Pokémon Radiant Sun


Final update of 2022! Woooo!

All in all, a pretty solid year. It's been a roller-coaster of emotions with lots of ups and downs, tears and triumphs. Honestly I'm just happy to be here.

I'm so grateful for all of my readers and supporters. Thank you for making this so much fun to write about, and I hope you all will continue to support my work for years to come.

Shoutout to the legends who reviewed since the last update, which includes Oragonking, Solana Leonhart, Gilgamesh50, BraviaryScout and a new reviewer known as Syn1. Thanks for your feedback and support!

Also, big shoutout to the Incorrect Quotes Generator. Definitely borrowed some amazing zingers from that for this chapter and I totally recommend people check it out. It's worth a laugh if anything else.

Enjoy.


Chapter 150: Kingdom


"I'm alone and outgunned, scared and inexperienced, but I'm right."― John Grisham, The Rainmaker.


Aether Paradise


Lillie entered the main dining room, feeling goosebumps creep onto her bare arms. The place was as drafty as ever, since that was how Lusamine preferred the main house at the Aether Paradise to be. Considering the heat of Alola this was completely understandable, but Lillie couldn't help but shiver anyway. Mostly because sitting down at the edge of the table was Aether President Lusamine Jardin herself, smiling softly at the girl as she walked into the room.

"Good morning, my little flower. How did you sleep?" Lusamine asked sweetly, staring at the disheveled and exhausted form of Lillie as she weakly limped into the room. The bruise on Lillie's cheek stood out in stark contrast to the girl's pale skin, causing Lusamine to smirk for a moment before masking her amusement.

The Aether President knew full well that her daughter hadn't slept at all. After Nebby had been returned to the labs with Faba, Lusamine spent the entire night bonding with her sweet little Lillie. Which of course meant a long talk about Lillie's inadequacies, as well as some not-so-veiled threats made towards Lillie should she ever step out of line again.

The poor deluded girl was so very, very easy to manipulate. Even after so long abroad, Lillie was emotionally insecure and lacked any sort of confidence. And so when Lusamine threatened the lives of Sun and Hau, two equally foolish boys who for some reason cared for the girl, Lillie was quick to comply with anything Lusamine had told her to do.

And then came the punishment.

Lusamine's smile widened lightly as Lillie limped over to the nearest chair and sat down, trying not to just collapse into it like she wanted to. The Aether President would never admit it, but she could be just as petty as Faba when the situation called for it.

"Very well, my dear. I'll allow you to remain silent. I don't suppose you would be willing to indulge me in a light lunch? We have such a busy schedule today, what with torturing Cosmog and figuring out how to make a permanent Ultra Wormhole, but lunch should always be observed. I remember…" Lusamine faltered for a moment, struggling to remember a name that simply was fog within her mind. The woman shrugged and said, "Well, someone we both know was adamant that everyone should eat lunch."

"You mean your husband. My father, Mohn Jardin." Lillie said in a soft voice, her eyes wide in horror as she beheld just how much Lusamine had spiraled into her own madness. She had completely forgotten the name of her deceased husband and the father of her children.

"Ahh, yes. Thank you, my little flower." Lusamine said brightly, beaming at Lillie with a warmth in her eyes that made Lillie feel so cold on the inside. The hopelessness and futility of resisting Lusamine at all had completely set in, and it was all Lillie could do to not burst into tears of frustration. She also knew full well that trying to convince Lusamine not to go through with her scheme wasn't the plan yet either.

After all, she had tried that last night, and she received a bruise on her cheek for the trouble.

After a few moments, Lusamine rang a small bell and the family cook bustled into the room, dropping off a steaming hot bowl of tomato bisque and a large loaf of freshly baked bread. Lillie was somewhat surprised that she was also given a bowl, considering Lusamine had forced the girl to fast in the 16 hours or so that the girl was within the President's care. She was starving, and Lillie's stomach rumbled at the smell of food.

"Somehow, someway…I will make you see reason. You can't do this. You can't acknowledge whatever delusions have forced you to commit such horrible acts." Lillie muttered, looking the Aether President in the eyes. She saw no trace of the woman she used to know. The woman she once idolized and adored, now nothing more than a monster.

"Horrible acts?" Lusamine purred, grinning at her daughter in a predatory manner as she broke off a chunk of sourdough bread and dunked it into her soup. "You have no idea what I've done. What I'm capable of. As we speak, I'm having my operatives cutting power to the entirety of the Alola region and attacking specific locations disguised as the remnants of Cipher. All in an effort to cause as much chaos as possible. I don't want to risk anyone trying to stop me or throw any more complications into the mix once the Ultra Wormhole is opened."

"What!? Why would you do that?" Lillie yelled out, horrified at what the woman had done. "Innocents will die at the hospitals! And those Cipher attacks have hurt a lot of people! Why would you hurt bystanders who have nothing to do with this like that?"

"Because of you, of course!" Lusamine said brightly, her smile sharpening and becoming more dangerous. "Because you had to be selfish and go on this crusade against me. You don't know the first thing about Cosmog or the Ultra Beasts. And yet you steal my property and pretend that I'm the villain in all of this when I simply want to save my Ultra Beasts."

"How am I a villain for wanting to not murder an innocent child?" Lillie asked desperately as Lusamine laughed.

"How am I a villain for wanting to save the poor creatures stuck in a place they have no desire to be in? How am I a villain for granting a victim the chance to punish someone who caused them pain?" Lusamine asked, reaching for a small remote on the table and pointing it at a large TV built into the side of the wall of the dining room. With a push of a button, the footage of a security camera suddenly appeared on the screen.

Lillie let out a soft scream of terror before she clamped her hands over her mouth. Lusamine chuckled softly as the sound of agonized screaming filled the room, along with the laughter of Branch Chief Faba. Lillie turned away, fighting the urge to throw up what little she had in her stomach at the grizzly sight of what the live camera feed was currently showing her. A room completely coated in blood as the sound of a buzz-saw whirred in the background.

