Okay, this chapter isn't beta read, tbh, since I wrote this as a little extension and I don't wanna DM the people who beta read this overall fic since they're busy sjhdfkfksd (I think they are,,,,) I did my best when editing so hopefully, it makes sense ^-^

Trigger warning: blood, murder/homicide

Chapter 12 - A Painful Decision

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Emerald lifted his head, his eyes scanned each person standing in the room. There were only a few of them, which was peculiar. It wasn't like this before, but ever since Maxie started killing the strongest trainers in the Resistance, the majority of the people quitted. The only ones left were him, Amber, Archie, and those three random people who claimed to be Archie's 'loyal' disciples. They had an important task of watching Maxie, but not a word was heard from them a few days ago. He could only conclude that they were captured or ran away like the rest.

Now, it was just him, Amber, and Archie along with Ruby and Sapphire. He didn't even want to think if they had a chance against Maxie; he just wanted to avenge his father.

"Why did you gather us here, Archie?" Amber asked as he leaned against the wall. He folded his arms across his chest. His eyes wandered at Ruby and Sapphire. Those two seemed anxious, but who was he to care about them?

"Ruby and Sapphire know who that shitty blond dude is," Archie answered, clenching his hands. His eyes remained on the table as his back was facing the four. "He's one of Maxie's goons and therefore, we need to go to Maxie's place before he kills more people."

Emerald thought he was hearing things. His eyes squinted, as his brows drew together. "We?"

Archie bobbed his head. "Yeah, I'll..." He stopped to swallow a lump in his throat. He couldn't lie; he was still hesitating if he would join. But still, his hiding had to end at some point. "Never mind," he continued, turning his heel to look at them. "We need to execute a plan to get Celebi from Maxie and save those people he had in prison."

"Wait, what?" Emerald interrupted. "How did you know this?"

"One of Maxie's minions made a bargain with me. They know about the feathers," Ruby responded and gritted his teeth. He gulped. "Which further conclude that there's a—"

"Spy or no spy," Archie butted in and crossed his arms on his chest. "We'll finish what we started," He inhaled deeply as his chest rose. "I hate doing this but I'll be joining this plan once and for all."

The words made Emerald smile from exhilaration. Finally! He'd been waiting to hear those words in a long time.

"But we'll be avoiding battles. No questions asked. I—"

"What?!" Emerald shrieked, his face went from pure excitement to disappointment. "But Archie, this is Maxie we're talking about! Anyone who opposes him is doomed to battle him!"

"Then we'll find a way to not engage in a battle with him!" Ruby spoke his mind. "We don't have time to waste—"

"No!" Emerald interjected, louring at Ruby. "Maxie will surely fight us even if we don't want to. Didn't you even see what he did to Prof—"

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Archie hollered, making Emerald stop. They all looked at the oldest man in the room. He looked pissed yet frightened at the same time. His arms were quivering and it seemed that he was about to cry, too, judging the light reflecting on his eyes. "You dipshits," he cussed. "We'll not even try to battle Maxie and that's final! Amber and Emerald will back up Sapphire while she's rescuing Norman and the other woman locked up with him while I assist Ruby. Got that?!"

Everyone remained quiet. They all gazed at the floor and nodded. Archie huffed. "Good," He dropped his arms and moved the left one sideways. "Now, get the fuck out of my office."

They all did what Archie told and exited the room without a word. Once he was alone, Archie let out a mix of grumble and sigh and sat on the chair. He grabbed his vape and thrust it into his mouth.

Bullshit.

Everything was bullshit.

If only Archie had saved Maxie before, then none of this would ever be happening. Was he scared? Oh, he was absolutely more than that; he was terrified. He would rather stay in this shitty basement or whatever and pipe the hell out of his vape.

Vaping was his only best friend now.

He used to hate vaping, since it's still considered a bad habit, but he only started doing this often when he found out that the Gym Leaders and the Elite Four started questioning him about Maxie.

