companion flailed in the water. Their pokemon had fainted.

"Help me, I can't swim" he gurgled, his mask had fallen off revealing a handsome face.

"You are so useless!" his friend growled, swimming over to help him.

After being hauled to dry ground, he fished out a two way communication device and turned it on.

"You won't believe this" he began speaking in the transmitter rapidly "we lost Suicune and more importantly..."

Misty was speechless.

Utterly speechless.

He stood there in all his glory, a smile splitting his face and in his hands were the pokemon, resting contentedly in its master's embrace. Where...Where did she see such a move again? She racked her brains, it was a fuzzy memory, somewhere on television, a black haired youth with his hair sticking upright. Thinking deeply, she remembered a flirty, goofy young man challenging her gym a little while after she became the leader. Since he left an impression on her, she followed his progress, naturally (and as she had hoped) he was crowned the supreme Champion of Kanto. He also had a Pikachu and she distinctly remembered him using the move 'thunder' as well. Could they be the same person?

"Agh!" Red screeched and she decided that the Champion and he could not definitely be the same person, really, which elite individual in the pokemon world would be subjected to such torture by their beloved partners?

The red eyed adolescent examined his surroundings; they were getting further and further away from the main town and were now cruising on the outskirts of Cerulean city. Gyarados swam at a comfortable pace through a narrow channel and was nearing a cave. A cold draft was blowing around and he took of his jacket and draped it over Misty's shivering form, as soon as he did so, he instantly regretted his actions.

Now he was the one getting cold.

However, a soft thank you from the grateful gym leader warmed him up a little.

Red felt like moaning. He was confused, his clothes and hair were singed from when Pikachu electrified him, twice, his muscles were sore from gripping Gyarados' fins when they were surfing through wild waters. Most important were his torn clothes, Blue was going to kill him. And his mission, he watched Misty jump off her pokemon and lead the way to an imposing cave. A semicircular opening loomed before them. On a small rickety sign, placed to the side, read: Cerulean cave.

Why were they coming in here? He wanted to ask, but Misty's purposeful strides cut off all questions.

Upon entering the cave Red could hear the sound of water droplets; a dank and earthy smell assaulted his nose. He was not a stranger to these ventures, however, once he took on his new position, all his adventures had come to a complete halt, not because he disliked them, he simply had no time for such luxuries.

A flapping noise stopped the duo, and slowly the noise, like the beating of webbed wings grew in intensity, the cave's bad lighting made identification impossible from a distance and out of nowhere, a swarm of Zubats flew out of various locations from within the cave and engulfed Red from head to toe, they kept on coming and before long he was cocooned in a mass of small, furry bodies. Their incessant chatter made Misty's head ache and she backed away not knowing what to do. Amongst the heaving mass, a bright yellow mouse leapt to the ground, cheeks sparking it unleashed a thunder shaking the entire cave. Loose rocks, soil and dust rained down from above and the orange haired female held her breath. The creatures encircling Red had stopped moving and one by one they began to fall off.

Similar to petals falling from a dying flower.

Misty watched in horror. Red was in there, in the middle, her eyes swung to the electric mouse who sported a twisted, yet satisfied expression. Surely Pika hadn't sent his Master to an early grave right? As the Zubats dropped, the male brushed off the rest of the creatures from his person with an unhappy look and the gym leader heaved a relived sigh.

"I thought your pokemon finished you!" she exclaimed.

"Nah, Pika will never do that" he scratched his pokemon behind its ears "right?"

Another squeak of agreement.

The duo continued walking through the rocky tunnels holding an amiable conversation. Their voices bounced off the walls of the tunnels. They kept on advancing through twisted paths and Red dispatched the various wild pokemon they encountered with his trusty partner. Finally, the narrow trail opened to a circular chamber. Seated on a camping chair before a small fire was woman who was obviously waiting for them. Bounding forward Misty greeted:

"Ms. Cynthia, sorry to keep you waiting."

At the entrance Red froze.

Cynthia, champion of Sinnoh was a beautiful lady. Platinum blonde hair fell over one eye and she was clothed in black from head to toe in a form fitting outfit. She directed her piercing gaze at Red who slinked inside the cavern.

"Who is this?" she queried.

"The agent you sent me..." the gym leader trailed off, a bit confounded.

"I do not recall sending someone looking like him, nor do I remember his face" turning to Red she brusquely asked "who are you?...And why do you resemble the missing Kanto Champion?"

Droplets of cold sweat formed on his forehead.

"Maybe I'm related to him?" he joked.

The Sinnoh champion arched a perfect eyebrow.

"...It's true you sent another agent for Misty, unfortunately he was intercepted by the criminal organization that had somehow learned of our plans. Therefore Lt. Surge sent me in his place with an impromptu decision, in order to minimize the risk of information leakage."

"I see" she nodded "makes sense, Surge never tells the rest of us what he is up to."

The champion got up from her seat and moved to Red, she brought up her hand and pushed his stiff bangs upright, he saw Misty's pupils widen.

"You did not answer my second question. Why do you resemble Kanto's champion to this degree? I don't think it is coincidental that he took off unnoticed. He is known to get bored and disappear from the Pokemon league building simply because he had nothing better to do."

Red stared at her merciless eyes.

"I've been found out it seems" his shoulders sagged; Cynthia let go and offered a knowing smile in return.

