There's a lot of dialogue in this one. Some very important things need to be explained, and this was the best point to do it. Trust me, this is gonna be good.

We've got a decent amount of girls nominated, but there's always room for more! If there are any other girls you think deserve a chance at the title of Pokemon Academy Best Girl, nominate them here!

Currently Nominated: Alcea, Ayame, Carrie, Caelia, Cynthia, Dakota, Elaina, Julia, Kate, Kitty, Maddi, Marion, Nikita, Olivia, Sango, Sylvia

Tambry96bj: Over a year in real-time.

KedharS: Calm down he's no saint.

Just a Bad Writer For Fun: Oh, don't worry, this chapter is all about getting into the depths of manipulation.

Rowlets and Oshawotts: Gerard's nature is definitely something worth exploring, and this chapter will have a tinge of it.

JoshGamerV: Interesting speculations.

Aquahaze675: Gerard's just like me bruh.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 617

Gerard followed the Phantom down the hall, bothered by something in particular. Not the way he had treated Caelia, of course, that was something he understood perfectly well. But the way that the Phantom acted, he didn't seem to care at all that the Empress had turned Caelia against him and was currently conspiring to overthrow him, or that there was a very real possibility that she had turned Sylvia Driscoll to her side to do it.

"Is something bugging you, Gerard?" Valon asked, glancing back over his shoulder. His face was all smiles, but his eyes were glinting dangerously.

"…Just feeling a little concerned about something, is all," Gerard calmly replied with a polite smile. "I was curious, how you can be handling this so well. Considering that Caelia just attacked you after being manipulated to do it by the Empress."

The Phantom chuckled, shaking his head. "Oh, that's simple. I don't have a concern for anything that Olivia Himeko would do, after all. Olivia Himeko and Marion Rivers, neither one of those girls is any threat to my plans."

"Marion I can understand, but the Empress, too?" Gerard asked, raising his eyebrow. "Are you so certain of that? She has a great deal of influence, you've got to be aware of that. I think that in your present state, underestimating her would be-"

"This is the problem with you, Gerard," Valon said, shaking his head and pinching the bridge of his nose. "You assume that everyone thinks the same way you do. That because you can be so easily fooled and manipulated like that time with Kanone, that everyone would be concerned the same way. But no, those of us who are truly clever, we don't concern ourselves with the musings of people like that. The Empress can play her games, for all the entertainment they can provide. Even the Commander, putting on shows of power like he does, he doesn't understand anything."

"…Well, even so, he still managed to defeat you," Gerard reminded Valon, narrowing his eyes. "After his victory, not even you can deny that his influence has grown. It's only been a few days, and people are already determining that he's the strongest trainer at the school. And after that little incident with the Shadow Pokemon, you're looking worse and worse. So don't think you should be careful?"

Valon smiled and stopped walking, turning around and placing his hand on Gerard's shoulder. "Very sound reasoning, Gerard, and you're absolutely correct, of course. As things stand, the Commander's position as the strongest student in the school will be absolute."

"Then even moreso-!" Gerard sputtered, stunned at how brazenly Valon seemed to admit it, after everything he'd set out to do. "How can you just be so calm? I would have expected you to be completely enraged after a loss like that, with all your preparations!"

Valon sighed, shaking his head. "Alas, it isn't my ambition to be the top Slowpoke of the well."

Gerard blinked, confused by what he had just said. "I don't… what?"

"As I said before, you assume that everyone thinks the same way you do," Valon repeated. "This is a war, not a battle. My victory won't be assured by defeating the Commander in combat. Even with everything I've done, that match went as I intended it to go. While winning may have been nice, it wasn't essential."

Was he serious right now? It wasn't essential?

"That's not what you said before!" Gerard protested. "You promised that you would help me become the strongest trainer at this school! That's why I teamed up with you, because you said that you would help me gain respect! And now look! I've been completely ruined, being defeated by the Commander, even with Diana's help! And now you're telling me all that was for nothing?! That you don't even care that you lost?!"

"I keep my promises," the Phantom assured him, and suddenly Gerard felt a tight grip squeeze into his shoulder. "But even so, that battle was unnecessary. It wouldn't matter if I won, or if I lost. No, perhaps it's just as good that I lost, that might work out even better…"

Gerard couldn't understand him. That gleam in his eye, the way he talked so casually about not winning such an important match, it was absolutely absurd. "Then… then what was the point of all this? Why go through all this effort to-"

"Effort? Whatever did you mean?" Valon asked, raising his eyebrow. "Something like that tournament can be done with a snap of the fingers. And in any case, wouldn't you spend whatever efforts you could in making sure that your sales pitch went off without a hitch?"