He never stated anything about Maxie; he was trying to protect his best friend. They trusted him, thankfully, but it all changed when this boy named Ruby barged into Professor Birch's house one time with fear-stricken eyes.

Professor Birch and Archie were good friends. The not-so-busy scientist was probably the closest one he got to a brother. He was an orphan, after all.

"Son, what is it?" the professor's friend asked the boy.

The boy was wearing an odd hat—one could consider it as his hair if they didn't pay attention to his sideburns. His eyes were red as blood. His clothes bore the same color, but it was filled with grub and some parts of it were torn.

The young man's face, however, caught his attention the most.

There was blood splattered on his cheeks and parts of his arms, a bandage on his nose, and the distress in his eyes was worsening. The boy seemed like he saw something scary or maybe even traumatizing.

"D-Dad," he choked, his arms still quivering. What was wrong with this kid?

"What's going on?" the boy's father asked.

The teenager took a deep breath, his eyes moving down to focus on the floor. The three grown-men waited for his response as they stood still in front of him.

"I saw something," he said after moments of silence.

Like what? Your girlfriend cheating on you? Archie asked himself. That could be it. Hopefully. Probably. He just wished it wasn't anything serious. The boy's dreaded face was enough to make him anxious.

Professor Birch and his friend looked at each other before turning their attention to the boy. They watched him took another deep breath.

"There's this redheaded man," he started, and those words were enough to pique Archie's interest.

"What about him?" the muscular man asked desperately, but Professor Birch placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him.

"Take it easy there, Archie. Let the boy breathe," the science man mumbled. Archie just bit his lip.

"I saw him..." the youngest man in the room continued. He swallowed the lump in his throat. "He..." His voice trembled. His father noticed this and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "He killed two children...right...r-right in front of me..."

Archie was beyond nervous the moment those words left the boy's mouth. A part of him was hoping that it wasn't Maxie, but another part of him was telling that it was his best friend's doing.

He didn't recall everything that the boy said; he was so lost in his thoughts that he had to excuse himself. Taking his Pelipper out, he flew off from Littleroot Town and went to Lilycove City. He had no idea what was going on with him, but he felt like paying Maxie a visit.

He wasn't in his house so he assumed that he was in the library. His mother was the person in charge of that place and Maxie, being a kind son, sometimes went there to work in her place.

When he reached Lilycove Public Library, he felt an odd sensation forming in the pit of his stomach. It felt like his intestines were twisting into a knot, and even if it mangled enough of it, it kept on doing so.

He had experienced this before, but this one was different; it seemed like it was trying to tell him something. But what was it? Something good? Something bad? A bit of both? He was leaning onto the good one; he didn't want his negative thoughts to come true.

"Maxie?" he called, entering the library. He closed the door and as he stepped inside, his heart rate increased.

What lies in front of him was Maxie pulling a knife from a child's gut. Blood was leaking out of their skin and the white-tiled floor of the library was replaced with a bright red colour.

He just hoped that whatever he was experiencing wasn't real.

He shut his eyes tightly, as he clenched his fists, anticipating to wake up from this nightmare. After a few moments, he opened it again and saw the same thing.

He tried pinching himself, harder this time but once he opened his eyes again, the same image revealed.

No...no...NO...! He didn't want to accept this. He refused to see this.

"Archie," Maxie stood up, throwing the knife away from him. He approached his friend. "Dispose of them. I don't want to see those kids' dead bodies. Oh, and I'm borrowing your Walrein or any of your Water-Type Pokemon just to clean this mess."

Archie wanted to ask so many questions. Did he do this? And if so, why? Sweet mother of Arceus, the corpses lying on the floor were just kids! Children! Younglings! Why on earth did he approach him without remorse?! Did he fucking do this on purpose? Why would he just let him dispose of their bodies like it was nothing? He understood that Maxie didn't want his father to have a proper burial, but these kids?!

What the bloody hell was going on?!

