Chapter 14

The crystal blue waters rolling back and forth, the sound of water crashing against the rocks, was calming to those who sit close by. Atsumu stared at the waves as he heard footsteps approach the bench, as a figure sat next to him seen from the edge of his eye.

" It's been a while. " Valerie said, getting comfortable on the seat, and glanced at Atsumu. Bag eyes under his eyes, his face drained of lively hood, the worry in Valerie's stomach didn't lessen at the sight.

" It has," Atsumu said, reaching into his pocket and handing her his phone after unlocking it. Taking it, a video was already on screen.

" I wasn't ready to tell you this over the last phone call. The experience... had just settled in. " Atsumu admitted.

Worried and intrigued, Valerie tapped the screen, and the video starts. There was audio, lines of dialog, and then the lights. Valerie watched, her eyes glued to the screen, the life snuffed out, the inevitability of death.

All there is left to show off the pokemon is a dried-up corpse, able to be picked up and thrown into the dumpster like a used costume worn during festivals.

" Where did this happen? " Valerie asked an undeniable edge in her voice, anger gathering just beneath the surface to be unleashed.

" In a base deep underground. " Atsumu answered. " Got lucky while in Cyllage city, finding out about the operation and decided to check it out on a whim. It's actually the first time I've infiltrated an enemy base.

I decided to just take the appearance of one of the grunts, a background character to get inside. As long as I behaved properly, I knew I wouldn't be found out and it worked.

I got inside and saw where they were taking the pokemon after being captured and brought to the base, only to watch them be sacrificed to a weapon long since forgotten to time. "

" A weapon long since forgotten? No! You can't mean... " Valerie said, her heart yearning for confirmation that what she was thinking wasn't correct.

" The ultimate weapon. " Atsumu said. Reality doesn't care about your wishes sometimes.

" But it isn't real, is it not? It's only a story. "Valerie said.

" Skip to the end. " Atsumu said.

Valerie did just that. She went all the to when the final pokemon was allowed inside the chamber. The sequence played out as usual, her hate growing for the scientist and yet she wasn't prepared for the bombshell.

" Lysandre... " Valerie repeated.

" Yeah. He's the one in charge of this whole situation. The book he had, believed it was true and searched for the weapon, ultimately finding it buried deep beneath Geoscenge town. " Atsumu explained.

" He can't surely be thinking of using it! No, why would he need it in the first place?! " Valerie asked.

" Don't know, that's what I'm going to find out. " Atsumu said.

" How? " Valerie asked.

" I made an emotional decision," Atsumu admitted.

" Before you called me, I had talked with Lysandre, deciding to join up with him. " Atsumu said.

" You called to join up with him? " Valerie asked, confusion filling her tone. " Is it to spy on him, get more intel about his plans, or only to understand his motive? "

" Only the last one... " Atsumu said. " And because I wanted to beat the shit out of him. That's all. "

" That's... understandable, the beating him up part. But why are you so glum? " Valerie asked.

" Remember when I said I was disguised as a grunt? Well, Im... in... that video and I ... pushed some of those pokemon to their deaths. " Atsumu croaked out.

Vakerie's eyes widened, her head turning back to the screen to look at the video's length. More than 2 hours. That's how long he spent continuously watching pokemon be executed, some even by his own hands.

" You feel guilty, don't you? " Valerie questioned.

" It's slowly crushing me. " Atsumu whispered.

Atsumu felt himself being pulled, a warm embrace enveloped him, and his eyes widened before he simply relaxed. Valerie reacted on impulse, her body shot out like a rocket and brought Atsumu in a hug, an action her mind didn't question.

" It's alright. " Valerie whispered. " Everything will be okay. "

" Will it? " Atsumu asked.

" Stop worrying so much. Don't forget, this is my region and many feel the same way. Everything will be fine. " Valerie said.

" That's... good. " Atsumu said, his eyes slowly closing, his body going limp, soft, rhythmic breaths emanated from him while Valerie held him close to her body.

' I'll notify the gym leaders only. ' Valerie thought. ' With Lysandre being the head and his reach in the league, it's better if I discuss with the others before making a plan against him, just in case. '

Valerie looked up, her eyes blinked, her self-control on full throttle, not to scream, react to Gengar who was floating in front of her. She was lost in thought and didn't register the floating pokemon close to her face.

