Well, updating this even if no one reads. I'll eventually upload to Archive too.

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Tortured Hearts

Waves crashed up against the ship with enough force it rocked the crew onboard from side to side. Sailor Eddie, one of the several few men on board, grabbed onto the railings to keep himself from bowling over the side of the ship. He was no stranger to life at sea – for about a decade now, he had lived his life on the ship – but he had never become accustomed to the rogue waves that battered ships out in the ocean.

To make matters worse, it was raining. Bucket loads of rain poured down from the heavens above making the trip far more unpleasant than it was supposed to be. His fellow crew members scampered and slid across the deck as they raced for cover. Another wave crashed into the side of the ship, knocking him back from the railings. He fell onto the floor then climbed to his feet. Wasting not another moment, Eddie hurried across the slippery deck into the safety of the cabin.

Their captain, Stern, turned to him. "Something is wrong!"

"I can tell!" Eddie fired back over the roar of thunder.

A table moved across the floor. Several crew members ran after it but they were too late – the table crashed into the wall with enough force, one of the legs splintered. Before the crew could move the table someplace else, they were thrown off their feet. It was like having the wind knocked out of him. Eddie contacted the wall then lurched forwards. Fortunately, he was able to keep the contents of his stomach inside.

As he climbed to his feet, the cabin door flung open. Sailor Huey, one of his long-term friends, burst in. There were red marks across his arms, as if some creature had attacked him. "Tentacool are coming on board, captain!"

Eddie noted the alarmed looks exchanged between his crew mates. It wasn't unheard of Tentacool attacking a curious trainer getting too close, but attacking an entire crew? Stern frowned. "…That can't be…" His words were silenced when a cabin crew member banged on the window outside, a Tentacool latched onto his head. The man tried to pry the tentacles free from around his neck, but the pokémon would not budge.

Eddie's eyes widened. They were behaving with unheard of aggression. He watched as man outside dropped to his knees, weakened by the lack of oxygen. He rushed over to the window and glanced down. Blood spilled out of the man's mouth, nostrils and eyes, combining with the water already on deck. He covered his mouth with his hand to keep himself from screaming.

"What the bloody hell is happening?!"

"Get down on the ground!"

Another rogue wave slammed into the ship. He rolled across the floor, unable to find anything to grab onto to steady himself. There was another scream from outside. He placed his hands over his ears, hoping by some miracle the screams would stop, but kept his eyes wide open and alert. Some Tentacool flew into the windows. He jumped each time one contacted the screens. Fortunately, the windows were resilient.

"Captain… What do we do?" Eddie said, glancing over at the man.

Never had he seen his captain so pale. The man was sitting in the centre of the floor, his knees brought up to his chest, arms wrapped around them. His eyes were fixed on the window. He winced as another Tentacool hit the glass pane. "…I don't know…" he murmured. "I've never seen anything like this before… What could've caused them to behave like this?"

The door flung open again. Sailor Hudson. He was a large man in his mid thirties with small brown beady eyes and a thick moustache. He wasn't the most approachable person but seeing the grief and fear on his face made Eddie overlook that history. The sailor shut the door behind him and pressed his back against it. "There's too many of them, captain! An entire school! We need to call for help!"

"The equipment isn't working!"

"Are we going to die out here?" another said.

Eddie remained silent. So, this was how his life was going to end - in pain and agony in the middle of the ocean where no one would be able to find them. What an anti-climatic way to die. Their bodies would just sink to the bottom of the ocean for the wild pokémon to feast on. Only their bones would remain.

"I shouldn't have ever come back!" a sailor said. "One last trip, I said. One last trip." He started sobbing. Another sailor tried to comfort him, but there was nothing he could do to stop the flow of tears. Some even started to pray. Like that would change the circumstances.

