Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. It belongs to Nintendo and Gamefreak.

Hi all,

It has been a crazy week for me, with lots of overtime at work, so i had less time to write. I managed to finish the chapter, though.

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Chapter 15

Approaching Cinnabar Island at a tremendous speed was an aircraft. The incredible thing to note was that it was cloaked and completely silent, invisible to radar and other forms of detection. It was a heavily modified SR-71 that allowed for several passengers.

"What's our ETA?" Tobias asked.

Sonya looked up from the pilot's seat. "Ten minutes, sir."

"Alright, everyone, pay attention," Tobias ordered, his face tense. "We are going to hit the ground running. This is a retrieval mission first, and everything else is secondary. Once Lucas is secure, we hit Team Rocket hard."

The others in the aircraft nodded seriously. Arranged in the seats was an eclectic mix of people determined to rescue Lucas at any cost.

First, there was David and Sophia Walker, who had been going through a nightmare the past month. They had lost weight, especially Sophia, whose clothes hung off her frame. They suffered from a lack of sleep, with shadows under their eyes and a dull glimmer in their eyes. Losing their son for a second time was like a kick in the chest, and functioning normally became much harder. The only reason they didn't completely lose it was that they knew he was still alive. Dante's bond with Lucas had not ceased.

It was the first avenue they had explored in finding Lucas, but he was too far away for him to communicate with Dante. The Pokemon insisted on coming, and they accepted the offer. It would be dangerous, but he offered the ability to communicate with Lucas once they got close to the island. The Pokemon sat on Sophia's lap, constantly checking his bond anxiously for the connection to Lucas.

Although he didn't show it, David felt a truckload of guilt for his mistakes. He had promised to get Lucas some equipment that blocked psychic-type moves like {Teleport}, but he didn't consider the Pokemon Camp dangerous. Had he known just how badly they wanted Lucas, he would not have been so careless. Who knew that Team Saber was a part of Team Rocket all along?

Besides them, Vincent sat there in tense silence. He was ready to unleash some hell on those who kidnapped his godson. Tobias was initially against bringing him since he only had Steelix. However, the Pokemon was an absolute monster and could inflict a lot of damage.

The following three members were known as The Three Enforcers and were direct disciples of Tobias Walker. Unlike other trainers, they did not compete in the Pokemon Circuit but devoted themselves to defending Kanto from threats from both inside and outside the borders.

The first member was Sonya Love, the pilot of the aircraft. She was an expert in computers and mechanical engineering. Her hacking skills penetrated the Team Rocket network and discovered the link to Team Saber. She only managed the feat because Team Rocket used a separate network and didn't have a Porygon to oversee its protection. Sonya was a feisty purple-haired girl who got angry whenever someone made fun of her last name. Her Pokemon team primarily comprised mostly Steel Pokemon.

The next member was Gideon Tate. He was a huge intimidating figure that made David look like a child next to him. The man didn't speak very often, but when he did, people listened. Gideon's role on the team was the primary offence and team leader. His Pokemon team didn't conform to a specific type but was a well-balanced team focused primarily on dealing damage.

The last of the three was a skinny man named Georgie Goodman. It sounded like an amicable guy's name, but it couldn't be farther from the truth. He was sarcastic, rude and anti-social. The role in the team he served as surveillance and espionage—his Pokemon team were proficient in stealth and debilitating status effects.

"When we arrive at the island, we will deploy the anti-measures for teleportation. Once it's up, we sneak in and have Dante guide us to Lucas's location."

"It won't be that easy," Georgie said, sprawled in his chair with a bored look on his face. "Giovanni has no doubt taken countermeasures against any stealthy approach we make. Even the aircraft may not be safe. You should have let me scope the place out first."

"Your Alakazam has never been to Cinnabar Island," Tobias growled. "Which means you would have to travel there by yourself first. How different is that from what we are doing?"

"Because I would not be detected," Georgie shrugged.

"It's too risky," Gideon spoke. "We do not know the size of the enemy's forces or what Pokemon they are utilising." having said his piece, he went silent again.

"Gee, thanks for your pearls of wisdom," Georgie said sarcastically. "I wait in eager anticipation for the next snippet."

