---

Lantana
Il Club Gladio
Aldo De Luca

Aldo De Luca sighed as he patted his Houndoom’s head and leaned back in his chair.

Dozens of operations needed to be shut down as swiftly as possible while he simultaneously needed to move everything around and make sure that The Enotrian League didn’t think they had a mole. Ever since his meeting last night with the Colo- no, The Lieutenant General, he and Ombretta had been working nonstop together to ensure that there was a healthy transition.

This was all going on as Ombretta packed her things and prepared herself to leave that shack she called a bar. Surprisingly, she didn’t fall asleep like she normally did, and even more surprising was that the wicked grin that had crept up her face hadn’t disappeared.

“Are you sure about this, sir?” the deep baritone voice of Underboss Verga asked.

Aldo, pulled out from his thoughts, turned his head to the left and nodded at his Underboss.

“Make some calls,” he commanded. “We’ll leave the useless ones behind. Any new blood will come with us, they deserve the chance to prove themselves worthy… but the people who can’t even earn money shall be sent to destroy as much evidence as they can.”

“Very well, and Uniform Mike?” Verga questioned.

“Send them at Hawthorne but tell them it’s a bag operation.” Aldo narrowed his eyes. “I want him alive.”

“Alive?” Verga questioned as he raised a brow.

Verga wasn’t one to question orders, but Aldo wouldn’t have blamed him for questioning this one. Earlier, he had wanted Emile executed, along with Giuseppe Armani and Vito Barone, but things had changed since then.

“I need to know what he knows,” Aldo said. “If people find out that The Legione and The Mob are intertwined, we will be ruined. The League will have an excuse to rain hell on all of us, and people, those outside of The Legione and in it, will be turned against us. We can’t have that.”

“I understand, sir.” Verga nodded. “I’ll make the call now.”

---

Lantana
Pokémon Center
Emile

Emile’s heart pounded beneath his chest.

The trainer had woken up an hour ago. He had been by Frère’s side as per usual and was about to go and get some breakfast.

However, the peaceful morning became chaotic when he heard a sudden scream from the Pokémon Center’s lobby, and he soon turned around and found that the Center’s interior was full of thick, violet smoke.

He didn’t think. He ran out of the medical room and made his way towards the front desk before stopping. Hie eyes began to water and sting as... good god that Arceus-awful stench was putrid. The entire Pokémon Center smelled like someone had thrown a dozen rotten eggs, but thankfully it didn’t take long for his instincts to kick in. He recognized the color and odor of the stench as the spray of a Skunky!

“Go in and take the target, the boss wants him alive!” Emile heard a deep voice filtered by what he assumed to be a gas mask command from a distance.

His head felt light, and his body felt numb all over. Trickles of sweat dripped down his forehead and the trainer could feel his consciousness begin to fade, the gas so suffocating that it made him want to vomit.

Someone grabbed his arm from behind, and he realized even if he struggled, he wouldn’t get out of their grasp; they were holding onto his arm with a vice grip.

“What about the Glaceon?” He heard another voice say.

“Kill it. We don’t want it getting in the way!” the deep voice from before said.

His mind slowly processed the words and Emile tried to reach for any of the Pokéballs on his belt. His body was slow but his mind was still sharp, even if he was only seeing stars and violet smoke. He couldn’t let them-

Emile then heard the bloodcurdling scream of a Houndoom and the sound of glass shattering. The Pokémon Center felt colder than ever, and a wide grin crept across his face.

“Oh… you’ve done it now,” he chuckled, before violently coughing.

It was impossible to breathe, let alone speak in this mess, and after breathing more of that gas, Emile was closer to unconsciousness than ever, but he took great delight in knowing that his friend was awake.

There would be no drugs to save them now.

“It’s awake? What the hell!” another man shouted.

“Shit, Houndoom’s down and-“ the same lighter voice called out, until he too screamed in intense agony.

“Goddammit! Mike 3 and 4, get up there while I secure the target and check on Mike-2!” the man who held onto Emile shouted. “I don’t care if you have to set the building on fire!”

Fire, huh?

Emile smirked as he managed to grab his Pokéball within all the chaos. Chevalier would be the perfect choice. The gas in the building shouldn’t have been combustible as the attackers had a Salazzle and Houndoom. If the gas was combustible, then a single spark would mean sudden death for all of them.

He grasped onto the ball and released his favored violet knight.

“Dammit! You son of a bitch!” the deep-voiced soldier shouted before he kicked Emile to the ground.

The soldier’s foot landed directly into Emile’s ribs and he smiled, despite the pain.

Chevalier raised her arm, her blade aimed squarely at their assailant's chest as she tensed her shoulders and prepared to charge, before stopping. Her eyes squinted together as she hunched forward, and a soft cry of protest filled the air as the noxious fumes gripped the stalwart knight in place.

The soldier took advantage of this and grabbed Emile again, this time lifting him up and wrapping his arm around the trainer’s neck.

“You come near me and I’ll kill him! I swear to Lupa, I’ll do it!”

Chevalier froze completely at those words, her blade raised up high, and her red eyes staring into Emile's blue.

Emile did his best to narrow his eyes, and with what little strength he had remaining, he shook his head.

“That’s right… you stay right there…” the soldier continued as he began to slowly walk with Emile by his side.

Chevalier then vanished into nothingness.

“Shit, it’s gone! And what’s the status on that Glaceon-“

To the left, shards of glass flew through the air as a window shattered, and then another, and another. Gas began to leak through the new openings and the air began to be a little easier to breathe, but it was all too late… Emile was finally able to feel his consciousness fade.

