26 Blood and Bonds

As the old man approached the intruders, his presence alone was imposing, and his eyes were filled with an ancient wisdom that spoke of countless battles and experiences. His voice was a low rumble that sent shivers down the spines of the intruders.

"You've trespassed on Blackthorn family grounds, and I suggest you surrender peacefully."

The intruders, despite their earlier determination, now felt an overwhelming pressure bearing down on them, sapping their will to resist. They exchanged fearful glances, realizing that there was no way they could challenge this imposing figure.

"This isn't over! We won't surrender!"

But as she spoke, her voice wavered, and her Pokemon, once defiant, now cowered in fear. Just then, the Blackthorn Family's team arrived at the scene, a group of skilled trainers led by an imposing Dragon-type specialist.

The Blackthorn Family's Pokemon emerged, and their combined presence, along with the aura of the old man, left no room for defiance. The intruders slowly regrouped, forming a small circle with their backs to each other.

The intruders exchanged desperate glances as their situation grew dire. They knew that buying time was their only hope, and they tried to remain alert for any opportunity to turn the tide.

"Keep your eyes open. If anything changes, if there's a chance to escape or resist, we must seize it."

The leader advised her team to seize any opportunity that may present itself.

The Blackthorn Family's team was vigilant, however, and the imposing aura of the old man made it clear that their chances of escape were slim.

"You won't find an opening. Surrender peacefully, and we'll handle this situation as peacefully as possible."

As time passed, the intruders realized that the situation was growing more desperate by the minute, and their hope of escape dwindled. Yet they remained on guard, knowing that in their line of work, even the slightest opportunity could make all the difference.

Just when everyone thought that the situation was going to end in a bloodbath, a Venusaur came into the leader's view at the edge of the barrier, and on its head was a little boy casually sitting while curiously looking at his surroundings. The leader's mind started thinking of all possible solutions for the current scenario, and after having a look at her team, she was unwavering yet fearful that her decision might end up being a tragedy for her whole team.

"Maybe we should tell them that we are under the orders of the league carrying out a special mission; the Blackthorn family may give us a way out because we are league trainers." One of the members of the team suggested it without realizing the weight of the words that he casually stated.

"Are you out of your damn mind? Under no circumstances are we to reveal our true identity, even if we were to go down to the last one here. No one is to talk, and that's an order. Look at what kind of outfit we're wearing. Do you think they're going to give us a free pass just because we say who we really are?"

The gravity of the situation had the leader on edge, understanding the dire consequences that would follow if they betrayed their directive. It was a risk they couldn't afford to take, not when their family's safety and reputation hung in the balance. And after thinking about all the options, the leader made a very cruel decision in her mind.

"Fine, we surrender."

The team was surprised by the leader's bold decision but chose not to question her and gave up resistance in front of the overwhelming force.

The Blackthorn Family team swiftly began the process of restraining the intruders and sealing their pokeballs in specialized cases to prevent further trouble.

"You have chosen wisely. We do not wish to cause you harm, but you must face the consequences of your actions." The old man nonchalantly addressed the now-captors and continued to oversee the operation.

The intruders, defeated and overwhelmed, were taken into custody, their mission to infiltrate the Blackthorn Family thwarted by the combined might of the ancient guardian and the family's team.

After a few minutes, the chaos subsided, and everything was settled. The dozen intruders were now under restraint and waiting for the Blackthorn family's transport to take them back to their facility. The Blackthorn family members also began dismantling and collecting the items that the intruder team had brought. Each of the intruders was restrained to nearby trees, their auras sealed to prevent any further mischief.

"Kid, over here."

Lance, still accompanied by Alfred's Venusaur, was strolling in the vicinity when he heard someone calling out to him. He paused and looked in the direction of the voice, his young face bearing a mixture of curiosity and wariness.

"What do you want? Why did you call me? Grandpa Alfred told me not to talk to you because you're the bad guys," Lance responded with childlike determination. He remained vigilant, aware that the people in front of him were part of the group that had disrupted the peace on Mt. Silver.

