Chapter 70: Beyond the veil of delusions.

Late evening

Castelia City

Police headquarters

Clang!

The sound of a metallic drawer being shut rung discordantly in the quiet room.

Tap, tap

Tap...Tap tap tap.

Slender fingers flew over keys and made a small noise.

Clang...Clang!

Blue shut the drawers with more force than necessary. Shaking her head at Silver who turned to look at her with mild concern, she closed another metallic drawer and let the harsh ring echo in her ears. The woman nodded, platinum silver hair cascading down her face and pointed to the window. She did not find the files they were looking for and now wanted to move to the next floor. Shutting down the computer, Silver and Blue made their way with practiced ease and clambered out of the building. The duo climbed on an inflated jigglypuff and lazily floated upwards. Eight floors down, police cars flooded the foyer as people attempted to make sense of how the Headquarters suddenly blacked out. Intruders ran rampant in the buildings and the entrance to the stairs and the elevators were sealed shut with a sheer sheet of ice. A kingdra patrolled beyond the translucent block of barrier and glared at them hatefully. The water dragon blew drafts of gelid winds which rolled into the foyer and reduced the personnel into shivering masses. On spying another creature looming beyond the fearsome dragon, the police felt their courage crumble and their hearts' skipped beats. The Dex Criminals were well known for collecting legendary pokemon but who guessed that they would one day command Giratina to battle? The ghost type legendary stood as a sentry, its grotesquely majestic form warped by the sheet of ice.

Kingdra snorted on seeing the weak willed humans with their flimsy blow torches and feeble fire types. They should be scared of her; the dragon proudly thought...Not that sham of a Giratina. Locking eyes with pseudo legendary's beady eyes, it spat a water gun and the transformed ditto quivered ever so slightly.

It didn't sign up for this.

On the ninth floor, the two thieves worked silently. Like clockwork, they entered a chamber by laser cutting a window and letting the pane crash into the street below. Once inside, the duo split, the male headed for the computers whilst the female walked down the rows of file cabinets and searched for the one marked R. Viciously tugging a metallic drawer open, her fingers rifled through several files and folders. As her quest became more urgent, her concentration slipped. Not finding the piece of information she sought, Blue angrily shut the drawers with a bang and once again, Silver eyed her with mild concern. She shrugged at him, her form disheveled underneath the strip of emergency lighting. The struggling daylight shone through the tinted glass and threw spooky shadows across the tiled floor. With one hand flying over the keyboard, the disguised red head dug his other fingers in a pocket and retrieved a stack of calling cards. He generously threw them all over; not caring of some fell on his head. A warning beep from the computer ensnared his attention and he momentarily stopped in order to read the message. It had him grinning victoriously. The machine required a pass-code in order for the user to access the contents of the archives. Silver stuck a flash drive in a port, he sent one of Emerald's viruses and tore the cyber security apart. At last, the files became accessible and he beckoned his sister on finding a document related to Red's case.

Blue found her breath stilling. She did not want to get her hopes up...However, it would be nice to have some results after their fruitless searching.

The document opened up with several photos of a lilac, spiky haired boy. One showed him wearing a school uniform, a waist pack looped loosely around his waist. The other image depicted him in trainer garb, eyes solemn and chin tucked into an oversized collar. A few others showed snapshots of his pokemon and the final image had Constellate's leader gasping softly. Hugh, as the photo caption supplied, was bound in a wheel chair, wearing a hospital gown which hung off his skeletal form. His eyes, formerly sparks of ruby fire, dulled into lifeless irises. A neck brace propped his chin upright and atop his head, he wore some sort of stark white helmet. Silver scrolled down the document and quickly scanned its contents, it read:

