Pokemon: The Dawn of Arcana

by TheNMan64

The Legend of Arcana draws to a close in the final chapter of the Crimson Fury trilogy. With the forces of good pushed to their breaking point and on the brink of collapse, an unexpected chosen must rise to the occasion and oppose Mewtwo despite their fears and lack of confidence. Darkness will rise, light will fall and the end of an entire age of the world is coming...

35. Chapter 34: Long Lost Lovers

"We don't even know what happened to her" Byron Kingston spoke sharply, though trying in earnest to calm his nephew down. Byron and Madeline had been summoned before their newly named King upon Annie Tress's confirmation to him and the Arcana Police Force that Julia had disappeared. But there was seemingly no trace of her. No sign of a struggle in her departure from Kingston Castle or anything of the sort. She simply left. And this was what was driving the anger in his nephew. And while Byron, Olivia, Madeline and Annie attempted to hash out a strategy, Michael paced angrily on the other side of his desk. Byron knew he would have to take control, especially if the Fury took control of the newly named King. "There has to be some sort of explanation. Julia wouldn't just run off like that without a good reason."

"She wouldn't let me in on the conversation" Annie explained worriedly. "I only know it was someone named Peter."

Michael raged at that name, slamming his chair to the ground with one ferocious punch. "Of course it was him! Why wouldn't it be?"

"This isn't like Julia and you know it" Olivia argued. "Don't just assume the worst."

"But if Julia has a history with this man" Madeline warned, "we have to take it at face value until we know for sure what happened." She looked at her sister in law with eyes that emulated her father's perfectly. "And you're certain you didn't get to listen in after Julia dismissed you?"

"I wanted to" Annie spoke nervously, "but I was too concerned with making sure that you all knew something was wrong. When I got back here, she was gone."

"This doesn't mean that Julia is having an affair with this man" Byron concluded. "We don't have all the facts of the case."

"But how can we get proof of what was in that conversation if we don't know for sure what was said?" Annie wondered.

Michael took a moment to calm himself before taking a look at the situation without the fear of Julia resuming her affair with Peter. "Julia left without saying goodbye to Arya or James. It's possible that was because they were with me, but Julia isn't the kind of mother to walk out on her children. I mean, she isn't my mother."

"And the conversation was on her Poke Gear?" Olivia asked.

Annie nodded. "No landlines. There's no way we could trace the call, either. Unless it was recorded."

Byron's eyes flashed and he looked to his nephew. Michael echoed the look and both men nodded. "The Mics!"

"What?" Olivia asked.

"Mom would record all conversations taking place in the Lord's Study to ensure security was maintained" the retired Police Captain explained. "Some may call her paranoid, but it did help us to gain the information to prove Claude was defrauding the people of Arcana. Evidently, the only one too stupid to see through that was Betsy Seissuon."

"And if they were running while she was in here" Michael continued, hurrying towards the bookshelves in search of the recording device, "we might get a clue as to what was going on." He tossed aside books and objects his Grandfather had collected, only for Byron and Madeline to make desperate attempts to save them. Finally, Michael found the recording device and played it's findings back as far as an hour ago. He heard Annie and Julia talking about something, before the talking became frantic and worried.

"Play it here!" Annie pleaded.

Michael tapped play and the group present listened in on what Julia was saying to Peter on the call. "So you're kidnapping me...I'd love to see you take Michael on...okay, Historic Titanio Hotel...One Hour..."

"There we go" Madeline exclaimed. "We need to call up the Police Force to surround the building."

"Julia could be endangered by any intervention" her father cautioned. "The last thing we need is to put the Queen's life at risk."

Annie grew pale realizing the severity of her friend's condition. "What can we do?"

Michael said nothing and instead moved rigidly towards his desk, collecting the Poke Balls containing Aether, Rhaegar and Mufasa. When the others realized what he meant to do, Byron and Madeline rushed to his side. Michael simply brushed passed them and headed for the exit of the study. "I should have taken care of this a long time ago. I'll deal with Peter and save Julia."

