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Chapter Sixteen: Worth Fighting For
Cyrus had returned from wherever he had been and Charon suspected it had something to do with Dawn. The Galactic grunts hadn't caught sight of her within the past few days and normally they'd catch a glimpse of her. Cyrus's unexpected temporary absence had allowed Charon to work on putting his plan into motion. Mars and Jupiter had agreed to act as double agents and all that remained now was to find someone to deal with the annoying pest, Dawn.
There was Saturn, but the boy was so devoted to Cyrus, he'd sell out Charon's plans to the boss without question. Charon needed someone outside Team Galactic to deal with Dawn and he'd offer a great deal of money to the person who achieved the task. Cyrus could not know. Charon used his fake alias 'Pluto' and put an advertisement out on the black market website. Dealers exchanged goods, but also services for money.
After making a fake profile, Charon browsed the names of the other dealers. Some of the names he was familiar with – Archer, the current boss of Team Rocket and Ghetsis, the current boss of Team Plasma. They were both involved in illegal trades for different purposes, but the end result was always the same – creating chaos. He continued scrolling through the names until he came across 'Hunter J'. A female criminal? Interesting, he thought.
The woman identified herself as a hunter of Pokemon, but would track down trainers if the money was high enough. Such simplistic goals, thought Charon. The woman was motivated by greed like the criminals of the Johto and Kanto region. She was the perfect person to carry out the task of removing Dawn from the world. People like her with simple-minded goals would do anything for a few dollars.
He found her email address and clicked on it, bringing up his own email account. He started typing.
Hunter J,
I have an offer for you I'm sure you will not refuse. There is a trainer called Dawn I would like to see dealt with permanently. In exchange, I will offer you a large sum of money. Meet me behind the casino in Veilstone City at midnight tonight.
Pluto
He clicked 'send'. He had no doubt the woman would show up – greed drove people to extreme lengths. All he had to do now was pretend he was working on Galactic business then sneak out to meet up with Hunter J. He made sure to bring a briefcase filled with counterfeited notes – he did not intend to give a stranger real notes. That would be foolish. Hopefully, the woman would not be able to tell the difference.
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It was dark by the time Dawn reached Veilstone City and she couldn't have arrived at a worst moment. There were crowds of people walking up and down the streets, swaying from side to side, holding drink bottles in their hands saying words Dawn didn't recognize. Although it was night time now, it felt like it was day time since the street lights were so bright.
A group of girls staggered out of a building, red in the faces, dressed in clothes Dawn didn't think was quite appropriate. She had seen some pretty revealing clothes before but this was something different. One of the girls stumbled down the stairs, laughing, not at all bothered by the tumble. Dawn averted her eyes – she was here for a gym battle, not to watch the locals make fools of themselves.
Unfortunately, the gym wasn't open right now as gyms closed before dark so she headed towards the department store to update her team's moves and stock up on some supplies. The department store was easy to find – it was a grey brick building about five storeys high that towered over the rest. It was also situated on a gentle sloping hill making it rather easy to spot. Dawn headed over, thankful to get away from the strange people she saw earlier. Jubilife had been a busy place, but Veilstone seemed to emit a different type of 'busy' vibe. People weren't here for business reasons that much was certain.
Thankfully, the store was open. She spotted a couple of other trainers exiting the building carrying large plastic bags with them, filled with an assortment of items. She glanced down at her bag then reached a hand inside, digging out her purse to count her notes. She pulled it out, opened it and started counting. "One hundred… two hundred… three hundred…" she started, flipping through her notes. She continued to count until she reached thirty thousand dollars. "Thirty thousand dollars."
Thirty thousand was a lot of money and would certainly buy her some decent items. It had been quite a couple of months since she last went on a shopping spree and now seemed like the perfect time to shop. After all, Veilstone was rumoured to have the best items available in the region. She stepped inside and immediately was taken aback by how big the place was. It was packed with trainers walking up and down aisles, grabbing random items of the shelves and sticking them in their shopping baskets.
