Joseph arrived at Blackthorn City, where he was swarmed. Not by mindless groupies, but his neighbours and family members, who congratulated him on the seven badges and wished him luck with Clair. He went to see her, and she was with her belt full of Ultraballs.

"I am wearing my big six, Joseph" Clair said, looking at him. "I won't hold anything back against you. Megaevolution, Z-Power... I have it. And I'll use it against you, of course"

"I... I hoped nothing less" Joseph smiled. His team had a few overpowered members, and then it was all... pretty standard.

"I want you to go with our grandfather, and ask him to give you the Trial" Clair said. "After it, you may challenge me"

Joseph nodded, going to the Dragon's Den, and arriving to the temple.

"Hey, grandpa!" Joseph shouted, going to sit on his lap.

"Hello, Joseph! Welcome back!" The Patriarch said. "Are you being a good kid?"

"The goodest!" Joseph smiled. "I want you to put me through the test!"

"Alright. But beware... you will only be able to answer from your heart" The Patriarch said. "Go to the position"

Joseph backed off and put himself in front of his father. He felt the dragon magic that compulsed him to tell the truth.

"What are Pokémon for you?" He asked.

His inmediate answer would be friends, but that wasn't too intimate, right? Falkner and Piter were his friends, but he wasn't that intimate with them, right?

"They're my comrads" Joseph said. "They are with me with the good and the bad"

"What do you need to win battles?" The Patriarch asked.

"Raise your Pokémon. Care for them, like they're your own children" Joseph said.

"Strong Pokémon, weak Pokémon. Which is better?" He asked.

"Both are fine" Joseph said, remembering Delibird.

"What is the most important thing to raise Pokémon?" The Patriarch asked.

"Affection" Joseph answered in turn.

"This is the last one What kind of trainers would you rather fight?"

"Whoever" Joseph sentenced.

"Hmmm... it was almost perfect" The Patriarch said, casting off the spell on Joseph. "You are still too naive to pass perfectly, but you do pass"

"Thanks, grandpa" Joseph smiled.

"Patriarch!" A girl, one of the servants, shouted. "You need to listen! Oceanus and Eos were killed by Team Rocket...!"

Joseph heard his parents's names and couldn't believe it.

"What?!" Joseph shouted. "My parents are...!"

"Oh... oh..." The Patriarch looked down, taken aback. "Eos, my own daughter..."

Joseph didn't feel like crying. He just felt... a void. It made sense, though: He hadn't a caring relationship with his parents, they always were rather distant. His face turned red, though.

"Can I go to my room in my house?" He asked. "I want to rest"

"Of course" The Patriarch said.

Joseph would face Clair the following day. That evening, he just wanted to rest, his feelings hollowed out due to the sudden situation.

(...)

Proton sent the bodies away. He knew they were that boy, Joseph's, parents. They wanted to spy on the Missigno project. He found the part that slipped and put it back on the Pokémon.

"Is Missigno completed yet?" Petrel asked.

"Its development has been... delayed" Proton said. "A part of it detached, and I reattached it again. In a few months, it will be completed. And then we'll rule the world" Proton smiled.

"Such a shame you had to kill those spies" Petrel said. "We could've fed them misinformation. Why did you kill them?"

"It was instinctive. They defied me when I wondered about killing Joseph, which turned out to be their son"

"So unfortunate, so unfortunate"

Proton's reflection could be seen in Missigno's tank. He smiled, looking at the Glitch Pokémon.

To be continued

Joseph's Team:

Dragonite (Male) (Level 56)

Pikachu (Male) (Level 53)

Zygarde (10%) (Level 54)

Ursaring (Female) (Level 52)

Heracross (Male) (Level 72)

Latias (Female) (Level 80)