After what felt like a slumber of eternity, I slowly opened my eyes, trying to get used to the sudden exposure of light as I saw only white in my sight.

...Is this what being in heaven feels like?

However, I instantly knew that was not the right answer, as my eyeballs moved around the area, and realization soon hit me that I was just staring at a white-coloured ceiling.

I then quickly looked to my side, which revealed my sister, Charmaine, asleep on the side of the thin, blue bed I was lying on. The tear stains were briefly visible on her face.

W-What in the world happened after I got launched off the ship?

Before I could fully process the situation, my sister seemed to have noticed the slight movement near her as she opened her eyes, and found her younger brother to be finally awake. Instantly, she cried my name in joy.

"Lows!" She leaned forward to give me a tight, warm embrace, which while I appreciated her sentiment of happiness, did slightly pain me due to what I assumed were my injuries.

"O-Ow…" I slightly winced in pain, which made my sister realize her mistake as she quickly broke the hug, "My bad, Lows."

She then looked to leave the room temporarily, the relieved smile evident on her face, "I'll have to tell the others about this."

I signalled her to go ahead, as she stayed outside my hospital room and told the others about my recent condition. After a few moments, she returned with a few special guests.

I was relieved to see my Pokémon all okay, "Ziggs, Grace, Shadow… everyone! You're all okay!"

However, I soon realized that my Wartortle, Surfer was missing and instantly became worried. The others did not seem to care too much, though, as all their attention was focused on me. Ziggs first cheered, "See? I knew our Trainer wouldn't leave us just like that!"

Grace maintained her gentle, warm smile, "Welcome back, Lows. I'm glad you're able to prevail against all the odds and end up okay."

While I was grateful for all the kind wishes, I had to ask, "...Where is Surfer? He's fine after everything that happened, r-right?"

I was worried that any of my Pokémon would spew bad news to me, but instead, Woody nonchalantly said, "He's fine, Lows. He was the one who saved you, after all."

"Really?" I was surprised.

"Yeah!" Power explained, "When you were drowning in the sea, Surfer was the one who managed to drag you back to the surface of the sea, and helped you stay afloat until rescue came."

"That's good…" However, my worries were instead replaced with confusion, "Then why isn't he around with you guys?"

Ziggs gleefully chuckled, "Well, he was, until he started getting all shy about it at the last second!"

Afterwards, he looked towards the outside of the room and yelled at a moderate volume, "Surfer, you get in here now, before we all drag you in by force!"

A few seconds were all it took for Surfer's resistance to fade, as he slowly showed himself at the door. However, what used to be a Wartortle became a larger, bipedal turtle Pokémon where his tough, brown shell had two water cannons residing at its top over Surfer's shoulders. He also had a cream-colored lower jaw, and his feather-like ears were replaced by triangular ears that were black on the inside.

It did not take me too long to connect the dots, my smile only growing wider as the evolved Pokémon slowly approached me near the hospital bed. Feeling somewhat embarrassed, he then asked in a deeper masculine voice, "H-Hey, Lows. I don't look too weird from before, do I?"

I patted his giant shell as I happily replied, "Same as ever, Surfer. Thank you."

Everyone in the room laughed, glad that we all were back together once again after everything that had transpired over the past few days. It was finally over.

Most things change, but some things will always stay the same.

After the brief reunion, my sister contacted the PLA to update about my condition. As she ended the call in her Pokégear, she informed, "It looks like Steven will be visiting you soon to explain what happened after you fought the Team Willpower Leader."

"That'd be great." I half-joked, "I think I deserve a detailed story after putting in all the hard work against Wilson!"

"Yeah, yeah." Charmaine gently patted my head, "I'm also kinda in the dark about what happened out there that day, so it'd be nice for me to learn the full story too."

Speaking of the devil, it felt like Steven knew the power of teleportation, as the gentle knock on the door confirmed his presence. Charmaine opened the door into my hospital door and welcomed the former Champion in. His trusty Metagross was also right behind him.

Steven stopped at a distance between himself and I, before first giving me a deep bow. My sister and I were shocked by his gesture and quickly asked Steven to return to his usual stance. After some convincing, he did so and said with an apologetic look on his face, "Lows, I'm really sorry for putting you into such great danger during the operation to subdue Team Willpower. I… wouldn't have known what to say to your family if your situation had gotten worse."