Dawn helped herself to a basket and headed over to the department directory. "B1F, Contest Tools. G, Ground Floor, Entrance and Exit. 1F, Trainer's Zone and Masks. 2F, Battle Collection. 3F, TM Corner. 4F, Poke Dolls and Goods and 5F, Rooftop Plaza," she read aloud. There were many items available to purchase and she could easily spend an entire day browsing the aisles, but she knew she had to progress on her journey.
She considered taking the elevator to reach the technical machine Corner, but there was a lengthy queue of people waiting. She decided to take the stairs instead, knowing she'd reach the third floor before the people in the queue would. The moment she started walking up the stairs, she began to regret it after reading a sign stuck on the nearby wall. "One hundred steps to the top level!" she read aloud. Now she could understand why people preferred to wait in the queue rather than tackle the staircase.
"Think of this as a training exercise," she said to herself, taking in a deep breath before taking the first step. "Remember, Dawn, the key is to keep on breathing," she added. Taking the lift was the quicker option, but the thought of having to wait in line for ages did not appeal to her. This was the lesser of two evils.
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Night had fallen and Charon had managed to sneak out undetected. Cyrus was busy in his office and the other grunts were preoccupied with a DVD Cyrus had forced them to watch about the legendary Pokemon of Sinnoh. Charon wasn't even sure why Cyrus even bothered – the grunts couldn't comprehend the complexity behind them. Still, it made sneaking out much easier.
He headed towards the back alley of the casino and waited near a dumpster, waiting for Hunter J to show up. It was past midnight now and the woman had still not arrived. Perhaps she was smarter than he had thought. All doubt was erased from his mind though as a woman approached him, wrapping her black coat around her.
Charon would be lying to himself if he didn't find the woman to be intimidating. He wasn't what he'd refer to as 'attractive woman' in a general sense, but there was a sort of aura around her that pulled him in. He couldn't avert his gaze – her face was hard, but her eyes betrayed a sense of murderous lust. "You must be Hunter J?"
"And you must be Pluto," she replied placidly. "You have an offer me? How much are we talking?"
Charon held up a briefcase. "You can have all the money in this briefcase." He handed it over to her so the woman could see it for herself. She opened it, her eyes widening at the sight of the notes. Reaching down, she picked up a handful and held it to her nose, breathing in the scent. He hoped she wasn't well versed in counterfeit money, but that would be rare for a criminal.
"Counterfeit money…" She chuckled, although her eyes held no humour. "You can't fool someone like me, Pluto. If you want me to carry out this task, I want the real deal otherwise I will hunt you down and have you killed." It wasn't a threat – it was a promise. For once, Charon was actually concerned. The boss never scared him, but this lady was something else. "Let's talk values, shall we?" She handed the briefcase back.
Charon took it. "How much?"
"You want me to 'permanently deal' with a little bratty trainer. You're asking me to deal with a child which I find somewhat insulting, but if the money offer is good, I will take it. I want two billion dollars in cash. Nothing less."
Two billion dollars in cash? His eyes almost popped out of his head. He didn't have that money on him, but Cyrus did. Now he had another reason to ensure Cyrus met his demise in the Distortion World so he could collect the boss' money. "Fine."
She raised an eyebrow. "It makes me wonder where you'll get the money from…. but I don't care how you get it as long as you give me money when I complete this task." She glanced down at her nails then looked up again. "What does the brat look like?"
"Female, youthful and has blue hair. Pretty hard to miss."
"You say her name is Dawn?"
"Yes."
"Why do you want her out of the way so bad? What harm can a child possibly do?"
"More than you possibly imagine. You stay out of my schemes and I'll stay out of yours, Hunter J. Do we have a deal?"
She chuckled. "Perhaps there's more to you than what meets the eye, Pluto. You fascinate me… Very well. I will deal with the child, but if you fail to uphold your end of the bargain, you will be the next person to be 'permanently dealt with'," she said curtly. "I will contact you by email when the task is complete. Do not contact me until then." She turned around, retreating into the streets.