Hugh, a Pokedex holder nominee, had his brilliant status put on hold after two other candidates were kidnapped from Aspertia Training school. The two children, Lack-2 (undercover officer posing as a student) and Whi-2 (Hugh's neighbour) were his best friends and after their disappearance, he showed an increasing tendency to truancy and petty crime. His parents reported him missing from home on several occasions and he was found all over Unova, sleeping on the streets, pick-pocketing and outright stealing in order to stay alive. The boy claimed to search for his friends and always kept photographs of the two teenagers with him. Several attempts to rehabilitate him and sessions with a psychologist did more harm than good. In a turn of events, spurred on by a member of the Elite Four of the Unova league, Grimsley; they boy stopped his delinquency and focused on challenging the Biennial Unova league. He became an instant favourite of the public due to a passionate display of his battling skills and sheer desire to win. After completing the gym circuits, he signed up for the league and managed to win the knockout round and was thus one of the four finalists. Unfortunately around this time, the league suffered a pincer attack from two criminal organizations, the Dex-Criminals and Team Plasma (for more information pertaining to this incident, see the file marked Damages). Here, he had the disastrous fortune of running into the ring leader of the Dex-Criminals' organization, an individual named Red (formerly the champion of Kanto) and his former best friend Whi-2. Psychologists debate on his motive for taking on the criminal; these vary from pride, personal safety, fear and trying to untangle his best friend from the Organization which kept her hostage. The boy was found in a critical condition. His one leg fractured, he sported several shattered rib bones and some of them pierced into his lung and induced a hemorrhage. He was rushed to emergency care, cleaned up and interrogated via mind dunking (manas dunking). Full report included below:

Silver scrolled downwards and felt his sister's fingers digging into his forearm, so this is how they found out about Red's involvement with the league. The word 'mind dunking' leapt up to the red head and he fervently flipped the digital pages and skimmed over the entire article. Manas dunking, his silver irises honed in on the expression, was used on Hugh in an effort to extract information on his encounter with Red and Whi-2, the boy vehemently refused to offer any details. In a desperate attempt, they used Sabrina, the most capable and famous mind prober amongst government circles, to dive in his conscious and extract his memory. Regrettably things did not go as planned, however the police managed to record his memories of Red's and Hugh's fateful encounter and use that as a strategy to ensnare the corrupt individual. The experience left Hugh's brain in a mess of rewired neural networks. The boy lost his memories of the past six months and his parents have been increasingly worried when he kept on doing the same things over and over again. A visit to the hospital revealed him to be suffering from anterograde amnesia. Hugh will not be able to make new memories.

"And they have the gall to call us criminals..." Blue spat and read the document angrily, "...Silver..." her tone shook, "do you think...do you think they are doing the same thing to Red?" her voice trembled and she clutched his arm painfully, he felt her nails digging through several layers of fabric and pinching against his skin. "What if they are tearing his mind apart? What if he can't remember anything and ends up like the poor boy?" She whispered hysterically and shook her brother.

"Calm down Sis..." he intoned and heard her inhale sharply. "Senior Red is tougher than that...I'm sure the authorities won't want him to be wholly incoherent so they might torture him physically but will go easy on the menta-"

"What do you mean torture him physically?" Blue demanded with a violent edge to her voice and the Johto native wondered why she got angry at him. "What are they going to do him?"

"The heck should I know?!" The male hissed and immediately regretted his spontaneous outburst when his sibling shrunk under his poisoned gaze. "Sorry...I'm just stressed." he mumbled and resumed reading. According to the article, the Pokemon association and the Unovian authorities grouped together and started funding for Hugh's treatment. The boy was flown to Kalos and even Alola in an attempt to restructure his brain through exercises and psychic training. A specialized team from Sinnoh, who claimed success in treating another boy with a similar problem, were employed full time to keep an eye on the lilac haired teen. From last month, Hugh showed remarkable progress, he recalled past events but to prevent a traumatic relapse; his memory is being edited to exclude his quest to become a champion. Whi-2 and Lack-2 were considered to play an integral part in shaping his personality and were thus preserved. In a few weeks, he is predicted to be able to walk without the use of a crutch. His speech is clearing up as well and he retains fifty percent of his memory when given a new task to do. Silver took a moment to peer at his sister, she ogled the monitor with listless eyes and he wondered if Blue still remained mad at him. "Sorry..." he repeated again and felt her vise grip slack to a comfortable one.

