Chapter 79: The sky splits and disaster pends

Dusk

Sinnoh

Sunnyshore city

Wrought iron gates swung silently open to reveal an antebellum mansion surrounded by gnarled trees. A jet black car eased into the driveway porch and the engine purred as it came to a stop before a set of double height oak doors. Two lampent, mounted on brass columns, cast a vivid, lilac glow and the owners of the event greeted each and every guest as the visitors sailed through the entrance and disappeared into the vast confines of the alabaster mansion. Wide windows sported golden curtains which only intensified the light spilling out of the building. Next to Crystal, the door opened and Silver offered her a gloved hand; gathering the vast amounts of organza which made up her dress, she elegantly stepped out and felt the crunch of gravel underneath her heel. The car pulled away and the young couple, to whom the house belonged, peered at the criminals' carefully forged invitation card, nodded in affirmative and sent them away with a polite smile. Silver escorted his female comrade and Crystal desperately wanted to reach up and scratch at her hair. Blue twisted her indigo strands into a braided bun and the strapless ball gown she wore, steadily inched downwards. She wanted to curse Ruby who ultimately swayed his commander into hiring the aquamarine dress he so desperately wanted Crystal to wear. Next to her, Silver marched straight ahead, his hands were concealed in ivory gloves and a fake sapphire gemstone pin held his tie in place. The rest of him looked ravishing in charcoal suit adorned with silver cufflinks. Due an offhand comment made by Ruby, the red head furiously declined any form of hair dyeing and settled for wig. The fiery strands barely brushed his nape and Crystal felt self-conscious.

He guided her effortlessly to the ballroom and the indigo haired woman did not have time to gape. All she noted were marble pillars holding up a ceiling decorated with glass chandeliers. The fixtures exuded finesse and the bright light made the granite tiled floor shine akin to a mirror. She caught her faded reflection and immediately snapped her chin up when a babble of voices floated from the great ballroom. Again, the opulent atmosphere made her uncomfortable. Crystal worked as a part time care-taker at an orphanage in Johto before Professor Oak recruited her to help him with the Pokedex. Seeing rich people squander money in order to impress others did not sit well with her; these people could at least donate a part of their money for some good cause instead of purchasing that questionable piece of art hanging on the opposite wall. The image, enclosed in a gold gilded frame, depicted some nude dude bathing in a pond filled with water pokemon. Flushing, she quickly fiddled with her gemstone encrusted necklace and diverted her attention somewhere else. Silver noticed her discomfort and scanned the room, when his eyes fell on the painting; he smirked in understanding and flatly informed her that the image alone will be able to net them more than half the money Diamond spent on remodeling the base.

"The image is...Quite disturbing. I can't believe people willingly hang those in their homes." Crystal huffed and her best friend offered a wry smile. The chatter in the room swelled in volume and the Johto natives weaved their way through exquisitely dressed crowds and joined the congregation in the center of the marbled floor. Resting on a stone plinth, a glass box offered the viewers a glimpse of tonight's prize: The fuchsia tinted, rare sableye jewel. Gleaming, the gemstone, huge by anyone's standards, nestled in a swath of black silk and the auctioneers greedily fell over it. Pulling away, the red-head kept Crystal close to his side and systemically encircled the oval chamber. Hidden behind gold leafed pillars, he spied a dozen cameras swiveling on metallic mounts. Accepting a flute from a passing waitress, he intently gazed at the bubbles steadily rising to the surface and contemplated on the course of his actions. According to the event schedule, an opening ball will precede the actual auction. The jewel will remain on the pedestal and will only be removed by the hosts once the auction initializes. All guests will be required to move to the auditorium once the dance was over.

However...Stealing the gem during the opening dance will not be easy. As Silver scanned the room for a second time, he observed a party of people hovering suspiciously close to the glass cage holding the sableye jewel. Smashing the cage was out of the question, somehow, he had to sneak the entire thing underneath his slim fit clothes and make it out of the mansion before the auction began. Crystal could serve as a distraction, he contemplated. She could break one of the large windows...Or better yet, yank that offending painting off the wall; her bizarre actions will ensnare the attention of each and every money hungry fool in this room and he could easily slip the jewel underneath his blazer.

The red head grinned diabolically; he was not called the Phantom thief for nothing.