Charon let out a sigh. Hunter J thought she was in control of the situation, but she couldn't be further from the truth. He smirked to himself and made his way back towards the headquarters. The world would be his to control in due time.
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After spending a few thousand dollars on items, Dawn made her way to the gym, stopping by the Pokemon Centre briefly to update her Pokemon's moves. It had been quite a fair bit of time since her Pokemon had learned anything new and she figured it was time to update. After spending at least an hour deciding on new moves, Dawn was finally happy with her choices. She glanced down at the document outlining the new look of her team.
Grotle lvl 28
Curse, Razor Leaf, Mega Drain and Solarbeam
Honchkrow lvl 27
Night Slash, Wing Attack, Pursuit and Swagger
Haunter lvl 26
Night Shade, Hypnosis, Confuse Ray and Shadow Punch
Deino lvl 22
Dragon Rage, Bite, Headbutt and Dragonbreath
Houndour lvl 20 (received at level 20)
Fire Blast, Bite, Smog and Ember
Grotle, Honchkrow and Haunter were levelling up well, but she knew she had to focus the same efforts on Deino and newly obtained Houndour to ensure her team was balanced. The thought of using Deino again was a little nerve-wrecking – Deino's bite had caused her to end up in hospital – but it had to be done. She wasn't quite sure how Houndour would react to a new master as well and hoped the canine would obey her.
She pushed the doors to the gym open and stepped inside, her jaw dropping at the sight before her. It was like she had walked into an obstacle course of some kind. There were four boxing rings; each with a trainer standing in the centre, but reaching each ring was going to be a real challenge physically. Punching bags and stacked tyres blocked the way. Walking up the flight of stairs at the department shop seemed quite appealing now.
"Hey trainer!"
She turned around spotting the gym advisor. He was dressed in fighting robes and wore red boxing gloves. "Hello."
"If you haven't already guessed, this is the fighting-type gym!" He made a grunting noise and punched the air then lowered his hands. "You're going to have to fight your way through here! This is a gym that is designed to determine whether or not the challenger has the strength to overcome the challenges life presents!" He pointed to a table nearby. Dawn glanced over and spotted two black boxing gloves. "You'll have to put them on otherwise you're going to break your knuckles."
She wondered over and picked up the first glove and slipped her left hand into it. It felt weird having to wear one. Why couldn't this be a karate-based gym instead? Putting on the second glove was hard – these boxing gloves were simply not designed to do anything other than punching things. Perhaps she was supposed to walk around with one glove on only. She put the second glove back on the table. "I don't need both gloves, do I?"
The advisor grinned. "Some trainers like taking both, but it's up to you. Whatever is easier." He leaned in forward. "Most of the battles here will be double and triple battles, so you want to make sure your Pokemon are well-versed in working together as a team." He pulled back. "Good luck, trainer! Remember, fighting-type Pokemon are strong against dark-types, but weak against flying-types!" He saluted her and Dawn made her way to the first ring. Fortunately, this one didn't require punching, but she did have to climb over some tyres. It looked easy upon first glance until she actually attempted to climb the stack. It proved to be more tiring than she originally thought, but she managed to make it, straining every muscle to overcome the obstacle. By the time she reached the end, she wondered if she'd have any strength left to fight.
She approached the first trainer, a male dressed in a white robe, who bowed as a greeting. "My name is Darren, and I'm the eldest of my brothers. Are you ready to face me, trainer?" She noticed three pokeballs attached to his pokebelt. Triple-battle time. The gym advisor had said fighting-types were good against dark-types rendering half her team as ineffective. Fortunately, she did have speedy Honchkrow who had an aerial attack who could hopefully make short work of the black belts.
"Ready." She summoned her Grotle, Honchkrow and Haunter to take the first battle.
Darren summoned his three Pokemon, three humanoid Pokemon with bulging muscles. The middle Pokemon was a bipedal creature with gray skin that she recognized as Machop, and the larger two standing on either side, had purple skin. She suspected the other two was the second stage of Machop's evolution line, but to be sure she brought out her Pokedex.
