John's Team

Tyrant - Slaking

Vordt - Ursaluna

Smough - Snorlax

Klee - Blissey

Port - Mantine

Zephyr - Pidgeot

Klaus - Wyrdeer

Luna - Clefable

Pixel - Porygon2

Euphie - Sylveon

Ornstein - D-Linoone

Wraith - H-Zoroark

The New Normal – 8-17 – A Meeting

After that enjoyable evening with Cynthia, I was a bit too distracted to really focus on anything else.

It was still unreal to me that I was DATING Cynthia. A part of me thought that it was all a dream, but the small yet cute smile that she shot me at the end of the evening was so firmly imprinted in my mind that it had to be real.

I wanted to spend whatever time I still had in Sinnoh with her.

Unfortunately, I couldn't do that. Because as much as I wanted to, I had other things I still needed to accomplish in Sinnoh. That was why, the next day, I valiantly put Cynthia out of my mind as I went to find Archer – I needed to speak to him and check up on what he was doing with the 'forward base' that he had set up in Sinnoh.

I owed it to Giovanni to at least check in and thank them for the help. Plus, he might have uncovered something important that I couldn't just ignore.

So after I called ahead, I went off and went flying on Port as I made my way to Jubilife City, where Silph Co had decided to begin setting up their 'branch office'. It wasn't difficult to find which building was the one that belonged to Silph Co; amidst the sea of high rises and fancy office buildings, there stood a single, still under construction, office tower near one of the corners of Jubilife City.

I landed in one of the nearby open spaces. Looking around, I saw that the area around it was still relatively undeveloped, at least compared to the rich and busy areas that the other parts of Jubilife were like. It honestly looked a little rundown, and not at all suitable for a company as prestigious as Silph Co.

But before I could think any longer on that, I caught sight of Archer and his distinct cyan hair waving at me in the distance and quickly approached him.

"Archer, good to meet you again." I shook his hand, "How are things going on here?"

"Everything's still under construction, but I personally have no problems with the site." He replied. "It's good enough for our purposes."

"Really? Not to call you out or anything, but this area looks a little run down." I answered a little sceptically.

Archer shook his head, "Silph Co's reputation and prestige will ensure that the value of the surrounding areas will go up as soon as this branch is built. It's always like this. It's why this area was chosen, the surrounding land is cheap and it allows for easy expansion by just buying up the cheap land." He explained.

"Oh, wow. Okay, never mind what I said then; you clearly have this worked out." I backtracked, raising both my hands slightly in surrender.

Archer snorted, "As if I thought of this. Nah, this was all Giovanni's idea. I'm just following the steps he laid out. I'm hardly a businessman."

He patted me on the shoulder, "Actually, let's relocate slightly to somewhere more private. Better than just chatting out in the open." I nodded and followed after him, where he escorted me inside a small warehouse that looked like it had been hastily constructed.

However, I was very surprised when I went inside. Instead of a rundown and makeshift warehouse filled to the brim haphazardly with all sorts of things, I found the inside layer to be reinforced with steel beams, creating a sturdy foundation that would protect the warehouse from anything less than a direct Pokémon attack.

Not only that, but instead of the mess that I had expected, the inside contained rows and rows of clean office tables, all organized and arranged in a neat and tidy fashion. On top of that, each desk contained a high powered computer that looked really out of place inside what was supposed to be a rundown warehouse. If I didn't know that this was in the inside of a warehouse, I would have thought I had just entered into some sort of secret laboratory or something.

But the most surprising part of all that were all the employees. There weren't that much of them, but each and every one of them had their eyes glued to the screens, where I saw them trying to sift through massive amounts of information. Just looking at it made my eyes begin to glaze over. What was this? Where were the grunts that I had expected?

"You look surprised." Archer spoke up amusedly from my right, "Not what you were expecting? And don't worry, every one of these employees are under Giovanni's employ." Meaning that they were utterly loyal to him personally, was what was unsaid.

I shook my head, "I was expecting something more…messy." I told him, "This looks more like an office building."

Archer chuckled, "Information gathering is just like any other kind of office work. In fact, you probably have to go through even MORE paperwork than even a normal job." He explained, "Just because it sounds sneaky and cool doesn't mean it's actually exciting."

"The movies really do make it sound far cooler than it actually is." I commented dryly. Who could imagine reality to be so dull?