"You can't expect the rest of Arcana to-" Byron argued.

"I'm the King" Michael replied angrily. "How can you expect me to sit by and do nothing?"

"You won't be doing anything! Do you want to put Julia's life at risk? We don't know what this Peter character is capable of."

"And you can't think I won't be trying to protect my wife!"

"He won't be doing anything alone" Olivia declared. "I'll be going with him."

"But-" Byron was about to argue, but Madeline intervened.

"And I'll call in backup with the Arcana Police Force" she insisted.

Byron seemed flabbergasted, but conceded. "You kids...you're all going to give me a damned coronary one of these days."

Michael looked to Annie as Olivia collected herself and her belongings. "As the Chief Adviser to the Throne, you'll be in charge until I come back."

Annie blinked in astonishment. "Chief Adviser? You mean, like the Grand Vizier?"

"Whatever title suits you" Michael responded. "Just hold the fort down here. This shouldn't take long." He gestured for Olivia to follow him and the two were out the door in a matter of seconds.

Madeline ripped her father's radio from him to radio in the positions. "Attention all available ArcPo Units! Rendezvous at the Historic Titanio Hotel! Julia Kingston has been abducted by a whack-job from Sinnoh!" She then followed the King and Lady Olivia out the door, leaving Annie and Byron by themselves.

Byron slumped into one of the chairs and sighed to himself. "I sometimes forget just how old they are."

"What do you mean?" Annie asked her father-in law.

"I remember Madeline, Jon, Michael and all the others when they could hardly walk, let alone run an entire region." The old Police Chief wore a tired smile on his face. "They've all done more for Arcana in a few years than some of us have done our entire lives, you as well Annie. That means when all of this chaos in Arcana finally dies down, this region will finally be in good hands again."

"You guys did a great job" his son's wife insisted.

Byron laughed halfheartedly. "Letting Giselle gain power alone is enough to negate that statement." He looked outside the windows behind Michael's desk and saw the clouds darkening. "But there are some storm clouds gathering. Michael can't do everything. And I've got a sickening feeling that he's going to learn that lesson today."

"You don't think Julia is going to be hurt, do you?"

The semi-retired Police Chief shook his head. "One way or another, all of our hopes seem to hang on Deidre and Warren's little girl."

Annie nodded worriedly, yet sat in Michael's chair and took in a deep breath. "I guess it's time to learn how to be a Grand Vizier."

Byron laughed. "You've mastered a lot of things in your young life, my dear. This should be one of the easy parts. Just give orders until the King returns."

{}

Though he was uncomfortable with how tightly Olivia had wrapped her arms around his waist as they soared towards Titanio City at a wickedly fast pace, Michael could not care less at the moment. Julia was his entire world at this moment. He could ill afford to lose her, especially to some formerly mentally stable colleague of hers from the past that somehow thought abduction was the way to win her heart. His heart hardened at the idea of settling the score with his only true rival for Julia's affections and for the first time since he had battled Matthew on Mirage Island, he could feel the Crimson Fury burning inside of his heart. If anything happened to Julia...well...he knew Annie and Jon would look after James and Arya if it came to that.

Olivia would occasionally try to strike up conversation, but Michael did not reply to her. He knew she meant well, but his anger was too great for him to want to distract himself. Until Julia was in his arms again, he would keep this rage burning inside of him as long as possible. When he spied the abandoned hotel as the only dark complex in all of the slowly rebuilding Titanio City, Michael steered Rhaegar towards the entrance, where the Dragonite landed with an earth shattering slam. He growled with anger himself as he felt the fury burning inside of him.

"Keep an eye on the perimeter" Michael told his Dragonite. "No one leaves the building without my hearsay!"

Olivia slid off of Rhaegar's back a mere instant before he took off into the skies again. Michael then called out Mufasa and Aether, both of whom knew the tense air surrounding their trainer and good friend. Both seemingly knew what Michael would ask of them immediately and went into the building first in search of the missing Queen and Michael's true love. Olivia's hand held the Poke Ball containing her Clefable, but she wasn't immediately keen on calling her out. Instead, she shadowed Michael's every movement, hoping to hear anything that might lead them to his wife. She could not think of what would happen if they failed.