Gerard narrowed his eyes. Sales pitch?

"Think very carefully about how those matches went," Valon said. "Not just who won, but the ordering behind them. Don't you think that, in the end, all of that was a little too coincidental? The way things went so perfectly?"

Gerard thought about it.

"Huh? What are talking about? Are you saying you set things up that way?" Gerard asked, confused. "But… no, that's not…"

"From the beginning of the tournament, when I proposed the battle royale to determine who would win, I consulted with two people," Valon said, stepping back and holding up two fingers. "The first, of course, was my dear Misato, who gave me the probability of where each person would end up in the rankings if left to a battle royale. And after that, I went to Sylvia Driscoll, and asked her to do the same. And would you believe that the placements they determined were different?"

Gerard raised his eyebrow. That wasn't too surprising. Misato was a Mechadoll, after all, with what he had to assume was a very powerful computer, someone literally designed to perform speculative functions like this based on given data. Meanwhile, Sylvia was just a human. Smart as she may have been, she wasn't a computer.

"Now, between the two of them, which one do you think was closer to how it finally ended up going?" Valon asked.

Gerard scratched his chin. Common logic would dictate it would be Misato. But the existence of Sylvia meant common logic wasn't a factor here. The Phantom was staring at him with those cold, green eyes of his, and suddenly Gerard felt like a Ratatta in a lab, being studied. Basically, he was being asked to determine whose judgment he would trust on the matter.

"…Sylvia's," Gerard replied. The Phantom's eyes widened almost imperceptibly.

"…There may be hope for you yet, Gerard. Yes, exactly," Valon nodded. "Sylvia Driscoll's determination for how the tournament brackets would begin was exactly correct, whereas Misato was off in several places. And do you know why that was?"

Gerard actually probably did.

"Because Sylvia Driscoll herself rigged the game, is why," Valon explained, smirking. "Misato can provide me with the most likely arrangement, based on all the factors, even factoring in the most likely decisions that trainers would make to help each other. Which is why, when I showed Sylvia the results of Misato's computations, she flung it aside and said 'how boring and predictable' and proceeded to set things up differently."

"So it was a rigged game from the start, then," Gerard scowled.

"In part. I only rigged the set-up of the brackets based on her judgment," the Phantom said. "Everything else was just playacting, even my frustration at being knocked out of the battle royale so early. I needed to make sure that the stage would be set, and that everything would go as I intended. Now, shall we go in?"

Gerard was surprised by the fact that the Phantom had just gestured to the door. While they had been talking outside for several minutes, he hadn't even realized that they had stopped outside of one of the rooms. The Phantom took out a ring of keys and inserted one into the door, opening it and heading inside. The room was a mess. Someone had been doing a great deal of research, and hadn't picked up after themselves, apparently.

"My, I'll have to clean this out some other time," Valon said, surprised. "Oh, my, would you look at that." He walked over to the couch table, where a tray filled with six pokeballs sat, one of the balls painted a dark black. Yes, these are Sylvia's, alright. She must have stepped out the other night and left them here to rest."

Gerard gasped. "So she probably didn't abduct Blake, then."

"Indeed, your instincts were quite sharp, Gerard," Valon nodded, picking up the tray and turning back to him. "Well, this should solve the problem, as it were."

"Except the problem of Sylvia's disappearance," Gerard reminded Valon, narrowing his eyes. "She might be just a pawn to you, but I expect that things will be rather difficult without her around, for the both of us."

"…Oh?"

"I need extra hands for paperwork. Losing Mirar was quite a blow to our administrative side of things," Gerard admitted, averting his eyes. Valon smirked.

"Indeed, as I was saying, Sylvia is quite essential to me," Valon agreed. "Before we go resolve this mess with Caelia, perhaps we should finish the conversation."

"Really?" Gerard asked, suspicious of the Phantom's affability. "Don't you think there are more important things to worry about right now?"

"I'm fine with letting that girl stew for a while," Valon replied, patting his pocket where he'd slipped Caelia's pokeball. "In the meantime… you still haven't received an answer to that burning question of yours yet, now have you?"

Gerard narrowed his eyes.