"Do they ever." He snorted. "I would have never traded my time with Giovanni for anything. But even sometimes, when I'm knee deep in paperwork that I'm meant to be sifting through for the most minute of details, I do regret my choice of occupation. More than any other aspect of it." That caused a chuckle to escape me.

For a moment, I just stared blankly at the employees, still trying to reconcile the image I had of Team Rocket – the costume-wearing Pokémon thieves – with all these office drones. It wasn't easy.

"…So, did you find anything useful?" I finally asked him, shaking myself out of my confusion. "Anything about what these criminals are doing?"

He gave me a questioning look, "I'm not sure how much you're expecting us to find out with such a small team like this and in such short time." He said sarcastically, "You DO realize that trying to infiltrate the underground and criminal markets to listen in on the rumours isn't as easy as just snapping your fingers."

I winced, "Okay, sorry. That was the wrong question to ask." I scratched my head embarrassedly, "But did you find out anything that we could use at all?"

"Right now, we're just focused on establishing the right connections to the less reputable businesses and the black market." Archer described, "It's not so easy to do when you're obviously a newcomer. In the criminal world, you very often have everyone already knowing about everybody, so to have a sudden unknown party snooping around raises a lot of alarm bells. Unfortunately, it's because of that we've had to move slower than I'd like."

"That being said, it's not all bad news." He continued, "I know that you mentioned to Giovanni that you had a suspicion that the terrorists were all very well-funded. Well, from what we've found so far, I don't think they're getting most of those funds from criminal operations. That kind of spending would be very obvious to anyone who knew where to look, and we've found no indication of anything of the sort."

"So…you mean to tell me that their funds are likely gained from legitimate means?" I asked.

"Perhaps 'legitimate' isn't the right term for it, since the money could easily be obtained through fraud or other means." He corrected, "But, in essence, yes. I really doubt that whoever is funding these terrorists are earning most of their money through criminal operations. My guess is that they're undergoing some kind of white-collar financial scheme to fund their operations."

"Or they could just be a big and successful company?" I hedged, pretending to think things over, "…Maybe something like Galactic Company? It's been done before – having a big and successful company concealing a more secretive operation."

"…Quite." He replied dryly, narrowing his eyes at me at the jab towards Silph Co and Giovanni's true role in it, "But you make a good point, especially considering the information I just told you." He rubbed his chin, "We'll be looking at someone trying to pull something similar on us. Maybe we'll find something. But I'll warn you now – investigating companies and their finances is going to take significantly longer. This is far beyond what we're used to doing."

"I understand, but I think it'll be prudent for you to look into this, if you can." I said to him, but I was still happy that we were on the right track. We really were beginning to bring the fight to Team Galactic.

There was still one more question I needed to ask though, "What will you do if you find anything?"

"Nothing, besides just informing Giovanni and asking him for further instructions." He said, "I presume he'll inform you in turn. Giovanni's already filled me in on how big a threat these idiots are, so I'll let the real thinkers devise a plan on how to deal with whatever we find out."

"You don't need me to tell you this, but don't get caught." I said, "We don't need to alert the criminals that we're looking into them."

He snorted, "Way ahead of you on that one. Don't worry, we've been doing this for years. We know what we're doing."

I nodded firmly, demonstrating just a little bit of my authority, "Good. We all understand the stakes here – so it doesn't hurt to make sure."

He gave off a dutiful nod in return, so I decided to step back and switch topics, "Though, now that I think of it, this feels quite different from your previous responsibilities as Head Gym Trainer of the Cerulean Gym. How are you finding this sudden change?" I asked curiously.

He chuckled, "Working in the Cerulean Gym was a nice vacation for me, but this was always what I was good at. Truthfully, I envy Petrel for being able to continue working there."

I looked at him disbelievingly, "Really? I would have thought working as the Head Gym Leader would be exhausting at times."

"It is." He agreed, "But it's far from the worst job in the world, and it is a lot easier than what I usually do. Herding Gym Trainers isn't particularly difficult, not when they acknowledge your strength. It especially helps when they respect you and when it's clear that the Gym Leader favours you. Not only that, but participating in Gym fights can be quite satisfying. I sometimes even pick up a few things in those battles."