What a shame. He wouldn’t see these guys get their asses handed to them.

---

 

Lantana
Apartment 12B
Vito

Vito was not religious at all.

His father had once told him the stories of Lupa and Aquilus, the beings of Peace and War respectively, and while he had been too young to truly remember the details, he remembered the awe and wonder in his father’s eyes as he retold the stories that his grandfather had told him.

He hadn’t asked Giuseppe about the stories. Admittedly, he wanted to try and forget everything. His father, Giulio Barone, was a good man and that’s all Vito needed to remember.

“Pii…” Pikachu squeaked, the yellow mouse’s ears were folded downward, and he looked at his trainer with a solemn expression on his face.

“No, Pikachu. I think I should be in here alone,” Vito quietly said as he took his other Pokeball off of his belt. “Can you show Psyduck around for me?”

The yellow duck hadn’t been released from his Pokeball since he had first caught him, and by the time he had gotten home, he had talked to Giuseppe and talked to Emile and…

He sighed. Once he was finished here, he had no idea what he was going to do. He considered going over to the Pokemon Center and talk to Emile, but the thought of it made him feel nauseous.

Pikachu weakly nodded.

“I know… but I need this right now, alright?” he said as he released Psyduck from his Pokeball.

The yellow duck blinked twice as he observed his surroundings, then tilted his head in front of a wall before touching it.

“Hey, Psyduck!” Vito forced himself to smile. “This is… my home. Pikachu’s gonna show you around, OK?”

The duckling raised his head, quacked, and then tilted it to the side.

“I uh… I got something I gotta do in here,” Vito explained as he motioned towards the door beside him. “It’s important and only I can do it. I’ll be back out to help Pikachu show you around and maybe we can all do something together!”

“Psy!” the duck quacked and smiled, before turning to Pikachu.

The two Pokemon began to converse and soon moved about through the apartment while Vito looked towards the door. He wasn’t sure if Giuseppe was in there, he hadn’t seen the old man at all this morning, so perhaps he was in here… if he was, that would be a little upsetting as Vito had wanted to be alone.

However, when he opened the door he saw nothing. Just a dimly lit room.

Vito sighed in relief as he entered and shut the door behind him, making sure to lock it like Giuseppe had always done when he entered the room and for a moment, he went to thinking about before, and finally, he admitted the truth to himself.

He was pissed at Emile.

Vito hadn’t forgot how he’d been left behind, and he was especially upset when Emile refused to let him go. He was thankful for Giuseppe’s vote of confidence, but the fact that his own teacher had such little faith in his abilities was upsetting.

He looked forward, where in front of him were three dimly lit candles on a table. They were the only source of light in this dark room, and they were only present to bring light to the image on the wall.

The image was of a massive group of Pokemon, easily dozens, stretching off the sides of the image in such a way so as to imply hundreds more resting just off-screen. Many of them weren't even Pokemon native to Enotria- he could see Dragonite, Armarouge, Steelix, and half a dozen other species that hadn't been in the country for a hundred years at least. It was a peaceful group, or so the image was drawn to imply; soft grass and pale-green trees rose up in the background, and the sky was a gentle blue with only a single cloud half-covering the sun.

But that's just the background details. What really drew his eyes was the image in the center. A man, so small compared to the Pokemon surrounding him, kneeling on a stone dais. And in front of him-

There are small creatures in this world. Insects; the teeming masses of creatures smaller than his fingernails one can find when turning over logs out in the forests. Larger than those; rodents, the tiny mice and squirrels that larger creatures feed on. Larger again than those are Pokemon; a thousand and more species Vito is at least vaguely familiar with, ranging from small enough to rest in his hand to large enough that ten of him could stand atop each other and still not be able to place their hands atop the Pokemon's heads.

And then, there is this creature. A creature that is to Pokemon what Pokemon are to rodents.

It's a massive creature- so big that even the Steelix bowed before it scarce reaches midway up its legs. One could be forgiven for mistaking it as an amalgam of Pokemon; its body looks like that of a Pyroar, and its tail looks like an Ekans, if an Ekans were three times as large as their species ever grew, and had no head. That is as far as the resemblances go, though. Its heads- for it has three of them- look similar to Houndoom, in that they are framed by skulls and bear within them glowing eyes- though unlike a Houndoom, these eyes are glowing a gentle pink. Its fur is the colour of Enotria's vibrant grasslands, and somehow he's certain- this creature is a part of the land.

It's a massive Pokemon. So large that with each step, it could leave a crater big enough to form a watering hole all the Pokemon present could drink from. So big that even the picture cannot encompass the creature's glory; even sitting, resting as it is, its massive body is hidden behind itself. Vito can't tell by looking just how big it is. All he can see is how much it dwarfs all the Pokemon near it.

This creature, this massive Pokemon, is Lupa. To many, she is a myth, a fairy tale. To those in Graecia, Enotria’s Southern Region… she is a Pokemon of worship. It is thanks to her that Enotria didn’t turn to ash thanks to Aquilus’ hunger for war centuries ago, back when the region was simply named “Dis”, named after the region’s first city which was now buried under Capitoline.

She was the only living thing within Hell, and everyone would see her when they died. The wicked would be punished by her, forced to suffocate within the land itself for all eternity while those who were good would be happy within her garden.

Vito got onto his knees and sighed as he closed his eyes. His father prayed many times, and he somewhat remembered the motions he made before speaking…

He placed his index and middle fingers onto his thumb, raised his hand up to the right side of his forehead, then moved it down to his chest. He repeated the motions twice, moving his hand up to the center of his forehead, down, and then left and down.

