You're going to see some familiar faces, some familiar lore and events now that we're moving towards present times. Still some drama between Lance and Serena, of course, don't think that will be going away anytime soon. The chapter title for today is the song Sensible Heart by City and Colour, good song and good band. Definitely recommend checking them out :)
Serena stares at her face on the cover of a well known Johto magazine. It's a bit unflattering, her brows furrowed and mouth open as she argues for the G-men and police departments to work together against Hendrick at a public debate. Behind her sits Elijah with a triumphant smile because the director had called her to talk as if she had no idea what was going on.
With the coming of the new year, there have been more public debates, votes and discussions on Serena's idea as well as Serena herself. While she doesn't enjoy news outlets picking on her looks and upbringing, the good stuff seems to be making a difference. The League itself has sided with her, petitioning for its own body to be combined with the Association, Council and G-men to start acting as one rather than pitting them against each other.
Elijah is the face of it all, but recently Serena has been taking a public stand as she presented the idea of the magnet train. Communities all over the regions have rallied for her idea, pushing a vote for it on the regions' Council that led to its passing. She had no idea she would be published on the cover of several magazines, much like Lance is usually around the region.
A blush dusts her cheeks at the compliments from people in the article as well as excitement that change is coming. She sets the magazine aside in order to focus on the email at hand with Charles Goodshow. This year's competition looks like it's going to be a good one, Elijah is retiring whether or not a trainer wins against him. Meaning, for the Champions Conference (if it gets that far), whoever beats Lance becomes champion of Kanto and Johto. But if someone beats that trainer before the end of the month, and can hold the position, they become champion.
It's a high stakes tournament so she has to work with Charles to make sure the paperwork is ready for the winner. Now that most of her work is being passed on to proper committees, Serena finds herself with more time on her hands. The magnet train is no longer her responsibility as everything is being mapped out and funds are delegated to the engineering company. Elijah has taken over the merger with the G-men, smoothing out the details and attending those meetings for her. The Association has taken over the renovation of the pokemon league, it will take a while, but they like the idea and designs presented.
All she has to worry about is her application to be a gym leader still sitting in her desk. It's finished and she has some time before she has to turn it in. Lately, she's been shadowing Kanto leaders throughout their days volunteering and their nights training.
The work is long, but it's rewarding. Seeing kids having fun while learning about specific types they were otherwise unsure about makes her smile. The programs put on take place after school most days and give parents some leeway with their work day, an unexpected bonus from her proposal. Petty crime in communities have gone down now that kids have an outlet led by gym leaders in a safe environment. Even gym leaders have risen in popularity, almost to a celebrity status among the regions.
Despite all the good happening, there is still some bad. Giovanni has been acting strange still and murmurs of Team Rocket have finally surfaced. Aaron has been doing well with using local police departments to track their movements, with some success. Recently there was a robbery of a house in Cerulean for a manual on tutoring Dig, it didn't get very far, but it also shed light on some past excavations in Mt. Moon.
Since then, riots have begun again, accusing the G-men of not doing their jobs while Team Rocket is loose. It only got worse when the news of a pokemon murder in Lavendar Town sprang up. A poor Marowak trying to defend its child, Cubone, killed by some Rocket members. Serena was horrified to learn how normal that was when it came to business in Team Rocket, her father was ashamed to admit so and it's been a difficult subject ever since.
For the past month, it's been silent and that's not good.
"Hey, Re- Uh, Serena?" Lance pops into the office, forcing her into the present.
For the new year, he's been donning a different suit. A navy blue and red tamer suit with black boots and a black cape with a red underside. His fame as the unbeatable Elite Four member has skyrocketed and, as such, he has a large fan following.
He still hasn't talked to her since their fight months ago, and she's been putting off talking to him in favor of the work she's doing. Now with her almost empty plate in hand, she struggles to excuse the growing worry they'll never be friends again. His recent use of her full name is just an indicator he's still angry and there's no end in sight.
