Yo friends of fanfiction, I'm back with a chapter of LPAOD, chapter 15 at that. I know it's been a bit since I've updated this story, but this time I actually have a reason! I finished up my other story, betrayal from the heart, so you can check that out if you haven't. Even small talk, HAVE AT YOU!

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I don't own pokemon or anything I reference (No crap!)

Brock calmed himself, wiping away his tears, trying to cope with his age and said. "It's about you, Ash." He said, placing a hand on his best friend's shoulder, his voice filled with concern.

"Yup." Gary said with a nod. "It's about love, pokemon and other delusions!"

"WOULD YOU STOP SAYING THAT!" Both Brock and Max screamed at the same time which made Gary fall off his feet and spin around like Charlie Brown.

"I don't get it..." Ash mumbled. "What's wrong with what he said?" He asked with a head tilt.

Gary sprung to his feet in a flash and flicked his spiky hair, "Ignore them. They're just jealous of my astute observation."

"How did you get to that...?" Brock mumbled, shaking his head.

"I'm still lost..." Ash grumbled, having no clue what he's friends were talking about.

"What Gary is trying to say, if he was normal..." Max started, which prompted a "HEY!" out of Gary, "We're all worried about you, and your recent actions."

Ash sighed, "I'm guessing they told you about the plane, huh?"

Gary walked up with a determined face, "Of course. Ash, what the hell is going on?"

Ash looked down at the bed, messing up the covers, "To tell the truth, I don't know... I think... I've been missing the old days... The simple days... I guess... I think... I'm afraid... of losing it all... All the love I've felt from my journeys, all the pokemon I've met... And everything else... I'm afraid... I'm going to wake up one day and find out it was all a... delusion..." Gary, Brock and Max listened intently, letting Ash say everything he needed to. "I think... I saw May going missing as an... opportunity, an opportunity to relive the old times... An excuse to go on a journey again. But..." Ash looked up at his friends with a determined expression, "But, I won't let these feelings, whatever they are... dictate my life and... especially not endanger my friends!"

Gary smiled and nodded, clapping Ash on the shoulder, "There you go, that's all we wanted."

Brock nodded, "We want to help Ash, that is... If you let us."

Ash smiled at his two traveling companions, a tear threatening to roll from his eye, he didn't expect letting these stranger emotions out would be so... emotional... "Thanks guys..." Then Ash's eyes flicked in realization, "Wait, I actually have something I need to tell you all." He said, remembering the events on the island. He then explained everything that happened on the island with the splinter group of team rocket and that strange beam and the strange man and everything else.

"That's... concerning." Brock said, rubbing his chin in thought.

"Damn right it is..." Gary growled, slamming his fist onto the bed.

"I wonder who that man was..." Max mumbled, pushing up his glasses.

"So yeah, we're not in the clear yet..." Ash mused, "Now we've got two things to worry about, May and this odd group."

"Do you think they're related?" Brock asked once he was done thinking.

"What do you mean?" Gary replied in confusion.

"I mean, does May's disappearance have anything to do with this splinter group." Brock explained.

Ash shook his head, "I don't know... But, we can't rule it out, nor claim it's true." He smiled wryly, "The most we can do now is continuing our search for May."

Gary shrugged with a smirk, "If we can ever get tickets to hoenn!"

Paul had won another league battle, things were going great for the purple-haired trainer, he couldn't ask for much more! But, he was also thinking about Ash and his mission to find May... Something about it... bothered him... Like Ash was going to get hurt... and he'll have a connection to it. "Gah!" Paul groaned, shaking his head to clear his thoughts, "What am I thinking about?!"

"Are you okay?" Dawn asked across the room they were sharing in the pokemon center. "You just started freaking out..."

Paul sighed, calming himself down, "Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about stuff..."

Dawn laid down on her back and propped her head on her hands and looked at Paul with a sweet smile, "What kinda stuff?" She asked, as if she were singing.

This made Paul blush slightly before he coughed into his hand to calm himself down, "Well, a few things... Ash and his search for May being one."

Dawn nodded, "Yeah, I've been thinking about him too. I hope he's alright..."

Paul felt a pinch in his heart when Dawn showed such care and worry about his rival, but quickly composed himself, "I'm sure he is... But, for some reason... I have a feeling..." He groaned, "Just ignore me... I'm sure he's fine!"

"Okay..." Dawn mumbled, slightly concerned for her traveling companion, "What's the other stuff?"

"My brother..." Paul muttered, "I remember something he said before I left... and it's bothering me... Gah, I don't know..."