Supposedly, Lupa’s three heads promoted Wisdom, Knowledge, and Love, and she passed those qualities onto some legendary hero, who Vito guessed was the man bowing before her in the image. This ritual was supposed to invoke that, the person praying supposedly recieving these three things after praying and speaking to Lupa from the bottom of their heart.

He could use those things right now, Vito thought.

“Mother, please hear my words,” the trainer muttered under his breath. “I think this is the first time I’ve ever spoken to you, but the old man talks to you a lot and my father did before he was murdered… and I hope that if he is in Hell, you’re taking good care of him.”

There was no response, of course. He never heard anything whisper to his father, so why would anything speak to him?

“I’ve been having a crappy time, I guess…” Vito complained. “At first things were going great, I met this weird guy, who is… alright, and he’s a cool trainer too. I got him to agree to teach me how to be a decent trainer, but it feels like he’s pushing me off to the side cause I’m a kid.”

He swallowed hard and gritted his teeth. His hands trembled as all the thoughts he had buried beneath began to swell up. Adrenaline pumped through his body, and Vito lashed out and slammed his fists into the carpet.

It hurt slightly, and it was a petulant thing to do, but Vito was so tired.

“And I’m fucking tired of it!” he shouted at the top of his lungs. “We’re involved with the worst fucking scum on the planet, and they deserve to pay! They killed my father, they’ve taken almost everything from me!”

Hot tears began to stream down Vito’s face. Memories that he had wanted to keep repressed flooded his mind, and he was able to smell the wretched smoke that had plagued his home, his father’s screaming and wailing as he was tortured by the bastard in black, and the sight of his home burning to the ground after Giuseppe had pulled him out from the building.

“Is it just to simply let these people do as they please?” Vito shouted again. “These bastards need to pay, I need to make them pay! I want to kill them for what they did to my father, for what they did to me!”

His heart pounded beneath his chest as he thought of them. The Legione Armata, an organization built by the veterans of The Enotrian Military and then The Mafia, which had been built by cutthroats and villains were both the same in his mind, and they were dangerous.

The mere thought of facing them made his heart pound beneath his chest.

“And I don’t want them to do it to anyone else…” he quietly whispered. “And you know what? Fuck it, I’ll say it… I’m scared of these guys. They’re vicious people, and they don’t care about anyone in their path, so…”

He swallowed hard again.

“Don’t give me Wisdom or any of that other shit. Just… just give me the power to take these bastards down, one by one! I want to rip them to shreds!” Vito shouted again, his voice now rough and hoarse from his yelling.

Vito finally began to breathe. He didn’t know how to describe the way he was feeling. On one end, he was still angry. Angry at Emile for pushing him off to the side, angry at The Legione and the mob for their crimes.

But at the same time he felt… lighter. Like a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders.

He had held the anger towards The Legione for years, and for once he had gotten to just simply let it all out. It was relieving to say the least.

“Vito! Where are you?” he heard Giuseppe call out from the halls.

Vito turned his head towards the door, then back at the image of Lupa.

“I guess I’ll end things here… I don’t know if you’re real or whatever, but if you are, thanks for hearing me.” He sighed as he stood up and turned around to the door.

Before he could even approach it, the door had already been opened by Giuseppe, whose eyes widened in surprise as he glanced at Vito.

“Sorry,” Vito apologized. “I uh… I thought maybe being in here would do me some good.”

“Did it?” Giuseppe softly smiled.

“I… I don’t know.” Vito shrugged. “Maybe.”

The older man walked towards Vito and gently wrapped his arms around him.

“I know things have been hard,” he said as he released the boy. “I know you’re angry, and I understand… but Emile wants to keep you safe.”

“I know…” Vito grumbled. “But why were you adamant about me coming along?”

“Isn’t it obvious? You would have tried sneaking your way in” Giuseppe laughed. “Better I keep my eye on you then-“

As he spoke, his PokeGear began to vibrate and ring from his pocket. The elderly man raised a brow and raised it to his ear after pressing a button.

Then, Vito heard the frantic voice of Lucrezia. His eyes went wide and his heart stopped- he couldn’t hear exactly what she was saying but her voice was enough to let Vito know that something was happening.

“We’ll be there, dear. Please, hang tight,” Giuseppe replied, his voice calm and cool, and his expression hardened into something that Vito didn’t recognize.

This wasn’t Giuseppe Armani, the fun elderly man and kind farmer.

This was Giuseppe Armani, Enotria’s Gravedigger who was as monstrous as Silvano Vinci, The Region’s “Hound of War”.

“We need to go to the Pokemon Center. Lucrezia’s in danger and Emile’s nowhere to be found; apparently, men dressed in Legione clothes broke in and tried to gas the place,” Giuseppe said.

“Got it!” Vito almost smiled as he stepped forward, excitement bubbling within him as he thought about preparing to fight against The Legione but before he could reach the door he felt a tight grip wrap around his shoulder.

“Vito. Remember, you obey my every word if you’re in on this,” Giuseppe sternly reminded him.

Vito’s blood went cold, and he swallowed hard before he nodded his head.

“Yessir.”

“Good boy.” The old soldier smiled as he patted Vito on the shoulder, and followed him out the door.

The trainer’s heart pounded beneath his chest, and his mind was clear. Revenge was all he wanted… and he was going to get it.

---

Lantana
Emile

Cold.

That was Emile’s first thought upon waking up as he felt excruciatingly cold water be sprayed on his face, before his heart raced and he jumped up.