Archie snapped out of his trance when he heard a knock. He blinked and sat up, forcing himself to look alright.

"The hell do you want?" he asked, as Ruby and Sapphire entered the room. He was still sitting on a chair in his office while piping his vape like a machine. He exhaled, blowing smoke out of it, and prompted the two to take a step back. He didn't mind that; smoking was his only way to escape the pain he'd been dealing with.

Sapphire looked at Ruby. They stared at each other for a moment. Archie just continued gazing at them. He lost his patience, however, and grumbled moments after.

"Look, just let me be alone for a while. Don't you two have any matters to attend to? Like making-out or whatnot?"

The young couple just blushed at that, and for some unknown reason, Archie found himself smirking. He didn't understand why, but it was somehow entertaining to watch them get flustered.

"W-We didn't come here for that, Archie," Ruby quipped, making Archie rose an eyebrow. "We..."

"We want to tell ya somethin'," Sapphire finished, holding Ruby's hand.

Archie's lower lip puckered. His eyebrows furrowed. What else do they need?

"R-Remember what we said about our Maxie?" Sapphire continued. Ruby squeezed her hand, encouraging her further. Though Archie could perfectly see the anxiety in their eyes, but why?

"Yeah," he replied, his tone was inaudible, but Sapphire's enhanced hearing heard it. "What about it? Finally decided to tell me the truth?"

Their eyes widened at that and Archie just stood up. He groaned, digging his hands in his pockets while gritting his electric cigarette like a toothpick. "I would like to be left alone, please. You know how hard it is for me to make this decision," he explained, eyes locking with Ruby's. He was certain that this boy would understand.

Archie was greeted with silence. He sighed, his impatience getting the best of him. "Look, I wanna be left alone. You can tell this to me tomorrow and—"

"Archie," Sapphire intervened while Archie just groaned.

"What now, princess?"

"Ruby and I were scared to tell ya the truth. We—"

"I told many lies, princess. Yours is nothing compared to mine."

Ruby bit his lip. He looked at Sapphire. Archie watched them stare at each other before Sapphire nodded with Ruby releasing a sigh.

"I kept many lies too, and I'm not gonna let Sapphire do the same," Ruby uttered. "We're scared to tell you the truth because you may not help us if we tell you this."

"Kid, as long as Maxie isn't as insane in that shitty reality you're talking about then—"

"You and Maxie were evil," Ruby dropped the bomb before Archie could finish.

The tall man's eyes widened in shock. His jaw slacked but he tried to close it to prevent his vape from falling. Were? Why did Ruby use that word?! What the fuck happened this time?!

"You two were enemies. You tried controlling Kyogre while Maxie did the same with Groudon. Sapphire and I stopped you but then...you returned...somehow."

Archie's heart raced. He didn't understand what was going on. Him? Returning? Did that mean he got out of prison?

"But when you returned, you...you had to..." Ruby gulped. He looked at Sapphire while she just gave him a reassuring smile. He took a deep breath. "You had to kill Maxie in order to stay alive."

Archie's mouth now fell loose. His vape fell on the floor. It felt like time slowed down, for everything around him started moving slowly. Ruby continued speaking some words he couldn't hear properly. The only word he could hear was Maxie's name. Other than that, the rest was imperceptible.

He tried taking a deep breath, but it ended up getting stuck in his throat. He coughed, letting it out, but it didn't seem to be working. His eyes turned at the teenagers in front of him, but his vision was still hazy. He could only see red spots around him. It reminded him of Maxie's hair. His best friend's hair was always a pretty one.

Somewhere in him knew that these kids were telling the truth but at the same time, he refused to believe such things.

But he knew himself; he would rather die than kill Maxie.

"Get out," he muttered, but Ruby didn't hear it and continued telling whatever shitty stories he had to tell. Sapphire heard this, though, and gripped Ruby's hand, causing him to stop. They looked at Archie.

"Get the fuck out of my goddamn office," he mumbled again and the two just glanced at each other before silently leaving Archie's room.

