Michael could hear the shriek from a mile away. He, the Queensbury kids and Addison rushed over towards where the ArcNet News Team had run off to film some content for their channel. Whether they had found something was unclear, as Amber's shriek was not a normal one. The noise had come from the docks, but not directly by the empty and lifeless boats. Somewhere close by, however. Michael came to a stop. He couldn't tell where the trio had run off to. He looked to Addison, but she was rubbing at her head as if she had a headache.

"You okay?"

"I think I've been overusing my link" she told him. "My head is pounding."

"Take a rest, Addy" Michael told his pupil. When she seemed eager to argue, Michael made sure she sat down on one of the posts the boats would be knotted to. "Seriously. You're more important to us when you can think clearly, Addy. Take a minute to collect yourself. I'll find these kids." He called out his Arcanine, the famous Mufasa, who began to sniff around. "What do you got, buddy?"

The Arcanine, like a bloodhound, began to sniff about for where the ArcNet Trio had gone to. He led Michael a few blocks away until he found exactly what Amber had cried out at. A body was crumpled on the ground in the shadows, a gun in his hand and a crumpled manila packet in his hands. Mufasa shriveled his nose at the sight of the pool of blood beneath the dead man.

"Did this guy shoot himself?" Corey cried out.

"But why would he do that?" Amber shrieked.

"Depression is a cruel mistress" Dylan explained. "Maybe he lost everything with all of this warring going on."

Michael studied the man closely. "He looks familiar. Too familiar. Wait a minute." He fell backwards. "It's Archer!"

"Archer killed himself?" Amber gasped. "But why?"

Michael looked Archer over, but there was no way for him to know directly if Claude's chief lieutenant had indeed taken his own life. The gun in his hands and the blood beneath him seemed to make it obvious, but he couldn't tell for sure if this wasn't something more. The only thing that he could confirm now was that Archer was dead. And this was the last thing he wanted. Archer was Claude's second in command the same way Cassius was to Elezar. Now, with him dead, Claude being taken alive was even more important. If they ended this war knowing as much as they did now about any potential plans Mewtwo had, it would be an utter catastrophe. The bloody manila packet was of particular interest to him. But he didn't want to contaminate the crime scene anymore than the kids had already.

"Back away, kids" Michael ordered. "I need to call this one in."

"But what about this?" Corey asked. Michael turned to see a strange looking External Hard Drive in his hand. "I found this by Archer's body."

"It could have some clues on it" Dylan suggested.

Michael was conflicted. "It's evidence. This isn't you finding this after he ran away. This is a crime scene." He shook his head. "I've got to make a call." He stepped a few feet away and got back onto his radio. "Lord Kingston radioing Commander Byron! Uncle Byron, do you read me?"

"Loud and clear, nephew" Byron Kingston's voice spoke up. "What's up?"

"Archer's dead" Michael answered glumly. "We found him with a bullet in his head and a manila folder filled with cash and some external hard drive."

"Was he murdered?"

"That's why I'm differing to you. I can't fully tell. Crime scene investigating isn't my forte, as you well know."

"What about Claude?" his uncle inquired.

"I have to guess Matthew and Ryan are headed there right now to take him into custody." The ground shook violently yet again. This time, however, it was coming from the site of the battles over the water. Claude's gunboats were being sunk at a rapid rate. "But I think I can report Jon and Renee succeeded in sinking the fleet of gunboats." Land and sea were now denied to Claude. All that was left was an aerial escape, which he wasn't likely to be able to use without someone being able to stop him.

"The battle should be over soon, then" Byron exclaimed. "But still no sign of Alison or your sister."

"They'll be found" Michael responded plainly. "I know it."

"Good to know you haven't lost any faith" Byron chuckled on the other line.

"Faith's the only thing I have left to cling to."

"Same for all of us, kid. Leave Archer where you found him and I'll send the police force in to clean it up."

"What about the External Hard Drive?"