“It’s about time you’re awake,” he heard Belle’s voice echo in his mind.

“What happened? Why was I out?” he called out, and then looked down to see Frère, staring right back at him.

Emile’s heart raced even faster and a smile crept across his face as he saw his partner, his best friend, all better with a smug smirk on his face!

“Frère!” he shouted as he kneeled down to hug the Glaceon, wrapping him in a tight embrace.

The Glaceon let out a pained bark as he endured his trainer’s tight grip, but eventually he nuzzled against his cheek.

Belle raised a brow. “You don’t remember what happened?”

“Not… really,” Emile said as he looked up at his Gardevoir, then at his surroundings.

He was outside of the Pokemon Center, not far from it, but he was almost outside the city limits. The broken streets of Lantana surrounded him.

“Men wearing red and black came in. They gassed the building using a Skuntank, ” Belle explained.

Ah, that explained a lot.

Skuntanks were vicious Pokemon who could emit a gas so foul that it would leave one unconscious. This was highly effective on prey, and if they were to wake up they would deal with memory loss, never remembering their attacker.

It was smart for these people to do that. Gas like that in an enclosed space would easily knock someone out; it’d probably kill them too.

“So, what happened?” He narrowed his eyes. “Is Lucrezia alright?”

“Her Chansey was around… and you had released Chevalier. A battle ensued, but the attackers fled while Frère had Chansey release me so I could bring us to safety,” Belle explained “Lucrezia is hiding, but the attackers are more than likely on the move. You’re their target, Emile.”

“Then we better not disappoint.” Emile smirked as he stood upright. “You think you could find them for me?”

Belle smiled. “I can.”

“And where is Chevalier?” Emile questioned.

Frère barked and nodded his head in the left.

Emile turned his head, and glanced at Chevalier. The Ceruledge’s armor was covered in purple goo. Her body heaved up and down, and more than likely she had breathed in too much of the Skuntank gas.

“C’mere you,” the trainer commanded as he began to reach around for his backpack, only to realize… it was in the Pokemon Center.

“Chevalier’s capable of fighting and her injuries are only minor… Chansey was only able to do so much, however,” Belle explained.

Emile cursed as he reached for Chevalier’s Pokeball.

“You’ve done a good job, thank you.” He smiled. “I’m sorry I couldn’t be of much help…” he said as he returned her.

“It looks like some of them have found us. One Pokemon is moving towards us along with two humans, but I’m betting that there’s three Pokemon in total. The Legione seem to specialize in using Dark Types,” Belle informed him.

“Let them come close, I wanna see what we’re up against,” Emile said as he reached for another Pokeball whilst he observed his surroundings again.

There weren’t any houses here, and if he stepped any further he would enter the farmlands. He didn’t want to bring the battle there, as he wasn’t sure if there were any people or Pokemon about; that, and there would be the possibility that if a battle against poison types took place, the land would be poisoned.

Meaning that the battle had to be here.

Emile hummed to himself. He hadn’t explored Lantana much, and at the moment there was nothing around to truly take advantage of… so he had to think: what was around Lantana?

The town was a farming town, pure and simple, meaning it had to have a source of water, and given that there were lakes, that meant there had to have been a well somewhere in town so it could draw water from it all.

“Yeah, this will work,” he said out loud.

“They’re here!” Belle called out.

As she said that, Emile saw three men step forward. They wore red and black overalls along with black gas masks, and in front of them was a Skuntank on the left, a Salazzle in the center, and a Houndoom on the right.

Emile noticed that the Houndoom had blisters around his chest, and the Skuntank to the left had burns covering his fur.

“Alright, let’s get some payback!” Emile shouted as he threw the Pokeball, and out came a Golisopod!

“A three-on-three, huh? I had hoped it wouldn’t get to this… but you’re ours, Hawthorne!” the man in the center shouted.

Emile narrowed his eyes. “You should have done whatever when you had the chance. It’s too late now.”

“You’re a washed-up trainer and easy pickings!” the man in the center said. “And you’ve dug your Pokemon’s graves!”

The three men hollered and demanded for their Pokemon to attack, the Pokemon stepping forward in unison and opening their maws to reveal sizzling sludge falling from their mouths, causing the ground in front of them to pop and sizzle.

Emile tensed and was about to order Belle to defend against the Sludge Bombs rocketing towards his own Pokemon, but Belle had already reacted, lifting a huge piece of asphalt from the ground to use as a shield. The attacks fizzled out harmlessly against the stone, and she followed up by dodging off to the side and sent the asphalt rocketing towards the three Pokemon like an afterthought.

But the three Pokemon hadn’t stood there just for her to hit them, either. Their movements were almost mechanical as they dodged and moved to different points equally distant from Belle. Distantly, Emile noted that their movements are almost synchronized. Clearly, they were trained for group battles.

“They’re amplifying their poison attacks with dark energy. I’m not going to be able to redirect their movements,” Belle analyzed.

“Don’t worry about that then,” Emile said. “More than likely they’re weak individually and rely on their teamwork to overcome single targets. Try and keep them divided.”

Belle and Frère nodded, and the two split up in opposite directions, Frère moving towards Skuntank while Belle went against Salazzle.

This left Emile, Roi, and of course their respective opponents.

“Aren’t you gonna make a move?” Emile asked Roi.

The Golisopod merely stood still. He did not look to his trainer, and only the sound of soft rumbling could be heard from him.

“Ah, he’s asleep… how wonderful,” Emile sarcastically thought as he narrowed his eyes.