"What's up?" she continues to stare at the magazine.
"Elijah wants you present for an emergency meeting."
She frowns and gathers her stuff. "What's happened?"
"I don't know, he wants us all there so rumors don't fly around the league," he shrugs back. She joins him in the hallway, clutching her bag as though it's her lifeline as an uncomfortable silence sits between them. He clears his throat with an awkward cough as they saunter down the hall. "Um, they did a good job on that article of you... Yo-you look great."
For a moment, she thinks this is his way of reaching out for an apology and glances over expecting him to be smiling that goofy smile of his. Instead, his eyes are straight ahead as if she isn't there and her heart sinks.
Her voice comes out hollow and cold. "Thanks."
The halls are oddly quiet and void of agents as they get to the main meeting room door. It only adds to the awkward air between the two as they get closer. Lance opens it for her, his face passive as she steps in to find food spread across the tables, and a large banner along the far wall saying 'Congrats!' in bright blue lettering.
"Surprise!"
Serena flinches as the Elites, Elijah, Aaron, Wesley, Rowan, Clair and several other members of the league pop up from beneath the table. She glances at each of them for a second, confused as to who the party is for when Lance nudges her gently.
"It's for you," he explains.
"Why?" she frowns.
"Honey, your magnet train presentation? The renovation for the pokemon league?" Rowan chuckles at her daughter, taking her hands and drawing her into the fray. "We're all so proud of your hard work, we wanted to throw a party for you."
"Oh," she replies in a bewildered tone. She faces the group and offers them a smile. "Thank you, everyone... Is that chocolate cake?"
With that, the party commences, if party is the appropriate word. More like a gathering of colleagues and family. Serena gets congratulated by the Elites and confirms that the four prospects will be arriving next month for their aptitude tests and interviews for the new positions. There are speeches by Elijah and Aaron, commenting on how proud of Serena they are and how they can't wait for the new year to unfold.
Serena enjoys spending time with her colleagues until the door opens to reveal Michael's frowning face. Her stomach drops at the sight of him unhappy as her eyes slide to her father and Wesley to find them glaring. The Deputy Director of the G-men calls all agents for a meeting, excluding Serena as she had to quit due to conflict with her position in the League as Elijah's assistant. More like forced out by Michael himself by lying about the implications of her using her status to push an Association agenda in the G-men.
Since then, Aaron has been hot on his backside trying to find solid proof of his involvement with Giovanni.
"Sorry to interrupt," he sneers at Serena with no trace of guilt at all.
She ignores him, watching her father, Lance and the others disappear from the room grumbling about the interruption. Rowan stands at her side as the other staff of the league murmur about what's going on. One of them flips on the TV to the news to see the Rocket Game Corner surrounded by police cars.
"Turn it up," Serena urges the secretary.
"We are coming to you live from Celadon City where the Game Corner, a main attraction of the city's has been revealed to be the center of operations for the notorious Team Rocket," the newscaster speaks in a grim tone. "Not much is known yet as they have barricaded the entrance and denied any forms of communication with local authorities. An anonymous tip came in early this morning about the casino after a young boy disappeared into the basement. Nothing is known about who this boy is or if he's affiliated with the tip or Team Rocket. Stay tuned..."
"Oh no," Rowan gasps. She turns to her daughter. "Do you think the G-men will go?"
"Probably not," Serena shakes her head. "You know why."
Despite the connections established with local police departments, Hendrick and Michael fight them along the way. Any paperwork or leads to Team Rocket mysteriously disappear in well timed power outages of the G-men computer systems. So far nothing has been done to investigate the outages and anyone outright questioning them is fired. Aaron and Wesley have retreated to the confines of their homes to discuss plans to get them exposed, but it's difficult to find allies when everyone is glancing over their shoulder.
As the staff gathers around the TV, Serena quietly thanks them all for the party before excusing herself and her mother. The two exit the meeting room and head down the hall to the HQ G-men room. They turn the corner and spot two guards outside the room. They shake their heads at her and step closer to each other to bar her entry.