"It helps that the sisters are genuinely nice people." He continued, "They're nothing like the reports that Giovanni had about them. I thought they would have been…spoilt and bossy, or simply uninterested in their jobs as most teenagers in powerful positions tend to be. But instead of that, I found them to be passionate and hard-working. They truly have a great love for their contests, and they'd proving to be competent Gym Leaders. Their youngest, Misty, also has the same drive that their sisters have, and she looks to be growing into an even better trainer than they were. Both Petrel and I truly look forward to seeing how they grow. They deserve it."

Was it me or did he sound genuinely fond of them?

"Wow. I didn't think you'd get attached." I smiled.

He waved me off, "Just because my occupation requires me to have multiple loyalties doesn't mean I can't form attachments." He explained, "It just means that I have to prioritize the right ones when push comes to shove. Though fortunately, I highly doubt that Giovanni and the Waterflower sisters will ever get into any sort of real conflict. In fact, Giovanni is very pleased with his newfound connection with them."

"So does that mean you might sneak your way into their employ again?" I couldn't help but ask.

He shook his head, "Unfortunately, that doesn't seem very likely. Petrel has a good handle on things, and they've already hired a new Head Gym Trainer to replace my old position." He slumped slightly, "I think I'm going to be stuck in Sinnoh for quite some time now."

He sighed, "I miss Indigo sometimes."

I was about to ask another question, but was interrupted as one of the employees suddenly ran up to Archer, "Elite John, I apologize for the interruption." He bowed his head, "But Boss, I think you should take a look at this."

"Got it." Archer nodded, instantly reforming his professional persona, "John, is there anything else you need? I'm afraid I still have a lot on my plate and not a lot to show you at the moment."

"No, it's fine. Keep up the good work." I praised, "And thanks again for the help."

He shot me a thumbs up, "No problem. I appreciate that you came to check up on us." Then he left me alone to deal with whatever had just come up. I had enough sense not to pry; I was confident that I'd be informed of anything important that they'd uncovered.

After leaving Archer's, I kind of just wandered around Sinnoh rather listlessly. I didn't know what came over me, but I didn't feel like training my Pokémon at the moment. Not when I was about to leave Sinnoh. Instead, I just felt like I wanted to spend some time just idling away in the cities of Sinnoh. Perhaps I'd take an unguided tour around the region and see where my feet led me.

I would have spent time with Cynthia, but she regretfully had something going on and told me to explore by myself.

So that was exactly what I did. And, I didn't really know how it happened, but I just found myself idly wandering about Veilstone City, simply taking in the sights. Walking around by yourself compared to walking around with a companion was very different. You could go at your own pace, and there was no pressure to even go anywhere.

Seeing that a small protest had broken out in the city, I decided that I'd suddenly felt like paying a visit to the Veilstone Department Store, maybe to shop for a few gifts for people back home and for Cynthia, so that's where I went.

On my way there, I couldn't help but continue staring at the small group that was protesting. Amongst them, I spotted a very familiar pink haired girl with a bandage on her nose. Was that who I thought it was?

Unfortunately, that was when my idle wandering backfired on me, as I stumbled across someone that I really had hoped to avoid.

A man stood in front of me. No, a man was not the right description. Even without having spoken a word to him, I knew that this thing was the furthest thing away from human as possible.

With utterly dead eyes completely devoid of any spirit or emotion, and a blank faced stare that was like it was carved in stone. I had accidentally bumped into the CEO of Galactic Company.

Cyrus.

"Elite John!" He greeted with a remarkable amount of enthusiasm in his voice, completely unlike how he looked. A small smile suddenly pasted itself on his face, "What a coincidence it is to stumble upon you today."

"Likewise, Cyrus. It's a pleasure." I smiled back, lying through my teeth. Neither of our smiles reached our eyes. But he was doing a good job concealing anything other than friendliness in his facial expressions. If I hadn't known what darkness lurked underneath, I would never have seen the inner monster within.

I clamped down hard on my natural hostility, though a part of me was already considering releasing Tyrant and turning him into pulp on the spot. It took a significant amount of my self-restraint to not attempt something like that.

The only reason I didn't do that was because my eyes locked onto the beeping glowing circle that was attached to his belt, which I recognized it as those teleporter pads Mars was talking about. This must have been a personal version used for Cyrus' safety, since it was green instead of the yellow one Mars wore.