He couldn’t be too confident. These people had managed to drug not only an old Tangrowth, but Frère as well. Being cocky around these men would get him killed.

“He’s not even waking up. What a pathetic trainer you are, I don’t know why the boss wants you so bad,” Houndoom’s handler said. “Go on, get him, Houndoom!”

The Houndoom opened his mouth and unleashed a vicious stream of fire in Roi’s direction. It crackled and popped, threatening to burn anything in sight!

“Roi, you’re in a battle against the three beasts, Suicune, Entei and Raikou,” Emile calmly murmured. “Keep your defenses up.”

Wimpod and their evolution Golisopod both had extremely good hearing. They relied on it heavily, as the Pokemon were timid creatures who would flee at any sight of combat. However, this worked into Emile’s favor as he could quietly speak to his sleeping Pokemon.

It also allowed Emile to influence his friend’s dream to a certain extent, allowing Roi to use Sleep Talk and harden his shell using Iron Defense; with his exoskeleton being coated with steel, he was able to better defend against attacks.

The flames rushed forward, threatening to burn their opponent alive!

“Roi, counter! Entei’s using Flamethrower!” Emile urgently whispered.

The stream of flames moved closer and closer, causing the air around it to crackle and pop. Even from where he stood, Emile could smell the smoke from the grass and shrubbery shriveling and burning below.

But as soon as the flames got close to Roi, the bug type swung his claws at them. Steam hissed through the clearing as a sharp blade of water swung from him, instantly extinguishing the flames. Even the smoke rising from the ground below stopped emanating, the heat sucked away in a single movement by Golisopod's powerful attack.

“Forget about the Glaceon!” the trainer heard from his left. “Target Hawthorne, cut out the trainer and we end the battle!”

Skuntank charged forward with Double Edge. He was putting his entire body towards taking down Emile, and nothing was going to stop him.

Frère’s eyes widened as Skuntank blew past him, and he swiftly fired off an ice beam- which was met almost immediately by a blast of flames from the Houndoom, instantly vaporizing the attack. The flames roared on through, unhindered by the attack, and Frère had to dodge. Emile frowned, but the trainer's attention had to go back to Roi now that the Golisopod was clear of its opponents and a new plan started to form in his mind.

“Roi, to your left,” he commanded. “Meet your opponent head-on like before.”

Roi curled up into a ball once more and started to roll towards the left. His movements were slow at first, and with Skuntank still advancing, Emile started to back away. However, as he did, the Skuntank began to increase its pace even faster, crossing the distance with great, loping strides.

Belle teleported, leaving her battle with Salazzle in order to defend her trainer.

“Salazzle, Thunder Wave!” Emile heard from his right.

They really wanted to end the battle fast. While incapacitating Emile wouldn’t solve all of their problems in this battle, it would certainly end quite a few of them…

He told Belle to teleport on his mark. An idea was beginning to run through his head, and he was almost certain it would work. If it failed, well, either he or Roi would be paralyzed.

Salazzle unleashed her Thunder Wave, a small bolt of electricity that moved at a Slugma’s pace compared to Pikachu’s Thunder Shock, both indicators that she had either recently learned it or hadn’t mastered it, and all the while Skuntank was coming closer.

Emile smiled as he looked over and saw that Roi was just about to close in.

“Mark!” Emile shouted.

He and Belle vanished, and as they reappeared beside Frère, they could only watch as the lightning collided with Skuntank, numbing his body completely while Roi smashed into him headfirst with Rollout.

“Skuntank, get up!” one of the handlers cried. “Use Poison Gas!”

Skuntank’s body shook as he tried to stand upright, only for him to collapse. Emile smirked as he watched it unfold. The paralysis had done a number on his weakened body.

But then the stench of smoke filled his nose, and Emile immediately realized he had made a mistake. Through all the chaos, he had lost track of Houndoom. He turned his head and saw the dark type charging forward, moving with long strides while his body was covered in flames. With each step he took, he scorched the ground below while his gait increased in speed.

“Houndoom, on our left!” Emile alerted Belle.

Belle floated into the air, her red eyes glaring daggers into Houndoom as she outstretched her hand, grabbing chunks of concrete off the ground which she threw at the dog, who thanks to his increased speed dodged them all. All the while, Frère was seen from the right, blasting large balls of water that crashed onto the ground, creating vicious waves that cracked the ground and drenched the grass. But each Water Pulse missed their target.

Houndoom was moving closer and closer. Emile could feel the intense heat that radiated from the vicious dog, but before Houndoom could move even closer, a large ball of water slammed into the dark type’s right side, sending him flying, and it wasn’t long until the ice type chased after his foe, ensuring that he wouldn’t come near Emile again.

Emile smirked as he saw that his partner had Houndoom handled and looked towards Belle.

“I need you to get me over to Roi. He won’t be able to do much if I’m not guiding him, can you take care of Salazzle?” He asked.

Belle smiled. “Do you even need to ask?”

He and Belle vanished and found themselves near Roi, who was dueling both Skuntank and Salazzle.

Golisopod kept up with the two as he danced along the battlefield with slow yet powerful movements. He swung his claws around the battlefield, cleaving away at the air while simultaneously coating his exoskeleton with steel, rendering their attacks practically harmless.

However, Emile knew that despite Skuntank being paralyzed, Roi wouldn’t be able to keep up with him and Salazzle. If he were awake, things would be different, but right now, the bug type was reacting to everything thrown at him.

Gardevoir stretched her arm out and clenched her fist. Psychic energy wrapped around Salazzle with a vice-like grip, and soon the fire type was pushed into Skuntank, sending the two Pokemon rolling over and tumbling in the dirt.