"So as I was saying, the bracket results, with Sylvia's input I set them up in a way that would be perfectly suited for my needs, with the exception of that one boy, Blake Harker. He wasn't anything to me, just a fill-in to make Sylvia happy. That was the 'condition' she set for her help in this matter."

"Sounds rather annoying, having a follower who isn't completely obedient to you," Gerard said. "I'm surprised you can tolerate it."

"Sylvia is rather easy to keep on a leash, in fact," Valon laughed. "Well certain, she's no Misato, but her willfulness is quite easily controlled if one knows how. Simply by keeping her happy and entertained, I can assure that she'll never leave my side. As long as I can promise that the actions she makes will lead to entertainment in the end, then she'll do whatever I say."

Gerard narrowed his eyes. He didn't say anything, because he didn't want to draw attention to it. But he wasn't sure if the Phantom truly understood how Sylvia operated. Then again… Gerard himself wasn't entirely sure how her brain worked, either.

"Now then, where was I? Oh, yes, that's right. The tournament lineup. Now, the first thing I needed to ensure was that Gabrielle and Alcea ended up being eliminated first. Not only had the two of them been working together against me, but they were quite closely matched in strength. Having them be the first battle, with their well-established rivalry, it sets things up quite nicely. And furthermore, whichever one of them won, it would suit my purpose."

"And what purpose is that?" Gerard asked.

"Why, losing to me, of course," Valon laughed. "That was where the next match came in. Setting things so that my first battle would be against Madison Whitmore, one of the Commander's underlings, and then ultimately destroying her with the overwhelming power of Shadow Pokemon. That set things up quite nicely in the minds of my audience, wouldn't you think? 'Shadow Pokemon are powerful and terrifying, and can easily overwhelm a foe in battle' was a nice prelude to my ultimate goal."

"So that was the reasoning behind the first two brackets, then-"

"But there's a reason it had to be in that order," Valon interrupted sharply, setting the tray back down and sitting on the couch. Gerard might have been standing over him, but the pressure aimed his way made it impossible to mistake who was in charge. "Because I needed to fight in the next round against Alcea. Or Gabrielle, either would have worked, but Sylvia assured me of what I already believed, that Alcea would win."

"So you wanted to fight Alcea in the quarter-finals," Gerard said. "Let me guess. So that you could show off how strong your Shadow Pokemon were again."

"Exactly correct," Valon smirked. "Alcea is an amazing trainer. "Of the pokemon trainers at this school, she perhaps is within the top five most prominent. Her popularity and influence are at a level where it wouldn't be wrong to assume she could step up and become a Daeva once we've all graduated. 'Alcea Vermeil is an amazing trainer' that's an established fact. Even moreso than someone like me, I'd say. While I certainly have more raw support, people don't look at me and see someone who is an exceptional battler. Just a sharp mind. If you ask one of the students at this school who is a really well-known trainer they admire, Alcea's name would probably beat out mine, and certainly yours."

Gerard's eye twitched.

"So I used that reputation of hers. By defeating the astounding Alcea Vermeil, I demonstrated that a team of Shadow Pokemon can put you on a level comparable to her. I made use of my 'lack of reputation as a strong trainer'. That's where you and I differ the most. 'Power' is not the same as 'influence'. You want to be strong and respected, and while you are strong, you aren't respected. Meanwhile, people think of me the same. They 'respect' me, because I have power. But that power is my 'influence' over other trainers. In terms of my own abilities as a trainer, as a member of the Research Course they aren't held in high esteem. But if someone like that can defeat someone like Alcea Vermeil, using a power I manufactured, then it works perfectly."

Gerard understood using Alcea as a test subject. And from there, thinking about the tournament in terms of a way to showcase the strength of Shadow Pokemon, a lot more became clear. But in that case…

"Then what about Keahi and Lana's battles?" Gerard asked. "You couldn't have been expecting that they would lose!"

The Phantom smirked, his eyes shining even brighter.

"Can't I?"

Gerard raised his eyebrows.

"After I let Sylvia play with Blake, the last round of that day was Dokukage vs. K. At that point, what do you think everyone must have been thinking, when they saw K use his Shadow Pokemon team? They must have been getting rather frightened, don't you think? 'Shadow Pokemon are incredibly powerful! It isn't fair! That's terrifying!' Things like that. They were put in a situation that they didn't understand the context of, with pokemon using moves they had never seen and fighting far harsher and more violently than they'd experienced. You know a little of what that's like, right? The 'fear' of those who are weak? If not… you could ask that girl of yours how it feels to be seen as abnormally strong and terrifying."