"Poor Ashton. I had no idea that the Tapu had cursed him with immortality. At first we tried to kill him to wrap up loose ends and prevent anyone from finding out about my schemes. But once Faba learned the truth of what Ash had become, well…let's just say me and Faba have had ample time to make Borlath pay for what he's done. It's been incredibly therapeutic, taking out my frustrations of you out on him." Lusamine remarked, sipping the expensive wine by her side as she enjoyed the sight of someone she once considered one of her closest friends being torn apart by a team of scientists. She watched the life fade from Ashton's eyes once again, smiling fondly at her former friend.

"H-h-how could you…?" Lillie could barely speak the sentence, completely horrified by the sight and trying to force it out of her mind. She knew that Lusamine was trying to rattle her. And she had succeeded.

"Ashton Aupuni is being punished for what he's done. Much like I am punishing you for what you've done. Now then, my little flower, I would like an apology from you for stealing my property and delaying my plans for over a year." Lusamine said in a business-like tone as she took a dainty bite of bread. Lillie remained silent for several long moments, not meeting the gaze of Lusamine.

"I'm not sorry." Lillie said quietly but firmly, not meeting the Aether President's gaze. It had taken every shred of bravery she had to utter those words. But here at the end, she would at least try and stand up for herself. To be brave, just like her friends had shown her to be.

The blonde-haired girl didn't see the terrible look of absolute fury on Lusamine's face before she managed to hide it behind the lovely mask of motherly love that she had crafted for herself these past few years. The lie that she all but wore to deceive the world around her.

By this point Lillie had turned to her food and was taking several hungry sips from the soup. She was having trouble eating, due to her injuries from last night and because of how disgusted she was by the footage from the labs that showed Ashton Aupuni's torture, but she persisted due to her hunger.

Lusamine had known that her daughter had picked up some bad habits from the idiots from the mainland, but her defiance was still disappointing. The Aether President tutted softly as she regained control of herself, now amused. "I didn't think so…but you will be."

Lillie stopped eating her soup, the spoon frozen right before it touched her mouth. The girl glanced down at the bowl of tomato bisque, one of Lusamine's favorite lunchtime repasts. Her eyes went wide in horrified realization before she felt her stomach contract with agony, the girl suddenly seizing and coughing violently before she began to shake uncontrollably in pain.

Lusamine continued to eat her food, watching with sadistic glee as Lillie began to hyperventilate in her chair as if she was having a seizure. The girl suddenly swept her arm out, smacking the bowl of soup onto the floor before collapsing onto the ground, choking and sobbing as she struggled to breathe.

"That's right! I was trying to remember what poison I had the cook slip into your soup. I'm pretty sure it isn't the lethal one I was planning on serving your friends the next time I see them." Lusamine remarked casually, beaming at the shocked look on Lillie's face despite what she was currently enduring. Tears rolled down Lillie's face as she tried to shake her head, a silent plea to Lusamine that the Aether President ignored entirely. "Oh yes. As much as I adore Sun and Hau, they both know too much. Their deaths will be sad, but all towards the greater good."

"Y-you…can't!" Lillie forced out, her pained gasps pleading as Lusamine took several more bites of bread, unconcerned that the girl on the ground was twitching violently.

"I was hoping to spare you more pain." Lusamine clucked as Lillie writhed on the ground, now trying desperately to throw up the poisoned food. "I'll let you fester for a while before we simply resort to brute force. Because before we move onto the main event, my little flower…You will apologize for the wrongs you have committed."

Lillie choked incomprehensibly in response before finally throwing up onto the floor, no small amount of blood within the remnants of the tomato bisque. With that, the Aether President leaned back in her chair and sipped her wine, savoring the sight of her daughter suffering as she coughed and choked in a crumpled heap on the ground.

Vengeance was sweet.


Meanwhile…

Malie City Hall


Councilman Palena grit his teeth as he listened to a report from one of the police officers he had sent to the hospital, trying to keep his composure. Things were going from bad to worse.

The rolling blackouts were causing mass confusion amongst Alolans, and even worse was the outages with the Poké Ride Network and communications being completely down. Even worse somehow than that were the random Cipher attacks that did nothing but cause more chaos and force Palena to split ever-thinning resources even more. The hospital in particular was frantic because they were currently running on emergency generators and they had no idea what was happening to the power grid.

"Return to your post, I'll send a runner if I decide on anything further. Thank you for your hard work." Palena said as he sat down at his desk, pulling out a sheet of paper and an envelope, as well as his favorite pen and began to quickly jot down a letter.

As soon as he was done, he put the letter in an envelope and sealed it before grabbing a Poké Ball sitting on a nearby pedestal, as well as the messenger bag sitting on the floor before walking out of his office.

Palena emerged outside of Malie City Hall before calling out the Pokémon within the ball. With a flash of light, an enormous Talonflame appeared with a low chirp. Palena smiled faintly at his Pokémon, draping the bag around the chest of the fiery bird who regarded his Trainer with concern.

"Ares, please find Captain Ollie as soon as possible and deliver this letter to him. Lives are on the line." Palena said to the enormous bird, placing the letter into his bag. Ares nodded before he flapped its powerful wings into the sky, leaving Palena alone on the street. With a conflicted expression he glanced down the road towards the docks, where Demi had gone to support her friends.

"You know…sometimes when I'm conflicted. I just do something."

Palena glanced beside him and saw a familiar woman wearing a light blue dress and holding a very particular golf club. He recognized her after a moment and said, "Miss Kahili. I didn't know you were back in Alola."

"I come and go. I saw that exchange, though, Councilman Palena. If you're hesitating this much, then what are you waiting for? Go." Kahili said as she pointed down the road that Palena had been staring down.

"And abandon my post to chase after some children? I have a job to do." Palena said pointedly, causing Kahili to glare up into the man's face.