Eddie kept his distance from his friends and squeezed his eyes shut. He listened to the sounds of the waves crashing against the ship, and the roar of thunder and rain pelting the deck. Climbing to his feet, he looked out the window again, watching the terror unfold. In the distance, he saw large hulking figures with multiple tentacles, surrounded by schools of Tentacool. He took in a deep mouthful of air. Tentacruel. They were truly doomed now.

Tucking his hands beneath his shirt, he crossed his fingers and hoped for a miracle he knew wouldn't come. It didn't hurt to try – it wasn't as if there was anything else he could do. He watched as the Tentacruel came closer, whipping the waves up around them in a frenzied manner, he couldn't help but think something else was controlling them and making them behave like this. What other reason would there be to have usually calm creatures unleash their fury like this?

He rubbed his eyes. When he opened them again, the Tentacruel had disappeared beneath the surface. Schools of Tentacool continued to move towards their ship aided by the rogue waves. More were thrown on board. Unfortunate sailors unable to reach the safety of the cabin were brought down to the ground by the Tentacool, their screams drowned out by the waves and thunder. He looked on in terror as the pokémon wrapped their tentacles around the necks of their victims, proceeding to choke them to death.

He wanted to help them, but how? He had pokémon himself, but how could one trainer stand against an army of Tentacool? Not even the Champion herself could stop them. Not even Red could. They were at the mercy of the pokémon and the elements. All he could do was stand still and look on helplessly as his friends died around him.

A hand gripped his shoulder. Surprised, he jumped then turned around. Stern was looking at him with a defeated expression. That one look said everything – it was over. "We always thought we knew everything about the ocean and its inhabitants…" he said slowly, the fear in his eyes dimming. "But we were wrong. What we know barely scratches the surface."

"Are you saying this was always a possibility?"

Stern nodded. "We're not natives to this land, Eddie. The pokémon were here first – we're just invading their homes and building on their lands. Perhaps… perhaps this is the pokémon fighting back to take their homes once more."

"But… pokémon are our friends, captain. We've never had an incident like this before… At least not on this grand scale."

"What if they're just biding their time? What do we truly know about the nature of pokémon?"

Eddie remained silent, reflecting on his captain's words. What did they know? Pokémon were companions. They battled with other pokémon stronger. They were friends, not enemies. Sure, there was the odd scuffle when a curious trainer came too close to a wild pokémon's territory, but weren't humans the same? "We live in harmony with pokémon."

"Do we really? Is that what you call harmony?" He gestured to the fallen comrades outside. Eddie winced. Stern then sighed. "I'm sorry… It's just… I always thought I'd die on my own terms doing what I loved best… Sailing. I never once thought I would perish at the hands of pokémon."

"No one ever thinks that, but we don't control our fates. We just have to make the most of each day."

Stern nodded again. "Indeed. You've been a good crew member, Eddie. If things had been different… You would've been captain." He pulled his hand back letting it hang loosely at his side as he looked on. "Doesn't this feel like the world is ending? The end of mankind?"

"Let's hope that is not the case."

As the words left his mouth, he felt the ground lift. He looked at Stern. Stern looked back. He didn't need to speak to know what to do next. The two men turned away and grabbed each other's arms then looked down at the raging waters below. "It's been a pleasure knowing you, Eddie."

Eddie tightened his grasp on the captain's arm. "It's been an honour to serve, Stern." Without speaking another word, Eddie bit down on his lower lip, shut his eyes and jumped feet first into the water.

It didn't matter where Lance walked trouble seemed to follow him everywhere he went. Journalists followed his every move that it was becoming incredibly difficult to find a moment's rest. They wanted to know what everyone else wanted to know – why had he attacked a member of the Dragon Council and what was he going to do now? Some journalists even had the nerve to theorize he was suffering from depression after having lost his title to Lyra a few months ago.