"What if she isn't here?" she nervously chirped. "If he took her away from here-"

Michael shook his head. "They're still here. I don't know how I know, but I know it."

"A gut feeling?"

"My mind is telling me" he responded. "I can't say how I know, but something is telling me right now that they're-" He paused. The Fury wasn't the only thing he was feeling. A tingling feeling appeared from his back, which burned again as if he was only just whipped to shreds by Courtney. "The Singularity."

"The what?"

Michael frowned. "When Courtney captured me, she used Mewtwo to try and force his way into my body. The same way she and Hunter let him into theirs. He possessed me, but Addison and Ryan stopped him from tearing me apart. The wounds are healing, but I sometimes feel the power in my head. His power. And I can see them as clearly as I see you or the Pokemon right now."

Mufasa was sniffing around for a scent and slammed into a nearby room, barking at Michael. Michael and Olivia rushed inside and found the room had only been recently abandoned. There was still a half torn roll of duct tape on the table, with one of the eight chairs missing. An exit on the other side of the room had been opened. Mufasa thundered towards the exit, but paused when he saw several pathways. Before he could sniff for the scents of Julia or Peter, Aether appeared beside him and started to sense them. He mewed up to Michael and prepared to run down the left way, leading towards a courtyard.

"Take Mufasa and make sure we're not wrong" he told Olivia.

"But what about you?" she pleaded.

"If I find him, Aether will let Mufasa know" Michael insisted. Michael followed his Espeon into the Courtyard as Olivia and Mufasa disappeared down the other way. Sure enough, as with Icarus before him, his faithful Eeveelution did not steer him wrong. A long and winding wheelchair access point that led higher into the building was just in front of them. And several stories higher than them was someone dragging a chair behind them. He stood his ground and roared at the man. "PETER!"

The man looked down and, terrified, began to move faster. Aether attempted to use a Psychic attack to try and keep the crook in place, but was blasted back by a telekinetic defense. Michael caught Aether and gently lowered his Pokemon down. The Espeon was insistent on continuing the pursuit and the two chose to chase on foot. Michael let out a desperate whistle. Rhaegar shot over like a bullet and let Michael and Aether climb onto his back. The Dragonite then soared higher and higher until he blasted a Dragon Pulse in the direction of the frantically fleeing captor. Peter skidded to a stop and pushed the wheeled computer chair behind him as if he were protecting his prize.

"You!" Peter snarled. "Always you!"

"You didn't honestly think I would let you get away with this, did you?" Michael fired back, as he and Aether climbed off of Rhaegar. The Dragonite huffed and growled with malicious intent, sharing in his trainer's rage. Michael stepped forward as Peter took a step back. "Give me my wife, Peter!"

"You mean my lover?" he asked, his voice becoming more demented and twisted with every word. Something was very wrong with him. He moved awkwardly and looked more white than a piece of computer paper. But the way he was guarding Julia made Michael only seethe more. "You don't know what we shared. You and all of that precious heroism of yours and you couldn't be there for her when she needed you. I was there. I was the one who loved her."

Michael was about to comment, but Aether mewed up at him. And for a split second, it was almost as if he could understand his Espeon. He seemed to be telling him something.

Two minds.

"Two minds?" Michael asked himself quietly.

"I don't know what you did to make her love you more" Peter snidely replied, "but hopefully what I've done to her will save that."

Michael's fists clenched. "What did you do to my wife?"

As Peter's mental state continued to deteriorate, he plucked out a syringe he had kept on his person. "Recognize this? Seeing as how you had that silver spoon in your mouth, I'd assume not. Rocket Chemicals was a branch of Team Rocket that worked with special drugs and diseases on behalf of Team Rocket and their head, Giovanni. This is one of their most top secret weapons."

"And how did a lowly little worm like you get a hold of this?" Michael asked, some of the pieces starting to fall into place for him.