"Enough," Tobias slammed his fist into the seat. "This is no bloody lark. Get your head in the game." The man who was usually so composed was feeling irritable. His failure to recognise the actual threat of Giovanni had upset him profoundly. But mostly, he was angry that they had kidnapped his grandson. He silently promised himself that he would wipe Team Rocket off the face of the earth.

The problem with this mission was that it wasn't a sanctioned mission. Giovanni may be a criminal, but he had a lot of influence in the Kanto government because of spending his money on bribing susceptible officials in positions of power. Weeding out the corruption was a never-ending task; whenever he felt he had got somewhere, another bunch cropped up out of nowhere. No, he had to stop the problem at the source. Giovanni had to die.

"Tell your Alakazam to keep in contact with Dante," Tobias ordered. "I want to know the second he contacts Lucas." Contrary to popular belief, Pokemon can't casually communicate with other Pokemon. Communication usually takes a bonded human or a Pokemon who knows Telepathy. That's why they had Alakazam out and talking to Dante.

Georgie waved his hand in acknowledgement.

"What do you think they have done to him?" Sophia asked dully.

"I don't know," Tobias said. They all had discovered the information on Lucas that had terrified them. The experiments that they did on his son were horrible. Was it possible that their son was turning into a Pokemon that would be under the control of Team Rocket?

"Lucas is a survivor," David said. "Whatever we are dealing with, that kid will not fold and accept the situation. I bet he is already manufacturing his escape right now."

"Nice sentiment," Georgie said harshly. "But you need to prepare yourself for the worse. We may need to put him down."

Before anyone could get outraged at that statement, Alakazam reached out and hit the man on the head with his spoons.

"Ouch, what was that for?" Georgie asked.

"Such a low EQ," Sonya muttered, then raised her voice. "We are getting close."

Abra sent a message to her partner. "Dante has established contact with Lucas."

{0(((..)))0}

Ten minutes earlier.

"How did you do that?" Nora asked with a hopeful expression.

"I'm an Aura User," Lucas replied, retrieving another remote and removing the collar from Nora.

"Oh," Nora dropped her head.

"Don't worry. I will find a way to reverse the transformation," Lucas said. "If not, I will think of a way to create a disguise for you."

Nora nodded but didn't look convinced.

"We need to leave," Lucas said. "I can't hold this transformation forever." He had only under twenty minutes before he ran out of {Aura}.

[Shape Shifter] (Active) [Lv:1] (Next: 1%) [Cost:20/min]

Description: Gives the ability to change to a different person at will. The player must have a firm image in mind when using the skill, or the transformation may fail. The higher the skill level, the more transformations the player may store to reuse.

Number of transformations that can be stored: 1

Aura Density + 1%

"Wait," Nora said. "We need to rescue the Pokemon."

Lucas paused on his way out the door. "What Pokemon?"

"My father used Pokemon for his many experiments," Nora said. "The new batch just recently arrived, but because he has been focusing all his attention on you, they have remained unscathed."

Lucas groaned. He wanted nothing more than to get the hell out of this place. But he imagined if Dante had been in the same predicament as those Pokemon and stiffened his resolve. "Where are they?"

"They are kept in cages in a storage area on the other side of the compound."

The Quest has received an optional objective.

Escape from Team Rocket

Current Objective: Escape the compound.

Optional Objective: Rescue the Pokemon from their cages.

Time Remaining: seven weeks.

"Lead the way," Lucas said.

They walked down the corridor at a fast walk, trying not to bring attention to themselves. Lucas found it hard to walk in a different body. Alan Goldman had been old and far shorter than himself, and it took him a few minutes to adjust.

Occasionally they passed others, and Lucas called out a curt greeting. Lucas had spent some time with Goldman, so he thought he did a pretty good imitation of his mannerisms.

Lucas discreetly checked his Map and whistled at the sheer size of the compound. He wondered when Giovanni bought this behemoth. Blaine used to own the island before he moved his gym, with the small community following him o the Seafoam Islands. Did Blaine know he sold the island Team Rocket? Did he care?

They reached the storage room five minutes later. He used the keycard to access the room, and the doors slid open. Nora rushed into the dark room and started turning the lights on. They revealed cages of all shapes and sizes lined up in neat ordinary rows. Lucas frowned when he counted the cages. There must be at least a hundred Pokemon in here at least.