I rubbed the back of my head, "It's alright, Steven. I went into it, fully aware that it was a reckless move. I hope that what I did at least helped to buy enough time against Wilson for the operation!"

"That you did, Lows." Steven smiled, "With that, I think you completely deserve an explanation on the events that took place after your battle against Wilson."

Flashback…

After Lows was thrown into the sea by Furoppu, Wilson's Mega Alakazam, the villain of the story was finally able to get back on track with his goal of finding Kyogre, as he rode the ship towards the direction the Legendary Pokémon Tracker was pointing towards. Eventually, the device repeatedly beeped in a loud manner, signalling that below him could potentially be the first destination of many in his search.

The drizzle that started earlier during Wilson's battle against Lows, had since transpired into a heavy thunderstorm, giving more positive signs that the Sea Basin Pokémon was most likely just below Wilson's feet.

He took out a Pokéball, ready to take a dive into the sea and cause enough disturbance to the Water type Legendary to anger it. However, before he could send out his Water type Pokémon, he heard a few woosh sounds I looked up, his expression showed his mix of shock and anger as he saw Winona on her Altaria, Merodī, and Steven on his Skarmory, flying in the air and under the heavy rain. It did not take them long to make a quick, graceful landing onto the ship deck, ready to finish off the Willpower Leader once and for all.

Already irritated by the initial trouble he had to get rid off, Wilson thought of just ditching the ship and making a run of it, instead of wasting more time having to deal with these nuisances. However, his plans were already accounted for, as he noticed the Sootopolis Gym Leader, Wallace just right under him beside the ship, riding his Milotic on the sea water, preventing Wilson from doing any shenanigans.

Forced to fight against the odds, Wilson thought that the power of Mega Evolution should still be able to fend off the two Trainers on the ship deck. However, his expectations were not reached, as all the accumulated tiredness from fighting a whole team of Lows' Pokémon made the battle a lot easier for Winona and Steven. Just after the exchange of a few moves, Furoppu's limit was quickly reached and it finally collapsed on the ship deck floor, its form also returning back to a normal Alakazam's.

"I-It can't be!" Wilson was shocked by the turn of events, "That old man told me Mega Evolution should basically turn my Pokémon invincible against anyone!"

Steven returned a smirk right back at the Willpower Leader, "Looks like that Mega Evolution of yours seems to still be an unknown territory for you. No Pokémon is invincible, after all."

Winona and Steven slowly approached Wilson, as Steven declared the Willpower Leader's loss, "It's over for you and Team Willpower, Wilson. Your goals… are an utter failure."

The despair look on Wilson's face slowly transformed into a twisted expression, as he only hysterically laughed, his clothes already long drenched from the heavy rain. Slowly, from his pocket, he took out another Smoke Ball, and before the two could react on time, he threw it towards the floor, smoke immediately surrounding the ship deck area, blocking their visions.

They could only wait for the smoke to subside, but it was already too late. They could only see the small figure of Wilson flying off on his Crobat through the extreme weather conditions, one lightning even striking near him as his figure eventually disappeared from their sights.

"...That is reckless!" Winona said. It seemed like Wilson really had his back against the wall.

Steven wanted to get back onto his Skarmory to give chase, but Winona put her hand on his shoulder, halting his intentions, "We're not doing that, Steven. The weather is too risky."

Although desperate, Steven knew the Flying type Gym Leader would definitely know better on the weather conditions suitable for flying. For her to warn him like that… the chase was a no go.

Steven looked up towards the sky, feeling somewhat frustrated. The weather conditions only seemed to have worsened, signalling danger for the area. Winona and Steven's worries had turned into a nightmare, as Wallace yelled at the two, getting their attention as they looked down from the ship deck. Kyogre slowly popped its head up the sea surface, appearing enraged that its slumber was interrupted.

The three realized they could be in big trouble, and that they needed to calm Kyogre down in the next few moments, before things transpired out of control.

Kyogre stared at Winona and Steven from below, seemingly willing to hear one last explanation from the two before taking action and showing its wrath if what they said next was deemed unacceptable.

Instead of reasoning, Steven could only yell as earnestly as possible, as he looked at the Legendary Pokémon from afar.

"Kyogre… There were a lot of things that happened leading to this, but we know we have caused inconvenience to you, and we're sorry! We mean no harm to you, so please… spare us and leave the Pokémon World in peace."