"I don't need to tell you that!" he snapped, almost in a voice entirely different from his own. He collected himself and continued. "Anyway, this is called a SecretPotion MAX. SecretPotions were used to cure Psyducks who's confusion often caused them to be immovable roadblocks. They are found to have unique side effects when given to humans, though. Effects that will definitely win me the love of Julia!" He casually tossed the syringe to the side. "It doesn't matter how much you think you cared about her. She's mine, now!"

"You rotten little-"

"Don't take it too personally" Peter smirked. "Maybe you should take it as a sign. Julia was never meant to be yours. Maybe there's someone out there who might be better suited for a jerk of your caliber. And leave the little bit-I mean, my beloved Julia to me! Leave us alone!"

Michael laughed. Finally, it was all making sense. Peter's sudden reemergence, randomly acquiring a powerful drug and using it on Julia. This wasn't a ploy to win Julia's heart. It was something far more sinister. "You never cease to dampen my expectations of you, Courtney!"

Peter finally dropped the facade and giggled as only Courtney ever did. "I was hoping you'd catch on, Michael" he answered in her voice, "and I really should thank you. Your inadequacies about Peter made him the perfect puppet for my plan to work. You couldn't help but wonder what it was about Peter that made him so tantalizing to your precious little bitch! But why should it matter now?" She stepped aside and callously ripped the tape off of Julia that kept her on the chair. "See for yourself just what fruits my scheme has borne!"

Michael rushed over towards Julia and was about to kiss her, but she strangely dodged him. Michael stumbled a bit and looked at her confusion. "Julia! It's me!"

"Yes" Julia replied. "But...who are you?"

Michael's heart sank. "Julia? It's me. Michael! Your love!"

"I'm sorry, but I have no idea who you are" she replied nervously.

"To be fair" Courtney's voice interjected, "she doesn't remember anything. Not even her own precious babies. That's the wonderful side effect of the SecretPotion MAX. Her memory is completely gone. It's almost like you're meeting again for the very first time. Only this time, she's not crushing big time on you like she once did. How about that, Michael? You understand now what I was trying to warn you about? Your love was never meant to be. And here's the proof. Even with her heart yearning so much for you, she can only look at you like any other stranger."

Julia drew back from him. "I think you have the wrong girl. I'm sorry, but I should be-"

"Julia please!" he cried to his wife. "I know you're confused right now. But I am your husband. The man you love. The father of your two children. James and Arya. Don't you remember them?"

"Peter and I don't have any children" Julia insisted. "I'm sorry, but I'm not who you think I am."

Michael fell onto his knees in front of her. "Julia, don't do this. You are my entire world! The love of my life! The only reason I ever came back to this miserable place!"

"Sheesh, can't you take a hint?" Courtney mocked through her puppet. "She doesn't love you and judging from her words, she never did!"

Julia scratched her arm nervously. "I wish I could help you, but I don't have any idea what you're talking about." She smiled a pitying smile, which only made Michael's heart hollow out more. "I can see you're a good man, but I'd like you to leave me be. I cannot love someone I do not know."

"I think this whole charade has gone on long enough" Peter replied, awkwardly waving his hand at Julia. "Go to sleep now, my love." Julia staggered slightly before collapsing on the ground. He then returned his attention towards Michael, who fell on top of him and was about to punch the life out of him. Courtney's voice once more emerged from his mouth and she could only laugh at him. "Go ahead, Michael. Punch me! Beat me to a pulp. I'm sure that will win you Julia's love."

"FIX THIS!" Michael demanded.

"I will do no such thing" she responded. "This is how it's meant to be. You'll understand soon enough, Sora."

Michael went white. "Excuse me?"

"Sora and Celina" Courtney replied. "The names of the long lost lovers that I told you were fated to be reunited. And with Julia out of the way, why delay the inevitable? Let her love Peter. They can be happy together forever after. She won't even come after you for our precious offspring. She'll be happy..." Peter rose to his feet and tried to give Michael the same look that Courtney often tried to. "...and so will you and I."

Michael angrily moved from Peter and cradled Julia's limp body in his arms, unable to believe what had just happened. "Julia..."