"Oh yeah? Well, you also had a job as a father, and you already abandoned that post. Guess you shouldn't abandon this one either, huh?" Kahili said to Palena, who's expression twisted into one of guilt. "Yeah, I heard about that. Quite the scandal. Honestly amazed you're still in charge after watching all of your friends get exposed for the bastards a lot of us knew they were. Then again, you're kind of a bastard yourself. But at least you clung to some power, so I guess you win."

"I don't deserve to be in power, but I'm doing what I can to make things right…And you do have a point." Palena said as he brushed past Kahili and made for City Hall, his expression turning into one of grim finality. The Councilman glanced behind himself to see Kahili smirking with amusement. "Would I be able to count on you to keep an eye on things while I'm gone? From what my daughter says, things may get bad here. Well, even more bad."

"You're right about that." Spoke a bored voice from beside Palena, and both adults turned to see Nanu leaning against a nearby light-post.

"Kahuna Nanu. Are you following any of this insanity about the Aether Paradise and what doom they'll bring? My daughter seems adamant that something bad is going to happen." Palena asked the Kahuna, who considered the question.

"I've been suspicious of Aether Paradise for years now, but I've never been able to gather proof to confirm my concerns. However, a contact of mine may or may not have been able to capture one of the so-called Cipher members who've been causing trouble as of late." Nanu remarked, causing Kahili to narrow her eyes.

"I expect to be kept in the loop on this old-timer. My new job kinda depends on knowing crap like that." Kahili chimed in, causing Nanu to snort in amusement.

"Fine. I'll explain things to you both. But Palena owes me a steak dinner." Nanu groused, causing Kahili to fight even harder to keep her composure.

"Deal. Now out with it. I want to know everything." Palena said to the Kahuna, opening the front door to the building and allowing the Kahuna inside. Kahili looked to the skies with a calculating expression on her face before following the two men inside City Hall.


Meanwhile

Malie City Docks


"Aether Paradise?!" Hau yelped in surprise, completely taken aback by that particular answer. Sun was surprised as well, considering it was the least likely place for Lillie to be taken by Team Skull. "Alright. I'm successfully confused."

"Doesn't matter if you're confused. What matters is that we leave right this second." Gladion said as he glanced backwards, spotting a large yacht with a Team Skull paint job speeding towards them. "And there's our ride."

As the cruiser slowed to a stop, floating gently beside the dock, a tall brown-haired woman wearing an Aether Paradise uniform walked out of the boat and waved to them, swiftly taking a moment to moor the boat before hopping over to the docks.

"Master Gladion! Thank goodness you're safe." The woman said with a sigh of relief, bowing to the teen who waved a hand dismissing the woman.

"None of that, now. Did Miss Wicke brief you? I could only manage a short message to her with the systems down." Gladion asked the woman, receiving a shake of the head. "I'll explain later then. We need to get back to the Paradise fast, Miss Helen."

"Not to worry. I can get us there in no time flat. And if you need a quick trip back to the mainland or a getaway, I can do that too." Helen said with a smile, patting herself on the chest.

"I'm guessing you two know each other?" Hau asked, raising an eyebrow.

"She's good friends with Miss Wicke back at the Paradise. And she's one of the few allies I've got left in that damn place. Now quick, get on the boat." Gladion responded with a glare, pointing to the cruiser.

Sun, Hau, Demi and Gladion quickly hopped onto the boat and within another minute the boat was speeding off across the ocean, onward to the Aether Paradise which currently raised more questions than answers for Sun as he thought about what was going on. It was certainly a complicated and serious issue that he struggled to untangle and make sense of.

The boy also considered the deal that he had made with Deoxys. The Legendary had helped them out by aiding them in returning to Malie City, and even protected them from Nizbel's Clan. But the DNA Pokémon desperately wanted to meet with his father, and Sun had no idea how the former Grand Master of Cipher would react to having a Pokémon as powerful as Deoxys rejoin him. Especially since that presented an opportunity for the criminal mastermind to perhaps escape the watchful eye of the Tapu (if the man himself wasn't already captured).

Sun sighed and pushed away the matter of Deoxys for the moment. He had a mission to focus on and needed to shift gears towards saving Lillie and ensuring the safety of Cosmog. Ashton Aupuni and Deoxys would have to come later.

"What I want to understand is…why?" Sun thought grimly, considering the possibilities. "Why would Team Skull take Lillie and Cosmog to Aether Paradise? Why there of all places? Lusamine and Faba wouldn't let those goons anywhere near the Paradise…right?"

Sun considered the possibilities. Good and bad, and the bad ones were the more probable of the outcomes. Sun remembered a thought that had occurred to him yesterday and his eyes went wide as a suspicion came to him. Certain similarities as well as vague statements from Lillie herself over the past few months that he had known her.

"There's no way…is there?" Sun whispered under his breath, too quietly to hear over the roar of the boat. Sun turned his gaze slowly to Gladion, truly taking a moment to look at the blond-haired boy. Sun then looked away, his mind racing at the possibilities.

"How did you even get a Team Skull boat?" Gladion asked Miss Helen, breaking the silence at long last and snapping Sun out of his thoughts.

"I may or may not have persuaded those Bone Brothers to part with their boat with some of my feminine wiles." Helen said with a wriggle of the eyebrows, smirking at Gladion's sour expression. "I told them I was going to the mainland to grab some beers to celebrate their success. As much as they boast about their strength, the Bone Brothers are dumb as a sack of rocks."

"So, what kind of feminine wiles are we talking about?" Hau asked, genuinely curious. Demi face-palmed, hiding a smile while Gladion glared daggers at Hau.

"It would mean so much to me if you weren't here right now." Gladion hissed, clenching his fists and taking every ounce of willpower within him not to punch Hau's lights out.