Archie took a deep breath, grabbing his vape, and piped the hell out of it. Vaping was his only best friend. Vaping was his way to escape. To escape reality. To escape the truth.

Whatever Ruby and Sapphire said, he refused to believe it. He would save Maxie. He would find a way to save him.

He grunted, dropping his vape. Could he do it? Could he really save Maxie?

Bullshit! he thought, his hands reached for the table and knocked it off. He screamed, his hands running through his hair and gripping it.

Tomorrow, he would face Maxie. Tomorrow, he would right his wrongs. He refused to believe what those lovebirds said.

"Dammit!" he yelled and punched the wall, almost leaving a crack on it.

How come he was so conflicted now? He knew Maxie was nothing but a good guy. Even if he did 'kill' Maxie, he was certain his best friend let him take his life because he wanted to live for him, but...but how come he didn't want to go and join his crew tomorrow? How come he just wanted to stay in this shitty basement again?! Nothing bad would happen to Maxie if they fixed the timeline, right?

Right?

Archie felt something he hadn't felt in a long time. He used his free hand to touch his cheek.

It was wet.

He couldn't believe it.

Tears were finally able to plummet like a waterfall from his eyes. He laughed—a hearty one. He hadn't cried for years and it oddly felt great for some reason.

"Why the hell do I have to cry now?" he muttered, rubbing his eyes with his arm. The tears never stopped from falling and for the first time, he didn't mind it. He just let it flow down, as he struggled to sit down. He felt around the ground, trying to find his electric cigarette and once he did, he didn't waste a second and wiped the tip with his clothes. He placed it in his mouth and piped the hell out of it.

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The Next Day.

Littleroot Town

Abandoned Birch Laboratory Building

10:30 AM

"Where the heck is Archie?" Emerald asked with an impatient tone. He hopped off from the rock he was sitting and started pacing around.

Ruby and Sapphire looked at each other with guilt-ridden eyes. It was odd for Archie to not show up since he had given his word, but they had a feeling their talk yesterday made him change his mind. They really hoped that wasn't the case; they needed Archie for this plan to succeed.

The door from the abandoned laboratory creaked open. Amber took a step outside and sighed, closing the entrance immediately. Emerald stopped walking in circles.

"Well, where is Archie?" he asked, even more agitated. Amber shook his head.

"He said he wasn't feeling well."

"That's BS and you know it!" the blond exclaimed, tugging Amber's shirt as if he was a six-year-old who didn't get his candy. "Archie gave his word; he will join us!" he insisted, gritting his teeth. Based on Amber's facial expression, he could tell that he was telling the truth. He removed his hand from the older man's shirt and turned around, clenching his fists. "Dammit! He promised!"

Silence fell in the group. Emerald was trying his hardest not to cry in front of them while Amber was tempted to tell him to let those tears out. He exhaled. They wouldn't reach anything if they just stood here.

"So, what will we do now?" the bald man asked. He was leaning against the wall with his arms folded across his chest and looked at Ruby and Sapphire. They rose an eyebrow. "Don't give me that look."

Ruby flinched. He wasn't really the type of person to plan things like these, especially if it involved fighting. He looked at Sapphire and saw her puzzled as well.

Amber sighed. "Look, ever since you two came, we've been having another set of 'missions' to dethrone Maxie lately. We used to have these sort of things before most of the Gym Leaders and the Elite Four died, so I was thinking that maybe you two probably gave Archie a good reason to get his ass out of this base."

Ruby and Sapphire were silent. Archie was serious about not telling the whole situation to everyone. Though, in retrospect, it was a farfetched story.

Amber dropped his arms. "I guess we'll call this off, then since Archie wouldn't—"

"Don't you dare, Amber!" Emerald interrupted, his eyebrows stitching together as he gave him an angry look. "Maxie killed my dad and there's no way we're quitting now that we're so close! I can't just let my dad die in vain!"