It was becoming too much for his cousin. Journalists had taken to following her around as well, hoping she could provide the answers Lance refused to give. Her behaviour had taken a turn for the worse – her stress levels were far too high, but Clair assured him everything was perfectly fine, and she was 'in complete control'. She was too proud to admit she wasn't, but Lance could see it from a mile away. She was having sleeping problems and now she refused to eat outside fearing someone might have poisoned her meal.

Lance was more accustomed to such attention having dealt with many pesky journalists before during his reign as Champion of Kanto and Johto. It wasn't the media giving him problems though – it was trainers like himself giving him a hard time. There were still a small number of people who supported him, but most people had decided Lance could not be trusted. It was all thanks to the Dragon Council members who had worked hard to turn people against him.

He never would've thought people of his own hometown would turn away from him, but everything was always possible. He sat down on the bench and looked down at his sole remaining pokémon, his eldest and strongest Dragonite, and sighed. At least he had his Dragonite's full loyalty that had to count for something. By the end of the week, he predicted that more than half of the city will have turned against him.

"Hey look, it's the washed-up former Champion, Lance!" a tamer jeered. Lance recognized him as Jonno, one of the up and coming tamers from Blackthorn City. His main dragon was a Dratini and many locals believed he was going to surpass Lance who was considered the greatest tamer of the Dragonite in the lands. Lance didn't like him. He was just like all the other big shot trainers – overconfident and annoying.

"Don't get too close, Jonno. He might swing a punch," another tamer warned.

Jonno shrugged. "Let him. It'll just give the council more of a reason to banish him."

His groupies, a bunch of stupid girls, all giggled. Lance recognized one of them – she was the same person who tried asking for advice at the dragon shrine right after he had stripped Clair of her rank. So, she had abandoned his fanclub and joined up with another. Just what he needed. More people to complain about him to the council.

"He's lost his touch. He's no longer the Champion and therefore he's no longer of any importance," Jonno remarked.

Lance ignored him. He had better things to do than engage in yet another fight with an annoying upstart, like think of people who could form his defence team within Blackthorn. He tried to think of calming things to stop himself from getting too worked up, but nothing came to mind. Calming thoughts eventually led to angry ones and those generally ended up with him hitting someone. He glared at Jonno, hoping the fool would get the hint, but the pompous brat just smirked.

"You think I should challenge him to a battle?"

"Don't be crazy, Jonno. You're no way near strong enough yet to take on Lance."

The boy tilted his head to the side, shaggy brown locks covering one side of his face. "Yeah, I suppose you're right. I wouldn't want to waste time on a has-been anyway." He caught Lance's eye and grinned, flashing him a thumbs up gesture.

A better person would shrug it off, but Jonno's arrogance rubbed him the wrong way. The idiot thought he was better than him. Lance stood up and glowered. "You refer to me as a has-been and yet you've done nothing notable yourself. Why don't you show me exactly what you can do then talk tough?"

Before Jonno could get out another word, he heard a door slam, followed by his cousin storming towards his location. "I have just about had it with those journalists! If they come by my gym again to film a battle, I swear I'm going to have my Kingdra blast them away!" she snapped. She stopped just a few metres short of Jonno and his friends then turned to Lance for an explanation. "What's going on here?"

"Jonno was just leaving," Lance replied.

The trainer snorted. "Come on, let's leave. We'll just tell the council members Lance threatened us." The group walked away, and Lance raked a hand through his hair, drawing in a couple of deep breaths.

"Threatened them?" Clair demanded, tapping her foot, her sapphire eyes narrowed. "We can't afford to cause trouble, Lance! We're being watched all the time! Heck, the neighbours are probably watching us right now and scribbling down notes to pass onto the blasted council members, so they'll have even more of a reason to banish you!"

"Clair…"

She shook her head. "I don't want to hear it!" she snapped, then sighed. "I'm sick of it. I'm sick of having those media hounds waiting for me at the gym just so they can ask me questions about you. You know what a journalist said me the other day? They wanted to know if you had deflowered Lyra yet. Deflowered! Like that is any of their business to know!" She kicked the dirt. "I hate them. I hate them all. I want my privacy back."