He knew explanation wise, his short speech was nowhere near the best, so he could only hope his sincerity was enough to convince the Water type Legendary, as he followed up with a genuine, full 90 degree bow. Winona looked at the former Champion for a brief moment, before also doing the same. Wallace, on the other hand, was observing the situation in full alert mode, ready to fight back if the Kyogre decided to opt for the more aggressive outcome.

Fortunately he did not have to do that.

Kyogre only examined the area, realizing that the people remaining that it could sense were most likely good-hearted people who got roped into an unfortunate situation. With that, Wilson's efforts were luckily not enough, as Kyogre let out one last deafening roar, giving the world its final warning before sinking back into the sea and returning to one of its many shelters.

The moment Kyogre disappeared back into the sea, the three uncontrollably let out a sigh of relief in sync. However, the relieved feeling did not last long, as Wallace quickly noticed a young boy on the shell of what looked like a Blastoise, as it stayed afloat on the sea water for its Trainer.

Steven could recognize the figure from his few encounters with him throughout his journey, "That's Lows!"

Winona sensed the severity of Lows' condition and instantly yelled, "Wallace, help get Lows back on land! He needs to undergo treatment immediately!"

Wallace gave the Fortree Gym Leader a quick thumbs up before getting right into work, the clearer weather conditions certainly helped to make it possible in just a short amount of time. Lows was immediately sent to the hospital for further treatment, where the doctor said his conditions eventually stabilized, but was unknown on when Lows would wake up from his coma. They could only hope for the best.

With that, one potential disaster was prevented, but the danger still lingered, as more work had to be done for the aftermath of the incident.

Back to the present…

"Once again, I sincerely apologize to you both that we could not arrive on time at the scene, forcing Lows to suffer all the pain alone." Steven looked down towards the ground as he finished his story, ashamed to even face the other two individuals in the room.

Feeling Steven's guilt from the hospital bed, I reassured him, "It really is fine, Steven. In the end, I did not regret anything that I did that day. Besides, I wasn't all alone during that time; my Pokémon were with me, which made me feel braver than ever to fight until the end."

I continued with a light chuckle, "Besides, I'm also kinda glad that I managed to do my part in preventing Wilson's plans from going smoothly. It kinda feels like I'm the hero of the moment!"

Seeing my reaction, Steven probably knew there was no point to continue being drowned by remorse, and said, "Alright then, Lows. I'll just return all the favor by helping the PLA apprehend Wilson as soon as possible before he can come back and cause more trouble."

He then walked towards me and gave a light pat on my right shoulder, "Next time, if you ever have any trouble in Hoenn again… I'll be there to save you. Third time's the charm, after all."

Not having any suspicion about the last sentence, I thanked the former Champion for his offer, "I'll hold on to that, then!"

Without Charmaine and Lows noticing, Steven's fist remained clenched, his emotions being a mix of relief, resolve, anger and determination.

All the former Champion could think of was the incident that happened years ago, and the number of times he had let Wilson get away unpunished.

He then thought of the promise he just made with Lows.

If there is a need for a third try…

I won't let the third time end up being another failure.

I swear, on my dear life.

After doing a thorough medical examination regarding my recent condition, the doctor said to my sister and I, "Lows… Unfortunately, it seems likely that it would take at least a month for you to be discharged from the hospital. Even then, since your muscles were heavily damaged from the electricity shock from the Alakazam's Shock Wave, you would only be able to walk under the help of crutches temporarily for another two months. You're also not recommended to go for long walks for a while to prevent more stress on your leg muscles."

Seeing the disappointment written on my face as realization dawned on me, the doctor added, "Hey, you can at least look on the positive side. You're pretty much lucky to even be alive after such a vicious attack."

"I-I guess. Thanks, doctor." I replied.

As my sister pushed me back to the hospital room in a wheelchair, she appeared quite saddened by the situation, "Lows…"

I knew adding any negative remark would not help the situation, so I reassured my sister, "It's okay, big sis. There's always next year, y'know."

My fake nonchalant look seemed to have convinced my sister, as she patted my head and joked, "Now I look silly for being the only one all sad about this!"

I responded to Charmaine with a forced laugh, but obviously, I was definitely disappointed. At first, it felt like my months of effort were all for nothing in the end. However, the short journey back to my hospital room made me recollect my thoughts and emotions, to quickly come to terms with myself.

