Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or its characters.
Author's Notes: Things are about to get very heated moving on, and to tell the truth I would drop a huge bomb on the plot at this chapter... but let's save it for the next one...
Pressing her cheeks against the firm muscles of her lover's chest, Zinnia snuggled closer to him, burrowing her right cheek in his warmth. As per usual nowadays, the couple is sharing a bed in his house, with Brendan soundly asleep after their heated and exhausting nocturnal actions.
His body suddenly shivers, making his warms shot up in disarray. Brendan rolls violently to the side and groans healingly.
Waking up with his jolt, Zinnia carefully watches her boyfriend, her sharp red eyes fixed in his shaking form. "It's happening again…" She whispers under her low breath.
"Guh… no…. Agh…" Brendan turns his head to his right and then to the left, his arms flailing uncontrollably as if he was fighting the scariest of opponents.
On the first occurrence, Zinnia was panicking, desperately hugging the body of her lover. However, as the nights passed, so did her surprise and panic, now only an uneasiness stir inside her chest.
Without notice, Brendan jolted upwards wildly shooting himself in a sitting pose. "STOP!" He cried out ever so loudly. His voice echoing not only in the bedroom but also inside his whole house.
"Another nightmare?" Zinnia asked, her voice low and sweet as she scooted closer to him, embracing him ever so lovingly.
"Ha…. Ha… Yeah…" Brendan responded with a tired, rugged voice. He rubbed his eyes furiously as if he was wiping away the bad memories away.
"Brendan…" She pressed herself even tighter on him, her arms around his back, crushing him against her. "You can't go on like this. It has been what? Two months since your nightmares started."
He sighed. Two months without getting proper sleep, two months of the same vicious and dreading dream haunting his nights. "And what else can I do?" He gritted his teeth, flashing them as a enrage Pokémon ready to attack. "Tell me, how the hell can I rid myself of this curse?!" He lashed out, trashing his head to the side, glaring down at Zinnia.
Red and blue, two crystal clear and vivid orbs staring down at her shape. This look in his eyes, what they have become frightens Zinnia to her core, but deep down she knows that it is okay, no matter how startled Brendan may look, he always comes back to his own self.
"Sorry…" Brendan said hanging his head low. "I didn't mean to raise my voice." Slightly turning his face back to her, he glanced at the most precious person to him and she smiled to him, soothing not only his deranged emotions but also his aching heart.
"I know." She replied again with a sweet tone in her voice.
Two months ago, on the night of the blooming flowers, Brendan came crashing down on the grass, his nose bleeding as he screamed wildly. It took Zinnia everything she had to witness what was happening to Brendan, she latched her arms around him, holding him close as an unbearable pain was threatening to take him away for good. Only after hours of agonizing pain, he finally shut down from exhaustion.
However, when Brendan woke up on the next day he had changed. His left eye permanently changed to red, bright raging red; while his right eye turned to a meek and subtle tone of blue, darkened and unfocused blue. Ever since then Brendan has been cursed to experience the same nightmare, Hoenn in flames as the sea rises up and the sky itself drops down to the earth.
"You know…" Zinnia called out to him. She took both hands to his face, groping his cheeks carefully, amorously. With a soft pull brought him down and closer to her, close enough to press her forehead against her. "This is our burden; I said that to you before. I will stand by your side in the good and the bad times, now and forever."
Her words brought a wide smile to Brendan's lips. "I know." He said calmly, beaming happily at her touch. His eyes slowly traveled to her form, a bit hidden in the darkness of his room. Yet his gaze trailed from her thin but firm arms, going up all the way to her bare shoulders where the top of her silky nightgown barely covers the skin of her body. In truth, her breasts are very much in view, with that pesky fabric just barely covering the soft tip of her mounds.
How can a woman be this beautiful? Is the question now floating inside Brendan's mind. The tanned smooth skin of hers is not only arousing but also entrancing, drawing him in, making him want her, more and more.
A smacking sound erupted from the side of his head as Zinnia bopped him with one hand. "If you know that, then don't keep anything from me." She declared with a serious frown. "I watch you shiver and scream every night; I know that you're suffering, so tell me. If that red thing is hurting you again, I will beat his butt in."
"Heh. That would be a sight to see." He grinned imagining Zinnia kicking Groudon in his behinds, forcing the red primal to behave.
"Brendan!" She bopped him on the head again, urging her boyfriend to take her seriously.
"Zinnia, I am fine. I swear." He eyed her showing a genuine smile. "There isn't much I can do about my dreams, nor can you." He traced his gaze downward, avoiding her bright red eyes. "I'm sorry for disturbing you every night. Maybe I should sleep on the couch."
"No! That I will not accept." She fumed angrily with just the suggestion. "Your place is in here and my place is in here too. Both of us together." She inclined herself up, pecking his lips in a quick but wet kiss.
He chuckled with the little pout in his draconid woman. Even if Zinnia is rough and wild in her ways and even if she is strong and assertive, she still is the cutest girl in his eyes. "Really, I am fine." Now Brendan leaned in, kissing her on the cheek, her pout melting away.
"Are you really? You don't look very good." A little but energetic voice sounded from the left side of the bed. This new voice prompting Brendan to turn his head in a frantic way, his duo-colored eyes landing on the pinky cute form of Aster, lying on the small couch on the side of his room. The little pink ball of a Pokémon staring at her Mommy and her dearest friend.
"Aster?" Brendan called out and drop of sweat running down from his forehead.
"Mur?" Aster responded by rising up and getting on her tiny feet. She got down on the floor and frantically ran to the side of the bed. With an earnest jump, Aster got on top of the cheeks, in the middle between Zinnia and Brendan. With another happy cry, the little pink ball sat down and snuggled against the warmth of those two.
"Oww… Look at her. Isn't she the cutest thing in this world?" Zinnia cooed, taking her little girl in her arms and pressing her against her chest.
Brendan watched those two play with each other, Aster tapping her mom on her chin and Zinnia kissing the top of her little girl's head. He smiled with tender, his chest flustering at the scene. "You both are." He said with a single drop of tear threatening to fall from his eyes. "Seeing you two here… makes me feel like the luckiest man alive."
"Look Aster, Dad is crying." Zinnia teased with a playful voice. "Isn't him the cutest too?"
"Mur?" Astur tilted her head to the side, eying Brendan curiously. After glancing back to her mommy one more time, she jumped from the woman's arms and walked next to Brendan, pressing her pink little face against his arm.