What was that supposed to mean? "Deflowered?" he repeated.

Clair gave him an impatient look. "…You seriously don't know? It means 'have you taken Lyra's virginity away yet?'" She uttered a growl and threw her hands up in frustration.

Oh. So that's what 'deflowered' meant. No wonder the journalists were so interested. That would be something for the gossip magazines to write about. He forced the thought aside and said, "They're not going to leave until the case is settled. You know that," he said, ignoring her comment and focusing back on the situation at hand.

"We don't even know when the case is going to take place. No one has mentioned anything about a set date yet."

Lance sighed. "It'll happen. We just have to be prepared." He sat down again, feeling a mini implosion of pain in his forehead. Great. The start of a headache. Just what he needed. Things were turning out well for him so far. "Take a few days vacation, Clair."

She shook her head again, pressing her lips together. "I'm not leaving you alone. Besides, if I take a couple of days vacation, who is going to run the gym? Mike? The other trainers are not up to my level and they never will be. They don't have what it takes to be a gym leader," she protested.

Fair point, Lance thought, but Clair had overlooked one single fact – he was here. "I'm more than qualified to run the gym for a couple of days."

"You can't do that. You're the new elder."

"And I'm doing a rather crappy job at it. Haven't you heard the news?" he replied dryly. "Seriously, Clair. Go on a vacation. You look like you need one. I'll handle things here until you get back. At least you'll be able to get some breathing space." The stabbing pain in his forehead intensified and he winced, rubbing the sore spot.

Her expression softened. "Headache?"

He grunted. "Nothing serious. Probably just coming down with a cold or something." He stood up again and walked towards her then placed a hand on her shoulder. "Go and visit one of the other cities or something. Stay with Jasmine for awhile. Spend some time at the beach, all right? I'll see you at the gym - I'm just going to get some medicine from the cabinet. I'll talk to you soon."

Clair continued to frown but said nothing further. Lance strolled away, a hand to his forehead, trying to will the pain away. The further he walked, the more painful it became. He staggered back to the privacy of his home and opened the door then pushed himself inside, slamming it shut behind him. He started making his way towards the cabinet when his legs gave way from beneath him. Falling to the floor, he landed with a thud and swore under his breath.

"What the heck…" he muttered.

He had experienced his fair share of colds before, but this was unlike anything he had endured before. Colds weren't meant to make people collapse on the floor. He lay on the ground, flat on his stomach for a couple of moments before pushing himself back up again when he felt a trickle of liquid leak down from his nostrils. Sticking out his tongue, he ran it across his upper lip and tasted blood.

"How long must we keep running for?" Petrel snapped, batting away flies as they ventured deeper into the cave. They were currently hiding out in a cave close to the border of Cerulean City. It was one of the rare few places authorities didn't seem to check for whatever reason. It was like they thought the place was dangerous. After the death of Archer, Rocket supporters had been forced to scatter. Many had ended up in jail, but some had managed to escape. Petrel, and his fellow companions, Ariana and Proton, were the fortunate few who had evaded the law.

Ariana came to an abrupt halt to catch her breath. "You know we can never stop running. The authorities are still searching for us. They know we're still out here and as long as we're not behind bars, we're a threat." She straightened and brushed a loose bang away from her eyes.

"I still can't believe it… Archer dead," Proton murmured, wiping away a few beads of sweat from his forehead. Apparently, the man had jumped off a building after losing the battle to Lyra. "What are we going to do now?"

Folding his arms across his chest, Petrel leaned against the wall, his brows furrowed. "Archer was a fool. He tried to do too much in a short space of time." He pulled away and leaned forward, raising a hand to his chin. "We have to do better than him."

"And what do you suggest we do, Petrel? We don't have the resources to regain control of this region. All the league people are on alert," Ariana added, twirling a lock of hair around a finger. "We can't exactly leave the region either. We'll get caught."