Salazzle was the first to get up. She glared and hissed at the smirking Belle, then crawled in her direction, unleashing a flamethrower which like Houndooms, emitted the disgusting stench of smoke and caused the air to crack and pop.

The fire type would have probably smiled if it were possible as her flames coated Gardevoir’s body. They would leave nothing of her foe, and Salazzle’s flames would have ate away at Lantana’s land!

However, Salazzle’s eyes instead widened in fear as Gardevoir walked towards her. The psychic type raised her arm, and the fire that once coated her body began to redirect itself and soon Belle’s entire arm was coated in flames.

Emile smirked. Trace was one of the psychic type’s abilities, and she had more than likely copied Houndoom’s Flash Fire which would enhance her fire attacks. Something that Salazzle would find herself on the receiving end of.

Belle stepped forward and slammed her burning fist into the poison type’s jaw. The impact created an explosion that let out a loud pop which sent Salazzle, along with two of her teeth, flying and then crashing and rolling on the earth.

Skuntank finally got up. His body was slow, but he wasn’t down for the count just yet. He began to charge at Emile again, hoping to incapacitate the trainer. If he went down, then the battle would come to a screeching halt.

“Roi! There’s only one way to end this, show the legends what you’re made of!” Emile ordered.

Golisopod turned towards Skuntank and he curled up into a ball and began to roll towards his opponent.

This was it, Emile thought. Roi hadn’t attacked much, he had only reacted… but this move would be his first genuine attack, and it would be the one attack that would finally make him wake up. It was a move that he had always dreamed of using, and when used, the dream would be brought to an end.

The two fighters moved even closer, and for a split second, Emile saw Golisopod outstretch his body while Skuntank’s claws were full of poison. Then they jumped forward, striking each other as they landed on opposite ends of the battlefield.

The two Pokemon stood for a solid minute but as Emile gazed at both fighters… he knew who had struck true.

Skuntank finally collapsed, with not one but six gashes covering his body.

Emile smiled. It had appeared that Golisopod won not just in his dream but in the battle as well. He stood triumphantly without a scratch, and the bug type turned his head towards Skuntank.

“Good afternoon!” Emile greeted. “Sleep well?”

Roi huffed as he narrowed his eyes. Instead of a legendary beast, he merely disposed of some garbage. However, despite his displeasure he gave an honorary bow before the fallen Skuntank, then turned towards the direction of his comrades who were engaging their opponents.

He looked over and watched as Belle fought against Salazzle while Frère danced around Houndoom again and stepped forward. The Golisopod intended to finish this battle now that he was awake and soon raised all six of his claws into the air.

Frère and Belle both turned to see that their friend was awake. The two Pokemon glanced toward each other and nodded. As soon as they turned toward their respective opponents, they began to act.

Frère started by launching another Water Pulse. The ball of water turned into a vicious wave that once again cracked the ground, and the torrent charged towards their foes, who intended to dodge. However, Belle reached out towards the water with Psychic and wrapped it around both Houndoom and Salazzle, trapping them in a large bubble!

Roi finally began to act, he took a deep breath and the earth began to shake underneath everyone’s feet. He took advantage of Lantana’s aquifer, and soon caused the ground below Houndoom and Salazzle to crack, causing a sea of murky, brown water to erupt!

The mud from below popped the bubble as it sent the two fire types into the air. They then crashed on top of each other as they fell onto the ground, unconscious and covered in earth and mud.

“Well, that ends that…” Emile smiled as he stepped forward and glanced at Roi. “Good job by the way.”

Roi huffed and began to chatter after turning his head away in disappointment. He had hoped to have been battling against three legends, not riffraff like these three.

“Dammit! The mission’s a failure, we’ll have to report to command!” a Legionnaire cried as he grabbed a black cylinder off of his belt.

“Oh no you don’t. Belle!” Emile shouted.

Belle teleported towards the first Legionnaire and grabbed him by his collar, then yanked his gas mask off of him and a single second later, the man fell unconscious thanks to her Hypnosis.

The other two were about to drop their smoke grenades until Belle reached out with psychic again, and held them in place. There would be no fleeing this time.

However, something unexpected happened. The men who were once held in place began to gurgle, and their bodies started to spasm and shake violently.

“What the hell?” Emile’s eyes widened in horror.

“I’m not doing anything! They just-“

Belle let her grip go, and like puppets with their strings cut, the two men softly fell onto the ground.

Emile ran over to them, hoping that the worst hadn’t just happened. As soon as he moved towards the first fallen Legionnaire, he got onto his knees and took the man’s gas mask off. It was at that moment, the trainer’s heart stopped.

The Legionnaire was probably in his early twenties with short dark hair, and his eyes rolled to the back of his head while saliva reminiscent of foam poured from his mouth. The other one was probably the same way too.

These two men had both committed suicide rather risk being captured. Emile stood up and took a couple steps back.

“Belle, keep that man asleep!” He screamed, and his hand trembled as he pointed at their newly acquired prisoner.

“Arceus-sake, what the fuck is wrong with these people?” He he started walking back towards Roi. Emile reached onto his belt and returned his Golisopod, then looked at Frère and narrowed his eyes.

The Glaceon understood, and he sat patiently as his trainer returned him into his ball.

“Take us to the Pokemon Center, now.” Emile commanded Belle. “And lets hope that The League are here…”

---

Lantana
Pokemon Center
Vito

As Vito walked by Giuseppe’s side, the more his heart began to pound beneath his chest. Dozens of people were outside and they were all looking towards the Pokemon Center.