"Of course, there's always an alternative course of action" Courtney giggled. "Having Julia lose all memory of you is a very interesting proposition. I cannot contain the amount of joy I have in knowing she's going to walk out of your life forever. But...I might be willing to make an exchange." She used her puppet in Peter to pull out another syringe. "You can forget all about her yourself. You won't feel anymore pain in your heart. And we can both pretend this little tramp never existed. You'll be spared pain and so will she."

Michael parted Julia's hair as she slumped on his lap. "Walk out of my life?"

"Completely. Don't forget she loves her precious Peter now. Who do you think wins in this scenario, Your Majesty? The boy she actually loves, or the man she's lived in little more than a dream with?"

Michael could not imagine Julia walking away from their family. Their children. Their Pokemon. Each other. He wasn't even sure if there was a way to bring her back into the fold. He looked over his wife and recalled all of the memories, his hand gently touching her warm cheeks. The joys, the sorrows, the hope and the hurt. The love, the despair and all of the emotions in between. How he had been there when Arya was born. How he had been a secondary nurse when James was born. How she had doted over him after he returned from Mirage Island. How it had been just the two of them in Kalos after marrying. Was he willing to throw it all away? To lose the other half of who he was? If Julia truly meant what she said and the memories they shared were truly gone, what did it mean for him and their children? Could he let her go?

"No" Michael hissed. "I'm not giving up, yet. I'll find a cure."

"You're really going to keep chasing her? Even when she's rejected you?"

"If you understood what love was" he declared, "you would understand that I wouldn't give Julia up for anything. But you live in your warped little world where love is dictated by fate and destiny. If we both lose our memories, Courtney, we will find each other again. And I'll be there to help her every step of the way. If not because of how much I love her..." He rose and stared angrily at the possessed Peter. "...only then to show you how wrong you've always been, you twisted bitch."

He could tell how livid Courtney was as he saw Peter unintentionally grinding his teeth. "You really are starting to grate on my last nerves, Michael!"

"If you had ever truly loved anyone, you'd know that you will never give up on them. No matter how far apart you are." Michael looked to Rhaegar and Aether, who leaped in front of him and prepared for battle.

Courtney cursed. "You pathetic little urchin! I'll show you just how worthless the love between you is!" She made Peter reach into his coat and pulled out a pistol. "Let's see how much you two love each other when I've blown her brains out!" Rhaegar roared and rushed at Courtney, but she leaped out of the way. Aether attempted to use Psychic to force Courtney to relinquish the gun, but was again tossed aside. "Did you honestly think your puny Espeon's power could compare to the power the Grand Master bestowed me with?"

"Me?" Michael gasped and a smile wore on his face. "You mean us?!"

Peter's face went pale. "Come again?"

Michael took a deep breath. He reached for the center of his mind, his very soul. He could feel his limbs shaking, but this was from a sense of PTSD from his suffering at Courtney's hands long ago. Sensing him concentrating his power, Aether leaped onto his shoulders and let out a mew. Michael raised his hand as if to push something and moved his hand briskly in the air. Peter crumpled backwards, landing hard on his back, the distinct sound of something shattering in his pocket shocking Aether. Rhaegar struggled to get back into the fray, but Aether used his power to calm him. Peter rose to his feet and looked deathly pale.

"What? What's going on?" It was his own voice.

"Peter?" Michael responded cautiously.

He eyed who had called his name and he leaped back several feet. "You're...you're Michael Kingston!"

"Good to know that the parasite is out of your mind."

"What are you talking about?" Before Peter could comprehend what had happened, he wriggled and writhed on the ground, screaming in agony. "NO! NOT YOU AGAIN! LEAVE ME ALONE!"

Michael saw the lights blaring below to signal that Madeline was in place, surrounding the entire complex. Now if only Olivia and Mufasa could catch up. Julia was safe, but at what cost?

Peter rose as if being possessed by a demon. "WHAT DID YOU DO?" Courtney's voice shrieked from his mouth.