"I don't understand how you haven't had a stroke from how seriously you take stuff. You should really learn to relax a little. I'm sure some yoga would do you wonders for you, dude." Hau suggested to the blond-haired teen, who masked his fury into a calm mask as he reigned in his rage at Hau.

"You're right Hau. I hadn't thought of that. That's a great point." Gladion said with enough sarcasm that even Miss Helen looked back at him in surprise.

"Can you guys stop making out for like five minutes so we can come up with a plan?" Demi asked the two teens, who both looked at her in surprise and horror. "Unless you actually start making out, in which case I'll just record it for my future enjoyment."

Sun sighed with disappointment at his cohorts, wondering how he was the only one not starting fights even though he was the youngest person present. Rotom Dex slipped out of Sun's backpack and floated beside the boy, somehow unaffected by the speed of the boat.

"Bzzzzt! Sun, it fallzzz on you to be the voice as reason, as Demi hazzz gone down the the route of-" Rotom Dex began to say before Sun grabbed the device and shoved it into his backpack. "I will not be silenced!"

"A positive attitude may not solve all your problems, but it will annoy enough people to make it worth the effort." Hau said merrily in response to Gladion, who looked every more angry at that statement.

"Seriously, what the hell is wrong with you? Can't you be normal for like, a few hours? Please, just do me this one favor?" Gladion asked Hau, with the boy simply smirking in response.

"It does sort of feel like you're just trying to make Gladion mad. Not that that's very hard to do in the first place." Demi admitted, causing Gladion to give her a surprised look.

"I dunno. Sometimes I pretend to be normal." Hau admitted, shrugging again. "But it gets boring so I go back to being me."

Gladion closed his eyes and moved his lips in a way that Sun could have sworn was the blond-haired teen counting to ten. Gladion opened his eyes, exhaling a pent up breath and looked forward, seeing the Aether Paradise drawing ever-closer. "Moving on from this grand slam of stupidity...it looks like we're nearly there. Are you guys all set?"

"Yep. I'm down to five Pokémon right now, so I'm going to have to count on you guys to cover where I'm lacking. Aside from that, I'm ready." Sun said to the others, receiving a chorus of affirmatives.

"With Aou back on my team, I should be good to go. I just have to take it easy with my concussion, so I'll let you guys take point." Demi said to the boys, who also found no issues with that. They had gotten lucky as far as injuries went, and they were all very aware that they should all be in the hospital recovering right now. But Lillie and Cosmog were missing, and they couldn't wait.

"Why don't we just go find Miss Lusamine and ask her where Lillie is? She's bound to know." Hau suggested, causing Gladion to give him a deadpan look. "What? It's a good plan!"

"Are you alright with constructive criticism about your plan? I don't want to sound mean." Gladion asked Hau, who smiled and nodded.

"No, go ahead, I want to hear it."

"It fucking sucks."

Hau pouted and crossed his arms, huffing slightly as Gladion glowered at him. "That's not constructive criticism."

"And that's not a goddamn plan. We have to be careful. And for the love of Arceus, don't trip the alarms." Gladion said as they entered the Aether Paradise proper. Sun chanced peeking his head out and saw that aside from a handful of personnel patrolling the docks, the place mostly looked abandoned. It was…eerie.

Miss Helen docked the boat and moored it, allowing the Trainers off of the vessel. She stood beside the boat as they looked back at her. "If you need anything, please let me know."

"Of course. Thank you, ma'am." Gladion said gratefully before turning forward, with the others thanking Miss Helen for the ride as well before hurrying after Gladion.

"Aether Paradise's harbor…" Gladion murmured, crouching beside the docks and motioning for Sun, Hau and Demi to do the same. "We made it this far without running into trouble. But I don't like how quiet it is. You two…stay alert. Demi, stay close to me."

"But…Why would Lillie be here at Aether Paradise?" Hau asked Gladion, looking around the area. Sun was silent as he stepped off of the boat, a sense of deep unease settling over the boy as he looked around the building, his earlier suspicion seeming more likely by the minute.

"She just will be." Was Gladion's response, his tone cold as Hau threw up his hands in disgust.

"Argh! This guy! Fine. So what are we going to do?" Hau asked, trying to keep his agitation in check.

"Should we look for her? I don't think going around and asking questions is the right call here." Sun said quietly, glancing around the surprisingly empty docks. Gladion remained quiet for several moments, considering the options.

"I guess…we take the elevator." Gladion muttered, not looking forward to the prospect of going where he suspected Cosmog and Lillie were currently being held.

"You guess? And we're following this guy?! He doesn't have any plan!" Hau sighed, brushing past Gladion who's hand snatched out and grabbed Hau by the shoulder.

"Careful! One wrong move and you could set off an alarm or something!" Gladion hissed at the boy, who gave him an unimpressed look.

"Seriously? You think I'd be that stupid as to trip the alarm? Why are we even bother-" Hau began to say, taking a step forward and accidentally stepping across an extremely faint red laser on the floor nearby.

"WARNING! WARNING! ALARM SYSTEM HAS BEEN ACTIVATED! UNAUTHORIZED DOCK ACCESS HAS BEEN DETECTED!"

"Um…I may or may not have alerted every single enemy in the Pokémon Fanfiction archive." Hau remarked, shrugging sheepishly as both Sun and Gladion resisted the urge to strangle the other boy. Demi was simply shaking her head in dismay as the alarm continued to sound.

"Hau, our expectations for you were low but holy shit." Sun hissed with irritation, surprising pretty much everyone present since the boy was not known to be particularly vulgar.

"What the hell were you thinking?" Gladion demanded angrily, stepping towards Hau.

Hau looked around at the red lights flashing on the walls and the alarm blaring above them and shrugged his shoulders. "Well, here's the plot twist. I wasn't. How was I supposed to know that there were invisible lasers on the ground?"

"Attention all employees…" Gladion and Demi went still as a statue while Hau and Sun looked up, hearing President Lusamine over the intercom system. The alarm system stopped blaring, but the red lights on the sides of the walls continued to glow brightly.