"But we can't just around here and do nothing," Petrel replied. "We can come back from this. We will find Giovanni and rise once again from the ashes. We just need to be smart." He started walking back and forth.

Ariana sighed. "For all his faults, Archer knew how to unite us as one. He had a plan and he knew how to execute it well. He wasn't a fool, Petrel. He became too confident and that led to his downfall. He should've taken down Lyra as soon as she started intervening in our plans. Giovanni should've taken down the league when he had the chance…. All these lost opportunities and we end up back at square one again."

The commanders fell silent. Ariana was right – so many opportunities to gain control, but each one lost due to underestimating the opponent. No one had spared Red a thought when he came onto the scene. That misjudgement caused Giovanni to leave and Team Rocket crumbled. Three years later and a repeat of history happened with Lyra putting an end to their plans. Once again they were without a leader.

"We can't do anything but hide," Proton argued. "Archer led us to our ruin. Now we have nothing. We don't even have a home to return to. How do you propose we come back from this when we have no resources." Silence greeted his words. He was right – they had nothing. Who was going to listen to a bunch of criminals on the run?

"So what? We just sit here and wait for the end?"

Proton struggled to think of something to say that could lift the mood of his companions, but he knew there was nothing. Team Rocket was finished. Giovanni gone. Archer dead. The once mighty criminal organization had been defeated. "We could always turn ourselves in. We might be locked up behind bars, but at least we wouldn't have to run anymore." And spend the remainder of their lives living in fear.

Petrel shook his head, curled his fingers into a fist and hit the wall. Pulling his fist back, he turned around and said, "I'm not going to roll over like a dog and surrender. We must fight back. I'm not going to accept that this is the end. It can't end like this. We can be mighty again. Can you imagine – we could have power and make the world cower beneath us in a way not even Giovanni could do."

Nothing more but a dream. It was impossible. The League was still on the lookout for them. Besides, even if they had a plan, how were they supposed to enact it whilst in this cave? The moment they left, they'd be at the mercy of the public. Everyone knew what their faces looked like. "Have you ever wondered what life would've been like if we hadn't chosen to submit ourselves to Giovanni's cause?"

"This was always my path," Arianna said.

"And mine too," Petrel added. "This is the only life we've ever known."

True. Archer had recruited him and his companions in their late teenage years. The man had approached them after graduation and said for their assistance in finding Giovanni. Like fools they agreed. Allying with Archer was a chance to make a name for themselves and be remembered. Maybe they'd be remembered for all the wrong reasons, but at least it was better than just becoming another name to add to the death list to be forgotten about.

"What's the matter, Arianna?"

Proton turned to face the red-head and lowered his torch. She was looking past the two men into the darkness of the cave. "I thought I saw something."

"No one else comes into this cave. They say it's cursed," Petrel said, also peering towards the darkness. He grabbed the torch from Proton and held it before his face. "I don't see anything. Maybe it was just a Zubat or some other pokémon."

"Cursed?" Proton repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Didn't think you were a believer in folklore."

"I'm not. It's just something I heard from another Rocket grunt. It was before I was promoted. Apparently, Giovanni was working on some experiment trying to create a powerful pokémon, during his time as the leader of Team Rocket. He used the money for funding this experiment… That's what the rumours say anyway." He took a few steps towards the shadows and swayed the torch back and forth, searching for a sign of life other than human. There was nothing.

"And then Red came and stopped Giovanni. I wonder if that's why Giovanni left – Maybe Red found out the truth and convinced him to leave and the man sent himself into his own exile," Arianna finished, pushing a stray strand of hair behind her right ear. "He was a proud man. Exiling himself makes sense. Maybe he was so ashamed of what he had done he didn't want to return."

