What a day. First mission was a bust because of some stupid kid. I had a feeling that geek from the museum was holding out on something, but I couldn't be sure, so I passed it off. In retrospect, I should have told Petrel something about it, maybe then the mission wouldn't have been a complete and utter failure. I walked down to the elevator after Petrel told me to go meet with the boss. I walked into his office and saluted him like a soldier with his C.O. and said, "Grunt Caelan, sir!"

Giovanni chuckled lightly saying, "There's no need for such formalities Caelan. Come up to the desk." When I walked up to the desk, I saw a red haired woman in a white dress with the red R logo on the front of her shoulder. She must have been an Executive based on the uniform. Giovanni continued on, "Now, I understand the mission at Mt. Moon was a complete failure. Now, taking into account that Petrel is the weakest of my sorry bunch of Admins, and the fact that everyone there was a complete and utter rookie, I shouldn't be surprised. But still, it boggles the mind to think how a preteen twit can beat an entire squad of fully grown adults, and take the spoils right under their fucking noses!"

I growled lightly, clenching my fist saying, "Indeed. And what really bugs me is where those kids got their Pokemon. The kid that beat most of the grunts, they said he had a Wartotle, and the kid I fought had a Charmeleon. Those types of Pokemon, you can't just go out and catch them, they're incredibly rare, and dangerously strong."

Giovanni nodded, "You're right, licensed Pokemon trainers are nothing new, but with war grade Pokemon, that's a different story. Now, Petrel told me you got a look at the kid, tell me everything you can remember about him."

I started describing the kid, "Red eyes, black hair, ten or eleven years old. He wore a white tee-shirt, red vest, blue denim jeans, and a red hat, one of those stupid official Pokemon League things. Only Pokemon he used against me was that Charmeleon, but he had five more Poke Balls on his belt. He didn't say a single word, in a real creepy way."

Giovanni said something to himself that I couldn't hear, and then said out loud, "Well, I'll have a profile made of these two kids, especially the kid you fought. I'll make sure they never mess with Team Rocket's affairs again."

One of the grunts that was outside Giovanni's office door came in and told us, "Sir, Gym Leader Blaine is here for you."

Giovanni looked at the other grunt and replied, "Send him in. Caelan, you can stay if you'd like. Actually, I'd like you to. Step aside for a moment."

I stepped to the side and saw a bald man in a white coat with a white mustache come in and say to Giovanni, "I assume you know why I'm here Giovanni, and knowing you, you want to hear it from me directly. I can't keep producing Porygon for you. Fuji's in a fit over what you guys have been doing in Lavender, and honestly... if what he's saying you're doing is true, I can't say I blame him for his fit. You know I'll always support what you do here, but you also know that Porygon's source code is copyrighted by Silph. If I get caught producing them, it's all over for me. I support you, but I'm not risking my job as a Gym Leader for Team Rocket."

I asked Giovanni, "Boss, permission to call bullshit on Gym Leader Blaine?"

Giovanni raised an eyebrow at me and asked, "On what grounds?"

I replied by explaining, "On the grounds that the leader of Team Rocket is the Viridian City Gym Leader, or so I've heard."

Giovanni smiled lightly and said, "He holds a fair point Blaine, wouldn't you agree Ariana?"

The red-headed woman standing next to me nodded saying, "Certainly, if Giovanni is willing to risk his position as a Gym Leader, what right does Blaine have to refuse to risk his?"

Blaine sighed and said, "There's a big difference between the two of us Giovanni. Nobody knows you're a Gym Leader besides your people and the other Gym Leaders that support you."

I shrugged and replied, "Hate to say it, but he's got a point. You can't risk a position that nobody knows you hold."

Giovanni sighed saying, "Point taken Blaine, but still, the Game Corner is important for Team Rocket's revenue. People just won't gamble if they don't have the motivation, and where else do you think we should get our Porygon, the Celadon Department Store? There's only a handful of people who know how to produce Porygon, let alone willing to help us distribute them illegally."

Blaine thought for a moment before sighing, "Well, I know it's not easy to admit, but it's been over a decade. Maybe you can talk to Oak and-"

Giovanni angrily interrupted him, "No! I'll never work with that filthy traitor, and you should know better than to suggest that!"

Blaine sighed again saying, "Fine, forget I said it. In that case, maybe Bill will do. He's a smart kid, and I bet anything he snagged a copy of Porygon's source code back in the day."

Giovanni grumbled and sighed before saying, "I'll admit, Bill's smart, but he's fickle and a smartass, and I don't like him. Plus, he demands extravagant fees for his services. But... seeing as he's our only option, I suppose he'll have to do. Fine Blaine, I'll let you off the hook, for old time's sake. But I expect you'll be back when this whole Fuji thing blows over. If not... well, don't expect anything good."

Blaine nodded before heading out saying, "Good luck Giovanni."

Giovanni sighed and said to me, "Caelan, front and center." I stood in front of the desk again and Giovanni continued, "I'm giving you your next mission. You'll be going to see Bill. He lives out on Cerulean Cape, his house isn't hard to miss. Go to the Day Care Center south of Cerulean, we have a base there. You'll pick up the goods that we'll use to try to persuade Bill into making Porygon for the Game Corner."

I nodded saying, "Understood sir. Permission to ask you something on a personal level? In private if I may be so bold?"

Giovanni nodded and looked to Ariana saying, "Leave us be for a moment." As Ariana left, he said, "Go ahead."

I explained, "I used to be the Mask of Ice, but I gave up the identity four years ago, police never connected the dots between the real me and the Mask. Given your permission, I'd like to collect some Ice types to reclaim my former identity. If granted, the Mask of Ice shall be a loyal Team Rocket member."