"Decipher what's on it if you can" his uncle responded. "That could have very important information on it. Just be careful, Michael. Claude might have one last trick in store for us." With that, Byron ended the transmission to continue leading their forces to victory. With his answer, Michael returned to the kids and Mufasa. "Corey, make sure you analyze that Hard Drive for every little thing it can hide."

Corey saluted him. "Yes sir."

"Should we head back to the Castle, sir?" Amber asked.

Michael shook his head. "Not at the moment. I have no way of ensuring you kids would be safe on your way there."

"We appreciate you looking out for us, sir" Dylan professed. "Don't worry. We'll give you all the best in our reports."

"Just keep writing about the truth, kids" Michael answered, walking from them and back to check on Addison. To his alarm, she had slid off of the post and was rapidly massaging her head. Holly and Tommy were looking over her in worry. He raced over towards Addison, who was letting out quiet yet clearly pained moans.

"Ugh. Ergh!"

"What happened?"

"I don't know" Holly pleaded. "She was fine until a second ago when she went all pale."

Michael knelt down to Addison's side. "Addy. Addy, sweetie. Are you okay?"

"My head is spinning" she spat out. "I see...I see a dead man..."

Michael sighed. "Archer is dead. That's why Amber screamed before."

"No" she responded softly. "I mean...I see a dead old man...Claude is..." Before she could conclude her response, Addison collapsed onto the ground.

"ADDY!" Holly screamed.

"Something is going on" Michael responded. He quickly recalled his Arcanine and called out his Dragonite. "I've got to get her back to the Castle." Michael took Addison up into his arms and looked to Holly. "You're in charge of this group until I get back." He placed Addison onto the back of Rhaegar before urging him upward to fly off into the distance. "Hang in there, Addy. I'll get you the help you need."

"Need...need...boys..."

"You need the boys?"

Addison let out a wince of pain. "Need...boys...stop..."

"Hold on, Addy" Michael said as his Dragonite took off into the air. "We'll be at the Castle sooner than you think." He weaved his way through the skies of Titanio, hoping to avoid any friendly fire coming from the Arcana Police Force or any of his family members and sent Rhaegar headed straight for the castle so they could get her all of the help she could need.

{}

The top floors of the Grand Titanio Hotel were deathly silent as Matthew and Ryan finally reached their heights. For someone who was very protective and often hid in the shadows until the last possible second, Claude did not seem to be too interested in holding this domain to the last man. If anything, he seemed to be welcoming the two into his embrace as if he were a long lost uncle of some kind. The lights flickered about, as if the backup generators for the hotel were trying to kick on, but some sort of electrical interference was preventing them from doing so.

Achilles led the way, sensing each and every room to ensure that Claude wasn't keeping any hostages in the tower to use as colateral in case he needed to make a messy escape. Despite Matthew's Marowak's insistence on slamming down each and every door to see for himself, Achilles continued pressing onward until they came across the previously broken yet refitted doorway to the penthouse of one Piper Pines. He stood firmly in front of the door and waited patiently for Matthew's Pokemon to catch up to the rest of them. The Marowak, his stubbier feet shuffling about, finally stepped in front of the door and blasted it open with one swing of his club.

Piper's Penthouse was completely turned over and ransacked by Claude's men, who stole literally everything of value. Claude himself seemed to have been sampling each of the many varied and expensive bottles of wine Piper had collected over her years as the Queen of Arcana. Her entire home was torn and ripped asunder, with furniture everywhere it shouldn't be, as well as articles of clothing and pictures of the gorgeous maiden scattered everywhere. Ryan clenched his fists in anger as he had to assume some of these men were craving to have the real Piper in their clutches. Fortunately, Michael and Julia were keeping her back at Kingston Castle for her own protection, knowing all too well that Claude would target her as his most prized hostage. Would there be no limits to their insatiable desires?