Machoke. The evolution of Machop. It happily carries heavy cargo to toughen up. It willingly does hard work for people.
Sounded like a good Pokemon to have to take care of the heavy lifting at home, Dawn thought. She made her move first. "Honchkrow, use Wing Attack! Haunter, use Shadow Punch! Grotle, use Razor Leaf!"
Honchkrow took to the air, flew around in a circle about the right Machoke's head, thrust his wings forward, sending a flurry of feathers arrows down upon the Machoke's head. The Machoke, despite looking incredibly tough, fainted immediately. Haunter floated forward, held his right claw back until it emanated a black glow then drove it forward, hitting the Machop in the face. Machop staggered backwards, but remained on his feet. Grotle wriggled his back, causing the two bushes on his back to sway back and forth then lunged forward, hurling leaves at the other Machoke. The leaves struck his chest, but he did not fall.
"Machoke, use Low Sweep! Machop, use Karate Chop!" Machoke lowered his head and rushed forward then dropped to the ground. Using his left hand to support his weight, the Machoke swung both his legs at Grotle, kicking the tortoise in the side of his body, flipping the tortoise onto his back. Grotle wriggled his legs, and used a Razor Leaf to flip him back over. Machop dashed forward and jumped into the air, bringing a hand down to strike at Honchkrow's belly. The avian squawked, but little damage had been done.
"Honchkrow, use Wing Attack again! Haunter, Shadow Punch! Grotle, use Mega Drain!" Honchkrow sent forth another flurry of arrows, this time hitting the other Machoke. The arrows struck him in the face, knocked him backwards, a low groan escaping the Machoke's mouth. He did not get back up again. Her remaining two Pokemon launched their attacks, bringing the Machop to a fainting state.
Darren looked at his three fainted Pokemon then bowed his head in respect. "You did well, my friends." He looked back up again and nodded at Dawn. "Make your way to the next ring. Always fight for what you believe in. I fight for love. Some believe power is the opposite of love, but love is power." He stepped aside, allowing Dawn to walk down the stairs on the opposite side of the ring.
A mini obstacle course blocked her way. It consisted of two stacked sets of three tyres and two punching bags. She wondered over and prepared to conquer the course, hoping she'd have enough energy left to take on the rest of the gym. Having to redo this again was a scary thought. She climbed over the first of tyres and jumped down on the other side to come face-to-face with the first punching bag.
There was a note stuck to it from a trainer. She read it out aloud. "This punching bag is linked to the other tyre stack. Punch it hard enough and you'll be able to knock it down. This is the only way to get past. Good luck trainer, from Maylene." Dawn took in a deep breath then punched the bag as hard as she could. The moment her glove collided with the bag, she let out a hiss, withdrawing her hand immediately, feeling pain travelling up her arm.
Ouch, she thought, wincing. She tried again. The bag moved a little more this time, but the tyre stack remained standing. Dawn was beginning to hate this gym. She punched a third time, releasing an annoyed grunt as her glove collided with the bag. This time, the bag swung back and forth, resulting in the tyre stack collapsing. She moved forward, hopped over the fallen tyre stack and faced her second punching bag. This bag blocked a pathway leading to the next ring. "This punching bag blocks the pathway to the second ring. Punch it hard enough and it wall fall down allowing you pass."
Another bag to punch, she thought grimly. She was looking forward to reaching the end so she could punish Maylene for designing a physically exhausting and painful gym. She punched the punching bag with all her might, eliciting another loud grunt of fury. Vocalising while hitting things seemed to really help. The bag dropped down. She stepped over it and walked up the stairs to the second ring. The second brother's eyes met hers.
"My name is Jeffery and I'm the youngest of the brothers. You have done well to make it here, but do you have the strength to continue? I will test your strength. Let us battle." He had two pokeballs attached to his belt. Double-battle. This time Dawn decided to try out her new Houndour along with Honchkrow. Jeffery summoned his Pokemon – a Machoke and a blue humanoid, bipedal Pokemon with large white head. The Pokemon was sitting on the floor, his legs crossed, as if he were meditating.