"It's my fault...don't worry about it." She fanned her face. "I'm also stressed...Ever since he disappeared I just wait in constant fear that the Police will find us again and take someone else away. I don't know what I'd do then...I suppose I could live if Green or any other person is caught...But if they take you...I'd probably defect from the group and run after you on my own." The azure eyed commander stepped backwards and exhaled in an effort to calm herself. "Green...I wonder how he's faring with Gold. Sometimes, I tend to disregard his feelings because he keeps them hidden, but he must be suffering greatly as well."

"We are all suffering...And you won't be the only one affected if I'm gone sis..." The pale man gently pointed out. "Just think of what Gold and Crys would do." He let his words sink in and saw his adopted sibling ruminate. "In any case, come see this, hopefully it'll cheer you up." He beckoned her back to the monitor and it showed a video clip. Silver pressed the play button and for a moment, the two convicts forgot about the dismal events surrounding their lives and focused on the video in front of them. It showed Hugh, without the neck brace and his eyes marginally brighter than the previous picture. The boy grabbed hold of an ornate wooden cane and heaved himself up from the wheelchair. Smiling brightly, he walked towards the camera and came to a halt some respectable distance away from the lens. Then he began speaking, words slurred horribly over each other to the point one could not understand; the more his spoke, the more clear his speech became till Blue and Silver fully understood his words.

"My name is Hugh" the boy articulated with minimal difficulty and smiled sweetly. "Yesterday, I played with my sister and her pokemon, she became upset because her...purloin scratched me on the cheeks. Today I took a test and I scored fifty percent on it. Mom and Dad are proud of me." He cocked his head to the side and presumably looked at the camera man who motioned him to continue. "I'm getting better...though sometimes I have these huge headaches and my mind goes blank for no reason at all...and people can't understand when I speak." His words tumbled over each other and the next few minutes, the video blacked out and cut to his family standing on either side of him. Hugh carried a cute little girl up in his arms and despite the obvious exertion it put on his limbs, he was determined to hold her. "My recording is done for today...I'm re-tire...reti-er...I'm going to bed now..." he subtly frowned and on trying to walk away, collapsed with his sister still in his arms.

The video ended, Blue sniffed and wiped a tear.

"Copy that...I want Whi-2 to know the truth in case the media feeds her some lies about Hugh giving information to the police willingly. The girl has a right to know that both her best friends are not traitors."

"Will it be wise?" her brother queried but copied the file anyway, Constellate's leader nodded absentmindedly. "I'm done Sis...Let's try our luck with the next floor."

On the ninth floor, the blue eyed female tackled her task with renewed determination. Unlike her previous attempts, in which she simply rifled through the folders, this time, Blue pulled out the individual manila envelopes and read the contents of it. Top secret files, hidden from the public and other regions alike made the woman grin to herself, the Berlitz family would pay hefty sums for these bits of scandalous information . Methodically, she gathered the files and piled them back into the drawers again. She did not want any other information either than where her best friend might be kept. Blue snorted at herself, she was losing her thieving touch. Pulling out another parched brown folder she froze on reading the heading. Emblazoned in stencilled letters, the front of the envelope had the words: Top Secret: Information on the Leader of the Dex-Criminals, Execution's faction, Commander Red; written on it. Time stood still, the faraway sounds of sirens, traffic and helicopters died away as she tore open the seal and spilled the papers out.

"I found it..." she whispered, not quite believing her eyes even though a mug shot of Red stared back at her from the top sheet of the documents. "I found it Silver!" she shrilled louder and her brother abandoned his senseless hacking of the computer and joined her on the cold, tiled floor. Tossing the folder behind her back, she picked up the stack of papers and grimaced on seeing them. "Ugh...That's one ugly photo they used for his identification."

"...Blue...That's not the point..." Silver deadpanned and rolled his eyes.