Though they did not see him at first, Claude was definitely somewhere in this room. Achilles could sense it, and by proxy, so could Ryan. And he was utterly uninterested in the two who would be the ones to capture him and end the war. The elder statesman kept his back to the duo on Piper's outer balcony, sipping from a glass of wine as he oversaw the end of his Arcanan Empire. But what infuriated Ryan more wasn't the fact that he ignored them, but his nonchalance regarding the dissolution of his empire and the callous disregard for the lives he'd no doubt wasted.

"Gentlemen" Claude responded dryly. "I should expect nothing less from you two to have made it all the way here. No doubt still trying to earn the respect and adoration of the people you've failed."

"We're here to stop the people from suffering at your hands, old man!" Matthew fired back. "Where's my mother?"

"How interesting" Claude spoke eloquently. "You could have had her safe and sound six months ago, Matthew. Had you not proven to be a spineless wretch and remained loyal to me. Now, I highly doubt you will ever see her again. Or your cousin Victoria for that matter. I have my top lieutenant collecting those two and bringing them to someplace far away. Somewhere that not even Michael will be able to find them." He took another sip of wine. "You both have been through much since Mirage Island. And I have had to watch it as you flailed about like arrogant toadies to your fellow Kingstons."

"Toadies?" Matthew growled.

"Temper, temper, Matthew. The last thing you'd want is to let your heart think for you. You might do something smart for a change."

"The war is over, Claude" Ryan declared. "Just surrender to us and you'll be given a fair trial."

Claude laughed. "Not if you Kingstons would have anything to say about it." He drank the rest of the wine in his glass before casually tossing it off the balcony and turning to oppose them. "No, I don't think it will come to that, boys. Now, allow me a rebuttal." He snapped his fingers. The doors shut behind the Kingston twins as several goons and their Pokémon surrounded them. "I believe we can come to fair and equitable terms. Terms I promise to abide by so long as I have confirmation from Lady and Lord Kingston that I will be respected."

"You actually think Michael wants to negotiate with you?"

"I expect Michael wants me to suffer the same fate as Cassius Sinclair. But I am certain it will not come to that." He eyed both boys curiously. "Which of you is the more abled negotiator? I would assume Ryan, though Matthew would be a worthless hostage for me to take considering his past."

Several Houndooms, Golbats and Watchogs appeared out of the Poké Balls belonging to Claude's elite thugs. The savage Pokémon let out low growls and snarls as they encircled Matthew, Ryan, Marowak and Achilles.

"I'll let you boys figure out how this will all go" Claude responded, looking up to the roof of the hotel. A rope ladder unfurled next to him and allowed him to clamber up it. "For as you'll see, I have a flight to catch." He climbed up the ladder and disappeared out of sight as the goon Pokémon all attacked at once.

Achilles teleported out of the way in time for Matthew's Marowak to slam his Thick Club into the ground of Piper's Penthouse, leveling the entire apartment and knocking around the Pokémon of Claude's thugs. Achilles reappeared and proceeded to use several rapid fast Vacuum Wave punches to knock aside the Pokémon that had been able to avoid Matthew's earthquake. As the human guards descended upon the boys, Matthew tackled one of them and disarmed him, picking up his nightstick and brandishing it crazily. Ryan dodged and ducked blows, allowing his brother and his Pokemon to do their thing. Achilles used his rapid teleporting to pop in and out of the room, disarming each of the goons enough for Matthew to knock the remainder aside. Matthew rushed outside to try and catch Claude's ladder, but it had dropped the moment the old man had ascended to the roof.

"Damn!"

"We can still catch him" Ryan assured his brother. "Find a way up to the roof."

"What about you?"

Ryan winked. "I've already got mine." He took Achilles arm. His Pokémon eyed him curiously before realizing what his trainer's intent was. Matthew and his Marowak could only watch as Ryan and Achilles locked arms and vanished from in front of them. Ryan's eyes reopened and he found himself on the roof of the Grand Titanio Hotel. Claude was surprised, but not infuriated at this turn of events. "Did you really think you could get away that easily?"