Lusamine's voice was tranquil and pleasant, almost soothing as she addressed everyone. "I have just been informed of a security breach at the Docking Bay. This is not a drill. The intruders are thieves that pose an enormous threat to the Aether Paradise, the Pokémon under our protection, the goals of the Foundation and my own life. Please subdue these intruders by any means necessary. Lethal force has been authorized."

"Miss Lusamine?" Sun asked quietly, surprised at hearing the woman he respected so much and considered such a good friend speak in such a manner.

"And there she is, right on cue. Brace yourselves, we've got company!" Gladion called as an Aether Foundation member charged towards them. Sun was surprised to see that he was regarding the children with an expression of absolute fury.

"Intruder spotted!" the Aether Foundation Employee shouted, a fierce snarl on their face. Despite the fact that they were looking at four teenagers, their angry expression still lingered. "I'll fight with all I have to wipe you out!"

"Rotom, what's with the creepy music?" Sun asked as the Aether Foundation member sent out an Alolan Dugtrio. Rotom Dex had begun playing a rather strange music in the background that sounded rather sinister and dramatic.

"I dunno! But boy, izzzz it sure intense!" Rotom Dex cried out as the Aether Foundation Employee thrust a hand forward and shouted, "Rock Throw!"

Sun ducked to avoid the attack that went directly for him, and Sun's eyes went wide at the Aether Foundation Employee's clear attempt to kill him.

"Sun, this isn't the time! Fight back!" Gladion shouted as two other Aether members flanked them, forcing Hau, Gladion and Demi into battle as well. Demi sent out Torch the Typhlosion while Hau sent out Duke the Alolan Raichu. Gladion called out his Riolu and Type: Null, and the group went to work.

"Fine! Brago, use Flame Burst!" Sun shouted as he sent out his Arcanine, who appeared in a flash of light and fired off a stream of flames, blasting the Alolan Dugtrio and instantly knocking it out.

"Keep it up, Brago! We're going to have to go all-out!" Sun called to the Arcanine, receiving a nod from the large dog.

"I won't let you down, my Alpha. Now let's crush them!" Brago barked as the Aether Foundation Employee returned their Pokémon.

"Dammit. Sliggoo, deal with them!" the man growled with frustration, sending out the gooey Dragon-type. "Use Rain Dance!"

"Extreme Speed!" Sun called out, with Brago lunging forward with blinding speed and slamming hard into the Sliggoo, but not fast enough to stop it firing off the Rain Dance and causing water to drench everyone present from above.

Unfortunately, Demi began screaming hysterically, clutching her head as the downpour enveloped all of them. Gladion, Sun and Hau all turned towards the girl as she fell to her knees, breaking down into sobs.

"Damn it, I forgot! Hau and Sun, hold them off!" Gladion shouted as he quickly knelt beside Demi, who was thrashing violently in the throes of her episode.

"Extreme Speed!" Sun shouted as Brago flickered and vanished again, reappearing with a snarl as he rammed hard into the Soft Tissue Pokémon, sending it hurtling across the room and slamming hard into a nearby box, where it collapsed and fainted.

"What does this mean? What does this mean!" the Aether Foundation member shouted, clutching the side of his head. After a few moments he shook his head. "You may think yourselves strong, but Aether Paradise is huge!"

With that the man fled, leaving the children alone. By that point Hau had managed to drive off the other Aether Foundation members who were accosting them, and now they could turn their attention to Demi, who was still freaking out from the still-active Rain Dance. It was then that Sun had a brilliant idea.

"Sunny Day!" Sun shouted to Brago, who nodded and fired a ball of shining light into the enormous building, causing the rain to go away and be replaced with a bright warm light. Demi went still for several moments before collapsing onto Gladion with a wail of despair.

"It's okay. It's okay, I've got you." Gladion said soothingly, holding Demi's arms tightly as the girl sobbed into his shoulder, whispering incoherently. Gladion hesitated, but pulled Demi into a comforting embrace and began to stroke her hair. The girl tensed, but after a moment went limp in Gladion's arms and hugged him tightly. "You're safe. You're here. Stay with me, Demi. You're here. Not there. I'm here. I'm here for you…shhhh…"

"I remember Demi mentioning her rain phobia but…that's brutal." Hau whispered to Sun, who nodded as he walked forward, putting a hand on Demi's shoulder. Hau walked forward and did the same, looking down at Gladion and giving the teen a grateful nod. A silent thank you for supporting his friend through her struggles.

After a few minutes, Demi managed to calm herself down enough to stand on her own power again. She tried to apologize for what happened, but none of the boys were going to hold what happened against her. However, Sun did have a suggestion.

"Stay near Brago. After that, I wouldn't be surprised if someone busted out Rain Dance again to slow us down. Brago can not only get you away from the battle if you need to, but he can use Sunny Day to keep things clear." Sun suggested, calling out Oliver as well.

"Y-you can always rely on Fire-types to save the day." Demi sighed shakily, putting her face into Brago's side with a weak smile. "Warm, fluffy dry fur. I should've caught a Growlithe myself ages ago…clearly a heckin' good doggo."

"I appreciate the compliment. You and Miss Lillie have excellent tastes." Brago remarked almost smugly, clearly pleased with the praise. Sun couldn't help a smirk at that comment. Brago took pride in being Lillie's favorite Pokémon on Sun's team.

"You should probably call out Aou. He's stronger than any of our Pokémon by a long shot after being trained up by Amber Fontaine." Gladion suggested to Demi, who nodded and called out her Chandelure. The Pokémon cooed softly, drifting by her Trainer and humming softly to her. Demi gave Aou a soft smile before looking forward. "Uh oh, we've got more company."

"I was told to turn away Trainers, whomever they might be!" an Aether Foundation woman called out, drawing a Great Ball and sending out a Herdier. Oliver swooped forward, wincing at the Intimidate that struck him before sending out a wave of Razor Leaf at Sun's command. The hound snarled in pain as the leaves slashed against him.