"Ah, yes, kid, we are the bad guys You are right, but even bad guys do feel thirst, you know, so i would be grateful to you if you could convince these people here to provide me and my team here with some drinking water."

The woman who had called out to Lance spoke softly, trying not to startle the young boy. One of the Blackthorn family members standing guard over the captors chimed in, cautioning Lance not to engage with the intruders.

"Young master, please do not listen to them; they are criminals. We cannot provide them with the comforts they seek. They are facing the consequences of their actions. If you'd like, we can arrange for some water for them."

While the conversation was happening, the attention of the four guards was on Lance and the leader. While Sam was slowly undoing his restraints with his psychic power, nobody expected there would be a psychic among the team of infiltrators. Aron had already designed restraints for psychic users too, and their standard protocol for capture had been revised and included applying psychic restraints to the captors in addition to aura restraints, but the Blackthorn team had overlooked this minor detail from their revised protocol due to the suddenness of the situation. So even though he had his energy sealed, Sam could still use his psychic powers, and he had already undone his restraints and worked on the leader's restraint without attracting anyone's attention.

The leader of the intruders had devised a cruel plan to take Lance hostage and use his life as leverage for their escape. It was a desperate and morally questionable move, but she believed it might be their only way to secure their freedom.

Lance contemplated the guard's advice and decided to follow it. He suggested to the Blackthorn family members to provide some drinking water for the prisoners. The guard directed two of his colleagues to fetch water for the captors, leaving only two guards next to Lance.

"Now".

Screamed the leader at the top of her voice and immediately five members from their team sprang up from their restrained position to pounce in the direction of Lance to capture him, the venusaur reacted immediately and launched an assault on the approaching targets and even the remaining two blackthorn guard sprang in to neutralize the threat, it only took a moment for the exchange to happen the commotion attracted everyones attention from the Blackthorn family. Before the Blackthorn family could move they heard the heavy voice of the the captors leader.

"Everyone, Stop".

And what the Blackthorn members saw sent a chill down their spine, Their young master was in the hands of the enemy, during the brief commotion Sam had used this instance to drag Lance towards the leaders side, who held the little boy by his neck with a chokehold and she was using her aura to make sure to react instantly in case of any possible changes.

The Blackthorn family members were paralyzed by the unexpected turn of events, unsure of how to proceed. That's when a commanding voice broke through the tension.

"Stay your hand, step back, everyone. Nobody moves unless I say so."

The old man had arrived at the scene, his eyes flashing with a deep, unsettling red as he assessed the situation. He struggled to control his emotions upon seeing Lance's bleeding forehead but knew he had to maintain composure.

"Old man, release us and return our Pokeballs. Once we are free and away from your territory, I give you my word that we will return the kid without any harm".

Before the old man could respond to the woman's threat of returning the child unharmed, a childish voice interrupted, leaving everyone momentarily surprised and uncertain about what would happen next.

"Without any harm you say, how very magnanimous of you. But from where I see, my brother is already bleeding from his forehead, that means you have already broken your word and you might have no intention of keeping it."

With resolute steps, I approached the center of the commotion, moving in the direction where Grandpa Alfred was standing, directly confronting the woman who held Lance hostage. Everyone was startled when they saw a little kid approaching the center with steady steps.

The Woman was confused when a small kid calmly approached their position, the child felt so normal that she couldn't perceive him as a threat, but her experience said otherwise and her instincts were screaming at her to run away from the monster that was approaching, even when she faced the old man the first time, her instincts didn't scream so loudly, so she was a bit taken aback. But she composed herself because her entire teams survival hinged on this very move so she couldn't afford to mess up.

The old man was feeling disturbed because I was so calm and the only other time he had seen me so calm was the day he met me for the first time before 2 years, and that day was an absolute bloodbath, so even though he was worried about Lance, he was much more worried about my arrival at such a situation.

In the meantime, the woman decided to let Sam remove the restraints from the other members as the first five people who were released and charged were already down for the count as the Venusaur and the Blackthorn members had knocked them down.