Lucas watched as Nora rushed to a cage and was about to open one containing a Nidorino. "Hey, you can't just let them out. They probably will attack us as soon as they have the chance."

"I have been feeding them since I got here," Nore said. "While there's always a risk, I think I will take my chances."

Lucas shook his head and backed farther away from the cage as she released the Pokemon. Strangely enough, the Pokemon stepped outside but didn't move another inch. Nora started releasing the other Pokemon, and they repeated the same action, standing in front of their open cages. Puzzled but less wary, Lucas helped her finish the task.

It was then he just noticed that the Pokemon wore small collars around their necks.

"Hey, is this why the Pokemon are so obedient? What do these collars do?"

"They give out a nasty shock if they misbehave," Nora replied. "Before they arrived on the island, they were trained to be obedient."

Lucas reached another small cage and started in surprise. There was an Elekid inside, but it was pressed against the back of the cage in fear. He crouched down, released the door lock, and opened it slowly.

"Hey, buddy. You want to come out of there?"

Elekid peered up at him but didn't move. Lucas activated {Calming Aura}, and the Pokemon slowly relaxed. It was only a baby Pokemon, so it was very timid. Not to mention the ordeal of being captured and locked in a cage with a collar around his neck. It must be traumatising for the little guy. The Pokemon stepped out and leapt into Lucas's arms, surprising him.

He stood up and carried the Pokemon in his arms as he freed the last of the Pokemon.

'Lucas! Can you hear me?'

Dante? Lucas paused in confusion.

'Are you okay? Are you hurt?'

'I'm fine. Where are you?"

'We are approaching the island.'

'We?'

'Your family and some others. We are here to save you.'

'Way ahead of you. I managed to escape. I'm just helping some Pokemon escape before I leave the place.'

'Your grandfather has a message to relay. Get out of there now. We will meet you outside.'

'Right. See you soon.'

Lucas turned towards Nora, who was at a computer terminal, tapping on a keyboard. It was surprising how graceful she looked, despite her terrifying appearance.

"Nora, we need to go. My family is here to rescue me."

"One moment. I'm deactivating the collars," Nora said distractedly. Lucas checked the remaining time on his skill while he waited. Still, a few minutes left, although it didn't matter about stealth anymore since they had a massive entourage of Pokemon with them. He cancelled the skill to preserve some {Aura}.

Elekid snuggled closer in his embrace, and Lucas petted him in reassurance.

"Got it," Nora said triumphantly. "Let's go, everyone." The Pokemon seemed to recognise their freedom as they swarmed out of the room. Lucas followed them as he ran down the corridors, checking his Map constantly to ensure they were heading in the right direction.

A man yelled as the tide of Pokemon ran over the top of him. He didn't have time to release a Pokemon. Lucas winced when he saw the man squeal as a Graveler stepped on his privates. They encountered a few more people, but they were no match for the tide of Pokemon that was desperate to leave the compound.

As they passed an intersection, another Team Rocket member came running from the right. Before the man could react, Lucas jumped and kneed the man in the face with plenty of momentum, instantly knocking out the man.

A huge Kingler in front of the pack came across the exit to the compound. The massive set of metal doors was no match for its giant claw as it tore through the door as if it was paper. Lucas and Nora waited at the back while the Pokemon streamed through the doorway. Just as they were about to leave, an alarm started blaring.

Lucas looked up as lights illuminated the room in red. Something had alerted the compound to their escape. A loud crackle sounded before a voice came over the intercom.

"This is Giovanni. We have intruders on the island, and some guests have escaped. The intruders have set up anti-teleportation measures. This compound is now compromised. I will initiate the self-destruct sequence for ten minutes. That's how long you have until detonation. Follow the evacuation plan and meet up at the specified meeting point." The speaker went silent.

"Dammit," Nora growled. "Knowing Giovanni, he is going to detonate the entire island. The Pokemon who can't swim won't be able to escape."

"Where would he even plant the bomb?" Lucas was cursing the Team Rocket leader in his mind. The man was a menace.

Nora shrugged a shoulder. "Probably somewhere in the middle of the island."

"You mean the volcano? Would a bomb cause it to erupt?" If that happened, the fallout would affect the entire Kanto region. Giovanni was insane.

"I don't know. It depends on what Giovanni used to build the bomb. We need to stop it."