"He killed yer dad, too, huh?" Sapphire muttered and blinked, staring at Emerald. She felt sorry for her friend. This explained why Emerald was willing to join them without a second thought. She understood now.

"Whether you like it or not, I'm gonna go and face Maxie even if I have to do it alone!" he explained aggressively. He slowly tried to catch his breath after that. He turned to look at Ruby and Sapphire. "I'll be going to Lilycove City now. You're free to join me," he told them and grabbed his Flygon's Poke Ball. He sent it out and hopped onto it. The Flygon cried and flapped its wings, ascending into the sky. Amber, Ruby, and Sapphire watched the Flygon disappear from their sights.

Amber released a breath. Emerald was a gifted kid. He may not be impulsive but when it comes to defeating Maxie, he loses his self-control. It was one of the reasons why Archie let him stay—to keep an eye on the blond if he ever did anything reckless. The other was personal—he owed Emerald's father for saving his life and looking after his saviour's son was his way to repay his debt, and he wasn't going to stop now.

"I'll join him," he stated, sending out his Pelipper. "I'll be leaving now as well. Meet us in Lilycove if you want."

The Pelipper let out a cry and flew away with its trainer. Ruby and Sapphire were left alone to contemplate their thoughts. Sapphire dropped on the ground after the two left. She hugged her knees with her arms.

"Did we really do the right thing?" she asked, grabbing Ruby's attention. He kneeled his left leg and placed a hand on her shoulder.

"What do you mean?" he questioned.

"For telling Archie the truth," she replied, biting her lip. "Did we really did the right thing or did we just do it to be free ourselves from this guilt?"

Ruby pondered about it; she had a point but he had a good reason why decided to do it. "I don't want you to lie," he confessed, gently gripping her shoulder. "We did the right thing by telling the truth but sometimes," He didn't feel like continuing but he had to tell her the truth. It could hurt her, but he knew she would understand and accept it when the time comes. "most of the time, the truth hurts. We did what we have to do, Sapph. It's not your fault."

Sapphire breathed. "I don't even know what to do anymore..." she muttered, dropping her arms. She closed her eyes, hoping to relax, but only to feel pain throbbing in her head. She screamed, alarming Ruby.

"Sapphire!" Ruby placed his other hand on her shoulder and squeezed it. "What's wrong? Sapph!"

Sapphire continued yelling in pain. She placed her hands on her head, gripping her hair, hoping for the soreness to subside. Her previous memories with Ruby were being replaced. Instead of searching and discovering new Pokemon with him, she saw herself reading books in the library with Wally. He was reading a book about Pokemon habitats while she was reading a romance novel. She screeched and tried to snap herself out of those unwanted memories.

"Sapphire!"

The Hoenn Champion was able to open her eyes. She was gasping and sweating, making Ruby worry even further. She stared at him.

"What happened? Are you okay?" he panicked, tucking a loose hair behind her ear. She gulped.

"We have to hurry," she mumbled, gripping his shirt. "My memories, I—"

"I understand," Ruby held her tighter for a hug. Whether Archie would join them or not, they would have to face Maxie now before Sapphire loses all of her memories. The thought of it was enough to hurt him; he couldn't stand it!

Helping her stand up with his arms around her, he grabbed a Poke Ball from his pocket and sent out Kiruru. "Let's go to Lilycove," he told the Gallade and the Fighting-Psychic type nodded. His eyes glowed and after several seconds, the three teleported from Littleroot Town to Lilycove City.

...

Inside the laboratory, Archie inhaled. He grabbed his vape and removed it from his mouth. He breathed, smoke came out from it.

He heard everything. He could imagine their reactions. Did it make him feel better?

He...couldn't tell, honestly. He thought he was ready to face his friend. He thought he could bring him back to the good side again, but knowing the truth—the actual truth about what he and his friend made him hesitate. He couldn't stand the idea of them being enemies, but the worst part was finding out that he killed the man he loved.

He couldn't do such a thing and he refused to believe such a bluff. He would never kill his own beloved. Never.