"Paul..." Dawn mused, standing up and walking over to the man and placing a hand on his shoulder, "How about this, you only worry about the league, and I'll worry about everything else, kay?"

Paul let out a small chuckle, "If only it were that simple and easy..."

It was a cold damp camp, the splinter group of team rocket were at work setting up a new place of operations after the events with Ash. They now had a name people knew... Moriarty Rocket... The people began to call the leader the same thing, Moriarty... Moriarty Rocket left sinnoh after the run in with Ash and has now made name for themselves in Hoenn. Some were calling them robin hoods for their silencing of Team Aqua and Team Magma, some were calling them criminals for their extortion of small businesses... The "Moriarty" didn't care. He never wanted his group to become known, much less WELL known. As he laid on a bed in his private camp, he remembered the events that he just thought about...

Moriarty and his group were hiding out in mt chimney, watching from afar as Team Magma and Aqua have yet another confrontation. Archie and Maxie were face to face with each other, saying somethings Moriarty couldn't hear... He didn't care, he was waiting for Archie to leave, he had business with Maxie. Archie spit in Maxie's face and stomped away in a huff, all his subordinates following behind. Once Archie was out of sight Maxie wiped the spit of his face and grumbled in frustration. "Quite the stand off." Moriarty announced himself with these words.

"And who are you, young man?" Maxie asked with an eyebrow raise.

"My name is not of importance, but seem to be calling me Moriarty."

"Moriarty..." Maxie parroted, "Like the final problem?"

Moriarty shrugged, "No clue." He walked up to the glasses wearing man, "Now, I have a favor to ask of you."

"And that is?"

"I want you to leave Hoenn. I have a mission here, and I don't need you in my way."

Maxie couldn't help but laugh, "Oh, young man! I wouldn't do that unless I die!"

Moriarty scanned the area and noticed Maxie was standing near the ledge that would connect to the volcano part of the mountain, "If that's what you say..." He ran up to Maxie, too quick for the older man to react, and pushed him over the ledge. "Sorry, I need to achieve my mission."

Moriarty and his group were hiding inside of a small business located in Lilycove City Hoenn, they've used this hide out before, they threatened the owner that if they sold them out, Moriarty would personally kill his wife and daughter, the gun he carried in his coat proof of his promise, not a threat. Moriarty had one mission this time, to find and silence Team Aqua. Those pirates and their damnable leader, Archie have been a thorn in the Rocket's side for too long now. They would get in fights over "turf" even though Moriarty never claimed he was planning on taking it. But, now he's had enough, Archie decided to take it upon himself to claim that they worked together to topple Team Magma and their pursuits... Which was a lie! Moriarty stood up, two members followed suit. "Let us pay Archie a visit..." He muttered coldly.

Archie was sat in his personal cabin at the Lilycove City base, enjoying his me time, that was until he started hearing screams and pokemon yells, he busted open his door and screamed out, "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?!" He was greeted by Moriarty with a gun pointed at his face. "MORIARTY, WHAT THE HELL?!" He stumbled backwards.

Moriarty shushed Archie with a finger on his lips, "Peace Archie, I have no intention to shoot you, in truth, I hate guns."

"So why you pointing that at me?!" Archie shot back.

The leader chuckled, "I think of it as a... conversation peace. A way to make it so I am the one talking."

Archie gulped, "And what is it you want to talk about?"

Moriarty put the gun back into its holster in his coat, "I want you to think, Archie. Think, did you defeat Team Magma?"

"Uh, no..." Archie said, sweating bullets.

"No...?" Moriarty chuckled and then grabbed Archie by his mega anchor, "Then why did you say you did?!"

Archie pulled his anchor out of Moriarty's grasp, "Ah hell, we were the ones who set the whole thing up, no?"

"You dumbass, you didn't even know what was happening." Moriarty mumbled, shaking his head. "I want you to do something, or I will do something neither you nor I would like."

Archie raised an eyebrow, "And what is that?"

"Leave Hoenn, you have no use for this land anymore." Moriarty bluntly stated, "You can go to Sinnoh and Johto, I honestly don't care. I don't want you here getting in my way, am I clear?"

Archie wanted to bite back, fight for his turf, but he just scoffed, it wasn't worth the pain in the ass Moriarty is. "Fine. Whatever."

Moriarty closed his eyes and drifted off into a slumber, his memories ending with his sleep.

And that's the end! I hope you enjoyed the chapter, get some lore on the antagonist, I hope you find him interesting so far... Anyway! See you later friends of fanfiction!!!