Amethio awoke to the oppressive fatigue that weighed heavily on his body and mind. Relief washed over him as he realized he wasn't dead. But the relief was short-lived as a sharp ache pierced his chest, making it hard to breathe. His lungs burned for air, an excruciating sensation that surpassed anything he had ever experienced. His breathing was slow and shallow at first, but as he began to wake, it started to quicken.

"Are you finally awake?"

Amethio tensed at the voice, which grated on his nerves. That answered the question of where he had ended up. He didn't need to open his eyes to know that the white-haired man was sitting to his left. "Friede," he sighed, but it quickly turned into a coughing fit that shook his entire body. He clenched his teeth as Friede effortlessly lifted him into a sitting position.

"Woah there. Take it easy."

Amethio concealed his pain behind a stoic expression and finally opened his eyes, dabbing at them with his sleeve. He fixed a piercing glare on his rival before attempting to speak. However, this only triggered another coughing fit. His throat was so dry…

"Drink this. It will help."

He eyed the bottle of Gatorade with suspicion. There was no way he would accept anything from the Rising Volt Tacklers. It would be so simple to poison a colored drink like that.

"The seal is intact. I figured you wouldn't trust us."

Friede seemed to pick up on the obvious distrust. Amethio turned his glare back on Friede before taking the bottle and checking the seal himself. It seemed fine. He twisted the cap and heard the crack of the plastic seal as his confirmation. Fine. So Fride wasn't trying to poison him this time. He took a sip, relishing silently at the relief it brought his throat, and looked back to Friede as he began talking once more.

"Mollie is in town getting supplies. Try resting until she gets back. You're hurt pretty badly."

Like hell. Amethio would sooner die than stay on this ship. He was in no shape to escape, however, he knew that much. His ankle was wrapped tightly in a cast. That seemed to be a tolerable pain compared to the stabbing from his ribs that only got worse as he coughed. His entire body ached really.

"Amethio, you know you can trust us." Friede huffed before falling into the chair next to the bed "You are hurt. Let us help you."

"You are the last person I want to spend any time around," Amethio growled. Deep down he knew Friede was right. With his ankle broken, there was no way he could escape the Explorers. Especially without his Pokemon. He was lucky enough to have gotten away with the injuries that he had. If it wasn't for the Rising Volt Tacklers he would likely be dead now. Speaking of…he hadn't heard from Conia or Zir since they were separated before the fight. Were they alive? If Hamber had anything to say about it, probably not. They would likely be tortured for information despite not helping him escape. Had they been given the chance he knew they would have helped him. That was all the more reason to get out of here. He needed to help them. If he could get there maybe he could save them. "I'm not staying here."

"Well if you can find your Pokemon and get off the ship then you are welcome to leave." Friede rolled his eyes "But we both know you aren't going anywhere."

"You can't keep me here."

"And we aren't. Whatever stupid suicide plan you are working up should be put on hold until you can actually walk. We will keep your Pokemon safe. Don't worry about them."

Amethio thought Friede looked like he had more he wanted to say, but before the other man could continue he was interrupted by a pink-haired woman strolling into the room.

"Right now this isn't up to you. As Friede said, when you can walk you are free to leave. None of us are too keen on you sticking around anyway." She said before turning back to her computer, no longer interested in the conversation at hand.

"Woah, hang on!" Friede shot to his feet "Amethio is welcome to stay if he wants to. We are on the same side now."

"We will never be on the same side, Friede," Orla said from the doorway. She crossed her arms as she leaned against the wooden frame.

Friede turned to face his mechanic with wide eyes. He opened his mouth to argue again but thought better of it when Murdock gave him a look from behind Orla.

" You have to think of the bigger picture. How would Liko feel about this?" Mollie chimed back in though she didn't turn to face the others.

"Well then, why don't we ask her?" Friede huffed. He couldn't believe that his crew could be so cold. Sure, Amethio had never been a friend exactly, but he was someone in need of help. They helped people. It's not like he was suggesting that they make him a member of their crew. Then again…

"If you are going to keep me here would you mind taking this argument somewhere else?" Amethio glared at the small crowd in the room. He really didn't feel like listening to this any longer. Friede was no captain he would follow. The man was far too reckless and clearly didn't have control over his crew. They didn't follow his orders without question the way Conia and Zir followed him. He let his eyes flutter closed, still fully alert to the people around him, and focused on the footsteps fading from the room. Good, at least they listened to him. Once the room was empty, however, Amethio suddenly felt the weight of his injuries. Finally succumbing to the drowsiness he began to drift.