"You don't have authorization to pass through," one of them speaks in a gruff tone.
"Excuse me?" Serena glares at him, crossing her arms. "Let me see my father."
"They're in a meeting that cannot be interrupted, you'll have to wait," the other guard shakes his head.
Rowan pulls her daughter away, back down the hall, when the door opens. They turn back to find a newer worker, Clyde, followed by Lance excusing themselves and heading their way. Confusion spreads across Serena's face at their approach. Clyde is a new computer tech brought in for his hacking skills as well as his attention to detail. Aaron has spoken a little bit of him at home, thinking he's someone that can be trusted.
"Ahem, um, can we head to your office?" he gestures the way they came with a wave of his hand.
He's only a few years older than Serena, one of the youngest hires into the G-men but with the credentials to back up their decision. A mop of dark brown hair sits atop his head, messy from being constantly touched with little wisps dropping over his dark green eyes. Freckles dust his nose and cheeks disappearing into the beginnings of a beard on his strong jaw and chin. He's a scrawny man, but tall.
"Um..."
"We don't have much time, Serena," Lance cautions in a quiet voice. "I can escort him to your office, but we only have a few minutes before Michael realizes we're not coming back."
She nods and turns on her heel to lead them towards her office. She's still not used to him using her full name, it always sounds like she's in trouble when he does. As they head towards their office, she can't help but wonder what's his plan for Celadon, clearly he's going but why bring Clyde out?
They get to Serena's office, both scurrying in after her, and she shuts the door and locks it. Rowan keeps close to Serena as Clyde and Lance turn to them and each let out a large breath.
Clyde is the first to speak. "The G-men have been ordered to not get involved with the casino case. Anyone who tries to help or even read about it, is fired."
"What?" Serena screeches. "They can't do that!"
"Unfortunately, they can," Lance shrugs. "Aaron asked Clyde to come out here and tell you. I managed to be his escort because Michael thinks I wouldn't leave and risk getting fired."
"But you are?" Serena raises a brow.
He nods back. "I'm going to investigate. We need you guys here to make sure nothing happens and they don't come after me."
"You can't go alone," Serena shakes her head. "It's Team Rocket, Giovanni must be there, Proton too."
"I can take on two people," he averts his eyes and heads towards her window.
Fear grips Serena. She may be furious and not talking with him, but losing Lance to her uncle would destroy her. Giovanni will stop at nothing and is not above cheating to get his own way. If he's there, she wants to be the one to take him down.
Rowan covers her fist with a warm hand. She nods her head in understanding and faces Lance. "Serena is going with you."
"No," he shakes his head. "We know why that's a bad idea."
Her pulse picks up at the thought of being in the heart of operations of the group that devised her kidnapping and testing. It's not an ideal situation and the prevention of G-men intervention only makes it that much more dangerous. Giovanni has been biding his time and now he's kidnapped another kid and she cannot let the same thing happen to him.
"It's not a suggestion, I can hide Clyde here myself," Rowan crosses her arms. "I know things are weird between the two of you but this isn't the time to shut the other out."
The two in question avert their gazes at the awkwardness of it all. Nothing has been brought up and Serena feels a twinge of guilt.
"Look," she steps up to Lance as he pauses at the window. "I know I messed up. We both did, but I do trust you enough to keep me safe on this mission."
Gold eyes stare into blue as he weighs his options. But Clyde breaks the silence in a rushed tone. "Time's up! You get in through the storm sewer system," he pulls out a piece of paper from his pocket, "your father had this drawn up for the flower shop raid and kept it. There's an opening that goes through the basement of the casino. If there's an operation under there, you should be able to find it through the system."
Serena takes the map from him and studies that section of the city, the path looks simple and they should be able to make it. She pockets the map and turns to Lance in the window as her mother watches on with sorrow. The growing fear in Serena's stomach makes her nauseous.