She brought out her Pokedex again.
Meditite. It always trains deep in mountains. It levitates when it heightens its spiritual power through meditation.
She put the Pokedex away and brought out her Pokemon. Honchkrow looked eager to fight again, but her Houndour seemed nervous and unsure of himself. The canine rushed over to Dawn's side and hid behind her, peeking around her left leg. "It's all right Houndour," Dawn said soothingly, bending down to the scratch the canine behind his ears. "There's nothing to be afraid of. I won't abandon you." Houndour didn't look so sure but stepped out from behind her legs.
"Let the battle commence!"
"Honchkrow, use Wing Attack! Houndour, use Ember!" Honchkrow's feathered arrows struck the Machoke square in the chest, knocking the imposing Pokemon over onto his backside. His eyes rolled into the back of his head, tongue hanging out the side of his mouth. Houndour opened his jaws and spat forth a small orb of fire. The orb hit the Meditite on his head. The Meditite rose to its feet.
"Meditite, use Confusion!" A pink beam of energy exited the Pokemon's eyes, striking Houndour in his face.
Houndour jumped back, swatted his nose then growled. The move didn't appear to do any damage at all, other than give her canine an itch on his face. "Honchkrow, finish this off with another Wing Attack!" Honchkrow did as commanded and flapped his wings furiously, allowing more feathered arrows to plummet to the ground to strike at the remaining opponent. Meditite fainted.
Jeffery bowed his head in the same manner as Darren had. "There is more to battling than pure strength alone. I fight for courage. You must have courage to face the difficult trials that lie ahead. Go now, and make your way to do battle in the third ring." He stepped aside and Dawn walked down the stairs.
The third ring consisted of two sets of five stacked tyres and three punching bags. She wondered over and read the note on the first bag. "This punching bag is linked to one of the stacked tyres. It'll take you a couple of hits to knock this tyre stack down so give it everything you've got!" Harder to knock down? Great, she thought bitterly. Her left arm was going to be sore for a couple of days.
She punched the bag several times over, ignoring the pain running through her arm, until the first set of tyres collapsed. She made her way through the tyres then stopped at the second bag. "Are you feeling the burn yet? One of these punching bags links to the second tyre stack, but which one? You may need to hit both if you fail to choose the right one on your first attempt."
Arceus' breath, she thought. She was beginning to think her arm was going to fall off at the rate she was going. Hearthome had been a horrible experience, but this was so much worse in a different sense. Grunting and straining, Dawn punched at the first punching bag, but stopped when she noticed nothing was happening. Panting now, she moved her attention to the second one and focused her anger on destroying the second bag. The tyre stack collapsed and she was able to move to the third ring.
Her patience was beginning to wear thin at this point. If she had to endure another obstacle course, she was surely going to lose her mind. The third black belt greeted her with a bow. "My name is Raphael and I am the second youngest brother. You have endured much to reach me, but do you have enough energy left to make the last few steps? Show me you have what it takes."
She summoned her Honchkrow, wanting nothing more than to reach the end. Raphael summoned one Pokemon, a Meditite, and Dawn breathed a sigh of relief. The last Meditite had fallen quickly – this one would be no different. "Go Honchkrow, use Wing Attack!" Honchkrow squawked, beat his wings together, sending forth arrows. The Meditite was defenceless and quickly fell as Dawn had predicted. Raphael didn't seem at all phased, like he had been expecting this defeat.
"I fight for tears. Do not feel ashamed of your tears. Tears are words the mouth cannot say nor can the heart bear."
Each of the parting comments the trainers made felt like a lesson of some sort. Love, courage and now tears… it sounded like the qualities and traits a trainer should have to excel in life. She wondered what the final trainer represented. Fortunately, the road to the final trainer was less strenuous than earlier – there were no punching bags fortunately. Climbing over the remaining stacks of tyres was tiring, but she managed to survive it and found herself walking up the stairs of the final ring.