"Work up!"

"Pluck!"

Oliver soared forward, his beak shining brightly as the Herdier worked itself up into a frenzy, boosting its offensive stats. The large owl slammed hard into the canine with his shining beak, which unfortunately opened up Oliver for the following Crunch that resulted in the Herdier biting down hard on the owl's neck.

Oliver flapped hard into the air and spun around with a furious screech, managing to dislodge the canine and kick him back towards the ground. Oliver retaliated with a Razor Leaf that slashed the Herdier brutally in midair, causing him to faint before he hit the ground. Oliver glided back to the ground, preening his feathers with a pained wince.

Rotom Dex then surprised Sun by making a loud beeping sound, floating in front of the boy. Meanwhile the Aether Employee returned her Pokémon and called out a Lumineon.

"Bzzzt! Sun, Oliver just learned the move Leaf Blade!" Rotom Dex shouted out, causing Sun to suddenly grin at the Lumineon that was drifting through the air. Beside Sun, Oliver wore a watching smile.

"Oliver, let's test out Leaf Blade!" Sun called as Oliver held out a wing. One of the feathers at the tip of his right wing suddenly glowed brightly, and Oliver swept his wing aside with a flourish as a green blade of energy suddenly extended out from the feather, making it look like Oliver was holding a sword. The owl managed to shift the Leaf Blade somewhat on his wing, smirking all the while.

"Use Water Pulse!" the Aether Foundation Employee shouted, not showing any trace of fear despite the horrifying grin on Oliver's face. To the owl's credit, he simply rushed forward and sidestepped the blast of water at the last moment, delivering a brutal slash of Leaf Blade to the Lumineon and knocking it out in a single strike.

"I could get used to this." Oliver hooted gleefully, eyeing the glowing feather for a moment before releasing the attack.

"Hey! You're so strong that there's no way I can turn you away!" the Aether Employee whined, stomping her foot as she returned her unconscious Pokémon.

"All of this fighting makes me wonder…what are Miss Wicke and Faba up to?" Sun asked Gladion, who hummed thoughtfully as he rejoined Sun. The Aether Employee Sun had defeated sighed angrily.

"That Faba…he doesn't even try to fight by himself! Some leader he is…" The woman then walked away, sighing again before any of the teens could try and get more info out of her.

"I don't blame you for not wanting to come here, Gladion. Do these guys seem…weird to you?" Demi asked the others, her voice quiet.

Gladion nodded, sensing something was off as well. "Likely the machinations of the President and Branch Chief. We need to hurry before more of them-"

"Intruder alert!" shouted a nearby woman, pointing at them with a terrible grin on her face.

"Really tired of that happening." Gladion muttered as Sun stepped in front of him, with Oliver doing the same as he moved forward to battle.

"I'll crush you to find out what you're made of! I bet it's a bunch of stuff, including money!" the woman shouted gleefully, an insane grin on her face as she grabbed a Great Ball from her belt and sent it forward, calling out a Shelgon.

"Oliver, use Swords Dance!" Sun called to the owl, who's eyes flashed bright blue under his hood. Several ethereal swords then materialized around the owl and floated around Oliver several times before shifting so that they were pointing above the Decidueye. As the swords vanished, Oliver's body glowed a faint red color.

"Zen Headbutt!" the AF Employee shouted as her Shelgon lumbered forward, slamming hard into Oliver and forcing the bird to flap backwards to steady himself.

"Leaf Blade!" Sun called to Oliver as the owl swooped forward, summoning the gleaming green blade of energy and slashing Shelgon brutally in the face. The Endurance Pokémon groaned in pain and, at their Trainer's command, used Focus Energy.

Oliver promptly used Spirit Shackle to knock it out. The Aether Foundation member scowled and returned her Pokémon, tossing forward another Great Ball and calling out a Trumbeak.

"Oh, this is interesting." Oliver remarked, grinning at the Trumbeak. "She's what Penny used to be. Except this one is far less pretty than Penny was as a Trumbeak."

The enemy Trumbeak screeched furiously and dove forward, only for Oliver to easily knock it out with a single Pluck. The Trumbeak crashed onto the ground limply as the Aether Employee swore under her breath, throwing out a handful of bills while muttering something about prize money.

"So what was that about?" Sun asked the woman, who's expression darkened as she placed a hand against her head, wincing in pain.

"There are people with many different faces at Aether Paradise." Was all the woman said before walking away, leaving Sun troubled and thoughtful. Unfortunately for the group, the sound of fighting drew another Aether Employee over to their location.

"I feel sorry for the Pokémon that have to be used by an intruder!" the AF Employee shouted, grinning cruelly as he sent out a Parasect. Sun adjusted his hat, pointing forward to send Oliver after the other Pokémon.

"Pluck!" Sun called as Oliver swooped forward with a menacing hoot, ramming his beak hard into the face of the Parasect and knocking it out instantly. The man's next Pokémon, a Drifblim, went down just as easily with a single Spirit Shackle. The Vibrava that ended up being the Aether Employee's final Pokémon went down with a single Leaf Blade.

"Hmph!" the Aether Employee grunted, clutching his fist. "Although you're an intruder, you seem to have a lot of skill!"

"I've been told that before. Now stop attacking us, you jerks! We're not thieves! We just want to find our friend!" Sun said to the man, who didn't seem to be paying attention to him. Instead he was staring at the red lights on the side of the chamber.

"Is it because you guys arrived? Paradise seems so showy!" the man said before grimacing sharply, holding his head. "Uhh…I'm gonna go lie down."

"I don't get what's going on here…Why would the Aether Foundation be attacking anybody?" Hau asked, sounding absolutely baffled as the man shambled away. "Do they really think we're thieves? This is nuts!"