"Now I will definitely cry." Brendan picked the lovingly Pokémon in his arms and embraced her in a tight embrace.
"There, there. We will cure your bad dreams with our love." Zinnia soon came in and embraced her lover, making a shell of warm hugs with all of them.
"Mommy and Daddy… I am happy like this." Again, the little voice came out, now Brendan could clearly see from where it came. He doesn't really know why or how, but the source of this voice is the little Whismur resting in his arms.
Comforting one another, enjoying the company of one another. The family of young parents and their little Whismur remained close and hugging until all three of them fell asleep, this time no nightmares to wake them up.
Still, even without Brendan's nightmares assaulting him, their evening soon went array. A loud explosion erupted from outside, the source of this sound felt somewhat far yet the entire house trembled under the pressure. Zinnia sprung awake, jolting her back upward with her eyes widening up in shock.
She moved her hands on the bed and the mattress, her fingers getting pass a flat space at her side only to find the little form of Aster at the edge of the bed. Drifting her foggy eyes to her right, she found what she was looking for in the form of Brendan putting his clothes back with his front facing the other side, his attention sorely focused on the big closed glass-window in his room.
"What's happening?" She asked him with a wary look.
He glanced back to her, his red and blue eyes looking tired and yet sharp. "I heard a massive uproar coming from down the mountain." He eyed the window once again, the moon barely bathing the outside of his house with a dim light. "I think they are attacking us." The bitter tone in his voice when he said 'They' made pretty clear who he is talking about.
Frowning at his words, Zinnia moved to the side of the bed, her feet just above the large red carpet on the floor. "Then, you're going there." She asked in a stern way. Her features mellowing as Aster crawled her way to her mother's arms.
Brendan just glanced back to her, the look in his face answering her question better than any words. "So." He spoke up. "You want to stay here with Aster?" He asked, not in a judging way but rather in serious concern.
The genuine worry in his question stirred a bubbling sensation inside her chest, she loves how much caring Brendan has become. However, even if she is overjoyed by his reaction, Zinnia gave him a fierce glare. "What you take me for?" She growled, making Brendan sweat a little. "Those people have done enough. I will show them how strong I am."
Seeing both Zinnia and Aster puff up their chest brought a little smile to Brendan's lips. "I thought so." He replied. "You better put your clothes back on. We wouldn't want you trashing a criminal gang in a nightgown, would we?"
"Why not?" She replied with a playful grin. "Jealous that someone would get to see me like this?" Just to aggravate him a little more, Zinnia made a daring pose; holding her arms up high and her legs bend up, showing a lot more skin of her thighs.
"Well… I wouldn't say jealous." He said with a smile, a strange one as it is neither playful nor alright sarcastic. "But If someone happens to see so much of you like that… I've to kill them."
Her smile grew bigger then cracking up on a full-blown laugh. "Oohh... Scary." His eyes show that he was very much serious in her words, but it didn't faze her away from her playfulness. If only she hadn't forgotten about a little something that happened two months ago, maybe she would have been a bit more troubled by his statement.
"Yeah, scary. So best to avoid something so awful." He stepped over to his bed and gave a light kiss on the top of her head. Leaving a grinning Zinnia to get her clothes that are lying on the floor, Brendan went to the large dresser at the other end of his room and prepared himself to anything, getting all of his Poké-Balls and putting them in his pockets. His attention quickly changing to the pair of objects at the end of the drawer.
With a bit of hesitation, he looked at the black Poké-Ball and at Groudon red orb. Steeling his resolve, he grabbed them both and kept with him. He carried with himself a certain thought, just in case, he justified it. "No…" Brendan said in a tiny whisper, one that Zinnia didn't notice. "I will have to use him this time, I can feel it."
This dread idea floating inside his mind unsettled the young champion. However, his only choice now is to control the beast, instead of the opposite. Maybe that will change everything.
Eyeing the steaming hot plate in front of him, Ethan prickled large cooked spinach with the tip of his fork, he sighed, taking the vegetable to his mouth. A delicious wet sensation overflowed his taste buds, the softness of the veggie making a delight to chew on it. Then, he once again looked down to the mostly untouched meal in his pale and sighed even louder.
"Silver." He looked to the red-haired man sitting across from him, the pale boy silently enjoying his own meal with a faint little red tint on his facial features. "You know… this is the last time I take you out to eat with me."
Silver looked at him somewhat surprised and taken by the declaration. "What?! Why?" He protested a bit louder than he wanted.
"Every single time we go out to have lunch or dinner together, weird things start to happen." Ethan said resting his chin on the palm of his left hand. Tilting his head just a bit to the side, the raven-haired trainer raised his other hand and pointed to the large transparent window at the left side of their table. "Look."
Following his rival's suggestion, Silver shifted his gaze to the streets outside. As if he was freed from a spell entrancing his mind, he finally noticed the screams, the explosions and more importantly the current of people fleeing wildly from a crowd of black-dressed thugs.
"TEAM ROCKET?!" Silver jumped from his seat, clenching his fists as he looked to the destruction being laid on the largest avenue of Rustboro. "Goddammit shitty old man, what are planning now?" Growling and gritting his teeth in exasperation, Silver flat out dashed out of the building, charging straight ahead toward the incoming crowd of criminals.
"Getting interrupted at every opportunity. And he was all conscious of me too…" Ethan clicked his tongue. He stood up and calmly walked towards the exit. "I'm so pissed right now." Taking one hand to the biggest pocket of his pants, Ethan eyed the unbelievably large commotion.
Some officers are battling against the horde in black, but with some many Grunts charging at them, they are quickly getting overwhelmed. In fact, if Silver had not joined them in the battle, charging head-on with his team made of Rhyperior, Weavile, Feraligatr, and an impressively big Crobat; the police force would have been overrun by now.
"Tsk, so troublesome." Ethan pulled two Poké-Balls and tossed them right in front of him.
"Gaaah, I was having the nicester nap!" Happy, the cheerful Sudowoodo, stretched his back after getting out of his ball. "Oi, stupid! Why did you wake me up?"
"Look around you, Happy." Ethan responded to his rocky-tree friend. "We're kinda in a pinch here."
Flames, the stoic/grumpy Typhlosion just snorted at his trainer's answer.
With his friendly smile ever so present in his face, Happy glanced all around them. "Ohh… quite the mess around here. Why are there so many stupid people making a ruckus?"