I held in the urge to visibly grit my teeth. If he didn't have the damn thing on him, I would have unleashed Tyrant on him, ending him before he could enact his insane plans. But I couldn't – he would react quicker than I could at the first sign of hostility from me and all my attempt would do is to alert of him that I was onto him.

Plus, there was every possibility that even if I did end him here, that his goals and ambitions would simply be carried out by someone else - Maxie and Archie sprung to mind as potential successors. So nothing would really change, aside from alerting Team Galactic.

I couldn't afford to do that.

I took a calming breath to make sure that the hostility that I held for him was buried deep within me, leaving only the fake but friendly smile remaining on my face. Because who wouldn't to meet a new friend?

"You here to shop for something?" He asked casually, "Something to bring home as a souvenir for your family?"

"Yeah, can't afford to forget them." I nodded, keeping my voice deliberately level and open, "What about you? I'd would have thought someone of your status had someone else do the shopping for them."

He chuckled, and it was a faked thing that had no humour in it, "Yes, but my usual assistants are busy. Unfortunately, that meant I had to do it myself. Though, it's not always a bad thing. I do enjoy the occasional moment to just see the sights and get a feel of how the public are like. It reminds me why I work as hard as I do."

"What do you mean?" I asked.

He gestured around him, waving in the general direction of where the small protest was taking place. "Look around you. What do you see when you look at the protestors?"

I blinked, what did he expect me to say? "Um…discontent? Displeasure? A bit of anger?"

"Exactly." He nodded, "And it saddens me, truly, to see how the people have to suffer like this. Life has so much beauty on offer, but people tend to focus on only the bad. Failing to appreciate the good." He let out a sad sigh that if I didn't know better would have thought was a genuine one, "Don't you think we've only touched the edge of potential of what we're able to achieve as a race? Because we're dragged down by interpersonal and inner conflict, insecurities, and discontent. A world without them…I think that would be a brighter world."

His sincerity shone in his every word, and his eyes seem to grow brighter as he spoke. Yet, it was all an illusion. A trick for the masses. Because behind all of that were the same lifeless eyes pretending to be alive.

I was acutely aware that his words weren't meant for me, but for the small crowd that had gathered around us once they recognised who we were. He was playing it up for THEM.

"…And how would you achieve that 'brighter world'?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Through the actions of my company of course." He answered immediately, "We at Galactic company are utterly dedicated to creating technologies that would help improve the world, one small step at a time. By providing easy and cheaper power to the masses, suddenly people don't have to live in squalor. Even the most destitute can live better lives thanks to our efforts. And with each new technology – each discovery – we are able to better the lives of everyone. Bit by bit. Step by step."

"And that's why I have made this my life's mission." He continued slowly, clenching a fist and raising his head to the skies, as if trying to announce his intentions to the world, "It is my sincere wish that I could bring this world closer to world peace. The world need not suffer like it does right now – things could be so much BETTER if we just tried! There is a beautiful utopia of eternal peace just waiting around the corner, and all we need to do is GRASP it with our hands."

"And even if I do not succeed, I hope – and I know, that someone else will carry on my beautiful dream into the future." He spread his arms wide, taking a step towards the crowd as his voice rose steadily, "Because it is not my company, nor my wealth, nor my inventions, that serve as my greatest treasure. No, it is the dream that I have, the dream that I have shared with all my friends, that I know will help create a brighter world for all!"

The small crowd that had been gathering around us broke into a loud applause at Cyrus' words. I joined in too, but only to not raise suspicion. For all of Cyrus' many, many faults, it was undeniable that he was an excellent orator and knew how to rise up the crowd.

This, more than anything, was why I recognized him as being so dangerous. He was a madman dangling over the edge of a cliff, but he was charismatic enough to persuade others to follow along after him. All of that passion in his voice was faked, a show for the outside world. I knew it in my gut that there was nothing inside a man like him but utter nihilism.

It showed in his eyes, which were as blank and soulless as ever. You couldn't even see madness from within them – only emptiness. Despite all the passion and energy that he just showed, Cyrus was still no more than a lifeless husk puppeteering a body.

Once again, I had to hold back the urge to simply pulp him on the spot with Tyrant. Consequences be damned.

Eventually, the applause died down and he turned to me, "…My apologies, I seem to have gotten too heated with my own words. Sometimes, I get carried away when I become passionate."

You can't be passionate about anything, "I understand, I get that way too. I know that it's all too easy to get absorbed by the energy of the crowd." I smiled as I lied through my teeth.