Dumping his glass on a nearby table, Silver pulled his co-worker to a deserted alcove and confirmed the plan with her. The camera swiveled over the heads and he bent lower in an effort to maintain their privacy. Unfortunately, Crystal turned a nice shade of Cheri berry red and instinctively kneed him. A vortex of sympathy immediately rose to the surface of his mind as he suppressed a moan of agony and supported himself against the wall. Poor Gold, he pondered, is this what he goes through every day?

"Silver...Gosh I'm so sorry!" Crystal fretted, wringing her gloved hands together and gently prodding him.

"...I'm fine. I understand...Gold can be annoying at times." The thief gasped and exhaled deeply. "You...Pack quite the power in your kicks and it seems like I'm not immune to them the way Gold is."

"You hardly give me a reason to kick you." Crystal tossed the words over her shoulder as she sashayed away to fetch him a glass of water. The top layers of her bell shaped dress moved fluidly and he kept on staring. This morning, the entirety of Execution, plus a disgruntled Green, trooped to Hearthome City to watch a musical performed by Fantina, Silver wished the three of them could spend some more time together, alas, he had a mission to complete and Yellow advised bed rest for Gold. Perhaps when he finished this assignment, the three of them could hit the game corner together.

Accepting the glass of water from Crystal, he reiterated his plan to her. They will escape from the mansion when the auction convenes. None of them had any pokemon with them since the invitation required that the monsters be kept at home. The lights dimmed in the ballroom and from a corner, an orchestra stirred to life. Music from stringed instruments flowed perfectly with a melody bleeding from a grand piano. With practiced ease, Silver looped his arm around Crystal's waist and guided her back to the center of the room. One by one, more people paired off and swung to the music and the atmosphere around them mellowed.

Crystal was lost.

She tried to tear her gaze from the bewitching depths of her friend's silver stare and look someplace else. There were plenty of things to ogle at. However, the capturer found herself melting into Silver's placid gaze. The duo danced in slow circles and Silver kept a tight rotation around the jewel. Crystal on the other hand, did not notice her surroundings, she only focused on him, noting the short bangs framing his face and the way he grasped her securely. The indigo haired woman wanted to close the miniscule space between them and forget about the mission. She desperately wished for this moment to last forever. Silver gave her a comforting smile and her cheeks glowed hot with pleasure and happiness. A feeling she did not have the luxury to experience often. After the Organization fragmented and went their different ways, her emotions towards her best friends changed; whilst the amber eyed trainer always managed to send her heart fluttering, these days, his soft murmurings only served to highlight the extreme guilt she felt.

What would Gold say if he found out that she considered Silver as more than a friend?

"Crys? Are you alright?" The Johto natives stopped dancing; Silver cupped her cheek with his hand and used his thumb to wipe a tear cascading down her cheek. "I'm concerned...Are you feeling okay?" he questioned. "If you don't want to participate, I'll call my sister and inform her. Meanwhile, you can wait outside while I complete my task and we'll go home together. Thinking about Gold? Don't worry, he's doing fine."

Gold...Why is everything about him?

"No..." she shakily answered, wiped her tears and managed a watery giggle. "You look very handsome with short hair Silver."

He frowned. "You and Sis are the only ones who say I'm handsome these days. The other day I overheard Diamond muttering something about a red headed ghost in the toilet. Turns out we went the same time and since the lights were off, he used a flashlight. The child caught sight of me and ran down the hallways screaming for Blue and sobbing about murder." Silver sighed and brushed his fingers through the wig. "...Are you sure you are okay? By the way, I forgot to mention, you look wonderful in your ball gown; Ruby sure has fine taste." His compliment sent another blush blooming across her cheeks. Wrestling with her emotions, she stepped closer to him and wrapped her arms around his gaunt frame. Her friend stiffened in confusion and shyly, enveloped her in a hug. "Crys..." he mumbled as realization poured over him akin to a bucket of icy water. "If Gold finds out he will...Crystal," his breath hitched, "please don't do this to me. Gold went through a lot over the past few months and as his best friend, I do not want to betray his feelings; and if he finds out you...He's going to spiral into madness."