"My name is Colby. I am the last of the brothers and the strongest. Without further ado, let us fight! Show me you have what it takes to carry on your journey as a trainer." There were three pokeballs on his belt. Triple-battle time. Dawn summoned her starting battlers again – Honchkrow, Grotle and Haunter. Colby brought out three Machokes. This battle was as easy as the first round since the selection of Pokemon was basically identical. Honchkrow's Wing Attack took out one Machoke with one hit, while Grotle and Haunter worked together to take down the second one, leaving one Machoke left. Colby's Machoke used Karate Chop to knock Haunter out of the air before Honchkrow ended the battle with Wing Attack once more.
"We did it!" Dawn cheered, thankful she was almost finished with this gym. Only one battle remained and that was against Maylene. If Maylene used a Machoke and a Meditite then she knew it was all over for the leader.
Colby bowed. "I fight for hope. You will face many tough battles throughout your life, and there'll be times when you feel liking giving up. When you have lost hope, you have lost everything. The lessons you have learned here today are what make a fine trainer. Go now, and face our leader and may you find success." Colby moved aside. Dawn walked down the steps and looked towards the final obstacle standing in the way of her fourth badge.
Maylene. The girl was around her height, and wore a hard expression on her face. She didn't seem like the type of person Dawn wanted to cross paths with on a bad day. Taking in a deep breath, she approached the leader. Maylene smiled. "Hello, I'm pleased to meet you. I'm Maylene, and I'm the gym leader. I fight for a combination of reasons – for love, for courage, for tears and for hope. Today, I will test you to determine if you have the strength to progress further on your journey. I'm ready when you are!"
Dawn took in another breath.
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Cynthia sat across from the table, her right leg crossed over her left, as she waited for Steven to arrive. The former Champion of Hoenn had claimed he had something important to discuss with Cynthia regarding Team Galactic's visions and had gone ahead to place a reservation for two. Cynthia wasn't too keen on sharing the same room since she had gotten accustomed to having her own privacy, but there were no other rooms available at the time. At least there were two beds.
One of the waitresses came over. Cynthia noted her arms were trembling and the girl kept darting her eyes around the room, as if afraid to lock eyes with the Champion. She stood in front of Cynthia and gazed down at the floor. "Cynth-I mean, Champion of Sinnoh," she stuttered.
"It's all right, you may call me by my name and not my title," Cynthia said warmly.
The girl jerked her head up, surprised. "But that is not how we were taught to address important trainers," she blurted. She then covered her hands, face flushing with embarrassment at her sudden outburst.
Cynthia smiled. "I am a trainer, like any other person. I do not hold myself above anyone else despite what my title may imply. Please, tell me what is on your mind."
"A man has arrived, but he did not share his name. He wishes to speak with you." She leaned in forward and dropped her tone to a whisper. "I would advise against it. There are dangerous times with those criminals about and this man might be part of the Galactic organization. I would never forgive myself if you were injured." The waitress drew back, pushing her brown curls away from her dark eyes. Cynthia spotted her nametag on her uniform. Mary.
"I have my Pokemon with me, Mary. I will be perfectly fine. Send him in."
The waitress nodded grimly and turned away to allow the mysterious man inside. Someone wanted to contact her? She dropped a hand to the belt around her waist just encase this turned out to be a problem with the Galactic grunts. A few moments later a man wearing a black coat entered, his eyes darting around suspiciously as if he feared an attack. He sat down across from Cynthia, but did not smile.
"You said you wanted to talk to me?" Cynthia asked.
He nodded. "My name is Looker. I am a member of the International Police. Perhaps you have heard of me?"
Cynthia recalled Dawn mentioning the name before believing she was associated with them somehow. Cynthia shook her head. "Sorry, the name isn't familiar with me."
The man's eyes arched up. "You have not heard of me? No no no, how can this be that the Champion herself does not know of me?"