"You forgot you let me tap into Mewtwo's power too, right?" Michael smirked. "Why should you be the only one with this kind of a gift?!" Aether playfully rubbed his body against his trainer's head.

Courtney snarled. "Let's see how you like it when I put a bullet between Julia's-"

A gunshot went off. Michael squeezed his eyes shut, but paused when he realized the shot came from behind him. He recovered in time to see Peter's body sprawled out on the floor, a bullet lodged in his skull. He spun around to find out who had struck his wife's assailant down. "What the-Giovanni?"

"Two of the three debts I owe you have been paid" Giovanni replied. The former Team Rocket boss held the smoking gun in his hand, decked out in a dark colored trench coat. With his work done, he placed the gun into his pocket and glared over at the fallen body he had gruesomely taken the life from. "So, this is that famed telepath that Team Magma recruited?"

"She must have been controlling him from Mirage Island" Michael insisted.

"So that's where Mewtwo is hiding, is he?" Giovanni grinned. "Interesting."

"What brought you back here?" the King asked.

"Before the endgame with that wretched beast comes" the Rocket Boss callously explained, "I want to ensure that my debts are repaid. I also wanted to ensure that my business practices were in order. Which is why I found out someone had raided one of my chemical plants and stolen a highly toxic serum used to block out memories. It seems the little minx Courtney was interested in this. Too bad she left a paper trail for me to follow back to Arcana."

"And what are these debts you owed me? And for what?"

"Your actions alongside Mark Lionel brought about the end of Team Rocket's attempts to rule without me. You also inadvertently saved the life of my son in the process. And your third debt, well, let's just say neither of us have truly reaped the rewards yet." He walked over towards Julia and placed his hand on the side of her throat. "She'll live. But whether or not the memories return are up to chance, I'm afraid." He reached into his other pocket and pulled out another syringe. "Give this to a medical practitioner. It will stop the memories from being siphoned." Michael took the syringe from his acquaintance. Before Michael could even react, Giovanni was off again. "I have a suspicious feeling we shall meet again, Michael. We have a somewhat common endgame in mind." The Rocket Boss departed from the roof with an unexpected amount of grace, just as the doors burst open and Olivia, Mufasa and Madeline raced onto the roof.

"MICHAEL!" Madeline cried out. "What happened? Is Julia okay?"

Michael sat by Julia's side, his heart fracturing every second as Courtney's warnings became more true. "No. No she's not." He picked his wife up into his arms and looked to both women, broken and sad. "She's had her memory wiped. She only remembers Peter."

"Who would have thought Peter would-" Olivia began.

Michael shook his head. "It was Courtney. Until I take her down once and for all, it will always be Courtney." His anger was only being kept at bay with the utter horror of this being irreversible. His only hope now laid with a man he wasn't entirely sure could be trusted. But Giovanni had given him this one slim chance that Julia wouldn't be left to wander through the remainder of her life not knowing who she was or what she cherished. He had to take it. "Get a medical team up here and get Julia back home. And make sure April knows to give Julia this." He showed his cousin and Olivia the syringe Giovanni had given him.

"And we're going to trust a drug we don't know or-" Madeline interjected.

"When it comes to the health of my wife" Michael ordered, "I'm not wasting any time."

A medical stretcher came a moment or so later, with Michael placing his wife onto it and holding onto her limp hand as she was carried off and out of his grasp. As Julia and the others departed, Michael and Olivia were left alone on the roof. Michael made his way over to the edge of the roof and sat overlooking the still war torn city. Olivia was by his side a moment later. She sighed sadly. "I'm so sorry, Michael. Is there any chance? Any reason to hope?"

Michael felt as weak mentally as he had ever been. "Balthazar, my Grandparents, Icarus, Professor Maria, Aunt Jane, Chris, my Pokemon, Ryan and now Julia. What kind of a King can I be if I can't keep anyone safe?!" He pounded his fist hard on the brick he sat on and curled up into a ball, unable to contain his misery anymore. He sobbed uncontrollably. "How am I going to tell the kids their own mother won't recognize them?"