"I know..." Crystal breathed and he caught her mellifluous tones through the numerous whisperings flowing through the room. "That's why...I never have the courage to tell him of my real feelings. I'm sorry Silver...I'm sorry things turned out like this. Gold meant the world to me...and I did not even realize when my own feelings cha-"

A loud boom echoed outside the mansion and cut her sentence off. Alarmed, the guests pushed the heavy drapes aside and peered through the window. In the distant horizon, the formless shape of Mount Coronet loomed against the dark sky. Atop the summit, a wrinkle appeared in the sky and a blindingly white burst of light widened the wrinkle into a tear. Dumbstruck, the phantom thief spared a glance at his poke-gear and marched forward; he shouldered his way through the throngs and pressed his face against the window. From the tear in the sky, he witnessed the unmistakable form of Rayquaza as it slithered out of the opening and soared off into the west. More legendary pokemon issued forth from the fissure and zoomed away to their respective areas. How did this happen? Silver mused, according to the calculations, the mythical creatures were not supposed to emerge from the distortion world for another week. Behind him, the guests shoved and spoke, each of them trying to catch a glimpse of this historic moment. Back-tracking, he realized the commotion presented the perfect opportunity to snatch the jewel and run. Nonchalantly, he dipped his head in a courteous greeting to the puzzled owners as they gaped at the sky and ignored him. Taking Crystal's hand, he purposefully strode past the plinth and snuck his gloved fingers underneath the glass covering of the box. His fingertips brushed across the bone chillingly cold surface of the pink jewel and beneath the material of his gloves, his fingers numbed. Smoothly removing the gigantic stone from its nest of black silk, Silver left a calling card in its place. The stiff sheet mockingly displayed a cluster of dark blue stars.

Night

Jubilife City

Convention center

For the past few months, the international police held a string of meetings and their situation did not improve at all. Clusters of round tables stood in the meeting hall and if it were not for the stern faces of the dozen higher ranking police officers and other officials, a person might have mistaken the occasion for a festive event. The tables were draped in a large velvet table cloth and tablets sat on a podium in the middle. A few chairs surrounded each table and bottles of mineral water were laid out for attendants. On far end of the room, Anabel paced on a wooden stage and pointed at a large screen with a laser, whilst directly in front of her, the champions of each region listened intently. Cynthia shifted in her seat, opposite the champions' seating area, the superintendents rigidly sat in their chairs. She spied the taut form of Lack-2 as he listened to the chief's droning speech with absolutely no expression on his face. Surge appeared mildly irritated whilst Falkner folded his arms over his chest and scowled miserably. On the other side, dragon tamer Lance's mien betrayed incredulity; Wallace, exhausted, adjusted the beret resting on his turquoise locks and smoothed his silk shirt. Iris was shattered, her cherubic face sported lines and her normally cheerful maroon irises remained cloudy and distant. Behind the superintendents, their respective officers slouched in a settee. Misty from Kanto, sat dazed behind Falkner, she imparted a malicious glance at Volkner who leaned against her and snored with his eyes closed. Looker imitated his superior and listened to the lecture with rapt attention whilst Blaine wiped his round glasses with a cloth.

Cynthia did not want to be here. What did these meetings achieve anyway? When the other regions' authorities were informed of Kanto's former champion turning rogue, Lance became shell shocked. The Kanto pokemon association wanted to do a man hunt for the ex-champion despite the International Police warning them against such a warrantless search. In the end, Lack-2 and Surge convinced them to leave the matter in the hands of the International Police and the chairperson reluctantly let go. Since Red's detention at Ransei, the ebony haired male divulged no information whatsoever; the police forces were spread thin over each region as they tried to locate the rest of the criminals. Any small scale crime immediately caught their attention and much energy (and resources) was spent in order to track down phantoms. Unfortunately for the police, a few weeks ago, Warlord Ieyasu from Valora conducted a video call to inform a distraught Anabel that their prized convict escaped from jail and there was nothing he could do about it. Two outsiders infiltrated the famed fortress of Valora and managed to sneak the commoner criminal from underneath their noses. The Lord graciously provided two blurry mug shots of the infiltrators and on seeing the perpetrators, Lack-2 involuntarily gasped, backpedaled much to everyone's confusion and thrust his hand inside his duffle to retrieve an inhaler. None of the other superintendents ever saw him use one so it came as a surprise. After he stopped wheezing, he curtly excused himself from the gathering and refused to answer his calls for a week.