New Quest Received

Prevent the Eruption

Description: Team Rocket has planted a bomb in the volcano's centre, and if it detonates, it will cause the volcano to erupt. The resulting devastation will cause massive destruction and affect the Kanto region for years.

Objective: Prevent the bomb from exploding.

Time Limit: Nine minutes.

Lucas ran outside the compound and turned around to see the colossal volcano dominating the skyline. It looked utterly benign and not something that threatened to turn the entire Kanto region into chaos.

'Dante, do you hear me?'

'Is everything okay?'

'No, it's not. Giovanni has planted a bomb in the volcano. It will explode in about eight minutes. I need a flying Pokemon to carry me into the centre of the volcano so I can deactivate it.'

There was a moment of silence.

'Lucas, we have landed. Your grandfather says to let him take care of it.'

'No, I have a plan. There is no time to disarm it the conventional way. Tell my grandfather to remember that I'm an Aura User.'

Another moment of silence. Lucas anxiously waited as time continued to tick away.

'Okay, we are sending someone.'

'Team Rocket is evacuating. So please don't risk your life coming here. Get out.'

'Not a chance.'

It's dangerous!'

'Better stop the bomb then.'

Lucas growled in frustration; then, a roar sounded from the sky. He looked up and saw a massive Charizard flying over from the other side of the island. It descended quickly towards their location.

Lucas passed the Elekid to Nora. "See if you can find a boat to get off the island. Just in case I don't get there in time."

Nora nodded and began running towards the docks. Powerful air currents buffeted Lucas as the Charizard landed in front of him. On its back was an enormous man that looked at home on the Pokemon.

"Lucas Walker?"

Lucas nodded, a little star-struck by the Charizard.

"My name is Gideon Tate. I work for your grandfather. Are you sure you have a way of disarming the bomb?"

"Yes."

"Then climb aboard."

The Charizard crouched, and Lucas clumsily climbed its shoulder joint and settled behind the man.

"Hold on."

Lucas clutched the man's waist as the Charizard ascended rapidly, causing him to almost fall off from the powerful wingbeats. They climbed into the sky and headed straight for the top of the volcano.

"Where are my parents?" Lucas shouted.

"They met resistance from Team Rocket members fleeing the island. Your grandfather doesn't want them getting away."

Lucas nodded, but it wasn't like Gideon could see him.

It was no surprise. From what he observed, the compound was located on the island's south side to keep it fairly concealed. The old town was on the north side, where there used to be a Pokemon Gym.

Charizard crested the volcano, and Lucas peered down into the crater. A narrow bridge spanned the width of the volcano, with a large platform elevator that descended to the bottom.

"They were drilling down into the vent to reach the magma," Gideon said calmly. "If Giovanni used Fire Stones as a material in the bomb, then I estimate that there is a fifty per cent chance the volcano will become active."

"Take us down," Lucas said. "There's no time."

They landed next to the deep vent in the centre, and Lucas shivered as the cold hit him. Not something he imagined feeling inside a volcano. Lucas peered into the darkness. Fortunately, a cable and lift were constructed to carry supplies down into the vent. Lucas took a breath, jumped onto the hanging cable, and wrapped his legs around the line.

"The lift is too slow," Gideon said. "Your going to be alright sliding down that thing?"

"I have my {Aura} for protection," Lucas said. "Here goes nothing."

Lucas slid down into the darkness of the vent, and he felt instant pain from the friction of the metal cable. As he descended further, he picked up momentum, and his {Armament} decreased quickly as it protected his body from being shredded. He refilled it when it became low. Two minutes later, with his {Aura} close to zero, Lucas cried out as he landed on the rocky ground. The last of his protection was depleted, but it prevented him from breaking his legs.

Not wasting any time, Lucas took out a torch from his inventory and shined it around the area. The darkness was absolute, and without the torch, he would have totally blind. It was fortunate that he took precautions and filled his inventory with supplies. The light bounced off a rectangle device, and Lucas rushed over.

The bomb was ticking down, with less than twenty seconds left. Lucas winced as he realised how close he had come to being blown to smithereens. Lucas placed a hand on the bomb and, with a thought, put the bomb in his inventory. Since the inventory kept the items in stasis, the timer would only restart when he took out the bomb.