"Because they are evil. That is reason enough for them." Ethan stepped past his two friends, facing the large ensuing battle. The amount of people fleeing from that part of the city, the southern side of Rustboro, has diminished by a lot but only because the ones that couldn't escape in time are now being harassed and even being captured by Rainbow Rocket goons.
"Gaah, I really dislike stupid people, stupid evil people I dislike even more. I call them Stupievil!" Happy stomped forward, his rock branches twitching to smack the stupidity all of them all.
"What you say, Happy. Ice, Thunder, or Fire?" Ethan asked with a wicked grin on his lips.
"I AM ALL FIRED UP!" Happy roared loudly, smacking his branch-hands together. "So, I'll go with Thunder!" Like a wild gush of wind, the nimble Sudowoodo disappeared from his spot. A thin transparent line trailed after the Pokémon's blur of an image and in an instant, he was on top of a group of enemy Pokémon. "Taaaake this!" A bolt of lightning came to life right in front of everyone's eyes, in the form of this ridiculous powerful punch, a thunder stormed the street sending flying all the menacing Pokémon that was cornering the innocent civilians.
Having their Pokémon tools completely defeated and all of combat, this team of six Grunts took a few steps back, cowering away from the people they were trying to kidnap.
"NOT ENOUGH!" Happy roared even louder. "No stupid human shall go unpunished for disturbing my nap!" Replicating the same move as just now, the Sudowoodo vanished just to reappear right in front of the grunts. Despite the general rule of most Pokémon of not going all out against humans, Happy held nothing back. His flashing thunderous fist clashed against each terrified criminal, the sheer force of his arm shooting those men and women all the way to the south exit of Rustboro.
"You don't mind?" Flames eyed Ethan with an impassive look. "The kid is not controlling himself. Some of them probably died." He nodded towards the place where the Grunts landed, not one of them getting up from the ground.
Ethan barely paid any attention to the question. He shrugged and glanced to the other side of the city. "Right about now, I don't care much about their safety. It was their choice to attack this place." His golden eyes perceived the abnormal amount of fighting breaking out at the northern side. "More importantly… they are coming from the other side too." He glanced back to Silver and his battle. "And they don't stop coming from that direction as well."
"Mommy… I'm scared." A little girl, who looks no more than five-years-old, cried out. She is hugging tightly to her mother, they both sitting on the ground while shivering in panic.
"It's okay darling. They will go away." The woman's voice not at all convincing, but she still did her best to shield her children from not only warm but also from seeing anything bad.
Even Ethan's golden-clad heart felt a sting seeing those two. He kneeled next to them and brought his hands to the girl and her mother's head. "Everything is going to be fine, okay?" He said to the trembling little person. "Just like your mommy said." A gentle smile parted his lips apart, a comforting sight not only to her but her mother too, as they both smiled back and nodded in response. "Flames, take the rubbish away from Silver and the officers." He commanded his most trusted companion.
"Are you certain? Even with all his eagerness, the kid is better suited for this." Flames eyed said Sudowoodo, who is stomping angrily at a tall mean-looking man, that now is just crying scared out of his pants.
"I need them free now, it's not safe to let these people flee without an escort." Ethan glanced around him, noticing more and more people flock around him, most teary eyes looking for safety close to him. "Just do it, Flames."
Still apprehensive about his trainer choice, Flames just nodded and turned around to face the horde of Rainbow Rocket Grunts. "So be it then." Scorching blazes flared up alive in Typhlosion's hands, the powerful fire-type bashed his hands on the street and an explosion shot his heavy body upwards and in the direction of the multiple battles.
The small molten holes around his beck trembled violently, a collar of bright fire erupting from them. Flames opened his mouth, his set of pointy fangs glistening with a faint little yellow blur as a small little flame ignited on the back of his throat. From the little spark of fire, a massive spiral of fire exploded from Flames's mouth, this serpentine wave of fire clashed on the ground right between the police force and invading army. As if it had a life of its own, heated inferno unleashed by the Typhlosion attack spread in one way and died out on the other, leaving Silver and the other safe, while pushing away everything from the other side.
"Holy sh… How?" One of the officers felt his jaw drop at the magnitude of the fire wave.
Silver on the other hand, just silently glanced back, his eyes going straight to the approaching golden-eyed man.
"Pardon me for butting in, but I think those people need you, officers, a lot more." Ethan said pointing at the afraid crowd of people organized in a huge circle a few ways back from him.
"But those criminals-" One officer began to protest, but stopped was Ethan clapped his shoulder.
"Don't worry about those clowns. I will deal with them." He gave all ten of the officers in front of him a shining confident smile. "For them to get past this point, they will have to beat Johto's Pokémon League Champion."
"C-Champion?!" They all said at the same time, looking at him astonished.
"That's right. Now leave this place to me and get those people to safety." Ethan stepped forward, walking past their group and standing right in front of the burn-scarred ground. Flames slowly approached him and stopped right next to his trainer, a sight that sent shivers down the spine of all the black-dressed people on the other side of the massive burnt hole.
The protectors of Rustboro exchanged a few concerned glanced between themselves, until one of them stepped forward, getting the Champion's attention. A female officer with long straight dark-blue hair looked at the young man's eyes and nodded. "Thank you for helping at this time of need. We will take care of the civilians, please be careful." She said with a respectful bow.
Following suit, all other bowed too and quickly dashed towards the helpless group. With coordination and great care, the ten officers led the people of Rustboro to the safest place they could find, the now properly developed and constructed Rusturf Tunnel.
"Silver." Ethan called out with certain seriousness in his voice. "You go after them."
"And leave you alone here? Not happening." Silver spat back.
"You really think I could lose?" Ethan shook his head at the thought. "Look at them, they are shaking in their boots."
"You're strong, sure. It grinds on my mind to admit that I never beat you." The red-haired looked at him with a certain fire in his eyes. Even if they are 'close' now, he still loathes the idea of never winning against his rival. "However, even you can't beat an entire army of trainers all by yourself."
"Pssht… That sounds like a challenge to me." Ethan laughed away in his reply, but his laughter quickly died out after the intense glare he received from the pale red-haired. Something that Ethan learned on this past two months he has spent with Silver, is that he when those red eyes stare at him like that, that is little he can do to change his partner's mind. Yet… "Look, I know this is dangerous and all that. But look at the other side of the town, they are coming from both sides." Ignoring all the frightened gazes locked on him, Ethan walked next to his rival and placed one hand on his left cheek. "I need you to look after everyone that can't fight back. If things get out of hand here, I will run away. If I see that I can't win, I will go after you."