Looker paid a private visit to his superior's health advisor and Anabel forced him to share the contents of the appointments Lack-2 conducted with the Magician. Turns out, the officer suffered from Stockholm syndrome which eventually lead to depression. The normally fit as a fiddle boy developed asthma due to his stress and for some reason; the sight of people with golden eyes sent the brown haired officer into an asthma attack. Lt. Surge snorted and ripped up the papers; he declared the Magician's results to be utter rubbish and boomed that Lack-2 operated with inhuman efficiency.

"Brat is a robot." The man articulated with a lazy twirl of his gun, "brat has no feelings; they are dead, like his parents and they will remain dead...Like mine."

Phasing to the present, Cynthia tried to pour more attention to the words uttered by her superior, alas; she failed to concentrate on the speech. The Sinnoh Pokemon league opened and she neglected her champion's duty to attend these fruitless gatherings. Scientists and researchers around the world gathered to discuss minute changes in the environment which started some six months ago. This caught the attention of Cynthia's grandmother who declared that the legendary pokemon were not in this world anymore. Much to the Sinnoh champion's mortification, the other authorities simpered at the old woman's nonsensical ramblings. Three months later, environmentalists confirmed her suspicions and informed the rest of the leading establishments about the degradation of the Poke-world, which according to them, were caused by missing, dead, or misplaced legendary creatures.

Misplaced...Her granny spat the words out and shook her cane in a young scientist's face. The woman paled like a ghost and spoke about her theories. If the legendary creatures were dead, Ho-oh, the symbol of rebirth, would invariably resurrect them.

"They were most likely sent to an alternate dimension..." Another biologist mused and nodded. "Thus...The misplaced theory is the most plausible one." A heated debate still raged amongst the intellectuals and the International Police eventually got roped into it...How long with this meeting last? The blonde woman wondered and peeked at her watch, she needed to squeeze in two hours with her pokemon partners before retiring to bed tonight.

Time warped.

Night

Sinnoh

Sunnyshore City

Silver and Crystal slunk across the back alleys of the metropolis. The red head's eyes swirled with unspeakable wrath as he glided down a dingy pathway and pulled his friend along with him. After rescuing the jewel, the duo stumbled to the extraction point and found no helicopter waiting for them. No Pearl either. Growling under his breath and spitting heated curses, Silver muttered about never trusting Pearl again and thus the two of them hiked up to the sprawling backstreets of Sunnyshore and kept out of sight. Crystal wished to hack her dress into pieces, squeezing through narrow and grime covered pathways proved to be difficult whilst wearing a ball gown. Pulling out his wallet, Silver groaned at the sight of a few bills and told his co-worker to wait for him. Hopping to a clothing store, he purchased a few nondescript clothes, changed into them and handed the rest to Crystal and waited till she folded her ridiculous gown back into a bag. Ruby will throw a hissy fit if the dress was not returned to the shop by tomorrow. Feeling much more comfortable in a pair of jeans, the duo stepped out into the bustling crowds and located the nearest bus station.

And then.

The sky split apart.

Crystal did not scream. She only looked up to see a large square of the sky detach from the surroundings and fall. The situation seemed so surreal; she merely stood and gaped as the star spangled piece of heaven descended downwards with an unearthly velocity. Silver screamed at her to move but all she did was petrify to her spot and watch her life flashing in front of her eyes. Chaos erupted as the crowds ran helter skelter and people pushed her around. Thrusting the crowds aside, Silver grabbed her hand and forcibly pulled her out of the shoving mass. The indigo haired female felt the life and energy drain out of her. The black canvas rocketed towards the earth and her hand slipped from Silver's sweaty one. In another split instant, she glimpsed the horror reflected in Silver's eyes as they separated, a force of gravity pulled him away and she desperately tried to reach him. Police sirens echoed across the city and in one swoop all the lights blacked out.

Black City...

What?

Black City...

Her mind continued to chant words which held no meaning to her.

Black City...

Emergency lighting kicked into place, instead of the customary highlight orange and yellow, the sky scrapers of Sunnyshore lit up with neon blue lights and panorama unsettled her.