Gerard scowled. The Phantom had a good point. "So that's what it was. You had Keahi take a dive, in order to make people think that Shadow Pokemon were strong, but not invincible. If they were faced with something that they couldn't hope to beat, then they would probably lash out the way they do against Elaina."

"Weakness breeds fear," Valon agreed. "As I figured, you would be able to appreciate the finer points of manipulating others. So let me ask you, do you know what the most effective way to control the minds of people around you is? I'm sure you must have some idea, given how skillfully you control that girl Elaina."

"Give them what they want," Gerard replied. "That's what you say, right? If you give people what they want, then they'll do anything."

"That's certainly part of it. But not every person has a desire that's so great that they're willing to be exploited by others," the Phantom said. "Here's how you can best manipulate people, Gerard. Let me know if it starts sounding familiar."

The Phantom held a finger up.

"The first thing you want to do is make people unable to believe in themselves. You see, people at their core are very prideful. They think 'other people may fail, but I'm special. I'll succeed, because I'm better than them.' It's the same with you, right?"

Gerard's only response was a loathsome glare. The Phantom smirked.

"When they start thinking like that, and their pride leads them to make bad decisions, as everyone does, what you do then is emphasize how bad it is for them to make decisions in the future. Gently remind them every time they think for themselves how badly they might mess things up, until it reaches the point where they are too afraid to act on their own, they fear the very idea of making decisions itself. Again, this sound at all familiar?"

Gerard narrowed his eyes.

"That's what I thought. Now, once they've reached that point, you appeal to that pride of theirs by telling them it isn't their fault. That someone else is to blame for their weakness and failure. You provide a convenient scapegoat to put all their problems onto. Now, that's what I did here. When I demonstrated in the first round the power of the Shadow Pokemon, I made them begin to fear their own 'ability' as trainers," Valon explained. "They saw an opponent that they would never, ever be able to defeat. But then, in that same round, they witnessed a 'miracle'. They saw an ordinary trainer defeat an entire team of Shadow Pokemon without losing a single pokemon themselves."

"Because you arranged it."

"Well, I expected him to lose, that's certain," Valon admitted, shrugging his shoulders, "but I didn't have him throw the match. That frustration and breakdown K experienced had to feel real, don't you agree? It sold the whole performance, while serving the added benefit of motivating him to perfect the Shadow Pokemon even more. But back to the main point. By seeing this miracle, what do you think everyone watching that match began to think?"

Valon's lips curled into a wicked smirk.

"Shadow Pokemon aren't that tough, after all! I could do that!"

"Really?" Gerard was a little taken aback by that. "Because I didn't think that way."

"It's not a line of thinking that someone like you could have arrived at," Valon clarified. "Rather, even witnessing my performance, you never questioned your ability to defeat Shadow Pokemon at all, because your own sense of self-worth is overinflated."

"Hey!" Gerard snarled.

"But the point remains, many of those trainers in the audience believe that they're 'special', that they're not like everyone else. It's the core of humanity, to want to stand out and be perceived as different. Just like you, am I right?" Valon asked, his eyes seeing Gerard perfectly. Gerard nodded, and averted his eyes.

"Yeah, that's… but I'm not like them, even I can defeat Dokukage!"

"Exactly the kind of mindset I was hoping to foment. They saw a tough trainer get defeated by Shadow Pokemon, and then an even tougher trainer completely rout a team of Shadow Pokemon. And seeing those two matches in the same night, while giving time between them for the fear of Shadow Pokemon to sink in, thanks to Sylvia's match against Blake, made many of them feel that egoism for themselves. 'Shadow Pokemon are tough, and they can't be beaten my any ordinary trainer. But a trainer with extraordinary ability? They can defeat a Shadow Pokemon!' That sound right?"

"Probably would happen," Gerard agreed. "And what you're saying is that everyone would naturally draw the conclusion that they would be a trainer with extraordinary ability."

"Basically. Their ego that led them to believe in their own abilities enough to get to the level that they're at, they would probably insert themselves into the faceless Dokukage and imagine easily defeating K. It helps that like any good 'protagonist' Dokukage himself is an easy canvas to paint yourself over. So I left them that first night, thinking 'of course I would win, I just need to train a little harder!' And that's where the next day came in."