"Be careful, sweetie," Rowan kisses her forward. She does the same with Lance. "Please. Watch out for each other."
"We will Mom," she promises and turns to Clyde. "We'll call as soon as we can."
Clyde nods. "I'll do my best from here."
Lance opens the window behind her desk and gives her room to toss out Wynn's pokeball. She raises a brow at him and he shrugs without looking at her. "She's faster than Ryu." As the dragon type stretches and floats up to the window, Lance steps up next to her. "Ready?"
Serena nods and hops onto Wynn's back with him following behind her. She shakes her fear away as the wind streaks past them. Her attention goes to the problem at hand, she has to find the kid and make sure he's safe before getting to the bottom of the problem.
OoOoOoO
"This is creepy," Serena whispers as she, Lance and Thea tiptoe alongside a rushing river toward the casino.
Lance keeps quiet, his gaze forward and brows furrowed. It puts Serena on edge as she trudges along beside him. Her flashlight stays trained on the ground ahead of them better illuminating the tunnels than the faulty bulbs hanging over the river of water and other debris. It smells like old river water and a rainy day. They've been walking for fifteen minutes in the same direction, the only affirmation they're getting close are the police sirens and shouts going on above from certain drains.
Serena presses forward until they come to an intersection. Water rushes by in all directions, each tunnel except the one directly across a gaping mouth with secrets waiting to be revealed. Deciding to investigate the smaller tunnel, Serena bids Thea to help them cross. The psychic type lifts them with Psychic and her trainer avoids looking down at the abyss as they cross. Lance stumbles a bit in the air, not used to the feeling of floating rather than flying on the back of a dragon type.
When her feet touch the ground, Serena continues forward, examining her surroundings until she comes to a ladder pressed into the wall. She stops mid-step and looks up. Little spots of light greet her from a manhole covering from above. Digging out the map, she traces her steps to find herself directly under the casino.
"I'll go first," Lance volunteers. "If there are people, I'll make a diversion so you don't get caught."
Serena nods then pockets the flashlight and map before kneeling down for Thea. "Hop on."
Her pokemon obliges, her weight throwing off Serena just a step as Lance ascends the ladder. He presses his ear to one of the holes and, after a few breaths of silence, deems it safe enough to open. A grimace disfigures Serena's face as he places a hand on the lid and slides it aside with a screeching sound made louder in the caves below.
Lance disappears to the floor above, dousing Serena and Thea in artificial light, before motioning for them to follow. Serena takes a deep, calming breath before she ascends the ladder up to the opening. At the top, Lance helps Thea to her feet and then Serena. He accepts her hand and pulls her up and close as a door opens and closes somewhere.
His cologne assaults her nostrils, leaving her mind floating, as his body pressed against hers. Heart pounding, Serena clutches Lance's chest as voices bubble up before fading as another door slams shut. The two sigh in relief and pull away as though nothing had happened.
She glances around the room. It looks like a storage room with piles of boxes forming mountains sitting around smelling of mold and dust. Lance gestures for her to follow with a flick of his wrist, the two tip toe after him as he minds his step and each corner. After a few minutes, Thea's fur bristles along her back and Lance pauses at what looks to be the end of the maze of boxes.
She gestures for her pokemon to get behind her when a voice suddenly starts shouting. "Hey, brat!"
Eyes wide, Serena spins around to see if she's been caught. Lance meets her gaze with a finger on his lips and a slight shake of his head. He waves his other hand behind him and she braves a peek around the corner to find a Rocket Grunt staring down a kid in a red hat. Serena frowns at him, he's got to be no older than fifteen with a Pikachu perched on his shoulder. Black hair falls from underneath the hat framing russet brown eyes.
The two commence a battle. The grunt releases a plethora of Rattata and Ekans while the trainer takes them down no problem. Serena watches as the last pokemon falls and the grunt tosses the kid a key before disappearing the way he came. She steps out of the darkness, much to Lance's surprise. This alerts the pikachu and causes the electric type to growl with shocks dancing across his cheeks in a display of intimidation.