"Right..." The Kanto native sheepishly nodded and added "let me quickly skim through this and see if it contains the info we want. "Name: Red..." she read aloud, "birthplace: Island of Cinnabar...wait what? Red is a Cinnabar native? I always thought..." Blue trailed off and skimmed the rest of the details in silence, her best friend's past remained one giant mystery and whenever they talked about his childhood, he told them he hailed from Pallet Town. From the records before her, the Champion was born in Cinnabar Island and at the time when the Kanto civil war broke out. His father worked as an Ace trainer for the authorities whilst his mother became a voluntary nurse. They tried to flee from the effects of war when it struck the island but was unfortunately killed. Tiny Red survived, a rescue squad picked him up and deposited him in an orphanage in Viridian City. They boy quickly became a problem for the management team as he preferred to sneak out of the facility and spend his time with street children and corrupt soldiers. When a young couple attempted to foster him, Red hightailed from his adopted home and wandered the streets. With a poliwag for company, (suspected to be given to him by his late father) the child quickly gained a reputation for illegal street pokemon battling till one day Professor Oak happened to catch a glimpse of his skills and offer him a home in Pallet Town. Since then, he challenged the league without prior schooling and managed to become history's youngest champion at the age of eleven.

Eleven...

He never had much of a childhood did he? Blue wondered and compared her life to his own.

The only difference happened to be that Red enjoyed his careless and adrenaline fuelled romp throughout Kanto whilst she shivered in the dank cells of an underground basement and prayed for the demonic Team Rocket members not to hurt her.

The day he took up the Champion's crest, he remained one of the undefeated. As he aged, the Kanto Pokemon Association grew increasingly worried about their new champion, with all the new technologies available, some other teenager might eventually topple their boy wonder. With help of the nearby region, Johto, they agreed to use him to test out battle simulations. Red's initial response had been satisfactory, he managed to cleanly defeat all his opponents and as days went by and the simulations became more realistic and monotonous, he showed signs of emotional desensitization and brutally knocked out his virtual target's pokemon. A new league circuit opened up in Kanto which required the possession of all the badges in Johto as well. There were plans to merge the two leagues together and create a victory plateau in which Red will become the ultimate champion. As soon as the circuit opened, within half a year, a challenging teenager (a member of the first wave) secured his victory against Red and became the first new champion after nine years. Alarmed by this foreigner, the Kanto government accused the Johto native of cheating and the boy was blacklisted.

For more information see file marked GOLD (under the heading, governmental conspiracy and reasons for blacklisting)

"Sis...we don't have time...Let's move." Silver urged his sibling and she ignored him in favour of poring over the documents.

After the entire cheating scandal, the Pokemon Association closed up the circuit and attempted to re-train Red. This ended in failure. Around the same time, they noticed his increased, unexplained disappearing from the league issued living quarters and Police suspect that he had already created the Dex-Criminals. For the next few years, the seamless vanishings of more Dex-holders from different regions prompted the International Police to take notice. The group, notorious for their kidnappings of several legendary pokemon were dubbed the Dex-Criminals due to police suspecting them to be Pokedex holders. Since then, pilfered important artefacts, relics and even conducted warrantless experiments (see BLACK MEWTWO). Three years prior, officer Lack-2 was sent in as an undercover agent and as planned, the Organization kidnapped him and placed him in Execution. Numerous raids ended in failure. Last year, the factions decided to split and peruse individual projects which ended in their detriment, after they converged, the full International Police (along with the other superintendents) lead a raid and successfully captured Red by the help of Lack-2. The convict is currently held in a cell situated in Mainland Sinnoh.

The convict is currently held in a cell situated in Mainland Sinnoh.

"So he's in Sinnoh..." The information sounded too good to be true. Blue flipped through the documents again, in order to make sure her eyes didn't miss anything. Exhaling, she repeated: "Red is in Sinnoh...That's great isn't it?" Her brother saw doubt flicker on her face, if the police spent their last three years to get their hands on the wayward champion, why would they keep him right under their noses? As bait for the rest of the Organization to crawl out of their hiding places? Highly likely, the commander mused and glanced down at the papers in her hands. She exhaled, blowing a strand of hair away from her face and got up from the floor. "Well...I'm glad he is within reach, this snippet of information must be credible or else it won't be under such high security." Silver nodded and shut the file cabinet drawer, he motioned to the windows. "Yes...Let's leave. Once all the teams reconvene back at base, we can share our info and draw up a rescue plan." She tried to suppress the growing excitement in her voice but failed to do so. The red head smiled lopsidedly, his sister looked brighter than she had for the last couple of months and not even the ominous roar of a helicopter dampened her spirits.