Lucas sank to his knees in relief. It was too much excitement for him to handle.

Congratulations!

Escape from Team Rocket Quest Complete

Rewards: 4000 Exp, 5000 Pokedollars,

Bonus Objective Rewards: 5 Pokeballs

You have levelled up twice.

Current Level: 8

Congratulations

Prevent the Eruption Quest is complete.

Reward: Deferred to a later date.

Taking a moment to reflect on the last five weeks, Lucas felt he had gotten out of it relatively unscathed. Despite the torture he received at the hands of Goldman, he couldn't say he was too traumatised by the experience. His anger had kept him focused, and the goal of escaping was the primary motivation. Lucas felt he handled himself as best as he could in the situation, although he wished he hadn't been so careless in the first place. Underestimating the two members had been his first mistake, but how they first introduced themselves was so much like the anime that it made him less cautious. The appearance of the Wobbufet had been a total cheat.

Thinking about it closer, they seemed to change suddenly when they went on the offensive. Were they controlled like he was? It had been incredibly jarring, but he was so occupied at the time that he didn't give it any more thought. He should search the compound and see if he could come across any information.

'Lucas, what's going on?'

'Hey, buddy. I managed to stop the bomb from detonating.'

'That's good to hear. We have captured a lot of Team Rocket members. We will head your way now.'

' Can you send Gideon a message to send the lift down?'

'Okay.'

{0(((..)))0}

Lucas emerged from the vent to the shouts of joy from his family. He blinked and looked around, smiling. Clambering out of the lift, his mother hugged him. Tears soaked his shirt, and he smiled softly, wrapping his arms around her in comfort. She was shorter than him by at least three inches now, a far cry from when he first woke from his coma.

His dad and grandad stood behind them, holding off because it looked like Sophia wouldn't let go of him anytime soon. Vincent stood further back, his arms crossed stoically but with a relieved look on his face. Behind them were Gideon and two others, who were a fair distance away to give them some privacy.

Lucas felt something jump onto his back and his shoulder. Recognising his partner, he turned his head to see Dante perched precariously on his shoulder. The Pokemon had grown a bit more since the last time he saw him, so he certainly was no longer a lightweight.

'Hey, buddy. Long time no see.'

'Do not send me off ever again.'

'Okay.'

'Good. I'm glad you're okay.'

"It's good to see you, son," David said, his eyes wet.

Lucas nodded. "It hasn't been a picnic, I tell you. But I'm fine now."

Tobias asked. "Do you feel okay? Do you feel any different?"

Lucas cocked his head. "What are you talking about?"

"We found the file Team Rocket had on you," David looked concerned. "About Project Mewtwo."

Lucas gulped. How did he explain it to them so they wouldn't freak out? Thinking quickly, he tried to devise an explanation that wouldn't sound too suspicious and reassure them he was fine.

To give himself time, he turned to Vincent. "Do they know what went down at Adrian Pott's apartment?"

Vincent nodded, chagrined. "I got a nice shiner from your dad when he found out."

David snorted in amusement. "Damn straight. I thought you knew better than to keep things from us concerning Lucas. It was why I chose you as the Godfather, after all."

"What? Were you ever going to tell me that bit of information?" Lucas questioned.

"I didn't get around to explaining it," Vincent shrugged dismissively.

"Bloody wanker," Lucas grumbled.

Sophia raised her head and tapped him on the chest. "Watch your language."

"I learned it from Vincent," Lucas lied. Sophia turned her head to glare at Vincent, missing the smirk on his face.

"Ex-godson," Vincent muttered.

"Well, I had ulterior motives when I asked Vincent to help me," Lucas continued. "When the Haunter possessed me, it showed me a memory of Adrian Potts hiding a folder in the wall. He seemed guilty about his involvement, so he asked the Haunters to show me the folder's location if anything happened to him. But, because of their grief at their owner dying, they were overwhelmed with Red Energy and got their wires crossed. I said I would pretend to break the wall to fool the guy following me, but I was actually looking for the folder specifically."

"How did you hide the folder?" Tobias asked.

Lucas paused, having not thought of that answer carefully enough. It was a reasonable question since the guy arrived right after he broke through the wall and didn't see any folder in his hands. He frantically thought of a convincing explanation when he just blurted out the first thing that came to him. "Eh, I created a dimensional space with my {Aura} where I can store items."