"Oh?"

"Remember who was the first match of that day," the Phantom reminded him.

"Ian vs. Lana," Gerard remembered. "Oh, so that's how it was."

"Exactly. Ian, my 'special guest', having won over the hearts of many students as a 'champion of the commons', rejecting entry into the Eight Leaders, not a member of any faction, a student who rose to prominence on nothing but his ability and talent. And through that ability, he was able to easily defeat a Shadow Pokemon as well. Once again showing 'Shadow Pokemon aren't infallible. They can lose. I can beat one.' Because everyone wants to be like Ian."

"So you manipulated them into underestimating Shadow Pokemon?" Gerard asked. "Why would you want to do something like that?"

"To build up 'the hero', of course," Valon smiled. "The next match, you won quite easily, as I expected you to. I wanted you there simply for your position. It was the next two matches that really mattered. Raizer vs. Darla, and the Commander vs. Misato. Let's start with Raizer vs. Darla. Definitely an intense match in the first round, wouldn't you agree?"

"Two legends duking it out was pretty impressive, obviously," Gerard said.

"Exactly. That firmly cemented Raizer as 'strong'. He had a reputation already, but something like that? Unbelievable. Which is why I invited Dakota Evans to have a front row seat. A girl like her, so easily manipulated by her desires, the perfect pawn. She recorded that match flawlessly, reporting on everything, building up the tension just as I wanted. Then, I had the Commander fight against Misato. Knowing that Misato would fight her hardest if ordered to win, but expecting the Commander to win, amusing. Either way, it wouldn't have mattered, though. I just needed a strong trainer, one for a thunderous match against Raizer in the next round."

"Why Raizer?" Gerard asked.

Valon smirked. "I thought you of all people would understand."

Gerard shook his head.

"Well, let me frame it in a way that you would understand a little better, then," Valon mused. "In your experience… do people like it, when a trainer relies on a Mythical or Legendary Pokemon for their victories? Do they feel supportive when that happens?"

Gerard froze. He had finally figured it out. That bastard…

"They don't, now do they?" Valon laughed. "'It's not fair! He's only strong because of that legendary pokemon! I could be that strong if I had a legendary!' That's the reaction of people who see legends dominate, and they can't be blamed for it, of course. Legends are simply better than normal pokemon, and it really isn't fair to rely on them. Sure, they'll be excited, they'll support the match and cheer, but within their hearts, part of them will always be saying 'it's not fair, that should be me.' I think that's a pain you know quite well, am I right?"

Gerard glowered at him.

"So, I set things up perfectly so that there would be three matches in the quarter-finals. I knew of course that Dokukage would squash Blake like a Bug type, but the first thing I did, after lowering everyone's expectations and inflating their confidence, was completely decimate Alcea Vermeil. I reminded everyone of the fear that Shadow Pokemon hold. Like a magician misdirecting their attention, I had them focusing on how scary Shadow Pokemon are, while at the same time emphasizing that Dokukage was strong, as well as one other person. Do you see the point of the quarter-finals now?"

Gerard ground his teeth together and clenched his hand into a fist. "You used me-!"

"Flawlessly," Valon said, smiling brightly at Gerard. "Ian, who was celebrated as a champion of the people, a trainer who rose up to success on only his ability and defeated a Shadow Pokemon, lost to you, all thanks to that Diancie of yours. When you defeated him with your Diancie's gravity, do you think people were happy for your victory? Or were they thinking 'this isn't fair!' Well? What do you think?"

"So you set me up from the start," Gerard growled.

"After your display of the strength of a legend and how hard it can be to fight one without a legend yourself, people began to think about your defeat of Ayame Toujou, as well, someone who wasn't even in the Battle Course, and yet was still a challenge until you turned things around all with your Diancie. Once more, they began to think 'the only thing this guy has going for him is his Mythical Pokemon! That's not fair!' While at the same time, they remembered Raizer's fight against Darla, and how great that was, because both trainers were at the same level. And then they thought about Raizer vs. Alden. How it wouldn't be fair, for a trainer without a Mythical Pokemon to face off against one that did. In that situation, even though Raizer was using one pokemon to the Commander's six, wouldn't it be natural for people to support the ordinary guy, who got strong with his own abilities?"