"A city named after Black?" She heard Gold speaking in her head as the others admonished him. Where did these memories come from? She wondered and tried to anchor herself back to reality. The red head was nowhere to be seen and judging from the horrific screams around her, the sky must be really close to falling. Patches of midnight black squares crumbled from above and fell like discarded jigsaw pieces and beyond the torn fabric of reality, she glimpsed a Prussian blue world. The dissonant ringing of sirens emanated from all corners and the entire city trembled. Crystal screwed her eyes shut and prayed, the screeching around her petered to a stop. Opening her eyes, she wiped her tears to see a blonde woman standing in the middle of the crossroads and next to her; a garchomp, its body cloaked with energy. The land shark forced the square sheet of heaven away from the ground. Slowly, very slowly, the piece of sky lifted, the sand dragon roared and sent a pulse of energy, forcing the starry patch to lift off the ground and relocate.

The Sinnoh champion wiped sweat from her brow and looked up, the sky was riddled with holes and she glimpsed some sort of dimension through the spaces. Floating islands? Cynthia was unable to tell, the environs were too dark to accurately see anything. Whirling around, she noted how the other pieces of sky stopped their descent and a multitude of dragons took to the skies. Possibly Claire and Lance were at the forefront of piecing the sky back together. During the meeting, time warped inside the room and all those who remained conscious, rushed out to see the predictions coming true. The future they glimpsed revealed the end of the world as an influx of insurgent legendries tore out of the distortion world and their untimely appearances wreaked havoc. Although the mythical creatures veered off into their own places, the mere fact of them bursting out together resulted in heavy consequences, worse still, the creation trio of Dialga, Palkia and Giratina, who were tasked to maintain the balance of the world, did nothing but watch. The ground quaked again and next to her, a chasm opened up, spewing a plume of lava in the middle of the city.

Half the skyscrapers melted. In the midst of the shrieking crowds, a lone female with dark blue hair shakily stood up and gasped at the heavens. A vein beat into the side of Cynthia's forehead; did that brainless girl not understand the meaning of danger? Why is she stumbling to the pool of lava? Ignoring her other concerns, the champion mounted her dragon and took off at Mach speeds. She came to a stop next to the girl and fiercely ordered her to evacuate.

Instead, the girl stared at her glassily and pointed to the sky. "Could you please tell me what is happening?"

"Young lady...We do not have time to answer your questions." Cynthia sternly stated and noted Crystal's dirt stained cheeks, "please evacuate. The Police and other personnel are responsible for handling this situation-"

"Do you know what's going on?"

"...We received a premonition..." Instead of disbelief, the blonde woman saw understanding dawn on the indigo haired woman's face. "I've said enough...Evacuate, now. The entire world is facing a similar crisis and the other champions are leaving Sinnoh as I speak to attend to the problems their own region is suffering."

A certain clarity pervaded the stranger's crystalline irises. "Don't worry..." she spoke firmly. "All of this will return to normal once the legendary creatures return to their proper places."

"How do you?!" Cynthia stopped speaking when a red headed male stepped out of the shadows and pulled on the girl. The previously rattled female imparted an enigmatic smile.

"I know...Because we are the ones who prompted this disaster in the first place." Before the female champion could assimilate her words, the duo melted into the night.

The two criminals huffed and ran faster. Bolts of lightning rained down from the sky and some of them left smoking impact craters on the ground and roads. A street sign melted and lay as a pool of metallic liquid in front of them. Crystal vaulted over the puddle and continued careering. Thanks to the efforts of Sinnoh's pokemon league, the sky was stitched back into place, unfortunately, the ground unraveled and between the straits; she spied orange rivers of lava coursing silently through the earth. Heat and cold buffeted her and to her dismay, the ponderous clouds covered the once clear sky. A flash of lightning arced across the heavens; snow steadily showered down and covered the city in a blanket of dirty white. Flecks of them fell into the orange depths below and soon, the ravines emitted smoke. Sunnyshore resembled a ghost town. Blue lights blurred against a smoky screen with people and buildings appearing as nothing more than distorted silhouettes.