"The air is already growing heavy…I have to do something!" Gladion muttered under his breath, his tone sounding like he was almost trying to calm himself down. Thankfully for the group, they had finally arrived at the main lift on the floor that would transport them to the remainder of the facility.

"Gladion, do you think we should try to look around the docks? Maybe for some information on where Lillie is?" Sun suggested to the blond-haired teen, who considered the matter for a few moments before nodding.

"We'll keep the area secure. Try and see if you can find anything. But be careful." Gladion warned Sun, who nodded and began a sweep of the floor, hoping to find something that would clue him into what was going on.

"Has she been hiding things this whole time? Was all of our talks a lie?" Sun thought as he recalled Lusamine's announcement over the intercom. "What's going on here? This is happening too fast."

Sun felt a little bad for lying to Gladion. In truth, he simply wanted a few minutes to process that something was horribly wrong and Lillie was somehow wrapped up in it all. The boy nearly walked past a Rare Candy that was sitting on the ground, and after he picked it up and stuffed the thing in his backpack, continued his search. Unfortunately he found only more battles.

"I must fight to reassure the Pokémon in paradise!" an Aether Employee shouted at Sun, sending out a Primeape. "Use Thrash!"

"Tetra, Dragon Rage!" Sun shouted as he sent out his Gabite, who appeared with a joyful smile and landed on the ground. She quickly charged up and fired off a draconic fireball at the furious monkey as he sprinted towards her. The attack exploded against the Primeape, but he didn't seem the slightest bit affected and began to mercilessly punch and kick Tetra.

"Dragon Claw!" Sun shouted as Tetra tried to block some of the punches and kicks, to no avail. Instead she obeyed her Trainer and pulled back her arm, with her claw bursting into blue flames before she slashed the Primeape with the claw hard enough to knock it out cold.

"That was surprisingly painful." Tetra remarked with a pained grimace. Sun took that time to use a Super Potion on the Gabite, healing her wounds.

"That was regrettable…I guess it really is a must to have power!" the man said as he took a step back, returning his Pokémon.

"Why are you guys attacking us? You seriously think we're thieves? What makes you think that?" Sun asked the man, who seemed rather sheepish now.

"What I heard was that we are to be on the lookout for people trying to steal Pokémon." The Aether Employee remarked, sounding somewhat apologetic. "Besides, we all heard that announcement. We're dedicated to protecting the Paradise. We owe President Lusamine everything. You guys should scram while you can."

The man then walked away from Sun, who was even more disturbed than he was before when not faced with someone who was totally sane. As it was, the boy continued to hunt for clues as Oliver and Tetra helped him search.

Sun didn't find any clues, but he did discover a brand-new TM for the move Toxic, which he pocketed with glee. He knew how useful the move was after watching a documentary on Koga and his daughter, Janine, and Sun was already interested in teaching his Pokémon the move. He decided to return to the elevator for now and hurried back to his friends.

Nearby there were the telltale signs of a struggle, and Sun wondered how much battling Gladion, Hau Demi did to keep the area secure. "Something is definitely wrong here. These guys seem…almost fanatical. It's hard to explain." Hau remarked, frowning as Sun walked up to them.

"If you're done exploring, then we can head to our destination. I just hope we're not too late." Gladion remarked quietly, his expression one of concern. Demi put a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Zzzzrt! Be careful my friend…You've made it this far! Quickly, onto the elevator!" Rotom Dex cheered from Sun's shoulder as he and Hau hopped on while Gladion walked over to the control box, tapping in several keys before sighing with irritation. Sun returned Tetra for now, leaving Brago and Oliver outside on the elevator. Hau had Duke out while Gladion had his Riolu and Type: Null out. Demi had both of her Pokémon out, with Aou floating ominously overhead keeping vigil.

"Hmph. Just like I thought…" Gladion muttered, stepping back from the console with an annoyed expression.

"What were you doing there?" Hau asked curiously, causing Gladion to shrug.

"Looks like outsiders can't use the main elevator to reach the lower levels." Gladion answered as he covered his eye, subconsciously going into his usual pose as he closed his eyes in concentration. "I was afraid this might happen. But still…What a pain."

"So what's the plan?" Demi asked worriedly. Gladion opened his eyes, his gaze sharpening with determination.

"We don't have any choice. We'll have to go up." Gladion said as he turned around and tapped a single key, causing the railings to rise up around them. The elevator lift whirred online, rising with the teenagers on it and carrying them to the next floor.

Waiting for them was a familiar sight. A man in a white and bright yellow lab coat, facing the other direction. Gladion scowled with barely suppressed anger while Sun and Hau stared at the man in question. Demi rolled her eyes, wondering why a grown man was being more of an edgelord than Gladion.

"I, Faba, am the Aether Branch Chief." The man who had just introduced himself announced, placing a hand against his chest. "The only one in the world, I'm irreplaceable."

"He's also humble, I see." Demi deadpanned, causing Faba to whirl around with a scowl on his face.

"And here you come back…uninvited?" Faba spat, glaring at Gladion in particular as the blond-haired teen stepped forward, his gaze challenging.

"Like you don't know why." Gladion shot back, clenching his fists. "You of all people should know everything that happens in the Aether Foundation. Isn't that right, high-and-mighty Branch Chief?"

"Hee hee hee! Look at you…Living out in the world hasn't been kind, has it?" Faba chuckled at Gladion, who growled softly with frustration. Type: Null likewise growled at the Aether Branch Chief while Riolu looked at each of the human's with wide eyes of surprise. The color of their auras told him many things.

Meanwhile internally, Faba was fuming. He had no idea how the children had made it to the island despite it being on lockdown. And he knew full-well they were all skilled Pokémon Trainers, especially Borlath's son. While Faba was confident in his strength, he was aware that things weren't going according to plan.