Proton frowned and rubbed his chin. No one knew what happened when Red and Giovanni came face-to-face. Giovanni had vanished and left no clues to his location, and there was never a chance to ask Red. The boy refused to speak, and then he too vanished a few days after Giovanni's disappearance. Not even Archer knew. He was just doing what he believed would bring Giovanni back to them… If the man was even still alive. Perhaps everything they had done had been a waste of time. Perhaps they had been fooled by the delusional ambitions of a man blinded by power.

Arianna's eyes widened. "I just saw it again."

Proton glanced over his shoulder and squinted. "I don't see anything."

She took a few steps back and stopped when she reached the wall. "My eyes aren't playing tricks on me. I know I saw something – purple eyes peering out from the darkness. There is something else inside here. We're not alone." She pulled away from the wall and started retreating to the cave's entrance.

Before she could take another step further, Petrel placed a hand on her arm. "If you go back out there, you'll be at the mercy of the patrolling police. Let's just remain calm and wait right here." He then pointed to a large boulder nearby. "We'll hide there."

Arianna's eyes flickered back towards the path to the entrance then to the boulder. Nodding, she allowed Petrel to guide her over to the boulder and knelt on the ground. Proton joined them then looked at the torch. "Maybe it's scared of the torch. Put it out."

"What? Are you crazy? How are we going to see?"

"We can use our xtransceievers for light."

It didn't sound like the brightest of ideas, but the light provided from the machines was decent enough. At least if something went wrong they could put out a call for help. Couldn't do that with a torch. Petrel placed it on the ground then stomped on it until the flame was out. Once done, Proton brought out his xtransceiver and put it on torchlight mode. He poked his head around the corner.

He looked into the dark, keeping his eyes peeled for any sign of purple eyes. At first, he didn't see anything. Perhaps Arianna was just seeing things after all, but upon closer investigation, he noticed something staring back in their direction too. There, in the dark, purple eyes, unblinking. Chilling. Evil.

He wanted to look away but found he couldn't tear his gaze free. Never had he ever seen anything like this before. Perhaps the rumours about Giovanni's experiment were true after all. "We have to leave now," he whispered. "Whatever that thing is… it doesn't feel right." Being afraid wasn't a position he was accustomed to being in, but something told him this creature was dangerous.

"The rumours must be true then… Giovanni's failed experiment," Petrel said in a low voice.

"Did they have a name for it?"

Petrel shook his head. "No. No one knew what it was called." He climbed to his feet.

Proton also followed. No way was he going to stay here in a cave with some creepy failed experiment. Keeping his eyes on the creature, he slowly took several steps back down on the path leading back to the entrance. With each step taken, the creature moved closer. "It's following us. We need to run now before it gets too close," he said.

"Agreed."

Arianna broke into a sprint. Petrel followed, and lastly Proton. He didn't dare look over his shoulder to see if they were still being followed. All that mattered was reaching the outside world again. He'd rather be caught by the police than attacked by the cave pokémon. Better to take the chances outside than inside.

He continued to sprint through the dark twisting caverns until Proton came to an abrupt stop. Caught by surprise, and unable to stop himself in time, he crashed into the older man, almost toppling him over. Fortunately, both held their ground. "What's going on?" Proton said, leaning to the side to look ahead.

He didn't get an answer. He didn't really need one. There just standing a few feet away was a bipedal humanoid creature with a feline-shaped head and muscular tail. The creature looked at them and tilted its head to the left then raised a single hand. A sudden tightness gripped his chest. Eyes widening, Proton brought a hand to his heart, feeling the tightness worsen. His knees buckled and gave way to the ground.

His companions also dropped to their knees, their hands clutching their stomachs. Arianna heaved over and coughed up blood. Petrel followed soon afterwards, doubling over and expelling vomit tinged with blood. The sight of them barfing caused Proton to follow, and soon, he too was bent over and emptying his stomach. Seeing the blood on the floor only prompted him to vomit again, the stench too overpowering to ignore.