" Hello there. " Valerie greeted. " Do you know where Atsumu is staying? "

Gengar giggled, taking out a piece of paper and handing it over to her.

' Your house. ' The message said.

" Hmmm... eventually our house. But not the time. " Valerie said.

Gengar shook her shoulders, shrugging her statement off, and gave her a different parchment. Valerie glanced at it, learning that Atsumu is staying at the pokemon center, room 191.

" This is enough. Thank you. " Valerie said to Gengar.

Returning to his room was far simpler for her than for others. Not many have a teleporting Gardevoir. Using a mental image provided by Gengar, her Gardevoir teleported them straight into the room.

She placed Atsumu in bed, who was already knocked out of commission.

" Rest well. "Valerie whispered before teleporting back to her office and sent a message in the gym leaders-only group.

It didn't take long for all the gym leaders available to come online, Korrina and Clemont being absent.

" Valerie. Why did you call this urgent meeting? " Wolfric asked.

" Got a lot of info on the situation we were briefed about yesterday. Even have video proof. " Valerie said.

" You have?! How did you get them? " Grant asked.

" I have a friend. " Valerie said.

" Well then, give him our thanks. This seems to be wrapping up quicker than we thought. " Viola replied.

" I wish that was the case. "Valerie said. " My friend had managed to get into the enemy's base and took a recording of what they were doing with the pokemon.

They aren't planning on selling any of them. "

She shared her screen and allowed the video to play. Hearing the audio through headphones was a much different experience than listening without it. For one, there's no background noise, all the audio from the video enters your ears.

All of them couldn't look away, but they didn't show any expressions other than horror. Even after the dust settled and the first pokemon died, Valerie managed to press the pause button since she saw it once before, but it wasn't something she enjoyed.

" What the fuck!? " Wolfric cursed, his loud voice woke everyone else up.

" Valerie, explain. " He said through grit teeth.

" Like I had mentioned. My friend went into the enemy's base disguised as a grunt. He got into a position where he was able to have one of his pokemon record everything and this is what he got.

Those pokemon are being sacrificed to power a weapon built over 3000 years ago. It ended the war that was occurring, so it has enough power to destroy an entire region if powered up to 100%, possibly. " Valerie explained.

" A weapon!? Do you mean that massive structure in the middle? " Viola asked.

" Yes. That's the one. " Valerie said.

" This is quite the dilemma, but I'm sensing there's more. " Olympia said.

" You're correct. " Valerie sighed, skipping to the end where the head scientist casually says Lysandre.

" Is... This isn't edited? Right? " Ramos asked.

" No. " Valerie said.

" Lysandre is funding this operation. " Wulfric said solemnly.

" It seems we don't know him as well as we thought. " Olympia states.

" Was your friend able to get an idea of Lysande's end goal? " Grant asked.

" No. This was all he was able to get. While I would ask for his help, since he was capable of getting this without being noticed, I'm not going to ask him for more. " Valerie said.

"Understandable. The video is over 2 hours long. If he was disguised as grunt, he must have been one of the few who had pushed some of the pokemon inside the chamber, essentially killing them himself. " Wulfric deduced.

" On the hand, what shall we do about the weapon? We know where the base, we could always destroy it and the weapon in one go. " Ramos said.

" It's a good idea, but it's best if we leave the weapon alone. The energy that it has stored inside could pose a threat if we act rashly. " Olympia said.

" I agree. For now, I believe it's best if we prepare by gathering our forces and discussing our plan of attack at a later date. " Wulfric said.

" I agree. " Ramos said.

" Well, no arguments here. " Viola said.

" Let's make sure we do it soon so can cave them in. " Grant said while Olympia stayed nodded her head in agreement.

" Alright. I'll make sure to notify you. Goodbye, everyone. " Valerie said, ending the meeting.

...

" Lysandre. Don't keep us in the dark, what is your next project? " A man asked excitedly from his seat. Along with him, 4 more people sat with him on semi circle desk, each of them looking at the man who has done so much good for Kalos. These 5 people were the Board, the ones who had the most say in the decisions for the region.

The man in front of them was brilliant in their eyes, a shining ray of hope for the future. Excitement spread through their beings at the mention of his latest project, which he was going to unveil now.