Giovanni seemed surprised that I was the Mask of Ice and said, "I'll agree to it, if you continue to perform satisfactorily. Finish the mission with Bill, and while you're doing that, I'll see what I can do about getting some Ice types. The Mask of Ice was a notorious figure, but as far as people believe, he was just a myth, so I'd be willing to let you perform as your old identity if you continue a good performance."

I nodded saying, "Understood sir. I'll be off to my next assignment then." and headed out of the office.

As I headed out, Ariana stopped me for a moment, telling me, "You remind me of somebody... What did you say your name was?" I told her my name and for a second, I thought I saw her hide a smile, but she said, "Caelan Blake... Well Caelan, Giovanni sees potential in you, as do I. You should rise through the ranks quickly if you perform with your true potential. Good luck."

Meanwhile...

Giovanni looked to Ariana and asked, "Why did you stop him just now?"

Ariana sighed, "He just... he reminds me of him... our first boy."

Giovanni's eyes widened and said, "That's impossible... He couldn't possibly be... Hmm... keep an eye on him and see what you can dig up about his past."

Ariana nodded saying, "Yes Giovanni."

Back to Caelan...

The only way for me to get from Celadon to Cerulean was to head through Saffron. As I walked through the gate to Saffron, I was stopped by a guard who told me, "Sorry, the road's about to close, so I'm not supposed to let anyone through." I glared at him until he smirked, "Well, I wouldn't dare disobey orders, but mistakes happen now and then. I've got a bit of a hole in my pocket the size of a 200 bill." I handed over a 200 bill and he smiled saying, "Well, that's strange, I thought I saw somebody going through, but it must have been my imagination. Funny how your mind plays tricks on you, I think this little defect might spread to the other guards."

I chuckled and said, "Pleasure doing business." before heading through Saffron and up towards Cerulean and made my way to the Day Care Center.

I saw a kid leaving his Nidoran with the Day Care Man, who said to me when he saw me, "Oh, another grunt eh? Follow me downstairs." He walked to the corner of the room and picked up a tile from the floor, revealing a hidden stairway. I followed him down the stairs and into the base Giovanni told me about. The Day Care Man said to a man in a white suit with blue hair, "Sir, fresh meat for you. In more ways than one."

The man turned around and looked at the Nidoran before saying, "A male Nidoran? Well, it may be cute, but it's certainly not any use for physical labor, now is it? Then again... they're useful in breeding, aren't they? Get it in the pens. And see if it can get close to that Cubone, we need more Cubone eggs." As the Day Care Man left, the man said to me, "You must be Caelan. My name is Archer. Welcome to Cerulean, the town of sparkling clear water, or whatever the hell it is. You're here to get the goods for Bill? Personally, if it were me, I'd take the offer on the spot if I was being offered this stuff. But I've heard Bill can be very picky. Go pick up the goods and head north of the city across the bridge and towards Cerulean Cape, you'll find Bill's house out there."

I nodded and got the parcel from another grunt and headed up through Cerulean. Along the way, there were more meddlesome trainers. I stole from the ones I could steal from, and ignored the ones I couldn't. By the time I got to Bill's house, I had a party consisting of my Ratatta, as well as a Sandshrew, Nidorino, Slowpoke, Mankey, and to my extreme surprise, a Charmander. The Charmander's trainer had actually given him to me because he believed he wasn't a good enough trainer. I'm not one to look a gift Ponyta in the mouth, so I told him I'd take care of it, even though I spent most of my criminal career using Ice types.

As I walked into Bill's house and talked to him, he shrugged me off. But I wasn't going to fail another mission. Eventually, he sighed saying, "What's the job?" I explained the situation with Porygon and he said, "Yeah, I know how to make them. Let's see what they gave you to persuade me." he looked in the parcel and grumbled, "Dammit Giovanni, why do you treat me like I'm an amateur collector, a Shiny Magikarp, really? Whatever... oh? Hmm... that's a respectable pay grade, but he damn well knows I could make that much at Silph." he looked at me and said, "Tell him we've got a deal, but under some conditions. Team Rocket sends me a regular sample of rare Pokemon. I honestly don't care how you obtain them, and I'd probably be better off not knowing. I know Team Rocket has spies in Silph, and I want any and all updates on Silph inventions. Other than that, Giovanni's offer is good."

I tipped my hat saying, "Pleasure doing business with you Bill."

Before I left, Bill stopped me saying, "Hold on. I have one more condition for the agreement, but this one is between you and me. Here, take this." he handed me a cell phone and continued to explain, "I want you to be my Team Rocket contact. If you guys find out anything, or have something important to tell me, I want you to be the one telling me. That's all."

I walked back towards the Day Care base, and told Archer, "Mission was a compete success sir, Bill agreed to the boss's offer, with a few extra conditions. He wants regular samples of rare Pokemon, as well as updates from spies in Silph."

Archer smiled saying, "I figured he'd give us some conditions, and those are completely acceptable. But right now, we've got a problem. One of our rookie grunts blew a burglary, and it's all over the news. Lance... that son of a Granbull... he's acting like this is the first he's heard of our operations. He may claim his special forces are immune from corruption, but there's no cop in all of Kanto who won't accept a bribe. Anyway, I've got another mission for you. We're sending you to Vermillion to help take care of a smuggling deal. The admin you'll be in cohorts with is a bit of a downer, but he's easy to work with. We agreed to deliver high grade vitamins to Lt. Surge in exchange for smuggling in some rare Johto Pokemon. It's not really as surprising as you think. Surge always goes on about his time as a Lieutenant in the Kanto-Johto War, he's a true Kanto patriot, so it's not surprising that he's a Rocket supporter. Get the vitamins and head out."

I nodded and said, "Yes sir." Just another day in the life of a Rocket