Mid-afternoon

Castelia City

Wharf area, in one of the cafes

Lack-2's ponderous form stared back at him from the dark brown contents of a ceramic mug. He stared into his unbroken, unblinking reflection and wondered if his deceased parents would be proud of him. After all, he managed to waste the last three years of his life in trying to track down a criminal and bring him to justice. The teenager only rested easy once he placed the ebony haired felon in a rather lavish jail cell. Valora boasted the heaviest defences and the most secure prison facilities in all of Ransei. Call him paranoid but inwardly, the russet eyed youth wholly agreed that it is the best place for the ex-champion. The Dex-criminal's fluidity and Green's status as a respected pokemon professor, backed up by his prestigious grandfather, allowed him and his department to slip undeterred into other regions. However, the imperial region operated under different rules and they will never be able to enter Ransei without their identity being thoroughly scrutinized. After all the nit-picking, whoever enters Ransei should have a valid reason to do so, unless you were of noble birth, then access is permanently denied. Lack-2 knew prominent professors, researchers or public figures were not allowed to enter unless they received a summoning. A royal letter, bearing a legitimate crest of a particular Warlord is the only way to gain access to the region and Lack-2 made sure Green, or Samuel Oak, would not get a summoning anytime soon.

His plan had been fool proof. The teenager blew into his mug and watched his reflection ripple against the confines of the stark white cup. Three years of his life, wasted.

Wasted...

Not wasted. His mind offered and he raised his face to peer over the rim of his mug to see Pibo squeaking happily. An involuntary smile lifted the corners of his lips and Lack-2 caught himself, after an internal debate, he kept on smiling when the little rodent bounced happily on the plastic table top with a poffin in its tiny paws. A dish of cream vibrated on the table and pichu happily took its time in order to lap it up and dunk its already soggy poffin in it. The rodent then ate the sodden mass with obvious relish and articulated another delighted squeak.

"Like it?" His voice became hoarse from disuse, who should he talk to anyway? Most of his co-workers were seniors, far above his age and one could only taunt Lt. Surge before the man decided to electrocute you to death. "Want some more?" The rodent squeaked so he translated it as a yes. The cream and berry stuffed poffins were quite an expensive combination and Pibo's diet consisted exclusively of these two products. Flagging down a waitress, he spared a moment and eyed her, noticing the cheerful gleam in her eyes and the form fitting uniform, briskly, he ordered another course for Pibo and inwardly berated himself for being distracted.

He picked up some bad habits from Gold.

The young officer did them unconsciously till his subordinate pointed out his strange mannerisms. His first offence was cooing to samurott and genesect after a virtual battle, both Looker and genesect eyed him with mild disgust and concern. His next offence happened to be his over attachment to Pibo. Once, the rodent bounced off to Dialga knows where, Lack-2 had a debriefing to go to and outright hyperventilated when he failed to find the creature in his apartment. Looker arrived to see the normally immaculate place in a mess and his superior in a breathless huff over a cute little mouse. Pichu eventually resurfaced half an hour later and on seeing him, the brown haired boy simply exhaled in relief instead of disciplining it harshly. After he handled Red's departure to Ransei and simultaneously completed all the paperwork accompanying the International Police's bizarre request, Lack-2 went to the Magician for a health and mental check-up and to his dismay, the maintenance man told him that he suffered from a mild version of Stockholm syndrome. Glaring at his advisor deplorably, Lack-2 scoffed at his speech and told him to fix the scanners whilst inwardly, his mind whole heartedly agreed with the advisor's words. In order to remedy his psychological status, the officer undertook a new project; tracing the whereabouts of the remaining Team Plasma members, specifically the Shadow Triad. Day by day, he pored over the documents and maps, chasing down rumours even though they might not be wholly credible. Looker had been deported to Alola in order to search for a lead and in the meantime, Lack-2 had absolutely no one to talk to.