The air grew thick with the scent of smoke and somewhere, a sandstorm brewed. In one corner of a department store, the two criminals crouched down to catch their breath and perked their ears to hear the faraway sounds of a battle. The ground swayed rhythmically and Crystal wanted to throw up, all these new experiences frightened her and the environment around her resonated with an alien cadence. Merely a few feet away from her spot, the ground groaned open and another geyser of liquid fire erupted from the bowels of the earth, speckles of lava spilled on the pavement and hardened to new earth. The land tore open like a well-worn piece of fabric and she briefly thanked Arceus...At least the sky did not descend on them anymore. Shivering against the alternate heat and cold, she watched Silver stab his finger on his palmtop computer as he tried and failed to get a signal.

"Electromagnetic dissonance" he stated lowly "the universe's magnetic field is in disarray and thus we won't have any electricity and the pokemon relying on the magnetic field will be disorientated. There is quite a distance between Sunnyshore and our base, we do not have any pokemon, the busses, trains, trams and other vehicles are stuck in limbo...Or probably smashing against each other. Hmm...Airplanes...I wonder how they are faring." He lapsed into silence and stowed his gadget back into the pocket of his black jeans. "What should we do now? I doubt hiking all the way to Mount Sinnoh is an option; we will die along the way. I can't contact anyone back at base and they must be preoccupied with concerns of their own, I mean, the sky tore open above their heads in the first place..." Silver trailed off and rested against the sidewalk, the earth raged around them and he repeatedly brushed his head free of snow.

A hopeless situation pervaded them.

Instead of breaking down and bemoaning their situation, Crystal forced herself to calm down and think. Her thoughts spiraled towards her mother and a cruel grip of fear clutched her heart. Her mother...Cynthia mentioned the other regions faced similar crises and the crushing feeling in her chest inflated to epic proportions. Grasping her chest, she breathed evenly through her nose and mouth, seeing her fall into a panic attack, Silver wordlessly rubbed circles into her back and murmured comforting words. Images of her mom flashed by in her head. Crystal's mother was an independent woman, often admonishing her daughter if Crystal showed signs of weakness. Where are you mom? The indigo haired girl cried. Where are you when I need to see you the most? And more importantly are you safe?

'I'm stronger than the storm Crystal and you better finished what you started dear'

Her mom's cutesy talking and fashion style clashed horribly with her independent ideals. Crystal's sobbing morphed into a shaky laugh and she eventually straightened up and took deep breaths to calm her turbulent emotions. Wherever her mother was, she would be safe and sound; and like Commander Blue stated, the legendary pokemon will not allow the Poke-earth to fall into mass degradation, their primary task is to protect the earth, not destroy it. Shutting the world out, she quickly delved into a few minutes of meditation to clear her mind. Silver did a remarkable job at stealing the gem and she did not want to rely on him too much, as a partner in crime, she had to put forth some suggestions.

A minute passed before she opened her eyes and spouted the most logically illogical resolution to their problem. "Since all the transportation routes are jammed and hiking all the way to Mount Coronet is no option...I propose we steal some pokemon and use them to get back to base." Her friend's mouth hung open and it reminded her of a gaping feebas. "What? Do you have a better idea?" Crystal snapped, "The PC's are all down, I can't waltz into a pokemon center and claim my monsters and catching wild pokemon without a pokeball is futile." She got up and stretched. "Come on Silver, we don't have much time, help me get to the nearest Pokemon center so we can see if they have some monsters in an outside storage...Sometimes, pokeballs are stored manually in case the power fails." As the two stepped out of the penumbrae of the building a deluge of water poured from the heavens. Visibility became an all-time low, Crystal gritted her teeth and pushed forward in the rain. Smoke morphed into a fog and blue lights winked back at her from a dense shroud of white. Pulling out the soaked blazer, Silver draped it across his friend's head and she smiled gratefully at him. The rain drummed onto the roads and fell into the core of the earth, around her, water and fire mixed and hissed akin to a live beast. Stepping over muddy puddles, they raced across empty streets and came to a stop before the nearest Center, the front of the clinic crumbled apart, revealing the insides and water rushed in, damaging the machines whilst the tiled floor cratered in several places. Entering the dilapidated building, Crystal purposefully marched to the back and rifled through boxes. Silver silently helped her unpack and search through special containers, as they hunted, he noted the defeated look in her eyes but yet...She refused to give up.