Amethio was in the training hall of the Explorers's base. He had just received his partner from Master Gibeon. He had not been expecting the Charcadet for his birthday. He would have been elated to get a Pokemon finally under normal circumstances. Amethio wasn't living in normal circumstances. After his parents died he was taken in by his grandfather. He knew he should be grateful. He knew he should. He had a roof over his head.

"That's our pampered little Amethio." Spinel glared at the aforementioned boy as Sango cackled wildly.

"He's always getting special treatment. He's nothing special." Spinel rolled his eyes before turning and disappearing down the hall.

Amethio just pretended he didn't hear the older kids. He was going to start training with Hamber now. He could finally be useful to his grandfather. He turned around as Hamber's voice reached his ears.

"I am very disappointed in you, Amethio." Hamber scolded coldly "I had higher expectations of you."

"I'm sorry," Amethio replied bitterly. This wasn't his fault. Spinel had lied to him. If he had the proper information then he would have been able to complete his mission without incident. He could hear the older kid snickering from the door. Amethio ground his teeth together. "I will do better next time." That's right. This was after Spinel had sabotaged his mission. He blinked. The room was suddenly different.

Amethio was standing back in the training room. Hamber was staring down at him. Dusknoir's eye glowed eerily behind his trainer. He couldn't let Hamber down again. He turned his attention back to his Pokemon as they battled against each other. He flinched as Ceruledge was unable to dodge in time. He had failed too many times. His partner wasn't weak. He was.

"Useless. Go again."

Right. He was useless. He was a waste of Hamber's time. He was a failure. Hamber's voice was overshadowed by a ferocious roar before the glass shattered. Amethio found himself staring up wide-eyed at the black Rayquaza he so desperately chased.

Amethio bolted upright with a stifled scream, his eyes darting wildly around the room. This place wasn't familiar. This place wasn't safe. He had to get out of here. He let his instincts take over and he climbed out of bed. The movements of his muscles ached horridly and he clenched his teeth together. The haze of the nightmare clung persistently in his mind. He restless shifted around until he found another tolerable position. He didn't sleep again. The anxiety the nightmare caused was too much for his exhausted brain to handle. He tossed and turned as the light slowly filled the room. He counted the time as the sun shone brighter and brighter. Eventually, Mollie returned to the infirmary to check on him with Friede close behind her. He didn't say anything as the doctor checked his vitals and gave minimal answers to her questions. "I have to leave. I can't stay here anymore." He finally spoke up.

"Well. You really don't have many choices right now, do you?" Friede chuckled lightly "You are in no shape to go off on your own and even if you were you are being chased by the Explorers now. You wouldn't stand a chance on your own."

"I will manage." Amethio growled "Now return my Pokemon."

"Nah. I don't think so. Why don't you rest here and we can talk about it later?"

"Friede's right. You have nowhere else to go." Mollie chimed in.

She didn't look away from the computer and her tone was disinterested. Amethio wasn't sure how she really felt about all this. He knew that he wasn't the only one with trust issues though. Friede was the only one on the ship who was giving him the time of day. Mollie did so because Friede told her to.

"Oh, I almost forgot. I found this. I figured you would want it." Friede offered a small piece of folded paper to Amethio who took it with hesitation. Friede was able to see the cracks in Amethio's mask. The kid wasn't as good at hiding things from him as he thought he was. He watched the visible distress and rage that spread across his face as he read over the letter.

Amethio stared at the paper in his hands. It was taking everything in him to keep his emotions in check. Hamber and Gibeon had never intended for him to succeed in his mission to retrieve the pendant from Liko. From the beginning, he was meant to fail.

"You okay over there, kid?" Friede looked up from his phone with concern. "Is it something you want to share with the class?"

"No." Amethio bit back sharply "I would prefer it if you would leave me alone now." He had nowhere to go now. He was completely alone. His family, no, the people he thought were his family, had betrayed him. He looked up when Friede sighed.