“What’s going on?”

“Why is The Pokemon Center on fire?”

“Is The League here?”

Those were amongst the murmurs he had heard in Lantana. People crowded The Market District, trying to see what was exactly going on. It was hard to move through the crowd, the only time he remembered it being this crowded was when…

He shook his head, no need to remember right now.

Pikachu let out a low squeak and bowed his head as he rode on Vito’s shoulder.

“Hey, it’ll be alright.” Vito told his partner. “Lucrezia’s still alive… and Emile should be safe, wherever he’s at.”

He tried to hide the grip wrapped around his heart, Emile was a good trainer. Surely, he wouldn’t die, right?

Vito swallowed hard as he followed closely behind Giuseppe. The elderly man hadn’t said a word since they left the building, it was eerie seeing him so quiet in such a situation.

“Giuseppe, you’re OK!” Carlo from the General Store cried as he approached the elderly man and Vito. “When I heard about all that business in the farms, I was worried… things are looking crazy out there, and out here.”

“Indeed.” Giuseppe said. “What’s happened so far?”

“Well…” Carlo said before he looked at Vito, then back at Giuseppe.

“It is OK, Carlo.” The elderly man consoled. “He is old enough.”

Carlo swallowed hard before he nodded his head.

“The League is here, specifically Altobelli’s men… they rounded up three guys in black and red, I think they’re Legionnaires, but I’m not for sure.” He explained, then narrowed his eyes. “I do know, however, that these men are dead. I’m not sure how, but when The League came, they entered the Center and pulled out their bodies sometime after.”

“I see.” The elder noted as he scratched his chin. “Thank you, Carlo. Please, go back inside. I’m not sure how safe things will be.”

Vito’s eyes widened in surprise as he heard Carlo’s explanation, and he soon followed Giuseppe again.

“Aren’t The League supposed to take prisoners?” He whispered.

“They are. This isn’t right…” Giuseppe replied. “Christopher’s men are professionals. They take prisoners if at all possible.”

They pushed through the crowd, and eventually they came across the Pokemon Center, which was surrounded by men in grey uniforms, and also present were the two Legione officers who had asked about Giuseppe.

“I don’t understand why we aren’t allowed to go inside. We’re The Legione, we have a right to protect Lantana!” Capitan Greco shouted at one of the League trainers.

“Apologies, uh… what was it? Centurion Greco?” the League trainer asked. “I’ve been informed by my superiors that The Legione are not allowed to assist us on this matter.”

“What?” Greco stomped forward. “Wait until the Comandante Generale hears about this!”

Comandante Generale? Vito raised his brow as he listened in on the conversation.

“Comandante Generale?” The League trainer raised a brow. “You mean Salvadore Guerra? As far as I’m concerned, he probably knows about it, but I don’t answer to him. I answer to The League, so unless you have Elite Altobelli on the line…”

“Bastardo!” Greco cursed. “You League dogs are all the same! I hope you and your men be buried in Lechonk shit!”

He and his subordinate soon turned their backs on The League trainers, leaving right in the direction of The Legione District. The crowds of people immediately stepped to the sides, allowing their so-called defenders to pass through without any trouble.

“Come, Vito.” Giuseppe ushered as he patted the boy on the back.

“Right…” Vito moved towards The League trainers.

Getting closer to the Pokemon Center, Vito noticed a few more things. The first were the noticeable scorch marks on the grass, and to the far left there were three white thin sheets placed over wide objects, all of which were the size of humans.

It hit Vito that these were the dead Legionnaires.

“Sir, please stop where you are.” The League trainer said. “The Pokemon Center is closed, I’m sorry. We’re going to have an alternative set up for the meantime if you have an emergency, so please wait-“

“My name is Giuseppe Armani.” Giuseppe introduced himself. “Elite Altobelli has informed me that I am to assume authority over The Scudi Vigili forces here.”

“An old fossil like you? No way in Hell would some peasant be given authority over us.” The League trainer snarled.

“Are you questioning my authority, boy?” Giuseppe asked, his voice now colder than ice and harder than steel. The old man stood up straight and tall and narrowed his eyes as he met the trainer’s gaze.

The League Trainer’s eyes widened as he took a step back and swallowed hard.

As Vito witnessed the exchange, he noticed something from the corner of his eye.

A man wearing the same silver and gray uniform as The League Trainer came out. He was older than the trainer, probably around in his late forties or early fifties and he had various pins and patches on his attire along with a gray beret that had the decal of an eye placed on a shield.

“What’s going on here?” the older man cried out.

“S-sir, some peasant here is claiming to have authority over us.” The League Trainer hurriedly stammered.

The man stepped closer, he narrowed his eyes, which had heavy bags underneath them and met Giuseppe’s gaze with his own, then looked down at Vito before he looked up at Giuseppe again.

“You Armani?” He asked.

“I am.” Giuseppe replied.

“Let them through!” The middle-aged man barked.

“Y-yes, Major!” The League trainer said as he stepped to the side.

The Major waved both, Vito and Giuseppe forward before he turned and began to walk towards the Pokemon Center.

“That boy looks awfully young. You know what you’re doing?” The Major asked Giuseppe.

“He’s my ward, I’m keeping an eye on him while he assists us. We should have one more.” The elderly man replied.

“I got the file, Hawthorne correct? We haven’t seen him yet. I’m Major Russo, I’m in charge of the teams deployed to Lantana.” The Major said. “Apologies about earlier, damn kids don’t know any better.”