"I'm not part of Team Rocket!" she holds up her hands as the trainer faces her and tenses up. "I'm from the pokemon league."
The trainer tilts his head and raises his eyebrow. He remains quiet but his gaze makes Serena answer. She starts pulling out an ID when Lance emerges and the boy lets out a soft gasp.
She sets the ID back and glares at Lance. In turn, he grins at her while gesturing to the boy. "It's not so bad to be recognized everywhere."
"I'm Red." His voice is soft, if a bit raspy when he speaks, as if he's getting used to the idea of having a voice.
That breaks up the two of them. Serena clears her throat and holds out her hand. "I'm Serena, nice to meet you. We were supposed to be saving you, but I'm glad to see you're okay. What's going on here?"
Red takes a moment to fill them in, explaining he had called in the tip hoping to get the police inside when an executive barricaded the door. He looks at Lance pointedly when mentioning the G-men and he relays to him the order from the higher ups without mentioning their suspicions of Hendrick and Michael. Red looks angry but proceeds to explain his thoughts of going over to the main office to battle the leaders to get them to surrender. But first, he had to get through the puzzle of the hideout. He holds up the key explaining they made it just in time.
"Let's get going then," she nods and gestures for him to lead the way.
"No way," Lance shakes his head. "He's just a kid, you should take him and get out of here."
Serena rounds on him with a fierce glare. "I am not abandoning you to Giovanni. The two of us can keep Red safe, not like he has any trouble."
"Don't act like you have faith in me," he sneers back. "I'm sure you're here to make sure I even do my job."
Anger boils in Serena, her shoulders tense up and her vision blurs, for a moment she can feel the energies of Lance and Red beside her. How easy it would be to force him back, show him that she's not helpless and he's the weaker one in the situation. Instead, it forces her to focus and take a deep breath. Beside her, Thea moves to push Lance away and trot past Red as if to tell them she'll do it on her own if that's what it takes.
"We're all going," Serena speaks after a quiet moment. "Lance you take point, Red will be in the middle and I'll take the back. Unless you would like to?"
Lance shakes his head. "Point is fine."
Despite proving to be on his side, Serena watches as his Pikachu stares at her and Thea as they head up to the third floor. She struggles to keep a mature face as the three of them slide around the tiles to get to the staircase. All the grunts have fled, having battled Red and lost. With no other direction, they disappeared to the main office below.
"Finally," Serena sighs in relief as they reach solid ground, on the second floor, at the elevator. Her stomach settles, as does her cake from her party as Red pops in the key and the door opens.
The three pile in and press the only button available. The doors slide shut and no music plays, adding to the awkward atmosphere as Lance stands to the right of the door and the others face him on the left. He avoids Serena's gaze and she stares at Thea beside her to give her a focal point to keep control.
Her arm comes up in front of Red as the doors slide open. For a moment, it's silent as Lance moves to peek. His face turns into a grimace and he gestures for the others to step out with him. Serena keeps her protective stance as they come out of the elevator to face a man in white waiting for them. He claps his hands as they exit, a Houndoom at his feet growling with sharp fangs bared. Blue, short hair on his head reminds Serena of Proton, but the color is off and this man oozes an even more dangerous aura.
"My, my. You made it," his voice drips with contempt. "I figured the brat had to have some help, how else could all those idiots lose to one child." He says 'child' like it's a dirty word and proceeds to pet Houndoom's head. "I'm Archer, soon to be executive of Team Rocket. Pleasure is mine."
"It's three to one, you'll be coming with us," Lance steps forward.
"I think not," Archer chuckles. Houndoom circles his trainer and comes to a stop a few feet in front of him. The pokemon bares its fangs at them, challenging them to move closer. "Your mission ends here!"
Before Thea can jump out, Lance has Ryu out and the dragon type looks fierce with his shoulders hunched and his own teeth gleaming at the quadruped pokemon. Houndoom takes a step back with a whimper, much to Archer's fury.