"I already read it."

"You did what?" Amethio whipped his head towards the older man. He reached out, struggling to find his balance as he moved, and let his hand fly at Friede. He caught his hand with ease. Friede kept his hand wrapped around Amethio's as he stood from the chair.

"Did you really think I was going to let you have something from the Explorers without reading it first?" Friede asked seriously. He waited for Amethio's head to shake before continuing "I've said from the beginning that you can stay here. You will be safe with us."

Amethio couldn't think of a response. He let his hands clench around the paper, creasing it in the process and, sighed. He and Friede stayed like that, neither of them daring to speak, until Friede finally broke the silence.

"Do you want to go down to eat? If you aren't feeling up to it then I can have Murdock bring something up to you later." Friede stared at the reluctant teen for a long moment before sighing in resignation. He wasn't going to get an answer. "Have it your way." He turned to leave but paused when he heard Amethio's stomach grumble loudly. He smirked to himself before looking over his shoulder with an amused "Sure you don't want food?" He found Amethio to be amusing and teasing him was going to be his new favorite pastime. He could practically feel the embarrassment radiating from the kid. His smirk transitioned to a soft smile when Amethio nodded his head. He helped him sit and offered out the crutches Mollie had left for him. He stuck close as they navigated the halls in case Amethio lost his balance. That was a real possibility with how unsteady he seemed. Then again who knows the last time the kid was able to rest or eat properly?

As Amethio shuffled into the large room he suddenly felt more awkward than he had probably ever felt. All eyes were on him. He did his best to keep his appearance up, but deep down he knew it was useless. In their eyes, he was just a stubborn teenager who was refusing help. His ankle ached worse as he tried to sit on his own. He ignored the annoyed sigh from Mollie. The silence in the room hung heavily. It wouldn't have made him uncomfortable if he didn't know how loud everyone normally was.

"Fine." Amethio mumbled, his amethyst eyes firmly trained on the floor as he softly broke the silence "For now." He could feel the heat in his cheeks and desperately hoped no one else could see it. It was bad enough that he had to ask others for help. "I will stay here if you will allow it. Just…for now anyway." He grimaced as the words left his mouth. They had plenty of opportunities to kill him. If they wanted him dead he would be dead. He chanced a glance around the room. Friede looked relieved that he was agreeing to stay. Liko seemed hesitant about his decision. Everyone else shared a mixed look of frustration and distrust. That was fair, Amethio supposed. He wasn't their favorite person in the world and up until now, he had been fighting them about staying. The silence was dragging on. He shifted in his chair uncomfortably. To his surprise, it was Murdock who spoke first.

"Well, if you are going to stay here I need to know if there are any foods you are allergic to."

Amethio simply stared at him. Was he really supposed to give that information up so easily? He shot a look at Friede who simply nodded. This was crazy. These people were the last ones he wanted to know about any potential weaknesses.

"I would prefer not to kill you by mistake." Murdock rolled his eyes. "But I guess it makes no difference to me if you want to keep it to yourself."

Amethio turned his attention back to the chef. That logic was sound enough. He wasn't going to be able to cook until his ankle healed. He took a steadying breath before replying "Tree nuts." He felt his face grow hot as Friede laughed. He was about to find something to throw, but Mollie beat him to it.

"Shut up!" She hissed.

Murdock took that moment to nod seemingly in thought. He looked at Friede and said, "I think we can manage that without too much trouble."

"See!" Friede moved behind Amethio and dropped his hand on his shoulder "Everything will be fine. You are welcome to stay here as long as you want." Friede ruffled Amethio's hair, which earned him a smack.

"Don't touch me so freely!" Amethio growled as he recoiled with a glare. He swallowed the panic that surged through him as the feeling of Friede's touch lingered. He suppressed a shiver and sat up a little straighter.

"Sorry?" Friede scratched his head "Didn't think that would bother you."

"Exactly. You didn't think." Amethio growled. He was beginning to regret his actions. Amethio huffed and turned away. He wasn't safe yet, but for now, he could at least rest.

Arahbo:As always I hope you enjoyed! Let me know what you think! All comments are welcome!