"I'm glad I prepared some failsafes just in case…especially my newest one. Thanks to my efforts, I should be able to exercise some level of control over the asset. I just hope I don't have to actually use Enigma Protocol #7." Faba thought to himself as he stopped laughing at Gladion and became serious.

"But I'm still not telling you anything! And you of all people should understand why…Gladion." Faba said as he tilted his head, regarding the quartet with interest. The Branch Chief wondered why they seemed somewhat injured, and was curious if the Aether Employees had given them a hard time.

"Hey, Sun." Gladion finally spoke up, glancing at the other boy standing beside him.

"Yeah Gladion?" Sun responded, looking back at the teen.

"You know why being a Trainer is so great?" Gladion asked Sun, who shook his head in response.

"Uh, kind of. Why do you think being a Trainer is so great?" Sun asked as Gladion smirked, staring down Branch Chief Faba as the scientist pulled out at Ultra Ball.

"Because when you're battling, it doesn't matter if you're a kid or an adult. Everyone's equal in a Pokémon Battle!" Gladion said fiercely as Faba scoffed at the declaration. He gained control of his scorn and allowed amusement to fill him at the child's words.

"Oh ho…Is that right? Is that what you think?" Faba smirked at Gladion's words, laughing softly. And then slowly becoming louder until he was cackling almost maniacally. "So you wish to battle me? Branch Chief Faba?"

"Yeah. You know what, I do want to battle you." Sun said as he stepped forward, glancing at Gladion who stared at him in surprise. "He's trying to bait you. Let me handle this, okay? You figure out what's going on in the meantime."

Gladion considered it for a few moments before smirking at Sun. He gestured towards Faba, making the movement slow so as to annoy Faba as much as possible. "I mean, how could I refuse such a request? Please, after you, Sun."

"The man who is called Aether Paradise's last line of defense is to battle a mere child?!" Faba screeched furiously as Sun stepped off of the lift, with Oliver walking alongside him to stand off against Branch Chief Faba. "You're just like your father, boy! And I won't let this insult stand!"

"Then bring it on!" Sun called as Oliver flared his wings, notching an arrow as the Branch Chief sent out his Partner Pokémon, Hypno. The Hypnosis Pokémon laughed softly as it stared down Oliver, who smirked back at his opponent. Sun and Faba glared each other down, with Faba gritting his teeth furiously.

"As you will!" Faba shouted, pointing a finger at Sun as if in benediction. "You will fall like the others, boy! You'll regret ever crossing me!"


NEXT TIME: Secrets revealed, feelings exposed, and the truth is uncovered.


We're going full-steam ahead! God, I'm so hyped for this.

Q & A

From: Oragonking

I don't like it. With everything Borlath did Sun shouldn't be able to think of his happy memories with him with a fond smile. How can someone be happy with all the horrible dumb things his Dad did? And despite Deoxys loyalty, it shouldn't be respected either because following Borlath is selling your soul away.

Sun's current relationship with his father is complicated. Yes, he forgave his father for what he did, but that doesn't mean he's not pissed at him for killing countless people or want him as a fixture in his life. He wants his father to pay for what he did and work to redeem himself. Sun is able to remember the good his father did, yes, but he's very aware his father was a monster before having the insanity and evil beaten out of him so to speak. It's not a black and white thing. Villains and heroes are complicated, and the situation with Ashton/Borlath is exactly that.

As for Deoxys, that's just how loyalty works. Ashton saved it and always treated Deoxys well, so it's loyal to him. It recognized the worth in what Ashton was trying to do, even as misguided and terrible as it was.

From: Solana Leonhart

What the heck happened with that Swagger though? I thought it did take effect but then...does that have anything to do with those voices Tetra hears?

So, that's actually a funny story and has nothing to do with Tetra hearing voices (which I'll explain more once the Aether Arc is over.)

So, I have an actual playthrough of Pokémon Sun that I base what happens in the story off of. When it comes to battles in the story that happen in the game, those battles are mostly based off of what happens in my playthrough. For more important battles, I just expand on them and make them much longer for the sake of making them more interesting, but they're still pretty close to what happens.

However, for the Kahuna Battle, Tetra fought the Krokorok and it used Swagger. The move failed, and then Tetra scored a Critical Hit with Dragon Claw that OHKO'd the Krokorok. I legitimately laughed when it happened, and decided that had to be in the chapter somehow because it was so ridiculous.

In the chapter itself I tweaked things a bit with Brago getting one attack off on Krokorok, but yeah, that was mostly my way of showing how the move failed in a way that was funny.

From: Syn1

One minor question I have: how old everyone is now? I know it's been a while in-universe now but I wasn't able to figure out how old everyone actually is in the present.

About 9 or 10 months have passed in the story so far, and as far as I'm tracking this is the current age of our main group of characters.

Sun: 12

Hau: 12

Lillie: 13

Demi: 14

Gladion: 15

Also, since I've seen a few comments about it recently, just going to put this out there. Yes, I'm very aware that the events of this story don't quite reflect the best when the cast is so young, and things would be better if the main cast were older. Blame that on the games canonically stating that Sun and Hau are 11 for the Island Challenge and me being forced into the position of keeping them that young when it'd be way easier to have them be 15 or 16. Looking back and should have just aged up the cast and ignored that bit of the story, but I'm 150 chapters into this fic and I'm committed to it now.

If/When I do my next story, I'm definitely aging the cast up and damning whatever nonsense the game says about the main characters. It's not like I haven't made creative executive decisions already in my stories for the sake of coherence. Anyways, just wanted to say something about it since I've been asked about it before and couldn't remember if I've talked about it in the past.

That's all for now, folks. I'm going to be busting my butt to get more updates out in a timely fashion. We're in the thick of things, now, so you'll want to stay tuned for more action, drama and nonsense!

Please Review, Favorite and/or Follow the story to show your support and stay updated with the story. I also have a Discord server and I answer questions in the review section below.

Take care and stay awesome. Happy New Year everyone!

Until next time, FlygonNick out!