Silver's intense glare faltered, the pale skin of his face getting livelier with a red tint betraying his own emotions. "Y-you better or I will beat your sorry ass." He gave one last long stare at his partner, his hand clenched and trembling as if his body refused to go. But in the end, the complied and ran at full speed after the last group, his Pokémon team closely following after their red-haired master.
"Sheesh… How can a guy be so cute?" Ethan as always felt infatuated with his rival's reactions to his advances, yet the young champion felt a bitter taste in his mouth remembering that the only closeness they had these past months was the surprise kiss they shared at Ever Grande. Clicking his tongue yet again, the Champion pulled out three other Poké-Balls and dropped at the cracked street. "Rage, Proto, Comet… Let's do this."
Rage, the immense red Gyarados from Lake of Rage. Even out of the water, its size and sheer pressure of his presence is enough to make most people quiver and step out of his raging eyes. The massive serpent-dragon slithers on the ground like a terrifying snake, ready to pounce.
Proto, a swift Scizor with a menacing stance. A Pokémon that lacks the brute power of the previous three, but makes up for it in his speed and technique. Despite not being a fighting type, Proto always carries himself in a deadly stance and switch between various others at each strike he delivers. Professor Elm has requested more than a dozen times Ethan's permission to study this Scizor's unique way of battling, but sadly for the old professor, the steel-bug doesn't like to be studied.
Lastly, Comet, a beautiful and unique Pidgeot. Having been with Ethan ever since she hatched from her egg, Comet is his fastest Pokémon and to a certain degree his most doted one. Being a rare breed of her species, her feathers are shining gold with the long plume at the top of her head shining out the most with its unique sparkle and colors.
Happy seeing the entrance of his other friends, hastily jumped inside their circle, getting to stand directly next to his 'stupid' trainer.
By this point, the number of Rainbow Rocket Grunts who invaded Rustboro from the south entrance has passed the count of forty. But even as their number amassed and never stopped increasing, they are all staring silently to the raven-haired man standing tall next to five extremely intimidating creatures. The defiant look in his golden eyes, the bright smirk on his lips… In a way, that man feels way more dangerous than any Pokémon standing by his side.
"What are all you useless pricks doing?!" A deep voice stormed from within the horde of Grunts. "He just but only man, WHAT ARE YOU ALL TREMBLING ABOUT?"
From inside the masses of people, three enormous persons stepped out, accentuating themselves apart from the rest. A ridiculous tall and muscular woman owner of a short spiked purple hair. A bald man just as muscular but way smaller than her stood at the left corner, and in the middle stands the tallest of them, a huge muscular man with an excessively round head and a peculiar hairstyle. As in most of his head is bald with just a thick flock of purple hair standing tall right at the middle of the sparkly barren.
"But Eva… he is Johto's Champion." One of the terrified goons said in reply.
"WHAT OF IT?" The same deep voice from before echoed away, now being clear that the owner of it, is the muscular woman named Eva. "Don't think of the useless bit, only think of the reward we will get from the boss WHEN WE TAKE A CHAMPION DOWN." By her side, the other two nodded their head in approval.
"She is right!" One shouted right after.
"Yeah! Even he can't take on all of us." A second followed.
"TAKE DOWN THE POKÉMON LEAGUE CHAMPION!" An uproar of voices exploded from the crowd, the once terrified Grunts all fired up from Eva's words and in a strange unison, all of them threw their Poké-Balls forward, unleashing their strongest Pokémon.
"Ora, ora… What a troublesome bunch." Ethan shook her head after seeing each of his opponents take steps forward with the full intention of facing him. "Rage, take the backside." He roared in command.
"…" The red Gyarados glared at the incoming horde, then to his trainer. "I hate to fight on land." He growled annoyed, but still slithered himself onto the position.
"Comet, anything takes up to the sky… You bring it down." He eyed his eager Pidgeot.
"As you wish!" Comet replied happily and with a mighty flap of her wings, she took off.
"Flames, you at the front."
"Fine." Flames steeled himself, eying the criminals in a heated way.
"Proto, you at the left."
"Osu!" Proto made a swift arc with his firm claws and basically teleported to his spot with how fast he dashed there.
"Happy that leaves you with the right flank."
"…" Contrary to the rest of the team, Happy didn't respond, something that troubled his trainer. Ethan glanced backward just to caught sight of his rocky-tree friend quivering with his hands hiding his face.
"Happy!" Ethan called out to him in the form of a shout.
Still quivering, the Sudowoodo raised his head just enough to look at his trainer. "Ethan… Pfft…. Heh…" In his face is a crocked smirk, going from side to side of his long facial features. "So stupid… Hehe…. Hahah…." Barely containing himself, Happy raised his left arm and pointed one of his green rocky-leaf balls at the group of three people. "HAHAHAHAHAHA! His hair is the stupidest thing I've ever seen." Blowing up in a fit of laughter, he bent forward but still pointing at the huge man. "HEHEHAHAHAHA, He looks like a freaking sun-burnt onion, with the little hairs coming out at the top part and all that."
"Goddammit Happy! You need to focus." Ethan glared at the laughing Pokémon, but his attention readily snapped back to his front as a muffled sound of impact erupted in front of him.
A heavy Rhydon bashed his boulder-solid body against the impassive Typhlosion and grasped around the fire-type's back with his firm hands. Grunting and panting, Rhydon pulled his arms in a fury, desperately trying to lift the Typhlosion off the ground. Yet all his efforts availed to nothing more than just push Flames two steps back. With a ferocious cry, Flames hugged Rhydon in the middle part of his body and violently tossed him against the side of a building.
That was a short and absolute victory for Ethan's team, but the assault has barely started. A large group of fast Pokémon rushed at full speed, getting past the huge burning hole at the middle of the street, the group separated and continued to agro, now from both flanks.
Ethan glared at Happy, the Sudowoodo still too preoccupied with his laugh to do anything. "Can you take both sides?" He looked to Proto as he asked.
"With ease." Proto nodded and vanished from his spot. A blur of red flashed wildly onto of the incoming wave of Pokémon on the left. Kicks and swipes spread havoc on their numbers, at each pounding sound, a different Pokémon went flying away and getting knocked out without even putting a real fight. Jolting his piercing gaze back to his trainer's spot, Proto saw the incoming group just a few hopes away from getting onto the man. Doubling his speed, the Scizor practically clawed them all in a single strike, not even the heavy Snorlax was able to withstand the combination of speed and precision of Proto's strike.