Cynthia wasn't sure how to respond. The man seemed a little unstable. How did someone like this make it into the International Police? Heck, what was the International Police anyway? She wasn't aware there was even a global security force outside the league and gym leaders. "Why have you come?"
"You are aware of Team Galactic, are you not? They are criminals stealing the Pokemon of others. I have, therefore, been investigating the situation at hand."
"I am aware of Team Galactic."
He nodded. "Good, good, that is good indeed. They must be stopped at once! I have found their hideout and it lies in Veilstone City. Was it not you who signed the contract to allow them to establish themselves in this city?" Cynthia didn't anything. "Ah, nevermind. The criminals will be stopped as they always are."
"Okay…" Cynthia replied slowly. "Thanks for informing me."
Looker smiled. "Do not thank me, Champion, no no no! It is my duty to assist in these crime-related matters." He glanced down at his watch and almost jumped in his seat. "I regret to announce, but I must depart! I sense trouble on the horizon and therefore I must investigate! Farewell, Champion." Looker stood up and exited the room, leaving Cynthia feeling rather confused. He seemed like a nice guy, but a little too eccentric for her tastes.
She was alone again. It was hard to believe all the rooms had been booked out when there was no one else present in the dining hall. Perhaps they were busy spending time down on the golden beaches on the route to Sunyshore? Fortunately, she wasn't alone for much longer as Steven entered. Steven had opted to wear a black suit making Cynthia feeling quite informal in comparison.
Steven took his seat across from Cynthia and cleared his throat. "I apologize for being late. There were a few issues with the ship, but I'm here now and that's all that matters. I've been looking into what you told me earlier about Team Galactic and I came across some interesting information."
"What did you find?"
Steven reached down into his bags and grabbed a couple of papers. He sat upright again and laid the documents down on the table. There was so much paperwork Cynthia was reminded of the pile sitting on her desk at the league. "You mentioned you believe Dawn was in danger from Team Galactic and I agree you are correct in that assumption."
"I knew it," Cynthia said quickly. "Cyrus. He's the man in charge of Team Galactic and he wants to use Dawn." No wonder her grandmother despised him so much. She was half-tempted to stand up now to hunt down Cyrus and throw him behind bars. She now knew enough to prove his guilt.
"Yes… and no," Steven said.
"What?"
Steven cleared his throat again. "You mentioned Team Galactic are interested in finding alternative energy sources to create a new universe, right? I went back home and researched the matter further and discovered something I overlooked earlier – the importance of the legendary Pokemon of Sinnoh." He pointed at the papers on the table. "I spent days looking into it, trying to understand the link between Galactic, energy sources and legendary Pokemon, when it finally clicked!"
Cynthia wished she shared his excitement, but she was lost. "You're trying to tell me there's a link between the Lake Guardians and the Creation Duo, Dialga and Palkia?"
"Correction, Creation Trio. The world had to start from something, right? Arceus is the God of Pokemon, but he did not shape the world as we know it. He created the Creation Trio, Dialga, the creator of time, Palkia, the creator of space and finally Giratina, the creator of anti-matter. Giratina has the power to create a new universe from nothing."
Cynthia frowned. "I've never heard of Giratina before."
"Of course you haven't. Giratina lives in a different realm, the one Ghost-type trainers refer to as the Spirit World, but the author refers to it as the Distortion World. That is why you do not hear the name mentioned in many books, but someone crossed paths with this Pokemon and gave him the name," Steven said, pointing at the papers on the table. "It was difficult to find, but I managed to track down the publisher's name by gaining access into restricted files. Being a former Champion has its benefits you know."
"You took a big risk… former Champion or not, you have broken a law."
Steven shrugged. "If it takes breaking the law to save a region, I'm willing to do it." He pointed to the papers again. "You know how a man called Pluto was fired from Silph Co many years ago for looking into Pokemon enslavement?"
"It was all over the news for years. I remember hearing about it when I was child."
"Pluto is a fake alias. His real name is Charon."
Cynthia raised her eyebrows. "How?"