"Kingstons never cease to amaze me" Claude laughed, taking out a Poké Ball from his jacket. "I suppose I have some time to spare with you, boy." From out of Claude's Poké Ball appeared a Tauros. The ferocious Bull Pokémon charged at Achilles, who slammed at him with a brutally strong Psycho Cut, the two mighty Pokémon clashing with all of their might above the ruins of Claude's self-proclaimed dynasty. Achilles did his best to hold off the raging Tauros, but ultimately fell backwards and launched the Pokémon over himself and against the sole doorway that led to the roof. The Tauros recovered, dug his hoofs into the roof and charged again. Achilles rushed forward to engage him, slamming him backwards again despite being gored in the stomach by the blow.

Though Ryan was rooting with all of his might for Achilles to win, Claude could not seem less interested in the match if he tried. It only made Ryan's anger with the whole situation continue to boil inside of him, as Claude's own Pokémon was being beaten about wildly and he seemed more interested in the horizon for some reason.

Achilles was struck hard by a Horn Attack, but held his ground and casually tossed the Tauros aside, only for Matthew's Marowak to slam the Tauros in the head with it's Thick Club and join in on the match. Matthew himself made it up not much soon after his Pokemon and stood his ground, eager to join in on the battle. Claude recalled his Tauros and sent out two additional Pokémon: a Shiftry and a Golurk. While Achilles struggled to face the Golurk, who simply phased in and out of existence enough to prevent taking damage from his attacks, Matthew's Marowak went doggedly at battling the Shiftry despite serious type disadvantage he was against.

The Golurk lifted his two hands and slammed them hard into the roof, causing the entire building to shake wildly. The Shiftry struck hard at the Marowak with a ruthless Seed Bomb, causing the Marowak and his trainer to begin to slide as the roof of the building came apart. The roof split in half from the Golurk's attack and split Matthew and his weakened Pokémon from Ryan, Achilles, Claude and his Pokémon. Achilles took advantage of the dais in the battle and slammed the Shiftry with a Close Combat and made the Shiftry faint.

The doorway opened casually as Davis shuffled his way up to the roof and gulped at the sight of the battle. Nevertheless, he rushed over to Claude's side and hid behind him as Achilles and the Golurk prepared to clash once more.

"I would very much like to see a demonstration of the power of Arcana's so-called Champion" Claude cackled. "That is, if he still has it in him."

Ryan ground his teeth. "Oh I assure you, I still have it in me."

"I have to ask" Claude snidely replied. "After all, it's been quite a while since you had your best Pokemon abandon you."

Achilles struck hard at the Golurk, who once more phased out of existence from the blow. Ryan could tell that his Pokemon was getting as angry as he was and thus losing his focus. He realized that defeating Claude would have to mean them overcoming his own inner rage. He took a deep breath to try and let it all out of him, but this was stopped when a wickedly strong Shadow Punch struck Achilles in the head and sent him to a knee. Ryan rushed to aid his Pokemon, but the Golurk sent out an Ominous Wind that launched him backwards several feet. As he landed hard, he looked behind him to see Matthew and his Marowak scrambling to get back up and onto the roof. The Marowak succeeded by flipping himself up and onto the roof with the help of his Club, but Matthew was struggling to pull himself up. Matthew eyed his Marowak and the Pokemon hurried to fight alongside Achilles while Ryan reached for his brother and pulled him up and over the ledge.

"Ah, brotherly love" Claude mocked. "It makes one weaker than they'd want to be."

Before Ryan could understand what Claude meant, Matthew pushed him down and was struck hard in the head by a blow from the Golurk, fainting almost immediately. As Matthew was ragdolled to the floor, Ryan rose to confront Claude, nothing now holding him back. Achilles recovered and tapped into his own inner reservoir of rage. To both his and Ryan's surprise, he had learned a new move completely on his own.

