Ace Squad.

A name that was associated with power, money, and social stature in the pokémon world. As far as the administration was concerned, there were two levels of Ace trainers—Group A and Group B. Group A was the upper class, with every single member being a winner of the Indigo League at one point or another. Group B consisted of trainers who had come up to the Top-4 in the League conferences and multiple times at that. Usually, they were handpicked by the Elite Four, in hopes of polishing them into a gem, and also, to make sure that such talent didn't go waste, or worse, get incriminated into the malicious forces trying to creep up now and then. However, there existed a special team—a mixture of Group A and Group B Aces, one that answered to Lance and only to Lance himself.

The Ryoto Brigade.

A team of exactly eighteen Ace trainers, each of them specializing in at least, a single type of pokémon, to cover all eighteen types of pokémon out there. The Ryoto Brigade was created to aid the Champion alone in defending the security of the Kanto and Johto regions.

A brigade that had been mercilessly slaughtered in less than ten seconds, by a not-quite-a-legendary pokémon known as Mewtwo.

A brigade that was now only limited to the stack of papers on his deck. Lance mused silently.

After the events of SS. Anne, Lance had created the next generation of the Ryoto Brigade almost overnight, ready to challenge the uprising threat that was Team Rocket. While it was true that Mewtwo alone had been able to defeat them without batting an eye, it also should be taken into account that the brigade (and Lance himself) were battling an entity they had no idea about. The next time it happened, he would ensure that Mewtwo got a taste of his own medicine.

He owed Charizard that much.

Strangely enough, Team Rocket hadn't behaved as he had expected. Executive Pierce had managed to get away, as had the other Executives. From the official report, it seemed like Executive Proton had been… exterminated on the cruise's deck, though not much was clear about the rest of them. A certain Executive Cassidy and Butch had lost her right arm while battling Lorelei, but that was all he knew about it. It seemed, that with the intervention of the mythical Dragonite, Team Rocket had decided to step back and watch for a while before trying another attempt at taking over the League. Even Mewtwo… Lance thought with disdain, had yet to make another presence in public.

He sent another glance at the ring on his right hand, the tetrahedral stone on it glowing brightly, even though it might never be used, ever again, as far as Lance himself was concerned.

I will avenge you, my friend.

His thoughts turned toward the newest addition to his team. The Hydreigon. Mewtwo had, in a grand display of his magnanimity, Lance thought with a snarl, gifted him the dark dragon as a replacement for his Charizard. Team Rocket's pokémon or not, the Hydreigon was damn powerful, though untrained, and was currently being trained by the rest of Lance's team, so that it could turn out to be a fitting battler in the future.

A proper addition to his team of dragons.

The phone on his desk rang loudly, as he held up the receiver, only to ask. "Have they arrived yet?"

"Yes, sir."

Lance paused for a moment. "Good. Please send them in."

He pushed his chair a little backward, trying to get himself a little more comfortable. He would need all of his patients to get through the meeting—a meeting on which a lot of things were dependent.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in." He replied, in a loud, clear tone.

The door opened as the two foremost researchers of the Kanto region stepped in, and Lance himself stood up in acknowledgment. After all, in the current scheme of things, it was extremely vital that he had these two working alongside him, not against his machinations.

He stared squarely at the faces of the two men who now stood in front of him.

Samuel Oak, and Bill Montgomery.

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[ Birth Island - Shore ]

The two trainers were walking along the seashore, enjoying the cool evening breeze as it kissed their faces.

Austin was looking at the Pokenet, it was interesting to see the internet in such an outdated form.

" What are you watching?" Cynthia curiously asked.

" Oh, it's this new invention made by the Devon Corporation. They call it the Pokenet. It is essentially a device that helps someone connect to anyone in the world."

" Impressive, maybe I should buy one too."

" I agree, I don't know about you but since I am always on the road. Getting information or news is hard. Even when I come to a city, I don't have time to watch the news or anything with the upcoming gym battles."

" Wow, that is a really useful device."

" I know right."

The duo walked in comfortable silence through the beach.

"I was thinking of burying Raticate in the Lavender tower." Austin declared, kicking a sandstone on the path, as it fell into the water.

" Hmm .... Lavender tower, the tower that is filled with mysteries that can't be explained by anyone."

" Who created, the lavender tower?" Austin curiously asked.

" That's the thing, no one knows. Some say it is the site where the people of old would sacrifice the blood of the young to calm the Spirits of the Void, some say the tower was created by Mew to seal the connection between the physical world and the astral world. Similarly, there are hundreds of legends created about the origin of the Lavender tower."

"Right. Who knows, what it would turn out like?" Cynthia rolled her eyes. "You know that there is a saying about Lavender tower that if you stay in there long enough, you will meet the spirit of the trainer who rules over the tower maybe it would just go for the kill."

"Nah, not so easy. My team would be there. I don't fear anything will happen to me."

Cynthia smiled at his admission of his faith in her but didn't comment.

"Besides, I'm thinking it is time that after we are done with your training, I'll start training them in some of the ways I thought of over the past week. About those weaknesses that need to be addressed." He continued. "Also I need to talk to Bill again, asking if he managed to do something about Charmeleon."

"Hmm?"

"Oh, I forgot to tell you about that. I called up Bill Montgomery last night, about Charmeleon."

"And?"

"He said that he would file in appropriate documentation to register him as a special kind of shiny pokémon, at least as far as official reports go."

"Unofficially?"

Austin mumbled something under his breath.

"What was that?"

"He said that he'd drive some sense into Lance."

Cynthia chortled at that.

"Hey!"

Cynthia held her hands up in surrender. "Don't worry. It's not like every other trainer out there has a Pokedex like yours that would start throwing out concerns for everybody to hear. Besides, you are an honorary associate of the Indigo League, remember?"

Austin nodded.

" Don't worry about Charmeleon. Lance is a little headstrong, I've heard, but he has his heart in the right place."

Austin raised an eyebrow.

"Um… I've heard that as well." She confessed. "From Steven."

Austin let out a breath. At least, he could trust the silver-haired former Champion, if no one else, as far as the Indigo league was concerned.

"Don't be so paranoid." She reached out for his hand. "Everything will work out for the best."

"If you say so," Austin muttered darkly.

The two continued walking, though, for some reason, Cynthia hadn't left his hand.

"Austin?"

"Huh?"

"I… got a notification from the Elite," Cynthia spoke up softly. "I am required to report back soon."

That got a reaction from him. "How soon?"

"Maybe… tomorrow morning."

Austin stopped in his tracks. "But… but this is supposed to be your vacation, right?" He asked impulsively. "What about it? Why are they, you know-?"

"I know." Cynthia frowned a little. "I know I promised you that I'd be there to help you train-"

"Screw that." Austin retorted, much to her surprise. "I'm not talking about the training. I'm talking about you. This is supposed to be a vacation for you, right? Then why are they-?"

Cynthia tried but failed to suppress a smile on her lips. "Thanks, Austin, but either way, this one day is worth a lot to me. I'll cherish it forever."

"Well…" Austin breathed. "That was the plan."

Cynthia chuckled lightly. "Either way, we cannot ignore the fact that it is your birthday."

Austin just shrugged. "Not a bloody big deal."

Since this isn't even my birthday, it's Ash's.

Austin thought as he looked at Cynthia.

"It is for me." The Sinnoh girl countered softly. "And I did think a lot about what to give you as a gift. I wanted it to be special, something to remember me by when you are off on your journey."

"Well, I have your contact number. I guess we could call up and talk sometimes."