Olivia rested her head on his shoulder. "I don't know. I really don't know."

Michael looked towards where Peter's body had fallen and noticed something being blown away in the winds. Some kind of ashy dust. And the winds that carried them off also seemed to be carrying the last splinters of joy in his life away. Despite Olivia's best efforts, the King was inconsolable. The two sat there in silence as the sun disappeared behind more clouds and a gentle rainfall fell on Titanio City.

{}

Though nothing was physically around her throat, Courtney could not help but grab at her throat and find it constricting as she reported her latest debacle to The Grand Master. This time, she had no one to blame but herself. She had grossly underestimated Michael Kingston's ability to grasp what she and the Master had put him through on Mirage Island. And in no time flat, he had not only recalled that he was a part of the Singularity, but he had also somehow used it to nearly sever the link she had with her puppet. Her plot to eliminate Julia Pines had ended in colossal failure and thanks to an unexpected intruder, all of her plans for her personal life after the Master's victory were falling apart. And now, she had to answer for her failures.

"Mass-ugh-Master! Please!"

The Master kept himself in the shadows, with only his sapphire eyes visible to Courtney as the last gasps of air began to leave her. Your idiocy has shocked me. In your deluded efforts to win out in your personal goals, you might have allowed the enemy to have an open mind into all of my plans! Give me one good reason not to erase you from existence!

"Pl-se-nothe-ch-nce!" Courtney was slammed hard into the ground, taking a minute to regain full consciousness with long and heavy breaths. "Master, what is Mich-Michael Kingston having access going to do? After all, wasn't Ryan Kingston the one who was supposed to be the White Mage?"

I would rather not take any chances. And thanks to you, I may not have a choice in the matter.

Courtney clutched at her throat and slowly rose to her feet. "Master, would it be possible for-"

Spare me your groveling, Courtney. You have failed me time and time again! The mighty Pokemon's eyes died back down to their normal amethyst shade and he chose to float closer to his pupil. Were it not for the vision I had during your little escapades, you would not be alive for another moment. But it would appear that I need a top lieutenant for my plans to succeed after all.

"What have you seen, my Master?"

If I find your knowledge on this vision of mine useful to me, I will allow you to know. Until then, I want you as far from my sight as possible. If I see hide or hair of you within the next few days, I will make you regret ever seeking me or my power out. Do I make myself clear?

Courtney, shaking nervously from the Master's words, could do nothing else but nod. "Yes, My Master. I swear to you I will not fail you again."

Do not make promises we both know you are incapable of keeping.

At this, Courtney scampered out of the room and back to her lab, not a conqueror or a Queen, but a dejected, humiliated and very much humbled Queen. Failure again was not a part of her plan. If she was to have all of the power her heart desired, including the man she was confident was meant to be hers, she would have to become stronger herself. No more hiding behind minions or plotting small schemes. She needed to blindside this King and his Queen before any more unintended consequences happened. Somehow, she had to break them before she engaged them. And she only had one alternative left to complete this part of her scheme.

{}

"Isn't there something we can do?" Cameron pleaded with April at the head of a small group including herself, Piper, Mark and Lizzie who were all pleading to learn of something, anything that might have happened to their dear friend Julia. Cameron in particular was unhappy given how she had only discovered her friend's abduction after Michael and Madeline had rescued her, only for Madeline to be the one who returned with Julia back to Kingston Castle. According to Olivia, Michael was so broken by Courtney's complete obliteration of Julia's memory, that he took off on his Dragonite and had not been seen in hours. And now, with a crisis the likes of which Arcana was becoming all too used to, a chain of command situation had placed Jon Kingston and his wife Annie in command. And apparently, only they could be told of the conditions of the Queen.

"I'm afraid all you can do is pray for her" the nurse replied sadly. "The medication His Majesty provided me with will counteract the toxins inside of her, but her memory returning to her is not a certainty. For now, the Queen needs rest. The rest will come when it does. " With that, April closed the doors.

Cameron pounded on the wall in unrelenting rage. "DAMN THAT COURTNEY! I should have killed her when I had the chance!"