"Take us to your leader," Lance smirks while standing beside Ryu. "Or we will make you."
Keep watch on Red, she tells Thea as their group passes another storage room only to enter a large office.
The room is full of computers and other gadgets along the back wall, all of them blinking an alert that casts a red glow on them as they file in. Archer takes his stance behind the couch and stares Serena down. Her attention falls on her uncle as he gauges the three before him. His niece, the elite trainer and some random trainer found prowling the hallways.
"So you two have been clearing out my hideout?" he raises a brow, his voice echoes throughout the room making Serena flinch.
"Actually, Red did all the work," she gestures to the boy next to her. " We came in way too late."
"I'm surprised you're actually here," he growls at Lance.
"You're men are getting lazy at the league, I practically walked out," he spits back.
Bad move, Serena wants to smack Lance for his cockiness but opts to keep the conversation moving.
"You've been gone from meetings-"
"I have no use for my position," he flicks his hand as if swatting at an annoyance. His sharp eyes turn to Red and Serena is amazed the boy doesn't react at all. "I'm impressed you made it this far. But this is where you will meet your end, boy. Team Rocket has been capturing pokemon from around the world to use as tools to keep this enterprise going. I am its leader and I will not let a child like you stop me!"
"You won't be battling him," Serena steps in front of Red. "The place is surrounded, you've lost. Let's go."
Giovanni laughs, his shoulders shaking and his head thrown back. "I'm not going to be battling at all, I have other things to attend to. What kind of leader would I be without a plan of escape?"
Archer grins before the lights go out and a smoke bomb bursts in the middle of the room. Lance pulls Serena to his side as she pulls Red to her side, the three of them coughing as the smoke surrounds them and alarms alre to prevent them from hearing their escape. Ryu flaps his wings to dissipate the smoke and the alarms continue on. When it's clear they pull apart and find a mess of wires on the couch with a timer counting down from three minutes.
Fear launches Lance into action.
He returns Ryu to his ball, urges Serena to keep Thea close, and the two keep a grasp on Red and his pikachu as they race to the elevator. The two rush through using the psychic type to lift them over the spinning tiles and to the stairs. Red trips on the way up, but Serena picks him up in her frenzy to escape, practically dragging him to the door where several machines have been thrown in front to keep the police out.
"Thea, get rid of them!" she shouts, her heart pounding as she swears she can hear the bomb counting down in her head.
Thea does so, pulling the machines away to reveal a broken glass door and law enforcement on the other side. With the door cleared, the policemen rush forward only to stop when they burst through with Red gaining his footing. Both her voice and Lance's grow hoarse as they wave them away, screaming about the bomb and watching the horror on their faces as their words register.
The crowd outside scatters, authorities urging them away just as the ground trembles and forces them to hit the ground from the resulting explosion. The earth trembles as a black cloud of smoke and fire climbs into the sky behind them. Bits of rock and glass rain down on them. Serena pulls Red to her to shield him as Lance covers the three of them with his cape.
Thea and Pikachu stumble on the ground ahead of their trainers, their bodies easily recovering as they roll back onto their feet. The psychic type redirects chunks of rubble falling from the sky back towards the destruction. Pikachu knocks some away with his tail, careful to stay away from the glass on the ground.
At the all clear, the two older teens sit back and stare at the explosion with wide eyes and then at each other. Smiles form on their faces and arms reach for the other at the joy of narrowly escaping an explosion. She buries her face in Lance's neck, squeezing him hard before pulling away at the sound of a pained groan.
"R-Red!?" Serena pants sitting up. She turns the boy over to see him grimacing. "Are you okay?"
"That hurt," he groans sitting up and rubbing his back.
His pikachu leaps into his arms, relieved he made it out safely, before Serena hauls them to their feet. Ambulances and firetrucks race down the street as the police resume damage control. Serena gives Red a stern look when he tries to refuse medical care before refusing it for herself and Lance.