"Sam quick what are you waiting for release the others".

But she got no reply from her second in command, When she turned around, all she saw was an empty spot were Sam stood and all the other members who were restrained had nothing but terror and shock in their eyes, this made her unconsciously turn in that direction.

Her eyes widened in shock as she took in the scene. A Lucario stood beside the child, while Sam, their second-in-command, was now restrained and unconscious, kneeling before them. However, what sent a shiver down her spine was the gruesome sight of the child playing with an arm that was still oozing fresh blood—Sam's right arm was missing.

The woman couldn't believe her eyes, and a cold sweat broke out on her forehead. In that horrifying moment, it became painfully clear that they had underestimated their opponents.

I calmly picked up Sam's severed arm, tossed it at the woman's feet, and gently placed my hand on the now unconscious man's head.

"Now that both sides have shed blood, I suppose we can start the negotiations fresh," I added with an eerie calmness, as if I were asking my neighbor for extra candy on Halloween.

The atmosphere grew even tenser as everyone tried to process the horrific sight before them. No one had fully recovered from the shock of the gruesome dismemberment.

"Little Aron, you should stop; let me take over. I am sure we can come to terms with them and get Lance back without any harm," the old man tried to persuade me and maybe help me calm down.

"It's okay, Grandpa Alfred. I will take care of it. Lance is already losing a lot of blood, and we don't want to waste more time," I responded, resolute in my approach.

The leader of the intruders was growing increasingly desperate and composed herself as she held Lance's neck, albeit a bit more loosely due to her subconscious fear.

"Kid, what do you think you're doing? Do you want me to crush this kid's neck? Old man, are you crazy? Why are you letting a small child dictate the situation? Don't blame me later if something untoward happens," she blurted out in a mix of anger and fear.

"Two people can play this game you know, Denise and Daisy right, Oh Pallet Town that is closer than i thought, oh everyone on your team has families"

However, I had a plan. I began reciting names and places seemingly at random, uttering them like a series of incantations that sent shockwaves through the intruders. The Blackthorn family members were utterly baffled by my recital, but the old man recognized the truth of the matter. I was using my psychic powers to read the memories and information directly from Sam's mind, thanks to an advanced technique from the future that Aron had started teaching to select trusted psychics within the Blackthorn family, which included Isabel and Alice.

The revelation of their personal details and connections left the intruders in a state of dread, as they realized that their lives were not the only ones at stake. With this newfound knowledge, I was prepared to negotiate from a position of strength, determined to secure Lance's safety and bring this standoff to a peaceful resolution.

"The severed arm is a reminder that I am not afraid to act, and you have a single option and a single chance to pick an option: release my brother, and I will consider being lenient with all your punishments and promise not to target your families. However, if you choose to harm one more hair on his body, you wouldn't want me to explain the consequences, I'm sure. If you would like to know how resolute I am with my word, I can gift your friends the other arm too."

Just as I was about to gesture to my Lucario, the woman screamed in a panic.

"Stop, stop, no more, we give up. Please don't go after our families, punish us. It is us who are responsible; please don't hurt the innocents."

The leader released Lance and subconsciously took a few steps back in fear, while Alfred's Gardevoir gracefully arrived next to Lance and protected him. With Lance now safe, I decided it was time to mete out the punishment.

After making sure that Lance was secure, I formed an aura blade, swung it, and beheaded Sam with one clean, decisive motion.

"That was for hurting my brother," I declared, my voice firm and resolute.

There was a deafening silence around us, not a single breath was taken, not even the breeze dared to rustle the leaves. I walked calmly towards the woman with blood dripping from my aura blade. She had given up all resistance and hope after seeing my ruthless action.

Just when everyone thought that I would repeat my actions, a little figure tackled me to the ground. It was Lance, his head bleeding, tears streaming down his face as he was overwhelmed by all the shocking events taking place right in front of him.

"Enough brother, that is enough, no more".

With Lance in my embrace the anger in my heart receded like a tide and i decided to let the matter go for my brother's sake.