" Patentice Mr. Yoshida. We have a lot of time. "Lysandre said with a smile.

" Indeed. " Another man said, " But I concur that I'm too excited, so if you would, can you speed things up? "

" Alright. " Lysandre shrugged. " My project requires the understanding of an object that my team has discovered a few days ago. "

On the screen behind him, the projector showed an image of the Ultimate weapon.

" What is it? " The man in the middle of the table, Mr. Wilson, asked.

" It is a weapon long since forgotten to time. In my research, this weapon was used in the past to end the war over 3000 years ago. " Lysandre said.

" 3000 years ago! That old wives' tale is real! " Another man, Mr. Sakamura, exclaimed.

" That's right. We've discovered the situation and begun to research how it operates. Though I won't deny that whoever created this was in desperation. To power it up, you must sacrifice the lives of pokemon. " Lysandre said solemnly.

" Pokemon must be sacrificed?! " Mr. Matsuda yelled. " Then what can this provide us with?! "

" Calm down Matsuda. " Mr. Wilson said, " Let us wait till Lysandre finishes his explanation first. "

" I apologize. It seems this affected me far more than anticipated. " He said, regaining his cool.

" It's quite alright Mr. Matsuda. I felt the same once I realized this. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to understand how it works unless we experiment. I take full responsibility for all the lives lost. " Lysandre said sincerely, bowing his head.

" Is this in relation to the large-scale pokemon poaching incident? " Mr. Wilson asked.

" Yes, it is. " Lysandre admits. " I had given clear instructions to my head scientist that he was not permitted to conduct any tests, but he had disobeyed my orders."

He ordered the large-scale capturing and placed those pokemon into the machine to be absorbed. We have sufficient data now, but it came at a great cost. I've taken care of the scientist myself but I couldn't keep this a secret for much longer, my conscious not allowing me to do so.

I take full responsibility for the transgression! "

" Raise your head Lysnadre. " Mr. Wilson said after a brief period of silence.

" The scientist, has he been properly dealt with? " He asked.

" He has. " Lysandre says.

" Then that is alright. He disobeyed your orders and sometimes we all have one subordinate who does it. I cannot hold you accountable for this when you've clearly stated your decision as a boss. " Mr. Wilson says.

" Thank you, sir. " Lysandre said.

" But with that said, what is your idea? " He asked.

" Thanks to the data we have acquired by observing the weapon itself, it has the capability to amplify the energy it stores upon firing. We only powered it up for 30 seconds and the power emanating from it with the amount of energy stored exceeded our expectations.

It currently has 10% energy filled, yet when we activated it, it had the same intensity as a dragon pulse fired from the Johto champion's Dragonite, Lance's Dragonite, his ace. " Lysandre said.

" Remarkable. " Mr. Wilson said in awe.

" Then what is your end goal? " Mr. Matsuda asked.

" I wish to reverse engineer the properties of the weapon for energy usage. If we apply this concept to our power plants and factor in maintenance costs, we would be able to use more money in other aspects. " Lyanadre said excitedly.

" That is true. We would be able to live comfortably for decades, even centuries with the bare minimum of power added before distribution! " Mr. Sakamura exclaimed.

" Lysandre. Will this work? " Mr. Wilson asked.

" Yes. The success rate is currently 87% from our theories. " Lysandre said.

" I purpose we give Lysandre the green light. Does anyone disagree? " Mr. Wilson asked.

No one spoke up.

"Then we agree. Lysandre, I'll be informing everyone about the incident and writing it as an open and closed case. If you need anything, contact us and we will provide you with the necessary pieces of equipment. " Mr. Wilson said.

" Understood. You'll get nothing but results. " Lysandre announced.

" I don't doubt that. " Mr. Wilson smiled.

...

It was a surprise, but they answered the call without hesitation. The same 6 gym leaders were in an online meeting with the same representative who informed them of the large-scale pokemon poaching.

" Has something come up from the case? " Wulfric asked, initializing the conversation.

" Yes. Lysandre has explained everything to the board and I'm here with the official report. " He said. The gym leaders sat in their seats, shocked at the news. They have seen the video, has Lysandre turned himself in.