There were no usable pokemon in the center, the two people, soaking wet and haggard, stood in a storage room full of containers and the female Johto native angrily kicked a box aside. The potions contained within the box spilled to the floor. Silver walked over and pocketed a few; one never knew when they may come in handy. "...Let's search someplace else." Crystal waded through the mountain of cartons and strode outside. "We can try a school, how about it? There should be some pokemon there right?" Noting the desperate look in her eyes, he gently nodded and fell in step behind her as she raced through the squall. The rain came down harder, big fat drops exploding against the ground. Locating the local trainer's school which remained marginally intact, the Johto natives climbed over the rusting gates and the capturer smashed open the door with a powerful kick. The wood splintered apart and the two agreed to search in different places. Silver irises watched Crystal as she bolted down the hallways, instead of turning around and investigating on his own; the red head entered the locker area and slumped against one of the metal cabinets. A simple thieving mission twisted into one of the most bizarre experiences of his life. And that was saying something. In one night, the beheld the sky fall down, the earth rip apart...He silently observed the twist of space as he tried in vain to reach Crystal and odd memories flooded into his mind. Shoving the memories to the back of his head, he decided to study them later, the biggest conundrum was the early appearance of the mythical beasts. How and why did they burst out of the distortion world at such an odd time?

Suddenly, his thought process shifted to Gold and Crystal. He held both of them in the highest regard; they were his best friends. As for Crystal and Gold, he did not mind them ending up together, often; the ebony haired male displayed jealous tendencies if Crystal complimented Silver or sat next to him. He chalked it up to the breeder's idiosyncrasies. To him, the indigo haired woman was a close confederate and a reliable friend...Until she dropped a bombshell on him that is.

After stealing the gem, his mind stubbornly veered towards her. Her simple confession threw his normally apathetic emotions into a violent frenzy and he tried to tame the rampant contemplations playing out in his head. Crystal was a friend, Gold was a friend. Gold loved Crystal and will anything to protect her. He, Silver, never had a chance and he certainly was not going to ruin his friendship with Gold in order to create one.

Still...He pondered as a warm flush spread across his cheeks; it was nice to know what Crystal thought of him. People only remarked on his looks if he followed a strict diet and did not lose too much weight. However, Silver's health went on a constant decline, the extreme stress accompanying his job made it impossible to maintain a peace of mind. If Blue was troubled, he automatically stopped eating and if he had a mission coming up, he often gorged on unhealthy cup noodles to keep him going. Despite his ungainly appearance, Crystal still found him handsome.

The distorted reflection staring back at him did not look flattering in the slightest. Earlier, the pouring rain dissolved his make-up and he discarded his wig in the confusion. In the dull gleam of the metal, he spied a thin face framed by lanky, matted hair. "She must be blind..." he muttered, felt his face heat up some more and wrung out excess water from his drenched shirt.

Crystal found a pair of staraptor in an abandoned classroom. Once the birds were released in the lobby, they refused to obey commands and a gust sent the two humans soaring and smacking to the opposite end of the room. Outside, thunder crashed and the rain eased up to a drizzle. Frightened, the avian beasts huddled together and warily eyed the strange humans. Picking herself up from the floor, the female approached them with soothing words and two rare candies in her palm. The monsters sensed her fear. Gently, she knelt down in front of them and spoke soothingly. The female staraptor, hiding behind her mate, gingerly came forward and sniffed the objects in the human's palm. Crystal held her hand up higher and after giving her a painful peck; the hen staraptor allowed her to stroke it. The male eyed her doubtfully and when Silver approached, it screeched at the red head before raking him with its steel tipped talons. At once, Crys hefted her leg and slammed it straight into the predator pokemon's chest. The bird flew moved back a few paces and blinked, to the thief's astonishment, the male bird meekly waddled over to him and allowed him to stroke its grey plumage.

"Capturing techniques," His comrade explained and mounted her ride. "All pokemon have a spot they are highly sensitive too, if you manage to strike a pokeball at their sensitive area, you will be able to capture a monster at full health with minimal difficulty. Hitting the area either frightens them, or makes them tame." She ran her fingers in the female's head feathers and the bird cooed in delight. "Let's go home...I'm exhausted." He noted weariness lacing her words.

"Just make sure not to fall off." Silver joked with a blank face.

"You make bad dating material" Crystal scrunched up her face. "Jeez, all the girls will run away from you if you aren't a bit charismatic. Take senior Green for example, his icy exterior exudes an intellectual charm." Shaking her head, she pressed her legs against the bird's body and urged the staraptor to fly. The beast soared into the darkened skies and disappeared out of sight.