From the opposite direction of the bulky Grunt's group, three rays of pure white light flew towards Ethan. Being all small and thin separately, those beams melted together, transforming into a truly terrifying attack. However, enormous red tail swung in the air, meeting the combination of Hyper Beams in a clash of power and eventually smacking the attack away.
"I-Impossible…" A disheartened Grunt said taking some steps away from the darkened circle at the ground. "We can't match him." His utterly hopeless tone instantly getting inside the other members' heads, they all eyed the golden-eyed man with a newfound fear, a fear that managed to thoroughly destroy the confidence they had built.
"So the rumors were true." The taller man on the group of three spoke up. His voice comically enough an ultimate contrast of his appearance, this huge man made out of muscles and popping veins, has a ridiculously high-pitched voice akin to a little kid. This unique specimen of a person, walked a few inches forward, his gaze never leaving his target. However, another tiny detail about him is that at each step he takes his standing flock of hair bounces back and forward.
"BWAHAHAHAHA, IT BOUNCES!" Happy outright fell on his back, he grasped his body, wheezing as he laughed too much to keep breathing normally.
"A trainer capable of coordinating his team into multiple battles with just a few words, even better, with a few glances… The man who took down Red! Absolutely astounding." Oblivious to the utter mockery being dished by the rocky Pokémon, the onion man just shook his head at the abnormal behavior of that strange Pokémon. "Eva, Erwin. We will have the honor of crashing the strongest trainer in the world."
"Hah, you bet brother." Eva nodded readily, a giant grin on her lips.
"Hell yeah, Ezra. Although it will be three against one." Erwin added.
Letting out a deep sigh, Ethan watched as the sibling trio tossed their Poké-Balls in the air. "It's always something about Red, huh?" He whispered quietly to himself.
From the three hurled balls, a distinctive team of Pokémon landed on the darkened hole. Two ferocious-looking Nidoking and an even angrier Nidoqueen.
"You go right up with full power!" Eva roared to her Nidoqueen.
"Take the left side!" Ezra commanded his Nidoking.
"Right, Right!" Erwin lazily told his Pokémon, which just as lazily glanced at him and nodded his head.
Flames promptly firmed his feet on the ground, preparing himself for another heavy impact.
"Flames don't take it head-on. Wait for the two square space of always and use Lava Plume." Alerted Ethan. "Proto, switch back to one stance only. Focus solely on your position." He continued, taking his eyes even further beyond the incoming threat. The shadow of a few Grunts slipping pass his position did not escape his vision. "Rage, detach from us and spread your attention to the avenue."
Ethan thought of giving Happy any input, but it was already too late. The Nidoqueen was on top of Flames, the first Nidoking slashed away a sweep of Proto's claw. Worse than that, the second Nidoking was on top of Ethan, its menacing eyes glaring hungrily at the man's figure.
"Gaaaah! Not like that, stupid!" Happy bounced out of the ground, his body darting upwards like an arrow, with his enflamed fist connecting with the Nidoking's chin, sending the ground Pokémon more than a few steps back. "There is nothing that I dislike more than someone that bothers me when I'm having fun. Gonna beat you up, stupid!"
"Finally ready to do something, Happy?" Ethan teased his companion, giving him a side little smirk.
"Shut up, stupid! I did plenty already!" Happy flailed his arms at his trainer. "But, gaaah. I really want to beat that onion face of his right now."
A violently heated wave of fire exploded from Flame's body, the blazing waves rampaging like a wild inferno. The attack was fast and ruthless; the Nidoqueen had barely any time to react before she got blasted away and sent flying back to her trainer.
Eva let out a deafening screech in horror, her eyes tearing up as she laid next to her Nidoqueen.
"Geeh… Is he in a bad mood or what?" Happy glanced at Flames, with a spooked face.
A loud volley of strikes sounded from the left. Ezra's Nidoking did and splendid job parrying Proto's first combo of attacks, but the pink royalty is not familiar with his kind of speed and in a matter of seconds, a flurry of steeled punches and kicks overwhelmed him. Proto jumped high, using his wings to impulse his leap even more. Like a guided spear, the Scizor's leg dove at extreme speed connecting right on top of Nidoking's forehead. The force of the flying kick was enough to unbalance the pink Pokémon, making him lower his head, in this frame of opportunity a blur of red appeared behind him, slashing upwards with a flashing steel-uppercut.
Just like the blue Nido, Erza's Pokémon went sliding unconsciously towards him. The hulking man scowled after seeing how easily that Scizor handled his most trusted Pokémon.
"Ooooaaaahh, Take this, and this, and this and this!" Happy went on a full rampage against the last remaining threat. At each 'and this' he shouted at the top of his lungs, he delivered a different kind of special punch; sometimes a Fire Punch, then a Thunder Punch, and of course lots of Ice Punches. "DON'T YOU EVER CROSS ME AGAIN, STUPID!" He shouted even louder than before, connecting a powerful combination of Fire and Thunder on the Nidoking's body. This one flying not only towards his trainer but landing right on top of him. This time both Pokémon and trainer getting knocked out of combat.
From the background, a thundering roar filled Rustboro's main avenue. Rage bit, bashed and laser beamed all the sneaking Rainbow Rocket members that were trying to pass by without fighting Ethan directly.
Ethan could not help himself but grin. He saw all the attention focused on him; every man and woman breathing at the rhythm of the glances he throws at them. Feeling more than comfortable to play with their hearts, the champion took a loud step forward, forcing the entire army to take several steps back.
"What the hell are you doing?!" Shouted Eva from her crouched position, tears still hanging on the side of her eyes but never falling down. "We are in hundreds here, GET HIM!" She ordered the mob, but none of them moved.
The lower members all stared at the muscular woman, their faces all saying what their clenched mouths could not. 'We charge in and do what?'
"What a pathetic sight, fufufu…" A playful voice sounded from behind the black-dressed horde.
Most of them, even the newer members recognized the voice with just one sentence. Some gasped as they turned to look back, others let out a sigh of relief. Hopping her way from the city's entrance, a girl with a flashy white dress filled with small rainbow-colored balls, glared at all the underlings.
"You heard Eva." She slapped one of the Grunts closest to her, making the man topple and fall. She giggled at his shocked reaction and played with her blond twin tail. "KEEP GOING AT HIM, THROW YOURSELVES AGAINST THAT FOOL EVEN IF YOUR BODY BREAKES." She growled with a dark venom in her voice. A chilling difference from her cutesy looks.