Piper seemed eager to join in, but simply slumped against the walls of the castle. "It can't end like this. Not for them. Not after all they've been through. Not before we got Chris back!"

"All the more reason for us to make our move now" Lizzie insisted. "We all know what happened the last time Julia left Michael. If she does it again, we won't get him back." She held her hand close to her heart. "We need to find and trap Hunter. Something needs to go right for us for once."

"The five of us won't be enough" Mark warned. "We're going to need more help. And without Michael's consent or presence, I doubt he'll be inclined to help us."

"We're going to need more help" Cameron agreed. "But who? And if Michael catches wind of this..."

"Then we'll just have to move without his support or consent" Piper interjected. "But we do need more help than just us."

"What about Addison?" Mark suggested.

"She's going to be with Countess Rosemary for the foreseeable future. She's out. But I think someone else in her age group is going to be vital. According to Cynthia, it seems Shaymin chose Matthew to be his personal guardian with Ryan gone. Matthew's help is vital. But even he may not be enough." She looked to the others. "You guys told me it took a miracle for you to beat Hunter last time. We can't rely on that for this round. We're going to need to hit him with everything we've got."

"And six I doubt is still enough" Lizzie frowned. "We're going to need-"

The group paused their conversation when they noticed Justin Jacques hurrying his way up to the infirmary. When he noticed everyone gathered around, he skidded to a stop and frowned. "I take it the Queen is not able to see anyone?"

"No" Mark replied glumly. "And the only way to even get an audience at this point would be to speak to the Royal Vizier, Annie Tress."

"Then I can't even do my duty and offer my condolences to the King?"

"The King isn't even here" Cameron bitterly added. "I'm sorry you wasted your trip here." She corralled the parts of their group and they began to move away to speak more privately. She paused when she saw Lizzie glancing back at Justin. "What is it?"

"Do you think he might be able to help us?" she inquired.

"We don't even know if he's a Pokemon Trainer, much less a good one" Piper countered. "We need to go to Alison's and get Matthew on board."

Lizzie shook her head. "We need all the help we can get. We can't get too picky. Plus, Justin did say he wanted to help make amends for all that Claude did. Here's his chance to prove himself." Against the judgment of both Cameron and Piper, Lizzie made her way back over to Justin. Noticing he wasn't being left behind, the awkward boy perked back up. "So Justin. You want to help do right by us and help us forget your uncle?"

"Of course" the young man replied. "That's why I'm here."

"I don't suppose you have any Pokemon on you?"

"I have a few" he replied, showing off two Poke Balls he kept on his person. "This one is my Corviknight and the other is my Raichu. Or...wait? Is this one my Raichu and the other my Corviknight?" He looked worriedly from Ball to Ball, until Lizzie lowered his hands down.

"I get the idea" she laughed. "We could use your help, Justin. Would you be willing to help us?"

The young gentleman shrugged. "Sure. Anything to steer clear of Lady Madeline for a bit. I don't know why she's grown so fond of me."

"It's the accent" Piper explained. "You don't hear many people speaking with your kind of accent around here. Where have you been these last few years?"

"I was attending courses in Galar" he revealed. "But I came here as soon as-"

"This isn't going to be an easy ask, Justin" Cameron snapped, folding her arms in frustration. "We're going up against someone who is extremely dangerous. People and Pokemon could get seriously hurt in this...or worse."

Justin frowned. "My Uncle hurt a lot of people, didn't he?"

"Well, yes..."

"So I am willing to put my life at risk so long as we are able to do something right" he proclaimed.

"Okay" Cameron shrugged. "Fine. Don't say you weren't warned." She looked to Piper for her next order. "You and I are going to Parlor Town to get Matthew. Mark? Lizzie? You two are going to make sure Justin is ready and Cynthia is on standby. And Lizzie? You're in charge of Justin's safety in particular."

"And why is that?" she asked, folding her arms dismissively.

Cameron rolled her eyes. "If I have to explain why to you, I'm certain you're not going to like the results."