There were exclamations of surprise, and Lucas seriously hoped there was an equivalent skill in this world so he didn't have to create another {Aura} skill for the Aura Guardians.

"Already? But that is a high-level ability amongst the Aura Users," Tobias said. "Something that takes a few years to master."

Lucas looked to the sky with a pensive expression. "Sometimes I feel guilty for my sheer genius. It's so unfair for the lesser folks."

Everyone laughed except for Tobias. "Did you store the bomb inside your dimensional storage?"

That shut everyone up pretty fast. Lucas waved his hands in reassurance. "It's okay. The dimensional storage keeps items in stasis. So long as I don't take it out, it will be indefinitely delayed."

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"How much time was left?" David asked.

Lucas looked away. "I can't remember."

"Want to try that again?" Sophia asked sweetly.

"Does the time really matter?" Lucas sweated. "The most important thing is that we are safe."

"Lucas," Davis growled.

"Fifteen seconds," Lucas said with false cheer. "Plenty of time, right?"

From the ensuing silence, he didn't think they agreed with him. They realised how close he had come to being killed. They would have been caught up in the explosion as well.

"We have to find an isolated place to dispose of it," Tobias finally said. "Preferably from the safety of the aircraft, where we can make a quick escape."

"So you found out about the Mewtwo project from the folder? Why didn't you say anything?" David demanded, coming back to the original topic.

Lucas shrugged helplessly. "What was I supposed to say? That I might turn into some Pokemon-human hybrid?"

"You still should if told us," Sophia said. "We can handle it, especially what we have already been through."

Lucas disagreed with that sentiment, but he would not argue with her. Would they really remain unaffected?

"I'm assuming that you will not transform now." Tobias asserted.

"No. For all of Goldman's boasting, the only thing he achieved was to give me a {Balanced Aura}. It is no minor accomplishment, but it wasn't what Giovanni was after. It was merely a side benefit of his true aim. He wanted a legendary Pokemon under his control."

Sophia hugged him in jubilation, and the others looked relieved.

"Is that why you can control your Aura so well?" Tobias asked. "Can we replicate it?"

"From what I overheard?" Lucas said. "I don't think so, but all the research should still be inside the compound. I don't think Giovanni expected me the compound to be still standing."

"Where's Dr Goldman?" Tobias frowned.

"Dead," Lucas said.

"Did you kill him?" One of the two strangers had sidled up and joined the conversation. Gideon and the woman had followed him.

"What sort of question is that?" The woman slapped the back of the man's head.

"No," Lucas replied. "But I was tempted. He was a sadistic bastard who enjoyed torturing people for pleasure. His serum was responsible for killing so many people."

Sophia opened her mouth to ask a question but thought better of it and merely hugged him harder. Afraid of the answer? Yes, mother. I was tortured.

"Who killed him?" Tobias questioned.

Lucas hesitated, not wanting to give away Nora.

Tobias read his expression. "From what I know of the man, he deserved to die. Whoever killed him will not get in trouble."

"Nora. His daughter."

"Why would she do that?" David asked.

"You will understand once you meet her. Alan Goldman experimented on his own daughter and turned her into a monster. Then placed a slave collar on her and turned her into a puppet servant."

Sophia gasped, unable to conceive that a parent would do something so heinous to their child. "He deserved to die."

"What happened to Giovanni?" Lucas asked.

"He got away," Tobias scowled. "However, we are going to be hunting him from now on, and it wouldn't surprise me if he retreats to his base in Johto. With all the evidence we gather here, he will no longer be considered a simple thief. However, I will not underestimate him anymore. He is a cunning bastard."

"Do you think so? Wasn't he pretty stupid to risk everything on kidnapping me? Especially when my grandfather is the Minister of Defence?"

"What are you trying to say?" Tobias asked.

"Just a hunch. There may have been another reason," Lucas shrugged. "I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't bother me anymore, though. I hold no value for him now that the serum was a failure. Goldman is dead as well."

Sophia finally released him from his hug. "We can talk about this later. Let's get off this mountain."

So what do you think? Team Rocket will not show up for a long time, and Lucas is free to go on his journey. Of course, there will still be dangers, but nothing on the scale of Team Rocket. Next chapter, Lucas gets an unexpected reward.