Steven shuffled in his chair and leaned forward. He pulled out another piece of paper and directed Cynthia's attention towards it. "I asked one of the computer experts at Devon to track him down. It was hard, but we found something interesting. Charon works for Team Galactic." He pulled back. "What do you think? Impressed?"
Cynthia was in awe. She had to admit, this was impressive information. "You suspect Galactic are trying to enslave the legendaries then to… what? Capture Giratina? But how? You mentioned Giratina lives in the Spirit World." The former Champion of Hoenn pulled out a few more documents and handed them to Cynthia. She pulled them out of the folder and skimmed through the text. Steven had drawn up a chart of the legendaries of Sinnoh, linking them back to Team Galactic's circle.
"The gems the Lake Guardian creatures have in them can be removed. When those three gems come together, they form a special item that can be used to summon Dialga and Palkia to open a rift to the Spirit World, allowing a non-walker to enter the realm. Extracting the gems is difficult and requires highly advanced equipment to achieve it. That's where Team Galactic come in. They have the technology to make the impossible possible."
"How does Cyrus tie into this then?"
"Cyrus started up Galactic to continue his father's work. Somewhere along the road, he crossed paths with Charon, the person who discovered Giratina. I suspect Charon knows something about Giratina he did not share with anyone and is using Cyrus to help him achieve that goal."
She rubbed her chin, biting down on her lip, giving Steven a worried look. "Cyrus talked to me awhile back… He mentioned something about removing the world of spirit claiming emotions make people weak…" she said slowly, furrowing her brows. "He wants to create a new universe… and remove spirit… But why?"
"Do you remember what I told you about his childhood?"
She nodded. "It wasn't pleasant."
"Exactly! This is his twisted perception of justice. If you were wronged and you had a chance to erase that part of your history to forget the pain, would you take it?" Steven said, looking at Cynthia intently. "Charon convinced Cyrus he could help, but certain steps would have to be taken. Capturing the legendaries is the first step."
"That seems a little far-fetched don't you think? Cyrus strikes me as the type of person who knows exactly what he is doing." The last time she crossed paths with him he certainly seemed quite sure of himself. "He would not have started up Galactic without some sort of sinister ambition. Have we not learned anything from history?"
Steven shook his head. "He's emotionally unstable, Cynthia. It would be easy for someone else to take advantage of that for their own benefit and convince a wounded person there is a way to make things better. If you could get away with performing a crime by blaming it on somebody else would you not take it?"
Cynthia rubbed her temples. He had raised some good points and now his research had changed her entire perspective on Galactic. At first she had assumed Cyrus was the typical criminal leader determined to destroy the world for selfish means, but now she saw it in a different light. He actually believed he was doing the right thing and that was dangerous. Charon's true intentions remained mystery however – if there was any chance of taking him down there was only one person who knew enough about the man to help. Cyrus wouldn't surrender willingly without putting up a fight though.
"Should we not focus our efforts on Charon then? If he is the true mastermind here, he is the one who poses a much bigger threat."
Steven shook his head. "Cyrus is the leader of Galactic. If he falls, the company falls with him. Eliminating Charon now would not change a thing – Cyrus would still attempt to carry out his plan."
But was it even possible to reason with someone so mentally broken? He was a danger to everyone, including himself. She sank back in her chair. Had Dawn figured out her relation to Cyrus and if she had, how did she feel about it? She had to reach Dawn and inform the trainer everything Steven had told her before the girl encountered her father. Dawn could be what determined whether or not her father would open the rift to the Distortion World. Perhaps she could talk him down, but only if Cynthia reached her first.
"Cynthia?"
Cynthia pulled out of her thoughts. "And what should I do when I find him? I can't imagine he's going to listen to reason after everything he's been through to get to this point. The residents of Sinnoh will want justice and they'll cast their blame on Cyrus, not Charon."
"You are the Champion, Cynthia. You have authority above everyone else – his fate rests in your hands. Will you lend your hand to a broken man in need of help or will you abandon him to a grisly fate as justice for the crimes he has committed?"