" A few days ago, Lysandre's team had found a relic of the past, a weapon that was used over 3000 years ago to end a war. The weapon uses the energy taken from pokemon. The pokemon do not survive the process.

The large-scale operation led to the deaths of hundreds of pokemon underneath Lysamdrs nose. His head scientist was given clear instructions that weren't supposed to do anything without Lysandre's green light.

But he decided to run the red light, ordering the capture of multiple pokemon for experimentation with the machine. Lysnadre has taken of the scientist himself.

The board has made the final decision for Lysandre to research the weapon, for the result is said to bring great prospects to the region. " The representative said.

" Is that been fact-checked? " Viola asked.

" Yes. Everything has been checked, and we have left no stone unturned. You no longer have to worry about the case anymore, it's all been taken care of. " The representative said.

" I see. Is that all? " Olympia asked.

" No. One more thing, you might find men dressed in bright red-orange suits walking around the area near your respective cities and the routes connecting them.

They work for Lysandre. They will conduct their own research every once in a while and have full permission to do so but still have guidelines to follow. I'll be sending them to each of you.

If they breach one of the guidelines, contain them and notify us immediately. Lysandre will take care of his subordinates, it's his own personal request. " The representative said.

" Underatandable. " Ramos said.

" Any further questions? " The representative asked, to which the gym leaders stayed silent.

" No. Then we are done here. Good day everyone. " The representative said before logging off.

" It seems a new development has occurred. " Olympia said.

" Yes. Our plans are now canceled. " Wulfirc said.

" What about Lysandre? Is what he said true? " Grant asked.

" It seems the board has declared to be true. If they have done the proper procedures and the result is that everything checks out, there's nothing we can do. " Valerie said.

" Agreed. " Wulfric said.

" I see. " Grant said. " Though it's weird to me. After all, that would mean the scientist in the video spilled the beans himself. "

" Yes. It is quite foolish, though I can't complain about the end result. " Ramos said.

" I believe it's time to log off now. Have a good day everyone. " Olympia said before exiting the meeting.

Valerie exited soon after, taking in deep breaths. While the possibility of Lysandre lying was there initially, if the proper procedures have been followed, the use of psychic type pokemon of the highest caliber, able to discern truth from lies as easily as they breathe have said that Lysandre is telling the truth, then that is that.

She picked up her phone and went to Atsumu's number to message him. Atsumu on the other hand was currently awake, eating at a restaurant in Shalor city.

He was no longer tired, feeling lighter now like some of the burdens was taken off his shoulders, but the guilt still lingered. The familiar noise from his phone notifying a message has been sent caught Atsumu's attention.

It was from Vakerie and it was a long text. Atsumu's eyes widened, but he responded nonetheless, thanking her for the clarification.

'Apparently, Lysandre is making something that will benefit Kalos through his research. Deciding to join him may be a stroke of luck after all. ' Valerie messaged.

' It's funny how things work out, such a coincidence. ' Atsumu replied back.

' So true. ' Valerie messaged.

Atsumu stared at the message again but didn't share the same sentiment. He had his doubts about Lysandre's alibi, considering he had met with him twice. There wasn't anything concrete, it was just a gut feeling, nagging at him, telling him that he shouldn't be complacent, and Atsumu decided to listen to it.

His phone rang, and he looked at the caller. It was Lysandre. Answering the phone, Atsumu listened to Lysandre on the other side.

" I've given it some thought and I accept. Meet me in Lumiose City in a week. That should give you enough time beat the next two gyms, knowing you I won't take more than one try right? " Lysandre asked.

" Yeah. That's enough. Where should I meet you in Lusmiose? " Atsumu asked.

" I'll notify you 2 hours before our meeting. " Lysandre said.

" Alright. " Atsumu said.

" You've made a much better choice than the one I offered. You'll be a part of something grand, I guarantee. " Lysandre said.

" Is that right? I'll be the judge of that. " Atsumu said.

" Alright. I'll see you then. " Lysandre said before cutting the call.

____________________________________________________

Sup.

For those who read the chapter 14 I released yesterday, I apologize for making you read it. I was not in the correct state of mind and vented in the wrong place, creating a disgrace.

I believe I haven't screwed up this time but that's just my opinion. Please do tell me in the comments about your thoughts on this chapter.