I have learned a new move. But I'm not supposed to learn this move through natural means.

"Can it beat that Golurk?" Ryan asked.

I believe so, but-

"Then use it!"

Achilles nodded and turned to face the Golurk before vanishing into thin air. Before either his trainer or Claude could react, Achilles reappeared, having struck with all of his might at the Golurk, piercing it in the head with a tremendously powerful Shadow Claw attack. Gathering all of the dark power in his body and mind, the normally tame Psychic and Fighting Type unveiled a devastatingly strong Ghost Type move that landed with such force on the Golurk that it crumpled to the ground without much of a fight.

Claude was petrified. "How the-"

"Did that Pokémon just-" Davis interjected.

Ryan turned to face Claude, who now finally seemed to be giving him his full and undivided attention. "Now, let's try this again. It's over Claude. Surrender now and I might be able to promise you a fair trial."

Claude's answer was unable to be heard when a loud and bombastic helicopter sound rushed around them. Ryan turned to see a Helicopter flying just overhead and throwing out another rope ladder for Claude to climb up. Claude grabbed it and grinned at the boy, giving him a mocking salute before he began to climb up to his freedom.

Ryan seethed with anger, but was surprised when Achilles seemed to answer his rage and teleported to the top of the Helicopter and angrily used Psycho Cut to slice through the spinning blades of the helicopter, causing it to fall out of the sky and plummet towards the ground below. Claude's foot was caught in the ladder and he was nearly dragged along with it until the rope snapped in two and the old man slid against the roof of the hotel until slamming hard into a small wall that overlooked the rest of the city. Ryan and Achilles stood with great pride as the chopper continued to descend into the grounds of the city until crashing and exploding into a ball of fire that now pinned Claude and his secretary precisely where Ryan wanted him.

"That was our only escape route" Davis panicked.

"What the blazes did you think you were doing with that stunt, boy?" Claude reprimanded.

Ryan moved quickly towards the old man, pushing the secretary to the ground before grabbing Claude by the scruff of his jacket and holding him in place near the edge of the roof. "Now, we're doing this my way, old man! You're going to answer my questions and I might decide to keep you safe or not depending on how useful an answer you give me!"

Claude simply shook his head. "You really think this phony intimidation tactic will scare me?"

"For six months we've chased you all around Arcana" Ryan continued, ignoring Claude's attempt to call a bluff. "For six months, I've had to watch as people I know and care about suffered at your hands. And for six months, I had to wait for the answers you should have been giving us from the beginning!" Davis tried to intervene on Claude's behalf, but Ryan angrily kicked him aside. "And now, you're going to answer my questions!"

"And what do I have to gain from this?" Claude smirked. "I know you, Kingstons. You're so easy to predict. Even someone as menial as your brother. You will never harm me or let harm come to me. James wouldn't have let hate pass on into his grandchildren. And Michael wouldn't let his pupils follow paths of hate."

"You seem to forget that Michael was the one who killed Cassius" Ryan reminded his captive. "As for Grandpa, I never got to meet him thanks to you and Mewtwo feeding lies into Elezar's head. Stop pretending you have all of this calculated, Claude! Because you don't! There is no secret plan to get out of this! You are going to answer for all of the crimes you've committed in Arcana. For starting a war, for aiding in murder, for kidnapping, extortion and all the rest of the deeds you and your flunkies did!"

Claude threw his head back and laughed. "One of the things you fail to realize, my boy, is that I always have plans and strategies to get myself in and out of any situation. Even the fate you think I'll endure will be significantly less than you believe it will be. I will do what I have to to ensure I make it to the end, while you will wonder how you've failed once again to put me away." He pushed Ryan off of him and smiled coldly. "The thing you Kingstons fail to comprehend is that you equate being on the 'winning' side with being on the right side. I could tell you stories of your grandfather that would make your hairs on the back of your head stand up. I could probably even relate stories of your Great Grandfather and the things he got up to. You Kingstons are corrupt and vile! And even if I am defeated today, someone else will put you in your place and make Arcana free again."