A lonely existence.

An image of a thoroughly displeased Gold continued to plague his waking and sleeping moments. He never remembered the amber eyed adolescent's expression when Red had been arrested. The Unovian refused to meet his former mentor's eyes. He didn't want to see the hurt and anger the man harboured at the moment.

Lack-2 felt afraid to meet Gold's eyes.

Since...he knew...there would be noting but disgust swirling in them.

"What am I doing?" he muttered to himself and pichu spent a second to shoot him a cute grin. "The magician was right...I'm starting to lose my sense of morality." A feeling of weakness pervaded his body and he put down the heavy mug with a soft clatter on the table top. The people around him held amiable conversations; he caught tender tones, laughter and the occasional soft compliment. There were so many patrons around him and yet, it seemed as if he lived in a world of his own. Why did his latest assignment bother him so? He read and re-read his reports; Chief Anabel gave him a perfect score since he managed to secure a ring leader with minimal injury. Lack-2 kept on convincing himself that he done a good job but his mind disagreed. The other superintendents praised him heartily; however, the superficial praises fell on deaf ears. The teenager craved warmth and longed to go back to where it he received it unconditionally.

Back to the Dex-Criminals...Where he spent the last three years of his life being coddled, carried around and cared for.

The thought terrified him.

He could not go back, the very idea is ludicrous. Blasphemy. They are criminals and you are the police...How dare you shun your morality for your own selfish desires? Their work is taboo and it is your duty to stop them, and you want to go back? You want to contribute to the ultimate suffering of humanity? What would your parents think? His consciousness venomously battled against each other. The russet haired youth grew increasingly exhausted from trying to reason with himself and at the end of the day, with so many unfilled forms strewn around him, he managed to make no progress at all.

'Gold loved you like a little brother...' the words echoed with the ticking of the clock, the drumming of the rain and with the beating of his own heart till it roared and drowned out every other sound around him.

The young officer long gave up on the prospect of having another family figure; he did not let people grow close to him because kindness, warmth and filial love didn't exist anymore. They died along with his parents.

My feelings are dead...He firmly told himself...and my only purpose is to ensure that the criminals are placed where they belong.

No they aren't dead, his brain quibbled, or else that golden eyed man won't be such a source of misery and worry for you.

"Pibo...let's go." Shutting down the voices in his head, Lack-2 got up from his chair and left his half-drunk coffee on the table, his pichu uttered a non-committal shriek and after eyeing its unfinished poffins, it bounced over to its owner and perched on his shoulder. "I have to get over to headquarters" he drawled, "apparently there is some commotion going on. Tsk, these idiots have to call a superior officer for the tiniest of things." Quickly scanning the message popped up on his Xtransciever, he stowed the gadget back into his duffle coat pocket and ignored the waitress politely bowing at him. Pushing open the door, he let a crowd of school children pass...no...He wasn't eyeing them wistfully. Chin tucked in and visor pulled low over his eyes, he shuffled forward, trying to make himself part of reality. As he dragged himself down the sidewalk, an instinctive prickling made him stop and turn around. Between the business people, the shoppers, joggers, school children and faceless crowds, a space opened up and Lack-2's blood drained from his face and body. Pibo's urgent cries sounded like they came from a distant space. Even though the person staring at him was disguised, beneath the mop of fire red hair, one could see the unmistakable tint of burnished gold which made the man so popular with the ladies. Instead of a perverted smile, his lips curved into a grim slash, conveying his murderous thoughts by pulling back into an animalistic snarl. Pichu, still loyal to its former breeder gave a high pitched squeak and tried to jump off. Grabbing him by the scruff, the teenager shoved the beast into a pocket and inwardly screamed at himself to move. Gold veered closer, weaving himself through the crowds and Lack-2, with great difficulty, turned tail and ran. His heart hammered in his chest, blood rushed around his head, heating him up and making him sweat. Ears pounding, he forced himself to move. To run away.

To run away.

Traitor...Traitor...

His footsteps told him.

Hypocrite...Hypocrite

His heart beat mocked him.