You won't run away from me.

Silver bit his lip till he tasted blood. He did not just think that.

The next day, dawn

Sinnoh Mainland

Dex Criminal's base, Gold's room.

The male grunted, turned over in his bed and a pokemon scurried away from being crushed under his weight. Gold's room resonated with several snores and grunts and typholsion softened the inky black surroundings of the area with the light of its fiery mane. The volcano pokemon snoozed on the carpet, whilst one paw rested on its master's bed at a painful angle. Next to the raven haired male's bed, his pokegear, resting on the wooden bedstead, rang insistently and an arm shot out from the duvet covers and grabbed the device. Bleary eyed, he accepted the video call and gawped at the sight of his commander.

"Hello Mister Gold, I have an emergency, I really need to go to the bathroom so could you please unlock the door for me?" Red pleaded earnestly. Gold stared, unable to comprehend the situation. Did his commander not have arms? Couldn't he grab the keycard laying somewhere in his room, swipe it at the electronic pad and get out himself? The call ended and the gold eyed man dumbly gawked into the blank screen. Putting the device back down. He rolled over and went to sleep.

"Mister Gold? Eh, he can wait five more minutes..." he warbled to himself and closed his eyes. Surely Commander Red, the legendary battler could hold out for five minutes...

Sunlight streamed in and caressed his face. Jumping up from his bed, the breeder eyed his pokemon as they shuffled around and rubbed off vestiges of sleep. Typholsion stood at the door, the pokemon wanted to go out. Suddenly, he remembered Red's request, his mentor needed the toilet. Shrieking, he glanced at the clock and groaned; over three hours passed since the call. Dragging himself out of bed, he neglected to dress himself properly and instead grabbed his keycard and flew down the corridor. To his astonishment, the door to Red's room remained locked. Puzzled and wondering of the ex-champion somehow pranked him, he swiped his keycard and the door slid open.

In the doorway, clad in an oversized t-shirt and a cap hiding half of his face, stood a five-year old Red. A pair of jeans pooled at the child's feet and the boy pulled his black shirt till it went over his knees. He had a sheepish look in his crimson irises, the one a naughty child would give to someone older if they were caught doing something bad. Gold's eyes trailed down the boy and at the jeans...They were wet. "Uncle, I'm sorry for wetting the jeans. I'm not really sure what's going on but this place looks interesting!" The boy flashed him a toothy grin in spite of his circumstances. The breeder stumbled in the room and crouched down to the scarlet eyed boy's eye level. "My name is Red." Red introduced himself. "I like pokemon battling and I'm good at street fights. My dream is to become the Pokemon Champion!" He puffed his little chest out and declared.

Pokemon Champion huh? The breeder's smirked widened. Seeing a tiny Red looking up earnestly at him brought an influx of memories. Golden eyes softening, he picked the oversized cap off the fighter's head and put it on his own. It fit snugly. Carrying his tiny commander, Gold heard the boy inhale deeply and grab fistfuls of his shirt. "So Red huh?" he asked and the child bopped his head. "Don't worry about this place, it might seem a little strange to you but this is home."

"Home?" The innocent voice piped inquisitively

"Yeah...And I'm your older brother, Call me Gold."

A/N: So did anyone get a heart attack? Heh. I actually prefer Gold with Crystal but I thought this would be a nice twist. L-2, poor dude, developed some serious problems. Much thanks to all those who read and reviewed, keep on telling me what you think. Virtual –something with a lot of ice- to all.

At Sakurafox1218: Your theories are delicious and interesting, but does L-2 get kicked out from the IP? And yes, look forward to Gold half killing Lack-2. Before that though, look forward to Gold being the ultimate big brother to Red. At Jack54311: I took your advice on divine punishment and cooked the next chapter up. Of course the world is going to go haywire when the legendries return, they are supposed to be far apart from each other, not bunched up and ready to rumble. At AceTrainerLeaf: You can read the manga on MangaFox, but it lacks the latest chapters and its only complete till B/W. Platina will not make a comeback unfortunately, I tried to find a place to squeeze her in but she didn't fit. So yes, my favorite frost queen is gone.