Ryan did his best to keep himself calm. "I can't answer for anything my grandfather or his father did. But I can assure you that you're wrong about the rest of us. We all do everything we can to help other people."

"Do not speak for others in your family, boy. I've seen enough of them to know they aren't as altruistic as you think they are. Even the ones you think are the most selfless have selfish and ambitious sides to them. Even your precious Michael."

Ryan shook his head in frustration. "Fine. Whatever. If you don't want to listen, you don't have to. But you do have to answer my questions!"

"I don't have to do anything!"

Ryan grabbed Claude by the scruff of his jacket again and pushed him over to the edge of the roof. "Care to try that again?"

"You wouldn't kill me" Claude scoffed. "You don't have it in you. Even Michael didn't when he killed Cassius. He let some freak power consume him."

Ryan pushed Claude closer to the edge. "Where are they? Where are my cousin and my mother? Where are my Pokémon? Where are the world's Pokémon? And when will I get them back?"

Claude eyed him in confusion. "Get them back? Do you really think that's how the world works?"

"I'm beginning to lose my patience, Claude" Ryan threatened.

"The Grand Master separated you and your Pokémon" Claude responded. "He did so by whispering into their hearts and reminding them of their freedom and of the abuses they suffered at your hands. Do not try to make me feel responsible for your own shortcomings as a trainer and those of the others around the world. You still have that Gallade of yours. Perhaps you should ask him why he remained behind. Perhaps he pitied you as a miserable wretch without him?"

"I know what lies Mewtwo told my Pokémon" Ryan snarled. "What I want to know is how I can make those lies get undone?"

Claude laughed. "I do no know, nor do I care, what fate befalls you and your Pokémon. That is something you should take up with The Grand Master when he so chooses to reappear in Arcana."

Ryan was apoplectic. "You mean-"

"You followed me for six months and I have nothing to say to you" the old man responded. "Nothing that will alleviate the ache in your heart, at least." Claude then smirked again. "Wait. It's coming back to me. The Grand Master told me to tell you how worthless your Pokémon think you are. And that his only regret is that when he returns to finish the job, they won't get to see your failures in person." He let out a low snicker before it devolved into a wicked cackle as Ryan turned away from him. "You, like your grandfather before you, are little more than a failure to all of Arcana!"

Ryan was doing everything in his body to hold back tears. All that he had been fighting for over the last six months had amounted to nothing. All that he had lost and endured. All of the friends and family that had been put in danger. He would never see them again. He would never get to have Terra or Simba give their all for him. Nor would he see Marahute or Sparks and get to show how much he loved them. He would never see Tusker, Dozer or Cora again either. Addy would never see Ariel or Buzz. Matthew would never see his Charizard or Primeape again. Even their friends on Mirage Island might be lost forever to them. He was blind, deaf and senseless to everything around him apart from Claude. To see the old man laughing at him and mocking him only made his feelings of hate grow. The rage he had felt inside of him now exploded in a rush of complete fury that he hadn't felt since Archer had mocked him about Addison's capture two years earlier. All he saw in front of him was red.

{}

Matthew was slow to recover from the blow he had sustained, but he was soon pushing himself back up and onto his feet a few moments after being slammed by the Golurk. His Marowak was beside him, pushing him up to his rear end. But while Matthew was hoping to recover slowly and get to his cousin Jenna for some healing treatments, his Pokémon was urging him to get up. Matthew groggily looked around for what his Pokémon was worried about, until he saw with his own eyes the look of utter contempt on his brother's face. He pushed himself up as Ryan rushed towards Claude, who's face went from contempt and mockery, to confusion, to utter terror.

"RYAN!" Matthew cried out. "WAIT!"