"That girl…" Ethan eyed the blondie, his memory tracing her face from not only that day on Ever Grande, but also his first day in Hoenn.
"Enforcer Violet!" One of the goons called out to her, with an entranced tone in his voice. "I WILL DO IT!" He announced with a raging puff of his chest. "For Lady Violet, I will take anyone down."
As if only her evil cute smile is a prize worth of dying for, the whole crowd of Grunts went in a frenzy. Their fears gone, their hesitation was gone, all that is left is a crazed look in their eyes and a blood intent of taking down that damned golden-eyed man.
Ethan chuckled quietly at the incoming full force of their army marching hastily towards him. "So now the real fun begins."
Brendan finally took his first step inside the small city of Ever Grande. With Zinnia at his side, the couple has been battling a seemingly never-ending number of invaders ever since they crossed the sea of flowers. Violen, Brendan's Gallade and Zinnia's Salamence tackled and trampled at all opposition, no villain stood a slight chance against them.
With the strange amount of people he encountered just in his way here, Brendan feared the worse as he reached the entrance of the city. To his surprise, the only glaring difference from the usual peaceful Ever Grande is a large number of Rainbow Rocket members lying unconscious on the streets.
Sidney, the dark-type master of the Elite Four, stands tall at the side of a building lazily rubbing his chin as his Scrafty glare at their previous opponents lying on the ground. "Yo, Brendan." With just two fingers standing out, he waved his right hand at his colleague.
"Hey, Sidney." Brendan waved in response with Zinnia giving a silently nod to the pink-haired man. "What's happening around here? We crossed paths with at least twenty of them as we ran from the summit."
"Dunno. They just appeared out of nowhere." Sidney replied with a low shrug. "Me and the gang were having a dinner party at a restaurant when those bastards began to rain from the sky."
"From the sky? All of them?" Zinnia jolted her gaze to the starry evening sky, a doubtful look in her features.
"Well, that's what people said. When we got out of the building, they were around making trouble on the streets." Sidney rubbed the back of his head, showing a little more annoyed mood than he generally has. "Luckily we wiped them all before they could do any real damage. Phoebe and Glacia took the other side of the town. Old man Drake was just here with me, now he is standing guard at the falls."
"I see…" Brendan frowned. "Sorry for not getting here sooner."
"Nah, don't sweat about it." Sidney's reply came with a short smile. "Despite them ruining our dinner, I had a lot of fun battling against those suckers. Anyway, you should meet up with Drake. He was worried about you."
"Yeah, I will. Thanks, Sidney." Brendan gave another apologetic nod to Sidney and the man just nodded back, shooing the younger trainer away.
Taking the hand of his girlfriend, they both dashed towards the southern exit of the city. Diving deeper at the silent avenues of Ever Grande, the couple saw more and more Grunts spread all around, some of them with some serious injuries all over their bodies. They probably gritted on Drake's nerves in more ways than just attacking his loved city, and got the full blow of his wrath.
A suspicious that quickly got confirmed as Brendan arrived at the giant cliff of the flowery mountain and saw the veteran dragon tamer glaring down at the sea, fuming with anger.
"Aggravating pests. I never witnessed such a lack of respect and empathy." Drake growled angrily, the old man ruffled his long white mustache, as his eyes never left the scene unfolding below the giant falls. "I grew worried about your delay." The old man said, most likely to Brendan who was close enough to hear him. "I thought that they maybe got to you."
"They definitely reached me, but they aren't faring much better than the ones sleeping on the streets." Brendan gave the angered old trainer a chirp smirk. "How are things here, Drake?"
"Look for yourself." Drake pointed to the darkened sea below them.
Sensing the extra edge on the man's voice, Brendan just moved closer to the edge, standing right next to Drake. This far out from the city and any light source other than the moon and stars, Brendan could clearly see the unsettling movements of the waves, with various different silhouettes lurking down there.
"As you can see the group attacking from the sky was not the only one aiming at Ever Grande. Unfortunately for the fools up here, we halted their plans before those ones could climb up." Drake growled again. He narrowed his eyes trying to see the face of at least one of them, but in the end, he had no success in that. "They have been there… just watching… This silent interlude is almost unbearable."
"They just stood there?" Asked Zinnia. "What are they waiting for?"
Drake eyed the draconid woman, giving her a welcoming nod. Even the harsh old man has warmed up to the brash girl as she spent so much time at the league halls. "That's an easy answer. They're waiting for that to come back." Drake did a half-circle twirl, the lower part of his dark coat flying up at his motion. Closing one eye as he glanced upwards, he raised his arm and pointed up.
At first glance, neither Brendan nor Zinnia understood what the dragon tamer was talking about, however, with a longer stare and further evaluation they noticed a strange phenomenon happening up there. This evening is chilly but still very much enjoyable, with not a single heavy cloud in the sky hiding the stars behind them. Yet, in this star brighten picture of a darkened sky, there is a strangely large chunk of it, which is completely dark save for a few illuminated spots that are clearly to close to the planet.
"The hell is that?" Zinnia was the first of the two to speak up. "Is like the sky is missing a piece."
"That's a giant aircraft, I believe." Drake replied. "And I also believe it was from that thing that those thugs dropped from."
"That aircraft, has it been flying all over Hoenn?" Brendan asked with a heavy feeling in his chest. He glanced back to Drake, who just gave him a weak unknowledgeable shrug. "Could they being attacking the entire region at the same time?"
"A grim supposition, but a more plausible one than they just attacking the League's grounds before anywhere else." With another growl, Drake resumed his stern watch over the waterfall, now his face carrying more than just utter annoyance. "We could repel their attack with ease since Ever Grande is the seat of so much raw power between the League and the worth trainers that come in here. But…"
"An army that large in any other city and they will certainly overrun it." Brendan gritted his teeth, his suspicious quickly changing to a haunting reality. Whatever games Rainbow Rocket was trying to play before, now is over. This is a direct declaration of war against Hoenn.
From the side of his neck, a single drop of cold sweat ran down on Brendan's skin. Once again, he found himself trapped, fooled and overtaken with anger. Anger towards those cowards that never cease to attack innocents and anger towards himself, who failed to stop them before it got like this.
Brendan pulled his flute from one of the deepest pockets of his long pants, his face writhing in a raging scowl. "This… is enough!" He brought his arms up, ready to play the flute and then.
