"Thanks again, Professor" Tommy called back as Holly pulled him
out into town.
Ryan sat beside Addison and her Eevee. The two Eevees sniffed
each other and began to touch each other's tails with their paws.
Ryan's looked back at him and cheered loudly.
"I think I'll follow your plan" Addison said thoughtfully. "I'd rather my
Eevee trust me fully instead of just spending time in a Poke Ball."
Julia cleared her throat. "Well, unfortunately, I have a conference call
I need to get into."
"But Julia" Ryan called to her. "We still need some help with the
tough stuff."
"Don't worry" Julia assured the young trainers. "I won't be leaving
you guys completely in the dark. I've got a substitute teacher for you
three to learn from."
"Really?" Addison asked. "Who is it?"
"Who do ya think?" a voice called from nearby. The three turned and
saw Michael emerge from the entrance to his and Julia's house,
yawning loudly.
"MIKE!" Ryan exclaimed. The boy ran over to his older cousin and
flung his arms around him, letting his Eevee jump from his arms in
the process. The Eevee looked up at Michael and smiled, nuzzling
up to his feet.
"Easy there, Ry" Michael exclaimed.
Matthew followed his brother over to Michael's side. "We thought you
were gonna end up too busy."
"A promise is a promise" the Champion proclaimed. "I can't be the
Champion if I don't keep my promises, even to my own cousins."
Addison sheepishly walked up to the Champion, her Eevee cradled
in her hands. "Michael, I-I-I just wanted to introduce myself. I'm-"
"Addison" Michael answered.
Addison beamed. "How did you know?"
"I've known your mother since we were kids" Michael explained.
"Didn't you ever wonder where the "Michele" in your middle name
came from?"
Addison laughed shyly. "I didn't know."
Michael nodded proudly. "Now you do. And now it's time to take your
training up a notch. Once you guys are all set, meet me by the end
of town so I can show you three more about what it takes to be a
trainer."
"All set?" Matthew asked. "What do you mean, Mike?"
Michael pulled out his Poké Gear and cleared his throat and began
to read to them, "Michael, when you get this message, please send
Matthew and Ryan home. I need to talk to them about 'time
management'. Lots of love, Aunt Alison." He looked at his cousins
with a wry smile on his face. "Seems like you boys went off without
telling your Mom."
Ryan and Matthew looked at their shoes sheepishly. "Well, we-"
Michael shook his head. "I don't need an explanation. Just go and
see your Mom." He then turned to Addison. "You should probably go
to see your parents, too. Let them know you're setting off soon."
Addison nodded. "Okay. We'll meet up again on the edge of town."
Addison took her Eevee with her and ran outside.
Michael turned to the boys. "I talked to your Mom, guys. You
shouldn't be in too much trouble, but I'd be extra nice to her for a
little bit." He patted Ryan on his head and scooped up his cousin's
Pokemon. Handing the Eevee to him, he sent both boys out of the
lab. "Go on, I'll meet you."
Ryan and Matthew looked to each other and walked outside to go
and see their Mother.
Holed up inside an interrogation cell in the Arcana Police Precinct in
Taghwan City, Cassius sits patiently waiting for whomever Elezar
would be able to convince to be his defense attorney. He vehemently
refused to answer any and all questions until his lawyer was present,
as most who are in police custody tend to do. Cassius had nothing
he felt he needed to hide, at least permanently. He was always a
man of science and was willing to do anything and everything he had
to in order to complete his research. If it came to torturous
experimentation on Pokémon, he was willing to make that sacrifice.
Kidnapping? Extortion? Murder? Well, he was ready to do all in
pursuit of his academic angles.
Elezar can play his political games, Cassius thought to himself. And
the others can very much do as they please. I am a dedicated
member of the Syndicate for the research potential. It should come
as a surprise to no one, though. Cassius had been notoriously
expelled from virtually every single finishing school he went to for his
cruel and twisted work on controlling the minds of humans and
Pokémon. Since no school would accept him, he chose to take on a
more roguish approach to his studies and found himself a pupil to
the Elezar, the son of Arcana's most revered scientist: Balthazar. He
had hoped to study more underneath Balthazar himself, but the
betrayal of James Kingston and Balthazar's destruction at his own
friends hand cost him that opportunity. He had avenged his mentor
when he used the abducted Michael Kingston as a test subject for
the first Crimson Stone branding, which had seemingly succeeded in
forever making James's grandson a slave to the power of the
Crimson Moon. But Giselle's failure to keep their captive imprisoned
impeded his work and the destruction of his first lab prompted him to
have to begin his research all over again.
Thirteen years had passed since that fateful day. Rebuilding his lab
and avoiding the authorities took a great deal of time and thus, much
of his experimentation was put on hold. And as he felt he was on the
verge of a breakthrough, one of the Syndicate's former flunkies gave
away the location of his mountain lab. And his research was now in
the hands of his archenemies. We were so close. If that wretched
Michael and his friends hadn't intervened, I would have had the
perfect formula written down!
The door to his room was flung open and an older man walked in
with a slim, black briefcase in his hands. He was clearly a seasoned
man, with a neatly shaven beard as white as winter and a toupee so
fake, one would think he had a Pokémon sleeping atop his head. To
counter the white in his beard, he wore a suit as black as coal and a
tie the color of blood. Though Cassius could not say he had ever met
the man, it was all too clear to him exactly who Elezar had managed
to get to assist him.
"Claude Jacques?" he asked, almost in surprise.
"You seem surprised" he responded in a voice as cold as death.
"Well, you are good friends with the Kingston Family. Why shouldn't I
be surprised?"
Claude placed his briefcase on the table and began to polish his
monocle with a handkerchief. "As a lawyer, my personal feelings
must not be made a part of the trial. Only facts. And the fact is,
someone recently sent me a generous amount of money to ensure
that you aren't convicted of any of the ludicrous crimes you've been
charged with."
Cassius laid back in the small stool they had provided for him to sit
on. "But how can I be certain I can trust you?"
Claude stopped his work cleaning his monocle and returned it to it's
place in front of his right eye. "How can I be certain you aren't guilty
of any crimes, Cassius Sinclair?" Before the accused could answer,
Claude waved him off. "As it happens, I don't usually take up criminal
cases. The last time I did, if I am not mistaken, also involved you,
when Michael Kingston accused you of kidnapping and forced
experimentation, while Giselle and the rest of the Kingston Family
believed him to be guilty of destruction of property and murder."