Ryan kicked Claude with all his strength. The old man buckled against the small wall he had been pinned against before his body flipped over the edge and Claude fell over the roof and into the abyss of fire and destruction below. Claude let out one shocked gasp before falling over the side, unable to process that his end had come for him so quickly.

Matthew skidded to a stop as he realized he was too late to stop his brother. Claude was dead. And his brother was infuriated with everyone and everything around him. He could only watch as Ryan's face of contorted anger shifted and his brother fell to his knee, as if some dark presence had left his mind. Ryan took a deep breath before slumping to the ground and collapsing. Matthew made his way over towards Ryan to check on him, as Claude's petrified secretary hid nearby, eyeing the situation in shock.

"Lord Jacques is dead?"

Matthew rolled his eyes. "Of course he's dead, you idiot. Now, go downstairs and surrender yourself to whichever Kingston finds you first. I'd pray for Byron Kingston if I were you so he'd feel merciful." As he watched the jittery man skitter his way up and down the steps, Matthew then reached into his pocket for his Poké Gear. Before he could dial anything out, he saw Achilles kneel beside his trainer, though he too had a sense of rage brimming inside of him as well. With no help coming from his brother's Pokémon, Matthew knew he had to dial out to someone. He tried and failed to reach Michael or Addison, which troubled him a bit. After trying to reach them again and failing, he knew he needed to make it to someone up on the command structure. There was only one man who mattered if Michael was unreachable. After a moment of waiting, Robert Kingston answered the call.

"Matt?"

"Father" Matthew replied. "We've got a problem."

"You should be reporting to your Uncle Byron, son" Robert encouraged him.

"Ryan's down, Dad."

Robert was silent on the other line. "What do you mean? What happened?"

Matthew was reluctant to spill the whole story, but he knew it would get out eventually. "We tracked Claude to the Grand Titanio Hotel. I got hit by one of Claude's Pokemon, but when I woke up, Ryan-he-he kicked Claude over the edge. Claude is dead. Now, Ryan collapsed. What do I do, Dad?"

Robert was silent on the other end. "We have to get this through to Michael. This is bad. Where are you guys now?"

"On top of the Hotel."

"Stay there" Robert told his son. "I'll have your Uncle come and collect you two for medical treatments. After that, I can't be sure what will happen. Just keep things on the down low until you hear from Michael."

"Got it." Matthew ended the call with his father and sat with his brother, wondering just how they were going to get around this. Ryan was shaking, as if he had a fever he was fighting through. Achilles was feeling the same thing, prompting Matthew to realize something about this was getting worse than he could have thought. Damnit, Addy. Why didn't you answer?

{}

Michael gently lowered Addison into one of the beds in Kingston Castle's infirmary, his worry over the girl somewhat alleviated knowing she was safe and secured in the castle. She had stopped groaning in pain halfway on their flight to the castle, but only because she had fainted. With her status currently unknown, he had called for his family's head nurse, April, to oversee her conditions and had also had Gerard go in search of the girl's mother, his old friend Deidre, so that she could be here for her daughter. So far, though, no one had answered his demands.

Addison slowly stirred in bed and looked up at him. "Where...where am I?"

"I brought you to Kingston Castle" Michael told her gently. "You were having a migraine out there."

Addison rubbed her head. "I...I don't even remember that. I remember we found something by the docks, but then it's all blank."

"So you don't remember what you told me? About the dead old man you saw in your head?"

She shook her head. "No."

"I think you've been relying too much on Galatea, Addy" Michael responded. "Remember, Addy. We're only human. We don't have the mental capabilities that our Pokémon have, especially our Psychic types." He wiped sweat off of his face and sighed. "At least you're here. Now, we can get your mother to look after you."

Addison looked at him as if he had three heads. "My mother? I haven't seen her in weeks."

"Well, now you'll get to."

"But she's not here" Addison answered, rubbing her head. "She left weeks ago."

Michael was taken aback. "Your mother left you here? That doesn't sound like Dee at all."

Addison frowned. "I miss her."