A firm embrace caught him from behind, a familiar warmth pressing against the young champion. "Where are you going?" Zinnia asked him with a low wary voice. Her sharp red eyes staring at him with apprehension.
"I can't leave those bastards lay waste to Hoenn." Brendan spat back with a bit more intensity than he intended to respond to his lover. "It is stupid to fly out in the middle of the night, I know that… However, I will not let that thing spit even more criminals on top of our cities."
"So we will bring it down?" She said, holding even tighter to him.
"No, I will." His response was short and cold, earning him a disappointed and displeased glare from her. Seeing the brewing storm coming his way, Brendan pulled Zinnia by her arm and properly embraced her. "Zinnia, I need you here with Drake and all the others to watch over Ever Grande. If everything goes bad, we can still count on this place for safety."
"That's true and all that, but the old man doesn't need my help. He can clearly stop those losers by himself." Zinnia felt the long sigh coming from Brendan by the pressure of his chest and that made her even more desperate. "I can help you! What's the difference I would make here that I couldn't do up there with you?"
Brendan pulled himself away harshly, impatience already getting the better of his mood when. "BECAUSE I CAN'T DO THIS WITH YOU THERE!" He shouted angrily at her. Frowning at her scared reaction, he just pulled another object out of his pockets and showed it to her. "I will take that thing down, but I don't want you to see me doing it. I don't want you seeing me like that." He eyed the black Poké-Ball in his hand, feeling vexed at his need to use this beast again. "Please, Zinnia… Aster needs you too."
Holding a few stray tears in the corner of her eyes, Zinnia bit her lips, quietly turning away from Brendan. Her weak hesitant nod was everything she could muster to return to him because if she tried to speak up, the words coming out of her mouth would make everything worse and ending up hurting not only Brendan but herself as well.
Watching her small back faintly quiver as she holds her pretense of standing strong, how her nails are digging deep in the flash of her palms. This feels like a huge blow directly at Brendan's chest, his heart aches any time he sees his girlfriend being anything but the noisy awesome woman that she usually is.
Yet, there is very little he can do about it now. He has to go up there and fight alone, something that Zinnia can't and will not accept gladly. So, his only option left is to go up there and fight. Taking his flute to his lips, Brendan played Latios' song to which the mystic hastily appeared, diving down from the cloudless sky.
"This time… I'll not lose it." He said calmly as he mounted up in the blue dragon's back. "I will keep my control and properly stop them this time. Then we can go back to dotting on Aster, okay?" He glanced back at Zinnia with a little sheepish smile.
To his surprise, she has turned around and it is intently staring at him, her bright red eyes burning the image of Brendan's smile inside her head. "That's a promise." She said with a little smile of her own. "I love you." Those words served as the last weight that broke down her tough act, making those sole tears slid down from her eyes.
"I love you too." Brendan responded right before Latios gave a loud cry and zoomed out into the sky.
A deafening explosion erupted from the southern gate of Rustboro, an echoing sound that ran all over the city. A dust cloud rises from the battle thorn streets, only to get quickly swiped away by the gushes of wind made by the aerial battles of Comet against several others flying Pokémon.
Gasping hard as heavy drops of sweat run all over his face, Ethan eyed his surrounding just to marvel at the unnecessary destruction has already been dished in this populated area. From the oppressive horde that assaulted him minutes before, not much than five of them are still standing. A sea of unconscious Pokémon extended all around them, making this a proper grim battlefield.
However, the champion's victories had not come without a cost. Rage, who after ramping on top of so many stragglers, got weary of his own battles only to be completely knocked out by a stray combination of rays.
Proto, who overworked himself the most, dashed and slashed all around the lengthy avenue. He clashed against numerous opponents, but his blinding speed took a heavy toll on his body, forcing the poor Scizor to shut down with exhaustion.
Comet still holds domain over the sky, taking down any threat that things of approaching her trainer from above. While Happy and Flames are standing in front of Ethan, both bruised and tired, with Happy being in a worse state out of the two.
"Say, Ethan, isn't time to bring out the big angry stupid?" Happy whined as he gasped for air.
"Sorry Happy… I cannot do that." Ethan eyed his hurting Sudowoodo, the easygoing nature of the Pokémon now completely gone. "This place is surrounded by houses and buildings." His golden eyes traveled to a nearby two-store house, a quivering silhouette watching everything from inside the darkened room. "If I unleash Lugia here… I don't even want to think about it."
"But then…" Happy looked back to his trainer with a hint of fear in his eyes. A nasty injury on the poor Pokémon's left leg forced him to bow down and slam his right knee on the ground.
"Yeah… Looks like it." Ethan responded with a sarcastic little grin. Both Flames and Happy stared at their trainer with awe, but also terrified. "Comet!" He shouted up high, making his gallant Pidgeot scoop down and land at his side.
"Give me your arm. I can fly you out of here in a second." She boasted proudly.
"We do that and they shot you down from the sky. Sorry, I can't do that either." Instead of following his shiny Pokémon's suggestion, Ethan pulled a purple Poké-Ball from his pockets and pushed it over to Comet's claws. "Take this and go after Silver."
"But Ethan!"
"No buts just go." He pushed the Poké-Ball even more against Comet, making her grabbed it almost unwillingly. The golden-feathered bird reached the ball with one claw and leaned forward with her upper body, pressing her face against her trainer's forehead. "You be a good girl, okay?"
Getting teared-eyed at his calmer than usual words, Comet gave one last playful peck on his cheek and then flapped her eyes furiously, vanishing up from that place in nothing more than a second.
"Gaah… So it will be just the three of us now?" Happy said with a playful smirk.
Ethan chuckled at his Sudowood antics and took another Poké-Ball out. "You shut up and go to sleep already." As the rocky-tree opened his mouth to protest, he felt a light bop on his back. With a little show of light, the tired and injured Sudowood disappeared back to his cozy Poké-Ball.
"Why you always get in your head to do the troublesome things?" Flames gave a loud sigh as he complained. But his remark came out much more as a joke than a real complaint, which is rare to the jaded Pokémon and his usual moody self.
"Because it is more fun this way, right partner?" Giving a light playful smack in his Typhlosion's back, Ethan walked up and stood firm beside his oldest companion. "What you say, should we gave them one last piece of trouble?"
"Like we have many choices." Flames spat back, nonetheless a large smile on his face.
"Hell yeah, that's the spirit!" The raven-haired trainer shouted from the top of his lungs. Like a wild battle cry, his words pushed not only his Pokémon but also himself forward. Coming at full speed towards their enemies, Human and Pokémon ran at the same speed side by side.