He stared at me for a short moment, his eyes gazing into mine, before he eventually returned a 'smile', "I'm glad you understand, but it does get me into embarrassing moments like these. I'm always eager to share my dreams with others, sometimes overly so. But that's enough about my personal philosophy for the moment." He looked me in the eye, and stared at me with those dead eyes of his, "What about you, John? I know you've been hard at work improving your own region, so surely you must have some ideas about bettering society at large?"

I thought through my words carefully, "I have, and I think the way to do it is to reach out to other regions and work together as one big international group. There is no need for animosity between the regions. I believe that working together would be beneficial for everyone, and I'd like to think that my efforts have borne fruit."

"Ah, the power of friendship." He smiled, "I'm very much in agreement." No you're fucking not, "I cannot carry the burden of my dream alone. It needs to be shared with friends. Friends are good to have, aren't they John?"

Why was Cyrus trying to persuade me? Did he think I was going to be converted into his way of thinking or something? "…Sure. I agree. I've benefited a lot from making friends with other businesses, as you know. I'd be happy to speak with you more in the future."

"But there will be no favouritism from me." I warned, "I am happy to extend a helping hand every once in a while, but no more than that."

It was a firm warning for him not to try to corrupt or bribe me. Not that I truly cared if he did – it would be more evidence against him – but I said so because I was deliberately playing into his expectations of me. I was known to be a person with high morals, so this was the image I had to show him.

It seemed to have worked, as Cyrus nodded at my firm warning, "I'm glad that you do. We here at Galactic Company would never agree to such underhanded methods of performing business. We value our integrity as highly as we value our discoveries."

Yeah right. I had never heard more blatant lies in my life. "I'm glad to hear that." I said.

Unaware of my thoughts, he continued, "We might have met by coincidence, but I don't see why a friendship cannot be built on chance. I hear that you have encouraged businesses to come to Sinnoh – we will very much enjoy working together with them. I was pleasantly surprised to hear you championing the cause of internationalism. I too feel like a united world would be beneficial to everyone."

I inwardly snorted as another false smile formed on my face, "I appreciate it."

He returned it, "Anyways, I apologize for taking up so much of your time. I did enjoy our conversation together." He extended a hand for me to shake, "It's been a pleasure meeting you, John. I hope to meet you again sometime. Maybe we can talk again in the future."

Hopefully the next time I meet you it's with you behind bars, I thought to myself. "I think the same. Good luck with your work." We shook hands for the final time before we split off and he set off back to his company.

As soon as he left, I immediately took off for the nearest Pokémon centre and released Pixel.

"Pixel, I need you to scan me for any trackers, scanners, and the like." I told it. Pixel buzzed affirmatively, and after a quick scan later, it replied that it hadn't detected anything on me.

"Thanks Pixel, really appreciated your help." I commended it before returning it to its Premier Ball. As soon as Pixel went away, I let out a frown.

Strangely enough, I had secretly hoped that Cyrus HAD planted a bug on me. That way, I could use the discovery of such as evidence against him, and bring my suspicions straight to Lance and the others.

However, he seemed like he was far too cautious for that. Or he didn't intend to bug me at all because he didn't find my behaviour suspicious.

I shook my head regretfully at the missed opportunity, before deciding to put Cyrus out of my mind for the moment before he could ruin my mood even further. I was satisfied enough with my earlier conversation with Archer that we were making progress to exposing Cyrus.

Instead, I headed back into the Veilstone Department Store to continue what I had initially come here to do - to buy presents for all of my friends and family back in Indigo.

And something special for Cynthia too.

This was going to be quite the shopping trip. I could already feel my arms straining at the thought of hauling all of my new purchases back to my room.

Oh well, this is why I had Pokémon. They could do the heavy lifting for me! I could already imagine their irritation when I handed the shopping to them.

I hoped that buying some food with mollify them to be my servants for the day.

A.N. AND John and Cyrus finally meet face-to-face. I hoped I could portray Cyrus and his views in a not overly negative light. He IS insane, but to the untrained eye, he would just seem passionate and a big idealist and dreamer. And yes, the whole conversation between him and John were both 2 liars lying to each other and pretending to be kind and friendly.

And to anyone who wants to support me, please check out my p atreon at CartecTNN where you can read 8 advanced chapters! Thanks to those who have supported me already!