She pulls out her phone to call the league when the snap of a camera gets her attention and she looks up to see reporters flooding the police line shouting questions at her. With a grimace, she puts the phone and Thea away. She releases Wynn and the two hop on and escape before any more damage can be done.
For safety, they enter through a back entrance to her and Elijah's office. Lance helps her avoid any guards and any agents they come across. Sticking to the shadows until the door behind her shuts and she faces Elijah, her mother, and Clair. The three turn at their entrance and stare at them with wide eyes. Behind them, video footage of the explosion plays over and over again.
"What?" she frowns.
"You both look like hell," Clair breaks the silence.
Rowan rushes up to her, pulling her close and kissing her face. "Oh, honey! We've been so worried!"
"Oh," she chuckles. "Right. The explosion. That was shitty."
"Language," her mother teases. "We need to get you cleaned up. Clyde managed to lie and say you were down in the center with your pokemon, but they're going to be wondering why you're covered in dirt and smell like a sewer. Lance too."
Both of them flush and sniff themselves. Serena shakes her head. "It's terrible I can't smell anything."
"I wish I could say the same," Clair giggles. "I'll go to the bathroom and get some wipes for you. I grabbed a change of clothes for you Lance before coming here."
"Thank you," he accepts them and heads to Elijah's desk.
"Okay, I have a change of clothes here," Serena rushes over to her desk. The aftermath of the explosion catches up to her as she opens a drawer with shaky hands. "Where's Dad and Wes?"
"With Hendrick and Michael," Lance grimaces and then turns away when Clair returns with wipes and Serena pulls out clothes.
The men avert their eyes as Serena cleans herself up and changes into her spare uniform, usually used for official meetings. Lance puts on an outfit an exact mirror to the one he was wearing before. Even with the same style of cape and everything. Serena narrows her eyes at him and he just shrugs in return.
Rowan braids her hair while Clair hands her some water for her voice. Serena gulps down the water and takes a moment to settle her rattled nerves and focus on what happened.
Elijah turns down the newscast as Lance dives into the story of what happened at the casino. He explains about Red, Archer and Giovanni at the hideout leading up to the explosion at the end.
"What now?" Clair asks the question everyone is wondering.
"We wait," Elijah shrugs and Lance groans.
"For what? More pokemon to be murdered? More people to suffer at the hands of Team Rocket?" he demands gesturing towards the TV. "The G-men never appeared, someone is bound to say something."
"Hendrick and Michael will have to answer for that, but there's nothing we can do," the champion responds with a grimace. "I'm not happy about it either. We can't make a mistake now and point fingers at people with no proof. The people will lose faith in us and push them further into Rocket hands."
"He has a point," Rowan sighs. "For now, we wait."
OoO
After meeting with her father and Wes to talk about all she found, Serena finds herself in a steaming shower to rid her nostrils of the stench of the storm system and burning building. Pictures of her at the casino leaked onto the internet, though the directors said nothing of it when she crossed their paths on the way to her apartment. Clair and her mother left after making Serena dinner for the night.
Exhausted and desperate for sleep, Serena forces herself to clean up, change and eat at her table. Tomorrow there will be a press conference where Hendrick will have to explain why there was no G-men intervention or help after recent settlements on jurisdiction. Elijah is confident the man will say nothing and it will lead to an uproar with the people fighting against the G-men and pushing them back several steps.
Once in her room she sighs and thinks about the cleaning up she'll have to do to keep ahead of the directors and Giovanni. Meanwhile, Aaron promised to keep an eye on Red as much as he can while the teen is battling through Kanto. She curls up under her covers, her mind swimming with the events. Her father will be making her go to counseling twice a week to combat the effects of going against a bomb, for the next month at least.
With the mess going on within the G-men, planning for this year's tournament and retirements, the merger of authorities, the magnet train, her application, Team Rocket and, separately, her uncle Serena will have to go to counseling for the next year.