This first year of my journey helped me meet so many new friends, and my precious six Pokémon, so in a way, it definitely wasn't completely fruitless.

We'll go again next year.

After we returned to my hospital room, my sister helped me properly reposition myself on the bed, before I suddenly received a video call request from my Pokégear, which revealed to be from my parents.

A-Ah, crap. I'm definitely getting a talking to for this…

Charmaine, on the other hand, was feeling quite awkward about the video call request for different reasons. She looked to leave my side to prevent herself from being shown in the camera, but I looked at her and gave her shoulder a light nudge, insisting that she should stay around.

With that, my sister sighed before saying, "Fine, fine."

I smiled, before accepting the video call request, our parents' worried faces showing on the screen almost at an instant.

My father first said, [Lows, I was just informed of the situation from the Hoenn PLA. Let's just say… we're too old for such a shocker!]

[We're worried to death, Lows! Never do that ever again!] My mother had some tears in her eyes as she followed along.

"Ah, yeah… sorry about all that, Mom, Dad." I rubbed the back of my head, feeling both embarrassed and sorry for my parents back at home, "I'm feeling better now, so there's no need to worry too much about me now."

I expected myself to be given a long talk about my recklessness, but then, my parents noticed the older teenage girl beside me, and instantly, the words they wanted to say turned into awkward silence. The atmosphere remained like this for a few moments, until my sister decided not to have this remain any longer as she gathered her courage to greet our parents.

"H-Hey, Mom, Dad."

Our parents could only awkwardly nod to acknowledge my sister's presence, before my father told me, [...Maybe you're right, Lows. We really don't have to worry that much. You seem to be in good hands.]

[G-Good luck in your recovery, Lows!] My mother added, and it looked like they were trying to make a quick, abrupt escape out of the video call, which was an outcome I did not want to see happen. It took them this long to finally be able to get the chance to converse with my sister, and I wanted them to reconcile. I wanted their relationship to improve after the unpleasant separation.

Fortunately, it looked like my sister was also thinking of the same thing.

"M-Mom, Dad!" Charmaine managed to recapture their attention, "I-If it's okay with you… I want to talk. Just the three of us."

The request was made, and our parents stayed silent for a few moments once again, before my father, the one who originally opposed Charmaine's move to Hoenn to achieve her Gym Leader dream, released a long sigh and said, "...Sure, Charmaine. Let's talk."

Our mother appeared surprised by her husband's change of mind as she turned her head to look at our father. However, she was more than happy to follow his decision as she nodded along.

"Hey, Lows, lend me your Pokégear for a while, would you?" My sister softly smiled.

"Say no more, big sis." I smiled, before signalling her to go ahead.

Charmaine then took my Pokégear before walking out of my hospital room, to probably find some good space to have a long needed private talk with our parents.

I smiled in relief.

...Yeah, this journey definitely isn't all fruitless, after all.

And thus, a long period of recovery had commenced.

My sister mainly took care of me in the hospital room, with my Pokémon helping her with simple tasks along the way. She was on temporary leave with the Hoenn PLA's approval, though she still had to return to her Gym for some of the days to carry out her necessary duties. Fortunately, since her Gym was relatively new, the challengers in the Slateport Gym were obviously lesser than that for the original eight, so not too much inconvenience was caused.

Besides helping out my sister to take care of me, my Pokémon also felt that they could not just sit around, and thus found opportunities to train themselves outside of the hospital building, which was sparring with Pokémon who were also owned by other hospital patients. With that, they were able to learn new moves and became slightly stronger, though the progress was obviously lesser compared to when they actually battled against stronger opponents, like during the Gym Challenges.

At least slowly but surely, they were moving forward during our temporary hiatus.

During that time, some people came to visit, which made my recovery life not as boring as it should have been. Sip was one of the first to visit, immediately thanking me for coming to his rescue. Through what I assumed was from the PLA, he also found out the reason why I joined the operations was because of him, and was really grateful about it.

"How long will it take before you can return to battling again?" Sip asked.

"I'm looking at around three months out, basically." I added the total time mentioned by the doctor altogether in my reply.

"Oh…" He said. He knew how detrimental that delay was going to be for my Gym Challenge progress, and was feeling sorry about my situation.

"No worries, man." I simply said, trying to reassure him.

"...If there is anything I can do to help out when you return, be sure to contact me!" Sip said, which I responded with a firm nod.