Pain imploded from within stomach as the tightness in chest worsened. It was almost as if his insides were being crushed. He wanted to cry out in pain, but every time he opened his mouth, more vomit would exit and spill out over his clothes and hands. His companions were faring no better than he was. He could just make out their weakened forms slumped over their own vomit.

Weakened, Proton fell to the ground, his body consumed in fiery pain. He was helpless and completely at the mercy of the creature before them. Death was just around the corner and he welcomed it. Anything was better than the pain he was in. As if the creature could read his mind, Proton watched in horror as the boulder was lifted off the ground. His heart skipped a beat. Before he could make sense of the situation, the boulder flew towards Petrel and made contact, shattering his bones and silencing him forever.

He would've screamed out if he could, but all he could do was stare in shock and horror at the broken corpse of his friend. He then moved his gaze back to the pokémon. It hadn't lifted a finger. The boulder had been moved with his mind indicating this pokémon was a psychic-type and one boasting incredible mind powers to be able to move something that massive.

The pokémon turned to face him, its face expressionless. He squeezed his eyes shut. Maybe that would somehow lessen the pain. I'm sorry, Giovanni. We failed you. Maybe we were never truly meant to succeed. Perhaps it had been their destiny to fall. That was the last thought that entered his mind as the boulder crashed into his body.

Once there was a time the world respected him. Now he was just some washed-up champion most of the world despised. He was aware of all the comments written about him on PokeWeb - the nasty little comments, the snide remarks and the false rumours. How could Samuel Oak, a kind and modest researcher, have a grandson so crude like Blue?

Blue walked over to the fridge and opened it. There was a single ham and cheese sandwich and a bottle of water inside. Sticking a hand in, he grabbed it and headed over to the drawer to grab a plate. He unwrapped it from the gladwrap then sat down at the table and looked up at the painting on the wall. It was a painting of himself holding the Champion's trophy. Alone.

He looked away. That was the story of the great Blue Oak. Alone and unloved. What a laugh that would be should word reach the ears of people outside his family. Who would've thought that the great mighty Blue Oak lived alone in a house in Pallet Town? He took a bite out of his sandwich then pushed it aside, his appetite lost.

Red hadn't replied to his letters and Lyra hadn't arrived on his doorstep yet. Something wasn't right with Red. He always replied. What was taking him so long? "You stupid bastard," he muttered, rising from his chair to look outside the window. He saw Mount Silver in the distance, the peak covered in cloud. Somewhere, Red was up there hiding. "Are you that much of a coward, Red?" he said aloud.

A knock on the door pulled him out of his thoughts. Turning away from the window, he trudged over to the door, peered through the keyhole and sighed. His grandfather. What a disappointment. Still, he opened the door and allowed his grandfather to step inside. The recent years hadn't been so kind to his grandfather. There were bags beneath his eyes, his skin was wrinkled, and his hair was starting to thin. "Grandson," the professor said.

Blue closed the door then crossed his arms over his chest. "What do you want?"

The man sighed. "I wanted to talk to you about the future. Your future."

Blue rolled his eyes. "You mean you want to force your ideas down my throat again?" It was always the same. His grandfather would come over once a month to try and discuss 'his future' but really, it was all about his grandfather's legacy living on for future generations. "I've told you before, Samuel – I don't want to be a researcher."

His grandfather flinched at the mention of his name. Good. He was hurt. "I'm trying to do what's best for you, grandson."

"What? By giving me no choice as to what I can do with my life?" he retorted, his brows furrowed. "I might be your grandson, but I am nothing like you! You're a failure, grandfather. You only became a researcher because you were too weak to become a trainer so don't you come in here and tell me that I have to follow in your footsteps."

Not many people knew the truth about his grandfather. Many thought he was just blessed with brains and curious about the natures of pokémon, but the truth was the infamous professor failed as a trainer. That's why he had become a researcher instead - to make up for his lack of strength by displaying his knowledge of pokémon and sharing it with the world.