He couldn't breathe...Maybe if he let Gold catch up to him then it will be all over? Perhaps the gold eyed man would understand that Lack-2 had to do this?

The Unovian glanced back, no such luck. His lungs were about to burst and he rudely shoved people to the side in the quest to put as much distance as possible between himself and the breeder. Gold wanted to kill him. The Johto native's undiluted hatred and wrath emanated from him in perceptible waves.

"Traitor!" A brush of hot hair scraped his nape and Lack-2 instantaneously crouched down. The crowds screamed, panicked and rushed around in all sides. Gold's fingers missed his collar by mere inches and momentum carried the older man forward and he stumbled over. Seizing the window of opportunity, the russet eyed youth shot up from his position, felt a few people knocking against him and he twisted, stepping through the crowds and melting into them.

Lack-2 disappeared.

Gold swore vehemently and kept on hissing expletives under his breath till Green put a hand on his shoulder. The amber eyed trainer twitched and breathed steam through his nose. Sweat matted his hair against his scalp and plastered the shirt he wore to his body. "He's gone...Let's go back to the hotel Gold...We can't run after him any longer. The brat will be on his guard." Oak soothed and watched the younger man's shoulders droop. "If we manage to rescue Red...It will undo all his hard work, you can get your revenge then. For now, focus on getting a good sleep and don't try to do anything crazy." Giving his shoulder another firm squeeze, the spiky haired blonde walked away first. Casting another glance at the wary crowds, Gold spun around in the early evening's cool heat and trudged after his senior. The previous outrage dissipated and left a hollow feeling in its wake. Lack-2 appeared positively terrified of him and instead of calling a backup police force from town and arresting them; the boy, wide eyed and terrified, turned tail and ran.

"I hate him" the breeder timidly declared and Green, who strode a few paces in front, noted the lack of anger in his junior's voice. "...I don't sound very convincing do I?" Slinking behind the Kanto native, Gold opted for ogling at the metropolis as the duo ambled their way back to the hotel.

"It's difficult to hate someone when you think of them as your own." Strategy's commander intoned, "don't forget he is a traitor Gold...In our Organization having a traitor loose will spell death for all of us."

"...I know...I know." Lacing his hands behind his head, the Execution member looked up to see the sun slowly descend. "Thanks by the way" he mumbled and exhaled noisily.

"For what?"

It might be his imagination but Gold swore he heard a tiny hint of amusement in his superior's voice, it made him ball up his hands with embarrassment, "Thank you for not interfering when I chased the brat and for not lopping his arm or head off when he escaped. I know you were perfectly capable of doing so and yet you just stood by and gave me a chance." He let out a huff and strained his ears in chase Green let loose a chuckle or something. To his relief, the older man remained quiet.

"Don't forget...He is a traitor Gold." Abruptly halting in his tracks, the commander turned around and pinned the younger man with a viridian glare.

"I know..." Gold repeated, his vision trained to the dirty floor where he could pick out wads of greyish bubble-gum, soil and weeds peeking out from the crevices of the black stone pavement. "The next time, I will act in a more responsible manner." The Johto native promised, "You have my word."

A/N: I apologize for the lack of violence in this one. For all those who still anticipate Gold punching the daylights out of Lack-2…I'm sorry, you will have to wait for long, but it will happen. Eventually. Much thanks to fubja for favoriting the story, hopefully it continues to be a pleasant read for you. And virtual hot chocolate for all those who read and reviewed, you guys rock :)

At Sakurafox1218: Guess the killing didn't happen in this chapter huh? Sinnoh police, probably a mixture of: Arrgghhh! And Oh heck NO! At AceTrainerLeaf: Once again, I sincerely apologize for grinding your hopes to pieces. But to make it up to you, I wrote a really nice chapter of how Gold half kills him, now you just have to wait for it. Sapphire is not named the conqueror for nothing. The word has a nice ring to it. At Jack54311: Raw honey also has impurities in it, but I eat them anyway. The beeswax is not good though, and its recommended to press the honey out of the combs before eating it…who has time for that? Saph should get a crash course from Ruby on how to conduct stealth missions.