Cassie and Disc also visited once together after hearing the news, and were extremely worried about my condition. Once they heard the full details, they fell silent, knowing that my journey for the year would be potentially over due to the setback.

Seeing their sympathetic looks, I tried to lighten up the situation, "Hey, I'm fine! Besides, this gives you more time to become stronger and catch up to my skills, y'know."

Fortunately, it seemed to work as they laughed at my joke. Afterwards, Disc said with a determined look on his face, "Lows… if you really end up not being able to participate in the Ever Grande League… We will do our best in the league in your spirit."

I just simply laughed, "Hey, battle for yourself, not for me! But don't worry, I have full faith that you two will do just fine."

Steven also stopped by for brief visits, though every time when he felt like he had something to tell me, he always ended up not doing anything. Instead, he only tended to acquire information from my sister regarding my recent condition.

Maybe he just feels awkward talking to younger people?

Stone and Kyla, the two former Willpower Admins, also came for a visit along with May, in which the two apologized about everything they were forced to do back in Granite Cave and in the Hideout. Understanding their dire situation during those times, I immediately forgave them, to which May cheered loudly in response, before quickly shutting her mouth after realizing she was in a hospital.

Apparently, with May's help and their thorough honesty during their statement, they were only given a few days in prison before getting released rather quickly, with their only punishment being hours of community work, which they gratefully accepted. Their families were also later found in the Hideout unscathed, so all was good in the end.

Wally, the Lilycove Gym Leader, visited the most often out of everyone. Every time after checking on Lows' condition, he would always have long, secretive conversations with Charmaine outside the hospital room. It was like he was visiting my sister instead of me! It did not help that I failed to eavesdrop on their conversations every single time, which only made my curiosity stronger and stronger.

One time, I finally found an opportunity to take a glance at what they were doing; they let their guard down slightly and I could barely see them just outside my hospital room. I extended my head from the hospital bed to get the best view possible, and surprisingly saw the two hugging each other while staring at each other lovingly. I had never seen my sister having such an expression before.

After Wally left, while my sister was gently wiping my face with a wet towel, I finally garnered the courage to say, "Big sis, can I ask you something?"

"Go ahead!" She replied with a warm smile on her face.

"...What's your relationship with Wally?"

My question certainly surprised her as she almost dropped the wet towel from her right hand. She quickly regained her composure, though, and replied, "Wally and I are just very good friends. What makes you ask that, Lows?"

"...I saw the two of you hugging outside the hospital room today." I said.

"Lows…" My sister lightly hit me on the head and half-jokingly chuckled, "It's not good to eavesdrop on someone."

"I'm sorry, big sis." I apologized.

"It's okay."

She then stayed silent for a while, a slight blush of red appearing on her face. She took a deep breath before finally answering my question.

"I guess I can't hide this for much longer, huh?" She then shyly smiled, "Yeah, Wally and I have been dating each other for a few months now."

Based on their interaction and her reaction, I half-expected the answer, but I still felt glad to finally hear it from my sister. From my overall pleasant encounters with Wally, I could tell that he was a kind person, so I was fine with him being my sister's boyfriend.

They do make a good pair, after all.

With a wide smile on my face, I pestered my sister about the details on how it happened, but upon hearing my further question, she just made a "be quiet" gesture with a cheeky smile on her face.

"Lows, I think it's time to rest up for today."

While I was reading the newspaper for that day, a news segment caught my attention, which wrote:

BREAKING: WILLPOWER LEADER STILL ON THE RUN

Based on the recent update from the Hoenn Pokémon League Association (PLA), Wilson Zore, the leader of the villainous Team Willpower, infamously known for his recent stint of attempting to awaken the Legendary Pokémon, Kyogre, is unfortunately still on the run as of today.

Even though in technicality, Team Willpower was basically forced to a disband after the successful apprehension operation conducted in conjunction between the PLA and the Hoenn Police Department, the Willpower Leader was still nowhere to be found, with rumors circling that he had already secretly left the Hoenn region and is currently hiding his presence towards the public.

As of now, the Hoenn Police Department has called for the Hoenn citizens to provide any clues that could be deemed helpful to discover Wilson's current whereabouts, and it still unfortunately seemed a long road ahead before we are finally able to see the criminal locked behind bars.

I was quite worried by the circumstances, speculating whether the former Team Willpower Leader would be making a comeback anytime soon. He still had the Legendary Pokémon Tracker with him, after all.