"Grandson… please…" his grandfather pleaded.

Blue snorted. Pathetic. "You really think I'm just going to turn my back on becoming a pokémon master for the sake of family pride? If you think that then you're just a fool." He pointed an accusing finger at him. "You turned your back on me when I needed you. You even forgot my own bloody name! And you think I'm going to do what's best for this family just so your legacy carries on?" he said heatedly.

He didn't care that he was speaking so rudely to his own grandfather. It wasn't like the man deserved anything better. Samuel sighed, his shoulders slumping in defeat. "…There's a bigger picture here, Blue. Please, can we sit down and talk about the inheritance?"

Inheritance. That meant his grandfather believed he was going to die soon. Not that he cared. "You think that's going to change my mind, grandfather? I don't care if you're going to bite the dust soon. I'm a trainer first. My career comes first. Family be damned!" he hissed.

Samuel looked away, hurt. "…Do you despise me that much?"

"I can't describe how much I hate you, grandfather," he replied, his expression hard. "You wanted me to follow in your footsteps and to carry on your research. Not once did you ever consider what I wanted! You didn't give me a choice, but you gave my sister one! Why was she allowed to choose her path and I unable to? What did I ever do to deserve your scorn? Answer me that, grandfather?" he retorted, his temper rising.

Maybe the rumours were true. Maybe he was a bitter jealous brat with a god complex born into a life he didn't deserve to have, but the blame wasn't his. The man responsible for his behaviour who deserved all the blame was standing right in front of him. "It's what your parents would've wanted, Blue," the man said softly. "They wouldn't have wanted you to become… what you are now."

A living failure. That's what he wanted to say, what his eyes said, but the man was too much of a coward to voice his inner thoughts aloud. Still, the words cut through him like a knife. All he had ever wanted was to make his family proud of him, but they acted as if he was a mistake they were stuck with.

"I'd rather here what they wanted for me myself… oh wait, I can't – they're dead." His parents died in a car crash shortly after he was born, and Samuel had raised them both. Perhaps he ought to be grateful, but he saw nothing but disgust every time he investigated his grandfather's face. "You never treated me like a grandson – only like a burden. You preferred Red over me, your own blood, so don't talk to me about family like it's important to you!"

"You disappoint me, Gary."

His birth name, Gary Oak. He grimaced. The name his parents had given him and a name he didn't feel anyone else had earned the right to use. So he opted to be called Blue instead to further distance himself from his family. "You have no right to call me that. You haven't earned it… and you never will either."

Blue turned his back, his hands curled into fists. He clenched them so tightly, his hands hurt. Why couldn't anyone just understand that he just wanted to be left alone? Still, his grandfather persisted. "You may not see it, but I have always loved you, Gary. You are my grandson. I hope one day we'll be able to talk before the chance is lost forever."

He heard the door open and the retreating sounds of his grandfather's footsteps. Once the door was shut, Blue grabbed a pokéball from his pocket and threw it at the door. It bounced off. He didn't bother to pick it up. The pokéball was empty anyway. As his grandfather retreated, he shouted, "You walked out that door and left me alone!" Just like Daisy, his older sister. Same with Red and Leaf too. "You're dead to me," he added.

He retreated to his room and threw himself down on the bed then drove a fist into his pillow. To hell with everyone trying to tell him what he can and can't do. It was always be like this and do that if you want to be someone of importance. He drew his fist back from the pillow then pulled it over his head to block out the sounds from the outside.

His parents were dead. His grandfather was disappointed in him. His sister had gone silent. Red had abandoned him. Leaf had died. As for his fangirls they only liked him for his appearance. He didn't have any friends or family left that cared, and the realization of being alone was a haunting one. Squeezing his eyes shut, he clamped down on his jaw and tried to keep the tears at bay, but they spilled. Another day and another night alone.