“I’m more concerned about why there are three dead Legionnaires.” Giuseppe said. “I hope you have an explanation, Major.”

“These guys were different, old man… they had Cyanide capsules lodged in their fucking teeth.” Major Russo explained. “We couldn’t even get our psychics in their heads in time, the bastards immediately offed themselves as soon as they were beaten.”

“Wait, they… committed suicide?” Vito asked, his eyes wide. “Why? What was the point?”

The fact that they committed suicide was outrageous. Why would they kill themselves? Were they insane?

“They didn’t want our psychics going through their minds.” Major Russo said plainly. “Though, we did learn something interesting…”

The Major led the two inside of The Pokemon Center, which was completely different from what Vito had been used to.

The windows were shattered, and scorch marks were all over the floor. Once more, the floor had various computer equipment set up in the lobby along with various radios and other communication devices, and not only that, but Vito could still smell the stench of smoke despite nothing burning.

“Pi, Pika!” Pikachu chirped as he pulled on Vito’s shirt.

“What is it?” Vito asked.

Pikachu squeaked again, and pointed at the main desk which was now being ran by various League trainers… but Lucrezia was nowhere in sight.

Vito soon understood what his partner met and nodded.

“Hey, Major? There’s a Nurse who works here, her name is Lucrezia.” Vito said. “Is she alright?”

“She is. We have some medics tending to her, she didn’t get hurt badly but she inhaled some Skuntank gas.” The Major informed before looking at the desk. “Costa! Over here, show Armani what you found,” he barked.

“Yessir!” a young woman said as she moved forward with a compact laptop in hand. She wore the same gray uniform that the rest of the League trainers did, and had short dark hair and appeared to be Emile’s age.

Vito smiled as he heard the Major’s comforting words, and he let out a soft sigh of relief when he learned that she was just fine. His focus then shifted towards Costa, who had now given The Major her laptop.

As soon as The Major showed it off, he and Giuseppe were greeted with a wide spreadsheet that had names and text all over the place. The font was small, so he didn’t see much aside a few names and divisions, though it was all nonsense to him.

“This is everything The League knows about The Legione, yes?” Giuseppe asked.

“Correct, sir,” The Major confirmed. “As per the Legione-League Agreement signed after The Rocket Conflict, Salvadore Guerra agreed to then-Champion Silvano Vinci’s terms. One of those terms specifically demanded information about all Legione Armata forces, this ranges from the people in said forces, what they do, and what Pokemon they have.”

“So what does that have to do with anything?” Vito asked.

“We brought up the information to see who we were dealing with… and those three corpses out there? We don’t have anything on them. Salvadore specifically withheld this information, so for all we know the information we have is false.”

“And I take it you believe that The Legione is in fact working with the mafia?” Giuseppe questioned.

“It doesn’t matter whether I believe it or not. They’ve broken the agreement, and if they’re fighting alongside these criminals, we’ll perceive them as hostile.” The Major said.

Vito couldn’t help but smile when he heard The Major speak. The League, the useless League were finally doing something about these men, and he was going to be helping them. His heart pounded with excitement.

“We know they work near the Worker’s District.” Giuseppe said. “However, the problem is that we don’t know how far their reach goes.”

“If we start having our men looking through the homes of civilians, things will be even more hectic…” The Major remarked. “We’ll need more to go off of-“

“Major!” a radio crackled. “We have an intruder outside, he has a Gardevoir and a Glaceon and with him is… a member dressed in Legione uniform!”

“That’s Emile!” Vito energetically informed. “He’s alright!” He cried out as he moved towards the exit, with Giuseppe and Major Russo following right behind, meeting the trainer’s energetic pace.

As soon as they exited the Pokemon Center, they saw that the field outside was full of League Trainers with various Pokemon by their side, and in the center was Emile.

The veteran trainer had a scowl on his face. There was a large purple bruise on his forehead, and his dark clothes had dirt all over them, and he appeared to be trapped in various pink rectangles.

Belle and Frère were beside him as well, little emotions were on their face but Vito noticed their gazes were focused on a man in a red and dark uniform that he didn’t recognize. They were Legione colors, but that’s all he knew.

“Stand down!” Major Russo ordered. “Stand down!”

The League trainers all stepped to the side. The barrier that trapped Emile vanished, allowing him to move freely.

Vito immediately ran towards him, a smile on his face as he saw that despite everything that had gone on, his teacher still remained.

“Who’s in charge here?” Emile asked. “I have something for you. There are also two dead guys out near the farms.”

“I am. I’m Major Russo, it’s a pleasure meeting you Mr. Hawthorne.” The Major introduced, stretching his hand out.

“To you as well, Major.” Emile replied as he took the man’s hand.

“Someone, take this guy! I want him to undergo a dental check and be prepped for interrogationion ASAP!” The Major barked.

League trainers moved left and right, all but two went back to their positions, meanwhile the two trainers who hadn’t left grabbed The Legionnaire and began to move him inside The Pokemon Center.

“Emile! You’re alright!” Vito smiled.

“Hey, so are you.” Emile replied as he released The Major’s hand and ruffled Vito’s hair. “You and the old man didn’t deal with anything, did you?”

“Nuh uh. Did those guys come after you? And what happened to your forehead?” Vito asked.

“Yeah, they did… as for the latter, lets not talk about that, just something that happened last night.” The veteran trainer grumbled. “C’mon, if these guys are here then I expect we’ll be moving soon after the interrogation.”

The trainers soon walked into the Pokemon Center, and Vito heard Emile sigh as soon as they stepped inside.

---