"Wha- What are they doing?" A grunt gasped in surprise.
"What does it matter what he is doing?!" Violet screeched loudly, the venom-tongued girl already foaming from her mouth after seeing so many of her underlings fall in battle. "JUST BEAT HIM DOWN!" Her high-pitched scream echoed all around, pushing all the five goons she has left, together with her own prized Pokémon, a menacing-looking Arbok.
From his front, Flames dodged the incoming strike of a Heracross proceeding to pummel the blue bug in its chest with a fire-coated punch. With no respite, the poisonous fang of the purple snake sunk from the side, sinking in deep on the Typhlosion already bruised skin. Flames withstood not only the pain but also the impact of Arbok's body crashing against him. The villainous purple Pokémon wrapped himself all around his body and began to press the entire weight of her body against him, yet still, Flames didn't yield.
"JUST FINISH IT!" Violet screamed again, raging by the fact that her Arbok is incapable of stopping that monster of a Pokémon.
"I got this, ma'am." A female grunt shouted proudly. "Ampharos, topple that thing over with your Iron Tail." The woman commanded and her Ampharous cried loudly in response.
The electric yellow ship dashed wildly onto the restrained Typhlosion, her long tail shining up with a silver light. Taking her lower body back to then thrust forward, her tail swung violently towards her target. Yet it never connected.
"Hey you, careful with that." Ethan gave a wicked smile to the confused Ampharus as his both hands held onto her tail with all his might. Some veins threated to burst at the muscles of his biceps, as he locked the yellow Pokémon in place, still, he never let go of her tail.
Taking advantage of the little time and space created, Flames roared in his full remaining force, combusting his entire body in a wild inferno of flames. The stubborn Arbok tried to maintain a hold of his body, but the heat eventually got too much for the snake and she slid away from her. With the freedom of his legs and arms returning, Flames stomped on the ground taking enough impulse to fly at Ampharos and smash the electric ship to the other side of the town, in the same momentum grab Arbok's tail, and completely smash the snake against the cracked street.
"I-I-Impossible…" One of the Grunts went to the ground, her legs shaking wildly. "How can a normal person stop a Pokémon's attack like that?"
"He is not normal… Is he even human…?' Even Violet felt shaken by the display. She tried everything, she tossed every man and woman at her disposal against this man and all of them failed. From the overwhelming army invading from the south, now only a trio of scared out of their mind trainer are remaining.
"Heh… Goddamn, you guys…" Ethan called out to them with a playful tone. His chest going up and down frantically, his breath almost giving out from fatigue. "I never expected to be pushed this-" From nothing, his entire world seaming to stop and everything around him began to spin out of control. A massive Tyranitar practically landed out of nowhere right beside Ethan and with a ruthless swing of his heavy arm, sent the man flying spinning against the side of a house.
"ETHAN!" Flames cried out enrage. He more than readied himself to throw his body against the bastard of a Pokémon that attacked his partner. However, like a flash of light, a furious Aegislash flew down from the sky and pinned Flames against the ground. This last forceful impact against the more than exhausted Pokémon's back completely shut him down.
Falling like a boulder right next to his Tyranytar, Raz laughed like a maniac as he looked down to the immobile champion.
From the other side, a red-eyed young man stepped out from the shadows, slowly pacing closer to his brutal Royal Sword Pokémon.
"I heard the bastard was giving you a tough time, Violet." Raz spat out, glancing condescendingly at the dumbfounded girl.
Josh on the other hand just stared at Ethan, his red eyes piercing at the downed man's image like a curiously, marveled creature.
Bleeding from way too many spots for him to notice them all, Ethan barely had the strength to slide his body into a proper lying position before his vision darkened and his senses dulled. In his last awake breath, his bleeding lips moved slowly, raggedly... he ever so desperately tried to say those words. "Sorry… Silver." Everything went back after that.
Latios soared the sky at a body freezing speed, forcing Brendan to clack his teeth unconsciously at the harsh cold winds. The blue dragon flew relentlessly towards their goal, with the trainer on top of him steeling himself to the terrible measure he had to take.
"This ends… tonight." He whispered to himself, as that gigantic aircraft got closer and more visible to them.
Then, from a deserted isle below on the deep stray waters outside of Sootopolis City, a lightning-fast spear of ice flew up, exploding its entire frozen surface against Latios chest. With a pained cry, the blue dragon came to a halt, his entire body hurting. The pain is so big that his flying ability got shut down, making both him and Brendan free fall down to the cold sea waters.
Shivering with the cold and soaked clothes, Brendan dragged himself to the closest piece of dry land he could've found. Luckily, for him and Latios, he had brought the empty Pokémon the blue dragon used to reside in, making possible for Brendan to save his poor friend from drowning down there.
Yet, in a twist of fate, a fate of which Brendan cannot run away from anymore. The safe-haven he has found for himself is also the only piece of land around him, which makes this the point of origin of the attack that brought Latios down.
An alarming jolt raised from his spine making Brendan jump in his feet and throw his gaze at the figure standing right in front of him.
Red and blue meet red and blue, two pairs of identical eyes carrying the same intensity in them. The same faces staring at each other, one in shock and surprise while the other is carefree enjoying the occasion.
From the dark consuming silent, the mirror image in front of Brendan ushered the words that would not only start the inevitable but also change their lives forever.
"Nice to meet you… Brendan." Spiegel called out to his equal, a twisted smirk flashing on his face.
If you are liking the story so far, please leave a review. :)
Reviews:
Mr MogiGaming chapter 23 . Jul 28 – Linoone really turned out to be a way funnier and more interesting character than I had intended. But give Spiegel a chance too… or maybe not, he is just about to do a no-no.
DOOT76 chapter 23 . Jul 30 – Well, Yeah. That's why I pester your guys about reviews and all that. At each feedback, I try to make the story better and more interesting. In that essay you made about how evil Linoone was, I got a lot of cool ideas of things I could do with him.
In addition, the music I used there was the same music I was listening to while writing those parts. It may looked like a 'random' choice of songs, but it was not so random.
I lost all my xiet when I read the name Punished Venom Brendan.
Guest chapter 23 . Aug 6 – I concur, sooner or later the truth will come out and if she is not the one talking about it, well…
Oh, don't worry. I got lots of plot for Spiegel, the clone, in this story. He will not be just a single-minded villain or anything like that.