Before I could think about it further, though, a knock on the door disrupted my thoughts before my sister opened it, which revealed my friend, Regis and the Fortree Gym Leader, Winona, who both came to visit.

As usual, the two first asked about my condition, to which I explained the same, that I most likely would not have enough time to complete the Gym Challenge to participate in the Ever Grande League.

Regis sighed, "That's a shame."

Winona seemed to have different ideas, though, "Honestly, I still think you can collect enough badges in the remaining timeframe for the Ever Grande League. You're only one badge off the minimum, right?"

I replied, "I wished it was that simple, Winona. But I'm currently in Mauville, and the closest Gym Challenge is most likely going to be in either Mossdeep or Lilycove, which are both still far from here. With crutches, I don't think I can even reach any of the cities before the deadline, which was in one month after I would be discharged."

I sighed and blurted out, "If only I could learn how to teleport."

My unintentional words seemed to have given Regis and Winona an idea, though, as they suddenly whispered to each other for a brief discussion. Afterwards, the two directly faced me and Regis said, "Lows, teleportation you can't learn, but flight you can take instead!"

"You don't mean…"

Winona proposed the plan they came up with, "You probably guessed it. After you get discharged next month, I will personally help you get to the location you wish to go immediately for your Gym Challenge, with the help of my Bird Pokémon."

"Y-You don't have to do this for a Trainer like me, Winona!" I felt honored, but also felt undeserving of such an offer.

"I think you saving the world, you being Regis' friend, and helping a Trainer achieve his dream to participate in the league, all are good enough reasons on their own for me to do this." Winona said.

To be honest, the offer was starting to become really lucrative for me to reject any further. However, I still had some worries, "With my injuries, I don't think I can position myself well during flights, though."

Regis simply addressed my concern, "You'll have a fine flightful experience, Lows. Winona is the most professional flyer in the region, no competition."

He quickly added, "Besides, if you weren't scared of falling asleep during a flight, I don't see any other issues regarding this, either."

I replied, "T-That was just a one-off incident!"

"Yeah, yeah."

Winona encouraged the idea further with another question, "So, what do you say, Lows?"

When I almost came to terms with myself that everything was over for me in the year, the final lifeline to complete my first year's journey appeared in my sight, provided by two of the many lovely individuals that had crossed paths with me throughout the period.

This time, I had no reason to let it go anymore.

"Of course I would give it a go!" I firmly answered Winona's question, "Thanks, Regis, Winona."

Winona simply smiled, "We should be thanking you, Lows. You sacrificed yourself for the better of the Hoenn region, after all. This is the least I can do for you."

My sister, who was beside us three listening in on the conversation, had tears in her eyes as she profusely thanked the Fortree Gym Leader while happily hugging me, glad that I was given a second opportunity to put a more fulfilling ending to my first year as a Pokémon Trainer.

Even though the road ahead will probably be more difficult for the next few months… I'm not going down without a fight. Not until I try my hardest.

I gratefully smiled.

Maybe… everything really was worth it in the end.

Lows' Pokémon Team:

Surfer (Blastoise, Male), Jolly Nature

Ability: Torrent

Moves: Surf, Ice Beam, Aqua Tail, Iron Defense

Ziggs (Linoone, Male), Naive Nature

Ability: Quick Feet

Moves: Dig, Iron Tail, Protect, Facade

Grace (Kirlia, Female), Calm Nature

Ability: Synchronize

Moves: Calm Mind, Magical Leaf, Shadow Ball, Psybeam

Woody (Grovyle, Male), Lonely Nature

Ability: Overgrow

Moves: Agility, Leaf Blade, Giga Drain, Rock Tomb

Power (Machoke, Male), Timid Nature

Ability: Guts

Moves: Rock Tomb, Scary Face, Submission, Seismic Toss

Shadow (Absol, Female), Quiet Nature

Ability: Super Luck

Moves: Payback, Night Slash, Psycho Cut, Protect

Ending author notes:

The full name of the Team Willpower Leader, Wilson Zore, was a reference to the name change of the villain from the original story, which was Azore.

Truth is, the original villain name is spontaneously created based on the approval one of my online friends, who is referred to as the same (Azore), even until today. We still play together often in our online friend group.

For the rewritten story, I went back with my original idea name, Wilson, but decided to add in some elements of "Azore" in his full name as an easter egg or some sorts.