"Don't worry Addy" he assured her. "I'll straighten this whole thing out. You need to get some rest, though." He turned to leave. "I'll be back before night to check on you. I've got to get back to Titanio." He made for the entrance to the infirmary and watched as April entered with a moving table full of medications and things to check up on her new patient. Michael let her do as she did and exited. The halls of Kingston Castle were surprisingly barren for them having so many guests living there at once. No sign of any of the people who helped give life to it. No Rui, no Deidre, no Piper and no sign of his wife or Annie Tress for that matter.

When was the last time I saw Julia or the kids? He had been on the front lines for several weeks, much to Julia's dismay. With the war hopefully coming to an end, he knew he would be able to see his wife and children again soon enough. But a part of him feared that all of this would change the kind of father he had always wanted to be to James and Arya. Julia was already unhappy that he had gone back out into the fight, but she knew what she was signing up for by marrying him. He was a warrior, not a statesman. He needed to be out there to protect what he loved. It was just who he was.

"Forgive me, Sir" a voice spoke up. Michael turned to face Gerard, who was red-puffed in the face and had a look of extreme concern on his face. "I've searched the grounds up and down, but there is no sign of Lady Tenton anywhere."

"That means Addison was right" Michael responded, but shook off his confusion and frustration. "Tell Julia I'm headed back to Titanio City. I'll be back after dark."

"Consider it done, sir" his butler replied, before Michael was hurrying down the steps towards the castle foyer. He paused when he saw his in-law and beloved prodigal sister Piper sitting on the steps and combing her hair wistfully. She spotted him and seemed surprised to see him there. She rose up as if she meant to leap into his arms as she always did, but Michael did his best to rein her in. "Piper, have you seen Deidre anywhere?"

"Dee?" Piper asked in confusion. "Isn't she over in Alchemiburg?"

Michael cursed underneath his breath. "You've got to be kidding me?"

Piper made a disgruntled face. "Oh, you didn't know?"

"It seems that Deidre forgot that she's a mother first above all else" he snapped. "But who better to teach her how to be a terrible mother than my own?" He eyed Piper and let out a more polite and content sigh. "Pipe, could you do me a favor? Addy had a bit of an accident before and could use someone looking after her. Julia and Annie seem busy in the Study and with Dee going AWOL, I only have you to look towards."

Piper smiled and kissed him on the cheek. "Done deal. I'll keep an eye on her. You go out and do what you've got to do."

Michael thanked her graciously and rushed out into the courtyard of Kingston Castle. Before he could even call out Rhaegar for another flight, his Poké Gear was assailed by a series of calls and messages. Some were from Matthew, others were from Cameron and Jon. But his most recent ones were from Byron Kingston. His uncle and commanding officer had to take precedence. He picked up his Uncle's call. "Talk to me."

"Is Addison alright?" his Uncle asked.

"She's going to be" he responded. "I just need to head to Alchemiburg to pick up her mother."

"We need you here, first" Byron insisted. "We've got tons of things to figure out here. We've captured Claude's secretary. And both your cousins are injured."

"Matt and Ryan?"

"What Matthew said troubles me. We can't confirm it yet, due to a massive fire in that part of the city. But he said that Ryan killed Claude in a fit of rage. I think the boy took a serious blow to the head. Jenna is taking care of them both, but he keeps insisting on what he saw. We need you here to sort it all out."

Michael massaged his head delicately. "Any news about Tori or Aunt Alison?"

"The only person we have available to interrogate them is Billy" Byron warned. "And I don't want to risk losing another valuable prisoner of war."

"I understand. Hold the fort down until I get there. Tell Jenna and Billy to meet me by the medical camps. Have someone bring Holly and Thomas Queensbury there as well. They might be able to help sort things out." He then ended the call and called out Rhaegar. His Dragonite looked to him and let out a low growl of concern. Michael pet his Dragonite on his head and nodded. "We've got a long way to go before we can rest again, bud." A lot more.