"I am strong!" Gerard protested. "Certainly, Diana is a strong pokemon, but it's because of my training that we-"

"Yes, yes, I know," the Phantom sighed, waving his hand dismissively. "But it isn't about what the truth is. It's the perception. You forget, Gerard, people are fundamentally lazy. When they feel insecure, when they feel like their pride is being questioned, they want a scapegoat. Someone who they can say 'see? It wasn't my fault I lost! The game was rigged to begin with!' about. And that scapegoat was your Diancie. They could train for years and never beat you, because you had a Mythical Pokemon and they didn't. And when the Commander defeated a trainer with just the pokemon he trained for himself, then they began to put their hopes with him. Tell themselves 'see? He did it! He didn't have a mythical pokemon, but he did it anyway, because he's strong! And I could be like that!' What do you think?"

Gerard didn't reply. He simply glared.

"And so, we bring things to the semi-finals," Valon continued, shrugging his shoulders in resignation that Gerard would stop playing. "After fooling themselves into thinking that a Shadow Pokemon isn't that hard to defeat if you're a skilled trainer, I had crushed Alcea, one of the most skilled they knew. Now, they were terrified of Shadow Pokemon, and hoping I would lose. So where would they turn their hopes? Dokukage, of course. He was just an ordinary trainer with an ordinary team of pokemon, even if he was one of the Eight Leaders. But then… I arranged for him to drop out. Sending myself into the finals, and firmly establishing myself in the role of 'villain'."

"But… but why would you do that?! I don't understand! And my match against the Commander, that was…"

"Again, same as with the previous match," Valon laughed. "You, who used the strength of a Mythical Pokemon to destroy an ordinary trainer, and the Commander, who conquered a Mythical Pokemon with a team of normal pokemon that anyone might have, who do you think that the audience would root for, between the two of you?"

The answer was obvious. Gerard couldn't believe he had been so blind.

"I see you're getting it now, yes, you were also placed in the role of 'villain' so that when the Commander defeated you, everyone would see him as the hero who defeated the 'unfair' trainer who relied on a Mythical Pokemon. It must have stung, I'm sure, but you played your role quite well."

Gerard lunged forward and grabbed Valon by the collar, lifting him up into the air.

"You bastard! You used me as a pawn, and then threw me away! Made me believe I could win, and then you-!"

"Calm down," Valon smirked. "I haven't even gotten to the best part. Don't you want to hear how the story ends?"

Gerard growled, flinging the Phantom back onto the couch. "So what was even the point of that?!" He demanded. "All that work, to build up the Commander as some hero?! And you couldn't even win in the end!"

The Phantom smirked.

"Haven't you been listening? Who do the people root for in their hearts, Gerard?"

"What?" Gerard blinked, confused.

"Who do people, ultimately, want to see emerge successful?" Valon asked, shrugging his shoulders. "It's a simple question, isn't it?"

"That's… I don't…" Gerard wasn't sure what he was getting at.

"I'll tell you this, the person that people don't want to see succeed? The elite. The gifted. People with talent, or status. People that stand above others," Valon explained. "Certainly, as a society, we praise those with talent, those who put in the effort and are rewarded for it, but people's hearts…" Valon tapped his thumb against his chest. "People's hearts are much darker than that."

"So who do you think people root for, then? What was the point of this?" Gerard demanded.

Valon smirked.

"The ordinary people, of course!" He laughed. "People who they look at and say 'he's just like me!' Because it reassures them. If someone ordinary can be a success, then they can look at themselves and think 'I could do that too if I tried, there's no difference between us!' Don't you see? People want a normal guy to win. Not someone like you, who relies on a Mythical Pokemon."

"But I still don't get it!" Gerard protested. "You spent all this time, building up the Commander as this champion of the ordinary people, why would you go so far just to prop up your enemy?!"

Valon smirked. The shine of his eyes actually made Gerard step back for a second.

"This entire tournament… was designed to make people aware of one very important thing. And even though I lost… I believe it might have gotten through. Even if they don't know yet, even if they're presently drunk on the high of the Commander's victory… the seeds of discord have already begun to be sowed."

"What discord are you talking about?" Gerard asked suspiciously.

"It should be obvious, even you've begun to fall for it," Valon cackled. When he saw Gerard's confused expression he sighed. "Fine. Then let me explain why people will ultimately come to support me… but why they'll never support freaks like Elaina Bishop, or you, or even, in the end, the Commander."

What could it be? This secret reasoning that Valon has? What was the point of all this? We'll have to find out!