The two new guests sat in unoccupied chairs placed around the small fire. Misty related her experiences whilst Cynthia stoked the fire. Earlier she had called out her Garchomp to guard the entrance to this cavern, in case intruders make it into this place. The fearsome Pokemon bared razor sharp teeth and flew off. Red attentively listened to their conversation and found his thoughts straying elsewhere. His evening had been going quite well till the blackout happened. Firstly who or what caused the blackout anyway? He was pretty sure they did not. Also, power outages were uncommon in a prosperous city such as Cerulean. It was unthinkable in the place Misty lived in, which was reserved for rich, high class nobles. Putting all this into consideration the blackout must have been caused by a person...who?

His ruminations were cut short when a light briefly flashed. After it died down Red almost gasped.

Suicune, the Aurora pokemon.

It was a quadrupled beast. Twin tails rippled by its sides in an imaginary breeze. Aquamarine fur covered the majestic creature and its body was decorated by white diamond shaped markings. Growing out of its forehead was a blue hexagonal horn and a purple mane billowed backwards.

Legendary.

"I will have you hold on to the Pokemon" Cynthia stated as Suicune rubbed against Misty "since you could thwart their attempt, it will be a while before they will try again, also the organization will probably think you handed Suicune over to us for safe keeping, thus drawing attention from you."

Feeling like a third wheel, Red simply smiled. Fingers tapping on the spindly arm rests.

His mission was done.

Gone to the winds.

The next day

At the crack of dawn:

"Seriously that was really rude of you! And here I just strung you around like some foot soldier. I am really sorry" Misty bowed. The meeting inside had dissolved and Cynthia vanished. Red and the tomboyish mermaid had made their way back outside where he received a heartfelt regret from the orange haired leader.

"Don't worry, I had fun and I learnt a lot of things. Besides you still have Suicune right? Keep him safe. He is one legendary creature."

Nodding, she beamed at him.

And he found himself drowning in the blue ocean.

He was in trouble.

Big...big trouble.

"Right, we'll part ways here." Make-up smudged, dress shredded and legs scratched, Misty summoned her Gyarados and leapt on it waving "make sure you do your work seriously! And don't forget to visit!"

He watched her disappear, melting away in the rays of the rising sun. Fishing a pokeball, he called on his Aerodactyl and flew off.

An hour later:

Somewhere in Kanto:

Red sat before two individuals and kept his head low, he sensed an outburst in three..Two..One:

"HOW DARE YOU!" Blue exploded "do you know how much the suit cost?! Do you RED?" she exhaled "Don't forget I spent my money on this article of clothing for you when I could get something for myself! Be more grateful!"

"Yes ma'am" he droned.

"More importantly" Green's voice cut in "how did you blow the mission? We created the perfect opportunity for you to get the pokemon."

"I tried, but it was not clipped to the belt around her waist."

"Wait...You groped her? Shame on you Red!" Blue made a disgusted face.

"No, no I didn't, Misty and I were dancing. She keeps Suicune with her all the time so I thought..." he trailed off, another thought popping into his head.

"By the way...who cut the power to her mansion? After the blackout everything went haywire! I told you guys not to interfere!" he sternly stated.

"...Emerald, he was fiddling with the mansion's security systems and accidentally tripped a switch or something...My bad" Green ran a hand through his hair.

"And you are accusing me of not being able to swipe Suicune?" Red yawned "I'm going to sleep; I've been up all night." As soon as he raised himself off the chair, a drop kick on his head forced him back down. His entire body was rendered numb. Nimbly somersaulting on the desk, Sapphire lifted her hand, formed it in to a fist and almost smashed Red's nose. Green's hand stopped her.

"He...He attacked us! He used Pika and left us to drown" the girl spat furiously.

"Yeah, I was pretty shocked too...Sir, what did my Politoed do to receive such treatment? Thunder almost paralyzed me." Gold strolled in with his pool stick balancing on his shoulders. He gave his senior a joyless grin.

"My cover would've been blown...why did you send them after me Blue? I was with our target."

"I told her not to" Green commented.

"My apologies, I thought you were in trouble from the way the gym leader was dragging you, did you know it was them?"

"Of course, I can spot Gold's mischievous glint anywhere" Red replied, pride underlying his words.

"And you still did not hold back?" Blue asked.

"Obviously not! It's the reason why I respect him!" Sapphire announced all traces of anger gone. Next to her Gold nodded.

Under their glares, Red related all the information he learnt from the secret meeting held between Cynthia and Misty. As he finished, a stack of documents courtesy of his best friend Green was placed in front of him.

"You relayed some valuable information. Fill those documents up and go to sleep." Saying this he left.

"Wait...I have to do this now?" He looked ready to pass out.

"Yes" his other best friend giggled, smoothing out her skirt. Silver is returning by tomorrow and after that I have to go to Unova...we are on a tight schedule Red...tee hee." Blowing an air kiss, she too vanished.

Gathering the papers, the missing Pokemon champion trudged to his personal room, upon opening it he saw someone laying on his bed. Black hair poked from beneath his covers, He put the documents on a nearby table and pulled the duvet.

There were not one but two boys fast asleep in his bed. Imparting a soft smile, he went to his table: an ornate piece constructed entirely of dark red glass, pulling a matching arm chair, he slumped in it and fell fast asleep.

Soft snores of three individuals punctuated the stillness in the room.

A/N: I finally get to put a story that is knocking around in my head for ages! This is my first Pokemon story and I mixed elements from both the games and the Pokemon Special manga, hence it is not categorized under anything. To make things clear: Green is the male whilst Blue is the female (in case anyone is confused). Reviews and constructive criticism are more than welcome. Also, feel free to PM me for any questions regarding the story, I won't bite (unless you are chocolate, then you better be beware!)

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, merely this story. Hopefully just putting this here will be enough. The arc introductory quote is by Soren Kierkegaard.