He smacked his fist on the wall. He was conflicted; he didn't know what to do. He wanted to join them but at the same time, he wanted to hide. He wanted to disappear.

He removed his fist from the wall. He looked at his palm. He realized he was just 'supervising' ever since the beginning. He did help the deceased Gym Leaders and Elite Four with their plans, but...he never left this base. He never told them why he decided to stay but he knew why.

He couldn't face Maxie.

He breathed, gazing at the ground. After all these months, he still couldn't do it. He was pathetic.

The hell should I do?

…

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…

Kiruru brought Ruby and Sapphire to the Contest Hall—the meeting place they talked about yesterday. Ruby didn't waste a second and returned the Gallade back in his Poke Ball. He looked at his left then at his right, hoping to find no one suspicious, and thankfully, there weren't any. He sighed in relief. "Let's find Emerald and Amber. They were probably around this place. If not, then we'll look inside."

"Good idea," Sapphire removed herself from him but Ruby hesitated. She patted his arm, telling him that she was alright and he conceded.

"You sure you can walk properly?"

Sapphire bobbed her head. "Yeah, I'll be fine."

Ruby bit his lip and offered his hand at her. She gladly accepted it. As they were about to walk around the building, Sapphire stopped. Ruby followed and looked at her.

"I think I heard somethin'," she mumbled and lead Ruby to the left side of the building. They hid behind a wall and they saw Emerald glaring at Amber. There were some people looking at them but none tried to intervene.

"I'm going, Amber and you can't stop me!" Emerald argued and turned around. Amber sighed for the umpteenth time and grabbed the boy's shirt collar to prevent him from walking any further.

"Let go!" the blond screamed and struggled to move forward. Amber didn't obey. He placed his hands under the boy's armpits and carried him. "HEY!"

"We have company," he muttered, covering the boy's mouth. "But pretend to whine, alright?" he added, looking at the direction where Ruby and Sapphire were hiding. He walked slowly until they were out of the crowd's sight.

"DWOP ME WIGHT NOW!" Emerald struggled and Amber let the boy go.

"Good, you're here," Amber nodded at the couple. "Are the plans still the same or are we doing it differently since Archie decided not to show up."

Sapphire bit her lip. He was right; their plan would be slightly different now that Archie wouldn't join them. They would have to modify their plan a bit so they could succeed.

"We're still not gonna engage in a battle no matter what happens," Ruby firmly suggested.

Amber and Emerald didn't look surprised. The guy did argue about the same topic yesterday. He was stubborn—they all were, but in the end, Archie agreed with Ruby. Amber and Emerald have no choice but to give in to Archie's orders. Although part of them knew Archie didn't have the courage to face Maxie in a battle, which made him agree with Ruby in the first place.

"Don't expect us to save your ass if Maxie commands his Houndoom to attack you," Amber notified. "You're on your own if that happens."

"I don't care. I'll find a way to prevent that," Ruby responded, clenching his fists. These people didn't understand why he was doing this and he didn't care if they tried to understand him; getting Celebi was more important.

"Alright," Amber dug his hands in his pockets. "We agree to disagree. Now, all we need to do is wait."

Ruby gulped. Whether he liked it or not, he would have to face Maxie and end the mess he made once and for all.

"Sweet mother of Arceus." - Detective Pikachu

This chapter was originally an outtake but I thought it had potential and I want that scene where Ruby and Sapphire told Archie what really happened to Maxie to happen so, yeah :'D

Also, please keep in mind to DM me if you have any problems with me as a person. I'll only accept constructive criticism or your constant yelling/uwuing about the fic and nothing else. You can send all the critical feedback you wanna say about me! I would love to see those! 💜

I'm not sure if this will be updated on the Christmas season but since that stupid virus is still lingering, there's a possibility I'll update this...when I'm in the mood...this fic is another one of self-indulgent fics I have so...yeah,,,,,,,, ;;v;;